Motherhood

😍Motherhood is one beautiful mess!😍

Mommy inspirations

“She says I shall now have one mouth the more to fill and two feet the more shoe, more disturbed nights, more laborious days, and less leisure or visiting , reading, music, and drawing.

“Well! This is one side of the story, to be sure, but I look at the other. Here is a sweet, fragrant mouth to kiss; here are two more feet to make music with their pattering about my nursery. Here is a soul to train for God; and the body in which it dwells is worth all it will cost, since it is the abode of a kingly tenant.

“I may see less of friends, but I have gained one dearer than them all, to whom, while I minister in Christ’s name, I make a willing sacrifice of what little leisure for my own recreation my other darlings had left me. Yes, my precious baby you are welcome to your mother’s heart, welcome to her time, her strength, her health, her tenderest cares, to her lifelong prayers! O, how rich I am, how truly, how wondrously blest!”

-Stepping Heavenward, by Elizabeth Prentiss, qtd. by Natasha Metzler
Re-qtd.by Laura

Vaccination

Vaccination is a must for every child. It protects the child against various diseases. Few tips:
Before vaccination:-
💉 Remember the date of every vaccine. Keep a reminder on your phone. Do not delay. Even in monsoon.📆
💉 Keep an ice pack ready in the refrigerator incase of festering of the injection wound or pain.
💉Always carry the card around. The next date and the present vaccination will be marked.📝
💉Always carry a napkin.
💉Always carry milk in a bottle or some snacks for older children.🍶🍼
💉Ask if any outcomes of the vaccine are possible. Like swelling, redness, pain or fever. Ask what must be done in case of any of the outcomes.🤒
💉Wrap up the baby well. Especially in the earlier months. Carry an extra wrapper if necessary.👶👶👶
💉Wait for some time within the health centre or hospital after the vaccination.
💉Weigh your child if possible.

Massage therapy for mothers

Along with the baby, massage therapy is essential for the new mother too.
The reasons being many:
1. To help the body cope with after the delivery.
2. To bring the body to its original condition and shape. Here focus is on the stomach and back.
3. To help the breasts in producing milk.
4. To get rid of the body aches.
5. To get rid of the pigmentation which is a part of pregnancy.
6. To help with the flow of blood.
7. To heal the body.
8. To strengthen the muscles, joints and bones.

Massage therapy for babies

Massage goes a long way in the initial few months of the baby.
From exercise to strengthening the bones, improving the complexion and a daily sound sleep it works well.
It is usually a family business in India where ladies are in the profession. Along with the baby the mother is also given a massage.
Post on it is coming up soon.
There are different ingredients used in a massage for the baby.
🍶Oil
Any oil right from olive oil, coconut oil, mustard oil purely extracted.
Indian languages would term it as ' oil from the village or native town'. This means that the oil is extracted without any impurities or additions. This means that the oil is full of aroma and thick when using it. Oil is warmed up and then used to prevent cold.
Oil of private companies like Johnson are also being used today.
Benefits: strengthening the muscles, bones and joints, cleaning up the impure or dry skin
🍶Milk cream
Known for its beauty benefits and cleaning properties, milk cream works best on the tender skin of the baby.
The cream that floats on top of the milk is carefully scooped out.
Used along with gram flour, it works wonders on the skin of babies.
Milk also is an option incase skimmed milk is only available.
Benefits: cleansing the skin, removes unwanted facial hair
🍶Flour
Gram flour, lentils like tur dal, masoor dal, moong dal are dried up in the sun and sent to the mill to make it into a fine powder like flour. Then a smooth paste is made along with milk cream or warm water and applied instead of oil. The baby is then massaged and bathed.
Benefits: cleansing the skin pores, coolness to the skin

Breastfeeding- part 2

Klk🤓Wet nipples.
For the first time before you feed your baby, it is necessary to wet nipples. The aroma of the milk makes it easier for baby to latch onto the breast.
🤓 Latching on.
Rest your back well.
Use a pillow to support baby. Especially the neck.
Use the elbow of your arm to rest baby's head.
Gently lift your breast towards baby's mouth.
Baby will latch on. Takes a few practices, you'll get a hang of it.
🤓 Changing sides.
I cannot stress more upon the importance of changing sides. Rest to your hands. Rest for baby. Rest for the breast. Fresh milk for baby. 10 minutes on each side should be enough for every two hours of feeding routine.

Breastfeeding- part 1

Mothers breastfeeding their babies need to start the process of readying to feed in the ninth month itself.
* Mothers should nurse their babies for atleast six months.
😊Before baby comes.
This would include a massage for the breasts daily. Take off the dry skin settled down on the areola. It will be a shade darker than the original colour. Wash daily and keep it moist. The massage needs to be strong. You can ask hubby dearest to help you. A stronger hand always helps.
Plus it will get you closer to each other.
😊The way to massage.
Massage should begin from the neck towards the breast. In circular motions. Then from the hand to the breast. Finally from under the breast towards the nipple. Soft pumping motions of massage can be done later.
😊When to start.
Immediately after delivery when baby and you have settled down. Colostrum may get expressed in the last week of pregnancy or may not. Nothing to worry about. Begin feeding baby as soon as possible. The sucking motion will get the milk expressed. If still not working, massage works well.
😊Flat nipples.
Getting started early reduces chances of this. Later as breasts get full of milk, the skin of the nipple gets buried in the breast. A breast pump helps in getting the nipples out. Though initial milk coming out with the pump is rare.
😊Heaviness and pain.
When the milk is not fed, it accumulates in the breast and feels heavy and painful.

Medicines- administering them to a new baby

In this day and age, every baby is prescribed few medicines. These may not actually be medicines but supplements which the baby needs.
Mostly oral drops, they need to be taken p the baby daily.
A few things to be kept in mind while administering the medicines.
1) Always administer a dose together.
Suppose you have a calcium syrup and a multi vitamin to be taken in the morning, give both together.
2) Before food.
Administer medication before food. If your baby does not like the medicine taste, food is ready. This maybe through actual breast feeding or expressing the milk in a bottle. It may also be other solid food for a bigger baby. Moreover feeding reassures the baby of the mother's presence.
3) Get it together.
Get the spoon or dropper and the medicines close buy. You do not want to be running around or getting up a dozen times during the process.
4) Supervision.
If someone else administers the medicines, supervise.
5) No baby alone.
Leaving baby unattended with or without medication(think of bottles and droppers around) is a big no- no.
6) Clean washcloth nearby.
You'll thank me for this point. Babies do not have medicines like we do. For any oral intake, baby uses the sucking motion. A dropper which pours only a drop maybe be too much for the baby. Your baby will soon be spitting the excess out, only to suck it up later. This will naturally pour on to baby's body. Clean washcloth to the rescue.
* This was Papa dearest's tip.
7) Cleanliness.
Squeaky clean is not the phrase. For a baby, cleanliness at all times. Sterilise the dropper and washcloth.
8) Wrap up the baby.
Wrapping helps to hold your wriggling baby in place. Or you will have medicines flying around.
9) Pat yourself and your baby.
Yes, trial and error many times leads to sucess. Pat to burp the baby.
10) The way to do it.
All baby's medicines have a sweet taste to them, babies actually like them.
Gently move the dropper over the baby's lips. Baby will get her tongue out to taste. Then at the opportune time put the dropper in the mouth and squeeze it a wee bit. Washcloth. Nearby. Ready. Wipe clean.

Phases

In this blog, I will update 3 tabs or main labels
*Pregnancy
*Child birth- natural way
*Motherhood

Mamma Mia- here I go

Being a mother for the first time is really a turning point in a woman's life.
A tiny life dependant on you is worth all the new, suprising and even scary changes around you.
A whole new world opens up.
What makes it still beautiful is taking all in one day at a time!
I, Ruth Kenneth, signing as RK will go through this journey with as a first time mother.
From pregnancy to motherhood, here I gather tips, do's and don'ts, recipes and ideas all through experiences.

There will be a tip by Papa too daily. He has gathered this from experience, reading, watching videos and listening to advice. The ones that work will be added here.
Here the teacher is the child and the mother is a student.
Catholic motherhood is a major aspect of this blog.