Rookie Moms

Sometimes a baby just must be worn.  I have a distinct memory of marching up and down my stairs with Julian in my arms, just to get him to stop crying and relax.  If I had been smarter, or hadn’t just blown all my brain cells giving birth, I might have just worn him and saved my arms the trouble.  And, now as a sophomore mom, if Scarlett wasn’t already trained  to nap in her crib so well (yes, I am the best parent ever), I’d probably be stair climbing right now instead of typing at the computer.

I recently met Darcy, a woman who had the same experience as a new mom.  She, being a dancer, had a solution that was less monotonous than a staircase.  She danced.  She soothed her baby to sleep while getting her own heart rate up and toning muscles.  Call it overachieving, or call it crafty, but I have to give her a (virtual) high five for figuring out how to get something for herself out of a marathon soothing session.

If you are like me, you are not going to do this yourself. You might need someone to boss you around, er, I mean guide you.  And Darcy put her work out on a video, so now you have it.  It’s called Chicks-n-Chickens Lullaby Exercises and the DVD shows a room full of baby-wearing women getting a workout.

No time for the gym? Restless baby? Here you go.

What do you think? Would you try it? Does your baby demand to be worn?

Related links:

• Order Lullaby Exercises DVD
• Bay Area free classes - bring your baby and try out the Lullaby Exercises routine.

When we have new babies in our lives, it’s easy to go into a self-imposed exile or quarantine, reading only sleep habits books and looking only at the baby. Of course, Whitney and I think that mama needs to leave the house and thus this site was born.

I read the story of how Vicky took her 6 week old daughter, Caitlin, to a bachelorette party at a casino and nodded with recognition (I flew from SFO to Chicago to attend one of my bff’s weddings when Holden was 3 weeks old, so I’m a little crazy). Her amazingly supportive husband, Dave, hung out with the bambino in one of the party rooms so that Vicky could go back and forth between the party and the breastfeeding.

Oh yeah, I would have done that. Maybe it’s awesome, or maybe it’s terrible, but if you don’t even try to go to your best friend’s party, won’t you always wish you did?

Read the logistics and details at SecretMomThoughts post “adventures.” Next time, Vicky, take a picture of you being all wild and not just baby and daddy hanging out.

What are some of the crazy places y’all have taken your infants? Any pregnant mamas with grandiose plans?

Related post: Play poker with your baby

When we look back in 25 years, we will marvel that our babies have become adults who drive cars and earn their own paychecks. (Here’s hoping!)

You probably have a baby book to track your bambino’s progress through the first year: sitting up, crawling, first tooth, and so on.

But how will you remember your rookie year? After all, it’s filled with important experiences that will one day make you a veteran mom, capable of coaching soccer, chaperoning school dances, and sending annoying e-mail reminders about unwritten thank-you notes.

Trust us: One day you’ll look back on the early days of motherhood and it will be hard to remember them. We’ve given you this chart to remind you that Mommy’s first full night of sleep is at least as important as baby’s first banana. These classic mama milestones are worth documenting: Rookie Moms Milestones [pdf]

[excerpted from The Rookie Mom’s Handbook by Quirk Books]

In my house, we think it is great to take pictures in the same chair each month (or each week!) to really see the baby grow before our eyes. We got in the habit of dressing Holden up and propping him in the big yellow chair. Now that he’s bigger, our challenge is not to snap the photo before he tips over, but to snap the photo before he lunges for the telephone. Ahhh, progress is a beautiful thing!

Other ideas:

1. Put your baby against a solid color sheet on your bed.
2. Snap a picture next to the same stuffed animal each month to show perspective.
3. Photograph tiny hands and feet next to your own hands and feet.