infant Archives - Life's Tidbits

20Oct 2014

Jet-setter Baby

by Nicole ⋅ 8 Comments

A the ripe ‘old’ age of 9 month little miss Jellybean has been to the east coast, west coast and Midwest! Pretty well traveled baby don’t you thinks?!?! Between the age of 3 and 9 months we’ve flown with Jellybean a number of times and taken two long car trips. During each trip I learn of something new I should pack as well as what not to pack. Finding the balance between enough and not enough stuff has been challenging.

The ability to wash clothes at the grandparents’ houses was clutch! When we were in Seattle clean clothes were hard to come by and, yeah, we totally ran out of diapers … the trip was only 4 days. The husband admitted (after the fact) he thought I over packed, and was completely befuddled when he had to hand wash a onsie and go buy more diapers on the last day of the trip!

Let me put my cards on the table here. Traveling with a baby isn’t as bad as I thought it would be! Do I want to travel with her weekly or even monthly?! No, not really. But all in all flying with an infant isn’t all that bad — even when taking into account the blowout we experienced on Mother’s day.

Traveling with all of the baby’s STUFF …. now THAT, THAT my friends, that is another story. :) For such a little person Jellybean’s suitcase and carry on bag {aka diaper bag} is overflowing every time we travel.

I did my share of Googling and surveying friends when planning how to best travel with our infant. While I am clearly not an expert when it comes to traveling with a baby I did want to share what I’ve learned so far!

Tips to make Flying with an Infant Easier

Gate check the stroller and car seat. It’s free so there is no reason not to bring them with you. Yes they are clunky, but the ability to put JB in her stroller/carseat and walk through the airport was amazing. While a baby carrier is great I find carrying the baby plus carry-on bag to be a bit much! If you little one is out of the car seat already you can check it for free after obtaining your boarding pass. Not shlupping that thing through the airport is SO nice.
Change baby’s diaper just prior to boarding. Even if the diaper is just a tiny bit wet it’s best to start fresh.
Boarding early . When able, that is, apparently United doesn’t do early boarding for families, boo! It’s nice to get on and get settled without having to navigate around others … or hold up the boarding process. Better yet, when traveling with another adult, have one person get on early with the gear and then other board last minute with the baby.
Allow for extra time to go through security. TSA is super chill about carrying on formula/pumped milk, and purees/food. TSA does do an extra check so it adds a tad bit of additional time for them to do the check.
Place the diaper bag and ALL baby related items under the seat in front of you. Inevitably something I thought we would not need became a MUST HAVE RIGHT NOW item during take off or landing – clearly if it’s in the overhead one will need it when we can’t access it. :)
Bring a baby carrier. For most it seems like the baby carrier and stroller are an either/or travel item. For me, BOTH are a must. The carrier was clutch when we were flying to Seattle. It was the only way I could have my hands free and allow Jellybean to take a nap. I wouldn’t ever travel without it again.

BONUS TIP! Cheerios and/or Puffs are great for entertainment and containing the little one in tight corridors.

Here is Jellybean on her maiden trip to the Midwest :)

Any travel tips? What is your must have items for baby when traveling?

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27Feb 2014

Newborn Necessity Items

by Nicole ⋅ 9 Comments

I’m not sure where the time goes, but Jellybean is already two months old! When parents say “kids grow up so far”, they seriously weren’t kidding. Not only is my maternity leave flying by, but JB is getting bigger, stronger and (of course) cuter by the day. Before Jellybean arrived I spent a good amount of time preparing for her birth. Decorating her nursery was just as important to me as purchasing the necessities. All in all we were very well prepared for Jellybean – as far as “stuff” goes … the whole sleep deprivation thing … NOT so much! Over the past two months the husband and I quickly identified our must have and necessary items for a newborn. While it is similar to my pre-baby/pregnancy registry must have list this one is bigger and more accurate.

Sleeping – Warm Onsies with Feet / Swaddle Blankets / 2-4 Bassinet Sheets

1 – Since JB is a winter baby warm onesies with feet on them (as recommended by my mother) are essential. I would highly recommend purchasing at least 5 and get the button ones over the zip-up onesies. While I know many folks swear by the zip-ups as they are easier the buttons come in handy during those 3am diaper changes. Unzipping the whole onesie makes our baby colder (and often more cranky) than quickly unbuttoning just the legs and tush areas.

2 – I had originally planned on using swaddle pods, however my baby HATES them. We are talking blood curdling screams as we zipped her into them. We quickly learned that while she absolutely wants to be swaddled she wants the old school method. The aden + anais Muslin Swaddle Blankets are perfect. They are big and enable even the worst of swaddlers (read me … my husband is the swaddle pro!) to wrap the blanket around and get a tight swaddle.

3 – I figured 1 bassinet sheet would be plenty… HA! Amateur I tell you – AMATEUR. Between spit up, regular linen changes and oh yes a couple of diaper blow outs having extra bassinet sheets was extremely helpful (thanks mom!).

Diapering – Pampers Swaddlers / Sensitive Wipes / Changing Pad Liners

4/5 – We tried Huggies and Pampers Swaddles with Jellybean was first born. I must say we had less blow outs/leaks with the Pampers Swaddlers. Like a mentioned before I’m shocked at the shier volume of diapers and wipes we go through. STOCK UP before the baby comes or consider Amazon Mom, it saved us on more than one occasion.

6 – I would recommend getting a bunch of these. They come in more handy than I thought they would and save me from having to wash the changing pad cover as often. It’s almost as though Jellybean knows when I’ve removed the old diaper and I’m starting to put the new one on and BAM in the 30 second switch she pees hahaha. Instead of taking the whole cover off I just quickly switch out the liner and I’m back in business.

Feeding – Boppy / Burp Cloths (thick ones) / Glider / Baby Connect App

7 – The Boppy has come in handy both for nursing as well as propping the baby up as I get situated. Sometimes two hand is just necessary. ;)

8 – Although pretty burp cloths are definitely nice to have it is best to have a lot. I’ve also found thicker burp clothes are better to help absorb any of those bigger spit ups which leak through the thin cloths. My mom suggested we buy these, which are both affordable and thick.

9 – I spent the first few days at home attempting to find the best location for nursing. I sat on the couch, the big chair in the living room, the glider and even tried breastfeeding in bed (worst place of all!). I found the glider to be the easiest and most comfortable place to breastfeed. There is a learning curve with breastfeeding (at least there was for me) and being able to sit comfortably and have good support for both my back and arms made the process a little bit easier.

10 – After leaving labor/delivery and getting somewhat settled into our recovery room the nurse handed us a sheet of paper. She explained that all feedings as well as pee/poppy diapers should be tracked. Given how exhausted we both were the idea of writing all the down seemed like a lot of work. I quickly remembered my neighbor had recommended an app, which made tracking everything easier. I downloaded the trial version and got to tracking. The app is user friendly and my favorite part is you can pause and resume feedings as necessary. I rarely pay for apps for my phone, but this one was well worth the money!

Other – Cradle Swing / 2 Stroller “Cuddle” Blankets / Wubbanub Pacifier / Dawn Dish Soap

11 – Originally I was against spending this kind of money on a swing not to mention it is pretty big and we live in a condo and have limited space! When I figured out Jellybean like to swing side to side and not front to back I started toying with the idea of buying this swing. The hubby’s work friends gave us a gift certificate to Babies R’ Us which just about covered the cost of the swing. After a little push from my parents off to the store we went. Jellybean takes a ton of naps in the swing…it’s definitely a MUST HAVE!

12 – These blankets are great for cuddling on the couch or keeping baby warm while traveling from one destination to another. And let’s not forget how incredibly soft these blankets are as well!!

13 – This pacifier is not only cute, but practical. The toy part lays on the baby’s chest or you can prop it up in the swing so the pacifier doesn’t pop out of his/her mouth as easily. Makes for less getting up and down to pop the pacifier back in…winning!

14 – So has your baby had a blow out yet? Well let me tell you when it happens it is GROSS. What’s worse is trying to get the poop color out of the clothes (and/or whatever the poop got on). Oddly enough the thing we’ve found that works the BEST is dish soap. I have no idea what the difference is between the dish soap and baby oxiclean and/or dreft, but a little dish soap and warm water and we say goodbye to the stain! Obviously after we get the stain our we run it through the wash using dreft so the clothes don’t irritate Jellybean’s skin.

So there you have it – my pretty robust must have list for a newborn. What items couldn’t you live without having a newborn/infant in the house?

If you enjoyed this post, please add your tidbit by commenting below. Don’t forget you can follow us on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

03Feb 2014

1 Month Old {Jellybean}

by Nicole ⋅ 3 Comments

While the pregnancy series has come to a close the baby series is just beginning! I must admit there is a small portion of me that misses blogging about being pregnant. That being said I might have a few “reflection” posts in my back pocket should the mood strike. In any event, it has been a WHOLE month since Jellybean made her grand entrance.

I am not sure where the past 4 weeks have gone. The days seem to fly by. I’m not really sure what, if anything, I actually do all day. My day revolves around feedings, diaper changes, soothing and trying to get baby girl to sleep. There is no routine to speak of, yet. I am looking forward to getting Jellybean (and myself) on a routine, however her eating “on demand” doesn’t lend itself well to a schedule. We will get there eventually … as the pediatrician told me there is no need or rush to get her on a set schedule at this point.

On her one month birthday we did a little photo shoot to document the occasion.

Love how her fist is reaching for the camera!

A few tidbits about the first month …

Sleep

Not consistently :) Jellybean is sleeping anywhere from 2 to 4 hours during the night (9pm to 8am). I’m unable to identify what factors influence how many hours she sleeps for, but I very much appreciate the 4 hour stints!

Eating

At this point we are exclusively breastfeeding. She eats every 1.5 to 2.5 during the day. We have had a few days when we think she had a growth spurt and all she wanted to do was eat every 45 minutes to an hour. It was very exhausting!

Wearing

Much to my surprise she is still in newborn diapers. After a couple of diaper blowouts we tried upping her to size 1, however they were just way too big on her so we went back to the newborn size. Despite being told countless times by other moms I’m completely shocked at pure number of diapers we go through each week!!

Jellybean is currently wearing newborn and size 0-3 month clothing. It was only the past couple days where she wasn’t swimming in her 0-3 month clothes. The newborn clothes are starting to get a little small so we will be transitioning to all 0-3 month clothes soon I expect.

Milestones / Random Tidbits

Jellybean can already lift her head … she’s so strong for such a little person! Though it looks like she has control over her head for a few second she then looses it and her head comes crashing down onto my chest. Despite her ability to lift her head tummy time only lasts a minute or two before she gets agitated.

Jellybean is also incredibly alert. She’s drawn to bright light and often stares intensely at something for a good amount of time. Now what she’s actually looking at (unless it is directly at me) is sometimes hard to tell.

Those are two of my favorite pictures from her one month photo shoot! I would love to know what she is thinking in the second picture. She’s almost like “are you done yet mom? I know I’m cute, but let’s get this over with already.” Hahaha.

What was your favorite tidbit from your baby’s first month?

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24Jan 2014

Introducing …

by Nicole ⋅ 13 Comments

Miss Blair Alexandra! {aka Jellybean}

Our beautiful baby girl {FINALLY} made her debut on December 31st at 4:03am.

I must admit, I have been more of an absentee blogger than I had planned on – for the past 3 weeks that is. Being a new mom coupled with recovering from a c-section (which was completely unplanned and unexpected) it has taken me longer than expected to get back in front of the computer. While I am not quite ready to tell Blair’s birth story, I am hoping to share my labor and c-section experience soon.

A few new mom tidbits:

I’ve officially been “christened” as a mom … I’ve been peed, pooped and spit-up on!
I feel like a walking zombie during night feeding though I’m slowly adjusting to getting up ~3 times a night to feed the little one … brings new meaning to the word exhausted.
I put a sweatshirt on the other day, realized it had spit-up on it and decided it was “clean enough” to wear given all the other sweatshirts were in the wash.
Getting to shower during the day is considered a significant win (seriously it’s the small things in life!).
The dog has decided the baby doesn’t exist and completely ignores her. Sophi sits on my legs while I feed Blair and has smelled her a couple times, but that’s the closest the dog will get to the baby. On the up side Sophi doesn’t bark when Blair cries (thank goodness!!).

Okay one more picture, because sharing only one just isn’t enough. Oh yes, she is sucking her thumb on her birthday =)

Needless to say the husband and I are completely in love with the newest member of our little family!!! More new mommy tidbits to come in the next few weeks. Hopefully I am able to squeeze in some blogging between naps, diaper changes, feedings and just staring at my baby!

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03Jan 2014

Baby Gear / Registry Must Haves

by Nicole ⋅ 2 Comments

I spent a TON of time researching baby gear in my second trimester. I looked at blogs, read articles and perused friends, friends of friends and acquaintances registries looking for items they all had in common. Although I consulted with the husband on my picks, he pretty much deferred to me since I was doing the research. In all honesty neither of us have ever used this kind of gear before so it kind of felts like a guessing game when picking items to register for. In the end I am pretty pleased with what we chose. But honestly, who would have thought such a tiny little person would “need” SOOO much stuff?!

For the purposes of this post, let’s just take the baby basics/big ticket items off the table, okay? So diaper, wipes, stroller and car seat are “given” must have items for newborns. Given my research, to date, below is what I think we will need for Jellybean …

1 – Boppy Pillow – It is rare to find a baby registry that doesn’t have a boppy pillow on it. Most of my friends who have breastfed swear by it and say the pillow makes it so much easier to support the baby. I was fortunate enough to get a hand-me-over boppy from a friend. I purchased a new and crazy soft cover from Pottery Barn.

2 – Sophie Giraffe – This teether seems to be all the rage as of late. All the babies being strolled down the street have one sitting next to them. I swear it shows up on every Google search for “must have” baby items. While we can’t call the giraffe Sophie, because that is our dog’s name, we are now the proud owners of a “Sophie” giraffe teether.

3 – Thermometer – As a first time mom I’m confident I will be concerned Jellybean is sick. I expect this thermometer will help keep my mind at ease in the coming months.

4 – Swaddle Pod – I like that they have a zipper … place the baby in the pod and zip-her-up … no messing around with trying to do the traditional swaddle for bedtime.

5 – Soothie Pacifier – Have come highly recommended on blogs and from friends alike. We received a couple from some friends who just had a baby girl back in October. They said these pacifiers were a must!

6 – aden + anais Swaddle/Receiving Blankets – It feels like this item is a given.

7 – Bouncing Chair – The bouncy chair seems to be interchangeable with a swing. My friend is kind enough to lend us her son’s swing so I registered for the bouncy chair. I figure we can put Jellybean in both and let her decide which she likes best.

8 – Nosefrida Baby Nasal Aspirator – New and veteran mommies alike rave about this product. I guess it is better than the “ball” nasal aspirators. At my friend’s shower a couple weeks ago a mom said she always gives the snotsucker as part of her shower gift. I figured it is certainly worth a try therefore we purchased one.

My plan is to update my must have list once Jellybean arrive and I actually start using these products. It should be interesting to see what I thought we needed versus what we actually need.

What baby gear/item do you wish you had registered for and/or purchased prior to bringing the little bundle of joy home from the hospital? What am I missing?

If you enjoyed this post, please add your tidbit by commenting below. Don’t forget you can follow us on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

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Tag Archives: Infant

Jet-setter Baby

Newborn Necessity Items

1 Month Old {Jellybean}

Introducing …

Baby Gear / Registry Must Haves

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