Things I Will Improve On:
1. Being a little less OCD about how her diaper is on. I feel the tabs should be on symmetrically, not to tight and not to lose. It drives me nuts when her diaper isn't on so perfectly.
2. Choosing to leave the dirty dishes after dinner and instead go relax and unwind so I can get to bed sooner.
3. Taking more time to do my baby girl's first year's scrapbook and spend less time on the computer or
watching junk tv.
4. Try to make it through Target without buying her a new piece of clothing, a snack, book, or small
toy. Target is my weakness and it's soo hard to stick to JUST my list!
5. Not feeling guilty about a long trip to the store while the hubby watches her. Yes, I even miss her when I run to Target alone.
6. Asking my husband for help with the baby or house chores instead of just expecting it and guilting
him for it later.
7. Taking more me time without feeling guilty because a happier me will make me a better mom and wife.
8. Turning down my super sonic hearing abilities because everything seems extra loud and noisy when the baby is asleep and it makes me anxious knowing she could wake because of it.
9. Assigning certain days for certain tasks otherwise the household chores and errands seem overwhelming and never-ending. Monday- Floors and Groceries, Tuesday-Laundry and Food Prep,
etc.
10. Not overusing the word "no". Finding the balance between letting her live and learn (sometimes the hard way) but also teaching her when I say "no" it actually means NO. My goal is to find other ways/words for all the "no no's" in the day.
Things I Am Proud of Doing:
1. Laying down to nap or rest at least once a day when the baby naps.
2. Letting family members watch her to run quick errands since she was 3 months old. This has let me slowly build up to leaving her for a date night and hopefully soon an overnight (so nervous for this already!).
3. Not beating myself up for taking down days to do nothing but play with the baby, eat, and catch up on reality tv during her naps. This sometimes happens in PJ's all day and we throw our to do list out the window.
4. Doing the following with one hand:loading and unloading the dishwasher, cooking dinner, feeding the dog, going to the bathroom, running a bath, putting make-up on, and any other normal daily thing
when I have a clingy baby on my hip that I can't put down. I would LOVE to know if any hubby's do these tricks as well!
5. Letting my husband experience the juggling act of feeding the baby, feeding himself, and carrying on
a conversation while we are out to dinner. This is far harder with a wiggly one year old in a highchair. Then, hearing him say how exhausting it all is and tell me I am amazing for always doing it. That was the best compliment!
6. Dropping everything I have to do when she gives me snuggles, hugs, or falls asleep on my chest. These are reminders for me to live in the present moment.
7. Letting her make a mess, like HUGE MESS, while she is feeding herself. I call this edible art time.
She loves to wash her hair and face with her food while painting a picture on her tray. That's A-
Okay because she has the biggest smile the entire time.
8. Breastfeeding for 13 months. Weaning when my baby and I were ready and taking my time doing it at our own pace (over 1 months time).
9. Taking her out for neighborhood walks several times a week since she was born. Great exposure for her and simple exercise for me.
10. Skipping the bottle phase entirely! We taught her to drink from a straw sippy cup when we started
solids at 6 months and I am thankful to skip having to wean off a bottle. I hear it can be challenging.
What I Learned My First Year on the Job:
1. Googling questions about rashes, baby cold remedies, and how to prep first foods were super helpful.
2. Googling how to get my baby to sleep through the night, milestones, and the importance of sign language just caused more stress. To much research and to many opinions made me feel like I wasn't a good mom or that my baby wasn't where she was suppose to be at her age. I learned to research my questions and take things as suggestions or possible ideas and only that. It is more important to trust my gut, go off my babies cues and sometimes let her determine her own pace and path.
3. Good mom friends are a blessing. I met some wonderful moms at a birthing class while I was pregnant and we are fortunate enough to see them regularly and watch our babies grow up together. It's so therapeutic to talk to other women going through the same issues.
4. It's okay to give her mac n' cheese two dinners in a row. Life happens and it's better than giving her
McDonald's.
5. My baby's first smile, first laugh, first time she said ma-ma, and first steps all made my heart melt with a love I have never felt before and will always treasure and remember.
6. A 5 week birthing class was useful and educational but a 5 week class on how a baby will change
your marriage would have been WAY more useful.
7. Not to judge parents who grab something off the shelf at the grocery store and feed their kid right
there in the cart as they shop. I became one of those parents and would like to change my opinion of those parents because shopping with a calm baby is more productive than a wiggly cranky one.
8. I always had an extra outfit for the baby in the diaper bag but never had an extra one for me. That quickly changed the day I picked up my baby who pooped while I was carrying her and it got all over my shirt.
9. Moving the baby to her own room at six months was hard on me but made our marriage better, she actually started sleeping better, and she learned to self soothe herself.
10. Not to start habits that make it super hard to break later. I have always been the one to feed the baby (breastfeeding con I suppose) and put her to bed up until she was a year old. Now its a struggle for
my husband to get her to bed at night because she prefers me. We did break this habit when I weaned by giving her milk in her cup before her bedtime routine starts. She gets dinner, playtime, milk, a bath, a story, and plays for a little bit. Then we put her in her crib to sleep for the night. She doesn't go to bed drinking milk and doesn't depend on the milk to fall asleep.
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