Parenting tips, 5 weeks in

So, yes, these are just things that work for us and OUR baby. If you have additional tips, let me know - what works today may not tomorrow, etc.

1. After the first couple weeks of newborn-ness, start swaddling the baby JUST at night. It helps calm them down during the early evening fussy time and signal that it's night-time, ergo, sleepy time.

1a. The SwaddleMe Blanket is awesome. Buy multiples. So much easier than trying to get a regular blanket to stay in place, although regular blankets are also great for naptime and snuggling and tummy time and the like, so you'll want a ton of those on hand, too.

2. Never underestimate the power of a lullaby. Pick one or two and stick with them ad nauseum. Even if you can't sing, they'll like it. And they'll come to associate those songs with, again, calming down and signaling sleepy time. For Meredith, it's "Lullaby (Goodnight My Angel)" by Billy Joel and "I'll Love You Forever" from the eponymous children's book. Hum the tune if you can't remember all the words, or make up new words - it's the tune that counts the most. I sung both those songs a lot while I was pregnant, so Meredith heard the tunes and recognized them early on.

3. If you're not breastfeeding, caffeine is your BFF. If you're breastfeeding, drink caffeine WHILE you're feeding the baby so it'll be out of your system enough before the next feeding. Or so I'm told.

4. Keep hand sanitizer at the changing table, so you don't have to wash your  hands after every diaper change (just the really messy ones). Also keep lotion handy, since hand sanitizer dries your skin out like crazy.

5. Don't try to introduce a new calm-'em-down thing when your kid is already fussy to the point of no return. It won't work. Start using it regularly when they're already calm and happy, and then it'll be more likely to help settle them when they're screaming.

6. Sometimes, you have to just strap the kid into the swing/bouncy seat/car seat/etc and let them scream for 5-10 minutes while you go to the bathroom or brush your teeth or take the world's quickest shower or take the garbage out. They will survive, and so will you, even if you feel like the World's Worst Parent at the time.

7. Get out of the house once a day, whether that's a walk to the grocery store with the baby in the stroller, a pediatrician's appointment, or whatever. GETTING OUT IS KEY. And babies often fall asleep in the car seat - BONUS.

8. Don't interact with them during nighttime feedings/changings. Simply focus on tag teaming with your partner to quickly, quietly change that diaper and get the baby fed & put back down to sleep in a dimly lit room before they have a chance to fully wake up. No cutesy singing to them at the change table or gooey silly faces during feeding time: Just git 'r dun. When Meredith wakes up, Dave goes and changes her diaper while I prep a bottle, a process that takes about 3 minutes for each of us. Then, I come back into the bedroom, get the baby settled on my lap, feed her, burp her, hold her for about a minute to settle her down, then put her back in the bassinet. 8 times of out 10, she's back to sleep in a flash and the whole process has taken under 20 minutes. We won't talk about the other 2 times in 10.

9. Keep a HUGE stack of burp cloths on hand. Seriously. I'm amazed how fast we go through them, they're probably 50% of the baby's laundry.

10. A sleeping baby is a beautiful thing. DO NOT WAKE THEM UP, even if it's time for their next feeding. Just let them sleep.

11. On the other hand, during the day, don't try to be quiet. Vacuum, run the dishwasher, listen to music, take them for walks in noisier neighborhoods. They need to be able to sleep through that stuff, and you don't need to tiptoe around your house 24/7!

12. If they're awake and happy, put down whatever else you were doing and enjoy them. So much of parenting a newborn is slogging through crying fits, diaper blowouts, spit-up and 2am feedings, that when they're cooing at you and making cute faces, it makes it all worthwhile. Making dinner can wait - your happy baby might turn fussy in the next 30 seconds, so enjoy it while you can.

One month

One month old on 12/4/2011! Mr. Broccoli will be
used as our month-to-month size comparison in photos...
Simply because I think he's cute. And cruciferous.

Dear Meredith,

It's 6:53pm, according to my laptop. In 15 minutes, at 7:08pm, you will be precisely one month old. Wow. A whole month! 30 days! And we're all still ALIVE!

You're currently napping in your swing, pacifier firmly stuck between your lips, wrapped up in a SwaddleMe blanket (best. invention. ever.) after a nice bath, bottle, and a diaper change, followed by a fuss-then-snuggle session - the baby equivalent of a swingin' night out. You're definitely a fan of the swaddle, and it's one of the things that consoles you when nothing else will. I'm not surprised, because I love being wrapped up in a cocoon of blankets when I sleep, too.

Thanks, Nonna A., for the month-printed onesies!

Fuss level: Medium-to-high. When you're hungry, a pacifier will keep the screams at bay while we change your diaper, but only if it's held in your mouth. You've started TRYING to hold it in with your little hands, but more often than not you end up knocking it back out and frustrating yourself all over again. You don't like burp breaks in the middle of a feeding session, and will holler at me 'til you belch, then keep informing me of your displeasure. Some days you're fussier than others, and some days I can see glimpses of your excited, happy baby personality. But you're only 1 month old, so this up-and-down-ness is to be expected. You definitely know you're the center of attention around here, and take full advantage of it.

Other things you hate: Wet diapers (but only sometimes, for some reason), dirty diapers, your swing and bouncy seat when you're already in a bad mood, being gassy, being hungry, tummy time, and not being snuggled enough by Mommy and Daddy.

Things you like: Baths, feeding time, making noises at all hours (awake or asleep, you're quite the grunter and sigh-er) sleeping in someone's arms, naps, looking at yourself in your play gym's mirror and making fishy faces at the toys on the gym, when I sing or read to you, when your Daddy says silly things to you, going for walks or car rides (unless you have a wet diaper or are hungry) and being in your swing and bouncy seat when you're in a good mood.

My first Thanksgiving (note the turkey-embossed onesie) - the
feast put me in a tryptophan haze, y'all.

You do have lots of physical therapy in your near future, I'm sorry to say: You have a bad case of Tortocollis, where the muscles on the right side of your neck are tight and you tend to turn your head only to the left, but tilt it slightly to the right. Since we don't want one side of your head to get flat from it being the only side you lay on, Operation Turn To the Right is underway. We're under orders from the PT to have you turn your head to your right as much as possible - we only place toys, books, etc to your right, feed you bottles on my left side so you turn right, and have you sleep tilted towards your right side, propped between two 5lb bags of rice covered in pillowcases. As someone who's had neck problems for years, I totally sympathize with you when I have to manually, gently push your head away from the left side, especially during tummy time, which you already dislike. But it'll all work out, and soon you'll have strong neck muscles on both sides.

The physical therapist and our pediatrician have been very impressed with the rest of your development, though, as you have a great range of motion, are very active, and make tons of eye contact - rare for a baby so young. I love the eye contact, as it gives me a chance to look deep into those beautiful brown eyes (yes, they're already turning brown, and I think they're gonna be the same sweet chocolate color as your Daddy's eyes) and say silly things to you. You smile in your sleep sometimes, and it's gorgeous and heart-melting. I can't wait to see you smile at us for real, and hear your first giggles.

At your 2-week checkup, you were already 1 pound over your birth weight, up to 8lb 13oz, and had grown from 19 to 21 inches. I'll try and weigh you tomorrow, but my guess is you're pushing 10lbs, if not over it already. No surprise there, as you're sucking down about 20-24 ounces of formula a day. (I had to stop pumping shortly after your Dad went back to work, as it's difficult to hold a fussy baby who doesn't like being put down and pump at the same time. But, you're thriving on formula, and I know you'll keep on thriving.)

Life with you took some getting used to, but now it seems like you've always been here, and we love you so much, baby girl. We're so lucky to be your parents... And we admit, we're eagerly awaiting the night you sleep for a full 6-8 hours. Please, start doing that soon, okay? Thanks. ;-)

Love,
Mom & Dad