The New Mum / Mom Tag 2019

Hello! I have seen this tag going around on Youtube for a few weeks and, although I haven’t actually been tagged, I really liked the questions and wanted to give it a go! I love being a mummy to Jasper and that this also means that I can now answer questions like these. I hope you enjoy reading my answers to these questions and I’d be fascinated to read your answers if you decide to take part.

 1. Favourite mum hack? My favourite mum hack is one that I used loads when Jasper was a newborn and that was to tuck a muslin in over his bed sheets (so that its secure) where his head is placed. This is so that when he was sick, which newborns often are with milky possets, I only had to change a muslin rather than all his bedding. It saved me quite a lot of washing and because we had a lot of muslins, more than bed sheets, it didn’t matter that I had to keep changing it.

2. Most embarrassing mum moment? My most embarrassing mum moment happened during my first solo shopping trip to town when Jasper was about 3 months old. I went in to Paperchase, which is  possibly the quietest shop ever, and Jasper started doing the biggest trumps I had ever heard. It turns out he had done quite a big poop that had leaked through his clothes and on to his pram. At the time I couldn’t believe it had happened and quickly rushed to the baby change facilities (which were quite a walk through the shopping centre) but I know find it really funny to think about.

3. What part of the day do you love the most? My favourite part of the day is Jasper’s bath time. He absolutely loves the bath and I really enjoy playing with him in it and watching him splash around having a good time. I also really love after bath cuddles when he is in a baby grow and smells amazing.

4. What part of the day do you like the least? My least favourite part of the day is what I call the 4pm slump. Its when I start to feel really tired in the day but bed time feels like so long away and there are still lots of jobs to do. Usually though after I have had tea I get more energy to back to carry on with the bed time routine.

5. The worst thing someone said to you when you were pregnant? The worst thing someone said to me when I was pregnant was after I had asked to go on a course at work.  I was told that it would be better for someone else to go on the course and for me to wait until I had come back off maternity leave. It made me feel like I wasn’t an equal member of the team and discriminated against for being pregnant (after a lot of effort though I did manage to get myself on the course).

6. Baby name you didn’t agree on? We pretty much couldn’t agree on any girls names but probably the one I loved the most that James didn’t like was Taylor.

7. Do you co sleep? Yes. Until Jasper was 5 months old, we had never co slept and he was always in his Snuzpod next to my bed. But when he outgrew this, we tried to move him into a cot in his own room and it really didn’t go too well (he has had problems with his ears and gets quite distressed when he wakes up). At the moment, he typically starts the night in his cot but after a couple of hours he usually ends up in bed with me and James is in the spare room.

8. Something you bought but never used? The are quite a few things that we bought when I was pregnant that we actually haven’t ended up needing, one of them was a tin of formula. I am so grateful that I have been able to breastfeed Jasper so we haven’t had to use this.

9. 3 hospital bag must haves? The first hospital bag must have for me is really big clothes, including knickers and pyjamas. When I bought these things when I was pregnant I had taken in to account that I would still have a bump but I hadn’t realised that I might swell up in labour. So the pyjamas and disposable knickers I brought with me to the hospital didn’t actually fit so my mum had to go to the shop and buy more. The second thing would be lots of maternity pads and breast pads, these are essential in the early days after having a baby. The final thing would be plenty of snacks, my hospital stay ended up being longer than I thought and the hospital food wasn’t the best so I was grateful for the snacks I brought and the ones that were brought for me.

10. Are you routine mum or a go with the flow mum and what does bedtime look like? I like to think I am a routine mum because before Jasper I was always in a routine myself. Since Jasper, I probably have a less strict routine and try to follow his cues a lot more. Our evening routine usually starts with dinner around 4.30pm and then Jasper will play until his bath time at around 5.30pm. Once he is all clean and in his pyjamas, he will have a little snack, something like yoghurt, and watch some cartoons. We will then go to my bed and I will put him in his sleeping bag and give him his bedtime milk. Then we will cuddle, read books and sing until he goes to sleep usually around 7pm. Although all this can vary quite a bit some nights!

11. What type of labour did you have? What pain relief did you choose? I was induced in hospital at 14 days overdue. I spent most of Jasper’s labour using hypnobirthing techniques which I can’t recommend enough, they really are amazing! But due to Jasper’s positioning, he ended up being born by emergency caesarean section at 16 days overdue.

12. Have you ever been mum shamed? Luckily so far I have never been mum shamed. I can’t imagine anyone ever doing this either because we have a hard enough job as it is as mums without people shaming us.

13. The biggest challenges you’ve faced since becoming a mum? Sleep deprivation for sure. Before Jasper, I would usually sleep for around 10 hours a night and I really felt like I needed it. Now I am lucky to get about 6 broken hours of sleep. So this is definitely my biggest challenge but I am surprised at how much I can still get done given how little sleep I get. I really couldn’t have coped on this little sleep beforehand.

14. The best bit advice you have ever been given – Biggest piece of advise you’d give to a new mum? Follow your own instincts. Since becoming a mum, I have realised that mother’s instinct is really a thing as no one knows your baby more than you do. If as a mum you think something isn’t right then it probably isn’t.

15. Who’s your mum crush? And who do you tag? I would like to tag anyone that would like take part. I have quite a few mum crushes but I think Emily Norris who started this tag is pretty amazing, I would highly recommend her Youtube channel as I found it so useful when I was pregnant and still really enjoy it now.

I hope you enjoyed reading my answers to these questions and I would love to know your answers to this tag.

Thanks for reading, Jen x