Petite Mama

Just today I got caught up on feeding my 7 month old solids.  I have noticed she doesn't like some things, but I've learned that if I mix some pears in with whatever the offensive food is she will then take to it and gobble it up.  As I was feeding her I was obsessing for a few minutes about if I'm ruining her taste for different foods, if she'll never like vegetables, and finally, at the height of my obsessing: will she think everything tastes like pears?

It was at this moment that I remembered the advice given to me by the leader of our Great Beginnings group at Isis.  Whenever we would obsess over things like, "how can I get her to sleep through the night?" and we'd appear overwhelmed by it, she would simply respond with an, "I assure you, when your baby goes to college they will be sleeping through the night."  So, whenever I get stuck obsessing over some current baby situation, I just apply her wisdom and smack back into reality into my current situation.

There I am obsessing over the fact that I think my daughter thinks all food tastes like pears, and then it hits me.  "When my baby goes off to college she will not think all food tastes like pears." 

'Nuff said, I could relax and just laugh at myself, moving on with our day.

Now that my little baby girl is 6 months old I thought I'd talk about sleep.  Sleep is such a huge topic of discussion amongst mamas, so I thought I'd contribute my 2 cents. 

First, I just want to say to all of you struggling with sleep issues, every child is different and every child will find a way.  I happen to be in the lucky crowd who's baby has decided they like sleep and will do so all night long.  But don't be jealous, as she was also colicky (a 3pm till 12am kind of colic!!) for the first 10 weeks of her life, so we more than did our time.  The one thing that was on our side was that she was never a constant crier when she was colicky, she was almost always consolable, but once you found something that consoled her you couldn't stop.  I think there is a path in my kitchen/living room from all the walking.  I used to knit while I paced!

The biggest thing that I learned about sleep for our baby was that she couldn't tolerate being awake for more than 2 hours at a time.  Once I learned this by reading my favorite sleep book things greatly improved.  At 6 months old she still is pretty much a 2 hour awake kinda girl, but now will also go to stretches of 3 hours comfortably.  Any longer than that and I can hear "Danger Will Robinson, Danger!" over and over in my head.  I have found that by respecting this simple "rule" we have a much happier baby and much less stressed parents.  It's a complete win-win.

I've also learned that my baby doesn't cry much at this point anymore.  I'd definitely say < 15 min/day.  If she wants something, she tells me differently, doesn't just cry anymore.  However, she definitely does cry at times, and usually it is to let me know that I am completely missing her other ways of telling me what she needs.  This change happened sometime in the 3-4 month age and I have been much happier since.  Again, I find that this is the case when I'm most respectful of her sleep (such as making sure I'm home for her nap time) as when I'm not, we have a much more cranky baby, and then the crying will often exceed the 15 min/day.

Also, I've been really pleased that our child has fallen into the norm as listed in the book for the most part.  She generally wants her long nap around 1pm, usually for 2-3 hours.  In the morning she likes a shorter nap, and that is about an hour long and starts around 9am.  The only thing that gets us in the wrong phase is that she is having an early wake up time, around 6am.  Then she wants to take that first nap around 8, and I find that she'll usually need a catnap around 10-11am in order to make it to her long nap at 1.  So, she naps 2-3 times a day, anywhere from 1 hour to 3 at a stretch.  Bedtime is around 7pm.

I just thought I'd share where she is at during this stage in her life, and that the book by Weissbluth has been very very helpful in helping me navigate this.  Now, I should mention that the biggest lesson I've had in being a new mama is that as soon as I get the hang of taking care of her, something changes.  My advice is to hang in there, do the best you can, and seek advice where you may.

Good luck!

 

I'm sure you've all had the debate.  If you are getting a monitor, do you get video or sound only?  In this petite mama's house dearest hubby felt video wasn't worth the cost.  I, being a new mom, felt otherwise.  So, I decided to post-pone buying or asking for a monitor until our daughter was here and we could see what we needed then. 

The day finally came when Daddy decided that it was indeed a good thing for us to have a video monitor.  We would put her upstairs and we would be downstairs while she was sleeping.  Since babies are so active in their sleep, we didn't always know if she was awake or just dreaming.  So, we'd walk up and down the stairs, quietly creep in the room, only to discover her waking up because we were in the room.  <sigh>

Then came the video monitor.  We can peek on her to our hearts content, and she will never wake up because of it.  I'm sure that we check on her way too often, but as new parents it is comforting to know our little bundle of joy is safe and sound when no longer by our side.

To warm or not to warm?  That is this petite mama's question.  I originally felt having a wipes warmer was a bit posh and unnecessary.  Babies will adjust to whatever is available, as they have for centuries.  Well, this mama's philosophy was changed once we switched to using cloth wipes.  It was difficult to squirt the right amount of water on baby or cloth fast enough without making a mess.  So then I tried having a small bowel of water nearby, and that quickly became annoying.  What is a mama to do?

Bring on the wipes warmer.  My dear hubby braved Babies R Us and picked out the perfect one--by accident of course--but it did turn out to be perfect.  It's designed for use with cloth wipes, which is a must being that I love the thick, plush, Bottombumpers wipes.  It's the Princelionheart Warmies wipes warmer.  We have no need for the top with the slot as we never plan to use disposable wipes, so this does not have that piece. The glowing light at night is also not too annoying;  It does give just a subtle illumination the room could use so you don't stub your toe at 4am.  The Everfresh pillow is also doing a great job of preventing the wipes from becoming musty smelling or drying them out (or is it the fact that we go through them all in a 24 hour period or less?)

 

As I've mentioned this before I'm a petite mama who is concerned about the environment as much as most, and also trying to stretch a dollar bill.  We decided to venture into cloth diapering, which surprisingly has been easier than we could have imagined.  But one thing my dear hubby wanted to hold onto were his disposable wipes--that was until I came home with the wipes made by Bottombumpers.

These wipes are the softest wipes I have felt, thick, plush, and highly absorbent.  They are organic bamboo velour on one side, and organic cotton fleece on the other.  They don't roll in the wash, they lie flat in the warmer, and they are so soft my baby girl doesn't even flinch when wiping her sore tush in these frigid New England winters.  We like them so much I promptly went back to the store to pick up some more packs to get us through a few days so we could wash with the diapers.

I am not a fan of the flannel wipes because of the fact they have to be washed many times before they do more absorbing than smearing.  This mama likes things to work the way I like out of the box.  I also tried the bamboo wipes from Bumgenius being that I like their AIO fitted diapers so much, and those also failed.  They stuck to everything in the wash, rolled, stayed rolled, and just felt too thin.  Also not as soft as I would have liked, but soft enough.  All those wipes took a back seat once I got the ones by Bottom Bumpers.  Highly recommend!  They also make great facecloths for adults.

Being that our little girl was born early, this petite mama was asked by my local cloth diaper shop to test out the new Duo Diaper by Thirsties to see if it really did work on a 6 lb. baby.

So far I'm really pleased with this diaper.  My baby is in the middle of the six lb. range and approaching seven when trialing this diaper, and it fits her just fine.  She definitely has the poofy behind when wearing these diapers, but it isn't so much that she can't fit into her newborn clothes.  These fit her even though clearly she is the bottom end (no pun intended), would no way fit a baby any smaller.

I really like how it is a two-sized diaper.  One of the reasons I don't like the one-size diaper is that there is too much variation and I am worried about too much poof, or not a good fit.  This diaper combats that by being available in two-sizes, and each version can be adjusted for two different sizes.  Perfect!  A little variation works great, you don't end up wondering how you are going to fold down all the extra fabric.  Also with fit, this diaper has great elastic around the legs that doesn't leave any red marks on my girl's skinny thighs, and the rise is not so high that she looks like she is wearing hip waders to go fishing. 

I also like the softness of the fabric, and the fact that both ends of the pocket are open so that the insert(s) will agitate out in the wash so I don't have to pull them out prior to washing.  The diaper does a great job wicking away moisture from my girl's sensitive newborn skin and she appears perfectly comfortable wearing them.  I tend to like the hook and loop closures, but do get a little annoyed by having to stick them to the laundry tabs in the middle of the Bumgenius diapers I'm using.  I like this diaper as the laundry tabs are directly below the tabs and they manage to stick themselves to the laundry tabs on their own as you are setting the diaper down during a change.  One less step for me which is always great.  After the change I can just throw the diaper into the pail without having to take the time to stick the tabs onto the laundry tabs (which I have to do with the Bumgenius.)

As for leaks, not a one!  She can be on her side, tummy, or back and I don't flinch as to wondering what she might pee on.  I am currently using the Bumgenius AIO fitted XS diaper, and leaks have been a problem as her legs are still on the skinny side at this weight.  I have to re-adjust several times when putting on those diapers to make sure I have the elastic tight enough around her legs.  With the Thirsties diaper I get it right the first time without much double-checking.  No leaks!!

The only cons are the poofy behind, and the fact that they are a pocket diaper and that requires stuffing the insert.  I personally don't like stuffing diapers, but I will say that I like these diapers enough that I am seriously considering adding some to my stash for once we grow out of the XS Bumgenius AIO, if I can get over the stuffing.

It's been over a month since I've posted anything, as baby girl decided to join us a little early, so much time has been spent this past month in hospitals, bed rest, etc.  But she is home now and growing like a little weed!  Mom and baby are both doing great. 

That leads me to this post.  The plan was to do cloth diapers, however, since she was on the tiny side we had no choice but to start out with disposables.  So which did we prefer?  Huggies or Pampers?  Pampers.  The Huggies leaked, and just didn't fit as well.  Also, the fasteners came undone by themselves.  The Pampers Swaddlers fit her better, never leaked, and the fasteners stayed put where we put them.  Hubby and this petite mama both agree that Pampers won this battle. 

In preparing for our little girl, I dreaded the car seat search.  I hate carrying them around, period.  As a petite mama it is awkward, bigger than I am, and my ground clearance is minimal.  I don't know about you other petite mamas, but I plan to avoid using it as much as possible.  I'd much rather take baby in and out each time after a car trip than lug that thing around.  But they are what is best for baby-and not to mention using them is the law.

When we decided to look for a car seat our first question was whether or not to go for an infant car seat or a convertible.  We chose infant because that is the time most likely when I'd carry baby in a car seat anyway, and these models are smaller and lighter.  Even though it means we have to buy another seat after the baby is a year of age, we figured the extra pound or two we'd save and frustration from lugging it around would be well worth the extra money.  With that decision made it was off to Babies R Us to try out their selections, while armed with our Baby Bargains book to make sure we picked a safe model.

When looking at infant seats I wanted the smallest, lightest one possible with the highest safety rating.  Turns out that the Graco Snugride fits the bill.  In the end we decided to go with the Snugride 32 (height limit 32 inches, weight limit 32 lbs.), as the normal height of 29 inches and weight of 22 lbs. for the limits of the regular Snugride was a bit borderline.  We really want to keep our little girl rear-facing for the entire first year as that is what is considered safest.  The 32 bought is that little extra breathing room in case our baby was a little big or tall 

The car seat is about average in ground clearance (when I pick it up with a straight arm) and weight, although a smidge heaver than the non-32 version.  I can carry it, even lift it up into a shopping cart if needed.  Do I like it?  No, but I think this one is the most comfortable for me to use of all that I tried.

As I have mentioned before, I am a petite mama who is trying to create a greener and reduced chemical environment for our baby girl.  I don't think you can throw a rock in the air in a store and not hit some product pronouncing themselves as "greener," "natural," or "earth-friendly."  Clearly the world is making a choice and manufacturers are responding.  But, you have to know what you are really looking for, and you have to become a label reader.  Where does a petite mama get answers as to what really works and doesn't?  How do you know where to begin to greenify your home?

I found answers in reading a book called Healthy Child Healthy World.  I could have done without the celebrity stories, but there is a lot of great information, and their website is also a great resource.  After reading the book, I filled up a trash bag full of cleaning products and started the trial and error process of finding green products that didn't make me want to go back to my harsh chemical ways.  Rest assured; I learned that a green cleaning product doesn't mean more elbow grease to get to the same level of clean.  I also didn't have it in me to go the totally natural route and make my own products, I still prefer to buy something prepackaged and created for me. 

Here is a list of some of my favorites:  

1.  Window Cleaner:  Method.  Not much to say here other than that it works, and it doesn't streak.

2.  Bathroom Cleaner:  Le Scrub by Method.  It works just as well as any non green product I've tried, by far the only bathroom cleaner I've used that makes me not miss my Clorox with Bleach when scrubbing a tub.  It also doesn't scratch as the particles are finely milled.

3.  Kitchen Cleaner:  Seventh Generation Kitchen Cleaner.  Does the job well, cuts through all the grease on a stovetop or counter without extra scrubbing.

4.  Laundry Detergent:  Biokleen Laundry Powder.  Free and clear works excellent on baby clothes and adult clothes.  Also has gotten rid of the musty smell in my HE front loading washer, which rumor has it that can be caused by liquid detergents.  Love it!

5.  Automatic Dish Soap:  Biokleen.  Dishes come out clean and spotless.  Just be careful to use only a small amount.

6.  Dish Soap:  Seventh Generation.  I like the Free and Clear version.  Does the job, no residue, no feeling like I am short changed on cleaning power.

I hope this has shed some light on how to begin to greenify your own home, and will hopefully save you some money by not having to try as many cleaning products as I did in order to be satisfied with making the switch. 

Finally, don't be nervous when you see the prices listed in the links below as they are often for a package containing multiple units of the product.