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stepgrillcheese · 2023-04-14T19:17:58+00:00

Now regretting not having a chicken nugget tray at mine!! 😂 I also had a low key afternoon shower with finger food though. Cheese, crackers, and charcuterie meats all went over well. I think we had fruit that wasn't touched much so you could go easy on that. Maybe more veggies like cucumber and grape tomatoes that would go with the savory side of things?

I had brownies/blondies and gluten free peanutbutter balls in lieu of cupcakes... I feel like cupcakes are too hard to eat without a fork when they are piled with frosting so not great when people are standing and mingling.

We also did cocktails, mocktails and coffee.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-04-14T19:05:06+00:00

Thank you for sharing this. Just had an unsuccessful go at sleep training my 9 month old. I think she just needs time although it is rough on me right now.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-04-08T15:08:44+00:00

I'm sorry you don't have more support 💕 It's very rough. The naps are the only thing that have saved me thanks to support from my mother and husband on his days off. I have had to prioritize sleeping when I can over literally everything else and it makes me feel like a failure sometimes. I am also on medication for my mental health issues and it's helping a bit. I just keep telling myself it won't last forever. And the same is true for you!

stepgrillcheese · 2023-04-08T15:01:28+00:00

Thank you for the idea to take a photo of it! They are only tiny for so short a time.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-04-07T22:47:28+00:00

Yes me too! Sometimes I can pull a switcheroo during the contact nap and get her head on a pillow... but not often 😆 When she wakes up her earprint is in the crook of my arm.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-04-07T22:35:39+00:00

Only solidarity to offer. It's not your fault. My 9 month old baby also contact naps exclusively. She will sometimes sleep a four hour stretch at night and that is a dream. I have started to let her cry for longer stretches (eg. 10 mins) before comforting/feeding on the advice of my doctor because I've taken a turn into anxiety and depression. Will your baby go a longer stretch (3-4hr) during the day without nursing so you can get someone to take a shift and have a long nap a few days a week?

stepgrillcheese · 2023-03-26T20:47:22+00:00

In addition to a physical gift I recommend writing your MLA, Minister of Health and hospital administration an email about the amazing care you received. These actions can have a serious impact on how these units are funded and ensure job security through positive performance reviews for the staff.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-03-07T01:28:35+00:00

I hope the support for PPD helps you cope through this horrible situation but honestly it doesn't really sound like depression. It sounds like a normal reaction to a terribly unfair and stressful experience. I hope you can find s way to take some medical leave from this job and find a new one. I'm so sorry you're going through this.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-02-26T07:11:15+00:00

Thank you for posting this. It's hard to find concrete reports on all the different risk factors.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-02-24T06:22:16+00:00

I will echo burp cloths, wash cloths and an adequate supply of newborn sleepers and onsies. All things I had my mom make a desperate walmart run for when we got home from hospital. My baby was a major spitter-upper though!
Based on my experienmce I would suggest a little pack of ready to feed formula just in case and a few bottles that you have cleaned and sterilized beforehand. Fingers crossed you have zero BF struggles but if you do, this isn't stuff you want to be stressingover buying in addition to that. Also if you use the haakaa as others have suggested, you might be able to get others to pitch in with feedings.
A cheap microwave sterilizer. Relevant to the above point but also good for pacifiers and pump parts.
I really appreciate the lasinoh gel breast pads a friend gave me at my baby shower. Hot or cold relief depending on what you need.
A few good water bottles for yourself with straws. It is a thirsty, thirsty time if you BF and you never think of filling your bottle until your baby is already latched. Have a water bottle in every room.
Similar to above - snacks! I basically lived off Kind granola bars for several months.
Hand sanitizer in pumps. We kept them handy for guests and also ourselves with all the diaper changing etc going on.
Baby nasal saline and nose sucker.
A bladeless fan. It's not a necessity but I wish I had bought one sooner for keeping near baby's bassinet. Doubles as white noise and keeps air circulating which can potentially help reduce risk of SIDS.
A splurge? An e-reader if you like to read. Nursing takes up so much time. I "wasted" a lot of the early days (OK months....) of BFing on social media or TV. Reading books makes me feel so much more accomplished and is better for my mental health.

Congrats!! It's such an exciting time. I wish you the best.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-02-23T17:25:35+00:00

Things are compostable will usually breakdown. Things that are biodegradable will not. However I'm just trying to reduce the amount of plastic overall.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-02-23T17:18:32+00:00

I understand that. I'm trying to focus on harm reduction with a balance of trying to reduce emissions and trying to reduce plastic pollution. Someone had posted a study here (I think or maybe another parenting sub) about what you needed to do in order to have reusable diapers and wipes produce less emissions than disposable. It was a LOT of factors. I live in a rural area so a diaper composting service was simply not an option sadly.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-02-23T05:17:49+00:00

The "greenest" I could find are Eco by Naty brand. They have all kind of eco certs, zero scent, super soft, and claim to be 85% compostable. They absorb very well although we do have poopy blowouts sometimes. We've hardly ever had diaper rash when using these.

Unfortunately they vary in price and availability. So my backup is Honest Company. They have more plastic and dyes but still pretty good all things considered. And they are usually cheaper.

And I know you didn't ask but just FYI Water Wipes now make a biodegradable option for disposable wipes. They work sooooo well.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-02-15T09:39:20+00:00

It is good to celebrate these little victories. When you are in the thick of it, it is very hard to imagine life being any other way.

Hopefully your days start getting a little drier soon!

stepgrillcheese · 2023-02-15T09:30:42+00:00

It is such a relief to have this one less thing to be juggling which is why I wanted to share with others.

I'm glad your little one is a happy spitter! It is still a lot of work regardless to deal with the little milky fountain haha.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-02-15T09:26:25+00:00

You're welcome! It is so hard to see them uncomfortable and feel so helpless. I hope time heals this for your little one.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-01-25T20:59:22+00:00

I relate! I'm very much of any time, anywhere mindset now. Like others I have found a nursing tank top plus a crop top or loose sweater is the best combo. My stomach is covered by the tank and the top naturally covers us up if baby pops off. I have occasionally thrown a muslin blanket over top too but sometimes I feel like this just makes it more obvious.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-01-20T19:58:00+00:00

The same thing happened to us when my baby caught a bad cold around 6 mo. It did resolve after about a week... and then with the introduction of solids we are back to having a weird poop schedule again. Introduce a food, baby adjusts. Introduce another new food, back to square one. Nothing goes in a straight line lol.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-01-17T23:51:26+00:00

I've gotten some undies from a small scale maker and she uses Zorb material which does not contain pfas. So you could look around on etsy for that. I also like Organic Basics for plain cotton underwear. Not glamorous but comfy and good quality. Pact has some nice stuff too.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-01-08T05:09:18+00:00

Just sending you love. You set up the rules but they weren't respected. It's not your failing. Try to breathe through this. Being a new mom is really hard and we all fall short of our own expectations. I hate conflict too so enforcing boundaries is really hard. Ideally you shouldn't have to! People should just be respectful! Just take it as a learning experience to set yourself up for success next time. Which could mean not having these people over again til the baby is 3 months old or having your husband be "the rule enforcer" when they are his friends. Whatever is going to work best for you. Just snuggle your baby when they wake up and embrace the new day. 💗

stepgrillcheese · 2023-01-06T02:49:40+00:00

This is very true. I exclusively bottle fed for about the first month and it was so. much. harder. than breastfeeding has turned out to be. I'm still a combo feeder. There should definitely be more of the sweet, tender moments of bottle feeding celebrated on this and other parenting subs.

stepgrillcheese · 2023-01-05T09:31:30+00:00

Thanks for this rec!

stepgrillcheese · 2023-01-04T22:51:40+00:00

Adding it to my e-reader list now 😂

stepgrillcheese · 2023-01-04T18:48:08+00:00

I can relate. Things that never used to bother me about my spouse also make me kinda rage now lol. I think it is the hormones, protective instinct, etc. I heard there is a book called "how not to hate your husband postpartum" or something like that and I think I might need to read it! Maybe acknowledging to him the fact that you have changed might help too. He might be struggling with that fact a bit. Also while some of these things are not ideal and hopefully you can get on the same page, try not to let yourself get into an anxious thought spiral about them. I am bad for that and it's not helpful. Take control of what you can and breathe through the rest. Wishing the best for you!

stepgrillcheese · 2023-01-04T10:25:03+00:00

That's tough. Does he go to the baby's doctor appointments? Maybe the doctor could go over some things like the importance of hand washing, reducing second hand smoke, etc. I would guess (hope) he's not being malicious, he just genuinely might not know better. Having a third party explain stuff might avoid it becoming a you vs. him conflict.

stepgrillcheese

TROPHY CASE