Top 6 items to have for new mommies

6. Breast Pump: Whether you will breast feed or not, you will need to get all that delicious breast milk out. After a few days of giving birth, I produced an overwhelming amount of milk and needed to pump it out to avoid breast from getting engorged.

5.Boppy: This is to help the support you when breast feeding. You can simply lay the baby on there from the classic hold to the football hold and breast feed. There is also a traveling boppy. If you will not breast feed, the boppy can serve as an upright cushion for the baby to rest. 4. Sterilizer: You have to keep the babies bottles, nipples, and pacifiers sterilized at all times. I sterilize about three times a day.

3. Swing: This is the best invention ever. It will put your baby to sleep for hours, keep her entertained, and if she is cockily the rocking motion will soothe her and help relieve some of that gas. 2. Changing mat: I cannot tell you how many times you will take your babies diaper off and things will come flying out. The plastic mat will protect you, your sheets, and the baby from getting dirty. Again, you can buy a travel mat or disposal mats for when you are out in public areas.

1. Baby Monitor: I have a one bedroom apartment and got made fun of for having a baby monitor. This little device is awesome. I watch tv, cook, clean in my living room and watch my little one in her crib. When I go to sleep I keep the monitor by me and my hubby and I can hear and see if she needs me. There has been times my little baby started to choke on her saliva/spit up in the middle of the night. The monitor amplified the noise so even in my deepest sleep I can hurry to her and make sure she is safe. Lastly, my husband discovered that as he drives he can have the monitor camera on her to ensure she is comfortable.

Journey to Becoming a Mother

I always said that I would try things at least once. All my life I dreamt of being a mother, but I never thought it was a plausible dream. I had a lot of issues I had to iron out and I wanted to be a role model for my child. This pregnancy came at the perfect time in my life—I was married to greatest man I have ever met, I was done with school, I was in a better place financially, and I was at a good age. All the issue I was worried about was gone. However, nothing can prepare you for motherhood. You can read books and look at videos, but hands on is completely different. On May 17th I felt extra exhausted so I decided to perk myself up by walking around my mother’s block a few times. On the drive home I felt slight cramps. By 7:30pm it was more intense. By 10pm I was clinching to my bed sheets for dear life. My husband, Travis, yelled out “Let’s go to the hospital,” as he grabbed my Victoria Secret duffle bag that had been packed and ready to go for weeks. I didn’t want to go to the hospital because I thought it might be those Braxton hicks’ contractions. By, 11 it became apparent that this pain wasn’t going away. I called my doctor and told her that I thought I was in labor. She told me to wait it out at home as much as possible. So I took a shower, shaved my legs, put light makeup on, and got dressed. A half hour later, I couldn’t deal anymore, so Travis and I drove to Beth Israel Hospital. At 12:30 I was there getting examined. I was 4cm already, but they advised that I go home and come back. I thought to myself, “What’s wrong with these people”? Travis and I walked to the car and I tried to close my eyes for a bit, but the pain was too intense. We decided to walk to a deli and grab a bite; it was going to be a long night. As I sat there and ate my French fries drenched in ketchup, the pain increased immensely. I turned to Travis with tears in my eyes, “I want the fucking epidural”! We walked back to the hospital and I was admitted. I never felt so much pain in my life. It was like a stabbing pain in your stomach. At 5am I finally got the epidural. It was a tingly feeling in my spine before I lost all sensation in my legs. A few minutes later there was no pain at all. For seven hours I laid there, sleeping and texting with no pain. There was a machine beside me that noted how much more until it ran out. By 2:30 pm the epidural medication had run out, but luckily the pain didn’t start back up till 4pm. Those French fries I had eaten hours before came back and the smell of ketch filled the room. Apparently, the epidural has a lot of side effects and nausea is one of them. Dr. Mentah came into the room and announced that I would have to push and in a half hour I would have my baby. An hour of pushing went by and there was no baby. Dr. Mentah suggested that if the nurse brings in a mirror I can see what’s going on and that it would give me more of a push. I saw the crown of the baby’s head and dark black hair. The doctor reassured me that in another half the baby would be here. Two hours went by and I had pushed and pushed, but all I can see was the top of the baby’s head. Dr. Mentah thought that if she distracts my mind I would be able to push better. I was super tense. She asked me about Sephora and Ole Henriksen products. I gave her skincare advice and all and offered to give her samples too. Was I really giving a consultation in the middle of labor? By the third hour, I had no energy—I was dehydrated and hungry. It had been nearly twenty hours of contractions. I was strapped to an oxygen machine and the room felt like it was 100 degrees. By 7:00pm I went into a deep mediating state and I closed my eyes, pulled my legs to my chest as tight as I could, and pushed almost without breathing. I heard Travis and the doctor start the ten count for me to push. They began one, two, three… I stopped listening and she pushed with all my might and with deep frustration. The doctors quickly put on their gowns and pulled this little 5lb 14 ounce baby out. She was a chocolate brown color. I yelled out, “I have a brown baby.” At 7:03 pm they laid her on my chest. I was overwhelmed with emotions and cried, but no tears were coming out. This little precious baby was staring at me with her big brown eyes. Her chocolate color went fading and fading right before my eyes and she was lighter than me. The nurse gave her a shot and she did not cry. She just stared at me. We named her Brianna Abigail. Travis had one little tear in the corner of his eyes, my sister, Maria, who was also there was emotional. My mother-in-law came into the room and thanked me for making her a grandmother. Taking this baby home was going to be a challenge for Travis and I because we never took care of a baby this small. The first night, Brianna did not sleep at all. I saw the sun go down and come up. As the days went by, she slept more and more and Travis and I are discovering together how to be parents.

7 months and Counting

Seven months is quickly approaching and there are lots of ups and downs. Pregnancy has done me a world of good. It almost feels like I went through anger management--I feel so calm and stress free. Emotionally it is has been great, but physically I feel terrible. I wake up nauseous and go to bed the same way. My energy is at a all time low and I have been experiencing hot flashes. As my stomach gets bigger, my back ache is more intense. I often wake up with painful cramps in my legs and wonder if labor could be more painful than this! Seven months and counting now until I become a mom. I feel anxious and nervous to get over this and have a healthy baby. I can't wait to meet her and love her!

Safe Skin

Because some topical ingredients get absorbed into the bloodstream, there are some you want to avoid," says Leslie Baumann, a professor of dermatology at the University of Miami and author of The Skin Type Solution (Bantam, 2006)http://www.babycenter.com/0_safe-skin-care-during-pregnancy_1490031.bc .

"Everything you eat, apply, or come into contact with may affect not only you but also your baby," says Sandra Marchese Johnson, a dermatologist with Johnson Dermatology in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Most pregnant women are careful as to what they eat, but not so cautious when it comes to what is applied on their skin, our largest organ. As Dr. Leslie Baumann stated these beauty creams may pose a danger to your fetus if absorbed through your bloodstream. Throughout my pregnancy my skin has been a catastrophe. I went from oily all over to flaky dehydrated dry skin. My skin has an overwhelming amount of black heads and pimples on my chin and jaw line. In my quest for perfect skin, I asked my doctor if there are ingredients I should avoid. Perhaps I did not ask the right doctor because she said, “Any cream that is not safe while pregnant shouldn’t be used when you are not pregnant.” I was really bewildered. What about all these things people say to avoid? I did my own research.


Retinoids:
Avoid products that contain vitamin A and it's derivatives (retinals, including Retin-A, and retinoids). A vitamin-A derivative in Accutane, which can cause major birth defects. Vitamin A in high does can be toxic pregnant or not.

Salicylic acid/ Benzoyl peroxide:
BHA, or beta hydroxy acid, is a form of salicylic acid and is used in some topical exfoliants to reverse signs of aging. Salicylic acid as well as Benzoyl Peroxide is used to kill bacteria for acne/break outs. Even though pregnant women get hormonal breakouts, this ingredient seems to be the only ingredient unanimously across board that we need to steer clear of. However, Alpha hydroxy acids, sometimes listed as AHAs, glycolic acid, or lactic acid, are said to be safe, but I find dubious.

Soy:
"Soy can make the 'mask of pregnancy' (dark splotches on facial skin) worse.” Although soy creams are plant based there is an ingredient called isoflavones which cause estrogenic effects in the body. One of my favorite skin care lines called Fresh is soy based, which I will now avoid during my pregnancy.

Essential Oils:
There again no evidence suggesting that oils are dangerous, but oils tend to penetrate deeper into the layers of the skin. I even read Almond oil can be toxic. My favorite body products from L’occitane are the Almond Shower Oil and Almond Supple Skin Oil. Now, I am in search of body products that will hydrate and help with stretch marks.

Hair removers:
Avoid depilatories (cream hair removers) because these chemicals seep deep into the pores.

Self-tanners:
Self-tanners are not dangerous per say, but layering chemicals that will sit on the skin for hours may not be a good option for the baby.


Hair dyes:
This is the one thing that is a biggie for me since my hair turns gray every two weeks. I waited till I was almost five months to dye my hair. There are no studies that concretely state that hair dye are harmful, but these chemicals can absorb through the scalp. Hair dye is so controversial because some believe it is not safe for women who or aren’t pregnant. I even heard there is a link between hair dyes and cancer. However, this one practice I may not be able to give up.

Nail polish:

Three ingredients to avoid in your polish are DBP, formaldehyde or toluene . “Try colors from Sally Hansen -- last year, the company announced plans to remove all three chemicals from their products.”

It's a Girl!

I found out on January 11, 2012 that I am having a girl or at least they are 90% sure of it. The baby did not want to open her legs at all. Travis, my husband stood there like a proud dad, “That’s right you don’t open your legs for nobody,” said Trav with a smile on his face. Christina, the sonogram technician and I just laughed. Travis and I have picked girls names carefully. As a young girl, I wrote up names of baby names that I liked (god knows why I did that). I went back to this list and there were names like Tatiana, Thalia, Katelyn, etc… I just did not like any of these choices anymore. As an adult I loved the name Chloe, but I feel that my mom would have a hard time saying this with a Spanish accent. I will continue to explore different options, but I think we have picked our names and sticking to it. Yesterday, I had co-workers ask me these options and I received bad feedback. One girl even went as far as laughing in my face and shaking her head vigorously. I was highly offended and embarrassed. Choosing a name for your child is personal and that is not the reaction you want. It is equivalent to someone saying your kid is “breathtaking” or plain old ugly. I would like to tell the world everything I am experiencing with this pregnancy, but that incident has really shied me away from saying anything personal. However, I did get great feedback from my sisters and my dear cousin—that was great. Feedback is always awesome minus the malicious intent.

The Nitty Gritty

I discovered that there are a lot of pregnant women who do not reveal the truths behind embarking this motherhood journey. From my experience the appropriate color to link it to is gray which means sorrow, security, maturity, and dependability. It connotes responsibility and conservative practicality. It also imparts emptiness and detached feelings. Pregnant women’s hormones make them feel happy and sad- a sadness that leads to nonsensical tears. Today I cried because my bra and underwear were not in perfect accordance, as nothing fits I am left with limited options. My emotions have been a blended mix of indifference and happiness. Often times people have asked, “Are you happy?” I guess that question arises from that indifferent feeling. I never feel good. I either feel horrible, bad, or okay. Five months later and my food still will not stay in my system and I feel entirely too weak to make the bed at times. This is the sorrow feeling. However, I feel more secure in my marriage as my husband tries to cater to his wife’s pregnant needs. I am completely depended on him and love that his excitement keeps him taking care of me. I feel responsible for another life and conservative in my choices. I am in control of what I eat, drink, and put in my body. I will never comprehend pregnant women who smoke or drink alcohol, feeding this defenseless baby poison.

There are also physical attributes that change. My skin and throat feel like the Sahara Desert begging for some hydration 24/7. My back and neck pound with ache. My sides and abdomen cramp and when I walk I cannot breathe fluidly- the huffing and puffing looks like I am in Lamaze class. Everything is in excess or deficient. I cannot go to the bathroom in days and some days…well you know the rest. I find myself having to floss twice and much and q-tips are in high demand. These excess elements coincide with the aforementioned. I also have “silky throat,” a yucky yellow colored flam feeling in the back of esophagus that makes me feel nauseous. I wish that I could say while you are experiencing all these symptoms people are always sympathetic. However, I discovered that while living in New York and having to take the train during rush hour, it is every man for himself. Two days ago, I took the train and made eye contact with the man sitting in front of me. He looked down and saw that I was pregnant. I tried to make the contact again, but his guilty eyes skipped rapidly until he felt very “drowsy” all of a sudden and closed his eyes his ride home. Despite everything I have gone through I love the idea of being a mother and starting a family. This makes me love and appreciate my mother a little more each day!

I'm Pregnant!

The sudden kick and flutter movements, the wave of nausea, your head feeling like you are in a whirl wind are the wonderful feelings of motherhood to be. I am 20 weeks and 3 days. Pregnancy has been quite an experience. The minute I found out I was pregnant through an at home pregnancy test, I was more in tune with my body. A few weeks prior to finding out, I thought I had the flu. I was fatigue, warm, and could not get out of bed.

The first trimester, was the worst feeling of my life. It felt like I had a permanent hang over. I woke up barfing and went to bed the same way. I was overwhelmed with feelings of sadness for no reason. I stopped cooking, cleaning, and doing homework from my Event Planning course. I couldn’t even go to work because of the weak feeling in my legs, the weight loss, and my pressure was little lower than usual. I had no choice but to take a few weeks off from work.

My second trimester came rather fast. I went back to work feeling refreshed. I had more energy and was able to keep most of my food in my digestive system where it belonged. My tummy was finally poking through and I was off that awkward in between stage. The influx of-Is it a boy or girl kept pouring in! I’ve been told that I have that “glow.” Although all the symptoms I felt in the first trimester have not departed, I am slowly am finding myself being able to be me again. The zombie stage and sluggish mannerism is slowly by surely fading away. A new wave of symptoms are now arriving.