Been Thinkin'.

make sure you get plenty of lanolin.It works great for sore,dry chapped nipples.

CHrist, can you not delete a fucking comment on here? Jesus...

You don't need all that trash on your baby shower blog. I wish I could delete the comments.

http://www.miracleblanket.com/indexb.htm

Make sure to ask for the Best swaddle ever made...once you get past the it looks like a straight jacket for babies part...you will love it, well your baby will. You can buy them on ebay in even more colors. Get 2 so you always have a clean one. I BF and my babies were so calm wrapped in one of these while eating. They would go right to sleep and you do not have to worry about the reflex of the arms that wakes them in these.

Baby burritos sleep very well. If you plan to breast feed I suggest you stock up on either an absorbent pad you can cut in half or nursing pads. When it first comes in you will have let down often, sitting in the wet milk causes nipple irritation. Cloth diapers are the easiest thing for nursing. Tuck one under the baby's face while you nurse and use it as a burp cloth when you burp and switch sides.

Invest in a good swing, a bouncy seat of some sort and a good load of blankets for floor time. It will give you those much needed few minutes to wash your butt or hair. Both will be disgusting. That's my warning.

Men, stop reading now.....I warned you.

You can expect a good month long period after the baby and people poking your uterus to get it to contract the days following birth. The month fucking period from hell and the uterus shrinking were the worst part for me. For all of them.

Buy books to read or make sure you have a charged laptop. You will spend more time than you thought possible sitting on your ass with a boob in someone's mouth. I read a lot. EVERYTHING...even here. There's a nice visual for you all.

There is no need to sterilize everything. Soap and water is just fine. Stock up on baby powder if you are using disposable diapers. They may wick away moisture but they are still not dry, dry. Baby powder keeps them from sweating to death in a plastic diaper and keeps you from fumbling with them for 30 mins trying to figure out why they are fussing.

Get a rocking chair or one of those big exercise balls to nurse and put the baby to sleep. Expect to bounce and pat said burrito until your hand is numb. Also, get a baby body carrier type deal. I like the front sling types because they don't tear up my back and shoulders. You can brush your teeth or kinda do dishes and eat without hanging on to the baby with one hand. Cumbersome but better than being stuck.

Go get fitted for a nursing bra. My first I was clueless and just bought them premade and shitty. The 30 dollar investment each in good nursing bras and pads made the transition from individual to dairy cow much smoother.

They sell these hand keepsakes you can press your babies hands in. I always tried to do them when they were tiny (and asleep)...you will be surprised how fast your sack of sugar will turn into a fat larva mini michellin man blob.

I am sure there are some more pearls of wisdom in here somewhere. I'm just so tired I can't even think straight.

I never did the birthing classes. I watched a baby story enough to know what the inside of a baby stretched coochie looked like and figured that was enough. That show will make you cry no matter how much you normally go "OMG you big sissy. It's a baby not the 2nd coming. Stop crying!"....Hallmark commercials did it for me. Made me cry like I witnessed a miracle.

I'm off to go bond with my father in 95 degree weather. I'm exhausted so it's going to be me sleeping and sweating like I did when I had the flu in 1995. Good times.

Brilliant. I've got most of the things mentioned at this point and added the rest to the registry I set up yesterday. The only thing I haven't addressed is getting fitted for a nursing bra. Any idea of where to go for a service like that? Do any of the national department stores take care of that, or am I more likely to find that kind of thing at a boutique?

Also, I could really use some information on breast pumps. I'll be going back to work after three months and would like to breastfeed for an entire year if my body lets me, but was boggled when looking at the breast pumps yesterday. In the automatic category, there were 3 - a $70 one, a $270 one and a $370 dollar one. Is it necessary to spend top dollar on one of these, or will something less expensive do the trick?

Motherhood Maternity will fit you for a nursing bra. I don't know if they custom make them.

For the breast pump, I would invest in a Medela one. The Medela one has suction control which helps when your breats are sore. I think they run about $200-250. You can also find out if the hospital will rent one out. (this sounds icky, but you would really only be renting the "mechanical" part and would get all new parts that actually fit on your breast and that the milk runs through [not sure if this makes sense]).

If you do decide to go with a Madela, stick it on your registry. Some of your friends may get together and buy that for you, if they would chip in $50 each you could easily get that as a present. Same goes for your stroller of choice.

Definitely get an expensive one especially if you are planning to try to keep it up for a year. I had both a Medela and a Purely Yours. Overall, I preferred the Medela although both had their good points. The only thing I truly hated about the Medela was the sound it made (the Purely Yours annoyed me too but not as much). A key to keeping up milk production is to pump as often as you can. Also, Fenugreek is your friend. You will smell like fake maple syrup but it doubled my production. A good pump is essential to pumping success, it is cheaper to buy the most expensive Medela than it is to buy formula so keep that in mind.

I liked Medela bras as well. I wore a 42 I and I never had a custom made bra. If I'd been a normal size, there was such a choice, I don't see that custom is necessary. Now being measured and fit, I can see because many many people wear the wrong size.

Also, something many people do not know...

Whatever your pump uses to create suction with Medela it's membranes, with Purely Yours it's diaphragms. Replace them fairly often. If you experience a noticeable drop in milk production, replace it. It really does matter.

Fuck buying a breast pump. Rent one from the hospital for like 40 bucks a month. It's like being hooked up like a cow. They are also stronger and the supplies are rockin. All supplies are individual and you just attach the sterilized stuffs to the machine.

Just ask for your Le Leche Rep...or lactation consultant. They always come in right after the baby to make sure you aren't having latch problems. You won't need it for the first few days until your milk comes in but it's always nice to have a bottle in the freezer in case they baby pukes after you feed her. I had a projective vomit baby I had nick names for like..Sir barfsalot. The barfinator. Barfironi boy...

When you get fitted they give you enough room for expansion without constriction and room for your pads. I got 3 and a couple of nighttime sports bra type ones. My first kid my let down was crazy and I would wake up soaked. One thing I didn't realize until a couple of months is when you let down when you don't want to or by reflex if you push in the center of your nipple inward it stops the flow....Remember that. You'll use it often if you breast feed long.

Go to Motherhood Maternity. They have nursing shirts also. Those little holes are dandy to stick a tit out of in a public place without pulling a side of your shirt up over the mound of your tit. Wiith my first I would tuck a baby blanket under the rib cage strap of my bra so my stomach wasn't hanging out and have the baby wrapped up in front of me with his face and the top of my boob only exposed. Everyone will know what your nipples look like when you breastfeed. EVERYONE. Get right with it now. It's part of it. I'm sure your boobs are luscious and all so you won't have a problem.

No one ever told me what contractions feel like. I'm going to tell you. Straight forward it's like having the worst Montezuma's revenge cramps in the world. They start as a "not so bad" and morph into so intense it's hard to breathe.

I will wish you a quick and easy delivery. You'll do great. I know it.

So, let me get this straight - you can potentially rent a breat pump of hospital quality, plus supplies, for around $40/month?

If this isn't available at my hospital for some reason, I'll go Medela (thanks, Saffron!). But renting might actually be the way to go.

I have no advice to give that wasn't already given. I do wanna ask, where are you registered? Link us please.

Hospitals here rent out Medela or Symphony. I am sure your hospital will have something, it is just a matter of qualifying. It costs between $10-30/month to rent out a pump here. Buying one vs. renting one may just equal out in the end.

I'm registered at Target. Because, aside from the breast pump and a stroller, we've got all the big stuff (cribs, pack 'n plays, bouncy seats, changing tables, etc.), I didn't feel the need to go high end for the registry.

Who am I kidding? I probably wouldn't have gone high end anyway. I'm solidly over my brand-whoring days.

Anyway, the registry can be found under my name, Athena Zulevic. I decided I didn't care if people found out where I lived (oooohhhh...) since I'm probably already friends with the most unstable fuckers here - and we'll be moving a month after the baby's born anyway.

I won't front, the thought of getting baby shower presents from people I may never meet is a little crunchy, so if no one gets me anything, I'm not going to take it even the slightest bit personally. Please... DON'T FEEL OBLIGATED. I know you women can be strange like that some times.

Since receiving all this great information, I've been doing some research on nursing bra fittings in the Seattle area, and it just so happens that there's a fantastic maternity boutique called Birth and Beyond that is staffed by both tried and true moms and professionals like lactation consultants and doulas. I think I'll be taking a field trip tomorrow.

Target has Medela pumps. I'd add it and if someone gets it for you, you have it.

If not, you can still rent. I'm not sure what the quality difference between a Medela and a hospital grade is though...

There isn't a difference Saf. Hospitals usually use Smphony and Medela.