Is this your first baby? - Page 2 « Back to Group Discussions

[lolliegee]

I agree with Kalista, all you really need is a car seat, a good carrier, diapers and clothes. Sure, a comfy rocking chair is nice, but not required. As for nursing, once you get the hang of it, you don't even have to sit up, you can lay on your side on your bed and have baby beside you to nurse. It's one of the awesome benefits of bed sharing. You can sleep and nurse at the same time. Makes us slightly more rested than other new mamas. Also, since we're having summer babies, yard sales are a great way to get some super deals on clothes.

[InLove2009]

I went to motherhood maternity today. Spend $140 on a few panties, two shirts, two dress pants and a belly belt... WOW!!! so expensive! I saw they had like a big pillow that would lay along side me. I am a tummy sleeper, is that something that would help? I fall asleep on my side but wake up on my stomach because my hips get so sore sleeping on them... What do you guys do?

[wrenmoon]

The body pillow will save your pubic bone and your hips and back.

I had a body pillow last time around named Juan. Juan was purple and was the best thing in the world. My husband was so jealous of him. When I went out of town he would put Juan in the closet and take pictures of him and threaten to tie him up. I think there are quite a few husbands out there who are jealous of their wives body pillows.

After the baby is born you can use your Juan to block the edge of the bed (with a sheet over it of course) so your rolling babe won't fall off the bed during a nap. A Juan is a very useful thing. And he doesn't argue with anything you say. I highly recommend finding a Juan.

You could also name him Hans.

[lolliegee]

Okay, you had me literally giggling out loud here. I'm going to have to get me a new Juan. My old Juan is too thin now and he just doesn't support me like he used to.

[here we are]

Body pillow recommendation made of all breatheable materials are welcome:) , no polyester for me, i like cotton when i dont think.about chemicals , have heard of kapok but am resistant to new things..i need to learn how to post my links so we can look at options together.

[Lucystar]

I want to do a bunch of sewing this spring, and body pillow might be on the sewing list! On the subject of pillows - Have any of you experienced mamas used boppy pillows for nursing? I am interested in sewing my own & filling it with buckwheat hulls. What do you think?
 

[wrenmoon]

I only used a boppy for the first month or so, I didn't really like it so much. I know other moms who swear by theirs. I have a very short torso so once I sat down and put that pillow around me I felt like the baby was practically to my chin and I had to prop my breast up to reach. I found that a pillow under my holding arm worked best. Maybe for longer torso mamas the boppy works well?

[InLove2009]

Originally Posted by wrenmoon 

The body pillow will save your pubic bone and your hips and back.
I had a body pillow last time around named Juan. Juan was purple and was the best thing in the world. My husband was so jealous of him. When I went out of town he would put Juan in the closet and take pictures of him and threaten to tie him up. I think there are quite a few husbands out there who are jealous of their wives body pillows.
After the baby is born you can use your Juan to block the edge of the bed (with a sheet over it of course) so your rolling babe won't fall off the bed during a nap. A Juan is a very useful thing. And he doesn't argue with anything you say. I highly recommend finding a Juan.
You could also name him Hans.

LOL!  I am laughing out load here, getting weird looks from the husband! Any particular brand you would recommend or are the all pretty much the same? Thanks! 

[dayiscoming2006]

You could get a fancy body pillow or if you need to save money, you can just buy some cheap basic body pillow(s.) I have 2 body pillows that I always keep on my bed even when I'm not pregnant because I need the support or I have pain or difficulty sleeping. Having babies takes it out of ya. Hubby has to sleep on the couch since my first was born. He snores and rolls around in bed and I'm a light sleeper. I cannot sleep when we share the bed. I probably end up with 4 hours a night tops that way. Not good. Random thoughts. Hahaha.

As far as nursing, I hated boppy. I even gave it another shot last time around and I still hated it for nursing. It's fine for propping up the baby. I think it'd be good for nursing if you are short and have a short torso. I am tall and have a long torso. I found the breast friend nursing pillow to work the best with all my babies. I would recommend if you go with my breast friend to leave it to off gas for a while before baby arrives. I figure, couches and some mattresses contain the same foam material, so unless I found out I won the lottery, I'd make do the way I could. I could never side-lie nursing with a newborn. I tried it with my daughter and ended up with bloody nipples. She did however have a very bad latch at first. I ended up having to use a nipple shield with her for the first few months. I weaned her off of it after that. Oh and no bed sharing with my babies, I can't bed share even with hubby. Just WAY too light of a sleeper. :)

[BlueMonday]

lol Juan!!! i love it.

for nursing my first, i swore by the yoga ball. she had a lot of worries that first year and especially at the beginning, like before dinner in the witching hour when she was unsoothable i would gently bounce and nurse her on the ball. comfy for me too, didn't have to try and adjust to a straight backed chair.

just don't bounce too vehemently or it all comes back up ;)

i'm at the point now, all i need is a good comfortable woven wrap. i'll be raising a family of five people in a 450sf apartment, extra crap isn't an option.

[lolliegee]

Love the yoga ball for soothing baby. It's also great for other family members to help out by bouncing while you snatch a shower.

5 people in 450 Sq ft?! And I thought my house was small!

[here we are]

Dayiscoming, i am wondering more about your sleeping arrangements , if you want to share. I am trying to imagine what may or may not work for me. I think I am outthinking myself, when I look up the option its confusing and complicated for me. Its frustrating to spend so much time and feel so lost. I am a toss and turning sleeper who pulls blankets all night and have very active dreams (&nightmares:( often) . I want to be as close as possible, but i can only imagine being so exhausted. I am already a very tired type now, so here i am worrying again. I want to simplify this. Anyone who wants to share their experiences, i will appreciate it so much, but i might ask you too many questions in return . I need to find my confidence with this, and with everything, thats a BIG everything. Sidecarring a crib if it will fit? That sounds like it will work for until the baby starts moving? Then putting the fourth side up on the crib is the only choice? Meaning you need to get up everytime and pull them out to nurse, which could be unsettling? I started another thread about what can be user to slide open and shut from when your lying down, but it seems to be uninvented and some people trust it to stay without the fourth side. But are they just very aware of baby? I think i am getting depressed thinking about how to deal with this, as far away as it may seem. I dont want sleep deprivation, which sounds inevitable. I dont want to always get up and down, i dont want to always pull a heavy baby out of the crib (and what if this upsets him/her) to not be closer to me. I just dont know what i will do. I didnt want to get upset again, but i just had to see what others are doing to make this smooth.

[here we are]

Shyly bumping because i am just feeling a little insecure. I am thinking in the future to start new threads b/c it seems more people will see when they are new ane more focused topics?

[heyitskalista]

here we are- have you looked into co-sleepers?  That may be a good compromise for you!  I've never used one since we co-sleep but I know many people who have had great success with them! :)
 

[here we are]

It seems like the arms reach cosleeper is the only choice i can find, for the first 6 months or so. Other choices were maybe a hammock, but some had safety issues or sidecarring the crib thing. But with the crib i dont know how to make it like a cosleeper, same height, ease of use. I guess I am more worried about oncethe baby moves and cant be in a cosleeper. If the crib is next to the bed , what do people do? Just get up and down all night ? I feel so bad feeling not very excited for this, i really do, but just need my sleep. Maybe i am not cut out for this, its causing me too much worry. I guess i need to just let my fears out about it. I am mad i cant sleep more peacefully and aware in the bed. I am cranky with no sleep,my mind plays tricks on me so i want everything to be smooth as posible, doesnt everyone? But it doesnt always happen even 1/2 the time. I must be depressing you all with my pity party. If you leave the crib open on one side, does the baby just wiggle out of its safety zone and am i supposed to wake up and notice, assuming they dont cry? Short of straight jacketing myself into my bed and putiing a huge cage around it, i dont know how to sleep with baby, even in this dramatic picture there are probably too many hazards. Theres gotta be a way to avoid getting up and gettingbaby into and out of crib? I am imaginging the worst, and have been reading postpartum stories of struggle. I have a really hard time with the.details.

[talldarkeyes]

I just used a pack and play pushed up against my bed with the newborn insert until my babies grew out of that and then they just slept in the pack and play without the insert until they were old enough for a toddler bed in our room. We never did bed sharing as my dh is a heavy sleeper but our babies have always slept in our room with us. It was inexpensive, portable, and worked very well for our family.

[DanceGina]

here we are -

Don't stress about where the baby sleeps.  For all my careful plans (researching the "best" crib, making organic sheets etc) my baby would not sleep anywhere that was not 6" from my breasts.  I used a moses basket next to me in the bed for the first few months despite being opposed to co-sleeping.  Then he slept on my chest for a couple months (pure torture).  Then when he was crawling at 6 months and by 8 months I appeared to be completely losing my sanity from having to lie awake clutching the thrashing baby all night, the nurse in charge of our weekly new parent group suggested I put the mattress on the floor.  That saved my life, I am 100% positive.

Anyway, what I am trying to say here is to make a plan for sleeping arrangements that you think will be good, but your baby is going to tell you what he or she needs, and you are going to make it work.  At 2am, 2:45am, 3:15am, 4am... or maybe you will get a baby that sleeps for 6 hours in a row at 2 weeks old!  Either way, you will get through it.  

PS:  He never once slept in the crib.  It ended up being a $1200 laundry basket.

[phobiageek]

Yes, this if my first baby!

I have a couple of questions. When does the exhaustion get better? The morning sickness has mostly waned but I find myself so tired all the time. I plan to have my iron and vitamin D levels check at my next appointment just to double check but I know fatigue is just part of being pregnant. I hear that you get your energy back but around what week did you get yours? 

Second is about bras. My sore breasts were the first sign that I was pregnant. I grew a whole cup size and an inch or two with the first four weeks. I went from a 44C to a 46D. I got some new bras after being fitted but now they're hurting. It's mainly the under wire that is uncomfortable. Any recs for bras that offer similar support without the pesky wire? One of my friends also told me that at some point I can't wear under wire anyway because it'll mess with my breast milk production. Is that true? 

Thanks! I'm sure I'll have more later :)

[dayiscoming2006]

I got stuck with nausea until 14 weeks with my boys and until 18 weeks along with a bit of sickness with my daughter. I haven't had that much nausea this time. Only on occasion and only when I've had this pesky cold and had a couple coughing fits did I get "sick." But, maybe that'll give you an idea when it might go away. The fatigue I think went away by then as well, though, it does sometimes come back in the end of pregnancy partially because your so worn out from carrying the weight or from having trouble sleeping with a giant tummy. 

For bras, I am a small chester, but I do go from an A cup to a DD cup and grow one to two band sizes usually. I never liked underwire and you do have to give it up while breastfeeding. They sell underwire nursing bras, but they are a very bad idea for the plugged milk duct reason. I don't know of any supportive bras without underwire, but I actually like light support pretty much all the time. I only like better support if I'm exercising. Motherhood is supposed to be good for bras and they might have something at target. 

[InLove2009]

I just bought some Bali Bras at Kohls today without underwires. I usually wear underwires (didn't even consider one without until now) but they are so uncomfortable right now. THey press on my stomach when I sit down and it makes my nausea worse. The Bali ones are very supportive and come in bigger sizes (I am a 38 DD right now). The prices were fair- buy one get one half off.