It's that time again! More baby ideas to help the stressed out mom.
(if only my blog was around for MJ, maybe he wouldn't be so sleep deprived and dangle his kid over a ledge!)#5: Swaddling. It's a beautiful thing. Do it. And do it every time they go to sleep. Even if they are already asleep. Do it. They'll fall right back to sleep after they are all warm and cozy. Baby's love it. And if you don't have enough blankets to swaddle them daily, call me I'll whip you up a few!
I have found that around 1 month (if not premature) the babies tend to like their arms out. And they will wiggle them out through the night, this is fine. The swaddling helps get them to sleep. It reminds them of home, all nice and snugly in your tummy!
But here's the biggest oops we all make. Do Not Swaddle Before Putting Them In the Car Seat. Unless you've already got a whole cut out in your blanket, there ain't no way you're getting a seat belt buckled between their legs with a swaddled kid!
#6: For the new-bee parents. Baby car seats face the back of the car. And find a friend that's had a bunch of kids to install it for you and help you adjust the straps before you bring it to the hospital. That way you won't look like a dork in front of the nurses.
Also apparently some of the baby carriers have been made without hooks across the top of the carrier that would normally let it be buckled to the car without a base. Avoid these at all costs. Always needing a base is lame. And very inconvenient. Especially if you have to shove the baby carrier into a small car and need it to sit closer to the seat. (I don't know if you've notice, but bases raise the seat up high and put it about 1/2 way into the front seats...this is totally annoying in a small car. Thus I didn't use the base for babies #2 and #3.)
#7: About a month ago my mom and I saw a blurb on CNN about SIDS and fans. They said that in a study babies who had fans in their rooms moving air around were less likely to die of SIDS. I'm supposing it's because the babies were breathing in Carbon Monoxide from their own breath but more likely to breath oxygen when a fan was rotate the air. I'm a big fan of FANS.
Not only do I like them on the ceiling but I like little floor fans that make some great ambient noise. Ambient noise is a life saver for small apartments or when you've got friends over late. Try it out!
#8: Breast feeding and Bottle feeding. I'm not about to argue which is best. Obviously the boob. But some people have no choice and have to use the bottle. This is also fine. My point is, if you aren't seriously worried about milk coming in (aka: it's your 2nd, 3rd or 18th kid) and the baby is screaming at night and you've tried everything else. Maybe they are still hungry. Might I suggest 4 oz of formula. Many times the milk hasn't flowed in or isn't making a ton right away and you are about to lose it because you are so stinkin' tired.
For my last few kids I have used 1 bottle a night for the first week to give my breasts a rest and keep them from getting too raw. When all else fails, one bottle won't kill you or make you a bad Mama.
#9: Solid Foods. I love the 4 month mark. Time for solids. Many people wait until 6 months, some wait until after 1 either way there is still a good "way" to introduce food. First start with rice cereal at dinner time. Then a few days later start adding it at lunch. Many of the cereals want you to mix it with formula. What if you don't have any because you breast feed? Well then use water it works just fine and is a whole lot cheaper.
Then start adding the #1 stage veggies first. I like to just mix it in with the cereal. It goes a whole lot faster and slightly dilutes the strong flavors of food that they aren't used to. After 2 weeks of veggies then add fruit for breakfast. Sweet flavors should always come last or you'll have a hard time charming them into the veggies. And remember to rotate flavors to teach them to have a wide range pallet.
#10: How & When to force babies to sleep through the night? Normally most babies need to be taught how to sleep through the night. I feel most comfortable to start the teaching process after I've started them on solids. I think it's a mental thing. I don't feel so guilty letting them cry if I know their tummies are full. This is also the time I start putting them to sleep when they are groggy after nursing and not "dead-to-the-world" asleep.
After you put them in bed I like to use the 5-10-15 method. This is if they baby is crying at it's scheduled bed time you first wait 5 mins. Do not pick them up. Pat their tummy, sing a song, hum, say "shhhh", put a pacifier in...what ever you are comfortable with to calm them down. Then leave. Now wait 10 mins. If the baby is crying then repeat to calm them. Now wait 15 mins. Please remember to set a timer. Otherwise you'll cheat and go in early!!
This process is hard, and might last 45 mins or more the first night or so. But it will be worth it.
Next is what if the baby wakes up at night. This is when your spouse finally puts in some time. Might suggest enlisting their help and start this on a Friday night. If the baby wakes up at night. Having the Mom that smells like warm, yummy milk doesn't help. Having Dad come in to hold them, hug them, put the pacifier in and put them back in bed. Reminds them it's sleep time, NOT eat time.
