Note to My Pregnant Self

Here are some things I wish I had known when I was pregnant and newly not-pregnant. I've learned so much in the last five months that I can't resist unloading advice and information on pregnant friends and relatives, which I suspect is a little tiring. So I'm thinking if I write it here, maybe I won't be so tempted to follow pregnant women around lecturing them.

1) Nap like it's your job.
Ok, I didn't need anyone to tell me this when I was pregnant. I napped on my lunch breaks; I napped after work and then went straight to bed; I napped on weekends while the sun was shining in the window and more able-bodied people were frolicking outside. And I'm glad I did, because the first weeks after Nora was born were demoralizingly exhausting, and it was nice to have the memory of lazy, luxurious, sun-dappled naps to sustain me.

2) Organize whatever you can before the baby comes.
I'm sure there are wonderful toys and adorable outfits we never even used because they weren't someplace I could easily access with a baby in my arms.

3) Read up on baby care before the baby comes.
I educated myself like crazy about pregnancy, but I forgot to read anything about caring for an actual infant. And then when Nora was born, I didn't have time to read anything, so I pretty much winged it.

4) Everything gets better. And I mean much better.
The first month or so of new babyhood is hard on everybody. You're not sleeping (see above), you're not sure what you're doing, your body doesn't feel very good, and you're pumped full of crazy hormones. You spend all day focusing on the baby, who doesn't seem to notice you. You're frantically trying to figure out breastfeeding (see below), and your house is falling to pieces around you because you can' t seem to do any cleaning at all. You're up all hours of the day and night. Well-meaning visitors show up unannounced to your dirty house and your crying baby and interrupt whatever schedule you're trying to establish. This is actually a hazing ritual for new moms. Give it 6 weeks and it'll be a whole 'nother universe. Your baby will start smiling at you, your body and hormones will be slightly more normal, you will have learned how to eke out enough sleep to stay alive. Your house, however, will still be filthy, and it always will be.

5) Breastfeeding is hard!
Anyone who says it doesn't hurt is doing it wrong, in my opinion. It's a bizarre interaction that's natural, sure, but that doesn't mean it comes easily to you or the baby. The message I wish I had gotten five months ago is that it's normal for it to be difficult, and that it can take many weeks and help from a variety of friends and professionals before it all clicks. (If it literally clicks, you're doing it wrong.) It's worth sticking it out, as it were.

5b) Also, not all lactation consultants are very helpful.
The ones at the hospital strongly encouraged me to put Nora on formula almost right away, which I did; looking back on it with a little more education, I wish I had resisted that advice and tried longer before supplementing with formula. The hospital LCs have to balance the greater good and liability for the hospital with your individual need, so they want to make sure your baby gets fed right away, one way or the other. We did eventually get back to breastfeeding, but introducing the bottle so early did make it more difficult. If anybody in Cincinnati is looking for a great and very patient lactation consultant who doesn't get weirded out if you cry in front of her, see Dr. Ridder at Children's Hospital's breastfeeding clinic. She's like a breastfeeding detective. Which generates an odd mental image.

6) Sometimes, babies just cry.
Sometimes, you do everything you can humanly think of to stop your baby from crying, and it just keeps wailing. It's a good lesson in not being able to control everything. Sometimes, the best you can do is to hold her and let her know you'll always be there when she's unhappy. In most cases, that's not a cause-and-effect thing.

7) You're probably doing just fine.
I believe my pediatrician told me this, and it gives me great comfort: There are lots of right ways to take care of a baby, as long as you love it and feed it, and very few ways to really get it wrong. So try to relax and trust yourself.

I'd love to hear from other moms what lessons they have to hold back from inflicting on pregnant women. What do you wish you had known way back when?

Nora Puts the "Nip" in "Nipple"

Who knew one tooth could do so much damage? Nora has one little puppy-sharp tooth protruding from her lower gums, and she's working on getting the one next to it to pop through the skin. It must feel good to clamp down on something, so she has been experimenting with biting me while nursing. Or maybe, in keeping with the season, she just thinks I'm a Peep.

Everything I know about parenting, I learned at the animal shelter. So I've been reacting to Nora's bites the way you're supposed to respond to mouthy puppies: Every time I feel her teeth start to make contact, I let out a quick, loud shriek. It's supposed to alarm the puppy/baby and make them stop what they're doing. And it works, to a point. Nora stops, looks up at me with big, worried eyes, and then a delighted smile steals across her face-- like she's just gotten the punchline to a very clever joke. Uh-oh. I didn't mean to make a game of it.

We've had a few shriek-free days now. Wish me luck that they continue. I do think this is the very essence of motherhood: Someone bites you-- on the nipple, for god's sake-- and you immediately put that poor old nip right back into their mouth.

More Pictures

Nora, Sitting Up!

I am dreadfully behind on my blog posts, but this video of a marshmallowy adorable Nora sitting up on her own should make up for it. She is just so cute I don't have the words to describe it.

These days she is extremely curious and wants to grab everything. This video will give you a taste of what it would be like to be one of her toys. Those susceptible to motion sickness should watch at their peril.

Like Doggy Daycare, But for Kids

My mom has been sick all week, which necessitated an early introduction to daycare for Miss Nora. This is probably the ideal way to get us both used to the idea; I didn't have too much time to obsess over it, and Nora got to know the daycare lady while she was still too young to be afraid of strangers (Nora, that is).

Still, I managed to fit a lot of obsessing into a very small space. The night before the first day of daycare, I must have spent an hour packing her diaper bag. I felt as if I were sending her off to summer camp. I agonized over which toys to include. "What if Nora needs to make an important pretend baby call on her little plush cell phone and it's not there??"

But of course it's been fine. Great, in fact. Nora's the only baby at a very small in-home daycare. There are three other little girls there who have been over the moon about having a new little baby in the house, so Nora has been her usual smiley little sociable self and has slept hard every night after schmoozing it up all day. I work 5 minutes from daycare, so I've gone over every day on my lunch hour, which has done a lot to help my anxiety; Nora probably would have been fine either way.

Still, it's so odd to think of my little baby out in the world without me. She's building her own relationships, which have nothing to do with me. I can just see her saying, "My friend Samantha said the most hilarious thing today. it was soooo Samantha. Hmm? Oh, nevermind, you don't know her." Or, "The gang from daycare is meeting up at the park at noon. I'd invite you, Mommy, but you wouldn't know anybody." Ahh, the agony of individuation.

(By the way: Nora's been squealing all day. I wonder if she's copying the non-stop high-pitched screeeee! sound of the other little girls in daycare?)

Monday my mom will be back to ruddy good health, I hope, and she'll go back to watching Nora during the day for a few more weeks. I'm sure Nora misses her grandmama, but grandmama is going to have lots of teeny-tiny shoes to fill when it comes to keeping the kid entertained.

Another Milestone: Nora's First Bite of Rice Cereal!

I spent hours trying to upload this last night, only to discover this morning that I can only upload 100MB at a time and this file is ginormous. So I've divided this video up into two parts. Enjoy!

And now, the stunning conclusion to Nora Eats Rice Cereal for the First Time!

Saturday Stroll with the Boss Lady

We are soooo ready for the warm weather at my house. It's been so cold since Nora was born that she has hardly ever been outside, so this past weekend was a huge treat. We walked up to Molly Malone's and had lunch. Rich and I hovered around her to make sure she didn't get too much sun on her pink little bod.