If Its Not One Thing…

…Its another.

We are all aware about the different “phases” that our babies will go through. The growth spurts, wonder weeks, hunger strikes (those really happen!), but what I have considered the worst of them all: sleep regression.

Ah, the fourth month wakeful… Ethan has never been the best of sleepers (every two hours at night is still the norm). However, he had been pretty easy to put down: shush, rock, sleep. Even last week, he gave me some long stretches, including a 7.5 hrs one. He had also been taking one long nap in the morning, normally 2 hours, which allowed me to shower, eat lunch, and work on my crafty side!. 

And then, my little monster turned 4 months, and all hell broke lose. The cat naps have returned, and I am lucky if I get 3 hours out of him for his longest stretch of the night. He has also decided that no position is comfortable enough, so we play the guessing game for at least 45 minutes every time he goes to sleep.

Feeding him has also been a challenge. Apparently, everything around him is ten times more interesting than eating during the day. And then, night time comes, and you would think I have been starving this kid, because all he wants to do is eat every hour or two!

So, as I ride this wave and pray for this phase to be over soon, I look at my little peanut, and realize that no matter how hard he fights his naps or how often I have to feed him, there is nothing more amazing than looking into his eyes and falling in love all over again.

Oh, How the Mighty Have Fallen…

As I watched my son sleeping on his tummy (which I said I would never do) on the video monitor (which I said I would never get), I realized how many things I have done with my son that I used to judge other mothers for. Yes, this post is a mea culpa, in which I am about to admit all the things that I once judged others for that I now do myself.

Ethan is a horrible sleeper. And by horrible, I mean up every 1.5 to 2 hours. I always swore I would move him out of our room as soon as possible and that I would NEVER have him sleep in bed with me. Well, in the last few weeks, I have had a few large pieces of humble pie. He is still in our room, after trying the bassinet and rock and play with no success. He finally sleeps somewhat decently when next to me in bed. Also, no matter how many times I tried to put him to sleep on his back, he kept rolling onto his belly, so I gave up on that one also. When we finally decided that it was time to move him to his crib, I cried; I could  not imagine not seeing his little sleepy face in the middle of the night, not being able to cuddle him when he seemed to be having a nightmare, or not being able to feed him right away when he seemed hungry.

Humble pie piece numero dos: The dreaded video monitor. I swore up and down that I would not be one of those moms who got a video monitor, because I saw no reason to stare at my son while sleeping the entire night. Boy, was I wrong! After seeing me upset about moving Ethan, Stephen bought a video monitor, which has been life saving for my sanity. I do stare at him all night, and I secretly count the minutes until he wakes up so I can go sweep him out of his crib and into bed with me.

Breastfeeding was another big one in my book. I am ashamed to admit that I wasn’t convinced about breastfeeding for more than three months or so. I always said I would just exclusively pump. Yeah, so not the case anymore. I LOVE breastfeeding. I love the bond that it has created between us and how good it is for him. Not only that, but I no longer care about nursing in public. I haven’t had to, but if need be, I have no issues with finding somewhere where I can just throw on my cover and feed my child. If adults can go to restaurants and eat without hiding, why should my son have to hide?.

Since being moved into his crib and sleeping on his tummy, Ethan has slowly been getting better at napping. Sometimes I wonder if babies know more than we do, and that we are better off just following their lead for when they are ready for things. Though I admit to still judging some things that others do, I am much more open minded about things like sleeping arrangements or feeding my child whenever or wherever.

In summary, I have gained about 10lbs worth of humble pie, and I am sure I have at least another 20lbs to go!

Peace out, 4th Trimester!

The first three months have come and gone. Ethan is the absolutely perfect baby. So much so, that we are still waking up two or three times a night, eating every three hours, and pooping as if the world depended on it. Yes, this all may sound as big time, overly bitter, sarcasm. However, it is not.

The number one thing that motherhood as taught me these first three months, is to expect the unexpected. As in, you will hear of babies your child’s age already sleeping through the night, taking days to poop, teething, etc. Well, not my kid! and for some reason, that is ok!

So, in honor of the unexpected, here is a list of things that you should NEVER tell a first time mom, mainly because they are probably WRONG, and very likely to make her incredibly stabby:

1. “Sleep now, because when the baby comes, you won’t”
This is the biggest lie of all. No matter how much you sleep before your child is born, you still won’t once he is here. Its called survival. You will be up because either your boobs will hurt, your baby will make a sound in his sleep, or (like most moms) you will be absolutely paranoid after hearing one hundred horror stories about children dying in their sleep, or rolling over to their belly, etc. So no, even if you sleep for a month straight (and you won’t, because anyone who has been pregnant knows that sleeping in the third trimester is impossible) you still won’t be ready for what is coming your way.

2. “It gets much easier after three months”
For the record, it does not. Yes, it gets more entertaining and they get cuter (those gummy smiles are to die for!), but it doesn’t get easier. Chances are you have my luck and your kid is still not sleeping through the night. So, enjoy those middle of the night baby cuddles, they make it all worth it.

3. “Don’t give them a pacifier, it will cause nipple confusion”
Do yourself a favor, and give the kid the pacifier. They suck for comfort (oh, the irony…), so unless you want your nipple to fall off, or you are ready to never sleep again, go ahead and don’t give them one. Or, you can do what I did and ignore that kind of advice. Trust me, you won’t regret it.

4. “Stop picking him up all the time, you will spoil him”
No, you won’t. Unless your kid can walk already, not picking them up would make functioning highly difficult. And no, you cannot spoil a newborn.

5. “I used to do (enter stupid outdated practice here) all the time and you turned out fine”
Its called research. It evolves through time and proves that, clearly, luck was on our side when we survived after our parents smoked and drank during pregnancy and let us sleep completely unattended on your stomach with those overly priced fluffy bumpers. (Fine, I’m ok with belly sleeping, but you get my point.)

6. “I had children, I know what I am doing.”
One of my biggest pet peeves! It’s hard enough for a mom to leave their new bundle of joy with someone else, so whenever someone tells me that it makes me want to smack them. Yes you have children, but you didn’t have my child, so unless you live in my brain and know what I want, please take the time to listen to what I want.

7. “You don’t want to be that mom who calls the pediatrician about everything”
Yes, you do.

8. “Sleep when the baby sleeps”
No, shower when the baby sleeps, eat when the baby sleeps, clean when the baby sleeps, knit when the baby sleeps… I don’t care what you do, but one thing is certain, when the baby sleeps, you do anything in your power to feel human again.

9. “Breastfeeding will help you lose the weight so fast!”
Sigh… I was really counting on this one to be true. But what they don’t tell you is that breastfeeding makes you hungry, and you end up snacking on whatever you can get your hands on.

10. “Give him formula at night so he sleeps better!”
Now, let me preface by saying that I have absolutely nothing against formula, and that I am one of those people that believes that feeding your baby is the right thing, no matter how you do it (doh!). But, with that said, If you are exclusively breast feeding, there is nothing more annoying than having people tell you to give your child formula just so they sleep longer, mainly because IT IS NOT TRUE. Again, sleeping is a crapshoot, either you get a good sleeper, or you don’t.

So, what say you readers, any other lessons that you would like to share?

Until next time!

On the Road to Mommy Land!

Today marks 37 weeks and 6 days of pregnancy, as well as my first time delving into mommy blogging. It has been an incredibly long 9 months, and if it wasn’t for my constant internet involvement through forums and research, I don’t think I would have survived.

So here I am, ready(ish) for motherhood. You might be thinking “is anyone EVER ready?” and frankly, I have been asking myself the same thing. The answer, as far as I am concerned, is YES. I am ready to expect the unexpected, to screw up more times that I would like to admit, to become a professional on “trial and error”, to completely change my life, and to fall in love all over again.

Ethan Marc is due on October 19. The idea of having to wait at least 2 more weeks is daunting at best. I am running out of things to do, yet I am too tired to complete those that are left undone. If I could list the amount of things I have thought about doing during this time, this blog would be endless. Alas, I have decided to keep it short, and sweet.

I don’t expect this blog to be filled with puppies and rainbows. Frankly, I find it refreshing to read about the things that nobody ever tells you about pregnancy and about motherhood. So, If you plan on following my journey (and I hope you do!), expect to read the honest truth about it all.

Thank you for reading, and thank you for getting on board with me. Let the games begin!