Baby Burrito

I’m thankful for the quiet week we’ve had – it was much needed and way overdue! I’ve been sleeping really well lately and although I’m still exhausted by the end of the day, I feel like I have more energy later into the afternoon.  I’m so appreciative of this extra time to get things done; I have quite a long to-do list left before baby girl arrives. My hope is to have the whole list done before she is born, so that I can fully relax after her birth. I’m ashamed to admit how many items are actually on my list!

Hubby and I attended a “Baby Care Essentials” class this week and had a blast. It was taught at Fauquier Hospital by registered nurse Amy Powers and Dr. Michael Amster, one of the local pediatricians. Out of the 12 people in the class, almost everyone was a first time parent, but we had a few grandparents in mix which made it fun. They were able to share some of their experiences and offer advice with the newbies; they were amazed at how much things have changed since they had children. One aspect that surprised them was changes in umbilical cord care. In today’s birthing world, you don’t put anything on the umbilical cord, you let it heal naturally. In the past, parents were told to put alcohol on it to prevent infection.

Their advice mainly revolved around one warning – be prepared for little sleep!

Dr. Michael Amster shared many stories with us and even offered some personal lessons he and his wife learned with their children. The best advice he gave us was in regards to how to handle visitors those first few days/weeks after going home from the hospital. He said his wife put a “chore jar” by the front door. Any visitor that stopped by without food was asked to pull a chore from the jar to do while they visited.  Items included folding towels, taking out the trash, vacuuming a room, etc. This kept people from coming by who only wanted to sit and hold the baby. It will also discourage people from staying for hours while you’re exhausted and your house is a mess. Such a great idea, and we’re definitely doing this!

Dr. Amster also repeatedly emphasized the importance of rest and not trying to do too much too soon – that it’s OK if the house is not quite up to your usual standards. I felt like he was looking directly at me when he said this. Someone must have tipped him off and told him to say this to me! We discussed covered what to expect the first few days home from the hospital, how to change a diaper, what’s normal, what’s not normal and when to call the doctor.

Hubby had some great questions too; he was very concerned about how much she should eat and how often. He took a lot of notes! Much to his delight, we learned how to “swaddle,” aka make the perfect baby burrito! It was a very informative class -- a much-needed refresher for me, since it’s been a long time since Evan was born. I hadn’t been able to remember specifics about how often to feed or how many diapers I should expect to go through regularly. It was also a great starting place for hubby.

This class is perfect for planners, like us, who want to be ready for their baby. I managed to snap a few pictures of hubby holding the practice baby doll after he swaddled her into the perfect little burrito.