our first weeks: favorite baby registry items

The first few weeks of parenthood will throw you for an absolute loop! We've all functioned on little to no sleep in our college days, but I think true sleep deprivation due to being a new parent is something else entirely. While newborns don't need nearly half of what you received from your registry, here's what got us through those first few weeks (and what I wish I had sooner...):

(note: some of these are affiliate links, which means I might get a tiny commission if you choose to purchase through this post)

the Ollie swaddle - we were convinced that Claire didn't like to be swaddled because she was comforted by her hands. After watching all of about 20 minutes of the Taking Cara Babies program, we quickly learned that, as a newborn, she wasn't knowingly using her hands for comfort...they just so happened to be there as she was flailing around. We didn't get this swaddle right away, but I wish we had! It's a little pricy, but we still use it now even without her arms.

Snuggle Me Organic lounger - this product is not "safe for sleep," but it is literally the only thing Claire would sleep in (besides on us) for those first few weeks. Ryan and I would take overnight shifts, accompanied by lots of Netflix, so that we could supervise her sleep in this! She absolutely loved it. Now that she's 3 months old, we don't use it often for naps, but it's nice to be able to lay her down on it for a few minutes at a time while we do a quick task.

the Solly baby wrap - I've gone through a lot of trial and error with baby wraps and carriers, but when they're really little, I think a lot of the structured ones are just too much. I ended up buying a Solly wrap from Facebook marketplace, but I would've definitely paid full price for it. And there are so many gorgeous colors! We still use this now and will likely continue until she's too big for it.

Hatch Rest+ - I know literally everyone recommends this, but there's a reason for it. We got the Hatch Rest+ because you can use it without being plugged in, which has been really convenient while she's still in the stage where she doesn't always nap in the same place (sometimes we try her crib, sometimes we have her in the bassinet in our bedroom, the bassinet in our living room, etc.).

swaddle blankets - I received so many swaddle blankets from my shower, and to be honest, I initially thought it was too much. How many blankets could we really need? A LOT. I feel like we've increased how often we do laundry, and I'm still looking around for the nearest blanket. We use them to wrap her up while carrying her around, over her legs during car rides, draped over the car seat for naps, bundled into the stroller bassinet during walks, cleaning up spit up, laying her down for impromptu tummy time...you name it, we've done it. The one I've linked is my absolute favorite one we have. It's SO soft!

diaper caddy - this is something I almost took off our registry, but I'm so happy we had it. In the early days, we had zero desire to get up to go to the changing table for every single diaper change. We used this caddy to hold diapers, wipes, creams, rubber hair brushes (for cradle cap), an extra outfit, and hair ties. Even now, we keep this bedside in case we have an overnight diaper change, and we also brought it along for a weekend away at my in-laws' house. We have this changing pad rolled up inside of it, and it's a game changer.

bedside bassinet - I initially bought a beautiful Crate & Barrel bassinet on FB Marketplace, but it didn't work out for us. I realized pretty quickly that I wanted something that could open up right to the bed, like a version of co-sleeping. After lots of browsing, I found this bassinet and we've absolutely loved it! It's a great size and folds up well for transport, too.

lots of cozy zip-up sleepers - baby clothes are SO CUTE, but some of them are simply impractical. I'm not sure if every baby is like this, but Claire hated getting dressed and having her diaper changed in the early days. Zip-up pajamas made things way easier. We have a lot from Old Navy and Carter's, but our Kyte one is so soft. I want to try Little Sleepies, too!

Even though I spent countless hours looking over my baby registry, editing items, adding things, researching, etc. I still felt like I had zero clue what would actually work for us until Claire was actually here. An additional note: save your completion codes to use after you deliver! We definitely would have saved ourselves some $$$. I plan to have another list of items we've loved beyond the fourth trimester in the coming months!

second & third trimester "bumpdates"

Hello, 31 weeks!

What a time warp pregnancy has been thus far. September has begun, and pumpkins, fall fashion, and all things autumn related have made their way into stores (and right back out of them, into my home and my stomach). I've spent all of spring and summer being pregnant, looking toward fall as my "final destination," aka little one's due date, so to think that summer is nearly gone really puts things into perspective for me. Ryan and I are going to be parents in two months (give or take)!

Second Trimester

I'm officially up and out of the glorious second trimester and into my third. After easing out of my all-day nausea and sickness in the first few weeks of my second, I felt like I was living the pregnancy dream by about 18 weeks. I didn't have the "energy boost" that I was promised. The way people talk about energy in their second trimester, I was anticipating more of a transition from Gary the Snail to the Energizer bunny. As it turns out, I just started to feel like myself again. I started craving more than just macaroni and cheese, I began cooking dinner again, making plans, exercising, etc. The only thing that felt different was my growing belly, with the occasional bout of discomfort. 

We went on a little baby moon down in Naples in the middle of June, which is about a two and a half hour road trip down I75. With a lot of expenses to come in the following months, we really wanted something short and sweet with minimal travel involved (though in retrospect, I would have been perfectly happy with just one extra day). We stayed at the Escalante Hotel right in the historic district of Naples, and spent the weekend eating out at cute restaurants, lounging by the pool and getting (complimentary!) cabana service at the beach. We even snuck in a little bit of family time, as a few of Ryan's cousins who live in Naples met us downtown for ice cream on our last night.

A few weeks later, we road tripped up to North Carolina to spend some time at a friend's family cabin with a couple girlfriends, and their husbands and kiddos! Both girlfriends are also pregnant, so it was nice to be in sober company...LOL. I'm so glad I still had plenty of energy on this trip (minus one random mid-day nap) because we filled it with hikes, exploring, and lake swims. It really was the perfect summer trip, and I was still feeling okay enough for two 11-12 hour car trips. Not ideal at 24 weeks pregnant, but it was certainly doable! Shoutout to my husband for driving about 90% of the time.

Third Trimester

The exact day I hit 27 weeks, it felt like my body did a 180 and I went from bopping along, happy as a clam, to feeling straight up uncomfortable. I'd spent so much of my time in the second trimester feeling good that I forgot it was likely going to get worse again.

Since beginning the third trimester, I've been experiencing:

• wrist pain, similar to that of carpal tunnel, but it's in both wrists?
• overall joint pain in my hands. 
• upper rib pain, almost like a big bruise that feels like someone is constantly digging their elbow (or foot!) into them. I should note this has been on the left side only (right side rib pain can be a sign of preeclampsia).
• difficulty sleeping, due to everything above.

Thankfully, some of these symptoms have been coming and going. Right now, I'm mostly having the pain in my wrists, which has been really fun when it comes to typing, using my phone, opening bags, existing, etc. 

On a brighter note, we are getting closer and closer to baby girl's due date. In fact, it's exactly two months from today! Because she's due November 2nd, she could even be an October baby. I'm hoping she stays snuggled in tightly, at least until after October 28th, as that is tentatively my last day of work. But she's in charge, right? I just keep rubbing my tummy and whispering to her "full term, full term, full term" and hoping she gets the hint.

(Most recent "bump" picture - 31 weeks, on the dot!)

Names

We have a running list of about 3-5 names at any given time. I still look at lists every so often, just to make sure I'm not "overlooking" anything that I could potentially love. I was listening to a podcast about naming your baby, and one of the pieces of advice that stuck with me was that hearing a baby name is kind of like listening to a new song. You might think it's just okay at first, but the more you hear it, the more you love it! We likely won't decide on a name until the day she's born and we actually see her, but that could change.

Next on our "to do" list:

• Get the nursery set up! Or at least, organize it, wash and wipe down everything we'll be using. We don't have the crib up and running yet, but we plan on using a bassinet for the first few months anyway. I know there are only so many things a newborn truly needs in those initial weeks, but I know our minds will likely be a chaotic mess once baby gets here, so I would prefer our home to be relatively clean and put together when she comes!
• Finish our guest/baby bathroom renovation and get a fence installed in the backyard for easy pooch release once baby is here.
• Attend a newborn preparation class (if possible...thanks COVID!) and watch some birthing classes online. I'm leaning toward Tinyhood, but if there is something else anyone recommends, please comment down below!

The countdown is on, my friends!

 

It's a GIRL!

A few weeks ago, I announced on Instagram that we're having a girl! We couldn't be more excited to add a little girl to our family this fall. 

"Do you want a boy or a girl?!"

If you'd asked us prior to my bloodwork, we would have told you that we'd be excited for a boy or a girl, which was completely true! Everyone just wants a healthy baby, and I think that's fair to say. Having said that, and now that we know the baby's sex for certain, I can tell you that we were both gunning for a girl from the get-go.

I've always been fairly sure that I wanted to have children. Ryan and I talked about it before even getting married - we both wanted kids, but if for some reason we weren't able to, we would promised to each other that we would continue to find fulfillment in other ways (as there are so many ways to lead a full, happy life). In my mid-twenties, I had brief moments where I felt as though I could go either way - become a mom, or become the really fun "aunt Sam" to all of our friends' children. In any case, I knew I definitely didn't want us to start trying until after I turned 30...or, that's what I thought, anyway. It wasn't until around this time last year, just before turning 29, that my mindset began shifting. When I thought about waiting to get pregnant, I felt sad thinking about how long it would be until Ryan and I would become parents, and I realized that maybe I didn't want to stick to my self-created timeline after all.

But even within my moments of uncertainty, I'd always pictured myself as a girl mom. I had far more girl friends than guy friends growing up, even into high school and college. I loved playing dress up, getting new clothes for my American Girl doll, playing with makeup (which boys can do, too, of course). Long story longer: I realized that, when I pictured myself as a mother, I always pictured myself with a daughter. And after seeing Ryan interact with his cousin's daughters over the past few years, I knew that he would be the very best "girl dad," too.

How We Found Out

I know "gender reveals" are all the rage right now, but Ryan and I really wanted to find the news out together, just us. I took a non-invasive prenatal test (a blood draw) back in April, and after patiently(ish) waiting a week for the results, I reached out to my doctor's office to see if they'd heard anything from the third party company. I got a message back 20 minutes later:

"We do have the results! How would you like to receive them?"

Ummm, immediately, that's how!

I quickly sent back a message saying that I'd be happy with an email or a phone call, and they didn't open it for an hour. Ryan had gone out to pick up some to-go lunch for us, but I couldn't eat. I was too anxious/excited. When the doctor's office finally did call, I ran outside to where Ryan was hitting golf balls in our practice net in the backyard.

"Alright, guys. What are your bets?"

Ryan quickly said girl, but I hesitated. Earlier in my pregnancy, I'd been so sure our baby was a girl. But then I began having doubts...was I projecting?! I knew I'd be happy with a sweet little mama's boy, especially a mini version of my husband. It wasn't what I'd initially pictured, but I knew that I would love being a mother to any little nugget we could call our own. I said, "I think it's a boy."

"Alright, dad, go out and buy a lotto ticket. It's a girl!"

Me: "IT'S A GIRL?!?!??!!!!"

And just like that, we found out that we would have a daughter this fall. We are over the moon excited, and I haven't stopped looking at adorable dresses and boho onesies since. 

"Do you have a name picked out?"

I thought picking out a girl name would be a lot easier, but as it turns out, we have a handful of names that we can't seem to decide on. As of now, our plan is to have a list of three names and see what she looks like when she's born!

Thank you to everyone who has reached out and congratulated us during this time in our lives. I love being able to document this journey.

baby fredericks, coming november 2021!

Just call us mom and dad...we're expecting a little babe this November!

What a journey it has been already. To those who claim to love being pregnant: so happy for you! but wowza that has not been the case for me...ha! I'm so happy to be on this journey and I'm getting more excited with every passing day, but the first trimester had me feeling like anything but myself. Apparently the second trimester is supposed to be when things start to look up, so here's hoping!

From the beginning

I found out I was pregnant quite early on. Between getting the house together, going off birth control, and waiting to get the COVID vaccine, we never really gave ourselves the opportunity to "not try, not prevent." Once we were ready, I made an effort to track my cycle and before I knew it, I was staring at two pink lines. We'd been really careful until we decided not to be, and I realize that we are truly lucky to be able to say it happened quickly! 

On Friday, February 19th, I woke up after a great night's sleep and lounged around on the couch for awhile, sipping my coffee, and getting a slow start to the morning. About an hour later, I took the dogs for a short walk and felt totally winded. Knowing I'd slept well and done absolutely nothing that morning, I thought it was kind of weird. A couple hours later, I checked my Flo app to see when I was supposed to start my period, and saw it was five days away.

I thought about all of the "5 days before your missed period" pregnancy test commercials I'd ever seen and decided to take a random cheapie test I had on hand, without much expectation. After a few minutes, I looked at it and did it a double take at the super faint second line. I knew I needed a second opinion (err, a second test), and thankfully I had two digital tests on hand...which I promptly ruined (if you've ever used a digital test, you know this is pretty easy to do...ha!).

So there I am on a Friday morning - Ryan's working from home, I'm trying not to freak out alone, but I have nothing left besides the cheap tests that were already in question. I made an excuse to run to Target (like I need one) to "pick up a few home things," which was a borderline intention. Once I got there, I managed to distract myself in the home goods area for a bit (and scooped up a runner rug in the process) before dashing over to the family planning section and snagging both traditional pink dye tests and digital "pregnant/not pregnant" tests. 

I was shaking nearly the whole way home, trying to sing along to "Electric Love" (you know, "baby, you're like lightning in a bottle..." - what an appropriate song choice) and breathe. I immediately ripped open both types of tests and waited for a full three minutes. I looked out the window, closed my eyes, and opened them again to see that both tests were absolutely, no doubt about it, positive. I started shaking, laughing, crying, having an immediate "omg omg omg this is real, this is happening" moment, but managed to pull it together to call out to Ryan (in the middle of his work day...whoops) to help me open something in the bathroom. From the doorway, he looked at the tests, looks at me and says, "stop," before looking back down at the tests and pulling me in for a hug...not long before saying "holy shit!"

Safe to say we were both very thankful, and also very surprised! 

Cycle Stuff (if you're interested)

Since coming off my birth control back in September/October 2020, I've been religious about entering in my cycle information on my Flo app so that I could anticipate when my period was coming. My cycle hovered between 28-35 days, with one whopping instance of a 47 day (!!!) cycle in January. We'd considered starting around the end of 2020, but then I was given the opportunity to get the COVID vaccine, and after consulting with my doctor, we decided to wait. Well, I can officially be one of the many individuals to debunk the "COVID-19 vaccine causes infertility!" statement, because it surely did not.

Symptoms between 1st & 2nd trimesters

I was hoping to be one of the (seemingly many?!) people without any pregnancy symptoms, but by the end of week 5, I was feeling rough. I had difficulty going to the bathroom for about a week, and as soon as that subsided, the nausea swept in. Oh, the nausea. Just days before our nine hour road trip to Georgia (that hot tub I posted on IG? the glass of wine in hand? wishful thinking...ha! it was all an *~illusion~*). 

By week 7, I was getting sick several times a week, which in the grand scheme, isn't bad at all. But for me, being nauseous feels debilitating, so I was hardly myself. Nearly every night, I'd come home from working a ten hour day and retreat to the couch or the toilet, willing myself to get sick, just so I could finally feel better. It's only now, at 15 weeks, that I've started to feel more like myself again, with only intermittent nausea when I get really hungry.

Nausea aside, I've been zonked. Some days, I felt like I could just fall asleep right at my desk, beyond the kind of sleepy I'd usually feel after just a long day at work. I had moments where I thought to myself, "surely I cannot make it through the rest of the day," but I managed to keep it together most days.

Cravings & aversions

Cravings: anything cold! Give me alllll the [cooked] sushi. I miss raw tuna so much, but tempura shrimp and crab have sufficed in the meantime. Soda has been another random craving for me. In the last 10 years, I could probably count on one hand the number of times I've ordered a soda or picked one out of a cooler to drink. But dark soda (Coca-Cola, Dr. Pepper, etc.) has been a biiiiig favorite of mine. Ryan scoffs at me because he thinks soda is totally gross, but damn, nothing beats a cold Coke, you feel me?!

Aversions: I haven't had coffee in over two months. I went from drinking a cup or two every morning to totally stopping cold turkey. I woke up one morning, went to make coffee, got a whiff of the beans and just thought, "nope." And I haven't touched it since. Also! Those Ritual prenatals everyone goes on about? Oooof. I can hardly talk about them, even to this day. While I don't think they specifically made me sick, I definitely got sick after taking a few doses, and they completely put me off lemons. Also, water sounded awful to me for quite a few weeks, so staying hydrated was overall a really fun experience for me.

Wrap-up

Because we found out so early, it already feels like I've been pregnant forever. Ha! But with such a massive life change inching closer and closer by the day, I think we're both taking it all in stride. I'm scooping up baby clothes left and right, imagining our nursery, scouring baby registry lists, and taking one day at a time. We are so excited for this next chapter in our lives!