For those of you who've done this rodeo before, what (if anything) are you doing differently?
I went overboard on gadgets and gear last time. We won't be moving into a house until end of next year so the baby will be sleeping in a bassinet in our room. Last time we went all out and went crazy on the 'perfect nursery'. I Think I'm going ot take it easier this time (I think)
The main thing is I bought a pump last time and ignored everyone's advice on renting a pump from the hospital.. this time I'm renting.
Re: what are you going to do differently?
DS was a big surprise and we didn't really have a lot of money, so we got all of his furniture from craigslist and got a lot of hand-me-down clothes. We have since gotten rid of all of his baby stuff However, DH and I are back to our "5-year plan" and this little nugget was planned with another nugget or two planned in the future. So...we are thinking we should go ahead and get a crib, changing table, etc. that we can use for the long term.
As far as breastfeeding goes, I am determined to make it work this time!!! I only breastfed DS for 6 weeks due to low supply, but never consulted a lactation consultant or attended a breastfeeding support group. This time, I will be utilizing those resources!!
I will bring sunglasses with me to the hospital for the c/s. It's frickin' bright in there!
We recently moved so we will keep the boys together in the same bedroom and will set up another nursery, but it will probably be most of the same furniture. Boy or girl I'll probably keep the same bedding.
Since this baby will be due in the summer, I may try to get a mother's helper to come and play with the boys a few times a week so I can have some quiet time with the baby.
I had a hard time with supply last time too and had to constantly supplement with formula, which is one of the reasons I'm going ot try the hospital pump to pump in between. I also was working in corporate and had a hard time staying on top of pumping at work.
Here's to us making it work this round!
(p.s. I think you missed the other thread where I said I'm a trekkie too )
Ah! Too funny! I had zero interest in anything sci-fi until my husband. Now I find myself *gasp* liking things like Star Trek and Star Wars. I've embraced my inner geek!
I way overdid it buying the gizmos and gadgets too. I'm not buying anything new this time around. We'll be reusing our previous stuff.
I also will bring my Boppy and a maternity dress with me to the hospital- jeans were not fun the first time after the c/s.
I also really want to make it to a year BFing. I was only able to go 12 weeks with DS and it killed me.
BFP #1 5/07/11, DS 01/19/12
BFP #2 08/09/12, M/C 08/10/12
BFP #3 10/30/12, EDD 07/11/12...please stick!
I'm going to try to breastfeed for the first 8 weeks or pump if I can't bf. Last time I wasn't allowed to bf (long story) and I'm sad about it.
Other than that I'll still probably do everything else the same. Go overboard on clothes and the nursery and making sure the baby has everything in the world. Ha.
OH but most importantly this time I am going to ENJOY being pregnant. Last time I was scared to death something bad would happen. This time I'm going to be happy and relaxed.
Baby is going straight into the RnP at night instead of the stupid, flat, hard PnP. I'm also not opposed to bed-sharing if it helps. Anything to help with sleep. It was awful last time.
I also plan on doing everything in my power to EBF. Last time I was so overwhelmed. Colby screamed the entire first night home and would not latch, it traumatized me. I finally gave him a bottle and he sucked the entire thing down. So I quickly switched to pumping but that only lasted 3 or 4 weeks. Definitely going to find some support and hopefully be more prepared this time.
Overall I'm excited because I know what to expect. I was "prepared" last time in the sense that I had this perfect nursery and so much gear, but I didn't have a freakin' clue on how to handle a newborn. I'm vowing to be better this time!
We'll be reusing most of the baby gear since it was gender neutral and keeping the nursery the same because it is also gender neutral. Although if it is a girl, it is going to be hard for me to not want to redecorate with lots of pink!
I'd like to try to nurse. I made it a day with DS and with my flat nipples it just didn't work. No one even told me I had flat nipples until right after DS was born and the nurse immediately told me how incredibly hard it was going to be for me to nurse because of my nipples. I took it to heart and we did not have a good start to nursing. I plan on meeting with a lactation consultant before birth to figure out if there is something I can do to bring the nipples out before birth.
The only thing I want to buy is a new monitor. We have a basic radio one, but I one one of the cameras that feeds to your iPhone.
As far a pregnancy and birth, I plan to not get evacuated from my home this time around so I can actually have the home birth I planned for with DS.
This time I am going to make sure my ILs know that they need to take my older children for the normal hospital stay duration even though I return from the birth center on the same day that I give birth. Getting a 16 monthold back on the same day that I gave birth was so not cool.
I want to wear my next baby more often. I wore DS a lot, but only in the past few months have I really started to wear DD all that much.
BFP #2 03/08/11 EDD 11/16/11 DD Born on 11/04/11
BFP #3 08/29/12 EDD 05/06/13 M/C on 08/30/12
BFP #4 11/01/12 EDD 07/09/2013 M/C on 12/28/12
BFP #5 04/30/13 EDD 01/03/14 DS Born on 01/02/14
BFP #6 01/11/15 EDD 09/22/15 M/C 03/09/15
We got all gender-netural baby gear for DS #1 -- so we won't need to buy anything. We've since moved into a house and I'm excited to actually paint a nursery and hopefully create something beautiful.
This time, I will not go overboard on buying clothes! I was so excited while pregnant with DS #1, I went a little crazy on newborn & 3 month outfits and didn't take into account that many people also purchase outfits for gits!
After I had DS #1, the hospital I delivered at had the option to have a really nice meal (steak or seafood if I remember right) -- but DH's family was in town and he felt like he had to go out to supper w/them (We lived 6 hours away). I was a little irked about it -- so this time I will make my wants and needs a little more known. (We live closer to family now... so this shouldn't be an issue.)
This will be our third. We have amazing consigning options where we live. So, I'll be buying everything second hand this time! I'm going to really hold myself accountable with cloth diapering this time. I saw how much we saved with my second the months that I was faithful. I will also allow people to help in any way they offer!
I am not going to overanalyze everything I put in my mouth. Is there a risk of listeria from deli meat? Yes. But there is also a risk of dying everytime you step outside your home, and actually you could just as easily die inside your home (I once fell in the shower and was knocked out cold and had to go to the hospital).
I'm going to enjoy each and every minute, because it's so amazing. I will try my best not to rush things.