Well my second pregnancy is flying by without much mention here on the blog. This poor baby is already getting ignored! No bump pictures, not many updates. No weird cravings. We are very excited about Baby #2, but we are quite a bit busier now that Baby #1 Toddler is growing right before our eyes. And since #2 is also a boy, we don’t have much to do to prepare besides get “Huck’s” big boy room ready. But I love some good Baby Advice.
Lately I’ve reflected on some things I hope to do differently for Baby #2. While I am far from perfect, I think I’ve been a pretty good mommy to “Huck.” He is pretty well-behaved and polite (at least that is what the sitters and church nursery tell me, but they could be lying). Of course I think he is smart and adorable too.
But hindsight is 20/20 and here are some things I would like to do differently with baby #2:
- I will NOT co-sleep. Yes, we co-slept for several months after “Huck” was born. That cute baby would not sleep in his crib! But looking back, I tend to think we did not try hard enough. We jumped at every little whimper. For all of your pro-co-sleepers, I am not against this with reasonable conditions. But I feel like we created a long-lasting habit that was hard to break. And meanwhile, I did not get much sleep. I would wake up with back and neck aches because of uncomfortable positions that I stayed in to keep the baby safe and asleep.
- When baby wakes up in the middle of the night, I will NOT take him in the family room so I can catch up on TV while he eats. I think this was too stimulating for “Huck” and caused him to not sleep well. This time around I plan to feed the baby in his dark room while I scour Pinterest on my phone, hopefully at an angle that doesn’t disturb the baby!
- I will try harder to build up my supply, if you know what I mean. I did not try very hard with “Huck.” I fed and pumped what would feed him at the moment and through the next day while I had to work. And while I don’t want to go crazy eating and drinking and doing all sorts of things to increase my supply, I want to attempt to pump more and create a stock for when I go back to work. “Huck” received mostly breast milk his first 13 months of life, with some supplementary formula when he needed it. I am definitely not anti-formula, but I know that my milk is free (well, kinda free) and good for my baby.
- I want to get out of my house earlier than 9 weeks postpartum. I don’t remember exactly when I left the house for the first time with “Huck,” but I know it was awhile. Sure we took walks around the neighborhood but that was the extent of it. I wasn’t afraid of germs, I was just overwhelmed. It wasn’t until one good friend called me up and said she was getting us out of the house. She drove to my house, installed “Huck’s” car seat in her van, and drove me to a playgroup/nursing type of thing. It was hard because “Huck” was a screamer in public but it got me out and gave my some confidence that I could do it.
- I would like to be in more pictures with my new baby. The weight came off pretty quickly except for about 5 pounds, but I didn’t get myself dressed and ready very often. So pictures are rare. But that is such a precious time with a newborn; I hope to make an effort to be in more pictures. As I write this post, I can pick out just these two pictures that I love of me and my sweet firstborn.
Is there anything you’ll do differently with your future children if you are already a mom? If you aren’t yet a mom, are there certain expectations and non-negotiables that you have planned?
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