Monday, March 25, 2013

Let's talk about sex, baby... or what happens after.

Let's talk about raising a baby!... since I'm down three quarters of a bottle of shiraz and half a bag of chocolate covered almonds.  There's really no time like the present.

After hearing AMAZING news today, that a very, very dear friend of mine is expecting, I'd like to reminisce and share some insight in the form of verbal diarrhea.  Here goes...

As far as I'm concerned, nothing in this world compares to being pregnant, birthing a baby, and watching a newborn grow into a toddler.  Motherhood, single handedly beats out any other profession.  Personal shopper, and wine sommelier being a close second and third.

I can honestly say the only thing stopping me from having five babies in a row, is that occasionally we put off paying the cable bill so that we can order takeout sushi instead.  We aren't rich and we do strongly promote post secondary education, and hope to one day send the smartest one of our kids to college.  
(I kid, I kid.) 

But seriously, making babies, having babies, chasing babies around... are all the best things on this planet.

It's pretty challenging for a while, especially the first few months, but it absolutely gets easier and a whole lot more fun.  Some days are exhausting, and I can say I have most definitely cried five to 10 times once or twice, right a long with my hysterical, teething child.  But morning comes, and you see that squishy, smiling face looking up at you all excited, and suddenly you're a morning person again, when you haven't been a morning person since the 7th grade.

Every single baby in this world is different in a million different ways.  It's very difficult to say that what works for one baby will work for another.  One thing I wish I had done before C arrived, was read a few more books on actual babies, instead of mostly pregnancy books.  I say this because I've learned a few things the hard way.  Some of the things I learned through trial and error were basic things like... sleep patterns, how much food and when, and educational activities.

Some books I would recommend are:

What to Expect, the First Year - For basic everyday info. and milestones.  However, I'm sure there are other books out there that are just as good, if not better, and similar to that one.

The Lull-a-baby Sleep Plan - For sleep training tips starting at 8 weeks of age.  This is one of the books I read while I was still pregnant that made me realize how big of a deal helping your baby sleep is.  Eventually I combined this book with the next one for ultimate baby sleep strategizing...

Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child - For help with sleep problems and a more in depth idea of how babies sleep.  The importance of letting your baby learn to self soothe (for older babies, I for sure do not mean let them cry it out).

Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See - Don't laugh...I'm serious. This book is the best.  I started reading C this book when she was newborn and now whenever I say 'brown bear', she races to her book shelf and picks it out of a pile of books.  And she has added Cat to her vocab.  Pretty awesome for a 9 month old.  (yeah, yeah my babies a genius...)  Books in general are the best learning tools.  Dur.

One thing that trumps anything any baby book will ever tell you, is the help and advice from your own mom.  If you're still here and reading this, it means she did things right, so give her a chance.

Some books I would not recommend are:

The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding - Unless you want to feel like a total asshole for not breastfeeding.  Whatever the reason, be it that it just didn't work out, or that you choose to formula feed, they will make you feel like you don't deserve to be a mother unless you nurse. I wholeheartedly agree that breastfeeding is beneficial and I know first hand that it helps you drop baby weight like it's hot, but it's a personal choice.  If you need help, make an appointment with a lactation consultant, who is hopefully not a member of the La Leche League.

Go the F*%$ to Sleep - Just kidding, this book is hilarious and awesome.  Just skip the swears if you plan on reading it as a bed time story, or before you know it your kid will be ripping curse words.

Another totally awesome thing to read is this article about parenting... because it's awesome and completely true.
Parenting... you're probably doing it wrong anyway.

Happy Reading!

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