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!!!