Mommie Minute

Follow my blog with Bloglovin As a new mom we often find ourselves drawn to other mom's for multiple reasons. Perhaps it's simply the familiarity or something instinctual as we start down this new path in our life. So I thought it would be fun to do a feature on some new and current mommies to learn about their journey through their pregnancy.

So without further ado, let me introduce Bailey Calvin. I first met Bailey Calvin through a mutual friend at a garage sale that my friend was holding(Bailey and I both had things in the garage sale and were helping out). We instantly bonded and our friendship grew once we both became pregnant. She's a sweetheart and I adore her to bits and couldn't be more happy for both her and her husband Taylor with their little blessing Riley.

Name: Bailey Calvin
Baby's name: Riley Jo Calvin
Baby's age: 7 weeks old, DOB 8/11/18

What are some pieces of advice you got from friends & family when they found out you were pregnant?
When people found out I was pregnant the biggest thing a lot of people would say is in regards to eating and trying to give me diet advice. I know everyone always meant well, but people would tell me I cannot drink pop any longer, or I shouldn't eat this or that because of the baby. Also, the opposite, some people would say, now that you're pregnant you can eat as much as you want because you are eating for two. Both always made me chuckle.

What was your favorite piece of advice? Least favorite?
My favorite piece of advice is that it's okay to let your baby cry. You have to take care of yourself to be able to take care of baby. For example, letting your baby cry while you finish your shower, or while trying to scarf down your please. My least favorite piece of advice is to sleep when baby sleeps. Telling that to someone who does not nap well during the day does nothing! It is easier said than done. I have now successfully taken one nap since Riley was been born.

What is something you wished you knew before giving birth to your child? 
I wish I would have known how hard breastfeeding is. So many people say how natural it comes, but for some it really is hard. We struggled from the get go and I felt so defeated in those early days that I couldn't provide for my baby and I am a failure. I remember lying in bed crying the first day we got home from the hospital because I just couldn't get her to latch. We finally decided to pump and give her bottles because she wasn't gaining weight and I was so stressed out that she was not getting enough milk. It is okay to not exclusively breasted, and it is also okay to give your baby formula if that is what is best for your family!

What are your top 5 favorite baby items that are your MUST HAVES?
1.Footie zip up pajamas!!
2. Baby Swing of some sort(you will want to set the baby down I promise).
3.Swaddles, those have been a godsend for night time!
4. Rocking chair, not just to rock baby, because she does love it, but also I spend a ton of time in the rocking care pumping late at night!
5. Moby wrap(or any baby carrier). I love to be able to wear Riley while I am running errands and not have to lug the carseat in and out of all the stores.

What are your least favorite items that weren't quite worth the hype?
We were honestly pretty minimal when it comes to all the hyped-up items. My husband is OCD when it comes to clutter so we did not ask for a ton of big items, except the essentials. I don't believe there is anything that was really our least favorite.

Did you have any pregnancy cravings while you were pregnant?
My pregnancy cravings were Kraft Mac N Cheese, which I hadn't eaten that in years and I ate so much of it during my pregnancy, and there were a couple weeks where I wanted pickles DAILY!

What's the best part about being a mother?
I think the best part of being a mother so far is just seeing my baby and watching her learn and change so much so fast. Knowing that I carried her in my womb for 9 months and being able to see her and learn her personality is so fun.

Any other comments or advice to give to new moms?
It is hard! No joke, no one really warns you about how hard the first few weeks are. Between not sleeping and having the baby cry and not really know why they are crying is very draining, but it does get better.

Remember to 'tap out' when you are getting too emotional or touched out. Hand the baby to dad, or if you see he needs a break jump in and take the baby. Or if no one is around and you are by yourself, it's okay to set baby in bassinet or crib and walk away to catch your breath.

It's okay to ask for help or accept help for people who are offering.

Take the first few days and don't have any visitor. That was my favorite part, not having a ton of people dropping by. I was so emotional I don't think I could have handled anyone else coming to our house.

Favorite part about being pregnant? Least?
I loved being pregnant, I didn't have morning sickness or many symptoms of pregnancy. My absolute favorite part would be when I could feel the baby move. Once I could see it, it was even better. I would just lay in bed and watch her dance across my belly. I remember one night lying in bed watching and then I just started crying because it was nearing the end of the pregnancy and I knew it was going to be coming to an end. I loved that feeling so much.

My least favorite part of being pregnant is the unwanted advice or comments from people. I was a smaller pregnant person, and I was about 25 weeks when someone came up to me saying are you sure you're not having twins? That made me so mad because I knew I had only gained five pounds and was small!

Special things you'e done or made as keepsakes?
Honestly, I'm really bad at this sort of thing! We have not made any special keepsakes, other than all the pictures I've taken with my phone I have put into an album on my phone and it makes it into a video!

Anything you would have done differently?
I would have done more about preventing high blood pressure early on. Like changing my diet, and adding more veggies.

How did your animals react to bringing baby home?
My dog was amazing! Normally she is a jumper and gets so excited when we get home, especially since we had been gone a couple days. When we walked in the door and Taylor had the car seat she did not jump at all. It's like she knew not to jump if we were holding the baby. She wanted to be where we were though so she stayed close.

My cat didn't meet the baby for a couple weeks because my parents were here with their dogs, and my cat was terrified of their dogs so she was in the basement, which I didn't want to do any steps for two weeks. But once she got to meet Riley, she was curious, would try to come up and smell her, but if Riley made a noise or moved Cleo would run away! They have both settled with having a new baby sister at home and both love her!

----

Thank you again Bailey for allowing me to ask you questions and publish your thoughts on being a new Mommie. I wish you the best with your little Riley Jo.

xoxo
Midwest Mommie

Catch Up: 24 weeks Pregnant & The Glucose Challenge Test

Hi all!


So it's been a hot minute and I apologies, it feels like the weeks are honestly just escaping me between my hectic work schedule and just life in general. We've been working on the nursery and are about 99% done. We just have a couple more things that we need to do to finish it off and then you bet I'll write a post about my son's nursery.


Sunday I hit the 24 week mark, which is a HUGE mile stone. It's known as the threshold of viability. Essentially this means that if I were to give birth to him this early, as long as if there were no more complications, he could survive outside of the womb. With each passing rate the success rate of viability goes up, but of course everything is going perfectly fine. In fact on my doctor's appointment on 9/18 the doctor said I was measuring exactly at 24 weeks 2 days(which was what I was at the time) and Baby DeMoss's heart rate was a steady 153.


Unfortunately also on that  day I had the dreaded Glucose Challenge test. I didn't have to fast for this one and when I went in I opted for the orange flavor of the 'drink'. Since I live in the city I had the choice between Lemon Lime, Orange and Fruit Punch(there might've been another one, but I can't quite remember.) I opted for the orange drink and to me it tasted like a flat, off brand orange soda. After that I went to my doctor's appointment with my provider where he measured my belly and told me everything is looking great and I'm right on track.


Fast forward to 9/20 in the morning when I got my test results. So sadly I failed my 1 hour test, passable levels are from 70-140 mg/dL and my levels were at 159 mg/dL. So not crazy over, but still over enough for me to have to come back on 10/1 at 8:15 a.m. for my 3 hour test which is the Glucose Tolerance Test(GTT). So fingers crossed that I pass this one, otherwise I will be diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes.


 I was also informed that my iron levels were low, so now I have to take an iron supplement in addition to the baby aspirin(doctor prescribed), Prenatal vitamins and stool softners(as needed) to my nightly regiment.

At the end of the day it is what it is and I will do whatever I need to do to keep my baby healthy. It's crazy, but the moment I found out that I was pregnant and saw him at his first ultrasound I knew that I would do anything for him. So wish me luck that I do better at my 3 hour test! Otherwise the rest of this pregnancy will probably feel like a long one.


xoxo
Midwest Mommie