If there was just one piece of advice you had to give to a first time mom, what would it be?

Anything you wish u knew before u actually became a mom or wish somebody had told you? If there was just one thing you had to pass along...what would it be? First time mom in May!!If there was just one piece of advice you had to give to a first time mom, what would it be?
That's a toughy. I wasn't worried so much about caring for my baby as I was trying to get her OUT of me. I thought my doctor knew best and let him push me into a c-section and I regret it every time I look at my body in the mirror. Question authority. Research your delivery hospital. Get an advocate...someone who will make sure your wishes are carried out!





I know...that may not be the type of advice you were looking for...but if someone had told me what could happen when you let doctors talk you into things b/c you think they know so much...I would have done things way differently.If there was just one piece of advice you had to give to a first time mom, what would it be?
I may get lots of thumbs down for this, but I don't care. I didn't want to breastfeed for several reasons. I was nervous about not knowing exactly how much they were getting, couldn't get comfortable with doing it in public, and wanted to be able to share middle-of-the-night wakeup calls with my husband. My mom gave me and my brother formula and we turned out fine, but my MIL exclusively breastfed all four of her boys and thought her way was the only way. She threw a fit when I told her (before the baby was born) that I wasn't planning on nursing and gave me an hourlong lecture on the benefits of breastmilk. I finally agreed, mostly to shut her up, and nursed for about the first six weeks, but finally decided I didn't care what she or anyone else thought and switched to formula. My daughter didn't care, and that's all that really mattered to me. If you choose to nurse, that's great, but LET IT BE YOUR DECISION!!! Don't let yourself be railroaded by family, friends, or anyone else.
Relax %26amp; enjoy your new role. If you're tired, snooze when the baby naps and don't feel pressured to even leave your bedroom for a whole day, if needed.





Congratulations on your new arrival! Good luck!





Also, one of my favorite quotes:


';If you bungle raising your children, I don't think whatever else you do well matters very much.'; Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis:
Trial and error. If your baby is hysterical and you don't know why, go through trial and error until you get the answer. Hungry...tried it no.....dirty nappy.....no......tired.....no.......pai鈥?ie colic, constipation, needs to burp......cold or hot?





Just go through the usual suspects and give each one a good go. Also thinking about the time might help you, for example, your baby might not take the breast or the bottle and you might think they are not hungry but they may just be fussy and need you to sing in a soothing voice or to rock them gently to take the bottle.





Sometimes when they are really hysterical it can really be upsetting, but try and keep calm and you'll find it easier to find the answer. Remember, babies are resilliant little things, they dont break!





Congrats :o) and if you have any probs with breast feeding, go to the la leche league website. www.llli.org
when u are having a stressful problem, or they want to be held all day, cry all day, etc...don't get mad or upset, just remember that that is their only way of communicating anything, and they have only been in this big, new, scary world for a short time. they recognize mom by her voice, her smell, her heartbeat, and so she's the person they feel secure with and insecure without...if you need to get a baby carrier and wear the baby...i would also strongly suggest you get a good book that explains their development as they grow so that you understand where they are mentally at any given time....' what to expect the first year' is a good one and a good reference...but there are others...patience, and love, love, patience...gl, it's wonderful to feel that bond with that tiny part of you in your arms..
My mom told me one thing and boy was I glad I listened! She told me NOT to be quiet when the baby was born. She said not to fuss about the baby being asleep and go on about my Business. That was the biggest help of my life! When babies are small the only time you have to do anything is when they are sleeping. I could vacuum the room while my son was asleep and he wouldn't wake up. This is my favorite piece of advice because believe me you are going to need to do things around the house that make noise! My children are now 7 and 9 and the best sleepers! Good luck hun
My advice would be to listen to all the advice you will receive, but just take bits and pieces of what you want out of it, don't expect that that there are right or wrong answers... I have a 10 week old and being the control freak that I am, i was really stressed for the first couple of weeks as I expected that there should be answers as to why he was or was not doing certain things at certain times, and this wasn't the case, so go with your instint and its usually right, and don't get too caught up in what the ';experts'; say is right or wrong, in theory its pretty simple, for the first few weeks all they want is food and love and clean clothes, so if you can give your new baby that, then thats all that matters!
Kids are very impressionable be careful what you say and do around them


Also fears can be instilled at any age, try to not scare them in any way you dont want you kid to be outrageously afraid of ridiculous things when they get older





like im afraid of having empty space under my bed i guess you could say im afraid of the boogeyman because of a very harmless trick my mom played on my when i was 8 years old i have to now sleep on a frameless bed
Prepare to have vomit, poop, and pee on multiple surfaces such as: couches, beds, floors, chairs, carpet, bathtub, including yourself (clothes, hands, everything).


And as soon as you clean it up (especially vomit) they do again all over the bed, clothes and in their hair.


Most vomit fits happen in the middle of the night.
I took a Child Development class so the number one thing we learn is Never ever ignore your childs crys. even if you think they just want attention, pay attention. It is Erikson's first stage of development of Trust VS Mistrust. you want to build that trust with your baby and soon the baby will start to trust others. that is one of the most important thing you can learn from erikson. look him up and see the other but this sets off a chain reaction. Trust me on this. my major is child development
Everyone will probably tell you this one, but it's important: sleep when the baby sleeps! Everything else can wait!





I wish someone would have told me that during pregnancy my feet would get bigger and stay that way. After 3 kids, my feet are so wide, I have to buy men's 4E width athletic shoes. It's not easy to find a 7 1/2 4E!
Prepare yourself for a total life change... i didnt even notice until now (my son is 4 months old) but i only tend to hang around other friends that have babies... everything you do is revolved around your baby... everyone knows this while being pregnant but you dont realise the extent until you have bub... so my advice would be to prepare your mental state of mind. expect to stay home more...





oh and babies dont tend to have a routine until they are 6-8 weeks old... the first month or so is learning to know your baby. and all they do for the first month is SLEEP! my son slept so much i was bored!!
Congratulation!





Just following your instinct when taking care of your baby.





Take every minutes with your baby with great pleasure. You may find some ideas about preparing things for a newborn in my blog here below.





Again, congratulation!
Labor isn't nearly as scary, hard, or painful as you think it's going to be.





I was absolutely terrified of going into labor, but as soon as you see your baby for the first time, you realize that every single bit of fear, pain, etc. was completely worth it!
Don't be pressured into having visitors or going out, and don't be afraid to accept help if you need it. Sleep and rest whenever you can cos you're going to be soo tired! Congrats :)
Do what works for you and your family. I had a hard time with this and tried to do what I thought I should do, rather than what worked for me. You are Mom, do what you think is right.
Trust your own judgment. Dont let others opinions (like the mil) get to you! It will be really hard at first but gets better and is soooo worth it. Congrats!!!
Read the book





'I refuse to raise a brat' by Mary lu Rhenner