Wardrobe after baby

Ok, I've been thinking about how I want this blogging thing to go while my life is nothing but baby. I think I just want to make sure its nothing like the articles I see posted multiple times a day on Facebook, which generally have the tone of "865 reasons having a baby sucks".

This just in... it doesn't.

I mentioned these while I was pregnant, because I had to abstain from them eventually. The one that put me over the edge was really condescending towards the "naïve pregnant woman", basically like "you dumbass, you think your baby will be fun, THINK AGAIN". I'm not saying I'm not still completely naïve, after all, it's only been two weeks. But with articles like that - as the ignorant pregnant lady, being excited like a total dummy, what's the takeaway?. I mean, once the kid is in your belly, you're kind of locked in to taking him or her home. It's not like I can read about how I'll be sleep deprived and covered in spit up and then be like .... nah. I'd like to opt out please. Even now, no matter how hard it gets, guess what? I still have to do it!

Once you wave goodbye to your helpers, you're stuck with the kid.

Anyway, I can only base things on my experience, but it seems to me that any pregnant woman who has a mother, or friend, or sibling, or coworker, or even just seen a stranger with an infant, knows that caring for a baby isn't easy. Even every basic sitcom shows this in at least one episode. I'm not sure who thinks we need all these "eye opening" articles on the internet.

So that's my goal. If anyone wants to read a bunch of complaints, just check out Facebook, or email me, and I can direct you to a number of whiny mommy blogs. And if I get whiny, please call me out.

Ok, with that said, now I'm going to complain.

Not about this fancy little gentleman though.

Just about the method of getting him out. Granted I have no basis for comparison, and I'm sure any sort of birth results in some not so fun after effects. But recovering from a c section is annoying. It was manageable in the first few days, but now it's the same and I'm over it. I'm still in no hurry to exercise, but I'd like to be able to wash my legs in the shower without pain. The tricky part is a lot of things feel fine in the moment, and then I pay later.

We went on a 20-30 minute walk on Sunday, and I'm talking barely a shuffle. Like we probably could have taken Dalton out of the stroller and let him scoot along beside us and he could have kept up. By the end, my incision was killing me. I decided I just need to wait until I see my doctor for my 2 week follow up appointment tomorrow before any more walking.

He is so tiny and barely fits in any newborn clothes, so on his walk we dressed him up in this hilarious mismatched froggy pjs and hoodie.

Tuesday, I thought I could clean the bathroom and kitchen floors (and these rooms in our apartment are the tiniest possible version of a bathroom and kitchen that still fits the basics like a toilet and an oven, it's like a ten minute job), and once again was in a world of hurt afterwards.

One thing that really shocked me is that I don't have any staples or anything that needs to be removed, just these strips that (supposedly) will fall off themselves, and then I wear a binder around my midsection. Essentially I have scotch tape and a girdle keeping my organs inside. I only looked at the incision once in the hospital because it freaks me the hell out that it's a cut down to my insides and I can't handle that thought. The binder is really hot and irritating, but it keeps me together and I don't have to get staples removed.

So beautiful.

On the sunny side, I'm insanely lucky that our school district allows for 6 weeks of paid paternity leave. I finally wised up and laid on the couch while Eric made dinner.

Wardrobe after baby: robes, pajamas... and that's about it.

I have no clue how single mothers or military wives or anyone does this alone. Also, I have no idea how people do this with older children. That right there explains why people want VBACs to me. We've also had amazing family and friends doing everything from cooking/bringing meals for us, unloading the dishwasher, bringing over gifts, and just coming over and calming down the baby since we're still learning how.

Kara and Cordelia gave us a swaddling lesson.

 

Don't let her blog fool you. Cordelia was an adorable perfect angel and stroked Dalton's head in a way that would melt anyone's heart.

 

Just because there are never enough daddy/baby napping pics. Everyone loves those.

So another thing I mocked during my pregnancy was push presents. I thought they were the dumbest idea ever. Well, apparently one time towards the end, Eric went to a work happy hour and everyone was shocked that he hadn't gotten me one. Once he stopped thinking they were just messing with him and was convinced push presents were a real thing, he freaked out and left immediately and went to the mall.

 

He found a gift he thought I would like, and, smart man that he is, ordered it on amazon on his phone from the mall, because that way was cheaper.

The joke gift - I collect coffee mugs.

The real gift ... it's hard to see but it's a mother and baby.

And who doesn't want a baby face in the picture?

 The best part is I didn't even have to push to get it! I haven't really been wearing the necklace yet because newborns have super human strength and could probably lift a car if push came to shove, so I'm not tempting him with a necklace. But someday I'll be forced to go somewhere without him and it will be terrible, so wearing the necklace will be an incentive.

 

What did you mock for being dumb but turned out to be great?

Moms who have had c sections - fill me in on whether I'm just being a wimp or when I'll be able to do basic things without pain.