Mother's Milk

I knew before I was even pregnant that I wanted to nurse my baby. There were a number of factors that played into my decision but my number one reason was that its very easy on your baby's tummy.

To start preparing for breastfeeding before I had my little man I changed my eating habits. I started eating foods that help promote healthy milk... blueberries, oatmeal, almonds, whole grains....I also started applying essential oils directly on my chest... fennel and ginger.

I had in my head for someone reason that I didn't want to buy a pump until I had at least 3-4 weeks of strictly nursing. I didn't want to have any reason to give up when it got difficult or even painful. If your pregnant and reading this DO NOT DO THAT!!!! Mr Noah had no problem latching on from the minute he was born. What I didn't realize prior to having him that when my milk finally did come in there would be the possibility of becoming severely engorged or even worse become ill from it.

 Like clock work my milk came in on day 4. I will never forget that feeling. I woke up in the morning around 7am and couldn't left up out of my bed. My mother in law was staying with us and when she walked in her face look horrified. It was like I had to huge rocks on my chest. My mom had to help me out of bed and the poor baby was trying to nurse but I was so engorged that he couldn't get anything out. Luckily that morning I had a required lactation appointment at my doctors. I was barely able to get myself dressed and to the appointment. The lactation nurse gave me one look and said " Honey, your severely engorged... like a few hours away from an infection engorged!" She got out the pump and I had to stay there for an hour pumping until she felt I was ready to go home. I broke down and had to get a pump for at home. I have the Medela Pump In Style. Its amazing!

For the next 24 hours I had to pump every 2 hours. It was horrible! I was in so much pain but it all payed off. Within a few days my little man was able to nurse with out any problems. This would have never happen if I hadn't been so stubborn about not pumping the first month of nursing. I also regret not pumping in the first few days because I wasn't able to freeze any of the colostrum. Now that we are approaching flu season I would love to have those immunity boost in the freezer for Mr Noah.

To keep my milk supply rich and healthy I try to eat oatmeal every day with blueberries and almonds. I also drink Mothers Milk tea before bed with a drop of fennel oil. I can tell by the color of my milk when I pump if my diet hasn't been too good that day. Its amazing how the quality of your food does make a difference.

Here is a little trick to see how much milk your breast feed baby is really getting, weigh him or her before feeding then weigh again after. You should see at least 3-4 ounces in the beginning at every feeding. But all babies are different, my little man was eating 5 ounces by 4 weeks at every feeding.

My Happy Healthy Chunky Monkey 3 month old 

Happy Feeding Ladies!!!

Our First Family Vacation

 We recently took the challenge of going on our first family vacation. And of course I picked our first trip to be out of state making it an extra stressful event. We were flying to Seattle to visit my mother in law. She lives in Spokane, Washington but we decided to meet in Seattle to go to a Mariners game (also another fun first for the baby). Before I started packing I made a check list so that I wouldn't forget anything. We were staying in a hotel so I wouldn't have access to a washing machine. I had to make sure I packed triples of everything!

All this for just one little baby! 

The day before the trip I started by laying out all the outfits for my little man. I planned on having 3 outfit changes a day for the just in case messes babies are so very good at creating. I then laid out all the burp rags, blankies, a few wash clothes and bibs. I put each day's outfit in a ziplock bag to make it easy for packing and husband friendly so that while we were getting ready in the mornings we could just grab it and go. I also put all socks and bibs in one ziplock bag and his pjs in another. I made sure to pack my awesome diaper bag organizer by O.R.E Sugarbooger (www.oreoriginals.com). These are the best organizers!!! I use them daily. I know it sounds way OCD but it helped so much! Nothing got lost at the hotel and getting ready in the morning was so easy!


Both my husband and I were very nervous about flying with a baby. I packed his diaper bag with everything I thought we might need and I also made him a Lavender aromatherapy roll on to put on his little feet before boarding. When we got to the airport to our surprise all the employees were sooooo helpful. We got the first class treatment! I had my little man in the Ergo carrier (which is AMAZING) and I was able to go through security with him in it. When we boarded the plane we pulled out a few burp rags, an extra pacifier, a toy that plays music and his blankie. We were ready for anything! And to our surprise.... Mr Noah slept through the whole flight!

Checking out Seattle 

When we arrived in Seattle, he was a little cranky due to the fact that he was out of his routine. I made sure to pack all of his bath oils to help relax him at night before bed. I am happy I did because the second I started wiping him down at night he knew it was time for bed. I am too freaked out about germs to let him sleep with us in a hotel bed so we packed our Bug a Boo stroller with the bassinet attachment. He slept 10 hours each night :) ! I love love LOVE the Bug a Boo!

Our Little Family 

In the end we all survived our first family vacation and created many happy memories to look back on.

Mani/Pedi Time

I will admit, the thought of filing down my little man's nails freaked me out. When Mr Noah was born he had really strong long nails. I was way too afraid to file them at first. I waited until he was about 3 weeks old to finally try. He hated it just as much as I did! He was so squirmy and kept his little hands in very tight fist. It was pretty traumatizing. Every couple of days I would try to file down his wolverine claws but I felt like I wasn't getting great results (I think I was actually making them sharper). The little man kept scratching his face and my chest whenever I nursed him. Even though the nail file wasn't doing much I  was way too afraid to try the nail clippers.

Then last week I came across a miracle product as I was flipping through a baby magazine...the Buzz B by Zo Li. Its an electric nail file for babies! Genius! Here is why I love it....

- Its super safe for babies even as young as newborns
- It comes with four different file pads that vary in texture depending on the   strength of the nails
- It has two different speed settings


I tried it out on Mr Noah after his bath and he didn't seem to mind it at all. I really love it because its fast and gentle on his wiggly hands. I definitely recommend this product to all moms who hate giving their little monkeys manicures! Its more expensive than a nail file but so worth the investment ($30). Its not sold at Babies R Us or Target which is a bummer but luckily I was able to find it at a small children's boutique near my place. Check out the website to find the nearest retailer http://www.zolibaby.com

Baby Weight Loss Update

Its been a little over a month since I seriously started thinking about losing the last of my baby weight. My original goal was to lose 10 pounds. That wouldn't put me at my pre-prego weight but I figured I would never see that size 0 again after having my little man haha. Well I'm proud to say I lost 4 1/2 pounds in 4 weeks!!!!!  I'm very happy about this because I honestly didn't have a chance to work out more than  twice week. Its really hard to sneak out of the house with Mr Noah these days. He is going through a major separation anxiety when ever I leave the room just to shower! In order to reach my pre-prego weight I would need to lose another 10 pounds. I don't want to put that kind of pressure on myself so I am going to stick to my original goal which means I have another 6 to go!

Even though I lost 4 1/2 pounds I still feel really chubby around my mid section. I call it my accordion belly because when I sit the rolls crunch together haha. This month I am going to focus on working out at least 3 times a week. I think now that Mr Noah is turning 3 months I am going to look into the local Stroller Strides. That way I can take him with me to work out and I get to meet other moms in my area. I am also going to focus on kicking my Starbucks habit. During the last trimester of my pregnancy I would walk to Starbucks to get a Chai Frap. I have continued that habit which isn't healthy for me.  Even though its a mile walk round trip I know those little calories can add up.

When I compare my pictures I don't see much of a difference but it motivates me to work harder this month.

August 15th 

September 15th 

My goal this month is to lose 1-2 inches around my belly and another 2 pounds. Wish me luck!!! 

The Tummy Tub

Mr. Noah absolutely loves his bath at night. A few times he has started to cry when I take him out to get ready for bed. I don't mind him hanging in his bath for a while but it starts to get cold pretty quickly. So I  keep a wash cloth on his tummy and on his head to keep him warm. The only problem is that the wash cloths start to get cold so I have to keep re-wetting them. I figured this was all I can do until he is old enough to sit in a bathtub... oh so I thought....

The other night my mom and I were watching youtube videos on nursing using your Ergo carrier (I will be writing my review on that soon) when we saw videos for the Tummy Tub. Huh? The tummy what? After admiring all the cute babies in it we became very fascinated by this bathtub. So what exactly is the Tummy Tub...Its designed to mimic the shape and confinement of a mother's womb. Its tall enough to keep your baby warm at all times during the bath. Your baby is able to move freely just like when he or she was in the womb. This also helps to encourage motor skills and most importantly calm a fussy baby. It is safe to use starting at birth all the way to 35 pounds.

Hot Tubbing :) 

We found a few stores in our area that sold it so the next day we ventured out in search for the Tummy Tub. It looks like a giant clear bucket, or as my girlfriend Alaina said "giant Tubberware". I wasn't sure what my husband was going to say when I brought it home that night but then again he has stopped asking questioning since my first trimester when I was practically bathing myself in ginger oil on a flight to help my morning sickness haha. To my surprise my husband seemed to not think twice about it and actually was calling it a baby hot tub.

My chunky monkey

The time came to try it out. Mr. Noah seemed to enjoy it but also seemed a bit confused haha. We are going to try it again tonight but this time fill it up just a bit more so that the water is right up to his chest, really allowing him to experience the feeling of buoyancy.

Caution: Explosives Ahead...

As a new mommy I knew that I would be experiencing my fair share of "explosive" diapers, I just didn't think it would happen on my lap or on my bed or in the car seat or pretty much anywhere but just in his diaper. Baby poop is harder to get out of clothes than people think. Basically the item is stained for life if not treated properly. Mr Noah had a few leaks here and there when he started growing out of his newborn diapers. The first time it happened I didn't think about treating the area before washing it. It came out of the dryer with a light yellow stain.

My Secret Weapon

But a few weeks ago a bomb went off in the morning. I was nursing Noah in bed when boom!!!!!! It was all over our comforter. My husband looked at me in shock and said "You know you have to throw it out now". I was so upset.  I love our comforter. I didn't want to get rid of it. Then it dawned on me to try the DoTerra On Guard Cleanser. We had recently switched all of our household cleaning products to the DoTerra Oils and I sometimes will run the On Guard Cleanser in the washing machine to clean it and kill the germs. So I bravely carried the hazardous waste downstairs and laid the comforter out on the kitchen floor. I first spot treated the area with the On Guard Cleanser, then I washed it with Dreft detergent and voila!!!!! It looked brand new again!

Before 

 The DoTerra On Guard Cleanser not only removes the stains but it also sanitizes which is super important when dealing with these hazardous disasters.

After

Before

After

Since that morning I haven't experienced any more messes on my bed however we did have quite the episode a week ago in the bathroom while nursing him in Macy's. Luckily I was prepared with extra clothes, lots of wipes and the Arm and Hammer diaper bags to put the dirty clothes in. I didn't take any before or after  pictures of his shirt and shorts but again they came out looking brand spanking new.

Woombie vs SwaddleMe

Before Mr Noah was born, I practiced swaddling with blankets on a doll. I felt like I had it down perfectly, basically its like making a baby burrito. Unfortunately I wasn't prepared to have a baby with super strength reflexes and Houdini like tricks! At about two weeks old the blankets weren't controlling his strong reflexes resulting in a very startled and fussy baby. Luckily I had received a few swaddle sacks at my baby shower, a SWADDLEME and a WOOMBIE. I put the WOOMBIE away because the weight was for 14 pounds plus but the SWADDLEME was for newborns.

The SWADDLEME

The SWADDLEME seemed to work great....for about a week. Somehow my Mr Noah became Houdini and was able to wiggle his little arms out of the velcro! Next thing I knew a hand would be up in the air and the whole bassinet is shaking. My husband and I would joke around saying he is doing the back stroke. As cute as it may look to see the little man moving his arms around, it really wasn't good for him. Mr Noah kept waking himself up which in return means lack of sleep for mommy and daddy. So for the first month and a half I would have to re-velcro his arms every couple of hours in order for him to get some sleep. Then the friend of mine that gave us the WOOMBIE asked if I had tried it yet. I told her no because he didn't meet the weight requirement. But then it dawned on me, Mr Noah was big enough for it!!!!! That night we tried it out and WOW! It worked!!! The little man was able to sleep 8 hours straight!!! And every night since then (keeping fingers crossed that it continues).

The SWADDLEME is great but not for babies that have strong reflexes. I am all for the WOOMBIE. The difference is that the WOOMBIE zips up keeping their little arms and legs close to their body but still allows them to stretch without  pulling a Houdini. Unlike the SWADDLEME which only zips up their legs and you wrap their arms in securing them with the velcro.

The WOOMBIE

Noah's First Trip to Disneyland

My Little Family 

My husband and I finally took the Big D challenge...Disneyland in the summer!!!!! Luckily my cousin who was visiting from Reno came with us with her husband and three kids. My original plan was to meet my family there later when the sun started setting. I was to nervous to have Mr Noah and my milky white husband to be in the sun for too long. Of course when we all got up in the morning my lovely hubby couldn't wait until the later afternoon, he was way to excited for Cars Land haha. 

I wanted to share with ya'll how I packed Mr Noah's bag for our long adventure to the Happiest Place on Earth. I have two diapers bags for my little man, a beautiful Coach diaper bag that my cousin gave me and Petunia Pickle Bottom boxy backpack. I decided to go with the PPB diaper bag because I can fit tons of stuff in it. I packed that bag like we were going on a weeks vacation! 

- 10 diapers and tons of wipes

- homemade sanitizing wipes to wipe down the changing station because you just never know

- those big blue pee pads you see at the doctor's office to put down on the changer. I like using those instead of the changing pad because you can throw them out when your done and they cover the whole changer.  

- 3 outfit changes just in case Mr Noah decides to have an explosive diaper

- 3 pacifiers plus wipes to clean them 

My Diaper Bag

- 5 burp rags

- 3 bibs

- a big sun hat

- homemade hand wipes plus gel sanitizer 

After double checking to make sure I had everything I realized two things 1. I am way more OCD than I thought I was and 2. Baby's require a lot of stuff! 

When we arrived to Disneyland the sun had just come out and it felt like it was a million degrees outside even though it was only 80. I have a BUGABOO Cameleon stroller with the car seat adapter. I decided to use the car seat adapter rather than the bassinet because I could shade him from the sun easier and its more compact. I also used the Parasol by BUGABOO. Besides it looking so darn cute, it reflects the sun from the baby plus it pivots and bends so that no matter where the sun is you can shade your baby.  We also packed his Chicco carrier. 

My cute hubby demonstrating the Parasol

Waiting in line for Monsters Inc. 

Our first trip to Disneyland was a huge success. My cousin and I found the Starbucks inside Cars Land and sat there with Mr. Noah and Miss Mina while the boys took the two older kids on a few rides. Mr Noah basically slept the day away and woke up just in time for his first ride, Monsters Inc. I was super nervous that the loud noises would scare him but he seemed to be just fine. We also rode Little Mermaid but by the time the ride was over he was sound asleep again. We look forward to going again soon... but next time at night so I don't have to worry about the sun on my little man's baby soft skin. 

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Those last 10 Pounds...

We all know it takes nine months to gain all the weight but for some reason we expect it to be gone in one day. I will confess, I thought by the time I left the hospital I was going to be back to my pre-pregnancy size. I will never forget the first time I was able to get out of the hospital bed after having Noah... I hobbled my way into the bathroom and stood there in shock and horror. I STILL LOOKED PREGNANT! I could have sworn I had already given birth (had 22 hours of labor to prove it) . And not only did I still look pregnant I was more swollen than I was during pregnancy and my stomach was like this hanging kangaroo pouch. It was totally depressing. I decided to share my baby weight loss story because I feel its important for us moms to know that it is not normal to shed all the pounds within a month like we see all these celebrities do. I am going to track my weekly weight loss and share some of my exercise tips for us busy mamas and my "diet".

Luckily I had already started eating healthier towards the end of my pregnancy. I was eating oatmeal in the morning instead of french toast and yogurt instead of ice cream.

Hours before going into labor

I gained about 40 pounds during my pregnancy. My goal was 30 but the holidays got the best of me haha. I gained 10 pounds in December, dang all those cookies!
I lost about 15 pounds the first week after giving birth. Then another 5 pounds the following week.

1 week post baby

Around week 3 I started getting my energy back. I began my power walk routine with the baby. I was doing 2-3 miles a day with him. I lost another 5 pounds by week 6.

3 weeks post baby

I was getting ready to start my exercise dvds when I came down with a horrible case of tonsillitis. So it had to go on pause. I am now 8 weeks post baby and I finally got rid of my nasty tonsillitis. I am ready to get back on my power walking routine and to start my dvds. My goal is to lose these last 10 pounds by Thanksgiving. Will keep you posted on my progress....

8 weeks post baby

                                                                                            

Recipe for Creating a Sleepy Baby

Ohhhhh bath time... It can go one of two ways, they love it or absolutely hate it. Lucky for me Mr Noah LOVES it! Its already a huge part of his nightly routine before bed. I know all the books say to not bathe your infant everyday because it will dry out their skin, which is true and that infants don't really get dirty due to the fact they can't crawl around yet but I am not a fan of "stinky cheese neck". Poor Noah can't help having "stinky cheese neck" because he has about 5 chins, so a nightly bath is a must in our house. In order to keep my little man's baby soft skin well...baby soft, I don't use soap to bathe him. Instead I use the DoTerra Essential Oils in his bath water. Mr Noah not only smells yummy but he falls right to sleep from the soothing oils.

Supplies

All you need to create this relaxing "spa" bath is the Fractionated Coconut Oil, Serenity Oil (or just lavender oil), Wild Orange Oil, and Milk.

Step 1: Fill the tub with warm water. I use a tub that has a sling for babies who are too young to support their head.

Step 2: Add two drops of the Fractionated Coconut Oil, one drop of Wild Orange, one or two drops of Serenity Oil and a splash of milk. Mix around in the tub.


Once the oils hit the water the whole room smells like a 4 star spa. Only wash your baby's body with the bath water, not their face. I use a separate wash cloth with plain water for Mr Noah's face and I wash his hair (more like peach fuzz) with a gentle baby shampoo twice a week.

Even though Noah is only 7 weeks old I have already established a nightly routine to help bring him down from the day....I nurse him, bath him, swaddle him (I only swaddle him at night) then poof...he is asleep for a good 5-7 hours. The perfect recipe for a good nights sleep.

Mr Noah relaxing at the spa

For more information on the DoTerra Essential Oils I have attached the website under pages.

DIY Baby Wipes

As we all know baby bottoms are very sensitive, so I made sure to purchase only sensitive wipes for Mr Noah. Not only did I purchase the wipes....I stocked up like the wipes were being discontinued (my OCD got the best of me). When we were in the hospital after Noah was born the nurses used really soft paper towels and just wet them but as soon as I brought Noah home we started him on the baby wipes. The day before his first month birthday he started acting unusually fussy whenever I changed his diaper and by the evening was crying uncontrollably. Of course I went into first time mom panic mode " Oh no he is sick! Or maybe he has colic!! Check his temperature! Maybe he is too cold or too hot or..." And after my 30 minute melt down  I realized he had developed his first diaper rash.

Luckily right before getting pregnant I discovered these amazing Essential Oils by DoTerra. I was using them in my spa room for work and used them in the first trimester to help with my morning sickness. So as soon as we got Mr Noah settled down for the night, my mom came to the rescue with a recipe to make our own baby wipes that are not only gentle on the skin but TREAT DIAPER RASH!!!
Within 24 hours his rash was completely clear and we had our happy Mr Noah back.

As for my year supply of baby wipes....well lets just say they are very comfy sitting in storage for now.

Step by Step on DoTerra Baby Wipes:

Supplies 

Supplies:

- one roll of soft but tough when wet paper towels
- DoTerra Lavender oil
- DoTerra Fractionated Coconut Oil
- distilled water
- a 1 quart pot to warm the water in
- a container to keep the wipes in

Step 1:
Cut the paper towels in half and remove cardboard (set aside one half of the paper towels)

Step 2:
Pour two cups of distilled water into the pot and just warm (not boil) on the stove

Step 3

Step 3:

Once water is warm, pour into a glass container and put 3 drops of the lavender and 2 tablespoons of the fractionated coconut oil, mix well.




Step 4:
Place the wipes into container you will be storing them in. Pour the lavender mixture onto the wipes and let it soak for 10 minutes. Then turn upside down and soak another 10 minutes.

Step 4

Step 5:
After the 20 minutes remove wipes and squeeze out excess liquid leaving the wipes damp. Put wipes back into the container and bam! Ultra sensitive wipes for your ultra sensitive baby bottoms!

I use the other half of the paper towels to pat dry Noah every time I change his diaper to make sure no moisture gets trapped in his many chubby upper thigh folds and cute bottom.

Helpful Tip:
If your little one is experiencing a diaper rash, add a splash of milk to the wipes. But make sure to not let the wipes with milk sit for more than a day in the container and toss out any unused ones within 24 hours.

Welcome!

Welcome to Noah's Cookie Jar! I am a first time mom to a beautiful little boy, Noah Peter. Through out my pregnancy I did tons of research to help prepare me for my bundle of joy. No matter how many times I read "What to Expect When Expecting" I still didn't know what to expect! I am one of the first within my group of friends to have a baby so I don't have a lot of mommy brains to pick. But the one thing I have learned in just these short 7 weeks of Mr Noah's life is I need to take each day as it comes and check my OCD at the door! 

I wanted to start this blog to help other moms out there that are trucking along day by day just like me. I will be posting anything baby and mom related like breastfeeding challenges, recipes, DIY cleaning products, exercising with baby and much much more! So remember to take each day as they come and FEED~BURP~CHANGE~REAPET!!!