Well, I'm officially a Mom of Two.
Unlike his big sister, who was five days late, our little man decided to surprise us with an early arrival -- a whole 1.5 weeks before his due date.
While I was super happy to avoid being pregnant during one of Toronto's hottest heat waves, his early arrival caught us a little off guard. I didn't have that extra time to sit around and pine for his arrival and mentally prepare for being the mom of a newborn again. Well, I guess technically I had almost nine months to do that but, well, I didn't. I had another little person keeping me preoccupied.
So as I dive head-first into sleepless nights and poopie diapers, I'd like to jot down a few things I'm remembering about the newborn phase that kind of slipped my mind. Just in the off-chance I opt to do this one more time in the future.
1. Newborns poop. A lot.
I know this isn't something I should have forgotten - but I did. Even though Addy is still in diapers, she's on the brink of being toilet trained. Which means she can hold her bladder for hours at a time, and has an almost-regular pooping schedule. Austin? Not so much. He pretty much poops/pees every time he eats -- which is all the time.
2. Newborns attract crazies.
Maybe I should rephrase that. I don't think these people are total crazies, I think newborn babies just bring the crazy out in them. I forgot how often random strangers come up to you when you have a newborn and wistfully recall a time when their children were that size. Most of these people are just harmlessly reminiscing. But some of them go a little too far. I hate it when they come up behind me and peek into my kid's stroller...or stare at me while I'm awkwardly trying to cover myself up and breastfeed in a public space. I know - his feet are really little. And yes - it does go by so fast. And I'm trying very, very hard to enjoy every minute -- but the sleep deprivation makes that a little difficult at times. To be honest - I don't even know where I am right now.
3. Newborns are immobile.
Yeah, I know, this one should come with a major "duh". But I TOTALLY forgot how awesome it is to be able to leave a kid in the middle of the bed, or on the floor, or in a swing and not worry about him trying to find a way to hurt himself. He's only 2.5 weeks old, though, and I have a feeling this isn't going to last long -- he's already showing signs of wanting to roll over. I have to enjoy this while I can.
4. You can take a newborn anywhere.
Newborns sleep a lot - and they can sleep through anything. They don't try to hop out of strollers and walk into oncoming traffic. Most of the time, when they cry, it's nothing a feed won't fix. They can handle car rides and trips to the grocery store without complaint (again, provided their tummies are full). I have no idea what I found so hard about this age the first time around. I wish I could go back in time and say: SUCK IT UP! YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW EASY YOU HAVE IT!! But I guess, if I did that, I'd be one of those parents. The parents I hated when I was a new mom.
5. Newborns are amazing.
While I was pregnant, I was really dreading the newborn phase. Compared to the things toddlers can do and say, I just felt it was so boring. And I wasn't really looking forward to being a sleep-deprived milk machine again. While those things definitely have their drawbacks, having Austin has reminded me how much I love every stage of childhood. Even though he doesn't say much, his funny faces crack me up. I love when he wraps his tiny hand around my finger while he's nursing, or how, when he's really hungry, he tries to feed on anything (his grandma's shoulder, his dad's chest hair). I also love the little noises he makes -- he sounds like a little Gremlin at times.
The coolest thing about having a newborn this time around is having a toddler to love and adore him. I can't believe how much my not-yet-two-year-old dotes on her little brother -- covering him with blankets, giving him her soothie, patting his head while saying "Awww!". Just check out this cuteness and tell me it doesn't melt your heart:
What are your favourite/least favourite things about the newborn stage?