by me, for me.
(written on phone with Cameron on my lap)
1. Slow down. No need to rush anything. Anything!!
2. Have a very loose plan for each day.
3. Have a fun activity w Annabel daily. Even if very low key.
4. Get outside daily. Start w walks and build up.
5. Eventually (4 weeks?) add other exercise. Short workouts best – esp at home!! Ideas : yoga, barre3, Jillian Michaels
6. Save phone surfing for breastfeeding. This is way more than enough time!
7. Starting Monday, try 1-2 pumps daily to start building stock. But no stressing over what you do or do not get.
8. Think about putting more books on iPad for better reading during downtime when it does happen. Because Facebook really only needs to be checked every few days or so.
9. Work on overall mindfulness. This is the perfect time to improve ability to stay in the present moment.
10. Eat well. And since you already feel breastfeeding hunger setting in, make sure it’s enough! And make sure you are drinking enough. Feel confident that any excess baby weight will come off naturally and easily as it did last time.
11. Make some social plans and more specific family plans for weekends.
12. Take pictures and savor the small moments. This is likely the last chance (for a long time anyway) to have an extended block of time home with A and C.
13. Don’t spend time worrying about little things. Especially: trying to control things that cannot be controlled, like sleep schedules, eating schedules, and pumping volumes. It is all so temporary anyway!
14. Remember how incredibly lucky you are, and be thankful. 2 healthy beautiful children. Help from a wonderful nanny during the day on weekdays. An uncomplicated recovery (at least seems that way so far). A decent leave (9 weeks left!). A supportive husband and family. It doesn’t get much better than this and is well worth 1 am (and 2:30, and 4 …) wakeups.
7 Comments
Ummmm… I think I’m supposed to say something about how precious these moments are and how you are right to cherish them. But all I can think to tell you is take a deep breath and try to enjoy sitting still as much as you can. Mindfulness during breastfeeding sounds like staring off into space because you just have to sit there, i.e. torture. Not sure how you’re *actually* feeling, but I do remember that these weeks are pretty tough, so hang in there. You know it will get easier. Also… dare I say, be nice to yourself re: the pumping (and everything else). You are a great mommy already. There is no need to compete in the mommy Olympics.
So cute. I love when children and babies sleep like that. Carefree and innocent. Your notes to yourself are wonderful. Nine weeks is such a great amount of time. Imam sure you are going to enjoy all of it! I hope you are sleeping right now.
I cannot wait to watch him grow and see how Anabel adapts to being a big sister. It will be so fun. They are close enough in age to bond and get along. It is such a precious time.
Jenni
I was just thinking about #14 for myself. Truly I feel so,so blessed. Sometimes in the midst of all the craziness and stress I have to stop and think "Goodness, I have two beautiful children. A family. An amazing husband that supports us. A million sweet little moments I am blessed with daily that make up my LIFE." So I can choose to be thankful for the gift of my family and babies even in the midst of the stress. Easier said than done of course, but I try to keep this at the forefront of my mind.
Oldmdgirl hit the nail on the head for me- I only have one child, she’s almost 3 now, but I remember those first months were so, so hard. Colic, reflux, wondering if it was my fault, what I could be doing better, ugh! Of course, it did get better, but those first months were just about getting through the day. If you need to be on Facebook multiple times to just zone out, allow yourself to do so! This time is about taking care of yourself and your newborn, not self improvement.
I think whether you are bringing home your 1st, 2nd or 5th baby the first few days/weeks at home are tough and lots of the struggles have to do wth lack of sleep…afterall, it is a very effective method of torture 🙂 You are so smart to jot down a loosely laid plan just to reflect on when you can. You are also so smart to remember that each little phase is a short one so hang in there, Mama- you are doing great!!!!!
Sending lots of hugs!!! C is adorable and so are you!!!
Amy W, Chicago
Reading during breastfeeding was a big help to me during my maternity leave. It gave me something to "do" during the many hours I was in the rocker, and I read aloud so I felt like I was doing something to "benefit" Scott.
I detested my first maternity leave because B cried constantly and wouldn’t latch, so I had to pump while he screamed and feed him bottles. Also he never slept, so we had to take shifts overnight. It was torture. Also it was another snow-megaddon type winter that year and I was on leave Jan-midMarch when it was truly horrible weather. With L, he was just a much easier baby. He nursed away, and I watched SO MUCH TV. And it was fall, so much better weather, and we went out a lot, too. Not mindful in any way, shape, or form but much much enjoyed, and still looked back on wistfully as a really nice time in my life 🙂 So…just enjoy it, RELAX, you will never get to again (kidding…sort of)