One of our very first “we gotta get out of this house” outings with just the doglies, Sky, and I!

Yay! You’ve had your precious, perfect, gorgeous, squishy babe!

Congratulations!!! I’m so excited for you, new family!!!

(Side note – please bring that fresh tiny amazing person into meet me ASAP – I always need baby snuggles and love to give new mamas hugs too! And, you know, adjust y’all too.)

So, it’s been a few weeks. You’re recovering from birth (holy recovery, Batwoman!) and things are rolling right along. Your partner is back to work and you’re kind of in a routine with that snugglebug…

But…

You’re kind of losing your mind a little bit from being home and staring at that cute nugget all day.

This feeling may or may not be you. And, either way, that’s totally cool and okay! These feelings are SO normal and valid. This transition from maiden to mother is tough and has all sorts of feelings rolled into it.

What’s a mama to do?

It’s time to start GENTLY moving and grooving again, mama – give yourself plenty of grace and chill here. When Skylar was teeny tiny, it was winter and the Olympics were on. (My house goes full stop Olympics on 24/7 every 2 years for real!) It was so great for those first 2.5 weeks of her life and I knew every little sporting thing that had happened that day when Court came home and started to watch the nightly broadcast… which, looking back six years later, must have been pretty dang annoying for him! But, I digress here, yikes. So, after those glorious 2 weeks of snuggling and watching the Olympics and figuring life out with a tiny babe, I set out to figure out what the heck I could do with this girl – I am not a stay at home all day kind of girl. I stumbled into a blog that doesn’t exist anymore that had a “Rookie Mom Challenge” on it – 100 things to do in 100 days with a newborn. It was pretty awesome in a lot of ways, y’all. It got me thinking and doing and getting kind of brave. When Tristan came along, I just rolled with those ideas again – with a three year old in the mix.

As a brand new mama, getting out of the house solo can be downright scary! There’s all the things that you might need, think you want, need for your comfort and babe’s – and what about blowouts?! And feeding this kid?! Can I time my outing between nursing and a poop and I think that she’s going to eat in another 2 hours or so, but what if today is a cluster feeding day and then he needs a new diaper and I’m in the middle of the store and there’s not a changing table?! Whoa. Breathe. It’s a lot to think about.

So, let’s start small. Head to the drive-thru. Grab a coffee or tea while baby is snug in their car seat. Now head back home. Enjoy that beverage or snack as you drive even!

Our next adventure could be to go to the grocery store for ONE item. Seriously. Just one thing. Snuggle that baby in a carrier (trust me here – not only is wearing baby so fantastic for both of you, but it also keeps people out of their tiny new faces!), walk around and get one thing – maybe it’s some gorgeous berries or trail mix for a mama snack. There’s no need to stress about your whole grocery list or a cart or anything too crazy here.

You can do this! I promise! Start small and slow and know that anyone who sees you will SEE you – a new mama doing the best she can. And I find that people are generally awesome when you look like you need the help. Smile back at those strangers who are looking to help you. Here’s a small list to get you started, sweet mama!

  • A trip for coffee or tea with a friend
  • Go to the store for just one thing
  • Walk around the block – wearing baby or using the stroller
  • Go visit your amazing chiropractor (you knew I’d throw this one in there, right?!)
  • Arrange breakfast with a friend
  • Head to a drop in breastfeeding clinic or group
  • Start checking out the local library

What sounds fun to you? What were your go-to activities when your babes were tiny, mamas of older kiddos?

xoxox,

Dr. Jamie

Wearing our babies out to dinner is so fun! I think Baby T was about a week old here.