Brenda and David + 1

I wrote this email to a pregnant friend about a month ago and it really made me reflect on my experience becoming a parent…
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GREAT to hear from you & congrats on your pregnancy! So exciting, you will make the best Mom! I loved being pregnant, but the last month did get tough, with being so big & uncomfortable. Time seemed to slow down at the end & I was very impatient. I was 4 days late & it felt like an eternity. So…tips. Here are a few listed below:
1) Labor & Delivery - Like snowflakes, every woman’s birthing process is different. My water broke & contractions never came, so much for planning to do a lot of laboring at home.. Embrace your birth, however it comes your way! And remember that this is probably the only time in your life where you’ll be in a lot of pain & it’s not b/c something is wrong- it’s a natural pain that means everything us going right! And no matter what happens, you will have a beautiful baby by the end! 2) Sleep- I had no idea how bad the sleep deprivation would so I won’t sugar coat it for you- it’s tough. Babies have their days & nights switched around so they don’t sleep big chunks of time at night. I felt like I only got 30/45 min naps in the beginning..even if you get 6 of them, you’ve still only slept 3/4.5 hrs. If you breastfeed, it’s hard for it to be any other way. Babies eat every 2-3 hours & each feeding takes about an hour by the time you burp them properly & change their diaper. The 2-3 hours is calculated from the start (not the finish) of each feeding so by the time you are done w/one feeding, they will be ready to eat again in 1-2 hrs. Nap when you can & just know it gets better w/time. At 10.5 weeks Hudson generally sleeps from 9pm-6:00am, waking up once to eat around 3.
3)Breastfeeding - This can be really challenging in the beginning: pain, infections, leaking. The pain really does magically disappear & it becomes a really enjoyable way to feed & bond w/your baby. We supplemented w/formula b/c I had issues w/my milk supply. I know a lot of women who did this out of necessity & convenience and all of the babies still breastfed fine afterwards despite what all “the books” said. Letting your husband feed 1 bottle of formula at night could give you that sanity break you desperately need. And if for some reason breastfeeding doesn’t work out for you, not to worry, they’ve made amazing advances in formula. 
4) Six & TwelveBabies are born w/undeveloped digestive systems, which makes them fussy, usually in the evening. At 6 weeks, this works itself out making them MUCH easier to deal with. That and by 6 weeks breastfeeding is established & they finally start to smile & be more interactive. So fun. Supposedly at 12 weeks, again things get so much better..probably in terms of sleep. By 8 weeks, they actually don’t need to eat in the night but it takes some time to break them of the habit.
Sorry to write so much, clearly this gave me the chance to reflect on my own experience. I hope it doesn’t freak you out. I wish you the best of luck with everything. Being a parent is truly wonderful & I’ve never been happier. At 10 weeks I really felt like we had our life back- going to picnics, dinners, even bars with him- just a bit modified. Hopefully we’ll see you before your new arrival! -Brenda
P.S. And stock up on pre-made, easy to heat up foods! You won’t have much time to cook in the 1st few weeks.