I’m fairly confident that I was nothing but a big old ball of stress before I had my first baby. In fact, I was a big old ball of stress when I had my second baby too. What can I say, I knew NOTHING about babies. An only child, I never had a lot of exposure to babies and so when mine came along, I was going solely on instinct. Believe me, I searched high and low for that manual at the hospital and I couldn’t find it! Can you believe that?
If I could go back now and talk to my younger, much more stressed out self, I would say the following:
- You will get the hang of breast feeding and you will love it. Put your bras in the freezer and cabbage leaves do relief the pain.
- Sleep when the baby sleeps. I can honestly say that sleep deprivation is the number one reason I can barely remember the first five years of my girls lives. In hindsight, it didn’t really matter if the living room was tidy. Wish I could get that sleep back now. Sigh.
- Stare at your baby more. Without getting overly sentimental, I wish I had spent more time staring at my babies, holding my girls. Trust me, I did a lot of that, but it’s never enough. When you have children it’s like someone puts life on fast forward. So my final bit of advice to myself would be to SLOW DOWN.
You know what else I wish I could have changed? I wish that I had investigated the products I bought for my children more thoroughly. Too often, I would get home with something and find it wasn’t right for us, or I didn’t like the features. I registered for gifts not really knowing if it was what we needed or not. I wish I had someone to lean on in the stores before I made my purchase.
Now when I see a mom with a really cool stroller, or an awesome diaper bag, I cry out “Why didn’t they have that when I had a baby?” That’s also how I feel about the new in-store specialists at Walmart’s Baby Department. Why didn’t they have this awesome service when I had my girls? How great is it that expectant moms can now go to Walmart on select days through December and January, find a specialist and get all the answers the their nagging questions. Which stroller? Which diaper disposal system? Which breast pump? It’s a great way for moms to smart decisions on what they need for their new baby.
Of course, while they’re in store they can also set up their baby registry which offers free shipping. Can I say it again? Why didn’t they have this when I had my babies?
Specialists will be equipped with tablets for easy access to the baby registry and Walmart.ca. To find a store in your area, please visit http://www.walmartlivebetter.ca/letstalkbaby
The registry features a wide variety of baby products including the everyday basics such as diapers and bottles to baby gear essentials and nursery necessities. To view the registry, visit Walmart.ca/MyBaby.
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