Picture A: Lindsay then. Just a little peak of what I'll be cleaning up in approximately two years time. Sorry for the random butt in the picture. My cropping skills are nill. Thank you to my mother who graciously brought this little gem over for me the other day.
Picture B: Residency photo. Now, doesn't she look like someone who would be a good family doc? I think my parents did a fine job transforming my body art self into someone respectable.
And the real post, ready go: Pregnancy has been hard. I don't think I need to dwell on this twice, as many of you have already heard a mouthful and half about it. So I'm not going to talk about that today (i.e. on the horror of discovering my first stretch marks the other day). Things like that. So let's move on.
Today has been a really good day and I thought my blog deserved a little happy TLC. I submitted my residency application to 10 programs. It's DONE! I'm really happy with how it turned out. The picture was even pretty decent considering I weigh 15 pounds more now than I did just a few months ago when I could have gotten it taken (a small oversight). I applied to 6 programs in the Seattle area, 2 in the Portland area, and 2 in Tucson. Now the waiting game begins. My personal statement actually sounded grown up and familiar without being cliche. So, you know, a good success I'd say. Also, now that my September away rotation in Safford is practically here I'm resigned to the fact that it probably won't be the worst month of my life after all. I even looked up the local institute schedule to give me something productive to do in the evenings. Progress.
So we turn to the next big thing in my life: baby miss. She's moving around and I have to say it's pretty cute now that I don't mistake her for gas anymore (I'm a novice, what can I say?). I'm trying to plan a nursery and I'm thinking a green, white, and espresso clean, slightly modern, slightly shabby-chic nature theme. You know, with birds on a wire and one light green wall and a crib with crisp, cream, quilted bedding. Ok, so I may or may not have stolen this from Pottery Barn kids. Can you blame me?
But I have a few questions ladies...what are baby room essentials? Baby clothes essentials? Do any of you have positive opinions on cloth diapers or any suggestions for that realm, because I'm open and interested (please no haters...I know you're out there and frankly, I don't care what you think). How about thoughts on breast pumps? Also, while you're at it, vote on your favorite baby name in our poll. And if you hate them all, I understand, I probably hate your baby names too. All's fair.
15 comments:
I will say that nightgowns are amazing. And here's why: In the middle of the night when you are getting up for the 5th or 6th time and you are delirious with sleep deprivation, it's nice to be able to just pull it up to change the diaper instead of snapping and unsnapping. I am excited for your new adventure. And P.S. My family lives in Safford!
I agree with nightgowns. also...as far as clothdiapers go- I LOVE the Bumgenius brand as well as the Flip system. check out the website Cottonbabies.com
With the flip system I prefer the organic (not the staydry as much...microfiber tends to hold a stench after awhile) I also use prefolds in the flip. With bumgenius I use snaps rather than velcro-I put the snaps on myself...but I think you can buy them that way too. I have the medela pump in style advanced...pricey but soooooooo worth every penny. Good luck. SO excited for you guys!
I love the nightgowns when they're tiny infants because they poop every time they eat and sometimes more and at night you don't want to be messing with snaps. I also love those super stretchy knit blankets for swaddling. I got mine at Carter's (just don't be surprised if you hate any and all of their clothes) for somewhere under 10 bucks and they are the best burrito wraps ever. Something about that little bit of stretch in them makes it kinda like plastic wrap tight over a bowl and they can't wiggle free.
I don't think a changing table is particularly necessary. That being said, a cute dresser with a changing table pad isn't money ill spent in my mind. I just can't justify spending a few hundred dollars on a dresser that's made of particle board and not really that cute and called a changing table. Especially because you end up changing them where ever is convenient even if that means the kitchen table.
I didn't have a swing with Jack but I did with Violet and I really liked it. I was just careful that she didn't get used to falling asleep or always being asleep in it. I did end up doing that a couple of times though since she had really bad reflux and would scream from 6pm to 12 am every night. Sometimes you even have to break your own "rules".
I also liked having my babies in something portable for the first few weeks. They are up at night so often that the thought of going into another room to fetch them out of their crib, nurse them and then put them back was like a joke. Jack had a pac n play in the closet and Violet had a bassinet in the closet. The closet because I couldn't listen to them grunt and moan and sigh all night long right next to my bed.
I've never had a great pump so I don't know. Maybe ask Eevi since she pumps alot with her work schedule?
I guess that's enough of a novel. I'm so happy that you got your applications in and I hope you get your top choice because you deserve it! Big hugs, mama!
P.s. 15 pounds? Small kine. No worries. ;)
Congrats on your little lady! I'm not exactly an old pro since I've only been in the game a few months, but here's my two cents for what it's worth! I've been using BumGenius 4.0 with snaps since Rosie was about 6 weeks old and love them. She was small so they didn't come close to fitting her until she was about 10 pounds, so we used disposables until her legs fattened up since I couldn't really justify buying newborn cloth diapers just to use for a few weeks, plus you'll be so sleepy laundry will be the last thing on your mind the first 6 weeks. I have some Flips organic, made by the same company, but they're way too bulky that I worry about how they make her back arch when she's lying flat so I only use them as back-up when everything else is dirty. Planet Wise has really cute wet/dry bags and other accessories too. Good luck, cloth diapering is actually pretty easy, researching the 7 million varieties and deciding on a system was the hardest part :)
Thanks for sharing your blog on FB- so good to hear about how you're doing. I voted on the name Isla- I LOVE that name- it is adorable.
Loving ALL the names. Seriously. LOVE. Loving the cute Lindsay toddler shot. Loving the mom jeans that your mom (or Pam) are sporting in the background. And I'll give you all my advice on baby gear. And let's make a baby quilt. I think we could make a really cute one!! xoxo
Oh boy. I dunno. I think it's kinda humorous how before you have a baby, you don't think you know anything about them, and mostly you don't. But the moment you have one, you become an expert on them. So, you give advice all over the place. So, here goes. My EXPERT advice. ( I do have 2 kids now, so I guess I'm a double expert) Breast Pump: Go Medela. They're pricey but worth it! Especially if you are planning on working. I bought a changing table before Macey was born, it's proved to be much more useful for storage than diaper changing. Does look cute though.Oh- I also am a big fan of the "night gowns" They are the best for itty bitty babies and middle of the night diaper changes. You're gonna do great and you'll be an expert in no time at all!
One more bit of expertise. Don't waste your money buying regular receiving blankets. They are all too small to really swaddle with. Do look into those awesome ones, they are thin and stretchy and big enough for a good swaddle. I made all of Crew's blankets, I didn't know about those cool ones, but I will be buying some when the next babe comes around.
Um, maybe not crisp cream linens. Those will be stained in no time flat. Green would be lovely and hide a few mishaps as well.
Good luck with everything!
Molly. Molly Molly Molly. I can just see you and Boyd with a cute little blonde Molly! I'm so excited for you three!
Medela pump is a must for a working mom. It is so quick and easy to use. I thought of doing cloth diapers but decided that it was too much for us. So I happily "waste" those 30 bucks a month on diapers, but I know many people love cloth diapers. I like having a changing table but I dont think it is a necessity. One thing that we have absolutely loved is having a white noise machine in the kids' bedroom. It blocks noise and you can watch TV, vacuum etc while the kids are asleep. Also yes yes yes, put your baby in the closet like Kat said so you dont hear her little noises all night long. So so excited and I love your name choices. I like Margaret and Dorothy. Seriously classy names!
We love cloth diapers! We got g-diapers and used gerber inserts. They are the cheapest inserts out there and work fine for us. G-diapers are nice because of the waterproof liner so you don't have to buy very many covers like you would with an all in one. You can also make your own gdiaper covers, they have mock patterns on the internet. If you go cloth, get a diaper sprayer, they are the best. We spent about $150 total. If your baby likes to be swaddled don't try to swaddle with regular blankets, your baby will get out of them. Get the swaddleme blankets with velcro - they will save your life and your baby will calm down/sleep longer! Get a changing pad and a dresser changing table all in one. It will save space. I thought I didn't need a changing table but then after about a month my back was breaking from bending over on the floor or crib. You need something that is waist high. I am a working mom and have successfully breastfed/pumped for 7 months now. It's hard but definitely worth it. I have a medela pump in style. However, not all people respond to the pump well. I did not respond well and had to pump at night and in the morning, in addition to while I was at work, to get enough for his bottles while I was gone - I hated it and is very stressful and uncomfortable. I did it for about 4 months. Now I have him close to my building and don't have to pump and just go to nurse him. I love it and I am a million times happier than pumping all day at work. If at all possible try to have your baby close by. If you don't respond to the pump well then nursing will be so much for enjoyable and efficient. Cleaning bottles is also a pain. Seeing my baby twice a day makes it so much easier to work full time. (Email me if you have any questions about being a working mom or cloth diapers. I have lots of advice. If you don't have my email just post a comment on my blog. They are moderated so I won't publish your email.)
So I have been out of the loop for a while and had no idea you were pregnant. Congratulations!!!! I am really happy for you and Boyd. You will be wonderful parents. I love all of your names. Classy and cute... perfection. Anyway, I always wanted to do the cloth diaper thing, but kids just seemed to fly at us fast and furiously, I could never pull it together. You would save a ton of money. They are adorable and they are good for the environment. I see you have a lot of comments on nightgowns.... depending on how this residency thing works out... I had a hard time keeping my babies legs and feet warm with nightgowns and by the time I searched everywhere to find the missing sock they had wriggled out of, I might as well have snapped a sleeper. That is just my two cents. Our insurance covered the standard Medella breast pump and I loved it. With this residency you will probably need a good pump. If you are going to be in the hospital, most hospitals have pump rooms and awesome pumps. I used the pumping rooms at Children's all of the time and it worked great. Yeah!!!! I am thrilled for you.
That Sarah is me, Sarah Homer.
How funny! Amazing how everyone's experiences are so different. I have to agree with Sarah. Nightgowns are super cute, but didn't work for Evelyn at all. She would get her feet caught close to the neckline and push down, causing the neckline to dig into her neck. We love our snapped sleeper outfits.
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