tomorrow a new point of view…

(almost) 2 months in…my baby “stuff” review.

first, i need to address the overwhelming response about losing. i want to thank everyone for the support through comments, messages, emails, texts and the like. weight is a very passionate subject for women. no doubt. i truly have the most incredible support system around me who make me feel like a million bucks. however…i do need to further explain myself on a few things:

1. i honestly do not care what i weigh. i don’t. i made a deal with myself a long time ago that a number can not dictate how i feel about myself. with all the weightlifting and running i do, sometimes the number just doesn’t match the effort. so i am not focused on getting back to that pre-pregnancy number. it’s the truth. i know, with the effort, it will come in time.
2. the biggest problem i am facing is that i have no clothes that fit. none. zip. zero. that is my struggle. i literally wear the same skirt mixed with different maternity shirts, and if i am feeling fancy, maybe i will throw on a pair of maternity jeans. i went shopping for the first time on saturday, and after an hour trying on clothes, i ended up with a shirt.

it’s a start i guess.

3. i forget every struggle when holding my baby. and i remember, it was all worth it.

whew, that’s enough of that.

now that we are almost 2 months in (8 weeks yesterday!), i have a new list of “stuff” i have come to love. here it is, in no particular order:

1. the BOB revolution stoller

i didn’t think i would be able to use this until Hazel grew a little bigger, but i realized i would never get to run when i wanted. it was difficult to sync jasen’s schedule with mine, so i bit the bullet, and with my groupon plus a credit at goores, i decided to splurge and buy the infant seat adapter.

worth it.

see how happy she is after our first ride/run together?

2. my breast friend.

it’s a no joke nursing pillow. i first heard about it on “bethany ever after”, and it’s true, i try to copy parenting tips from a real house wife of whatever city. (while you shake your head in disgust, please know this was also recommended by kaiser.)

i truly love this pillow. i feel lost without it. so what if there is baby spit-up and soy sauce stains on the cover?

it has been loved by the both of us.

3. the puj tub.

i know what you are thinking, who would spend $40 on an infant tub? i would, for the convenience of storage and simplicity and the fact that Hazel LOVES IT! when we are done, i just hang it on the back of the door, out of the way. plus, i used a gift card for it, so i most likely used your money.

win-win!

4. medela nipple shield

our pediatrician gave this to me to help with some soreness. enough said.

lastly, well, i will let this video speak for itself.

one month

i think this pretty much sums up our first month. why didn’t anyone worn us about the crying?

i kid, i kid.

she isn’t always crying. just when she is awake.

we used sticky bellies for the photos, and it looks like they have different designs and stickers for pregnancy as well. i can officially say, “well, they didn’t have that when i was pregnant!”

to celebrate being an experienced mother of 5 weeks, there are a few things i would like to share.

1. you can never get enough head, face and lip kisses from your baby.
i mean, seriously. if you are around, and want to hold hazel, you may have to watch for the land mine of saliva dripping through her hair.

2. no babies are created equal.
not that my baby is better than another (but she is), but babies are different. and moms are different. and parenting styles are different. what works for the goose may not work for the gander. wait, is that the right analogy? what works for one may not work for other. i thought many things pre- baby about what i thought i would/wouldn’t do, but things change once you are left alone with the baby dinosaur who only wants to eat and eat and eat and eat.

and eat and eat and eat.

3. people will give your their opinion whether you ask or not.
like i said before, we are doing things different than expected. however, i am afraid to share “what we do” in fear of someone’s extreme opinion. so if you hear me say, “well, i am glad that works for you”, then run away from me. because you have annoyed me with your unwelcome advice, and you are 13 seconds away from a punch in the stomach.

4. babies poop a lot.
at least mine does. we are planning on cloth diapering, but our baby’s bum is still too small to fit them. we have really loved the seventh generation brand, but it is amazing how quickly we go through a package.

5. the baby swing is worth the investment.
we really tried to only buy what we thought we would use, and decided to wait on other things. our sweet baby loves to be held. call it spoiled if you want, but this baby girl will only be this small for a short time. we want to take advantage of every moment. well, until we have to shower, use the bathroom, make the bed, wash dishes, write thank you notes…just to name a few. we’ve tried the baby Bjorn, which usually works. however, my little space heater causes a terrible amount of back sweat. but do love it. especially with the adorable cover from my little roo. we don’t have the soft all organic cotton bjorn, but the hand-me-down version is just as lovely…because it was free!

i realize that i started this paragraph talking about one product and ended discussing another. sorry about that. i am just really passionate about products that have made parenthood a little easier. so, back to the swing. my mom told me a few times, “you should get a swing” and i blew her off. i don’t know why. the other day, after having a very long day of holding baby t-rex, i had enough. when jasen came home from work, i told him (not asked him) i’m getting a swing. i didn’t have time to check craigslist or read reviews.

i was desperate.

so, armed with a couple of target gift cards, i came home with this:

meet our life savor swing-by-me swing. it is cute with its little owls. i wanted a different one…but this one was half the price. let’s see if it holds up. baby girl has been in it for 2+ hours this morning asleep.

HALLELUJAH!

so, we are off and running into parenthood. we are exausted and worn out and totally in love. we love her sighs and squeaks and baby dinosaur noises. how could you not be? just look at this face!