Newborns sleep A LOT. And thank God they do. Don’t get me wrong, I love it when my little man is up and at ‘em. I could spend the whole day gazing into his baby-blue eyes singing him songs and telling him stories. Though, if that was the case I would get NOTHING done. Today is the third day Sonny and I have been home alone. We are all adjusting pretty well. Smoochy has it the worst because spends all day missing us. OK, who am I kidding? He spends all day missing the baby! Monday was pretty rough. Sonny and I just couldn’t get in sync. He cried and fussed all day; he even refused to nap. I am convinced he wanted his daddy and couldn’t be consoled to Smoochy’s absence. Of course as soon as Jacob walked in the door the baby conked out and slept the rest of the night. Yesterday was leaps and bounds better. Sonny napped fine and didn’t cry as long as he was perched up on my shoulder. Needless to say I didn’t get much done around the house. I was able to type one handed though, so spent a great deal of time working on my birth story. I am on page five…but haven’t made it to the second day of labor yet!
Today I feel like Sonny and I are starting to get the hang of each other. I know, tomorrow could be a different story, but let me revel in what I perceive as progress. I knew it was going to be a good day when I had eaten breakfast and washed up and dressed before 10:00 am! We spent his awake-time cuddling and talking together about this and that. He is such a good listener! We took a walk with his bad-ass jogging stroller. He snoozed for the whole 45 minuet stroll! Plus he’s napped off and on all day so I’ve been able to clean house and pay bills! I feel like a super star.
Smoochy and I really want a bigish family. He’ll tell you he wants as many kids as I can squeeze out. I don’t know about that, but right now I am thinking three or four sounds pretty good. But the last three days I’ve really been thinking a great deal about the logistics of it all. I just can’t imagine how moms and dads with multiple children do it! I try to imagine my days now with a toddler thrown in to the mix; it makes my head swim. And yet I know plenty of moms who do it and do it well…often juggling a job simultaneously! It baffles me. My baby is sleeping somewhere around 16 hours a day and I find it challenging to brush my teeth before noon. I am in awe of all the moms out there with two, three, heck SEVEN children who manage to prioritize, organize, and accomplish more in a day than I will all week. Can I take lessons? Seriously, I would love some advice on how to efficiently run the household AND spend quality time with my kiddo.
15 comments:
I have no real advice. I just do what works. And I guess that would be different for different people.
And I cannot wait to read every detail of your birth story. Hurry up and finish it so I can read it before I go into labor:)
btw, i love when babies sleep with their little butts in the air. There is nothing cuter!!!
Take it easy mama! You'll find your groove and all will be as close to normal as it ever will be again soon enough. You really just learn as you go. Things get easier then harder again then easier and so on and on. It's an amazing rollercoaster.
Love you guys, give the lil Smoochy some smooches from me.
I loved this post! Thanks for making me feel "normal". We just had our first 3 days home alone together too and boy, is it a rollercoaster! It's so comforting to see other new mama's are going through the same thing.
He is so beautiful. Sleeping babies are so scrumptious.
It sounds like you're doing well.
My sister has five kids and she says after three, they entertain each other and her job is mostly herding.
he looks so Cute, w/ his teeny tiny butt in the air!
Love ya
Betsy
You'll get it, don't worry. Pretty soon it'll all be a lot easier. Those first few weeks of new motherhood are ROUGH, but soon you'll find a rhythm together and it will all fall in place.
As a mom of three small children (and yes, a worker with a part-time job too!) I can tell you that if *I* can do it, anyone can. You'll find what works for you and somehow, magically, everything that needs to get done seems to get done -- kiddo loving and snuggling included.
I'm also thinking I might want at least three kids. I used to think I only wanted two, but now that I actually have one I think three sounds like a better number. I don't know how people do it either, but I'm sure it's all a work in progress. Good thing is that if you screw up when they're little they'll never remember it.
YOur little boy is so precious! A sleeping baby is so irresistable! I know I used to stand at the crib and just watch my babies sleep. I would watch them as they breathed in and out. I always felt so at peace. I have often thought that someone needed to videotape a baby sleeping and then put it in fast motion so you could see them actually growing. You know, like they do on the nature channel with a flower. First a seed, then a sprout, then a blooming plant. It is amazing!! You will figure it all out! A toddler can actually help out when a new baby comes along! I know that after I had Max, Charlie was a big helper fetching me dropped binkies or toys! It broke my heart one day when Charlie (then about 3 years old) said to me " when you finish feeding the baby and he is asleep, will you hold me for awhile?" Oh my gosh!!! I felt like a terrible mother! Here my sweet little boy was asking me to hold him!! It's a learning process, but my it is sooooo rewarding! I wouldn't trade a day at home with my kids for anything in this world! I really realize that now that they are 23, 16 and 12!! I'm still at home and loving it!
You are doing great! Tell Smoochy he's doing great too!
Thinking about you, and wishing I could get a whiff of that new baby scent!
Lynne
I can`t remember where I came across your blog but it was when you were in labour and I have been enthralled ever since! Thought I had better de-lurk and comment!! I remember my first month at home with my son as being a haze of not getting ANYTHING done and it worried me how I would cope when he got bigger and I didn`t have any excuses for not doing anything. (In Japan it is a rule that the new mother rests for the first month and does NOTHING except look after the new baby. Most people stay with their parents for the first month, as that wasn`t an option for me, I had to enlist my husband to help with everything!)
The first month is HARD and you have so much to adjust to and learn but after about 6 weeks or so it starts to get easier and I finally got into my own groove with my son when he was about 8 weeks old. I have no idea how people with lots of kids do it though, I barely make it through the day these days with only one child and a part-time job.
Ok, will stop babbling now.. your son is gorgeous!!
Time. Time is your friend. As well as experience. You'll hit your stride and get a routine down. You'll learn to be flexible when the routine gets changed (which is often). You are doing great. I felt the same way when I had Margie. I also learned that it is ok if the laundry doesn't get done, or my floors aren't sparkly clean, or my house isn't in perfect order. You have a baby...kind of takes up all your time.
It does get easier, honest. By the time you move on to child number two, you'll be old school with this.
Personally, I think you are doing a fantastic job. Hell woman, you actually brush your teeth? :)
He looks so cute. I can almost smell him. I love the baby smell. He looks good enough to eat!!!
Becca.... you only have to look to Sonny's Great Grandma Ledom. She raised 8 children. We had plenty of love and attention. I think each one of us girls called her after our first baby and could only say "where you crazy"? or... you are a SAINT! It all works out. Keep the pictures coming I get so excited when I check your blog and you have a new post! Sonny is adorable and I sure wish I could love on that neck. mmmmmm
mucho love~
Aunt Kathy
For NOW, sleep when he sleeps...sleep (as Penny Simkin says) until you have your requisite number of hours in.
So if you "need" eight...and it takes until noon in bed with Sonny to get the eight (because of being up to breastfeed through the night) then do it.
It's easier said than done, but women who do this do better. You have all the rest of your life (and Sonny's) to do and go and be...so enjoy and rest and bond.
The rest will come with time.
Hugs,
Hh
I have been thinking about this exact thing this past week! Taking care of Baby E takes ALL DAY and by the time I finally get some lunch (because breakfast time came and went with no time to eat) and maybe throw a load of laundry on (dirty burp cloths) and holy cow! it's already 2:30 in the afternoon. And I wonder, How on earth would I do this with a toddler???? And yet so many women I know have already done it. So it must be possible. Ha ha
Hh's comment helped me. Because I had basically been doing that, but then feeling really sheepish about emerging from bed at 11:30 in the morning! So now I will just kick the sheepishness away and cuddle with Baby E each morning! Yum!
Cute kid. Try Tiny Tots to see if they will deliver cloth diapers (it's actually illegal to throw human poop in the garbage.)
3 or 4 kids? Have you seen Al Gore's new movie? Dooh! I'd like to have another with my wife but, dooh!
I would love to hear your birth story if you are open to sharing it. Sounds like it was pretty amazing...YOU were amazing. Your little is so cute.
And hey, if you can get your teeth brushed you're doing great. Be easy on yourself - let the bills pile up and the house get messy. It'll get easier soon. You should see my house...it's a pit! :)
p.s. we use tiny tots and we're very happy with them.
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