6 Practical Tips for Every First Time Mom

1. Resist Buying Clothes

I know you hear this all the time, but honestly I wish I didn't have so many cute clothes until we knew what size she would be at what times. We had tons of adorable newborn outfits that she never even got to wear, or wore once because they didn't fit her long and were the wrong style for the wrong time of the year (short sleeves in winter... not good for a cold baby)!
​Another thing to remember is that newborns spit up A LOT and have tons of poopy blowouts, so you go through TONS of clothes!
We were changing her clothes 4- 5 times a day for the first month. So having easy jammies and onesies is KEY!
Beats those dressy outfits any day, especially when you are home anyway the first couple of weeks! When you do buy clothes, buy them from nice thrift stores or garage sales, you can really find some hidden gems and save tons of money!

2. Change Diapers On Your Bed At Night 

Instead of carrying her all the way to the "diaper changing station" (her dresser) every 2-3 hours, I really wish we would have just kept a stash of diapers and some wipes at the bottom of the bed and changed her right there. Not only does getting up and down wake the baby, but it wakes you up more, making it harder to fall back asleep.  We do this now at 4 months old, since 2 or 3 months old, and it is LIFE SAVING and SLEEP SAVING!

3. Naps

Let them nap in brighter rooms than what they sleep in at night, and always with some noise, it will train them to sleep anytime and anywhere. My girl can sleep in a noisy room, right in my arms for hours now or she can sleep in her pack n play in the middle of family talking. So many other ways she naps, and she sleeps SO much, I really think it has to do with starting that from day 1!

4. Bake/ ShopWhile You Can

Bake casseroles/frozen foods and stock up on non-perishables and water bottles while you can. Before the baby is born is the perfect time to get things done around the house. But one thing we forgot, was getting basic essentials. For us, we don't live near a store thats less than 15 minutes away, so going out with a newborn was not ideal, and neither of us felt up for going out after days of no sleep in the hospital. Get it done while you can or have your family ready to pick things up for you if you can!

5. Burp Rags on Burp Rags & Binkies on Binkies 

You can never have enough of either.. 

6. A&D & Breastmilk

Use that stuff on EVERYTHING. Use it at every diaper change to avoid getting diaper rashes. Use it on their face when it looks dry. Use it on any cuts/scrapes they get. Use it on your own hands when they get too dry. 
Breastmilk is also very healing. You can just leave a little leftover on their lips when they are done eating. It will keep their lips from getting chapped and dried out!

Just enjoy motherhood and this precious gift of life. Each day seems long, but the months go quickly! Take lots of pictures and videos, not just of the baby but of you with the baby too!