Two months later...

           It has been two months since I went into the hospital to have my third baby girl. I am actually writing this while she sleeps on my chest with her little face nuzzled right up to my neck (I use the purple bedtime bath in her bath and sometimes I use it MYSELF at least on my chest and arms since she's always THERE anyway... I like to think it helps her sleep... does it? Who knows. But as she sleeps with her tiny little baby snores drifting to my ears, I can't help but think I helped her get there. :)  ) It has been quite a change to have a newborn baby back in my life. Especially since it's been almost seven years since the last time... A lot of things in the baby world itself has changed in that time too. There's a long blacklist of things that are DANGEROUS to have around babies these days.. Crib bumpers, blankets, even stuffed animals. Mostly this is all frowned upon for bedtime. So hearing about all of that AND not getting a full nights sleep in a long time.. It's been a little crazy. But then I look down at the squishy little face next to mine and realize yet again that no matter what kind of stress will come up (AND I KNOW IT WILL COME UP!) it will all be worth it. Obviously I've been a little busy with THREE kids and so it's been a little harder to jump on here and jot down all of our crazy stuff as it happens.. BUT.. I CAN fill you in on a few things that I have relearned and  experienced NOW... Here we go...
          
- A baby will eat every two hours and when they start crying because they're hungry, they rarely just STOP until they get something. It can go from a whine to a shaking cry in no time and the only remedy is a bottle or a boob! Then there's that timing where they act starving and exhausted all at once so you have to keep them awake or sit there for two hours while they nod off then jerk themselves awake to eat just a LITTLE bit more before they nod off again.. Motherhood is such a joy..

- If you're a breastfeeding mom then like your baby, your breasts have their own time limit too. If you're not careful, they can soak your bra, your shirt and even your sweatshirt (yes, that happened! Thankfully it happened at HOME and not at the store.. yeah.. that almost happened too...) if you're not covered carefully! We're talking snap up bras lined with what my middle daughter calls "boob pads" day and night even when you sleep!
          
- You may think that a "JUMBO" pack of diapers will last you a while. And why not? After all it comes with over 40 diapers and since a baby is so little, how much can it possibly go through in a day? HA! I've Relearned that a "jumbo" pack will MAYBE last me three days. THREE FREAKING DAYS! Most are just wet but still... that's crazy... And then there's that perfect balance of not too tight and still tight enough to contain anything and everything will fill it up.. Fun, fun, fun....

- A "quick trip" to the grocery store that SHOULD take 30 minutes or less actually takes an hour or MORE with a new baby and two other kids. It's not as easy as grab your purse and keys and go. Oh no.. More like make sure the older two go to the bathroom in hopes to avoid the public bathroom with your mob once you get to the store, get a bottle ready just incase, grab at least two diapers, powder, and wipes just incase, put the baby in the car seat with a blanket, spit up rag, pacifier and a hat (since it's winter..) grab the keys, grab the cell, grab the purse and guide the posse to the car. Then you have to snap in the car seat, make sure the other kids are buckled, make sure you actually HAVE everything you intended to grab, get in and go. If the baby is sleeping, the drive can be a little less crazy but if the baby is screaming from the backseat and neither of the big sisters can make her happy... It just adds to the "fun" of the drive which forces you to think two things... One- Why am I going to the store again? And two- Do we really NEED food in the fridge.... Of course you keep GOING to the store... Once you get there then all it is is simply going aisle to aisle with the car seat sitting on the cart with a squeaky or bouncy wheel while keeping an eye on the two kids walking AND grabbing the things you need that you wrote on the list that you conveniently left on the kitchen counter. Doesn't sound TOO bad does it... :/

- Ahh naps in the daytime.. The doctor says "sleep when the baby sleeps" in order to maintain my energy, stamina, and SANITY. Good advice... HOWEVER... When you have two other kids who have school, school projects, homework, reading times and everything else while you also have to feed them, keep up with the house, the pets, the laundry, the dishes.... How EXACTLY are you supposed to do all that while the baby is awake if you're napping when she does... Hmm... you DON'T! So it's either put everything else in your world on the backburner while you get some shut eye (KNOWING it will be there when you wake up..) OR... bye bye Z's... Yeah... Tough call..

- Baby skin is super smooth and also very soft and people can't help but crazy for that "baby smell". I KNOW what that is and maybe you notice it MORE when the baby isn't yours. Don't get me wrong, my little bundle of joy definitely had that smell... as well as many others that seem to pop up here and there. There's the obvious gas, wet diaper smell, dirty diaper smell, baby drool, and throw up. THEN you have the neck.. It's like the treasure trove of nasty things... All it takes is a line of drool or small stream of throw up to seep in there and then it's over. Have you ever found a ranch dressing cup from a nugget meal a week before in your car? Get what I'm saying...  Even if you're quick to wipe it up it seems like there is always something else in there! So imagine THIS smell.. baby sweat, drool and throw up in the folds of skin tucked up under a neck... YUM! How's THAT for the baby smell.... then there's diaper rash, the little red bumps they get on their face, and boogers that can be almost an inch long! So if you go up to a cute little baby and see it's precious face and admire it's smell... you should DEFINITELY thank the mom.. That's a LOT of upkeep to make sure that precious bundle is indeed precious!

- Baby clothes are super cute, soft, cuddly and pretty much... A waste. I have quickly noticed that there is NO NEED to carefully select an outfit in the beginning of the day because honestly, it will probably be worn for a few hours and that's it... Pretty much long enough to withstand an abundance of drool, spit up and whatever else comes out of either end before it is stripped off and replaced. A set of vinyl pajamas would be ideal for an "all day" wear BUT, haven't seen any of THOSE... yet... ;) The extent of outfit hunting for the time being is simply this- Open the dresser drawer, grab some pajamas, put them on and expect to change them out at LEAST once again before the day is over. That's it! I'm also trying to hold out on buying a bunch of outfits and everything because they grow SO FAST especially in the beginning. (I did that with newborn clothes... two months later.. do you think she's still wearing that stuff... NOPE!) Lesson learned...

Lastly...

- Sabotage.... Oh yes I've said it and have actually called her Princess sabotage because let's face it, she's EARNED it! I don't know if we just have this "super bond" as my husband calls it, she just has very good sensing techniques, or it's just dumb luck EVERY TIME but WHATEVER it is.. It never fails. It seems like she wakes up or gets the most vocal when I want to do one of these things... Eat, sleep, play a game, do a project or have "alone time" with my husband... She just, KNOWS when any of those things are going to happen and it's like she can't LET it happen! Sleeping is one of the worst.. At the moment, she sleeps in a bassinet next to my bed... Have you ever seen a baby doll that closes her eyes when she lays down and when she sits up they open? Well.. My baby and I have that effect going on it seems like because even if she's KNOCKED OUT SLEEPING and I lay her down in bed.. It's all good until I lay down.. If I lay down, as if by some magic coincidence, her eyes open... But when I sit back up.. She sleeps! I mean REALLY?!? I'm hoping that crap will thin out and I'll eventually get back to sleeping through the night soon. A fools hope I'm sure... But one can dream!


So there's a little taste of what I've relearned with the new baby after so many years... I'm sure I'm in for a lot more FUN as time goes on... That's how it goes! ;) To all of you new moms, tired moms, and moms in general.. keep up the great work! Have a great rest of the day and night everyone! - Super Mom