Top Ten Tuesday: Tips for returning to work!

Last Monday marked my return to work after a year of maternity leave.  I had mixed emotions leading up to this day as I'm sure many moms do.  Part of me was excited to have some time away from the house and I truly love what I do.  However, the thought of leaving J all day was heartbreaking.  When I was feeling sad about this I would remind myself how lucky we are here in Canada to get a year to stay home with our babies. This helped... A little.

However, regardless of how I felt, the day came and I had to take the plunge.  Now that I'm a week into it, here are a few tips I put together for those of you that are approaching this life changing event.... OK maybe life changing is a little dramatic but it is a big adjustment for the whole family!

10 Tips for parents who are returning to work:

1. Start your daycare search early.  Depending on your location I've heard of parents who have to put their name on wait list almost as soon as they find out they are pregnant!  I started my search when J was about 2 months old and once I had a spot secured I was able to enjoy the rest of my time at home without worrying about childcare.

2.  Have backups.  Even if you love the first daycare you visit make sure to visit a few more and keep your name on their list.  I've heard of many parents who's daycare closes a month before they return to work for whatever reason and they are scrambling.  if you've already visited others at least you aren't starting from scratch at the 11th hour!

3. Do trial days before you go back to work.  Whether your little one will be staying with family members or going to daycare, start transitioning a week or two before you are actually back at work.  We started with a half day, followed by 2 full days a week for the 2 weeks before I went back.  not only did this help J adjust, it also gave me some time to get myself and the house ready.  I made a bunch of freezer meals, gave the house a really good scrub from top to bottom and had a massage and a pedicure too!

4. As mentioned above, prepare meals ahead of time.  I made enough freezer meals for the first 3 week so all I had to do the morning of was put them in the slow cooker and dinner was ready when we got home!    

5. Do as much as possible the night before.  Pack lunches, pick out clothes, pack bags, prep for breakfast ect.  Trying to get yourself and a little one out the door on time in the morning is challenging so the less you actually have to do the better.

6. Have an honest conversation with work.  My first day back I had a meeting with my boss and we went over expectations we had.  For example what if the baby is sick, the day home closes for a day because she is sick ect.  I'm lucky to work for an amazing company which emphasizes the importance of work/life balance and are very understanding.  Having this conversation with your superiors will help when a situation arises... Which it will!

7. If possible, use vacation days to ease back into it.  I was lucky enough to have a lot of saved vacation time so I was able to start off at 3 days a week, transition to 4 days a week before I'll finally be back to 5 days in September.

8. Buy doubles of everything and leave them at daycare.  Less to carry back and forth and less of a chance to forget something.

9. Give yourself extra time in the morning.  Babies have a way of not cooperating when you need them to the most... You know what I mean!

10. Discuss expectations and responsibility with your partner.  Who will do daycare drop offs?  Pick ups?  Make dinner? Dishes?  My husband and I sat down and made a list of just about every household task.  We then decided who would be responsible for each one.  Of course things don't always go to plan but the list helps keep us on track.

When all is said and done dropping J off at daycare is hard but I know he has fun there and I am enjoying my adult time at work.  Plus he's all smiles when I pick him up and he loves to cuddle in the evenings!

         Hanging out while I prepare dinner!

I hope this list helps those of you who will soon be retuning to work and I'dlove to hear your back to work stories.  Comment below!

Julie

Products we swear by!

1) Hydra Sense Nasal Aspirator  This little gadget might not seem very exciting but trust me its a life saver when your little one is congested!  Essentially it's a snot sucker... but don't worry! It comes equipped with filters to ensure you have NO contact with the snot. Your baby will probably hate this device and act as though you are torturing them but once you are done and they can breath easy, they will be full of smiles!


2) HoMedics SoundSpa Portable White Noise Machine
https://well.ca/products/homedics-soundspa-portable-white_574.html
My baby is an awful sleeper and this white noise machine has been a life saver.  It has 6 soothing sounds to choose from,  can be battery or adapter operated, is small and lightweight enough to take when you are away from home and can be left on all night or you can set a timer.  It was a game changer for us! 

3) Babies R Us Nursing Pillow  There are many different nursing pillows out there and I definitely recommend this one.  Whether you plan on breast feeding or bottle feeding these will come in handy when you are holding the baby for long periods of time.  They are also great to prop up a baby who cannot yet sit unassisted.  I personally loved the Babies R Us one as it wrapped around my waist and stayed in place.  It also came with a removable cover for easy washing and I got it on sale for less then $20 (win!).

4) Cloth Diapers!!!!
Some of us are cloth diaper users.  Here are our favourite brands!

Best Bottoms (http://www.bestbottomdiapers.com)

All-in-2 cloth diapers with inserts that just snap into place inside the cover.  I swear, the inserts are the softest things ever!  They are so absorbent, even as night time diapers.  The doublers you can also purchase allow my little guy to sleep 12 hours straight, without a leak!  The covers are also incredibly adorable!  I have nothing but amazing things to say about this diaper system!  Just be prepared for your LO to have a bubble butt, and to require larger pants.

Bumgenius 4.0  We truly love these pocket diapers! They are easily accessible, being sold at Babies R Us and many local shops! I also love that the company is run by a fellow mom who seems to have such a kind heart! We also used Bumgenius newborn diapers and we're glad to have invested!

Bumgenius Flip This hybrid diaper system allows you to choose three different types of inserts, depending on your needs.  It'4.0 pockets and comes in adorable colours and prints.  My favourite part about these is how trim they are on the bum!
s easily accessible like the



5) Skip Hop Grab & Go Wet/Dry Bag This bag is large enough to accomadate 5-6 cloth diapers which makes it perfect for a day out on the town.  It also has two handy sections to keep clean and dirty diapers separated. It's also great to use for wet clothes, swimsuits, sippy cups and food.

6) 1, 2, 3 bum cream
I get this miracle cream from my local pharmacy in Ingleside, Ontario, so I'm not sure where else it is available.  However, I highly recommend it for diaper rashes or to avoid them.  Keep in mind that if you use cloth diapers, this lotion is not cloth diaper safe.  Which bring me to my next product...

7) FLEECE!  
Get some at the fabric store or even cut up some old fleece pyjamas!  The barrier it creates between your babies bum and the wet diaper will leave your little guy/gal rash-less!  Fleece doesn't stay wet, so your baby will not be sitting in the moisture of the diaper.

8) Honest Company Healing Balm
I put that s**t on everything!  I swear, this will heal anything!

9) Stackable Cups (http://www.toysrus.com/buy/babies-r-us-stacking-cups-5f5fbc5-13343706)
For 5 bucks, you will probably be purchasing one of your baby's ultimate favourite toy.  Get ready to make about 400 towers a day and repeating "yellow, green, blue, orange, red, purple, yellow, green, blue, orange" more often than your sanity can handle.  A couple of us Stretchmarks Mommies can confirm that those cups are a HIT!


10) It Works! Wraps
(https://www.facebook.com/Trishaitworks?fref=ts)
Do you have a little bit of extra skin/flub around your tummy area that's bugging you?  I did, and I bought wraps from It Works, through Trisha, and what a difference!

11) Oball Toys 

These are such a great toy for little hands! They come in a variety of different items but every one of their products that we have has been well loved since 3-4 months! 

12) Tommee Tippee Pacifiers These have been great for our little guy. It was the only pacifier he would take from birth and still provides him with a lot of comfort. The glow in the dark option is an amazing feature for late nights! The only downfall is that our dog also enjoys them far too much and has ruined about a dozen!

13) Nuk Sippy Cups The search for a sippy cup was an expensive and challenging task for us, I was so glad when I finally came across this cup, it was great for teaching my little one to lean his head back and tilt the cup. 

14) Ella's Kitchen baby food As far as pouches go, you can't beat this company! None of our Ella's kitchen products have ever gone to waste! 

15) Green Toys I love what this company is all about! Recycled materials, minimal packaging! We have had hours of fun with our fire truck, dump truck and airplane! We will definitely be expanding our collection! 

16) Tula Carrier

I'm sure you have heard all about the Tula!  There are a lot of addicts out there!  Although it is on the pricy side, this carrier is so comfortable for doing odd jobs around the house, going for walks/hikes, soothing a sick or teething baby, etc.  It comes in standard and toddler sizes, and there is also a newborn insert available.  I have to also mention that the prints available are just too cute!

17) Amber necklace

This necklace has saved us from many nights of crying, screaming and discomfort (for both little K and ourselves).  Just make sure you're buying a REAL one!

Top 8 struggles so far as a mommy

Although it has been an absolutely amazing first 9 months of motherhood, I can't deny those moments where I really find myself struggling, whether it be emotionally, mentally or physically.

I hope that some of you mommies out there can relate to the following struggles I have had since becoming a mother.

8) Looking in the mirror:  Don't worry, I do feel proud of my body for what it has so amazingly done, since I found out I was pregnant.  What our bodies go through during and after pregnancy is intense, and getting through all of that is definitely an achievement.  We created life, man!  However, I can't help but sometimes look in the mirror and feel discouraged, and long for my pre-baby body.  Having been a runner for the past few years, I was used to looking at myself and thinking "Damn, girl!" every now and then.  I try to tell myself every day that the body I now have is the body of a hard working, dedicated, happy, loving mother.

7) Letting go of routine: We have somewhat of a routine established with K these days.  Although, let's be honest, I can't say "K naps at 9am and wakes up at 10am".  I can, however, say "K naps some time between 8:45am and 9:30am, and wakes up between 9:15 and 10:30".  Nonetheless, he has some sort of a routine.  The struggle here is letting myself go places and do things that will mess around with this routine, and not feeling so gosh darn guilty about it.  Sometimes I stop myself from doing certain things, because "I don't want to mess up his nap schedule".  Mommas get cabin fever!  Get out and do something, and baby's schedule for the day will fall into place.

You'd think a ninja would need longer naps!

6) Short naps: I know I'm not the only one who has an "AHHHHHH" moment when I hear my little one wake up from his nap after 15 minutes.  As soon as you get started on some sort of task, the baby monitor, with which you have a love/hate relationship, lets out this adorable little moan or whimper.  Despite how adorable those wake up sounds are, I still go "NOOOOOOOOO!".

5) Wanting to sleep the day away, but not being able to:  Need I say more about this one?!

4) Talking to myself: As you have already read in one of my previous posts, I often either talk to myself, or the squirrel outside my window, who visits me every so often.  Sometimes I feel like I belong in the loony bin!  I always make sure that I have at least one day a week where I get together with a mommy friend, in order to have social time.  I have to, or my husband may not come home, in fear of my pent up energy and desire to talk.  Or, he will come into the house like Cesar Millan tells dog owners to do "No touch, no talk, no eye contact."

3) The feeling of constantly cleaning:  K is only eating solids three times a day right now and is BF the rest of the time.  What the heck am I going to do when he's eating 5-6 times a day?!!!

2) Projects taking longer: My husband and I don't mess around when it comes to projects like home renos.  Once, we installed new flooring in our entire main level in one weekend.  We don't stop until we are done, and that's always been how we've been and how we like it!  The "go big or go home" approach to our projects doesn't work as well anymore, since we try and power through as much as possible during K's nap time.  We are learning to cope, and I must say, it is forcing to just slow down, appreciate our time together as a family, and pay more attention to detail when we working.

1) Visits: My husband and I are home bodies.  We love staying home, tinkering around the yard, reading, doing art (mostly him), watching movies, doing little projects, sitting on our deck with a coffee (or sometimes wine/beer) and chatting, etc.  This was never an issue, until K came along and everyone wanted to see him.  Of course, it's normal for family and friends to want to see such a perfect little bundle of joy (we're not biased), and we love our family to death.  We realize it comes with the territory of being a new parent, but I'm sure you know that it takes some adjustment, as well as discipline to ensure that, for our sanity, we still find some balance between visiting and home time, just us 3.


Despite the occasional struggles, having K is actually the best thing my hubby and I have ever, ever, EVER done!  But let's be honest, it's not all unicorns and rainbows!

S

Baby's Best Friend

They say dogs are "man's best friend".  In our case, our two giant fur balls are "baby's best friend".

We rescued Mavis (the brown one) almost 5 years ago, from the OSPCA.  She is a wonderful, calm, mellow dog (unless there's food involved - I can totally relate).  Jenkins, the big black fur ball joined the family two years later and made things... Well...  More exciting.  He is a big, excited, gentle giant.  He can get a little annoying, but he just wants to be loved ALL OF THE TIME!

When we found out we would soon become a family of three, we were thrilled, but couldn't help but wonder how Mavis and Jenkins would react.  But we knew, deep down that THIS would happen....

Mavis and Jenkins watch K like a hawk.  They are gentle giants who love to watch K play and be petted (more like smacked by a baby), and they know to leave the room if they have had enough of Kingsley pulling their tail or poking their eyeballs.  All of this, I believe, happened because we TRUSTED our dogs and didn't try to keep the baby away from them all of the time.  The more you try and keep the baby away from your dog(s), the more they will WANT to see it.  I believe that this will increase the excitement and anxiety, which is when the dogs get to be too much for you and your baby.

In a controlled setting/environment, we started showing K to the dogs and letting them smell (and sometimes lick) him from the very beginning.  Mavis and Jenkins knew exactly what had entered their domain, and the baby was never an issue for them.

I'm no Cesar Millan, not even close, but I do believe that keeping your dogs "in the loop" when a baby arrives will relieve a lot of stress for you, your family and your fur babies.

I can honestly say that K loves our dogs and they love him.  No doubt about it!

Trust your pet (within reason) and take them along for this crazy parenting ride!

**Post a picture of your baby/babies and pet(s) on the comment section!**

S

Feeding a Picky Eater

When I was pregnant I spent countless hours researching what I would feed my baby once it was time to introduce solids.  After loads of time spent online and talking to other moms I decided baby led weaning (BLW) would be the way to go for us (what's BLW you ask?  Read all about it Here!).  I saved all kinds of amazing recipes on Pinterest and I was totally ready!  And then the baby gods laughed in my face and gave me the worlds pickiest eater.

At first I wasn't worried since he was only 6 months old and I had lots of time to get him eating.  After all food before one is just for fun right?  But the months started slipping by and J was showing no more interest in food.  He was nursing like a champ but this was the reaction I got to most solids I put in front of him...

 

Around 9 months of age I started getting desperate and the daily battle was getting worst.  He would scream in his high chair and on more then one occasion I found myself crying in the kitchen in exasperation (I'm blaming that one on the mommy hormones and lack of sleep!).  Finally at 11 months old we had a check up and J was down to the 10th percentile for weight (he was born around the 85th but had been steadily dropping since about 5 months).  Not only did he barely eat solids but the kid never stops moving!  So once again I scoured the internet, talked to doctors and other moms and picked up some tips and tricks to help deal with a picky eater.

1. First of all try and relax.  Trust me I know this is easier said than done but if you are stressed about meal time, babe will be too!  Keep it light and fun.
 

2. Try taking food out of the kitchen.  This one was hard for me because I liked the structure of eating meals at the table. So I compromised... We still have lunch and dinner at the table but sometimes breakfast is served in the play area.  I put something not too messy such as a muffin on the table, and try and sneak bites into him as we play.  This works really well for us!  I also try and offer several snacks this way throughout the day.
 

3. Try mixing in something new or something they don't like in with something they do like.  For example, J loves Cheerios so if I'm trying to get him to eat fruit I'll place fruit pieces and Cheerios on his tray. He's pretty good at picking out the Cheerios but he does get a bit of fruit and over time he has grown accustomed  to a couple.  Some foods J does like are;  grilled cheese, toast and peanut butter, and omelets (with added cheese and veggies) so they are offered regularly along with other foods.
 

4.  Hide the good stuff!  J refuses to eat most fruits and veggies so I make all kinds of things in which I hide these.  Admittedly this isn't ideal but I'm hoping he'll grow to like these fruits and veggies and that I won't have to hide them forever.  You can find all kinds of great recipes on Pinterest but I'll link a few of our favourites to the "Yummy!" section of this blog (Stretchmarks Yummy! Recipes - make sure you check it out as we regularly add more recipes).
  

5. Since weight is a concern for us, we make everything as high fat as possible. 10% fat Greek yogurt anyone?  We also put unsalted butter on almost everything.  I have also heard that smoothies can be great to pack lots of fat and other nutrients but I have yet to convince J to drink them.   

6. Finally the last thing that really helped us was starting daycare.  One of our main problems was that J was still getting most of his calories from nursing.  At 11 months he was still nursing 9 times a day while most other babies his age where somewhere around 4-5 times.  Since I am about to go back to work we started doing a few trial days of daycare.  J has been 3 times in the last two weeks and I have noticed a huge difference in his eating habits.  I guess if I'm not around and nursing isn't an option he eats!  I know not everyone can just drop their kid off at daycare but maybe have someone else offer food?  Leave baby with daddy or grandparents for a few hours while you enjoy some wine and a bubble bath (or crash on the couch watching Netflix!).

https://scontent-ord1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xta1/v/t34.0-12/11304123_10153017942058893_1769991007_n.jpg?oh=0687439b8faebe8514ce04f6e0638861&oe=556FDA99

We have a follow up appointment in about 3 weeks so I'm hoping our efforts have paid off and my little guy starts climbing back up the weight chart! 

Do you have a picky eater?  Share your recipes and tricks in the comments below!

Julie  

Mini Series: Can't afford it? Make it yourself! (Part 1)

As many mommies know, being on maternity leave isn't the easiest thing, financially.  Luckily enough, I have this weird child who doesn't care for any of his toys, and prefers household items.  For example, K was very late to start army crawling.  We tried every single toy to motivate him... Nothing!  What finally got him moving is a straw wrapper from our Tim Horton's Ice Caps.  Very weird...

I found myself getting a little envious of the mommies getting fun things for their babes for the summer, for example a WATER TABLE.  They're so beautiful and fun looking, and I'm sure could keep my little K busy for the five minutes of attention he has before he moves on to something else!

There I was, shopping online on the Babies R Us website, staring at a cart full of things and leaving that screen open on my laptop for a very long time, contemplating, but deep down knowing I'm never going to buy all or any of it.  Staring at that cart and pretending to buy a pile of new goodies is still thrilling, right?  Come on, we all do it, but sometimes, we just can't. push. the. "purchase". button.

That was me.  Unable to justify spending my money on that oh so wonderful, mesmerizing water table!  I instead decided to build my own, and make it a mini project to do with my husband.  I'm sure every one knows how limited your mommy and daddy quality time is now that another little human was thrown into the mix!  So, learning who to use the power tools and bickering over measurements was our quality time.

Voilà!  Here it is!

All we needed was:

4 short pieces of 4x4 posts
4 pieces of 2x6s
2 short pieces of 2x4s (joists underneath the container)
1 Rubbermade container
Drill & screws
Sand Paper
Paint
Modge Podge

Chances are you already have most of this at home!  Always keep those scrap pieces of lumber around.  You never know when you'll need them!  Note that the Modge Podge is baby safe (I did my research!), and will stop any paint from chipping off when the table gets wet!

I'm learning that babies aren't picky or judgemental!  They will love no matter what we give them/make them!  Why not make it a family project!

S

The Final Quarter

In my profession a year is divided and referred to in quaters, month 9-12 being referred to as the "final quarter". So when my son turned 9 months a wave of sadness came crashing over me. I was in the final quarter of my precious mat leave. The thought of that is simply unbearable to me.

Yes, I know that we are so lucky to have a year off in Canada. Yes, I also know that I'm lucky to have a wonderful job to return to but in my heart, I want to be a stay at home mom more than anything. Unfortunately, it's not financially possible for our family. So I have to make the best of it. 

My son is almost 10 months old and as my return to work date creeps up so does my anxiety level. I find myself lying awake at night worrying about it.(what if he takes his first steps on my first day back to work?)  One of my main worries right now is that lil E is still nursing so much during the day, what if I can't wean him in time?  Our breastfeeding journey ( despite the frequent nip lash and biting..ouch!) doesn't feel done to me and he is showing no signs of being ready to wean. We are still struggling with one bottle per day. 

I am beyond thankful and relieved that my Mom is retiring in June and will be lil E's full time care provider. I just couldn't imagine leaving him anywhere else. It helps in reducing my anxiety levels immensely! But nevertheless, I'm still hoping to win the lottery over the next couple of months so that my dream job of being a full time mommy can come true. 

XoXo -C