Single Parents

HELP!!

How in the world are you able to cook ...let alone eat a meal. The only time I get to really eat a meal is on Saturdays when one of my relatives come to visit.

I swear Ive been living off goldfish crackers, bananas and chik fila (when i have dr appts out somewhere). K has colic, i feel  that all I ever do is feed, change him, then try to pump. By this time if  he isnt screaming and then try to sleep while he is sleeping.

For the last week he barely will sleep during the day( like maybe 20 mins here and there)...my house is a complete disaster!  Its driving me crazy!

How do you do anything else ? 
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Re: HELP!!

  • it gets better as he gets a little older, but keep in mind,  you need ot be good at multitasking. i know a mother, who for the first 6 or so months (if not longer) barely managed to take a shower more than 2 times a week. i am sorry, but that is not acceptable, that seems like a poor excuse to me. now that my son is older, i wake up before he does to take a shower. when he was wonder, i woudl have him play in his bouncer in the bathroom while i showered. some poeple like to wear their babies- my son hated it, so when he was a few months old i got him used to sitting upright on my hip- he is perfectly fine with it and well before other kids his age, i coudl have him on my hip and dpng whaetver i needed to do with my other hand. get a bumbo or boppy. my son loved his swing- put him in that , near where you are preparing food or cleaning, so he can see you- and do what you need to do.
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  • ok so you need to do a few things at once.  i.e. throw laundry in while LO sleeps, prep dinner, clean, shower.  when LO is up and crying, get your vacuuming done- it usually stops them from crying and they love it.  also if you wear your LO that is so much easier to get stuff done too so thats another option. 

    and it does get a lot better when they are older- but also harder sometimes too- pretty hard to cook when you're chasing a two year old around and peeling him off the walls, preventing implosion of residence;) 

  • I felt the exact same way a few months ago.  It does get better.  Now I am able to put B in his bouncer or sit him upright with a bunch of his toys and he'll happily sit, squeal, and play for a little while.  It gives me time to empty the dishwasher, open the mail, or quickly grab something to eat. 

    As for food, convenience is worth paying for at this stage.  I have lots of frozen veggies, single serving containers of brown rice, etc. so that I'm not stuck in the kitchen making a meal every night.  On the weekends, I try to cook (because I love to) and because that way I'll have leftovers for the next week.  Make sure that the time you do have to eat you're putting good food in your body and not just junk.  Busy mama's need their energy to go a million miles per hour every day! Smile

    Oh-and I've accepted that my house is messier than I'd like.  Pick the battles when it comes to that sort of stuff.  Sleep is priceless!

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  • imageCPA04:

    I felt the exact same way a few months ago.  It does get better.  Now I am able to put B in his bouncer or sit him upright with a bunch of his toys and he'll happily sit, squeal, and play for a little while.  It gives me time to empty the dishwasher, open the mail, or quickly grab something to eat. 

    As for food, convenience is worth paying for at this stage.  I have lots of frozen veggies, single serving containers of brown rice, etc. so that I'm not stuck in the kitchen making a meal every night.  On the weekends, I try to cook (because I love to) and because that way I'll have leftovers for the next week.  Make sure that the time you do have to eat you're putting good food in your body and not just junk.  Busy mama's need their energy to go a million miles per hour every day! Smile

    Oh-and I've accepted that my house is messier than I'd like.  Pick the battles when it comes to that sort of stuff.  Sleep is priceless!

    This. Multi-task, multi-task, multi-task. It will get easier as he gets older.

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  • I would try baby wearing.  I didn't use a sling or a wrap but had a Bjorn and it helped a lot.  DS had colic and I remember it all too well.  hang in there!
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  • The house cleaning took a back seat.  I did 15 minutes here and there when they were sleeping.  Or at night I'd throw laundry in the washer and pop it in the dryer in the AM.  And just pick from the basket as needed.

    I used a lot of paper products instead of washing dishes.

    DD2 had colic.  I remember those moments.  ((hugs))

    Diagnosed with PCOS June 2004 Abby born 2/2007 and Ally 3/2009 imagehttp://Life In Sublurbia.blogspot.com
  • I have to agree with the baby wearing advice.  It was such a lifesaver to be able to strap DD on and still have my hands free and it really helped with the colic (in my experience).  I still wear DD now in a Mei Tai and Ergo mostly (especially when traveling/flying).  For a younger, lighter baby I would personally recommend a moby wrap (they're available at Target and are pretty reasonably prices).  Good luck and know it will get better as LO gets older!
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  • Get a Baby K'tan or something similar.  Buy things you can eat quickly with one hand, like granola bars, bananas, etc.  Don't worry about cooking if it's just you.  That's just more mess to clean up later.  Oh, and don't worry about cleaning either.  Just do what you can.  You are in the trenches honey.  Your goal is to just make it until you can say buh bye to colic and get a few hours of sleep.   
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