Becoming a Mommy

So you managed to balance yourself over that little stick, counted out the seconds while urinating, to be sure you soaked it enough. Replaced the cap, and placed it on the counter. Then you paced, or just stood staring at the little gray window, waiting for the verdict....

Positive

Smiley face

+

Pregnant

Yes

If you received any of the above answers, then prepare yourself for the onslaught of unsolicited advice from well-meaning friends, family, strangers, the family pet....

You're going to get it, whether you want it or not. 

Let me just tell you this: Parenting is not rocket science! 

Yes, it's important, but you're not dealing with nuclear energy here. If you make a mistake, you're not going to destroy the earth or anything. 

 If you've read this blog for any amount of time, you know I'm an advocate for breastfeeding, natural child birth, no medications during labor, co-sleeping, organic foods, healthy living, cloth diapering, etc. 

I do support all of these, but what I TRULY advocate is KNOWLEDGE. Educate yourself. Parenting is hard as hell and even harder when you're being bombarded with thoughts, advice, ideas, demands, commands, etc from baby and others. 

During your pregnancy, READ, READ, READ, discuss, research.....all that. Do it and do it a lot. 

Things you'll need to consider: 

1. Breast or bottle. I'm all for breastfeeding. I DO believe it is irresponsible on mom's part to simply decide to feed baby formula when there is no medical reason for it. Breast milk is best for baby. Your job as a parent is to do what's best for your baby. You're going to be home with baby for at least 6 weeks...so in my opinion, it's just selfish to choose bottle without even attempting or considering breastfeeding. End of story. 

NOW....if you run into issues (which is likely, because breastfeeding isn't always easy), talk to someone else who has had issues. It's not going to benefit you to talk to those who had an issue-free breastfeeding experience. I've had it both ways...when it's hard, it can be damn hard. I had mastitis, cracked and bleeding nipples, engorgement, etc. It sucked, but I was passionate about and dedicated to giving my daughter what I know is best and that's breast milk. We overcame the hurdles and are STILL breastfeeding at 18 months. 

That said, some women do have trouble...when that happens, make changes you need to make. However, don't think because baby is nursing "all the time" that you don't have enough milk. It's VERY RARE for a woman's supply to decrease if she's nursing on demand. However, it can happen. Do not go by how often baby is nursing...go by weight and number of wet diapers. 

2. Cloth diapers or disposables. I've done both. Both have their pros and cons. I cloth diapered my daughter for a full year, then switched because she complained when I put cloth on her (they are bulkier than disposables, thus hindering her movement a bit....and she was an early walker at 9.5 months old). So we are in disposables now. I miss cloth. They are cute, economical, and earth-friendly. However, if she's not comfortable in the style I've chosen, that is more important to me. 

3. To vaccinate or not. I vaccinated all of my children and have no regrets whatsoever for this. I don't plan to remain in the grand ole USA forever and I hope they won't either. I hope they will travel outside the country at some point in their lives, so I think it is best to vaccinate them. I researched and educated myself in order to allow myself to make this decision. Don't allow a doctor or anyone to do anything to your child that you've not considered and learned about first. That's my motto. 

Some people don't vaccinate their children. Recently I've read in the news about mumps and measles outbreaks in the US. Things like this happen. Some of the children were too young to have had the vaccine yet and some were vaccinated and still got it. The others were not vaccinated. 

Do your homework. You will not be properly educated by your child's pediatrician...there just isn't time. It's your responsibility to educate yourself. 

There are sooooo many decisions to make. You have to make several before you even have your darling child. Educate yourself. Do not put that on your doctor or anyone else. It's YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to educate yourself. You're going to be a parent. 

I'm sick of hearing people bitch about their doctors not telling them this and that. Ask questions....when you get information you're not familiar with, ask more, then ask for time to research further. They may have sources for you. 

Don't go blindly into parenthood thinking you'll just wing it. 

That said, don't go into it thinking you know everything. 

You don't. 

You never will. 

Partner with your pediatrician, your daycare (if you choose that route), your lactation consultant, etc....they don't know everything either, but they are professionals and they can help, but you have to be prepared on your end as well.