"The days last forever, but the years fly by". A quote I'll never forget my father telling me one early morning after I had been up with my first born all night. These would be my words of wisdom to you new parents. Try to remember this during the rough moments, the endless nights, and the stresses that you may feel while caring for this new little person who essentially needs you for everything. The time will eventually fly by, and you will miss it. So for now, enjoy what you can, and reach out to a good friend to vent about the rest!
Here are a few items I found helpful while I navigated through the baby stage...
(1) Personalized Baby Hand Print Keepsake -
You have this newborn - and they need you for everything. You are trying to adjust to your new normal, and thoughts like remembering to pee before starting to nurse or bottle feed your baby because you go right into the burping stage when they are finished... are now consuming your headspace! There is often little time to start scrapbooks and savor these moments right now. But something I recommend you do, is purchase this kit before your little one arrives! Once your baby has arrived, take their hand and footprints and send the kit back to the company. You will be beyond happy you did. After having my first child, this was not even a thought in my mind. And I regret it now! But thankfully I did make it a point to do one for my second. And when I tell you, I look at it hanging on the wall every day, I really do. At the time it was just another task to do, but now it is one of the most precious and sentimental things in my home. Please take the time and make this happen! You will be so grateful you did.
If you are passed the newborn stage - it may not be too late! I may not have created one for my first, Vienna, but I did have this one made for her when she was 2. It is hanging in her bedroom and we gaze at it nightly. Vienna loves to read the caption and place her hand in her 2-year old hand mold, to proudly show me how much she has grown. Her keepsake has her handprint and the caption "This is the hand you used to hold when I was only 2 years old".
(2) Blooming Bath -
Believe it or not, we have used this thing daily since our first baby. And we are still using it today! The Blooming Bath can be put into the sink to cradle your baby during bath time. Your little one will look adorable resting on this flower. We, however, used it as a comfortable mat after our babies had been bathed. We would wrap our little one up in a towel and bring them over to the flower. There is where we would dry them off and put on their pajamas. The mat is thick and soft, and absorbs the water really well so you don't have to get your changing table mattress or a bed or chair wet after bath. Seems simple, but it has proven to be so useful! It can be washed in the washing machine, and I hung it to dry after. Now, my girls get out of the bath and head right over to their flowers to dry off. It's become such a part of our nighttime routing :)
(3) Dapple Bottle & Dish Soap -
This company also sells dishwasher pellets, hand soap, bubble bath, pump cleaner, etc.. No matter how many times I rinsed the bottles after cleaning them with our regular dish soap, they always seemed to have a residual soapy odor. We found Dapple, a plant-based bottle soap, that was not only effective and left no odor on the bottles, but was also nontoxic and hypoallergenic. My girls are now passed the baby stage, but I still use this soap to clean out their thermoses... and mine!!
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