1) Take a lot of photographs - it's amazing how quickly they change! Also make sure that you are in the photos sometimes, we've got loads of my husband and daughter but not as many with me in. Something we are going to change.
2) Remember to say 'I love you' to your partner/husband/wife/family - it's very easy for all of the focus to go onto your newborn but it's still important to share your love and feel loved back.
3) Go for a walk - I found this just incredible. I was never one for walking before having a baby but now it makes me feel so happy, pushing a long our baby while chatting to my husband about our days. We tend to go for a walk around our village most evenings, it's precious family time that I really value.
4) Find your local 'buggy friendly' cafés - you'd be amazed at the number of cafés that are off limits with a buggy. Even our local Cafe Nero is because the only entrance has three steps. It's not just the entrance to consider, the space between tables to manoeuvre your buggy around and then where you can leave our buggy while enjoying a drink. You'll probably find your cafe options are surprisingly limited.
5) Register your baby - that moment when you've finally decided on a name and you take your baby to the registry office is so special. That's when your baby becomes an official little person with a name that will probably be with them for the rest of their lives.
6) Spend as much time as possible getting to know your baby - I've loved getting to know my daughters little quirks, there are so many of them. With time it gets easier to know what your baby wants when they cry, as well as the cute little things they do. For instance when Isabella is crying she kicks one of her legs constantly, almost in frustration. Another cute thing she does is blow bubbles in her sleep and squeak a lot. We've nicknamed her squeaky :)
7) Appreciate and treasure all of the little quirks your baby has - this goes hand in hand with the number six. I've been recording a lot of Isabella's quirks so that I don't forget but also so I can share them with her in the future. Within her first month she has changed so much, as have her quirks!
8) Download a photo printing app - I downloaded the Photobox app so that I can easily get photos printed. Too often read days photos stay on cameras/tablets/computers and we no longer have a good old photo album to flick through. I've already put together two photo albums and love looking through them. I also can't wait to go through them with Isabella, so she can see herself growing up too. I'd recommend the Photobox app, as the prints were good quality, delivery was quick and the app was easy to use. the only problem I had was the app kept crashing, I think it was my iPad rather than a fault with the app though.
9) Find a 'routine' that works for you and your family - I use the word 'routine' loosely as not everyone wants to get their baby into a strict routine from the word go. But we've found that Isabella has kind of created he own routine for the evening/night time. Also knowing when we will both get some sleep at night really helpful, especially during times when your really tired. For us it works that I sleep for the first part of the night and my husband sleeps for the second part. It won't always work like that I'm sure but for now it's working really well for us.
10) Fill in a baby book - we have a baby book by The Bright Side called 'Lovely little mini person'. I'm obsessed with The Bright Side range of products and this baby book is no different, the witty comments in it and it's fun lay out make for the perfect way to capture memories. We've enjoyed filling out key information about Isabella, her birth and her first time doing things.
What did you like doing in the first month of having a new baby?
Feel free to leave me a comment :)
Helen x
Taking lots of photos and organising them is so important. I feel like I've not had so much time to do it second time round which is a shame. With both my girls I've enjoyed meeting other mums and going to different baby groups in the first few months. You don't stick with all of them but it's so important to leave the house and get some time with other grown ups...even if you are sitting around singing ridiculous songs! #MummyMonday
ReplyDeleteOh this is brilliant! I'm due in 6 weeks and I'm going to make sure to do all these things with my son. Also I've been looking for a good baby book, so I loved your recommendation. Love how you're combining parent and beauty blogging xx
ReplyDeleteSarah | www.seriouslyshallow.co.uk
This is a great list. Wish I had read it before I had my first!
ReplyDeleteThey really do grow up to quick. x
This is a lovely post and so true, I always try and take as many photos as I can :)
ReplyDeleteHelen - #twinklytuesday
Great list! Totally agree with everything! #TwinklyTuesday x
ReplyDeleteVisiting from Twinkly Tuesday
ReplyDeleteBesides the baby book, we've done a good chunk of these, we actually have a photo wall in our room of all of us. I walk so often with Sophie she's become accustomed to be in the stroller during the evening
liz @ sundays with sophie
Very cool :) we did all of these too -a though it took me along time to complete our baby book. I eventually put it away when Monkey turned two as I figured it was pretty much done by then, although I had grown attached to it!! lol #TwinklyTuesday
ReplyDeleteAll of those things! I took so many photos and have printed lots out, was really good at organising them and then it all went wrong! My Flickr account is a mess haha! And I still haven't filled in the baby book - he's nearly three!! I loved walking too - tried to get out every day with him :) I so miss that time now :( Thanks so much for linking up with #TwinklyTuesday
ReplyDeleteI'm the same - I started off so well with getting photos printed but haven't had time to get them printed in a long while now :/ Need to get back on it this week!
DeleteHelen x