So the new royal baby has finally arrived.
Within minutes of the announcement my inbox was inundated with pre-prepared press releases and commentary from parenting brands and experts, all hoping for a slice of the royal baby action.
Such advice is all well and good β what to eat post-delivery, how to get more sleep with a newborn and the best skincare for your new baby β but it got me thinking about all the things they donβt tell you about the first week of parenting.
Little practical things you could really have done with knowing, like the fact babygrows have those splits in the shoulders so you can pull them down, not up, when a poonami strikes. So, in no particular order, hereβs what I wish Iβd known.
10 things they donβt tell you about the first week of parenting
1. Wee in the shower. Or bath. If you’ve had needlework done, itβs the only way the stitches won’t sting.
2. Sleep deprivation is cumulative. You might feel on top of the world on day one, on day two, and even on day three – but it will catch up with you (see the 10 stages of sleep deprivation).
3. All those meals you planned to batch cook and put in the freezer? Yep, you really should have done that.
4. The frozen ready meal shop Cook does 10% off for new parents. It took me six years and three babies to discover this!
5. Forget power napping. You need to learn to power eat too.
6. The more intricate the outfit, the fiddlier the buttons, zips and poppers. Just stick to babygrows – life is too short.
7. Thereβs no such thing as too many muslins.
8. There’s no such thing as too many biscuits, either. For you and your visitors.
9. There’s a lot to be said for pulling up the draw bridge. Visitors might be busting to see the baby, but you only get those first precious few days once.
10. Expect the unexpected. Like number twos the colour of which you never knew existed, despite the pictures they show you at antenatal classes, and realising you suddenly have a part of you that you never knew was missing.
Is there anything you wish youβd known about the first week of parenting? What would you add to my list? Iβd love to know!
My first baby was dressed in a proper outfit first thing everyday. My second was still in sleepsuits all day on her first birthday! #itsok
I can remember doing NCT and the teacher saying that guests can only visit if they bring dinner and / or do a chore for you. Just a little washing up or a quick hoover. I’m not sure I’d be that demanding of my guests but its a nice thought… #ItsOK
All so true! And yes, to the babygrows. Who’s got time for buttons, seriously! #ItsOK
totally agree with number 9 – I wish I’d said no to the visitors so soon, I couldn’t even get off the sofa still and we were bombarded! #itsok
These are all so true, especially the fiddly outfits. And I’m sure we had about a thousand muslins and still managed to run out of them at times! #itsok
Haha! So very true. I had a massive collection of muslins going on, they were fab! And a big yes to number 1. Oh the pain! x #MMBC
Ha, this brought back memories#kcacols@_karendennis
haha having just had a baby in Jan, i can relate to all of this! all the muslins and babygros! Thanks so much for linking up at #KCACOLS. Hope you come back again next time!
hehehe! This is all of the stuff I would have loved to have known before I had my first.
All noteworthy points Natalie. There should be a manual of things like this for new mums – not the preachy kind but the real kind, written by real mums. Which should be given out at antenatal classes! Fab post, thanks for sharing with #itsok
Entertaining list! π
I recognized a couple haha.
For number 6 I want to add that a parent should consider that the child is immobile, and therefore will be sitting/laying down a lot, so not all items sold are fit for this perpose in a comfortable way! π
#KCACOLS
I love this, so many little things I’d forgotten about #KCACOLS
This is great and good tip on frozen cook shop discount! #KCACOLS
what no one tells you is that as a new parent you have to listen to the advice of anyone who comes to visit ……
This is all interesting bits of details. I loved the detail about getting something to eat being a bit of a struggle. I had forgotten that detail. #KCACOLS
Life is definitely too shorts for zippers and buttons! #DreamTeam
Ha ha so true. Buttons drive me absolutely nuts. Brought it all back
Thanks from linking to #ablogginggoodtime
Definitely agree with these. When I was a midwifery, I used to advise new mums to wee in the shower or have a jug of water handy to ease the stinging in their stitches. I pretty much stayed in bed having newborn snuggles for the first week with Sophie and Thomas while hubby looked after us all and it was the best thing I did. Sleep deprivation is the toughest thing though – nothing prepares you for those levels of exhaustion. #ablogginggoodtime
You had me nodding at every single one of these.
I agree with all of these points especially the power eating! My daughter was in special for her first week so it was a shock to the system when the sleepness nights kicked in at home #kcacols
I wish that I had known about the sleeves on baby grows when mine were little, would have been very helpful in some smelly situations lol.
#KCACOLS