Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Logan's House & Paranoid Parents

When you decide to have a baby, you think about how cute it will be and how much you will love it, etc etc.

Then you start gathering all the "stuff."

Crib, dresser, changing station, etc.

OK -cool, now we have a nursery. Cute!

Then the showers start and the STUFF starts pouring in. Swings, bouncy chairs, toys, clothes, etc.

Ok - cool, put it all away in the cute nursery.

Then - the baby comes.

And the STUFF explodes into the house. The reality is that you don't want to isolate yourself in just that one room. Feeding, changing, shh'ing to sleep - all in the same room makes you feel very left out and alone.

This is my living room now:Swing (a.k.a LIFESAVER), random baby mess on the coffee table (toys, drops, Advil and coffee for mommy). Bobby lounger (another lifesaver, he loves that thing).

Burb cloths everywhere, bassinet in front of the wine cabinet (my how things change huh?) Dogs sleeping..

The kitchen has even been impacted:
Bottles, bottle warmer, bottle drying rack.. Now, this is after my night routine, where I make the bottles before I go to bed (for the first time around 11:30pm) so that all I do it get up at 2:30 and 5:30 and throw a bottle in the warmer. I haven't quite cleaned up my night mess.

For the record, pumping and bottle feeding is... challenging. But I know it's worth it.
At least I found a use for the wasted space behind my sink... great place for the drying rack!

Also - when you decide to have a baby - you know there will be some level of worry. There is nothing in the world that prepares you for this kind of worry.

Every book and online publication talks about SIDS. They all try to ease your fears and tell you that as long as you don't have huge fluffy blankets and he sleeps on his back - you are probably fine.

Ask us how many times we have either poked this poor baby in the middle of his super still nap, or how fast I whipped out of bed and checked on him last night when I woke up to find he had slept an hour longer than normal.

On top of that, we were told by the 5pm news that crib bumpers are a no-no. They are bad when the baby starts moving around the crib b/c of suffocation, but also before that because they trap carbon dioxide in the crib and less fresh air gets in.

So now...No bumper. That super cute bumper with the trains on it..

Added benefit is that I can see him pretty easily from the doorway -
(that blanket is tucked very snugly around his lower body, and he is swaddled beneath that...)
Today is his first time in the big crib since a few days after we brought him home. I am trying to transition him back into that room. It's a little cooler back there but since he is gaining weight I wanted to give it a shot during the day. He so far has taken his entire nap back there this morning!

That bassinet may get put away soon..
Am I ready for that?

Not really. He is growing fast! While I long for a good nights sleep, I still can't believe how fast he is growing. He looks way less newborn and way more like a little boy!

4 comments:

Annie said...

good to know what my house is going to look like in a few months! ;)

Unknown said...

Oh Annie, you just WAIT! :) Your house will be upside down and inside out but you will be too tired to care about the dust bunnies in the corners.
Word of advice from a new mom of a boy - keep washcloths around - Logan already peed on himself twice and on the WALL!
And point it down when you diaper. Saves you laundry!

Donald said...

Is there anyway to re-purpose the bumper as a wall decoration? or hang it on the bottom outside edge of the crib, kinda like a bed skirt?

Sarah said...

That's why we love Donald. He's very resourceful. It seems so crazy to see all of that baby stuff in the living room. I love it!