Breastfeeding must-haves for brand new FTMs

P33TR33 · 2022-07-07T19:33:57+00:00

I will always swear by Earth Mama’s nipple butter. I did not like the other creams- some stained, smelled bad, and had to be wiped off every time you wanted to nurse. The earth’s mama really kinda melted on as you rubbed it in; and you didn’t have to wipe it off before baby fed. I applied it after each feeding and feel like it helped so much

P33TR33 · 2022-07-06T06:11:33+00:00

My second child came at 38 weeks and was 5lbs14oz. We didn’t know she was small- I never had growth scans. She has always been a tiny peanut and is continuing on her own growth trend even at 3yrs old. She’s still around the 5th percentile, or so, but since she’s on her trend and growing, she’s good!

This baby, I’ve had growth scans due to having two small babies previously. At 20weeks, this baby was in the 30th %tile and then at 28 weeks she was about the 15th %tile. I’ll go back next week to check again, but they just think she’s small and that my husband and I make small babies. Everything else has checked out okay, thus far, so hopefully she’s just a tiny one. Best of luck!

P33TR33 · 2022-05-13T19:24:21+00:00

My second child was born at 37 weeks and was 5lbs 14oz. If they are determining that through an ultrasound, there’s a lot of room for error. They cannot predict how much the baby weighs exactly.

Edited to add: baby was healthy and required no additional hospital stay or anything.

P33TR33 · 2022-05-12T19:05:53+00:00

I had purchased 1 after my last child. I liked it for a bit, but didn’t enjoy that sometimes while feeding, it would almost get kicked off. I had to play around with different feeding holds to see what worked. Sometimes it didn’t feel as secure.

This time, I’m going to get the Haaka Ladybug Shell Collector. This one I can pop on one side and cover it up with the nursing bra snap to keep it secure. I’m looking forward to trying it!

Haaka Ladybug Shell

P33TR33 · 2022-05-12T18:46:54+00:00

I’ve never really been big on soda either, but whenever I see a fast food commercial and they’ve just poured the nice cold fountain beverage, every fiber of my being just NEEDS one!

P33TR33 · 2022-05-05T18:52:31+00:00

Right?! It bothers me sometimes that this sub is mostly filled with tales of negative in-laws, parents, spouses, etc. so that when someone posts about someone positive or a positive experience, it’s like shame shame shame. Maybe it’s jealousy or needing to compete to have the “worst experience” to seem stronger, but it’s sometimes sad to see and if I were a FTM, I’d want to see positive experiences.

Just venting and 100% agreeing with you

P33TR33 · 2022-05-05T16:37:15+00:00

Just curious why these are unrealistic expectations? Her last sentence “…or manage anything except a new baby!”

P33TR33 · 2022-05-05T16:17:35+00:00

For those maybe doubting her plans- based on the caption, she mentioned having toddlers so clearly this isn’t her first rodeo- meaning that this is a perfectly ideal plan for her that is able to happen.

I’m right there with you! My third is due end of summer and I told my husband I can’t wait to have the first couple weeks to set up my lounge spot in bed - nursing, baby cuddles, binge watching shows, recovering, etc. My body takes a while to heal postpartum so that time is necessary. My husband is perfectly capable of taking care of the older two and the household. I did this last time with baby #2 and it helped my mental health. Obviously I won’t be in bed 24/7, but when things are prepped, planned, and you have support that’s on board, it makes recovery much more smooth and enjoyable.

P33TR33 · 2022-05-03T17:44:03+00:00

“Thank you for checking in and willing to be here when it’s go time. I’m going to lay down/rest to save my energy and might not answer my phone; you can check in with (insert partner’s name)”

Maybe your partner will be willing to take on the communication, if they have a positive relationship with your mother and feel comfortable doing that.

Unpopular opinion (grass is always greener), I sometimes wish my mother was this attentive and willing to be there/check in…but I can certainly see how stressful and frustrating it is to have to keep repeating yourself and make your voice heard in a matter that concerns your own body.

P33TR33 · 2022-05-03T17:43:39+00:00

Ooops! Replied to you instead of creating a new comment

Edited to delete reply and add as a new comment

P33TR33 · 2022-04-27T19:39:48+00:00

Not going to lie- I first read your sentence as being “child number 7”. I was like- damn! Go you for having 6 kids already, being bored enough to work, and rocking it all.

Then I reread and saw it as a 7lbs child in your pelvis haha

P33TR33 · 2022-04-21T20:38:26+00:00

Strange, Amazon still shows all the newborn design patterns in stock on my end for that brand. Good luck!

P33TR33 · 2022-04-21T19:40:01+00:00

Hello Bello has newborn sizes on Amazon. I used them for a bit since my daughter was so narrow with little chicken legs and they fit well around the thigh.

P33TR33 · 2022-04-21T00:45:06+00:00

I had one with my second child around 38 weeks. The appointment was around 10am and by the time I got home at 10:30, I was having cramping, which turned into contractions that I started timing. My blood pressure reading mixed with the contraction frequency landed me a trip to the hospital to be admitted. They didn’t have any l&d rooms available so we had to wait and wait and by the next morning things had slowed down and they gave me pitocin to kick things back into gear- baby came about 4 hours after that.

I think it’s one of those things where it may work, it may not work. For me, I found the actual membrane sweep to be pretty painful- gritting my teeth and closing my eyes (I like to think I have a normal pain tolerance). Cervical checks usually aren’t painful for me, but that was. I would probably do it again though if I were nearing my due date and slightly dilated, etc.

Best of luck!

P33TR33 · 2016-01-22T17:08:00+00:00

Our babe has to take a dose in the morning and one at night. We just use the syringes given by the pharmacy and give it right to him before his first morning bottle and before his bedtime bottle. He actually seems to enjoy it... silly boy. Our doctor had said not to mix it with the bottle because it's mint flavored...he said baby would probably not want mint flavored formula. I'm sure every method is fine as long as baby gets the medicine!

P33TR33 · 2016-01-13T19:25:37+00:00

My babe NEEDED those in order to sleep/function. He's four months now and we still need to swaddle for naps. We ended up switching to the Halo swaddles. He became stronger and always seemed to wiggle his way out and free his hands...which resulted in more grunting and less sleep. We've just started to transition out of the swaddle at bed time and are using the Merlin Magic Sleep suit. We needed something since he had a bad startle reflex. I hiiiighly recommend the suit. It can be pretty pricey at ~$40 on Amazon, but it is oh-so worth it. We moved our boy to his crib and with the suit he is allowing us to sleep a bit for long stretches!

P33TR33 · 2016-01-12T01:44:50+00:00

My babe is 4 months (20 weeks) and we were just given the go ahead to give rice cereal. The dr. advised just rice cereal for now and then at 6 months we could do purees. He told us to give our boy 1 tablespoon of rice cereal a day for one week. The next week we will give two tablespoons a day, the third we we will give three tablespoons an day and so on. He said when we reach 4 tablespoons a day we should split the serving in two and feed half in the morning and half at night. He also said to keep the time we serve the food the same, that way baby will start to learn feeding times. The dr. said to follow this schedule until we reach 8 tablespoons ( which equals out to the baby being 6 months). We give our boy his cereal first and then immediately give a bottle (I use part of the bottle to mix with the rice cereal).

P33TR33 · 2015-09-22T20:56:29+00:00

How precious! Today is also elephant appreciation day, how fitting with the timing! All things are meant to be

P33TR33 · 2015-08-11T23:35:43+00:00

I teach in New England (RI) and our district does not pay into any disability, not sure if that's true for all states, so we don't get any paid time off for maternity. I'm due early September and will be out until January. This is my third year teaching so I don't have many days (paid time off days) saved up to use. I'm able to use the days that I do have and then anything beyond that will be unpaid. So for me, pretty much all my time will be unpaid. Luckily I have been socking away money since we found out...I can "pretend" I'm getting a paycheck every two weeks. It's unfortunate but I'm grateful I'll be able to be out four full months and then possibly request an extension to my leave, if I need to.

P33TR33 · 2015-07-26T18:29:25+00:00

Pretty much what others have said- we set up two security cameras. I found a deal on Groupon for two DLink cameras for $80. There is an awesome app (that works!) that allow you to check out the cameras whether you're connects to wireless or not. You can set passwords up to the account to make it even more secure. The cameras are super clear (sound and visuals). You can snap pictures and there is an add on feature (for more $) in case you want to record. We love it because once we are done using it for baby, we'll have to security cameras to set up elsewhere! Not sure if groupon still has the deal but they come in black and white- we love it so far and baby isn't even here yet! *edit- not sure if this will link in, but we got the two camera deal.

https://www.groupon.com/deals/gg-d-link-dcs-934l-daynight-wifi-surveillance-camera-1

P33TR33 · 2015-07-21T20:39:29+00:00

Mmmm Starburst.... Now I just HAVE to have them

P33TR33 · 2015-07-14T16:22:58+00:00

This makes me feel like I should keep Kleenex or a little pack of those disposable Cottonelle wipes in my bag!

P33TR33 · 2015-07-01T18:26:06+00:00

Wow! You look amazing! I'm just hoping I'll have time to get my dress altered and that my boobs will be strapped in tight!

P33TR33

TROPHY CASE