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Mothers Of Newborns Are Not Super Heroes

Although you may feel like a superhero after carrying that baby for 9 months, you are not. You are an exhausted, sleep-deprived, emotional, recovering parent.

Your job for the next couple of weeks is to feed, clean, and bond with your new creation. If you happen have extra energy or time, you might feel inclined to delve into other tasks but it shouldn’t be an expectation of yours or anyone else for the next couple of weeks.

I’m no expert but I am a parent of three children ages 19, 10, and 8 so I have been there a time or three. During each of those pregnancies I held a full-time job. During the last two pregnancies I owned a business and felt immense pressure to return to work as quickly as possible for the benefit of my business and my livelihood. Being one to bore easily and not the type to just “lie around”, I struggled with postponing my super hero skills too. I do know the pressure you’re feeling. We put this pressure on ourselves in most cases but sometimes that pressure is from others in your family. And if you already have another younger child to care for, the challenge is even more difficult.

So, what can you do to make things a little easier in this recovery and bonding time?

Before delivery

  • Meals – Make any freezable meals you can. Once the baby arrives, you’ll appreciate the ability to warm up a meal rather than cook it from scratch.

  • Grocery Shopping – Stock up on everything you’ll need for the next 2 weeks. Check your toilet paper, paper towels, toothpaste, shampoo, etc. That will cut down on the quick grocery store trips. Consider casserole recipes that will provide leftovers for a day or more.

  • Household Chores – As part of your gift registry, ask for a cleaning service gift certificate from a professional house cleaning service! A professional cleaning service can be used just once or even every other week for the next 6 weeks. You will probably not have the time nor the energy to spend keeping your house sparkling clean.

  • Pre-cleaning tasks – The week before delivery, wash all of the linens, towels, and wash rags. This will help you to reduce your laundry loads later to just clothes and baby items. And if you took advantage of the professional house cleaning, some cleaning services also offer laundry service so you can eliminate even that task!

  • Gas Up – Gas up your vehicles. You’ll need a full tank for the hospital trip as well as trips to the pediatrician.

  • Bottle Feeding – If you’re bottle feeding, have plenty of formula on hand. Make sure you have plenty of bottles because you’ll go through 1 bottle every 2-3 hours. That means you’ll need at least 8 bottles per day.

  • Nursery – Prepare everything in the nursery and check that you have enough newborn diapers available. It can’t hurt to have too many rather than too few. You can always exchange a package of small diapers for a bigger size later. Have a pair of infant nail clippers, a thermometer, a bulb syringe/ snotsucker, and plenty of diaper rash ointment available.

  • Sanitary Products – You will need plenty of heavy sanitary pads for the first several weeks after delivery. Buying them in advance will save you time at the store later.

  • Breast Care – If you are bottle feeding, purchase ace bandages to wrap around your breast tightly after delivery. If you’re nursing, have all of the comfort items you’ll need in advance.

This list will help you feel less overwhelmed after you bring your baby home because you will be prepared. Once you and baby are home, remember that your job is to relax, recover, and bond with your tiny creation. You are a mom, not a superhero.


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