Anyway! Say hello to the new mum in town. My new life consists of surviving on zero sleep, keeping my newborn alive, cleaning and sterilising bottles for life, dealing with shitty explosions. Thats my new hobby changing nappies oh and not forgetting my new daily accessory of baby drool, pee, sick or poop.
When people used to say to me when pregnant "get as much sleep in now as you won't get any when the baby comes" this used to annoy me! But now I know what they mean, but when you're a big fat sweaty pregnant whale in the Summer sleeping doesn't really happen in the end. I would definitely go back to my pregnant days some nights when my little bunny is misbehaving and keeping me awake into the am.
Feeding
Peaches started out on Aptamil first milk, but then we ended up having to change it to the Aptamil comfort milk as she was suffering with colic really bad and constipation, bless her. This was super stressful at the time as I didn't know what was wrong with her. Then when we changed milk I didn't know you had to up the teat size, so the milk wasn't coming out. We sorted it in the end thanks to Peaches Nannan and Grandad. Luckily this milk helped with both of her problems and she was such a happy baby once we changed her over. She was having comfort milk and collie. Colief is a godsend for babies with colic. It's expensive, but so worth every single penny! There's nothing worse than seeing your little babies in pain.
Sleeping
The first 2-3 weeks are crazy! I was surviving on 1-2 hours sleep a day as I was adamant that something was going to go wrong if I left the baby in her moses basket. When she was asleep at night I'd be watching over her constantly to make sure she was breathing. It rally does takes over you. So a top tip would be to just relax and sleep when the baby sleeps. He/she is going to be just fine. I wish I would of relaxed a bit more, but I'll put it down to being a first time mum.
From about 8/9 weeks Peaches was sleeping from 11pm until 6am without waking me up in the night and I felt amazing! (It didn't last forever, but you'll hear about that another time).
Things you can do with your 0-3 month old baby and things that I've found useful
- Tummy time - My little Peaches isn't the biggest fan, but I still do it with her every single day as I want her to get used to it. Even if its for a short period of time. Tummy time is great for strengthening your babies muscles and upper core.
- Play gym - She absolutely loved this between the stages of 0-3 months. She would lay there looking at herself in the mirror and would be pulling on the little toys attached. Another great way to introduce tummy time as well. Turn them over and roll a blanket under them if they don't like to lay flat.
- Bouncy/swinging chair - Probably the best investment for a newborn baby! Peaches used to love laying in the chair with it swinging. She would fall asleep in there. A great way to have a bath in piece too! Just take it upstairs with you. I used to take mine in the bathroom, in the kitchen to do the bottles, dishes and dinner etc. She also liked to be propped in front on the tv with some baby songs on.
- Read books - It may seem silly as she won't really understand what you're saying to her, but its a great way to interact with your baby and a good way to introduce a chill time before bed.
- Go out for walks - My baby sometimes wouldn't settle in the afternoon, but if I popped her in the pram and tuck the dogs out. She would fall asleep every single time! It also helps
Favourite Memories
Number one) Bringing Peaches home from the hospital and introducing her to the dogs and the rest of my family and friends. She settled into the crazy dog house quite well and the dogs didn't do too bad either.
Number two) Having our first 'sleeping through' experience
Number three) Dressing her in her first "proper" outfit. I obviously mean something other than a baby grow, but I do love them in baby grows.
Number 4) Giving Peaches her first bath. (3,4 baths later and she loved it and still does).
Number 5) Taking her out for her first walk with the dogs. She ended up doing a shit explosion. Thanks for that little en'.
Number 6) Seeing Peaches first smile and hearing her first belly laugh. Those little belly laughs are still my favourite noise.
Number 7) Having our first 'sleeping through' experience
My least favourite memories have probably been colic for definite, the shitty explosions, especially when we changed her milk. It was up her back every time for a few weeks. Also the lack of sleep, but now it's hard to remember what normal feels like. Thank the mighty lord for coffee and bourbon biscuits.
Anyway I've rambled on more then I intended too. I hope you enjoyed reading about our first 3 months together. I've really enjoyed it and couldn't imagine my life without her. I still can't believe I'v created a little human!
Chanelle Jade