Newborn Essentials

Since this is our second time around, I thought it might be helpful to come up with a list of items that we have found essential to our everyday lives for the newborn stage.

1. Snuza Hero-This little guy is a lifesaver...literally! It's a baby monitor that attaches to your baby's diaper and monitor's breathing. If movement is not detected after 15 seconds, it will vibrate to try and stimulate the baby. If after 5 more seconds movement is still not detected, the Snuza will sound an alarm. I am completely paranoid about SIDS and used the Angelcare monitor system with Hannah, however, Graham is sleeping in his inclined sleeper and  the Angelcare system doesn't work with that (we will use the Angelcare when we move Graham to his crib). The Snuza is portable (so we can also take it with us when we travel) and does not have wires. It literally just attaches to the baby's diaper. I would not be able to sleep at night if we did not have this. 

2. Wipe Warmer-I really like the wipe warmer for the newborn stage. However, we retired the wipe warmer when Hannah was about 3 months, and we will probably do that with Graham as well. It's perfect for keeping those chilly wipes warm for middle of the night diaper changes. Graham does not like being cold and the cold wipes would end up making him scream and more "fully" wake up. Now, I can change his diaper, give him a little 'sleep feed' and place him back in his sleeper all before he fully wakes up. I only use the wipe warmer at night though. 

3. Jolly Jumper Car Seat Cover-I did a TON of research on car seat covers. I just used a thin blanket for Hannah since she was a summer baby, but with Graham being born in the middle of winter, I wanted something a little more substantial to keep him nice and toasty. You might be surprised how much research goes into.....well, pretty much everything involved with babies. But specifically car seats. The "shower cap" style covers (covers that go over the top of the car seat) are the safest. Any cover that has fabric that goes between the baby's back and the car seat is not recommended...but I'll let you do your own research and make your own decisions. We decided on this style because it was the safest and I am not disappointed. We've had some cold, windy, and wet weather the past month and its been so nice to zip this puppy up and know Graham was warm and dry inside. 

4. Waterproof lap pads-These waterproof pads are the perfect size to lay down for on-the-go diaper changes or to protect an area. I will lay one down on top of our changing pad cover for extra protection. I also put one on our bed for diaper changes or underneath Graham while he's napping in our bed. This way any leaks or spontaneous diaper incidents don't always require everything to end up in the washing machine.

5. DayDreamer sleeper-This is the inclined sleeper we got for Graham to sleep in. It's been great for his congestion at night and I sleep easier not worrying about him choking on spit up or having trouble breathing through congestion. 

6. Boppy pillow-I love this! I use this every time I nurse Graham at home. Its just so much more relaxing to rest him on this while I nurse. I also use this when he is sleeping in my arms; I can just rest my arms on the boppy and still get to hold him without feeling like my arms are going to fall off. I like the Boppy better than the My Breast Friend pillow because when Graham gets a little more head control, we will use it for tummy time and to help him sit up...My Breast Friend pillow can only be used for nursing.

7. Bouncer-Graham doesn't love his bouncers. But we have two of them (one for each floor of our house) and they are useful to put him in when I need to put him down for a minute. I usually bring a bouncer into the kitchen with me while I cook dinner, and I will bring one into the bathroom with me while I shower and get ready for the day. 

8. Swing-Graham loves his swing! We keep ours downstairs and I will usually put him down for his nap in this while we are all downstairs. I also sometimes use this to put him down when I need free arms. Some people prefer to purchase either a bouncer or a swing...but I believe both are essential. The bouncer is small and portable, which is nice when you want to be able to bring the baby with you, but also have free arms. The swing is nice to give the baby a swinging motion to help calm them down. 

9. Swaddle blankets. We swaddle Graham for all his naps and at bedtime. He loves being all snuggled up close and tight. I LOVE the Aden and Anais blankets (along with pretty much every other mom). They are perfect for swaddling. We also use the Halo Sleepsack Swaddle, which Graham also really loves.

10. NoseFrida-Love this thing. It looks scary and gross....but no worries...it isn't. And it's much more efficient than the suction bulbs, which is easier on baby...which makes it easier on you.

11. Vaseline- We used an entire jar of Vaseline in the first week of Graham's life. Between his circumcision healing and dealing with meconium diapers, Vaseline was an essential part of diaper changing. Friendly Mama tip: putting Vaseline on the baby's bottom after you clean it will help with the next diaper change. Especially in the first few days. Meconium is incredibly difficult to wipe off, but if the baby's bottom is coated in Vaseline, it will wipe right off.

12. Baby K'tan- Graham and I both love this. Its so comfy and easy to put on and Graham loves being snuggled tight and close to me. I keep it in our diaper bag and will put him in it every time we go out. It also allows my arms to be free so that I can still tend to Hannah and participate with her at her activities. We also have the Ergobaby with the infant insert, but haven't had a chance to use it yet.

So those are the twelve items that we have used almost daily since bringing out little guy home. And most of those items we also used regularly with Hannah...and I'm still recommending them, so you know they are good. ;)

Graham Ryan: 1 Month

*This is one week late...but we've been sick, so I haven't had time to post.

Weight/Length: 10 lbs 13 oz (75th-90th percentile) 22.5 inches (75th-90th percentile)

Hair/Eyes: Hair is light. He has the sweetest little peach fuzzy's on the top of his head. Eyes are bright blue. Love them!

Diapers: He's filling out his size 1 diapers much better, despite his tiny little legs and no-butt.

Clothing: 0-3 month and some 3 month clothes.

Favorite things: Mama's milks and being held.

Likes: Looking around, he's getting more and more curious! He loves being held and listening to Mama sing and talk to him. He loves smiling and cooing; its about the sweetest thing I've ever seen. He loves laying quietly on his back in his crib...I think it's his spot to just rest and be calm from the chaos that is big sister Hannah. ;) He loves snuggling up in his baby carrier (Baby K'tan).

Dislikes: The two main culprits are gas pains and being cold. His gas pains are still bugging him, but they have gotten noticeably better (and I didn't end up having to eliminate dairy...I tried and didn't notice much of a difference). He doesn't love bath time, but is fine when we run the warm water over him. He is getting better about diaper changes and the coldness of the wipes, but still isn't a huge fan. He also does not like getting his little nose suctioned out...which unfortunately has to happen a lot due to his congestion.

Sleeping: Still sleeping pretty well. He's been more congested at night lately, so we have him sleeping on his reclined sleeper every night, which seems to help. He naps on and off throughout the day and then usually goes down for bed anytime between 9-10 pm. He has his longest stretch of sleep during the first part of the night...so he'll usually sleep from about 9-10pm until about 2-3am. After that he will eat and doze off every hour or so until it's time for me to get up. Unfortunately I have not been able to get myself to fall asleep any earlier than 11pm...so even though he sleeps for a good 5 hours in the night, I am only sleeping for a few hours of that. And then I just doze off with him during the second half of the night, but I don't get a good sleep in since he feeds on demand during that time. Someday I'll figure it out! :)

Health: He had his first cold; lots of sneezing and coughing. Poor guy. He also broke out into a pretty awful rash on his face and cradle cap on his head. Our pediatrician said to just keep his face and head clean and it will clear up on its own in time, but I've been experimenting with putting breast milk on his rash and cradle cap....and its working! Hopefully it will be gone in no time.

Milestones: He has lots of smiles, its so cute. He's also starting to try and mimic our faces. He'll open his mouth wide when I open mine and tries SO hard to stick out his tongue when I stick out mine. He's also starting to coo at us when we talk to him. It's my favorite thing about the newborn stage...so sweet to hear their little voices. Now that his cord is off, we've been doing more tummy time, which he tolerates pretty well. He loves looking around and will try to kick his little legs back to move forward. I'm thinking he will crawl earlier than Hannah did....she just laid there with her head up during tummy time. ;) He's been on many play dates and shopping trips so far...thanks to big sister. I usually keep him in his baby wrap to keep strangers and germs away, but he mostly just sleeps through everything anyways.

Mama Thoughts: I'm down 23 pounds and seem to have stalled here. Unfortunately I still have about 18 pounds to lose until I'm back to my pre-pregnancy weight...and then an additional 8 pounds to get to my pre-Hannah weight! So still a lot of work to do!

It's been so much fun watching Graham and Hannah interact. Graham has gone from being very skeptical of his big sister, to completely amused and content by her. When he is fussing Hannah will go over to him and talk to him or try to put his binky in to calm him down. Sometimes she will be playing and will just randomly get up and go sit by Graham and give him a kiss. It literally makes me cry to see her being so sweet to her little brother. I love how much she loves him.

Letter: 
Little man,
               I can't believe you are already 1 month old! It doesn't even seem possible that it's been a whole month since we walked into that operating room and met you for the first time. You have been such an amazingly easy baby. I keep waiting for the "period of purple crying" that we most definitely experienced with Hannah....but you don't seem to have any specific time of extreme fussiness. In fact, you only fuss when you are hungry and if you are cold.
              My favorite thing you do right now is your coo'ing and smiling. You smile at me the second you see my face and you start cooing. I really think you are trying to talk to me and it's so cute. I also love that you look around the whole room for me when you hear my voice.
             I really can't believe how lucky we are to have you in our lives. You are the perfect addition to our family, little man. These past 4 weeks have been the best and I have loved you for every second of every one of them!
       I love you.
Love,
       Mama