Post-partum recovery

[isabel]

Apr 3, 2015 19:31:38 GMT -5 smm5623 said:

Privacy. Seriously all i wanted were my fat pants and everyone to leave me alone so I could nurse and rest.

This is going to be me. I told H the other night that I am immediately instituting "visiting hours." I told my mom she can't stay with us.

[sjh722]

Apr 3, 2015 18:33:55 GMT -5 Blue Moon said:

H ran out to get Milk of Magnesia for me. I also would try to prepare as much food as possible. I was anticipating lots of people bringing casseroles and whatnot, and only my mom brought us food. We were not prepared.

This makes me sad for you! I would bring you a dinner if you were my friend!

[212]

Zita West's Comfort Down Under Cream.

Lifesaving.

[mandapanda18]

One handed snacks, insulated water cups that would stay cold, movies/Netflix subscription or something else to keep me entertained at 3 am feeds, lactation cookies, Advil.

[niq]

Yeah, start making a list of shows on Netflix. And don't worry, having American Horror Story won't hurt baby, if that's your thing.

Related to the post about everything in one place, we needed redundant copies of everything. Like we needed about four nipple shields - one for upstairs, one for downstairs, and a couple of spares in case you can't find the first one.

We also used lightweight salad bowls to toss stuff that needed to go elsewhere, so we weren't always running around the house putting things away one at a time.

Comfortable clothing for everybody. Denim is for single people and suckers.

[Deleted]

Apr 3, 2015 16:46:40 GMT -5 thebreakfastclub said:

The dermoplast and witch hazel were irrelevant if you have a c/s so I would keep receipts.

As a c/s mom I needed a strong laxative and took Motrin at night for 3 weeks.

I also appreciated having a small tv tray by the couch, a larger bathroom trash can and a step stool to get in/out of bed.

Great advice on the receipts. I second the step-stool. I'm super short, and our bed is high. This step stool saved my life.

I also would consider buying 2 of anything small that you use everyday and have to wash repetitively. In my view, it's the time to buy extra: spatulas (random), pump part sets, bottles, dishcloths, anything you have to carry between bathrooms (Like - a bottle of windex, peri bottle, etc.).

I also would stock up on stuff like dishwasher detergent, tissues, paper towels, a second bottle of motrin, toilet paper. We started running the dishwasher daily (Up from 2-3 times a week).

We cooked a lot in advance - or did "assemble and ready to dump in the crock pot" bags. I also had bags of frozen veggies, frozen potatos, appetizers, etc. On hand. I also recommend chopping and freezing veggies (onions, peppers, whatever). I highly recommend this - and also suggest making more complicated dishes for freezing. Example - I love a good gumbo and 21 ingredient chili (not together. .. ) Ain't nobody got time for making that right now...but it's awesome to pull the bags from the freezer. We always have enjoyed cooking more complex things but currently feel like gourmet chefs if we brown hamburger.

other randoms-
plastic cups (or cups with lid/straw). stay hydrated!

Lysol wipes

Extra long (or extra) cell, tablet, etc. Chargers.

if you think you might want it, buy it and tape the recipt to it (e.g., bottle warmer, extra dermaplast)

I wore nursing tanks, yoga pants, and whatever robe, shawl, etc was cleanest. I recommend the non-zipper variety of sweatshirt, etc. Have enough sets of those kind of clothes so you can have clean clothes daily and not do laundry for a few days. You will be doing more laundry, but try to just have enough that you don't have to wash your 1 pair of yoga pants each night.

[Blue Moon]

Apr 3, 2015 19:48:03 GMT -5 sjh722 said:

Apr 3, 2015 18:33:55 GMT -5 Blue Moon said:

H ran out to get Milk of Magnesia for me. I also would try to prepare as much food as possible. I was anticipating lots of people bringing casseroles and whatnot, and only my mom brought us food. We were not prepared.

This makes me sad for you! I would bring you a dinner if you were my friend!

Aw, thanks! I'm the first of my friends to have a baby, so they're all pretty clueless on that kind of stuff.  

[Deleted]

Another thing we needed more of--burp rags. Those cheap white cloth diapers work great. Just buy a couple of packs and set a stack on any room you think you might feed the baby in. They are useful no matter what method(s) you end up using to feed the baby:)

Also kitchen dish towels. I wanted to be vigilant about changing our hand towels and towels I used with bottles and I realized I didn't have quite enough.

If you need to pump from birth, I would have more advice--just post again and I can send Amazon or Target links for helpful items. I definitely needed to buy quite a few things as soon as I got home.

[Poppy]

I put my list in this post awhile back while it was fresher in my mind:
pandce.proboards.com/thread/404733/intro-buy-fist-days