Desperate Housewife and New Mum

mummysaver

Easy one handed meals when my ds was little were sandwiches, stuff on toast, tinned veg added to anything, lots of rice with white sauce peas, mushrooms, onions and sweetcorn, pasta in tom sauce with cheese, quiche and salad, sausage rolls, baked pots. Leftovers from the fridge also formed many meals!

If you have a microwave scrambled eggs are easy to do in there, or an omlette, and no danger of burning you or babe.

Sandwiches and soup might get boring, but they are nutritious, well depending on what you put in them! HM soup is simple, boil veg with a stock cube then blitz with a hand blender, best to put babe down for a mo whilst you do that bit, but the blitzing means you don't need to chop up the veg too small, so saves time!

My ds hated to be put down, and spent ages strapped to me, was ok till he learnt to grab things and waved his arms about all the time lol! Sometimes he just had to put up with sitting in his chair and having a yell, washing machine and trees were good at amusing him for a couple of mins!

Good luck, and yes I know I haven't mentioned housework, but it really isn't that important, and if you're spending all your time with the babe you won't be making much mess!

Bargain_Rzl

Hi Katgoddess, I've not been around much lately but I knew you must have had the baby by now so congratulations!

Just a quick thing - for the oats, how about Twink's hobnobs? Dead quick, easy and yummy...

vodkawitch1

I found the only way I could actually do anything was to have the baby in a baby sling all day. I just gave up trying to put him down, used a sling in the house and then I could eat.

good luck x

gracesmummy

Hi Katgodess

Belated congratulations! I know how you feel. My baby girl is nearly 11 months old now and I remember the first three months as the hardest of all. It really does get easier. Most of the tips I wanted to give you have already been covered but here's my advice anyway:

DO get help from MIL if she's happy to do so. I had a lot of help from my MIL who would come around for a short time nearly every morning in the first few months so I could nap if I desperately needed it or jump in the shower (what a luxury!) and put the washing machine and dishwasher on. I used to thank her constantly but she said she was happy to spend time with her granddaughter but didn't want to get in the way or interfere! She would often stay until lunchtime making sure I managed to make myself lunch before she left.

I too am breastfeeding (although am weaning so not for much longer) and I know how exhausted that can make you in the early days. Before I would settle down to feed baby I would make sure I had a drink of water and snacks, the telephone, the tv remote and/or some reading material to hand. I kept cereal bars in a drawer next to the sofa - these were a lifesaver. Plus I switched to full fat milk and yoghurt for a while to give me the extra calories I needed and had a hot chocolate (and sometimes a bowl of cereal) before bed to make sure I had energy for the night time feeds. I also ate a lot of bananas and drank lots of smoothies (shop bought so not very OS but I didn't have time to make them) and treated myself to expensive fruit like raspberries and blueberries.

I know everyone says forget the housework but I couldn't - if a certain standard (not that high these days mind you) is not kept up I can't relax and feel depressed so do keep on top of things that are important to you but accept any help you can! I couldn't keep on top of everything so (BIG CONFESSION COMING UP) I hired a cleaner for an hour a week for a couple of months to clean my bathroom and do the kitchen and bathroom floors. In my defence, ;-) the house was a bit of a state as we moved while I was pregnant and had to completely do the place up including replastering, new central heating, rewiring, new kitchens and bathrooms, everything really and, as we did a lot of the decorating ourselves and my husband couldn't take much time off work, we didn't quite finish it all before the baby was born. It was also very cheap as the cleaning lady only lives a few doors down and fitted me in around her regular clients. It was a very short term thing as once I was less exhausted and managed to get into my own routine and baby started to nap I found I could keep on top of things. My husband is also great and would do nearly all of the cooking (albeit easy meals) in the early days especially during the marathon feeding sessions I used to have to do. Nowadays he tends to start dinner whilst I feed G and put her to bed. I then usually go and help him (we like cooking together and always used to before baby).

I realise I must sound spoilt! But it is important to get help. Bfing is exhausting in the early days and colic can drive you nuts (mine had it too).

Carriers are good. I loved my bushbaby carrier: she would fall asleep in it and sometimes I could successfully lay her down in it and sometimes not (and once she fell deeply asleep in it while my husband had her in it while he was mowing the lawn!!!).

Other useful things guaranteed to stop her crying and amuse her for a short time were the mini hoover, a brainy baby dvd my MIL got free with a paper and a musical cot mobile I attached to the outside of her cot and would put her chair under. I would also move her chair from room to room and sometimes she would sit in it happily for a short while listening to the DW or watching the WM! She didn't like the vibrating feature on the chair though.

What else? I do most of my shopping including groceries on the internet (I used to do this while she was asleep in the carrier) and I have my milk delivered.

I have a whole routine before bed that I started when she was very little to save time in the morning. Before I go to bed I make sure all nappies are in the bucket and soaking if need be (though I tend to drypail now), the DW and the washing machine are loaded complete with powder etc. I then switch it all on in the morning when I get up (we're in a flat and the kitchen is next to the bedroom so can't do it at night).

Also don't feel guilty about quick meals. We had a lot of pizza and quiche, filled pasta and ready-made sauces in the first few months - expensive I know but timesaving! We also ate a lot of salad with it and had fresh fruit and yoghurt for dessert so not too bad a diet. Nowadays, I often prepare some dinner and do some baby meals (a freezer is invaluable for these) whilst G has a nap in the afternoon. Otherwise, I defrost something or we have easy pasta meals that usually take about 30 mins to prepare and cook. If you can, do get a freezer (order one online), they are invaluable for batch cooking and baby meals when you start weaning.

When you need a break hand the baby over to Dad and try and get some me time (easier said than done I know, when my husband has the baby I'm usually doing some housework, gardening or running errands but weirdly enough it still feels like time off in a way).

I know I've repeated some things others have said so sorry for that - I do hope I haven't bored you stupid! ;-)

More on topic, I'll try and think of some easy meals for you. Do you like pasta dishes? Some quick ones I have are amatriciana (spicy bacon and tomato sauce), carbonara, spicy prawns, smoked salmon, spring onions and cream (for an occasional and extremely quick treat), tuna and tomato etc. Any of these sound ok? I can send you recipes when I have a moment.

PS I very rarely iron! I hang a lot of thing on hangers on the line or on airers and they turn out fine. My husband has non iron shirts (his preference). I occasionally finish off a few things like bedding or very creased t-shirts in the TD (which I don't use much at all but have more for emergencies like running out of baby clothes or nappies on a really wet day although I do keep a few disposables in too).

Sorry for the super long post!

Sarahsaver

There's a section on diet during breastfeeding on the Annabel Karmel website www.annabelkarmel.com

culpepper

I havent read all the responses but my DD was like that too.
I discovered that taking a flask and a packet of sandwiches to bed was a life saver. When she woke at night for her feed/change, I would have a hot drink and something to eat at the same time(OH worked nights so it was just me and 2 little'uns).
During the day she would sleep if I took her out in the pushchair which was handy as I could take DS to look at the ducks along the river or the diggers building the new road. If she slept, I would sit and read with DD and he would nod off and so would I. We ate a lot of pasta back then as it is quick to do and you can add almost anything to it.
If you have a microwave then baked potatoes with salad is super fast .

MammaCas

Hiya

I haven't read all the other replies, but your post took me back about 2 years....

I had a c-section, breast fed and a baby that wouldn't be put down and was eating rubbish....

So, I bought loads of fruit (bananas were my saviour), fresh pasta and soup, cheese and bread, that kind of thing for throughout the day and I found the only time I could make the evening dinner was in the morning - she was much less grouchy and would lie on her baby gym for about 10 mins, which gave me chance to chop a load of stuff up ready for a stir fry at night. So DH came in and basically stir fryed the dinner - took about 10 mins.

Another thing re: classical music. My DD loved the Baby Einstein music CD. For some reason, even if she was crying, if I put that on, she would stop. When I (reluctantly) went back to work, the CD went to nursery with her and they said all the babies loved it...

Good luck, it does pass. When he is two and glued to Barney you forget those times..

x

paulabear

A fantastic book I found really helpful with my second baby was Secrets of the Baby Whisperer (can't remember author...) - it taught me how to get her to sleep without all the rocking and settling I had to go through with my first one. Plus it's incredibly simple to follow, you go with your own and the baby's timetable. I was very MS about it too - I got it from the library! I ended up with a baby who would just go to sleep in my arms, or wherever, by putting her thumb in her mouth : )
You should also Google Freecycle if you're not already a member, and get looking for a freezer, if possible.

Katgoddess

Haven't managed much the past couple of days. Have kept up with washing and general tidying which is better than nothing. Brought some more sleepsuits off ebay to help me keep up with the washing. Need to buy some more bibs now.

I tried a microwave flapjack recipe. Was really easy to do and so impressed I took a picture.



Luckily I took the picture before I dished it up because I forgot to grease the plate and it all fell apart. :rotfl:Didn't taste quite right though. Seemed to be lacking something. Don't think it was sweet enough. I'll have to play around with the recipe. This is the one I used if anyone can think of anything?

OH has taken baby to his mums for a couple of hours so I can have a break. He was having a grumpy evening and by the time OH had come home I'd had enough and was in tears. Lack of sleep turns me into a demented woman. :eek:

Hopefully going to Bluewater tomorrow if I can be organised enough to drive OH to and from work so I can have the car. Have loads of vouchers to spend but I can't think of anything that I really need (other than freezer :rolleyes:) Will definitely treat myself to an M&S sandwich and a decaf coffee.

Here is a picture of my little one in case anyone is interested. He sleeps so little I take a picture every time. :rotfl:Looking at this photo (and the one on my avatar when he is awake and smiling) gets me through the bad times when all he does is scream or I have no clean clothes left because he's thrown up on them all. That is my top tip for every new mum.



Maybe I'll make the chilli on Friday?

Katgoddess

Oh I am reading all your tips and suggestions. Keep them coming, I need all the support I can get. :beer: