This week marks my first official week at home alone with Annie! We’ve been so fortunate to have had help the past three weeks but now Patrick and I are on our own. {Finally!} And I couldn’t be more excited! Today I’m rambling all about life as a new mom, raving about & reviewing our new stroller, sharing this cute & casual look, plus there are six things I’ve learned about mommy-ing all in this post!
Before I get into all of my ramblings, I have to give my sister-in-law a shoutout for gifting me this fabulous t-shirt! Mom life is truly the best life! I paired this top with my fav boyfriend jeans (thanks to the handy rubber band trick) and these cute Farylrobin sandals. Thanks to the recent warmer weather, it’s already sandal season in Houston!lon
My mom and I spent last Wednesday afternoon strolling 19th Street in The Heights. We grabbed coffee at Boomtown and had such fun getting off the couch and soaking up some fresh air. (Fun fact, you spend a lot of time on your couch after having a baby!)
I met up with my friend Lauren to shoot a few blog photos and I was so glad to be able to get these snaps in with Annie too. She’s growing so fast I feel like I need to take a picture of her every day, because who knows what she’ll look like the next day!
Oh, and I have to rave to y’all this our stroller! We picked the UPPAbaby VISTA as our go-to “every day” stroller. I love that it works with both a car seat carrier and a bassinet. (Annie is currently chilling in the bassinet component in our living room as I type this! There is also a nifty stand for the bassinet which makes it great for travel!) I knew I wanted a stroller that was stylish & functional. This sleek stroller wins at both. It can even adapt to hold up to three kiddos down the road too! We are so not there yet, but I love that that’s a possibility. 😉
It comes in so many different colors to choose from. We went with classic black because we knew there would be plenty of spills and stains down the road. Another fun feature is that the handlebar is adjustable. Patrick is 6’5″ and I am 5’6″ so this is a great feature for us! Right now Annie hangs out in her bassinet or I stroll her around in her car seat. Eventually I’ll be bale to use the traditional stroller seat with my VISTA too!
This diaper bag from Henri Bendel is not only fabuloussssss but it kinda sort of matches my stroller too, which I obviously love. I knew I wanted a functional diaper bag that also resembled a real purse as closely as possible. I’ve always been a big fan of Henri Bendel so I was thrilled to learn that they carried a diaper bag too. This one has SO many compartments, I almost don’t know what to do with them all. It also includes a matching changing pad that slides right in the side pocket of the bag. I’ve already put this bag to the test a handful of times and it’s held everything I needed & more.
Shop the Look:
Anyway, I mentioned above that this week has been my first week of solo-mommying. In the past two and a half days, I’ve been vomited on, pooped on but also hugged, kissed, snuggled and loved on. On our first morning together, Annie napped for about an hour and a half and I was able to make my own breakfast and coffee. (Another win!) The past three consecutive days, however, that has not necessarily been the case. Sometimes as soon as I would sit down with my coffee, she would start to fuss & cry and it was then that I was needed most. Not going to lie, it so special to be needed like that. She literally can’t survive without me (I am her milk machine after all) and it’s a relationship like no other.
So I don’t forget in 20 years (and to help other moms-to-be out) I’m sharing six things I’ve learned since becoming Annie’s mom.
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One. A piece of your heart will leave your body forever.
I’d heard this one before having a baby, and it’s totally true. From the moment Patrick put Annie in my arms on the operating table, I was forever intoxicated by her big blue eyes. Instinctively I spit out, “I love you. I love you.” I just said that over and over and over while I was looking at her for the first time! Such an amazing moment! She is constantly on my mind and I didn’t know I could love someone so much in such a special way.
Two. You will have a new appreciation for your iPhone.
I can’t even begin to tell you guys the 10,000 different things I’ve asked google in the past three weeks. From, “how to give a baby a bath” to “why does it seem like my baby constantly wants to eat,” (growth spurt) to “what is cooing exactly” to “what’s the difference between baby spit up & vomiting,” I’ve asked google almost every question in the book. It’s such a relief for a new mom to have so many answers immediately at my fingertips. I can’t imagine life with a newborn before 3G and google! So thankful for technology, especially now!
Three. You will disregard your appearance {& hygeine} for the first few weeks.
So many people told me I would never have the time to shower or even fix my hair with a newborn. You guys, it’s all true. Life has been lived lately in no makeup, with a messy topknot and wearing whatever clothes I can find that will fit my postpartum bod comfortably. I did have fun getting all dolled up for my blog shoot last week (thanks again mom for babysitting while I showered!) But in reality, I’m not running around all day in dresses and heels. More like, I’m running around the house barefoot with spit up & coffee on my shirt.
It’s actually kind of liberating to take time off from “caring” about my appearance. Sure, I’m dying to have a shower ASAP (as soon as Patrick gets home today!) but I’ve enjoyed putting every other aspect of taking care of myself on the backburner. Totally not wanting to keep this trend up for long, I’m sure I’ll figure out how to shower & spruce myself up while watching Annie as we continue to get the hang of our days together.
Four. You can never take enough photos.
I’ve taken a minimum of 20 Annie photos a day since she was born. I can’t stop won’t stop snapping every little thing she does, because this stage in her life is so fleeting. She’s grown so much that I want to capture every moment of it.
What I’m finding funny is that I’ll snap 20 photos to get that “perfect” shot for Insta or FB or whatever. Then I’ll look back and I have tons of photos of the exact same thing, but Annie’s facial expressions are all different. The adoring mom in me doesn’t want to delete a single one and now my phone is FILLED with so many photos. I’m sure I’m going to be getting that annoying message about max storage any moment now. So worth it.
Five. Bodily fluids won’t gross out you as much as you thought they would.
I mentioned above how I’ve been pooped on and vomited on (multiple times) already this week. This was one aspect of being a mom I was quite nervous about…..but surprisingly I’m not even bothered by these now daily (or should I say hourly) occurrences of spit up & dirty diapers. I guess when it’s your own child, your “bothered/grossed out” tendencies get thrown out the window. Thank goodness!
Six. You will have a new appreciation for your own mom.
It’s true! When I look down at Annie, I can’t even fathom that I too was once as small as she is now. There was a point when I relied on my mom just as much as Annie is relying on me. Knowing now exactly how much my mom loves me and cares for me, I feel realllllly bad for those crazy hormonal teenage years! (Sorry mom, I know you’re reading this! Thanks for forgiving me & still loving me.) My mother daughter time with my own mom feels so much more special now than it did before because I have a new understanding of what it’s like to be a mom too.
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While these are only six of about 10,000 revelations I’ve had about life and motherhood these past three and a half weeks, I’m glad I was able to write them down and share them all with you. If you’re a mom-to-be, a seasoned vet at motherhood, or have a friend who’s expecting, I hope that this post enlightened you or made you say “Yep, so true!” And as always, thanks for stopping by the blog. I hope you’re enjoying my new posts on motherhood! I’m definitely planning on continuing regular style posts too, so be sure to pop back soon for more!
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xo, alice
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photos by LA Photogrpahy
