What You Probably Didn't Know About Swim Diapers-Or Maybe You Did

There are so many books out there telling you the ins and outs of being a parent from how to get your baby to sleep through the night to potty training to disciplining and much, much more. But there are a few things us parents need to learn for ourselves. Or maybe it's just that not all kids are the same so not every kid meets the mold that the book is trying to portray (that was our case with Babywise--I've shunned that book for eternity!) I guess you can't write an entire book on little tidbits that we parents need to learn along the way (or maybe you could!), but it sure would be helpful, eh? 

Something we learned recently about swim diapers is that they are for catching poop, not pee. So when you go to the pool and you see a bunch of babies and toddlers in swim diapers you're still swimming in pee. Super. We had to learn the hard way, i.e. Anna peed in her swim diaper while sitting in her carseat. Who knew, right? Also (just learned this weekend), you can reuse the swim diapers (the ones that aren't filled with poop, of course). Such good news since they are so gosh darn expensive! Anna loves swimming and we try to take her as often as we can but now we know to not put her into her swim diaper until we arrive at the pool and we'll be saving money every time we swim because we'll be reusing those poop catchers (when they're not filled with poop) like it's nobody's business! That's enough of the poop talk for now--or at least until I write a post on potty training!

Only 3 days late posting this bump as opposed to last week's 8 days--woo hoo! 

How far along? 23 Weeks

How big is baby? the size of a grapefruit and he's listening to my voice and heartbeat and I'm sure when Anna gets all up on my belly he can hear all of her ramblings too :)

Total weight gain: 22 pounds 

Maternity clothes? only when I'm in public trying to look nice, otherwise it's gym shorts, tshirts and tank tops

Sleep: still need to get that body pillow. Target was out when I looked the other day. On top of not feeling comfortable I'm feeling his every move which is super cute but also kind of not so cute at 2 in the morning. 

Best moment this week: Anna telling us whenever she went potty in her diaper! I know, it may seem weird but this is a big deal. We're one step closer to potty training! It shall commence upon returning from vacation--yippee!! 

Miss Anything? not feeling like a beached whale at the end of the evening. I have no motivation to do anything after I put Anna to sleep. I feel huge, I look huge, I'll only get more huge, and all I want to do is curl up on the couch and veg with The Office. 

Movement: morning, noon, and night ;)

Food cravings: this question always gets me. I so wish I had a fun craving like pickles and ice cream together. Last week it was turkey sandwiches. This week, just junk.

Gender: baby boy!

Symptoms: heartburn, peeing all the time, out of breath, and my favorite: baby kicks! 

Belly Button in or out? out

Happy or Moody most of the time: happy!

Looking forward to: my mom, step dad, and sister coming to town for the upcoming holiday weekend! 

Going back to the whole swim diapers topic that I thoroughly discussed above, are there any tidbits not found in books that you discovered being a parent? I'd love to hear more...just so I know and can be better prepared for all the unknowns that we learn as parents! 

A Little Privacy, Please

Yeah, right! Not in the family locker room at the Y--especially when you have a cute baby and there are teenage girls involved!

The other night after Anna's swim lessons we went to the women's family locker room and instead of changing in a stall I decided to change out by the lockers. No one was around, I didn't want to set Anna on the wet tile floor (the floor by the lockers was carpeted), and I knew I could change in 2.3 seconds (a skill you learn as a new mom). Well in 1.5 seconds in walked 10 teenage girls preparing for swim team practice, and there I am basically naked trying to switch from my bathing suit to my underwear and bra and Anna at my feet. 

"OHHH MY GOSH!! A BABY!!!!" One girl screamed. I tried to quickly finish but before I could I had two girls in my face (or at my chest rather since they were a tad shorter than me) asking me all kinds of questions about Anna and one girl down at another body part, err, I mean level cooing at Anna. I was shocked at the unashamed nature they possessed while I'm basically in my skivvies or lack there of. I tried avoiding eye contact, maybe that would deter them, at least until I was fully clothed. Nope, they just kept asking questions, you know, the ush: "what's her name? how old is she? does she have any teeth yet? how much does she weigh?" and oooohhhing and ahhhhhhing. And then came the big question that I pretended I didn't hear: "Can I hold her?" I thought to myself, Are you serious right now?! If I let you hold her, I've got to let every other girl in this locker room hold her. And hello?!, I'm already totally embarrassed that you all saw my lady bits and all I want to do right now is run for the hills with my baby! So no you can't hold her! Then the question came again and this time I couldn't pretend I was just a little hard of hearing..."sure." And then from all the other girls, "Me too? Can I hold her? Oh, please, I want a turn!" "Sorry, girls, my husband's waiting for me outside." Yes! Thank you, Travis, you saved the day and what little was left of my pride! I scooted out of that locker room with Anna in tote so fast Travis wondered what happened. After recapping my last 5 minutes he suggested it might be worth it next time to just have Anna sit on the wet tile floor inside of a stall. Yep, I agree!

Just Keep Swimming

My mom always called me a fish when I was little. I loved being in the water and I loved the smell of chlorine. I still do. It takes me back to my childhood of when we'd spend hours at my uncle's athletic club swimming in the pool, jumping in the hot tub (ok, I know it's against the rules but when your uncle is the manager you kind of can do whatever you want), and running around the aerobic room and racquetball courts after hours (still have no idea how to actually play racquetball!) After joining the YMCA a couple of weeks ago I knew right away I wanted to put Anna in swim lessons because I loved it so much growing up. I wanted her to be familiar with the water and learn from the beginning how to protect herself in the water and also have a little fun! We had an inkling she'd like the water when during tummy times she would arch her back, extend her arms and legs, and plank. Well she LOVED it! She was a natural kicking her little legs and scooping the water. She had a smile on her face the whole time even when I accidentally dipped her face too far in the water! Oops, new mama here. She did so good and we can't wait to go back again next week!

 

 

 

 

Now that's the face of a determined girl! Look out Missy Franklin, Anna Jubilee is coming for your gold!