After the response, I received for the first post (click here to read), I am here with the part 2 of Things I wish I could tell my Pregnant Self.Of course, you can also say that I am learning new things each and every day and I could come up with more such posts. To be honest, being a mom is really tiring with a clingy 4 months old(yes, the reality has just hit me), but at the end of the day when you recollect all the lovely smiles, the hugs, and the little coos, you tend to forget everything.
I am assuming that my baby is going through the most dreaded 4 months sleep regression/ growth spurt/ developmental milestone all together and praying every day that this too shall pass. She wants to be held by me all the time, fed all the time and has also developed stranger anxiety and separation anxiety so early. So I literally hang out with her 24* 7 excepting the bathroom breaks.I am hoping that this is just a phase and will get better. Thanks to babywearing that I can at least step out of my house for a while to get some fresh air else being restricted inside 4 walls with a clingy baby is extremely exhausting and overwhelming.
Let us get to the post now:
1 : Spend as much as quality time with your husband before the baby arrives:
This might be the most common thing anyone would tell you but I did not realize it until it happened to me. I hardly get time to talk to my husband these days because taking care of my baby is so demanding and exhausting and when he comes back from work both of us are asleep. In the morning, I would look like a sleep deprived, irritated, multitasking Mombie(mom version of zombie) and he dreads talking to me.
2 : Parenting Books are just for Posing:
I thought that parenting books will be of great use to understand how babies would behave but I was all wrong. Every mother and every baby are different and parenting books do not work PERIOD! Every day is different and how much ever you try to stick to a routine, there will be minor or major changes and it is best to go with the flow. What works for one person might not work for the other and you do not require any parenting book when you become a mom, your instinct does everything for you. Always remember you are the best mom your baby can get and you are doing a great job, no matter how rough your day was.
3 : Please insure yourself and your baby if your country has pregnancy insurance:
Yes, this was the worst lesson that we learned I would say when it came to delivery. We had set aside a budget for the delivery and some other additional expenses but never even remotely imagined the NICU charges that one might incur in case of any emergency. Our baby had some breathing difficulties due to the long labor and she was taken to the NICU right away and was there for 5 days which cost us a whopping amount which we never even imagined. So kindly take insurance for yourself and your little one to avoid any financial emergencies.
4 : Prepare to get dirty:
No No, Do not get me wrong, there is no pun intended in this. MY OCD for cleanliness has taken a backseat with spit ups, exploding poos, pees, and saliva all over me and it is hard to escape that once you are a mom.
No No, Do not get me wrong, there is no pun intended in this. MY OCD for cleanliness has taken a backseat with spit ups, exploding poos, pees, and saliva all over me and it is hard to escape that once you are a mom.
5 : Learn to sleep while sitting :
This is one major learning that one has to do before you become a mom. Yeah, sometimes it is so hard to catch up on your lost sleep that we might have to take a nap while carrying them in a carrier or while rocking their bassinet.
6 : You will start loving and respecting your mom and mom in law more:
I have hurt my mom so many times knowingly or unknowingly and the guilt literally eats me up sometimes and I realized what a great woman she has been. The same goes to my mother in law because she has raised such a nice guy and I am lucky to have him as my husband. You realize all this and start appreciating even the small help that they render when you become a mom too.
7 : Eat whatever you want before you pop :
Confinement period is supposed to be very important for us mothers to recuperate from the birthing experience and it is important to eat healthy foods.
Once you are breastfeeding your baby, what you eat counts even if doctors say you can eat whatever you want. Even if it is mere coincidence that your baby poo poos 10 times after you have eaten a bowl of channa (chickpeas), your mama guilt is going to kill you.
That is it for now and see you soon(hopefully) in an another post.
This is one major learning that one has to do before you become a mom. Yeah, sometimes it is so hard to catch up on your lost sleep that we might have to take a nap while carrying them in a carrier or while rocking their bassinet.
6 : You will start loving and respecting your mom and mom in law more:
I have hurt my mom so many times knowingly or unknowingly and the guilt literally eats me up sometimes and I realized what a great woman she has been. The same goes to my mother in law because she has raised such a nice guy and I am lucky to have him as my husband. You realize all this and start appreciating even the small help that they render when you become a mom too.
7 : Eat whatever you want before you pop :
Confinement period is supposed to be very important for us mothers to recuperate from the birthing experience and it is important to eat healthy foods.
Once you are breastfeeding your baby, what you eat counts even if doctors say you can eat whatever you want. Even if it is mere coincidence that your baby poo poos 10 times after you have eaten a bowl of channa (chickpeas), your mama guilt is going to kill you.
That is it for now and see you soon(hopefully) in an another post.