Preparing for Baby #2

When I was pregnant with Munchkin, my first child, I was researching everything.  I mean EVERYTHING…strollers, car seats, cloth diapers, carriers, high chairs.  You name it and I was looking into it.  It felt like I was making monumental decisions that would affect her for the rest of her life.  I know that if you’re a mom, you’re laughing at me and hopefully laughing along with me because you did the same thing.  I needed to look into all these things because we had NOTHING.  There was next to nothing child friendly about our house.  Over time through buying things. the generosity of hand me downs and family and friends at showers, our house slowly filled with baby items.  When you walk in our house now there is no doubt that a child lives here.  She’s left her mark on every room in the house, from her pillow on our bed, the bath toys in the tub, the sippy cups in the kitchen and the toys and books in her room and the living room.  Oh, and don’t forget the play structure in our back yard that you can’t miss when you park in our driveway. 

Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone, the first national park in the United States, is as amazing today as it was when it was created (or so I would imagine.)  It’s huge and full of incredible nature.  It’s hard to use words to describe it.  The shear beauty of Yellowstone takes your breath away.

We arrived through the east entrance in the afternoon.  Last time I drove through this entrance it was midnight, so I enjoyed being able to see where we were going this time.  Munchkin was crying/screaming for most of it.  We stopped at the General Store at the Fishing Bridge to stretch, eat lunch and of course we browsed the merchandise for sale.  Munchkin was ok getting back in the car after and we headed up to the loop road.  It was slow going because there was bison everywhere.  I lost track of how many herds we saw after 6.  There were thousands of them, just about everywhere you looked.  People were stopping and taking pictures from the middle of the road.  It was kinda insane.

We took the loop road towards the West Entrance.  On the way we drove through the Virginia Cascade Loop.  It took a little but but we finally found the falls.  There was a river leading up to it and I had mom pull over at a turn off so I could go see the river.  Munchkin was asleep (thankfully!) so mom stayed in the car with her.  The air was cool but clean and crisp smelling.  It was quite and you could hear some birds and the river gurgling as it headed to the falls.  It was so peaceful.  I wish Munchkin had been awake because I would let her go wading, even though the water was cold. 

 

The next day we headed towards the geyser section of Yellowstone.  We stopped to walk along a path around some and we saw three go off.  It’s amazing to see water shooting out of the earth.  After that we headed to Old Faithful.  It was going off as we drove up so we waited around to see it again.  It was worth it.

After a quick lunch at the lodge we headed to the Continental Divide, where we left the crowds behind (thankfully!) It was nice and peaceful, perfect for a Munchkin nap.  There was a little lily pad covered pond and it smelled clean and pure.  It was heavenly.

After that we continued driving the loop road.  We ended up back at the fishing bridge where we had come in the day before.  We decided that we would drive the whole loop.  Munchkin was doing great and it really wouldn’t take that long, would it?  I should have known better cause that’s what The Man & I said when we were there.  Yes, it does take all afternoon.  You would think that I would have learned from last time but no.  So we drove around and while we enjoyed it we were exhausted by the end.  We did manage to stop at Mammoth Springs and walk around.  Munchkin was sleepy so I carried her in the Ergo.  While we were heading back to the car I saw a man carrying a baby in an infant car seat.  While I agree it’s totally your choice to use one, I really wanted to let them try my carrier.  Who wants to carry a heavy car seat around Yellowstone?  Baby wearing is the way to go…so much easier and so much better for your back!

We were super excited to get back to the hotel but the mule deer and line painting slowed us down.  We really need more time in Yellowstone.  I think we have to plan another visit…soon!                                     

Little Traveler

Munchkin has, in her ten months, has taken two airplane trips.  She took one when she was 3 months and she just completed her second one at 10 months.  Hopefully this is just the beginning of her traveling adventures!

This past trip was easier for at least two reasons that I can think of.  One is that The Man traveled with us and it was so nice to be able to pass the baby back and forth.  I think it was also easier because Munchkin is older and is more interested in toys.  When she was 3 months she wasn’t too interested in her toys and enjoyed crying while we were on the plane.  I was so afraid of being THAT mom with the crying baby.  I’m over that now and it eased my stress level a lot!  There are some other things that helped me while traveling with Munchkin while she was an infant.  They are:

1.  Travel light

Since I was going to have the baby to take care of while traveling, especially alone, I didn’t want to have to deal with luggage.  I checked it and made sure to fly on an airline that offered one bag free.  Munchkin’s clothes don’t take up too much room so it was easy to share a suitcase with her.  I also didn’t have to worry about a car seat since I was visiting my mom and we have lots of friends with kids.  We were able to borrow a car seat.  It was nice to not have to bring one! I packed one carry one, filled with items that were mostly for Munchkin.  For me, I only brought my Kindle, wallet and iPod with earphones.  The airline I prefer has personal TV screens so I use that for entertainment while Munchkin sleeps.

I didn’t bring a stroller.  I’m not a stroller person and while we have one we barely us it.  I’m a HUGE fan of baby wearing.  I wore Munchkin both times.  There are huge advantages to baby wearing in the airport. One is that you are able to wear them through security (as long as the  carrier is on under any kind of jacket/coat. If not, you will have to take the baby off to take the coat off.)  You don’t have to go through the x-ray scanner.  Instead you go through the metal detector and get your hands swabbed.  Easy peasy.  Wearing the baby also helps keep them from getting over stimulated from the activity going on around them.  I’ve heard that you have to take the baby out of the carrier of take off and landings but I’ve already had her out so I haven’t had to deal with it.  I have worn the carrier during the flight while Munchkin slept.  She gets heavy and it was nice to have it help take some of the weight off my arms.  It frees up my hands as well so I can read if I want too.

So when I’m going to the gate, I have my baby in my Ergo and our diaper bag.  It’s very doable and it’s my normal load

If you do want to bring a stroller, you can check it at the gate which is nice.  It might be worth it just to carry the carry on, depending on how big and heavy it is!

2.  Dress the baby for easy diaper changes.

Both times Munchkin traveled I had her wear a long sleeve onesie and baby legwarmers.  This allowed for very easy diaper changes because I didn’t have to worry about taking anything off.  The last thing you want to do is to try to fight to get their legs into pants while in a airplane lavatory. 

3. Use disposable diapers

If you use disposable diapers normally than this one is easy for you!  If you cloth diaper then you might want to consider using disposables.  It was super nice to just be able to throw the diaper away.  I’ve found that I tend to change Munchkin more while we travel and I don’t want to have to carry that many cloth diapers, even flips with disposable inserts!

4. Think about the flights

I prefer having a non stop flight so I don’t have to deal with a layover.  You might be the opposite.  But figure out which one you prefer and do it!  All 4 of Munchkin’s flights have been non stop cross country flights and it works for us. We try to book them for when she will be sleeping because a sleeping baby on an airplane isn’t crying/fussing/wanting more room to play.  She doesn’t sleep for the whole thing but will sleep for most of it.  I don’t want to have to try to get her asleep twice with a layover! I also don’t want to deal with changes in air pressure and her ear drums twice.  You might prefer to have a layover depending on your flight…if you do, make sure you have one!

5.  Don’t stress

Babies cry.  It’s a fact and sometimes there is just nothing you can do.  Some people might give you the stink eye.  Don’t worry about it.  Do what you can to calm down your baby but don’t let others get to you.  Most people, especially other parents, understand.  If they don’t, oh well.  You’ll probably never see them again!

Do you have any other tips for traveling with an infant or baby?

Let’s Party!

Welcome!

I’m so glad you stopped by!

I’m Poe, a thirty-something wife of The Man and stay at home mama to Munchkin.  We live in the gorgeous Pacific Northwest.  I love the beauty of the mountains that surround us and Puget Sound.  Seattle is a short ferry ride away and makes for a great day trip.  The Navy moved us ehre and we never want to leave.  I grew up in New England and while I love the northeast, I can’t imagine living anywhere else.  Thankfully The Man is no longer active duty and we can stay for as long as we want. In my free time (free time?  What’s that?) I enjoy reading, sewing and blogging.  On nice days we like to take the pups to the dog park to wear them out. 

Munchkin is almost 9 months old.  The Man and I are are delighted with her.  She’s a cuddler and I just love it when she snuggles in. She buries her head in my shoulder and wraps her arms around my neck and squeezes. My heart melts and bursts with love all at the same time.  I knew I was going to love her, I just didn’t know how much!

Motherhood hasn’t been the easiest transition for me.  I love my baby and being a mom but I’ve been dealing with some postpartum depression.  I haven’t shared too much about it yet, but I have shared how I’m still processing Munchkin’s birth and that my encapsulated placenta pills helped.  The blog has been a little quiet but hopefully that will be changing. 

We’re slightly crunchy around here (whole grain crunch according to this quiz.)  We’re a breastfeeding, cloth diapering, co sleeping, baby wearing , baby-led weaning kind of family. We do these thing because they work for us.  That was the best advice I was given while I was pregnant.  Figure out what works for you and your family and do it.  It doesn’t matter what other people are doing or what they think, do what works for you! 

You’ll find that I blog about life here at Many Waters.  I enjoy cooking so you’ll find some recipes (like this one for homemade teething biscuits) and menu plans.  Munchkin shows up frequently.  I also blog about my faith.  I try to share some of my struggles as I can encourage others who are experiencing similar situations.  It’s my life, messy and beautiful at the same time.  It’s hard for me to pick a favorite post, or even a couple so I’m not going to try.  My most popular ones are listed in the right hand column.

If you’d like to visit again you can follow me via GFC in the right hand column or on Bloglovin.  You can also find me on Twitter and Facebook.  I’m on Pinterest as well, where I tend to pin recipes for menu planning and crafts to make for Munchkin and things to do with her when she gets older.  You’ll also find lots of photos of Munchkin on Instagram.  I hope you’ll stay a bit and look around.  If you have any questions, you can shoot me an email or leave a comment and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can!

Please leave me a comment so I know you dropped by and so I can visit back.

Thanks so much for coming by! 

I’m linking up with 5 Minutes for Mom for the Ultimate Blog Party ‘13.

Favorite Baby Items

I know these lists abound on the net but I want to my two cents.  My list is kinda short because I’ve come to see that babies don’t really need a whole lot.  They needs dipes, food, clothes and a whole lot of love and snuggles from Mom & Dad.  I found the following items to also be helpful:

Co-Sleeper

We used an Arms Reach Co-Sleeper and I LOVE it!  It’s been wonderful to have Munchkin close by.  We have a mini and I would buy it again with no hesitation.  It’s been so nice that while breastfeeding to be able to just grab her out of it, feed her and then put her back.  This is a sleep saver!

Green Sprouts Sili Teethers

Munchkin started gnawing on these around three months.  They are awesome! She can easily grasp it and no matter what part she gets in her mouth, there’s some kind of texture on it.  We would have been lost without these.  So much so that she got two more in her stocking so now we have 4.

Sophie the Giraffe

Since I’m on the topic of teethers, Sophie the Giraffe is great too. Munchkin LOVES her. I went back and forth on her. I think she’s kinda scary looking plus she’s something like $22.  For a baby toy?  That’s a lot to me! However, she is worth her $22 price tag. 

Teething Necklace

They make necklaces that are supposed to be used as teethers by your baby.  I have two and Munchkin LOVES them.  It’s perfect for when I’m carrying her because it’s right there.  I don’t have to worry about her losing it if she drops it because it’s around my neck.  It’s a little thing but is so helpful, especially when we’re out and about.

Bouncy Chair

This has been a lifesaver!  We started using it when she was about 5 weeks old and are only going to stop because she’s getting too big.  It’s been a perfect play to put her while showering or eating.  The one we have it really bouncy and we are able to bounce her using our foot.  As she’s gotten older she’s figured out how to bounce herself.  The best part is that this was given to us by a friend. We love it and are definitely holding on to it for her siblings!

Ergo/Ring Sling

We love to hold and carry Munchkin.  The only time we use our travel system is when she has fallen asleep in the car. If she’s awake then she gets carried wherever we are.  In the beginning when she was light it wasn’t too hard to just hold her.  She’s about 18 pounds now and our arms get tired pretty quickly.  The Ergo is an arm saver.  I used it when flying alone and it was great to have than as well.  I’d kinda like another one so one can live in our car and one can live in our house! I also have a ring sling that gets used a lot at home.  One perk of babywearing while you’re out in public is that you don’t have to worry about someone stealing your baby.  Call me a paranoid mama but it does happen!  It won’t happen to you if your baby is attached to you.

Playmat Gym thingie

We started using this when Munchkin was about 2 months old. It was nice to have a toy that we could use with her that young.  She wasn’t totally interested in it.  We would lay her on it and talk to her about what was hanging on it. She would wave her arms around and we would get excited when she hit one of the toys. As she got older she interacted with it more and more. We also use it for tummy time.

Activity Jumper

We got this when Munchkin was 5 months old.  She LOVES it. Her feet don’t touch the floor so we have our Wii balance board under it. She jumps and jumps and jumps.  It was so fun to watch her figure out that she could jump it in and that the seat turns. She loves the toys all around it. We’ve attached an owl and a zebra and she loves to chew on them.  She would easily stay in it for hours if we let her. 

Gas Drops

It seems like we had (have?) the gassiest baby ever.  From what Nancy Holtzman says, every baby is the gassiest baby ever.  We started giving Munchkin gas drops early on and they help so much! She likes them too and knows they help.  She’ll be fussy from gas but when we go to give her the drops, she’ll stop and open her mouth so we can give it to her.

Teething Bibs

Munchkin has been super drooly since 4 weeks old and we’ve been using teething bibs since then.  They are water resistant so they keep her clothes dry. I know they work and are helpful because when we forget to put one on her, her clothes are soaked and we have to change her. If we didn’t use them we’d be changing her outfit 3 or 4 times a day if not more.  All of ours came from Target but I’m sure you can buy them other places.

Mamas, what are/were your must have baby items?

International Babywearing Week

October 8-14, 2012 is International Babywearing Week.  I’m happy to say we are a babywearing family, though not as often I would like.

I think the neck pain I had right after Munchkin was a deterrent in the beginning, as was the fact that I had no idea what I was doing!  I have two moby wraps but I have a hard time with them.  I haven’t used them too much (read: none.)  My friend Joyce did come and show me how to use it.  Munchkin did not like it and cried when I put her in it.  I haven’t tried since.  I should but there’s just way to much fabric for me.  I’m sure I’ll get around to trying it again at some point.

Joyce also let me borrow her Mei Tai carrier. I like this one a lot more because it’s so much easier to use. Munchkin didn’t mind being in while asleep but when she was awake she would cry the entire time.  I’ll be trying this one again once she’s a little bigger.

The Man likes to just carry her and that works for us.  I did want her to get used to a carrier since I knew we had an airplane ride in our near future and I wanted to be able to use a carrier for the trip.  Munchkin will be on my lap for the nonstop flight from Seattle to Boston.  I knew a carrier would make life easier while walking through the airport.

So we bought an Ergo.  I had been wanting this carrier but put off buying it cause it is expensive.  This has been a good investment and she doesn’t mind riding in it, even with the infant insert.  I know it’s going to make walking around the airport easier.  She even falls asleep in it which is great.  I love wearing this carrier because I don’t feel like I’m carrying munchkin at all.  It’s super comfortable and is one of the best baby items we’ve purchased.

I don’t have a ring sling and I really want one (yes, that’s hint.)  I feel like the ring sling would be great for around house while the Ergo is great for out and about.  I love having her close and still having my hands free.

Do/Did/Will you wear your baby? 

What carrier did/do you prefer?

Why?

TV Meets Real Life

We don’t have cable but we do get several free channels.  Our favorite is the Discovery Channel.  They have several shows that we enjoy, like Mythbusters, American Guns, Property Wars and Gold Rush.  Actually, we like most of the shows on Discovery.  Our favorite is Auction Kings. 

It’s such a fun show!  We love seeing the random things that people bring in to auction off.  We enjoy learning about the items they highlight and root for the house when it’s being auctioned.

There just so happens to be an auction house near us.  We drive by it on the highway and I’ve been saying we should go sometime for the past 3 years.  Well, we finally went!

It’s nothing like Auction Kings but it is fun.  We looked on the website to see what they would have and then we went on Friday to see the items in person.  We were interested in a dog crate, a pile of wood and a lot of storage totes.  We really wanted the dog crate and the other items went first so we didn’t bid on them.  We set a limit and waited.  When it was up we reached our limit pretty quickly.  We walked away with nothing but it was free entertainment for the morning.

Some of the tools went dirt cheap…like 5 bucks for a few items.  I think The Man wants to go next month for this birthday to add to his tool collection!  They also had plants and people were getting great deals on them!  A plum tree for $5?  I’ll take it!  We didn’t but maybe next time.  We’re looking forward to hopefully getting some plants there in the spring.

Munchkin did great too.  The Man carried her in the new carrier we got.  A friend let us borrow her Mei Tai carrier but Munchkin doesn’t like it.  She cries when we put her in it unless she’s asleep.  So we broke down and bought an Ergo carrier along with the infant insert.  Munchkin likes it much, much better.  I’m going to try the Mei Tai again when she gets older.  I really need a carrier that she won’t cry in because I’m planning on flying with her soon and want a carrier to to carry her in through the airport.  She did great in it and slept almost the entire time.  We were there for two and a half hours.  And yes Nana, we made sure to keep her out of the sun so she wouldn’t burn.

Have you ever been to an auction?

The Hippie Stuff

I’m coming back soon, I promise!  Just a few more guest posts for you.  I think this is one that I’ll be able to write in a few months…we are wanting to try many of these things with Munchkin!

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Hi, I'm Chantal and I write at Scattered Seashells.  I've been married to Brandon for 4 years, as long as he's been in the Army, and we have a 6 month old, Penny. We're currently stationed at Fort Rucker while he goes to flight school. I love blogging and reading what others have to say! Thanks for letting me guest post!

I’m what you’d describe as a “crunchy mom.” I don’t like labels, though; I just say I’m into all kinds of hippie-stuff!

A few years ago, I wasn’t like this. I was a processed-food-eating, working-mom, send-my-kids-to-public-school kind of girl. Well, things change a lot when you have a baby.  Suddenly, I didn’t want an epidural and took classes to go for that natural birth (which
ended up as a c-section because of a breech baby… but that’s a whole other story). We  weren’t so sure about vaccinations, and so far our baby hasn’t had any shots. We are even doing baby-led weaning and skipping purees altogether! We do some baby-wearing, when she tolerates it!

Those are some of the more extreme “hippie” things we do. Basically, looking at us, we’re your normal family. We just buy all-natural and organic foods, a big switch we made a few years ago for health reasons, and we like to keep everything as natural as possible. We do what feels right for our family.

One of my favorite things to do with babies is diapers. Yep, I’m obsessed. I looooveee cloth diapers and I’m not afraid to tell you about them! If you haven’t messed with them before, they can seem a bit daunting. Who doesn’t want to just roll their diaper up and throw it in the trash?

Let me tell you, cloth diapers are far from difficult. They’re just like disposables but we’re saving so much money! We have spent maybe $350 on diapers and diaper equipment, and that’s it. And we aren’t hippie enough to worry about the environment tons, but just knowing that those chemical-filled poopy diapers won’t be sitting in a landfill is enough for me to feel pretty happy.

Oh, and they’re pretty cute, huh?

I could go on and on, but you could just check out my blog for all the scoop on what we do. This “hippie stuff” really works for our family and I love it. Having a baby can be so fun because of all the opportunities it opens you up to!