When I was pregnant with Brooke, I remember the unknown feeling of motherhood. I talk about it often that I remember feeling helpless when picking baby items or thinking about sleep schedules. I mean, how would I know which type of bottle she would like most when I hadn’t even looked into her eyes yet? And that question, was just one of many that would fill my mind throughout the day. One thing that helped me a lot was reading and hearing from other moms that felt the same way. Here are 5 Pieces of New Mom Advice from a second time mom that is pretty universal:
Be Flexible
Spit up happens! Literally and figuratively, so be flexible. Be flexible with your time, be flexible with your schedule, be flexible with what you think you know, and most of all be flexible with yourself. You are going through a huge life change. Your family has just added a new addition and you are all getting to know each other. You are learning your baby and they are learning you. Give yourself a break. Also, know that things will take longer. While it may take you 30 minutes to get ready one day, it might take you an hour or two the next day. Every day is different in the beginning, and soon you will feel in a routine. But, since my first is almost 2 now, I will still say, still be flexible. Some days are good and easy. You feel like you are dominating this mom thing, and others you have no clue what you are doing. Be flexible.
Relax and Enjoy
Put everything on hold and enjoy. Your babies are only little for so long, sit back and relax. Did your baby have a huge blowout today? Enjoy the laughter of how awful it was. Has your baby been crying all day and won’t let you put them down? Enjoy being able to hold them in your arms. Enjoy. You will miss this.
Stock Your Essentials
I’m talking diapers, wipes, diaper cream, changing pads, and burp cloths (maybe even an extra outfit)! I highly recommend having a changing station upstairs and downstairs if you have a two story house. We keep a changing station in a small box in our living room. It is stocked with diapers, wipes, cream, a changing pad, and burp cloths. This makes it super easy to change a diaper when downstairs. Also, be sure that your diaper bag is stocked whenever you leave the house. And, I even have an extra stash of diapers and wipes in my car for emergencies.
Don’t Forget Your Spouse
In the hustle and bustle of a new baby, don’t forget to love on your spouse. As a new mom, its easy to be completely focused on feeding schedules, sleep, and taking care of yourself as well. Be sure to take time to tell your spouse how much you love and appreciate them. Let them help you and show them you appreciate them. Here are 5 Tips on Preparing Your Marriage For Baby.
You Are The Perfect Parents for Your Baby
I’ll be VERY honest, some advice, won’t be for you. I am a huge advocate that YOU are the PERFECT parent for YOUR baby. You will know them best, so go with your instinct. Reading others advice really helped me form my parenting style and try out different things that worked well, but ultimately, I found that sometimes I just needed to do us. It can be hard at first to get on the same page with your spouse, but communication is key and listening. There were nights where Brooke would cry and I would go to get up and Kevin would say, just wait 10 minutes. I wouldn’t want to wait at all, but sure enough, in less than 5 minutes she would be sound asleep. Other times, we would hear her cry and know instantly to go in her room (and sure enough she would have a bad diaper or something of that sort). Trust your instinct.
I hope this advice really helps calm your nerves or answers some questions you have. You’ve got this! You are doing great, you are going to do great. There will be rough days, nights and even weeks, but parenting is biggest joy you will ever experience.