Mom Groups

As a new mother you are always encouraged to join mom groups to ensure you have a shoulder to cry on and friend whom with you can commiserate. There are many emotions you experience after having your first child, and if you were an independent woman, sometimes these emotions aren't all positive.
That's why I may be vilified for saying that mom groups are overrated. I do believe you need a friend when your world is turned upside down by a 6-8 lb human being but it's really hard to make mom friends. The time I have been off I went to yoga, salsa, fitness, walks and I found it difficult to bond with someone just because we both just gave birth. And, I really tried. But when you encounter people who think janitors aren't adequate neighbours or people giving ice cream dipped soothers to 4 month olds, it's difficult to open yourself up for fear of being judged (i do realize the irony of this sentence).

I already had a friend who had many of the same feelings as I did in the beginning and since we were friends before it was much easier to be honest. The classes got me out of the house and moving so I would definitely recommend them.

The only suggestion I have, to ensure you have mom friends, is to force your current friends to have a baby at the same time as you.

Cutting the Cord

Having your first child is a paranoid filled experience especially if you are someone like me whose baby knowledge consisted of what I knew when I was a baby. Anyway you get this kid you have no idea what to do with and your confidence immediately diminishes. You want to be delicate with this newborn because you think they are fragile, which my Doctor assures me they are not. However, there are products that help you through this difficult time as you and your baby get stronger.

Huggies Gentle Care diapers http://www.huggieshappybaby.com/products/index.aspx?diapers
were actually quite helpful to me. Since changing diapers was never my forte (my first and only foray into the realm, before my child, resulted in a sweaty 30 minute struggle with a 2 year old), navigating around the umbilical cord was another delicate process. Using most diapers you need to fold down the front to let the cord breathe but these ones have space cut out specifically for that reason. Let's be honest - the cord is gross as it starts off raw and then dries up so the natural instinct is to cover it up. But we know that's not right so buy these for the first few weeks to relieve your diaper changing anxiety if you have any.

Pump It

Sage advice from my brother on my impending motherhood was "First get rid of the breast pump because it will horrify your husband!" The only issue - the breast pump is your best friend, especially in the early months. That is why I highly recommend the Medela Swing breast pump. Not having any idea about pumps, I procrastinated about buying one which resulted in my husband having to pick one up the day the baby came home. Lesson 1 - have the pump on hand - if you don't open the box you can always return it. Anyway - the lactation consultant at the hospital recommended it and kudos to her. This pump is electric with three parts.
The Swing comes in a small grey bag that nicely conceals the contents. It's pretty quick as I can easily watch tv while I pump. The noise factor isn't an issue unless you are in public place where the sound could raise some eyebrows. Besides that, I have found it to be the best purchase I have made thus far and honestly couldn't live without it. This pump is convenient and easy to use and my husband isn't horrified.

Diaper Bag - Skip Hop Duo

So before my baby was born I scoured the Internet looking for a diaper bag that was a reflection of me and my style. Did you know that people pay a lot of money for designer diaper bags? There are some really cool ones out there but I am not willing to sell my first born in order to purchase one.

I settled on the Skip Hop Duo in green. It's canvas for easy clean-up (I haven't had to clean it off yet, fingers crossed). I like multiple pockets and its narrow shape makes carrying easy with all the other stuff you cart along with the baby. It's a shoulder strap bag and remarkably, holds a ton of stuff. It clips easily around the stroller handles so it's never in the way. The one drawback to this feature is you need to unclip the shoulder strap to be able to attach to the stroller. I chose green so both my husband and I could use it with gender neutrality. All in all it's a good bag for around 70 bux. There is no top flap to encase the items within, which would have been helpful (the Skip Hop Dash has this feature), but it does have a velcro strip to hold stuff in. However, the crap you need for a baby usually doesn't allow this feature to be useful.

But let's be honest, you could buy a $10 dollar backpack and that would be sufficient. Heck, Nestle gives you a pretty nifty bag, free, if you sign up for their newsletter. And, although I carefully researched and pondered this purchase, my husband went to Old Navy and got a camouflage messenger bag for $14 that he plans on using.

In an aim to stay hip and cool I recommend this bag or those like it even though I feel $70 is steep. Just try not to be defined by your diaper bag. If it happens to say Juicy on it, you can bet that the only thing really juicy about it - are dirty diapers.

Skip Hop Duo
www.skiphop.com

Why?

I have always been obsessed with products - whether it be for the face or my naturally curly hair, but since I had a kid there is more incentive to make the right choice. However, if you are also cheap like me, you want to get the right product to ease that panic or guilt, for the right price.
I scour the Internet - ask friends and, although frustrating, trial and error works very well. I suppose I just want to ensure that other new moms can rely on me to waste my money for them.