I've been a mother almost three months. Woohoo! Within three months there are a few items that I've realized I've used over and over again. My life would be significantly harder without:
My Brest Friend - I used this starting in the hospital and it was WONDERFUL. Pillows just couldn't support Cannon well while breastfeeding. He would slip down in between them and me and I would end up just holding him with my arms. The My Brest Friend (obviously named by a man, because what woman in her right mind really wants to go around calling a pillow by that name?) has the best support. I can literally strap that thing on and walk around the house with Cannon on it!
Woombie - We loved the Miracle Blanket (see below), but our apartment was so hot this summer that it terrified me to wrap him all the layers of most swaddle blankets. He didn't sleep well unswaddled, so we ordered The Woombie. We LOVE it. Not only is it cooler (there's even a lightweight, summer version that we ordered), but it's so much easier than swaddling him in a blanket. You just lay in on the Woombie and zip it right up. Much more convenient for middle of the night diaper changes.
You can see Cannon in his very own Woombie
here.
Miracle Blanket - We used this for the first month and off and on for the second month. This was the only swaddle blanket Cannon could not escape from. Apparently we birthed Houdini because no matter how tightly we'd swaddling him in a blanket his little arms and legs always found a way out. And, while he would resist having his arms by his side at first, he would soothe within 30 seconds of being put in this blanket.
Sleep Sheep - If we have one sleep crutch it's this Sleep Sheep. Now, the sheep has four soothing sounds: a heart beat, ocean waves, rain falling and whales. Have you ever heard whales? It's an interesting blend of white noise and squealing. Would you believe that Cannon only likes the whale noises? I try to put him to bed to the ocean telling him it's so relaxing, blah, blah, blah, blah. He can be fidgeting and fussy, but the minute I turn on his friends the whales he perks right up and quiets down. Magical!
Lap Pads - These little changing pad liners have saved me so much laundry I can't tell you how much I LOVE them! I keep them in the diaper bag and on our changing table. Instead of having to wash the entire changing pad cover when he has a blow out or spits up, all I do is whisk this little pad into the laundry basket and replace it with a clean one!
Ultimate Crib Sheet - Have you ever changed a fitted crib sheet? In the middle of the night? Yea, neither have I thanks to these little inventions. Our fitted crib sheets are a fabulous yellow that goes with out
grey and yellow theme, but they are a booger to get on and off. Mainly because you're having to lean over a crib bar and change the sheet from only one side of the crib (our crib's up against a wall). Well, these handy dandy sheets just snap around the crib bars, so I can pop them on and off easily if Cannon leaks through a diaper or spits up.
Moby Wrap - Now, don't get me wrong, I think there's a learning curve to using this thing that no one ever told me about. I just heard everyone gushing about how much they loved the Moby Wrap, but then when it turned out to be a little hard to use and slow to put on I was disappointed. It took me several weeks of trying it out almost every day to finally feel like I know how to use it well. But now that I know several ways of wearing the Moby Wrap it's the only way I enjoy taking Cannon out of the house. He fusses too much if I just leave him in his car seat in the Snap & Go, but if I wear him (facing me if he's sleepy, facing outwards if he's alert) he's content as a bug in a rug.
BabyCenter Emails - This is not a necessity, but BabyCenter sends me emails every month telling me about where Cannon should be developmentally. They give me things to anticipate over the next month and little activities to do with him to help him grow. It's just informative and I like it!
Happiest Baby on the Block - Danny and I watched this video when Cannon was about a week old. It saved us countless headaches. It basically shows you five different soothing techniques that will instantly calm your fussing/crying/out-of-control baby. I couldn't believe how well and how quickly they would work to calm Cannon. The book was book to read, but the video was even better because you can see Dr. Karp actually doing the techniques. It was after watching this video that we realized we weren't swaddling Cannon tightly enough or shushing him loud enough.
Dunstan Baby Language - Again, a friend recommended this to me and I can't believe I ever lived without this. It's insane! It literally teaches you how to discern the sounds your baby is making to understand what they want. As Cannon has gotten older and has been on a routine/schedule, I know why he's fussing based on what time of day it is, but when he was little and eating and sleeping so frequently this was SO helpful!
Now, every baby and mom are different, so you might need a whole other set of tricks up your sleeve, but these are things that have made life easier for us! Hopefully they might be useful to you!
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