All along I had thought that Baby Led Weaning (BLW), sounded like a great idea. For those of you that don’t know, BLW is basically skipping puree and letting baby feed themselves. (Read more here.) It seemed so intuitive and so progressive. I read a lot of blogs about it and most of the moms seemed to be really happy they chose that route. After some more research I was pretty convinced we would do it too.

At Olivia’s 6 month check up we discussed solids with her pediatrician. She recommended the traditional route (rice cereal, rice cereal, rice cereal) and basically laughed when I told her about BLW. After her response I felt conflicted. We decided to try spoon feeding first.

Olivia seemed okay with the cereal but after a few times she started fighting me for the spoon. I felt like I had to "trick" her by distracting her so I could get the food in her mouth. It felt so wrong. I hated it. Meal after meal I tried to feed her and avoid her hands grabbing and pushing away the spoon. In the back of my mind I couldn’t help but think that I should just let her feed herself.

Soon after I steamed up some carrots and offered her some other BLW first foods. Avocado slices, softened apple, pear, ripe nectarines and plums, etc. She really seemed to enjoy it and I loved watching her taste new things. Yet, after a few licks and squishes, she began biting off chunks. And then it was BIG chunks. Soon after followed some major gagging and it was horrifying. I had nightmares about choking and mealtimes became more stressful for me.

Joe and I took an infant CPR class but I still worried. I stuck to the foods I felt were safe and I found comfort in the fact that her gag reflex worked so well. Soon enough she had learned to chew and was managing foods really well. At around 8 months she had a great pincer grasp so I started offering small pieces of food instead of large chunks. And that’s where we are now. Basically at this point she is eating like many other 9 month olds who are onto finger foods I think.

I must say that I never really fully embraced BLW and their suggestions to feed baby whatever you are eating because it didn’t always seem acceptable to me to give her what we were having. Not that it wasn’t healthy but often our meals included foods that had foods that were not soft enough, not organic, included something she had not yet, or contained too much salt. I’m just not laid back enough to go full steam ahead so in the end I still cooked her separate foods. We also followed the spacing rule (about 1-2 days in between new foods). I’m thankful we did this because we believe Olivia may have an egg intolerance.

Because of this, BLW is often more work for me than purees sometimes. I can’t just grab some pre-frozen homemade puree or the occasional jarred puree. Sometimes she will eat a pouch on the go, but she just doesn’t seem to like them all that much.

So basically what I’m saying is that my experience with BLW wasn’t exactly what I thought it would be. But mostly it’s because the BLW method is probably best for more relaxed parents. I think if I had stuck to feeding her purees and then just introduced finger foods a little bit after that we would be in the same place.  And maybe there would have been less panicking for me in the beginning. I don’t think I would go this route for a second child. But who knows, maybe I’ll be an old pro by then.

Moms- did you do BLW or traditional purees? How do you feel about the route you chose?

At what age did your baby eat mostly finger foods?

The other morning I headed to a church sale of second hand baby items. I was in the market for some gates for our house since I need three and they are rather expensive. I was thrilled to find one right away and was going to buy it until a lady ran up to me and stole it out of my hand.

"That’s MY gate!" she said. I told her that there was no sign on it, or any indication that it was taken but she blabbered on and was standing with one of the organizers from the church so I let it go. I was furious!

I felt better though when I saw a fresh posting for three gates at a good price near me on Craigslist. I quickly emailed the posted who told me they were all gone.

Then I checked ebay. I didn’t put in a bid because I noticed that almost all of the postings I liked had at least 10 "watchers". Ugh.

Good thing she’s not crawling. YET.

In other news, I wanted to share a good recipe for baby pancakes. It’s baby friendly in that it doesn’t include eggs, milk (in pure form), sugar or salt.

Pumpkin Yogurt Baby Cakes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup whole milk yogurt
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce (optional)
• pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon (or both)
• a bit of water to thin out the mixture

Combine everything together and then add some water to thin it a little bit. Melt a little butter in the pan and cook ‘em up!

I made a large batch and put them in the freezer as well. I read that you just need to stack them with wax paper in between to prevent sticking.

I also then wrapped the stack in tin foil and put them in a freezer bag.

We ate them together last weekend and loved them!

Hope you do too

All I can say is that it was more fun gaining it than it was losing it, but overall it wasn’t so bad. During my pregnancy I gained about 50 pounds. It is a lot of weight but I would not have changed a thing.

(40 weeks pregnant)

I honestly maintained a pretty healthy diet during pregnancy but I also had a good time with it. Especially towards the end, I enjoyed fun meals out like eating super spicy Szechuan food to induce labor, or squeezing my belly into the booth at the Vietnamese restaurant for a bowl full of Pho (which I craved constantly). Joe and I would make cinnamon rolls at home and I enjoyed every bite. We had so much fun together and those are some of the moments I really remember and cherish from my pregnancy.

During the first few months after delivery, things were pretty rough. I initially lost 21 pounds without doing anything, but after that it was up to me. I had about 30 lbs to lose (plus about 5 that I gained before I got pregnant). I had a large appetite due to breastfeeding, and wasn’t cooking much because things were just too crazy. I would turn to Luna Bars and Balance Bars and other quick snacks throughout the day to keep up my energy. I didn’t grocery shop often enough to stock the house with enough produce. I ate bananas, but that was about it.

Eating with Olivia in the Moby

After getting the green light at my 6 week checkup, I also started exercising more. It was slow going though because I had some bad pelvic pains afterwards. I was still healing, exhausted, and exercising with an additional 30 pounds on me was not easy on my joints. I admit that sometimes I tried to do  too much. I just wanted to bounce back so fast, but my body wasn’t ready yet.

About a month postpartum

After 8 weeks, I joined Weight Watchers. I heard great things about their plan for nursing moms and I was excited about attending the meetings. I would bring Olivia in the stroller and sit in the back and wheel her back and forth. It felt good to get out of the house and to have a plan to motivate me but also help me protect my milk supply.

I must admit though that during this time I felt a bit uncomfortable in my own skin. It was summer time so I couldn’t hide. And none of my clothes fit. Maternity clothes did not fit right, but my old clothes were a ways away from fitting again. I mean…realllllly far away. I would see myself in pictures and be surprised at what I looked like. I have never been skinny, but I’ve never carried my weight in my stomach (mostly in my lower half), so it was strange to see this body. I didn’t know how to dress it (and also dress in nursing friendly clothing)which wrecked havoc on my confidence. I felt unfashionable and unhappy.

 
But I’ve never given up. Never thrown in the towel. I kept on with my consistent small weekly losses (and sometimes gains), and slowly started cooking more and moving more.

When Olivia turned 6 months, my body started to change. I saw some bigger losses and I started to get narrower all over. I think it may have to do with breastfeeding as that starts to change now that she is eating solids. Who knows. I can say that I am in the camp that feels that breastfeeding helps with weight loss. I have had very consistent losses even when my eating was not good, so I attribute that to the extra burn it gives me.

So how am I doing now? (if you’re still reading) Since starting Weight Watchers in the beginning of April I’ve lost 28 lbs. Which brings my total loss to 49 lbs. I have 6 more to go until I’m at my goal. My goal is a healthy weight for my height and one that I’ve maintained before. I feel healthier, more energetic, and really really proud of myself.

Volunteering last weekend- Keep in mind I’m wearing 3 shirts

Throughout this journey I’ve had times where I was hard on myself but mostly I’ve been kind to my body. It’s done amazing things. And it continues to do amazing things.  I never expected to be one of those women that walked out of the hospital in her skinny jeans, but when you walk out with a beautiful, healthy baby, nothing else matters.

Let’s just say that I haven’t had much time to blog. Even when I’ve had time,  I’ve devoted it to other things.

Cooking meals for my family

Making cleaning products and cleaning my house

Writing to do lists out the wazoo

I felt like even if I did start blogging again I would have so much to catch up on that it wouldn’t even make sense. I didn’t know where to begin.

But I’ve allowed myself to let that go and just stop in to clear my head. I really miss writing and I miss connecting with others.

In the next few weeks I hope to update you on some interesting things.

-How I am doing with shedding the baby weight/Current health and fitness goals

-How I am dealing with post partum anxiety and why I think a lot of new moms don’t talk about it

-Some easy recipes that I’ve been making

Hopefully that will entice you to circle back, too.

Was I doing enough? Am I an adequate stay at home mom? Am I getting out of the house often enough?

I figured that at this point I could probably be taking on a little more and not letting fear of a mid project wake up or a mid errand meltdown get me down. I realized that it’s time for me to get out of survival mode and really start living again. I also wanted to step up my game in taking care of my home and cooking more exciting meals. I don’t need to make the same 5 things over and over again just because they can be made quickly.

Vietnamese Grilled Pork Noodle Bowl (not the best recipe, but I will work on it and get back to you)

Part of the reason that things have bit a little hard is the fact that Olivia has silent reflux which has made feeding her very difficult. This has been very emotionally exhausting and really upsetting for both of us. She is now on medicine much to my dismay, but it is working and she is eating better. She is still a nightmare to feed in public, but that’s just life with a distractible 5 month old I guess.

I think I was in survival mode a bit too long, but I guess there really aren’t any technicalities on that. I have a great and happy baby but I often let nerves get the best of me. I am glad that I have been able to acknowledge my state of mind and move away from it. I realized that if I don’t start enjoying these moments that they will soon be gone. Fear will always be here. These days with my first baby girl are fleeting.

Thank you COOL WHIP for sponsoring this post. Join us on Facebook for inspiration and recipes for everyday treats. What you add makes it. #coolwhipmoms

Lately I’ve been thinking I should change the name of my blog to “New Mom in Real Life” because there hasn’t been much on the blog about food in a while! The truth is that while I’m still cooking, everything I make is much more simple than ever, and I rarely have the time or energy to snap photos of everything.

I’m hoping that this will change soon because I do enjoy sharing what we eat around here with you. With this in mind, I wanted to show you one of the most simple every day desserts that I have been enjoying.

At night I often find that I am looking for something to break up the boredom of of the usual ice cream bar or cookie. I also have been trying to watch the caloric intake of my night time treats. And even though the temperatures have been rising outside, it doesn’t change the fact that I’m always in the mood for something warm and comforting (and chocolately).

Almost every night I enjoy a big mug of vanilla almond milk hot cocoa, and lately I’ve been making it even more delicious with a big blob of COOL WHIP Whipped Topping. The COOL WHIP actually starts to melt into the cocoa which makes it extra sweet and creamy.

Here are the quick and easy steps to making this simple everyday dessert!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 2 packets of no calorie sweetener (you can skip this if you want)
• 2-3 heaping tablespoons of dark chocolate unsweetened cocoa powder
• enough COOL WHIP to cover the entire top of the mug
• dash of cinnamon (optional)

How To:

• Pour the almond milk into a mug and add the sweetener
• Microwave for 2 minutes and 25 seconds (yes, I’ve perfected this timing)

(The milk will be nice and foamy on top)

• Take out the milk and  in 2 rapidly stir in 2 tablespoons of the cocoa.

(I then add another spoonful on the spoon I use to drink the cocoa because I like to eat the extra melty powder off the spoon later.)

• Top with COOL WHIP (and sprinkle with cinnamon if you want)

(don’t forget to leave chocolate tracks in the COOL WHIP container)

Enjoy with your favorite sidekick

I think you’ll find that this is a really easy dessert that hits the spot and satisfies a chocolate craving without too destroying your calorie budget.

Enjoy and I promise to be back with more easy recipes soon!

Do you have a special dessert you’d like to share? Enter COOL WHIP’s Fan Dessert of the Month Contest for a chance to win $500! Simply make a COOL WHIP dessert, take a photo, and upload it here. Enter now!

Sponsored posts are purely editorial content that we are pleased to have presented by a participating sponsor. Advertisers do not produce the content. I was compensated for this post as a member of Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all my own.

I’m a nervous nelly by nature, so it wasn’t surprising to me that I fall into the category of "moms that worry about everything". Although I’d love to be a completely chill and relaxed mom, it’s just not me.

Each day I pretty much have to overcome my worries though- because life is moving ahead and I need to move and adapt with it. Some of my recent worries have involved traveling with the baby.

Since our family is all out of town, I knew we’d be on the road a lot with Olivia. Seems fine in theory but once it was time to actually do it, I worried about whether or not she’d be comfortable in the car, would she poop the minute we got on the highway? If we leave in between feedings will she be screaming to eat when we are stuck in traffic? What if we are on a bridge and she’s hungry? How will she be when in a new place? Will she sleep? Will she nap well? (and so on and so forth).

But we’re not going to stay home all of the time- it’s so important that Olivia knows her grandparents and extended family. Joe and I made a choice to be together and as a result away from family, so this is the life we will live. We need to embrace it. And we have.

Visiting my Dad and stepmom in NJ

Visiting my mom,sister and nephew in CT

Visiting Joe’s family in Pittsburgh

Then there are the everyday fears. These may seem ridiculous to you, but they are real to me!

I worry sometimes that I will dress Olivia wrong and then she will be too hot or too cold. I did this the other day when it looked grey and cloudy and cold but was really humid. She ended up being very hot and I had to strip her down to her onesie. But the next day the weather changed again, and we suited up and headed out.  This time I remembered to step outside first.

Both times I ventured to the new Wegman’s in town, Olivia has been in rare form. The first time we made it in, but she was very cranky and upset the whole time. Then earlier this week we went back and she was so hysterical that I had to put my groceries back and leave. For whatever reason, it wasn’t working. I realized later that I was going to the store during her nap time. It was over stimulating and she was getting upset. This time, I fed her, she napped and we went out when she was rested. Additionally, I wore her this time (another fear that I faced because I never put her in a carrier outside the house before).

I haven’t had much luck with babywearing although I really want it to work for us. I can’t get the Ergo quite right (I think it will be easier when she can spread her legs across my body instead of froggy), and she hated the sling, mei tai, and moby. I have a Bjorn Air, that was my sisters but I wasn’t sure about using it because there are articles about it affecting baby hips. However, Olivia seemed to like the Bjorn and it is easy to use. I see a ton of people using them and figured that 30 minutes once a week is not going to do anything to hurt her. So yesterday we went for it.

And she loved it. And we got the shopping done.

Being a mom is so rewarding for so many reasons and I love it. But one of the more unexpected upsides is seeing what I am capable of. From labor to the initial pain of breastfeeding, to the every day ups and downs I am getting stronger each day. And it feels really, really, good.

I’ve been wanting to blog for a while. There is so much going on in my head that I’ve been wanting to share, but I just haven’t really had the motivation to transfer the thoughts from my head into writing. Mostly I feel like there is just TOO much to say at this point, so I’ll try and touch on some of the main things in my new mom life in the most honest way possible. The focus of my updates are going to be mostly about me and my experiences as a new mom. I’m not planning on writing updates on Olivia’s development. She is a happy healthy baby and doing great! I’m hoping that what I write will be able to help other new moms out there to not feel alone. Often times we only see the positives about new motherhood, but I think there is more to say. If you are a new mom, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section!

Postpartum Blues

While I know that I do/did not have postpartum depression, I can still admit to you guys that I cried every day for a while in the beginning. Call it hormones, call it sleep deprivation, call it serious nipple pain, or just the plain old fact of accepting that life as I know it is changed forever, it was tough at first. Additionally I was basically stuck in the house for 8 weeks, so that didn’t help. I would certainly say that I had a case of the baby blues, but at the same time, I’d also say that I am completely normal. I can’t imagine that other new moms never feel this way. I think they probably just don’t admit it. It’s really easy to feel guilty about it (and everything else), but we are human and not perfect new mommy robots. While there is no doubt that I am completely head over heels in love with my daughter, I still believe that there is a time in a new mom’s life where she grieves a little for her old way of living. How can you not? Now that it is done though- I must say that I think staying in for that first 8 weeks was a great thing. It really allowed me to get to know my baby- understand her cues and natural routine, and allowed my body to heal.

(fyi Olivia is not really a Moby lover. This lasted about 3 minutes)

Postpartum Body Update

Things are going well in this department. Well at least according to me. I never really expected to be one of those women who could walk out of the hospital in her pre-pregnancy jeans and I was right about that. Of the 45 lbs I gained while pregnant I’ve lost 27. Without any effort I lost the first 20. The 7 after that have come more recently. I joined Weight Watchers 4 weeks ago and it has been working. I’ve also been more active (running, walking, Turbo Fire) and cooking a lot more. I think my milk supply is more established now, so I’m hoping my body will continue to allow the weight to come off. I love Weight Watchers and I find it completely do-able. I get a ton of points because I’m nursing, and I really feel like there is nothing I can’t have. I also like the fact that I know if I stay within my points that I am safely dieting to protect my supply. Just winging it would have been a little more difficult. I’m pretty sure I would have under ate if I did it on my own.

My daily menu usually looks like:

S: Banana

B: Oatmeal with flax, berries, peanut butter and a splash of almond milk, coffee

S: Balance Bar

L: Turkey sandwich, grapes

S: 6-8 ounces of 0% chobani with peanut flour

D: A balanced meal- protein, carb, veggie

S: Two Trader Joe’s Hold the Cone mini ice cream cones (Have you tried these?!  SO GOOD and only 70 calories each)

Sometimes I feel a bit uncomfortable in my new body, but other times I could really care less. Unlike previous attempts to lose weight, this time I am a lot nicer to myself. I know it’s going to be a process and I don’t have any plans to do anything extreme to get back my body faster than it’s ready. I always cringed at the saying, "9 months on, 9 months off", but now that I’ve seen how fast these 3 months have gone, I feel like the weight will be off in no time.

Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding is still challenging in new and different ways. After about 8 weeks the pain finally was completely gone which was amazing. However, Olivia and I are still working on other things. I have a fast flow and strong let down which can be upsetting to babies sometimes as they get a lot of milk at once. It causes her to cry during feedings sometimes and also get frustrated at other times if my supply is lower and she doesn’t get the fast flow. She also gets upset if I try to feed her before she is hungry. I thought that my baby would be pretty happy to nurse at almost any time, but she isn’t quite like that. She will get really worked up if I attempt it and she doesn’t want it. So I really need to watch her for hunger signals. She also spits up a bit, and will do that even more if she isn’t hungry enough to digest all of the milk. It hurts my heart sometimes to see that I’m making my little girl upset by trying to nurse her, but I am hoping this is something we can continue to work through. She eats 6 times a day lately and I try to monitor the times to see how she is spacing feedings. Typically it is (4am, 8am, 12pm, 2:30pm, 5:30pm, 8:30pm). I’ve also started getting more comfortable feeding her outside of the house although it’s a bit challenging. At home I can use a pillow to angle her a little bit (to help with the flow), and sometimes when we are out I can’t get the positioning quite right. But we’re working on it. So far I’ve nursed at the Cheesecake Factory (with a cover), in my car (a few times), and at Bloomingdales and Nordstroms. I have to say that I don’t think I was fully prepared for the emotional and physical wear and tear of breastfeeding. I always imagined it would be easy and instant, but it’s a long road and it takes a lot of determination, strength, and love to keep going when it’s hard.

Social Life

I’m currently working on meeting some new mommy friends. It’s not the easiest thing, but it’s important. I don’t have any family around here so my week days can be a little bit isolating.  I started to feel a bit lonely and most of my friends, while still involved in my life, are living a very different lifestyle than me.  I am staying home for now, so it will be nice to have other stay at home mom friends to get together with during the day for walks, play dates, coffee, etc. When you think about it, it’s a hard time to get out there and be social. You have nothing to wear, you haven’t showered in 3 days, there is spit up on your shoulder, you worry that every time you leave the house your baby is going to need to eat or poop, your mind is so mushy you can’t really make the best conversation, and you have a little one with you that may or may not be in the mood for socializing. It’s tough, but I am determined. I know that if I feel this way, other new moms out there do too, and we can bond over all of this stuff. It’s funny how much I notice other moms now when I’m out. I make an effort to talk to people with babies all the time because it just feels good. 9 times out of 10 other women are super receptive to the conversation. I think we all share that feeling of living in our isolated mom worlds.

There is much more that I could talk about at this point, but I’m hoping I’ll be back to do that soon.

I remember when I was newly engaged I took a trip to Barnes and Noble and bought one of every wedding magazine on the shelf. I was so excited to start folding down pages, getting ideas, and advice on planning my wedding.

Soon after I started reading them, I stopped. I found that every magazine had some kind of "timeline" for wedding to-do’s that I should be following. I would read the timelines and instantly panic about what I wasn’t doing. Additionally, the picture perfect weddings that were showcased made me second guess everything I chose for my wedding. Ultimately my choices were made from the heart, they reflected my taste and all was perfect just as it was. 

What a waste of time wondering if my choices were right for me.

As a new mom, I kind of feel the same way about parenting books. The more I read them, the more I question myself and if what I’m doing is "right".

I think this is more related to my personality than anything. When I read a "how-to" book, I tend to take them a bit to seriously. I don’t want to read the books and then feel like I HAVE to stick to the advice in them. I just can’t do that to myself when it comes to my baby. I need to get to know her, formulate questions based on who she is and what she is doing, and seek out advice as needed from my doctor, mom, sister, etc…but most of all, just kind of figure it out.

I need to trust myself and not let a book tell me that what I’m doing is wrong even when it FEELS right.

What’s your opinion on parenting books?

My mom and in-laws took care of basically everything in the nursery. We got the furniture from a local baby store that was great. If you can, I highly recommend seeing if there is one near you. There were many benefits to shopping at a local store.

1. Ours was an older store that had been there for YEARS and YEARS. The folks that worked there were extremely knowledgeable and helpful.

2. They had a great selection but not an endless one. The internet has endless options- it can be difficult to narrow it down.

3. They delivered and put together the crib (it was actually their policy that they require that they put it together). The installers were from the store and not contracted out, and it took them 10 minutes to assemble everything.

Anyway, some of the other things that have really helped us are:

Brest Friend Nursing Pillow- INVALUABLE. Helped me SO much for positioning for feeding. It also clips around your waist so you can keep it on if you need to get up for a diaper change. In the middle of the night when I feed Olivia I snap it on, pick her up from the bassinet and walk into the nursery with the pillow still on.  I feed her on one side, swing the pillow around so the big part is in the back, change her, swing it back around, and feed on the other side. (This may not make any sense to you right now, but if you have the pillow and you’re trying to figure out night feedings with one set of hands you will see what I mean about my strategy).

Arms Reach Co-sleeper- We tried a few things when it came to where Olivia would sleep. Initially we put her in a bassinet upstairs in our room. While she slept just fine, I didn’t. I hated that I couldn’t see her and at first I really didn’t know what all of her crazy noises meant. Was she grunting because she couldn’t breathe? Then when she wouldn’t make any noises I’d freak out too. My sister gave us a Snuggle Nest Co-sleeper so we tried that first. It was nice at first but ultimately neither of us wanted her in our bed. We both worried about rolling on her or accidentally putting a pillow or blanket too close to her. And since we were so deliriously tired, it just felt unsafe. Eventually we bought the Arms Reach co sleeper which is the best of both worlds. She is right next to me so I can see her, reach her to rock her a bit or replace her pacifier, but she is not IN bed with us.

Fisher Price Piano Mat- We got this mat as a gift and it has been awesome. It really makes "playing" so much more fun! It’s not that easy to play with a newborn and when I watch her on this mat, I can tell she enjoys it. It gives her stimulation because she looks in the mirror, swats the animals and when she moves her legs they hit the piano keys and play music. It’s fun for her and fun for me too. The bar also can be laid down with the mirror facing up for tummy time. She hates tummy time, but I try it anyway.

Two Changing Tables/Two Bassinets- We were fortunate enough to have an extra changing table given to us by my mom and an extra bassinet that my sister gave me. But let me tell you, they are lifesavers. We spend most of our time downstairs during the day and it would be pretty exhausting to have to go upstairs to change Olivia every time she had a dirty diaper. It also is a convenient place to change her before and after bath time. I guess I could change her on a mat on the floor, but it’s nice to have a place for everything (diapers, creams, burp cloths, etc). Upstairs I just put a changing mat on top of the dresser. As for the bassinet, when we started to use the Arms Reach, we brought the other one we had downstairs. Olivia takes naps in it and I know it is a safe place to put her if I’m not in the immediate vicinity since it doesn’t move or vibrate or anything like that.

Kushies Mobile- It may not match anything in the nursery, but she loves it. After I change her in the morning I put her in her crib and she enjoys staring at it for a long time. It is fun for her and I can put in my contacts and brush my teeth. All of the Zolo/Kushies stuff we have has been a pretty big hit with her.

A bazillion burp cloths/cloth diapers- We didn’t have even close to what we needed. I use these for EVERYTHING.

Fisher Price Snugabunny Swing- I’ve mentioned this before, but this swing is a lifesaver. She loves it, we love it. The fact that it swings side to side is really what I think makes it soothing.

Bouncy Seat/Vibrating Seat- While Olivia doesn’t LOVE her vibrating chair, she will tolerate it while I’m in the shower or drying my hair. Mostly because she enjoys the sounds of the water from the shower and white noise from the dryer. Either way, I think its necessary to have something like this that you can bring into the bathroom.

Swaddle Me- Swaddling isn’t hard, but my super strong baby was busting out of any single blanket swaddle I did. Since it’s getting warm I don’t want to always have to wrap her in two blankets. These work great and they are lightweight cotton, and only $12.99 at Babies R Us.

Things that didn’t really work for us (or at least not yet)

Boppy - Awkward and uncomfortable for breastfeeding (too high and didn’t really work with a postpartum tummy)

Boppy lounger- Olivia was never happy on here unless she was already asleep and swaddled. Looked so comfy, I thought she would love it.

Aden & Anais swaddle blankets- I love the way they feel and the fact that they are so lightweight but busted out every time. And yes, I watched a million videos on HOW to swaddle with these blankets in particular.

Moby Wrap- Meh. It was okay at first but as she got bigger I didn’t love it. I felt her head was too wobbly because she didn’t want to tuck it inside the pocket. It’s also hard to get on quickly. I thought I would be more of a baby wearer than I actually am.

Ergo Infant Insert- I really like the way the Ergo feels and how secure it is, but the thing is HOT. Add the insert which is like a down comforter and bring on the sweat. I wish there was a layer between the Ergo and me, but Olivia is right on my chest, so when I get hot, she gets hot. I took her out of it after a walk one day and I was nervous about how warm we both were. Not a fan.

I hope this is helpful to any new moms out there!

What are your baby essentials? What were some things that you thought you would need/want but didn’t?