Insta-life

What's in my Kindle - Baby Edition

It's funny how the only books I seem to read these days are baby related - I'm either reading Goodnight Moon or some sort of parenting book. Right after I had P, I realized we hadn't read any books about what to do after the baby is born. We had been so wrapped up in reading pregnancy and labor books and then when he was born, I knew we needed to find a few books to help us understand what this little crying person needed and wanted.

Honestly, it was difficult to find any parenting books that weren't super extreme - I feel like most parenting books are on very broad ends of the spectrum. Some tell you to let your 7 week old cry it out and others tell you that the baby should be sleeping in your bed until he's 2. There's not a lot of middle of the road parenting books, which bummed me out. After obsessively searching Amazon, here's the current parenting/baby books downloaded in my Kindle...

Happiest Baby on the Block

This was a lifesaver the first few weeks of P's life. Most people have heard of the 5 S's - swaddle, shush, side, suck and swing. He needs ALL 5 "S's" to fall asleep sometimes. It's pretty remarkable how quickly he settles down once we start doing these techniques - especially helpful at 4am!

The Wonder Weeks

I am currently OBSESSED with this book. The premise is that babies undergo 10 mental "leaps" in the first 20 months of their life - basically periods in their development where they learn how to do things they couldn't do before. These "leaps" often are marked by fussiness or other frustrating behaviors and this book helps you figure out what is going on and how to handle it. P is currently in his 8 week "leap" so things are super fun around our house right now!

Baby Led Weaning

We obviously aren't to the point where Preston is ready for food, but I'm reading it in preparation for when he's 6 months old and is ready to join us at the dinner table. I love the premise of feeding your baby exactly what you are eating and skipping the rice cereal and purees!

Happy Reading!

Things I'm loving

Could it be? A non-baby related post?? Ha! Here's a quick list of things I'm loving right now:

J.Crews new iphone cases!

LOVE the anchor and the paisley. They also have an fabulous leopard print and colorblock on their website. I may need to upgrade my plain pink case to one of these new beauties!

Old Navy Super Skinny colored jeans

I love the colored jean trend, but refuse to pay a lot for them. At $34.50, I can afford to get a few pairs! I'm thinking the green and yellow may be making their way into my closet very soon.

Target leopard print flats

Leopard print with pink trim and a bow? For $19.99? Yes, please! These might help make my transition back to work in the fall a little easier!

Instagram! 

I think the whole world is obsessed with this right now, but it's so addictive and it gives me something to do with the 18474737374743 pictures I take of baby boy every day. Feel free to follow me at: http://followgram.me/kje1026

And as always, I'm loving this adorable little man!

Smiley 6 weeks!

Life lately

It's a Miracle

I feel like we have pretty much tried every sort of swaddle blanket on the market. We started with the A&A blankets, which we liked, but P was soon strong enough to break out of those pretty easily. We moved to the Halo SleepSack Swaddle (with the velcro wings) and they worked well for a while, but again, baby boy has some major muscles and can now get his arms out of those too.

Now that he's quite a little chunker (9lbs 5oz at his one month appointment!!! He gained almost 3 and a half pounds this month), he finally fits into the Miracle Blanket that I bought like 2 days before he was born (nesting much?). OMG, this blanket is truly a miracle! There is no physical way he can break out of it, therefore, we ALL get more sleep!

I'm not saying that he enjoys being put into it because he knows that he will have to remain swaddled, but once he gives in and falls asleep, he really does stay asleep longer since there's no rouge hands to interrupt his sleep. Love!!!

Happy 4th!

Baby Essentials - The First Month!

I find these lists so helpful in terms of what other mom's are using and loving, so I wanted to share the items that have gotten us through the first month of P's life. Obviously I'm not a super experienced mom yet, but we definitely have a few things that we have loved and use all the time.

Aden and Anais Burpy Bib

We LOVE these for burp clothes - they are super absorbent and a really good size and shape. I also like that they have snaps, so you can use them like an actual bib, which we do quite a bit because baby boy is a messy eater. We have 3 of them and I am about to order another set of 2 because we go through several a day.

Aden & Anais Muslin Swaddle Blankets

Yes, everyone raves about these and they are amazing. We have 8 and I honestly wouldn't mind having another set. It's perfect for our June baby since they are so lightweight. P typically just wears a diaper and then gets swaddled in one of these for sleeping since it's so hot out now. We use them for tummy time and to cover him in the carseat if we're out and about.

Halo SleepSack Swaddle

Sometimes if P is really worked up, we will bring out this swaddler because it has the velcro wings and it tends to keep his hands swaddled a little better than the A&A blankets. I think because he's getting bigger and stronger, this swaddle will start to be used more to keep him calm for night time. I love that it zips up from the bottom so you can keep it on during middle of the night diaper changes.

Wubbanub Pacifier

This pacifier has been a lifesaver, especially in the middle of the night. P doesn't have the best sucking ability yet, so this pacifier is great because the weighted stuffed dog helps to hold it in his mouth. He's recently started grabbing onto it as well, which is ADORABLE.


Dr. Brown's Formula Mixing Pitcher

We love this pitcher because we are able to make up to a full days worth of formula and then just pour it into bottles. It makes the formula super smooth with no bubbles (much better than shaking it in the bottles), so it also helps cut down on gas/spit up. Probably the best $13 we have spent in a long time!

Boon Lawn Bottle Drying Rack

Not only is this the coolest looking bottle drying rack ever, it's actually really useful and can hold like 12 bottles/nipples/lids at a time. I love having this out on our counter and everyone who comes over has commented on it. There is a smaller version (the grass) but the bigger one is the perfect size in my opinion. We also have 2 of these flower attachments to hang the nipples, etc. on. which make the rack seriously adorable.

Baby K'Tan

I've talked about how much P loves to be worn and this is the only carrier we are using right now (we also have a Beco Gemini that we will start using when he's a little bigger). I love how cuddly this carrier is and it's an instant way to get P to sleep. It's also really easy to get on and off and to put him into - the Moby wrap intimidated me and I wanted something I could easily use by myself. This carrier is pretty much the only reason we've been able to get out as much as we have - grocery store, Target, Starbucks, etc. We go everywhere and P is happy as a clam in the K'tan!

I also want to rave about our carseat (Chicco Key Fit 30) and our stroller (Baby Jogger City Elite). We use both pretty much daily and I'm obsessed with both of them!

One Month!

Sob. My baby boy CANNOT be 1 month old already. We've really noticed in the past few days, he's so much more interactive and has been staying awake for longer stretches of time. I guess the "newborn" is wearing off and he's becoming an infant before our very eyes!

 Preston - The first month of your life was really hard, but really fun and rewarding. You were so tiny when you were born and you are growing so fast, it's incredible. Your legs are starting to get chunky and you are sporting the cutest double chin I've ever seen.

 You are a very good sleeper - taking 1 to 2 hour naps during the day and going 4 to 5 hours at night (which your Dad and I thank you for!) You have to be swaddled for sleeping because your crazy hands and arms wake you up. As soon as we swaddle you, you get so relaxed and pretty much fall right to sleep.

You are eating like a champ. One day, you ate 32 ounces of formula. That's what a 4 month old eats! Most days, you are drinking 6-7 bottles a day with 4 ounces each. You HATE burping - you scream your head off when we take you away from the bottle to burp. Hoping that gets better because it makes for a rough feeding at 3am with all that screaming!

 You aren't really on a "schedule" but you do tend to eat at the same times each day. Normally you will take a bottle around 8pm, then again around midnight, 3:30-4:30am and then you typically wake up for the day around 7:30am. So your dad and I count that as only 1 middle of the night feeding, which we're pretty happy about. Morning is your most awake time - you normally stay awake for 2-3 hours after you wake up and we play and do tummy time.

 You LOVE tummy time. You would lay on your stomach for hours if I let you and you are getting really good at picking your head up and moving it from side to side. You also kick your legs like crazy and have even scooted yourself off your mat with all your kicking. This week you also grabbed onto one of the hanging toys on your play gym and held it for several minutes. You were in shock when you did that and made the most hilarious face.

 You LOVE to be worn in the baby carrier and going for walks. However, when it's time to get out of the carrier, you are not a happy camper. I think you just like being all snuggled in and also the motion of being worn, so when that stops, you get really mad. I wore you to Target the other day and you let me shop for over an hour without even making a peep! You've also been to the farmers market in the carrier and snoozed to the blue grass band that was playing there.

 You seem to like all the crazy songs I make up for you and sing all day. We jam out to the Jack Johnson Pandora station pretty much all day and you definitely like the chill surfer vibe music. You are also a big fan of Rhianna and Britney Spears (but don't tell your dad!)

 You get the hiccups constantly - at least 4 to 5 times a day. You had them in my belly a lot too, so I'm not surprised. I get the hiccups multiple times a day as well, so I guess you take after me with that. You also sneeze at least 3-4 times in a row, which is something you get from your dad!

You also gave us your first real SMILES in the last week! You will look me right in the eye and grin so big - it melts my heart! You have given dad a few as well, which he was super excited about. There's nothing better than a gummy baby smile to make your day better!

This first month FLEW by and I know the rest will too! Slow down baby boy!!