Category Archives: Geek Child
Wii Bowling
Legoland
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Ya’ll have questions
Have I told you lately how much I appreciate you reading and sharing with your friends my ridiculous thoughts on parenting and baby stuff? I do. I also appreciate your questions; here is my attempt to answer a few of them:
This is me very preggers in February 2012.
Why didn’t you do a pregnancy blog? I did, actually. It’s over here at Margie Newman: Preggers. Highlights include:
- when a strange dude in a shoe store told me I needed to breast feed because that’s what boobs are for;
- when Krissi gave me a rice sock to put on my lady parts at work,
- fantastically rude stranger comments;
- a post about infertility; and
- that time I got my fetus drunk on Listerine.
Why did you resurrect the blog after your four month hiatus?
Several friends had been asking me to write again and it was really touching. I started this blog as therapy for myself, but it turns out that my confessions are helpful to others, too. That’s a really nice feeling, and responsibility. I started back up because I want you to know you’re not alone, which also means I’m not alone.
Research
Favorite things: Months 13-16
It’s been a while since we posted a list of Suzianne’s favorite things. Here’s a grouping of her go-to books, foods and toys over the past few months:
Books. The good old fashioned board kind. Since she could sit up on her own, she’s had a thing for pulling every book off the shelf and wading in a pool of cardboard. These are her favorites. Note: if you buy these, you’ll be reading them over and over again. Unless you hide them under the ottoman like we do. So, don’t blame me–you’ve been warned.
- Little Owl Lost by Chris Haughton
- I Took the Moon for a Walk, by Carolyn Curtis
- Goodnight Gorilla, by Peggy Rathmann
- Goodnight Moon, by Margaret Wise Brown
- Princess Baby On The Go, by Karen Katz
- All of these books by Leslie Patricelli, but especially Tubby and Potty.
But wait! Where is MY favorite book, Llama, Llama, Red Pajama? Yeah, so, she could not care less about that book. It breaks my heart, since reading that book to her while making her sit awkwardly in a Bumbo is basically the only reason I had a baby and of course my child hates both of those things. (geez)
Food. Unless she’s teething, this child will pack away the food. She’s especially fond of red foods, like watermelon, tomatoes, red bell peppers, strawberries and cherries.
Even as easy-going eater, she still goes through picky phases. For three days, the only thing she’d eat was this banana pouch and cheddar bunnies. Also, every now and then, she’ll refuse to eat cheese unless it is sliced in a certain way. Last week, she wouldn’t eat a green bean with strings hanging off of it. So, daddy picked off all the strings for her, naturally.
When my foodie turns fickle, I always giggle/cry and think about this hilarious/true/depressing Honest Toddler post. As a friend of mine commented on Facebook last week, it’s amazing how universal this behavior is. Continue reading
Week 7: the weak-end becomes The Weekend
A few weeks ago, I was frazzled and Dave said, “Don’t worry, the weekend is only a few days away.” I was all, “HaHaHaHaHa! ‘The weekend’ is just another day to me.”
That was, now that I think back on it, rather rude of me.
To Dave, the weekend is a time when he is here and can help take the load off of me. And he does that–and does it gladly, and does it well. But still, for the past six weeks, “the weekend” was truly just another day because all days bled together in one Motrin and Colace-induced haze of boobs, fretting, eating, not sleeping, and Law and Order episodes. I just couldn’t enjoy “the weekend.”
But this weekend, was awesome. It was productive, fun, restful and romantic. {Dave would be puzzled by the last descriptor there, but I find taking me to the mall, pushing the stroller the whole time, helping me pick out a dress at Ann Taylor and then making me pancakes the next day quite romantic.}
Some highlights of my first real, post-baby weekend:
I got stuff done: Saturday morning, I went to the bank, wrote one more thank you note, took Georgia to the groomer, and got my nails did {we have established how important productivity is to me}. While I was doing all of that, Dave was out on the town with Suzianne:
Baby’s first metro ride: Saturday afternoon, we took the Metro to the mall. It was Suzianne’s first Metro ride! She was wide-awake and semi-cranky as we strolled the three blocks to the station, waited for, and boarded the train:
The train started moving; after about 60 seconds, she was out cold:
And she stayed that way for three hours, enabling Team Newman to take advantage of amazing sales at Cole Haan, Ann Taylor and Macy’s.
The next day, we all piled up in the bed until Noon, rotating shifts on feeding, diapering, napping and picture-taking:
I even read a book! It’s hilarious. I love Mindy Kaling.
And finally, there were pancakes (with Flax seed to boost breast milk production) and…wait for it…sugar-coated bacon. I am not even joking. Dave made it and I ate nearly all of it:
So what if Sunday night, Suzianne only went three hours between feedings and then decided sleep was no longer an option from 3 to 8 a.m.
The weekend and I are reunited and I’ve ingested, like, seven pounds of bacon.
Now, there’s nothing I can’t handle and you should all be very afraid.
Our Favorite Things: Month 1
There’s so much baby stuff out there, it’s overwhelming. To help cut through the clutter, here are some must-haves for the first month, as approved by Team Newman:
Suzianne’s Favorites
Boobs: but when she can’t have a boob (because the boob is taking a nap, or at Chick-Fil-A), she prefers her milk from the Comotomo Natural Feel Baby Bottle. We think it is because it touches her nose, like a breast does.
Natursutten BPA-Free Natural Rubber Pacifier. We tried several pacifiers and she rejected all of them. But Amazon reviewers swear by this one, so I tried it. And it works! Again, we think it’s because it touches her nose. It’s insanely ugly. But it “pacifies” her, so whatevs.
Baths by Granny Sue Sue. For some reason, in the first few weeks, the thought of bathing my child scared the crap out of me. When I bathed her, she screamed like crazy; and this is a baby who (knock on wood) never screams. But a bath administered by her grandmother is like a day at the spa to this child. Find a person who would like to soothe your baby with a bath for the first few weeks and make let them do it; it will take a load of stress off of you until you gain some confidence.
Margie and Dave’s Favorites
Halo Sleepsack Swaddle. This thing is genius. Yes, you can use a normal swaddle/receiving blanket to swaddle your newborn. But about a week into life, she’ll suddenly become The Strongest Tiny Human On Earth. And I don’t care how tightly and expertly your husband wraps that child, she’s bustin’ out, beyatches. Rather than resort to duct tape, which many of my sleep-deprived friends have done, the Halo velcros her alarmingly strong arms to her side. It’s magic (and check out my nails):
Cradle n’ Swing. My co-workers purchased this for me and said it would be a God-send; they were right. You need something sturdy, swing-y and noisy to put your baby in so you can do things like pee, eat, and shower for the first time in five days. It’s a rather large contraption, but so worth it. Get one.
Video baby monitor. For the first few weeks, you’ll want to keep your newborn in your room at night so you can obsess over her breathing patterns and whatnot. But after you decide your own sleep is important, you’ll want to put the baby in her room at night. Last week, Suzianne started sleeping in her fancy nursery. Every now and then, it’s nice to ease my worried momma mind by taking a peek at her while listening to her odd goose-like sleep sounds. It’s even nicer to turn the volume down after I’ve had my fill of them.
Happiest Baby on the Block DVD. I read the book, but the DVD shows you how to properly swaddle, swing and shush the baby. The techniques really work; I swear.
Bag-like pajamas/gowns. There’s just something so awesome about not having to remove pants or snap anything to change a diaper at 3 a.m. Plus, Suzianne looks adorable in these little things. When I first started receiving them as gifts, I thought the concept was weird. Now, they are my favorite thing to put her in. See! Look how cute:
Total Baby iPhone App: let’s you track your baby’s nursing, bottles, baths, poops and pees. Yes, your parents will make fun of you, but it’s 2012, ladies. This is how we do it.
If you’ve got first month favorites, please share them in the comments!
Doppelgänger
Suzianne and her twin on her recently purchased Tiny Love Super Deluxe Lights and Music Gymini Activity Gym:
I highly recommend this mat, by the way; she loves it.