A few of my favorite things as a new mom

Our little nugget is quickly approaching 2 months old and when I look around our house, strewn with baby gadgets and gizmos that we thought would make him the happiest little baby ever, I realize there are a few things that I rely on and love way more than I thought I would. 

1. Baby Connect Application for iPhone 

This app has been a life saver. We use it to track feedings and diaper changes. I love that it's on my phone, so I always have it with me and that it syncs between two phones, which means my husband can change a diaper and log it and I'll be able to see that on my app. At our two week appointment the doctor asked us how often he was eating and how many dirty diapers he had daily, and we could easily answer that with a quick glance at the app. It even graphs it out and makes it very easy to keep track of things. It was totally worth the $4.99. 

2. Ikea Metal Cart 

I have been eyeing this cart at Ikea for a while. I finally had an excuse to buy it! Little did I know how grateful I would be that I did. I really imagined it will be helpful as he grows older, putting art supplies or homework supplies on it and being able to cart it around and then put it away so our little house doesn't feel as cluttered. Right now it is my nursing station and it simply rocks (well, not literally). I keep my water bottle, burp cloths, pacifiers, nursing pads and every other little thing I might need when feeding the baby. I find that I get bored feeding in the same place all the time so I like that I can roll this with me if I decide to use the rocker or the couch. I roll it into the nursery each night so that I have everything I need for nighttime feedings as well. 

3. Shout Free Stain Remover

Did anyone warn me about how often this kid would get some sort of bodily fluid all over the place? I'm sure they did, but I wasn't really listening. I had not idea how much laundry he would create. And how gross that laundry would be. This spray allows me to feel a lot less guilty when blowout pooped on jammies sit in the hamper for a few hours. I keep it in the closet above the hampers, which is within grabbing distance of the changing table, so I can rip the spit up ridden onesie off and spray it and toss it into the hamper in one big ol' swoop. Then when I finally get to the laundry, I don't feel so bad about it. 

4. Amazon Prime 

Diapers delivered to my doorstep in two days. Do I need to say more? Let me list the things I've purchased on amazon lately: diapers, lanolin, stroller, nursing bras, sports bras, colic calm gripe water, wubanub giraffe, electric pump, digital download of 'how I met your mother' (this season! we don't have cable or any kind of tv set up other than netflix and hulu and HIMYM is no where to be found.) I love the reviews and the fact that I can find practically anything on there. We go out with the wee baby, but if I had to chose how to spend my time with him- out buying diapers or going for a long walk by a lake, I choose the walk. So, we go on lots of walks and we have some essentials delivered. I love the ease of the website too, I find myself ordering diapers at 2am while feeding the babe, it's so easy even a sleep deprived mother of a newborn can use it. (I have heard good things about diapers.com for this type of service as well, but I don't have experience with it). 

Anything I'm missing? Anything you realized you couldn't live without as a new parent? I'd love to hear it! 

Restless Legs During Pregnancy

One of the things I struggled with the most during pregnancy was restless legs. For me, it felt like I just could not sit still. I had to be moving my legs all the time, I had this intense desire to always be stretching. If I didn't, I would get what felt like muscle spasms (that is the best way I can think to describe it). When I first complained about it, I felt like most people thought I was really losing it. My husband didn't really take me seriously until I was crying every night as we watched tv, because I was so incredibly tired but I could not relax on the couch. I had to be walking around or moving. It seems so innocuous but day after day it really wore me down.

I tried every thing I could think of to relieve the sensation and relax. It would keep me up at night, I would routinely get 3 or 4 hours of sleep because I just could not keep from moving around. Eventually I found some things that worked and I'm sure I'll forget them- so here I go, sharing them with the hope that I'lll remember how I found some mediocre relief when I was going crazy with restless legs.


Compression Socks

image found here thanks to google

I am pretty sure that my restless legs got so bad due to poor circulation- I was carrying a 9lb baby around all day. Compression socks provided a little relief if I remembered to put them on before it got bad. Sometimes they worked better than others, I'd say on a scale of 1-10 (1 being didn't work at all to 10 being yes! relief! sweet relief!) that they were a 4 or 5. Not great, but I was glad to have them.

Calcium Supplements 

This was a suggestion from my doctor, who also looked at me like I was crazy when I was crying about how horrible the restless sensation was becoming. Apparently it wasn't a common complaint. She didn't quite know how to help, but since it was most likely circulation related she suggested calcium. I did feel like this worked in bringing the sensation down a notch. I took two a day, and when I forgot I swear the restlessness was worse. On the scale of 1-10, I'd say it was about a 7. (And, they are really good- what the heck, right? Gosh they taste good.)


Prenatal Yoga

yoga

I completely adored my weekly prenatal yoga class. It might have been my favorite thing about being pregnant, next to the kicks which I'm not going to lie, I loved. The camaraderie of the class, the time to focus on my body and really appreciate the whole process was just what I needed. I missed running so very much while I was pregnant, I was glad to still have yoga. I let my instructor know right away when I was dealing with the restless legs and she found some poses that helped with circulation. I always slept better on Monday nights after yoga. I tried to do the poses at home with some success, but never as much as when I went to the studio. I'd say this was an 8, if I could recreate it at home I'd go for a 9, but I didn't have much luck with that. It also didn't eliminate the problem, just made it more manageable.

Foam Roller

foam roller

In the beginning, this worked the very best. I could always find relief with the foam roller. As I progressed in the pregnancy and got bigger and moving was more cumbersome, this became harder and harder to do to the point where it was very relieving. It was still my go-to, my first stop on the path to trying to find relief. I would even do it at 3 am when I would wake up with restless legs. This would be a 9 on the scale. 

Yoga Ball

The BEST thing ever was my yoga ball. I'm so bummed that I didn't try it out until I was 32 weeks. I could finally sit and watch tv or read or just sit. I would have to bounce and do squats on it and keep moving, but I didn't have to stand and walk around. After sitting on it for the evening, I often found it easier to go to sleep (not 100%, but like 80%). All I really wanted the ability to come home from a long day and just relax, this allowed me that every day. I was so grateful for that stupid yoga ball. Thanks to our birthing class for giving me the idea. This was a 10 on the scale. I must remember this for next time. 

I tried many other things as well; walking a lot, doing too many wall squats to count, sitting with a resistance band around my ankles, staying super hydrated, avoiding sugars as much as possible. Those things worked relatively well, but nothing consistent. The things I mentioned above were way more effective for my case of the dreaded restless legs syndrome. 

(all images found by using google)

Whoosh

Time just flies, doesn't it? I had such great intentions for writing and blogging during this pregnancy, but that was obviously a bit ambitious.

Instead of writing, I keep reading. Devouring in fact. Devouring books, blogs and anything I can get my hands on. I find it amusing that I have a few big ol' baby books on my bookshelf but I can't bring myself to read them yet (I've got 6 weeks, plenty of time, right?). Yet, all the blog posts I read are baby related. What's that about?

One book I read lately that I can't shake from my mind was Neil Gaiman's latest:

It's haunting and strange and quite lovely. I couldn't keep my imagination away, it was impossible to put down. Just look at how highly it's rated on good reads! Keep it in mind next time you're thinking of picking up a book. I highly recommend it. (though I stray from saying too much about it..)

(photo from humor train)

good for a giggle

This just made me laugh a bit- I wish I knew who made it. I'm trying not to read too much about babies and pregnancy, I just listen to my doctor's advice and pay attention as friends tell stories. But something fun like this, I'm happy to read and share.

I do have to say, I'm awfully proud of myself for not going google crazy during this pregnancy. It's so easy to freak out and google symptoms and fears like crazy, but I have some how avoided doing just that. High five! Feeling good about that.

(image from pinterest, where I spend way too much time) 

who doesn't love this?

I think our impending arrival will need this little onesie! I'm 6 months pregnant with a little boy, I can't wait to meet him. I like to think that because he moves around quite a bit while I teach math, that he'll love this idea.

I think there's a whole new market for baby clothes like this as everyone embraces their inner geekiness (nerdiness?).

(picture from pinterest, I am searching for the actual link, silly pinterest) 

Wisdom: Mitch Hedberg

A few more Mitch Hedberg gems.. 

Guilty Pleasure

This is generally what I think whenever I hear people talking about celebrity gossip, or whenever I see those magazines by the check out at Target talking all about how stars are 'just like us' (what are they, aliens? Why shouldn't they be just like us?) but here's the thing.. once in a while, maybe once a month or so, I head over to my favorite gossip site and read all the horrible stories about the people I don't care about.

Here's the catch. It's a British site, and I only seem to want to read about the crazy British stars. I can't explain it! It's so strange, I know! I don't know who they are, or why they are famous (mostly) but it's such a guilty pleasure. I just zone out and read about their mundane coffee trips or new pram (come on, you know you love that word!) purchases. I can read almost five whole stories before I get seriously bored and have to move on to cute animal videos.

What can I say? Everyone needs a guilty pleasure once in a while!

(comic found on pinterest, where I wish people would actually link to the origin of the pictures or at least to a viable website! someone deserves credit, wish I knew who.) 

Wisdom: Mitch Hedberg

Etsy

Are you familiar with Mitch Hedberg? He's one of favorite comedians, and I'm so bummed that he's not around to continue with his humor. I have a few of his cd's and they play randomly on my ipod. It's such a jolt to go from a song to one of his stand up bits like this:

No matter how many times I've heard his jokes, they always make me laugh. Something about them is so satisfying. I went through a big stand up comedy phase around nine years ago. I devoured all the specials I could find on tv, and I desperately wanted to go see some live performances but at that age I just couldn't afford it. If only youtube was around, I would have spent too many hours watching all the stand up clips I could find. I remember when, in high school, I realized I could find stand up on napster (yes, I said napster). Who did I download first? Well, Bill Cosby of course.

One thing about comedians that I really admire is the way they analyze the world around them. I like to joke that I'm a bit pattern obsessed, and I am, and I think it makes for interesting observations of my day to day interactions. When I watch stand up, I notice that the comedians I most enjoy are the ones who comment on those daily interactions and notice the quirkiness in some of our patterns.

Do you have any comedians you can't get enough of? I'm always on the lookout for more laughter, send 'em over!

Guilty Pleasure

I'm not ashamed to admit that I love pictures and videos of cute animals. I do. There is almost nothing in the world that makes me laugh so hard. It used to embarrass me, and I would try to understand why, oh why, I giggle uncontrollably and then cry like a baby whenever I watch them. They lift my spirits and distract me 100% from my current thought process. They are such a guilty pleasure.

Dylan knows me so well, and is such a great guy, that he has a miniature treasure trove of adorable animal pictures stored on his phone that he sends to me whenever I'm having a bad day. He recently sent me the rain frog video above, and if it doesn't make you smile then move along. Just move along. If it does make you smile, then hello my friend, and welcome to a safe space to be completely yourself about cute critters.

I will say that the stranger the creature, the more likely I am to become infatuated with it. I watch the occasional cat and dog videos and chuckle here and there at photos of puppies and kittens, but it is the unusual animals that really get me.

Have you seen the tiny iguana's out there?

And, one of my all time favorites is the elephant. I adore itty bitty creatures and gentle giants equally.

No matter how I'm feeling, these pictures and videos offer me temporary escape from my worries and quandaries of the day, and for that I am grateful.

(images found on pinterest and google)

Wisdom: The Doctor

See what I mean? Lovely things to be heard on Dr. Who. I love the visual of a 'pile of good things and bad things'. 

Wisdom: The Doctor

I really identify with this quote. Sometimes I try to be more realistic and less hopeful, but that just brings me down. I think my natural state is just to believe the best will happen, and work towards that ideal. Sometimes it works in my favor, other times I feel like a fool, but I rather like being a dreamer now and again. 

Wisdom: The Doctor

This makes me think. It's so true. Life is so much more faceted than we are led to believe. But, without the darkness, would you appreciate the light?

I have to say, I have many days where I just despise being an adult. The responsibility can make me so anxious and stressed. But the responsibility is just one side effect. I have to remember to savor all those crazy, wonderful days spent how ever I chose with whomever I like.

I used to drive to work and get a little smattering of joy from thinking that I could just take a different exit and drive to Monterey, that the only thing in my way was my sincere desire to see my students. I never did it, but I could! That always made me smile.

Wisdom: The Doctor

I'm always trying to find new tv shows to watch streaming on netflix. We don't have a traditional tv setup, but a common hulu and netflix combo. We recently started watching Dr. Who, mostly because we love the show Community and they poke fun at Dr. Who quite a bit. I love it. 

Both shows are very goofy and strange. Dr. Who is especially quirky. But not as quirky as the people who adore the show. Whoa. I love fandoms, little social niches, and this show seems to have quite the following, just check out tumblr or pinterest. 

I'm not quite there yet...but The Doctor says some interesting stuff.

Soccer

Do you watch soccer? We are big soccer fans here, I am mostly by proxy. I do enjoy watching the sport, though I honestly love anything where a crowd cheers in unison for a joined purpose. I love the hope and the dismay of sporting events, the way the crowd reacts together and laughs together. The feeling of anxiety as you sit on the literal edge of your hardly cozy seats, weather be damned, waiting for the score to lean in your teams favor, and when it does, oh when it does, I do stand proud, pound my fist into the air and high five anyone around that feels the same way, and usually that is a lot of high fives.

This year,

wisdom: sirius black

"I am not what happens to me, I am what I choose to be" I have this quote on my classroom wall and I think on it a lot as I teach. Year after year, I wonder if these ten year olds believe me. I doubt many do. How many adults do you know who still wear their past proudly on their faces, parading around in their stories, never moving forward, staying stagnant in what occurred some time ago? I can see how things can come to define you, if you let them, and I guess the strength comes from not letting it. 

Happy New Year!

Hope you had a great new year!

This past year was not my favorite and I'm ready for a new one. I usually love a good goal, you know, a resolution or unrealistic expectations for our future selves. Last year, I decided to delve into the world of unprocessed food and learn as much as I could handle about real foods. I learned a lot and went a bit crazy about making things from scratch for a while, but I ended the year thinking that balance is key and realizing, yet again, that I truly adore cooking. I also realized that I missed good old sugar and flour baking during my whole unprocessed craze. What is it about mixing up some dough and watching it do its thing that brings my soul some peace? 

 This year I want to focus on health and well being, this year I'm going to find the salamanders in life.

What are your hopes and dreams for 2013?

Let me explain the salamanders bit..



When I was little, my sister and I were helping our dad with a task in the front yard. I can't recall what, but we were in the garden out front, under the large loquat tree, when we saw something strange and shiny, glistening in the shadows. Two little salamanders sat squirming in a corner of the moist garden. We were so stinkin' excited to see those little creatures. I've always had an affinity for amphibians and, frankly, any small animals that I could get my grubby little hands on. Those tiny surprises delighted us for days as we talked about how they wiggled and wriggled.

Just a few days ago, I was at my aunt's house letting our wily pooches play when she pulled back a rain soaked outdoor rug and ta-da! Salamanders! I was instantly seven years old again and enthralled with the creatures. I picked them up and moved them to a moist but safe location, far from the dogs playful pouncing.

See what I mean, I want to find the salamanders in life this year. I want to be surprised, enthralled and excited to discover small things hidden unlikely places.

Happy New Year!