My Top 5 Must Have Items for a Newborn

When you're a new mom, you receive tons of items that sometimes don't necessarily work for you. I'm glad that my little blueberry isn't entirely picky and she didn't have a problem being comfy or sleeping anywhere, but I decided to list a few of the baby items that made a huge difference for us.

5 Baby Products that worked for me by hurrayimamommy on Polyvore

1. The Summer Infants Swaddle Me Swaddle- These  have helped me immensely. Not only do I not have to worry about swaddling my baby the right way but I don't have to worry about her getting loose from the blankets and the blankets covering her face at night. It's simple and keeps my baby calm.
2. Boppy Designer Nursing Pillow & Slip Cover Owl Forest- This was a great help when I was struggling with breastfeeding my baby, then it was still great support when giving my baby her bottle. Additionally we have been able to use it to prop her up a little bit, for tummy time and even as neck support for my husband.
3. Lansinoh mOmma feeding bottle- Since my baby didn't breastfeed, we were able to pump and feed it to her in a bottle. We struggled with finding the perfect bottle that would help her stay latched on, reduce colic and reduce any milk spilling out while she was drinking it. Funny enough, I had received one of these bottles as a gift from Target for signing up for my gift registry there. We ended it buying way more because these really worked best for us, by a long-shot.
4. Bright Starts Portable Swing- This was a gift from my mom and has really been a blessing. We had other swings but strangely enough, I felt like they went way too fast to the point where I felt like my baby was going to blast into orbit! This has 7 speed settings and is super light weight, which makes it easy to transport. The only thing I would have loved would be for it to have a reset button to re-inciate the swinging motion without turning it off and on again.
5. Taggies Soothe and Snuggle Me Sleeper- This sleeper has been a perfect place for my baby to nap during the day. Although it doesn't rock, it still is super comfortable and snug for her. It also has the availability of vibration but my baby for some reason doesn't really care for any of that. This is also super lightweight and easy to store which is great for someone (like me), who has a smaller space.

Of course there are many items that have worked for us but these are the ones that have made a huge difference and well they made these first time parents a tiny bit more comfortable when it came to bringing home a newborn.

Having a baby vs owning a puppy

Recently my husband mentioned to me how a mutual friend of ours tried to compare and relate owning a puppy to having a baby. Keep in mind this friend is married but does not yet have children. I still remember the face I made when my husband began to tell me about the conversation, (I'm sure I have pretty prominent frown lines now).

His friend owns a puppy
We have (parent) a baby

The conversation came about when my husband mentioned that many new fatherly duties have made him extremely tired yet incredibly happy, to which his friend responded that he could relate (you know, with his puppy and all). My husband tried to explain how the two didn't compare, but his friend insisted that the two are quite alike...

*Full Disclosure*

I own a very very spoiled Yorkie whom I had since she was 6 weeks old, so I am definitely not hating on puppies here.

How can the comparison exist?

• You CAN leave to work and leave your puppy at home with a bowl of food and pee pad.
• You CAN'T leave a baby unattended...ever! Not to mention that babies need to eat every 2 hours, more or less. 

• You CAN leave a pee pad for your dog to pee on periodically throughout the day.
• You CAN'T leave a baby sitting in their own pee or poo. Not to mention that the cost of diapers is it's own conversation considering that on occasions our baby will go through a little less than 100 diapers in one week.

• You CAN indulge in at least 5 hours of interrupted sleep while your puppy sleeps comfortably on their own bed. If you are unlucky, you might have the OCCASIONAL puppy crier who just want to come on the bed, but once they're up on the bed...all is well.
• You CAN'T always have 4 hours of straight sleep. Babies wake up because they're hungry and well I'm the pumping food supply. My husband warms and prepares a bottle and I get to pump...at any given hour of the night. Baby's diaper also needs to be changed at this time and calming songs may come in handy while she waits (cries hysterically) for her milk to come. 

I could really go on and on, but instead, I'll highlight a few of the perks of being a parent (even with bags under my eyes)

• Our daughter is the result of the love between my husband and I.
• It is incredible to realize that this being grew within me and now as she is before our eyes, we can see little characteristics that completely resemble both my husband and I.
• I went through a rough pregnancy, labor and delivery just to be able to hold this miracle and that's only the beginning of things I would do for her. 
• I praise God for the gift of being a Mommy and accept the huge responsibility of shaping this tiny human into a warrior, teaching her to take on life and fulfill her dreams.

All in all, there is just no comparison and I know that when this friend decides to start a family...He too will realize why I would take offense to his comment.

Breastfeeding & Pumping Struggles

This is a post to continue to encourage myself and hopefully encourage anyone who is having struggles similar to mine.

I decided I wanted to breastfeed Ariana from the moment I found out I was pregnant. Actually, it was never really an option as much as a given. You have a baby, so you breastfeed (or so I thought). I went throughout my pregnancy just having that in mind.

With the precious arrival of my baby, I did not expect to have issues with breastfeeding.

While in the hospital, all was well. My baby only needed very little amount of colostrum at that time and I managed to squeeze and hold on tight while she latched on. At this point, baby seemed to be content. It's as if she was waiting for us to leave the hospital to really express how hungry she was.

The first night home was incredibly insane!
She cried a cry that was quite terrifying and she wouldn't latch properly! I could tell she was hungry by the way she would try to find the source of milk (colostrum) at any cost but it wasn't good enough. I believe the term is hangry (lol). We finally gave up and called the helpline from the hospital and they ok'd for us to give her formula. My hubby rushed to buy her formula before the sun was even out and she finally calmed down once she ate.

Then 2 days later my milk supply came in, which was quite unpleasant. If I ever had a thought in my mind to get breast implants, that pain quickly got those thoughts way out and to never be brought up again. Anyway, I thought once my milk supply came in that all would be well with the world. Nope, baby was still quite unhappy and I was engorged and in pain.

We went to her doctors appointment and there I found out that indeed a mix of my breast/nipples and her mouth were having a misunderstanding when it came to latching. This was quite devastating due to the fact that It's a big deal for myself as a woman to be able to provide for my baby and for someone to tell me that it might look like it won't happen unless I just sit there in pain and almost bleeding every time. Gladly I decided to look at my options and try the next best thing, pumping.

Pumping was like magic to me. No pain, super quick and you can store it for later. Now that I have been pumping for almost 2 months I must admit, I have lost the momentum! It's pretty exhausting to wash everything every 2-4 hours and sterilize it, store it, freeze it (milk), warm it up, on and on. I see why the people that choose to give formula decide on it. Its much easier (in my opinion).

I mentioned a thing or two to my lactation consultant at my last appointment with her and she said something to me that really stayed with me. It's also very true:

 If I haven't done anything else in my life to be considered "an achievement", with this, I think I'm doing pretty well!

Hang in there!

-Susana