When Do You Shower?

This is a question that I have been asked repeatedly by new mothers.  Especially by new mothers of two.  Why do they ask me when I shower?  It's because I look so amazing every day.  I straighten my hair, brush my teeth, and apply makeup every single day.  It doesn't matter if it's raining or shining outside, the makeup is going on and the hair is getting done.  So, when do I shower?

At night. 

I shower at night.  There are many reasons why I do this, but the main one is that I simply cannot bring myself to get out of bed at 5:00am just to shower.  If I didn't shower at night, I wouldn't shower at all, and nobody wants that to happen.  So I am left with the evening hours after my kids are asleep.  I shower when I am getting ready for bed.  My hair is dry when I wake up, and it only takes a few minutes to toss on some clothes, slap on some makeup, and yank a straight iron through my hair.  Presto!  I'm ready in twenty minutes flat.  I look good enough to go to the store, to playgroup, on a lunch date with my hubby, or to just sit at home and wait for the mail to come. 

So my question for all of you ladies is:  When do you shower?

Calming Reflex

We've all seen doctors checking knee reflexes, right? In order to do it correctly, they have to find just the right spot on your knee to tap with that little mallet they use before your leg will kick involuntarily because it's a reflex.

Did you know that babies have a calming reflex? I didn't until I took some of our readers' advice and read a book called "The Happiest Baby on the Block". Can I just say that this book has been a life saver for me? Let me tell you about this calming reflex that Dr. Karp has written his book about. AMAZING!

He says that after babies are born, they miss the comforting feelings they had while in the womb. He's found a few things that help to recreate that feeling. Each of these things triggers your baby's calming reflex as he's called it. And, if done in the correct order, these things will almost instantly calm your baby down. Seriously, it happens within a minute or two at most.

What are these things that trigger this awesome reflex? Dr. Karp calls them the 5 S's. Here they come:

1. Tight Swaddling: You need to make sure that baby's arms are wrapped tightly to his/her sides. Babies didn't have much room inside the womb, and they're not used to having all this space around them. It's scary being in a new place, right? (To see how Dr. Karp suggests you swaddle your baby, check out the book or his dvd at your local library)
   
2. After swaddling, turn baby onto his/her Side/Stomach as you hold him/her. I've seen babies that consider leaning even a fraction of an inch to their back a "very bad thing" and remain inconsolable. But when tilted toward their stomach, they calm right down. Why? I'm not sure, but it seems to work, so I go with what Dr. Karp says on this one.
3. Swinging comes next. They don't call them "Bouncing Babies" for nothing. You can either bounce your baby from side to side or do what I do. I sit down and put my baby on my legs (head by my knees) and rock my knees back and forth. It takes minimal effort and can be done even when you're bleary eyed at 2 a.m.
   
4. If swaddling, side/stomach and swinging aren't enough to calm your baby, try giving them something to Suck on. Sucking naturally calms a baby, and when combined with the first three S's, it REALLY calms them down.
5. The final S is Shushing. Dr. Karp says to shush as loud as the baby is crying. In his book he says that babies are used to a constant white noise that is at about the same level in volume as a vacuum cleaner. Other ways to provide this white noise could include turning a radio to static, or getting a hair dryer, turning it on the low setting and leaving it about 3-6 feet from baby. Or, you can always turn on a vacuum in the same room as baby. All of these can help with making your baby feel "at home" again.

Some babies only need one or two of these S's, and some need them all. Some, when they're really upset, need them all in a very big way. My newest baby, N, is one of those babies. I'm glad to say that once I figured out how to trigger his calming reflex, we were so much happier together. :) I can even get more sleep at night. Instead of an hour at a time at most, I'm now getting 2-4 hours at a time. YAY!

I've also found that N gets overstimulated fairly quickly. If I pay close enough attention, I can catch it before he gets to his "inconsolable" stage where he needs all 5 S's. If I do catch it, just swaddling and sucking (sometimes swaying) are all he needs.

Good luck to all you new mommies out there! Hope this helps you as much as it has helped me!