To walk outside with a newborn?

[seagirl]

Hello! I would appreciate your help but I'm sorry for my English, it is not native for me
I'm pregnant and read 2 Tracy Hogg books, im going to use this great system. But I couldn't understand smth. At my country it is common to walk outside with baby at stroller since first weeks, for baby take fresh air. How can I fit it to EASY? Activity time is very little at beginning, so may be I may arrange 1 or 2 daytime nap at stroller outside?
Thank you for help 

[michaeljacknnugg]

Baby can nap or have activity time in the stroller! So it can fit in quite easily into your routine. A sling can help in the early days, too.

[Martini~]

In general, being very strict to the books, Tracy is saying naps should be in a cot.
But:):
- when you have 4 naps a day - 1 or 2 in the stroller shouldn't be a problem; I would just try to make another 1-2 at home
- stroller is a great thing for afternoon catnap - really any many kids refuse to take it in a cot, and these so called witching hours (5-7pm) are only to be survived with a swing or stroller:)
- I was using stroller for 3rd nap in EASY routine up to 3-4mo and when transfered to 4h easy, I did catnap in a stroller - not a big problem at all!
- on days when I did much more naps in a stroller or when summer on 4h easy with 3 naps and 2 naps were in a stroller, I used a stroller as a crib; which just meant I didn't settle DS with rocking but just shh/pat him in a stroller.

HTH

[seagirl]

Thank you both so much for your experience and advices!
How will it be better to do? Go out during activity time and if need shh/pat baby outside at stroller? Or to do it at home and then go out with sleeping baby?

[Martini~]

It up to you Honey.

In earlu days I preferred to stay at home for A time to be able to feed him properly, clean after a poo and go for sleep time in a stroller. But I guess you may do whatever suits you better.

[Katet]

When I had my second, I knew with the temperament of my eldest & my own needs that being out of the house was a must. I really just let him nap in the car, in the stroller in a sling apart from in the middle of the day when DS1 was also napping so we were often at home, but even then they could both fall asleep in the stroller while I walked & would transfer into their beds, so I went with that.

[michaeljacknnugg]

We always had our first nap of the day out and about (car seat/stroller) and sometimes another, too. I am expecting another baby in November and he will have the same as we will have to go and see to our horses.

Routines are great (we still have a lot even though DS is 7), but I would say that the need to stick to one can make life difficult for you and your mental health. You will get rough nights whatever happens, so it's important to strike a balance that works for you and your baby. Do what you want to do, make sure there is space for your needs in your new life and schedule. For example, I'm hoping to go to baby yoga while I'm on maternity leave.

[seagirl]

Thank you all!
I'm expecting my first baby at the end of August and hope Tracy's system will help us to arrange our new life
I'll definitely come back here:)

[Martini~]

That's a great news Hon! Tracy's book are great!
The only thing I would encourage you is to read more about breastfeeding. Info in Tracy's book is a bit outdated and we believe that she would have updated it if she could. Please feel free to see our breastfeeding boards. There is also a great blog cold kellysmum about BF and of course it would be great if you have some local IRL support in the early days!

[seagirl]

That's a great news Hon! Tracy's book are great!
The only thing I would encourage you is to read more about breastfeeding. Info in Tracy's book is a bit outdated and we believe that she would have updated it if she could. Please feel free to see our breastfeeding boards. There is also a great blog cold kellysmum about BF and of course it would be great if you have some local IRL support in the early days!

Thank u for advice! But can u please give me a little bit more info- which info at Tracy's book is not actual anymore? Just give me some clue pls and I'll read more about it:) thank u so much for help!

[*Ali*]

Hi. Congratulations on becoming a mum and welcome to baby whisperer.

The BFing info in the books doesn't take into account some of the most recent research about how supply and production actually work. We like to think that tracy would have updated her advice to reflect this had she still been with us.  So now the yield test is considered to be unreliable in indicating a mother's supply. Many women can BF just fine but cannot pump at all or very little so we don't recommend that any more.

Also, it is now recommended that you feed on demand rather than trying to stretch baby's feeds out to 3hrs or only feed once per A time. Tracy always said to feed on cue and that you must always feed a hungry baby but the example routines laid out in the book are not really realistic for EBF babies. They should be feeding 8-12 times in 24hrs for the first 6wks or so. Sometimes baby might need to feed twice before they go back to sleep and you should let baby dictate how long s/he wishes to feed rather than take LO off after a certain amount of time.

I don't believe Tracy meant we should make our babies take every nap in the cot at all! In fact I'm sure she said in one of the books that if in the early days LO was having 1 nap a day in the cot you were doing great. Ensuring naps are all in the cot is more for periods of sleep training when you are trying to teach self-settling. Of course you need to get out for your own sanity if nothing else.
I never even bothered with shush pat in the stroller. Baby is normally happy with walking along and will  happily fall asleep that way.

[seagirl]

Thank u!
But it seems not possible then to use E.A.S.Y till 6 weeks at least?

[Buttonbobs]

It is completely possible honey, what I did was to focus on keeping the order as EAS, so really trying not to feed straight to sleep, by doing a nappy change or something else after a feed, and this really helped me when we then moved with Dd to longer gaps between feeds a few weeks after she was born.

There really is a lot to be said for going easy on yourself in those first few weeks, and getting feeding started as best you both can without worrying about timings too much. BFing ended up not working for us in the longer term and EASY became more regimented once she was about 8 weeks old and old bottles and a mix of breast milk and formula, but it certainly is entirely possible to follow the spirit of the EAS routine even when the timings are shorter.

[Katet]

But it seems not possible then to use E.A.S.Y till 6 weeks at least?

You can use EASY from birth because it is ALL about the routine of "eat, Activity sleep" it is not meant to be about clock watching & times. as they get older 3months+ then time is more of a factor, but in a Newborn, it's about feeding then say cuddle & chat & sleep rather than feeding to sleep. In the early days (2-3 weeks) it is very common for a BF baby to fall asleep during a feed.

With the value of hindsight (10yo & 12yo) the early months really are more about enjoying your baby than focusing on a routine. I might be reading too much into it but it sounds like you've got a real need to "get it perfect" & honestly that is never going to happen with a baby. When I look back at my parenting time & parents of babies around me it's kind of like finding the right mix between going with the flow & following a routine... ie having the ability to cope when things don't go to plan rather than putting lots of energy into finding the "right" routine & stressing if it isn't happening.

[*Ali*]

Yes you can follow the EAS pattern but it might not be 3hrs between feeds.  Could be BF as most of the 45 min A time then sleep 1hr15 and BF again. Or it could be EAEAS which is fine too.