5 Things I Thought BEFORE Having My Baby

We've all heard the lists of things non-parents swear they will never do when they have kids. (Think poo talk, screen time, leaving the house a mess, etc.) This list isn't like that.

Today I'm recounting some of the things I personally planned or thought that have NOT panned out the way I expected.

Nine months pregnant!

1. The baby would sleep in our room for at least six months.

Emerson was born in January. I knew we'd be moving sometime around August or September. I wasn't planning on having a crib before we moved because he'd be sleeping in our room for most of that time anyways. I planned to only have a pack'n play and stretch its use until after we moved.

Just a family nap!

Lucky for us, I found a family giving away a gently used crib, and I snatched it up. I didn't plan on having a crib, but when you get a free one, why not? Well, Emerson has proven to be an awesome sleeper and has been in his own room since 1 month, mostly sleeping through the night with only a few bumps here and there. I remember thinking when he was 3 months that I couldn't imagine him still being in our room. I know some babies do this, but I especially can't imagine him being with us for 9 months!

2. I'd have a skinny/small baby

All through my pregnancy I measured very small. I was always several weeks behind, and people always commented on my smaller-than-expected belly. Granted every pregnancy and body is different, I know. My sibling who I tend to be the most similar too also tends to have small babies, so for some reason I just assumed I'd have a small to normal size baby. 

Emerson and his cousin (who is 1 month older)

Emerson was 7 pounds, 8 ounces when he was born, which put him just above the 50th percentile. But he's been a good eater and steadily gaining weight since. Now at 5 months he's at least a steady 19 pounds tipping towards the 20 pound mark, which puts him right around the 90th percentile for weight. He is already in size 3 diapers, and I may have to try size 4 fairly soon. (I stocked up on diapers beforehand and have had to exchange quite a few size 1 and 2 packs for larger sizes.) He comfortably wears 6-9 month clothes, though I still try to squeeze him into some of the larger 3-6 month outfits.

Love that chunk!

3. I'd hang up baby clothes.

I was pretty good at washing and organizing Emerson's clothes before he was born. I snagged a huge free lot of baby boy clothes and filtered out what I wanted to use and organized everything by size and type. I was gifted several packs of child hangers and liked being able to see everything I had. We did purchase a small dresser to double as a changing table, and I designated certain drawers for sleepers or blankets. I wanted simple solutions for organization and in asking around, several people advised that they never used a dresser and use the closet or bins for all clothes.

Today the huge walk-in closet in Emerson's room operates pretty exclusive as a storage area for clothes he has grown out of, clothes he has yet to grow into, extra diapers and wipes, and other assorted baby items. EVERYTHING Emerson wears resides solely in the small, three-drawer dresser. I can't image hanging anything up and am baffled at the advice people gave me. I try to keep things as simple as possible so organization goes like this. Top drawer: half diapers and burp clothes, half bibs, socks, and hats. Middle drawer: onesies on the left, pants in basket in middle, rompers on the right. Bottom drawer: sleepers on the left, swaddle blankets on the right. That's it.

I also have a small basket right by the dirty clothes basket where we toss any clothes Emerson has grown out of. (I got that system from Do It On a Dime.) My own closet organization is also mostly hung up. I'm liking the idea o

4. I'd try to have a nap schedule

Like most newborns Emerson slept A LOT. After a bit, we did introduce a pretty regular bedtime routine but naps were pretty sporadic. Before I started working, I decided I would first finalize my schedule and find a set nap schedule to work Emerson into as he got a little older.

Nope. We have definitely maintained a go with the flow routine during the day. Bedtime we are very regular about, but it just hasn't worked out to do regular times for naps. (SO FAR...we'll see as he gets older and my schedule changes.) With my work schedule now, Emerson has several longer car rides where he takes short naps. If I'm home all day, we do usually get two longer (at least 1-3 hour) naps in. But other than that, we are out and about. He'll definitely sleep when he needs it though, whether in his carseat, in his carrier, or in the middle of the living room. (In the instance pictured on the right below, he'd been up maybe 1 hour from his morning nap...guess he needed more!)

5. My baby'd have sensitive skin.

My hubby has INSANELY sensitive skin. He practically scars from someone touching him. So add that in with naturally sensitive baby skin, I mentally prepared to have to very careful with our little guy. 

So far we've had no sensitivity issues. We had a diaper rash spray that we used as a preventative measure for the first few weeks but have never actually had a problem. I still wash most of Emerson's stuff with a baby detergent but also throw things in with regular loads and regular detergents and everything's been fine. I am still paranoid about the sun (who wants to deal with a baby sunburn?), but overall we're loving NORMAL baby skin over here so far.

Ready for the pool! No sunburns please.