Being a mom for the first time has been absolutely amazing, inspiring and at times, challenging. The challenging part: trying to figure out the puzzle of this new chapter of my life.
After birth, all I could think about was this little miracle that just came into my life; but before I knew it, pain medications, squirt bottles, ice packs and naps were my best friends! Also, I began to notice a little symptom I like to call “mommy brain.” It’s a spin off of “pregnancy brain” (which was a real thing for me)! I’d say the wrong word or try to think of a word but it just wasn’t coming to me, so I’d try to explain what I meant, but that just made the situation worse; or best yet, I’d just forget something that was said 5 minutes ago. Well for “mommy brain”… Same thing!

So Tip #1 – nap when she naps – I know it’s hard to not want to ‘be productive’ during this time, but it really helps cure the “mommy brain!
Then there is feeding time. Oddly enough, this became semi-predictable as she would want to eat when I was about to eat. That’s right, I’d prep a meal for my husband and I to eat and just as I was about to take my first bite, she’d start crying …uh oh! Now, we noticed it was hunger that was the issue because it was the only time that tears would accompany her cries. It would break my heart when that happened, so off mommy goes to feed the monster. I understand now why Mama bear’s porridge (from Goldilocks & the 3 bears) was cold! Nevertheless, I love breastfeeding our daughter. It gives me special bonding time and there’s nothing more warming then having my little angel in my arms.

With this being said, Tip #2 – feed your baby BEFORE you make a meal – a nice big feed should give you more time to prep, cook and eat before they’re hungry again!
Next, there’s the puppy: our other furry child. We couldn’t  neglect the puppy just because there was a new baby in the house. Nevertheless, his jealousy phase set in and he started to ‘act out’ to get our attention. Now, we stopped that promptly, which leads to:

Tip #3 – be sure to have 1-on-1 time with your pet – over-exaggerating your love for your pet, whether it’s playtime, cuddle time or outdoors time, makes for a happy pet & a happy home!
Finally, finding time for myself was important. My aspiration: being able to workout again. After all, pre-pregnancy I was an avid athlete, thriving on fitness & health, participating in 5km & 10km races & doing CrossFit. Now, during pregnancy I switched intense exercise routines for plenty of walking as a subchoronic  bleed (aka chance of miscarriage) was enough to encourage me to ‘take it easy.’ So post-birth, I was excited to workout again. However, my timing was horrible as our little munchkin would fuss the minute I started a workout.

My resolution – Tip #4 – establish a routine – for me, it was ‘she goes in her swing, while I workout’ & voila! I get to exercise and she’s realized this is what happens & is as happy as can be about it!

Overall, establishing a routine is the best advice I can give! Even talking about what you’re doing while you’re doing it can help your little one realize ‘what’s going on.’ Remember, you’re teaching them about their world, so make it predictable and fun!