Time is flying folks! My sweet Aria is already one month old today! I cannot believe how much she has changed in just a month. People aren’t kidding when they say enjoy every minute, because it goes by so fast. She’s already so much more awake and aware, and spends less time sleeping. Granted it’s only a few hours a day that she’s actually got her eyes open, but it’s far more than the first week! She’s pretty good at night for the most part which I’m sure will change at some point (YIKES). She can easily go 4 hours during the night before needing a feeding, which let’s both of us get some shut-eye! I also think she already looks different from the very first day that I held her in the hospital. Her features seem to be changing daily! She’s a huge fan of rhythmic shushing to calm her down so Rudra and I have that mastered at this point. Given that it’s been a little colder than usual, we noticed that our baby girl doesn’t like being cold at all, so we’ve been double swaddling her, especially at night. She’s a huge fan of throwing her hands around which of course just wakes her up as she’s sleeping in the middle of the night, so swaddling definitely helps with deterring that. She is still pretty teeny though… Still in newborn diapers and newborn clothes! She’s more on the lean and tall side, so it’ll be interesting when she grows out of her newborn clothes since the next level up may fit her lengthwise but she definitely won’t be able to fill it out!
Anyhow, getting through this month of course hasn’t been easy. It was great to have family around to help with everything since eating or cleaning or anything that involves being a normal human being is practically impossible. Here are a couple of items that helped us through this month:
1. Aden + Anais swaddle blankets – These blankets are absolutely necessary. It’s a little big right now but still just as useful. I can see how these are totally worth the investment because you can use these for so many different things. The material is heavenly and so soft! I have two packets which equals to 8 blankets which is perfect since you don’t have too do laundry as often! Swaddling the little one in these is perfect! Plus, the prints are way cute.
2. Lansinoh Nursing Pads – If you are planning on breastfeeding, nursing pads can be super helpful. They help to save your nips from rubbing against your bra/clothes and chafing! Lifesaver for me! It helps that these are disposable so you can feel fresh and clean!
3. Space Heater – I know this isn’t baby item specific but man this has been super useful, especially with the weather. As I mentioned before, Aria is not a huge fan of being cold so having this near her definitely made her more comfortable. It’s also useful for bath time to make that area warmer for her and calm our nerves! Last but not least, it came in handy for our newborn shoot! We wanted some pictures of her without any clothes, and I’m not sure how we would’ve done it without the space heater. Kept her warm and comfortable throughout the shoot! I’ll post those pictures at some point soon! They are adorable!!!
4. Rock N’ Play – This little rocker is amazing! It’s basically what our little one sleeps in right now, and it helps that it’s so portable! I move it to the living room or the bedroom depending on where I am. It’s also at an incline which I love because it makes me feel a little better knowing she’s not as gassy.
5. Cool Mist Humidifier – This is great to have given the current temps. Our pediatrician suggested we keep this on at night to create some humidity on those super cold nights to keep our girl comfortable. And so far, it’s been great! I’m sure we benefit from it as well since it’s in our room right now! 😉
6. Pack N’ Play – We have this in our room currently and love that it has a changing table on top! It helps to just pop into our bedroom to change all those diapers (there are ALOT!) throughout the day and then especially at night! It also has this great storage bin attached to keep diapers,wipes, etc. I can honestly say that this will be super handy for a while, and also when we travel since it folds up so nicely and compact!
7. Nursing bras – Ok these are not flattering at all but whoever invented a tiny clasp on a bra to make life easier is a genius. Having to feed every 2-3 hours makes life difficult already so these are a MUST. I especially like these from Target since they are not as expensive and super soft! Invest in a couple of these…I promise, it’s totally necessary!
8. SnugABunny Swing – This contraption is amazing. It has so many different doodads on it and can swing in different directions. She loves the music on it thus far, but I can see her enjoying this for a while…I hope! It helps keep her asleep as well so I can try to get some stuff done during the day while she naps in it!
9. Boppy – So a lot of folks had told me to get the Brest Friend for nursing but I had already bought the boppy. I took it with me to the hospital as well to help get a good latch for breastfeeding. And to tell you the truth, it works totally fine. Now obviously I don’t know how well the Brest Friend works, but this one works perfectly for breastfeeding. It helped understand good positioning and creating good latches also when I got home and had no nurse around to help me. Plus, you can use it later on with the baby for sitting up and other activities. The Brest Friend seems to only have one job…
10. Glider – We initially had this in the nursery but moved it downstairs to our bedroom once we brought Aria home from the hospital since she would be sleeping in our room for now. This helps rock her to sleep or calm her down..I love it! So comfortable and also great for those 3 AM feeding/rocking sessions! Invest in one! You will not regret it! =)
And of course I took a ton of pictures today! Love her to pieces! I wanted to capture here “littleness” as much I possibly could!
Happy 1 Month to my sweet baby girl!