Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Getting Ready for Baby

Getting Ready For Baby #2-3As I’m sure you know, we’re busy getting ready for Teeny Peep's arrival around here and I’ve done everything I can think of to do to get our home and family ready for her debut.  I have lost my toes, packed our hospital bags, documented the bump growth, sterilized pump parts and bottles, washed new clothes, swaddles, sheets, etc., bought a new car seat and all the new gear we'll need for 2 babies in the house, reread all of my birthing books, pulled out the older baby gear to help get Dutch used to the baby equipment………

Today, I thought I would round up some previous posts about baby prep that I’ve written.  But I also wanted to add my amendments to these posts since having a baby AND add to them the things we have done to try and prepare our toddler to be a big brother.   I think this update and roundup would probably be beneficial for first-time mamas as well as mamas adding to her chicks.Getting Ready for Baby #2
To start, I posted this picture over the weekend to Instagram and Facebook that we were packed & I wanted to share these packing updates with you.  Getting Ready for Baby #2-2
I remember that I over-packed for the hospital in preparation for Dutch's arrival, but I would not changed a thing about that.  I'm glad that I felt more than prepared for our time at the hospital.  This time I have packed everything on this list, but I have also done a few things differently.
 Amendments: Last time I packed labor and postpartum stuff together, but this time I made sure that they were in different bags.  Even though I like to labor at home I still have corralled everything into a central location and bag so that I know where everything is for the big day. 
-In my labor bag I still have everything on the original list (e.g. my scripture cards, birth plan, hair ties, etc.), but I have also added my essential oils (lavender, clary sage, peppermint, en-r-gee, joy, ylang ylang, frankincense, peace & calming, stress away, gentle baby, & valor), my Gentle Babies book, my extra diffuser, and my rice socks & tennis ball socks for pain management.
-In my postpartum bag I have also added my baby wrap so that I can wear Teeny Peep in the hospital, my mothers milk tea so that I can start drinking that right away, and a special new robe.
-For daddy’s bag I have also added sweat pants (because he froze the last time we were in the hospital- oops sorry my love!) and some more organic snacks for the hospital.  I also put a post-it note on top of daddy’s bag of the last minute items for him to grab before we leave (e.g. phone chargers, camera, wallets, etc.).
-For the new baby bag, I didn’t remove anything that I packed last time, but I have added special little girl hats and headbands, a natural pacifier, the outfit that big brother picked out for her, a couple gifts for big brother from baby sister when he comes to meet his sister in the hospital (and for entertainment if he is not interested in her at all), little sister’s matching shirt for meeting big brother, a winter hat for going home, and her “just born” sticker for tracking those milestones like we did with big brother.  I also washed the car seat cover, added the infant head support, added the completed car seat safety information sheet to the car seat, and the winter car seat cover in case the only day in Houston that it’s cold is the day we’re leaving the hospital. 
-This time I also needed to pack a big sibling bag for Dutch to have while we’re in the hospital, and in this bag there is a plan with emergency numbers for while we’re gone, a matching shirt for when he comes to meet his sister, diapers, jammies, his special bear (I have three copies of his bear in case one gets lost that I rotate so that they’re equally “loved” so I can easily pack one without having to worry about forgetting it on labor day), bottles, outfits, shoes, & socks.
 
 
Newborn Must-Haves
  (And new big brother, must-haves!)
Amendments: In addition to making sure ALL of these things were stocked and organized for Teeny Peep's arrival, I wanted to make sure that I did everything I could think of to make sure that Dutch's transition to big brother would be smooth, so in addition to this list, I have pulled out the baby gear a month early so that he could play with it and explore it.  I don't want him exploring or moving the swing like an amusement park ride as soon as the new baby gets home; instead we did that already so it's boring now lol  We've also been reading lots of big brother books (our favorites are: I'm a Big Brother & God Gave Us Two), talking about the baby (e.g. where she is, where she will sleep, what her name is, etc.) I also purchased two more packs of multipurpose pads (#17) and two more ultimate crib sheets.  Both of these are life savers for blow outs.  
*Since initially writing this post & the arrival of Baby #2, I wrote a new Newborn Must-Haves list with a few more items, that you can check out here*
Newborn Must Haves
 
 
Mama Postpartum Must-Haves
Amendments: To this list, I have not just sterilized pump parts but I have gone ahead and set up my pumping station for when we get home, organized all baby & nursing products in the closet, ordered and prepared for upcoming holidays (Valentine’s Day and Easter), and purchased more freezer bags for breast milk.
Before Bringing Baby Home
 
 
Packing an Infant Diaper Bag 
(that is also prepared for a toddler)
Now of course I wont take this with me to the hospital but I wanted it packed and ready for our first debut out of the house, which will probably be a pediatrician appointment and will already be crazy enough getting two babies ready so I don't want to be worried about what I should pack.  I wanted it done.
Amendments: To what I have already listed, I have also added extra toddler and infant clothes, toddler snacks, infant and toddler diapers (we use adjustable cloth diapers) and a larger wet bag, entertainment toys (I keep toys in my diaper bag that are only played with when we are out so that they stay novel), homemade bug spray, thieves spray, & baby hand sanitizer. Infant Diaper Bag
Amendments: We want our kids to share a room, so there wasn't too much to do differently to the nursery since Dutch is still so young; however, we did add a scripture verse for baby girl to the decor and  a small rack to hang her hair bows.DSC_0361-2
 
I don’t know if the posts I’ve written before have helped any other new mamas, but they have certainly helped me get ready this time.  It was like I already had a pre-made list to refer to that helped me get organized and know where to start (they also jogged my brain as to what it's like to have a newborn in the house lol).  Since crossing off everything on these lists, including the additions, I can honestly say that I feel as ready as I can feel to bring another baby home.  Baby girl, we are ready for your debut!  
 
Good luck mamas as you get ready!  If you’re new around here, I have some other getting ready lists at the top under the Little Peep tab.  If you think of something else I need to do please let me know :-)
 
xoxo Darby
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