Erin Akin Carroll

I mentioned my hospital packing list in a post last week. I recently found the list I made for my hospital bags when I was about to have Hudson, so I thought I’d share the list with everyone and let you know how I’ve modified it a little after my first hospital experience.

photo via here

*I’m assuming it’s understood that there is lots of bleeding post-baby

• Socks- hospital floors are cold and yucky
• Robe- you will wear the hospital gown for a little while
• Cute Pajamas- something with lots of coverage. Pajama pants are good because they hold in all the absorbent pads and stuff you have to wear after the baby is born. It’s also nice to put on your own clothes for the 1-3 days that you may be in the hospital.
• Pads- the hospital gave me some heavy duty absorbent pads, but I also brought my own just in case
• Going home clothes (definitely still maternity clothes for me)
• Full coverage underwear (no Hanky Pankies)- if you’re wearing pads, you need full coverage undies
• Nursing bras or tanks
• Flip flops- for just walking around your room. My feet were so swollen (it was June) that I was so happy to have flip flops that were easy to get on and off.
• Make up- duh.
• Shampoo, tooth brush, tooth paste, deodorant, etc.- I didn’t wash my hair in the hospital because I’d had an awesome blow out the day I went into the hospital. But I did shower and it was nice to have my own shower stuff.
• Personal documents/identification/insurance information- you never know when you’ll need it
• Folders for new documents for you and baby- we had to fill out a lot of paperwork and came home with lots of documents for Hudson, so it’s good to have a place to keep up with all of that.
• Notebook and pen- for recording details about the birth story, baby’s height and weight, gifts you receive in the hospital, and most importantly, keeping up with the baby’s feeding and sleeping schedule in the hospital.
• Ponytail holders
• Headband
• iPod
• Pillow
• Boppy- this was helpful for when we had visitors who wanted to hold Hudson and after a long labor I was really weak, so I loved having the Boppy to support him while I fed him.
• Snacks- for you and for Daddy. I was in labor for 25 hours and TC never left my side. He loved having snacks. It was also nice to have some of my favorites for after the delivery when I could finally eat again!
• Phone charger
• Laptop- assuming you’re a blogger! hee hee!
• Laptop charger
• Camera
• Video camera
• Chargers for camera and video camera
• List of who to call after baby is born
• Going home outfit for baby
• Swaddling blankets- the hospital has their own swaddling blankets, but my favorite swaddling blanket is Swaddle Designs and I wanted to practice swaddling with that blanket in the hospital
• Diaper shirts for baby- the hospital where I delivered puts babies in the little paper shirts, so I brought the snap-on diaper shirts and gave them to the nursery for Hudson to wear so he could wear something softer
• Lovie for baby- I had been sleeping with the lovie for a couple of weeks before Hudson was born, and he kept it in the nursery when he was away from me.
• Pillow and blanket for Daddy (or whoever stays with you in the hospital room)- the hospital provides some stuff, but it’s hard to sleep when you’re hot or cold, so we brought extra just to be safe.

* I wasn’t allowed to wear my own, prettier version, of a hospital gown. I also wasn’t allowed to wear my rings or earrings. All hospitals are different, but those were the rules where I delivered Hudson.

*I brought Hudson’s baby book to the hospital for his birth and it really got in the way. I just ended up recording everything I needed to remember in the notebook and transferring it to the baby book when we got home.

Any of you moms want to add to the list?

We had a great weekend! It was pretty busy with family plans and the Super Bowl, but we crammed in some rest, too, because I really needed it!

1. TC’s parents took us to the circus on Friday night. It was a lot of fun! I wasn’t sure how Hudson would do or how long he would pay attention, but he did a pretty good job. We basically played “pass the baby” across all of our laps for the entire show because he needed a change of scenery to stay entertained.

He loved the elephants, the little ponies, and the tigers. He didn’t pay much attention to the trapeze artists or the tight rope walkers. He preferred the loud noise and lots of activity.

He was keeping a close eye on someone’s popcorn that was sitting near us, so we went to get him some popcorn and he also went home with an overpriced toy. But he loves it! And doesn’t every first circus experience need a souvenir? He had a great night!

2. I did a lot of reading this weekend. I finished up the first reading section of Ape House and finished our next section for Crazy Love. I’m loving both books so much!

The discussion questions for the first section of Ape House are posted on Book Beginnings and Bookends. I hope you’re reading along!

4. We went to a Super Bowl party last night for our Sunday school class and had a great time. I didn’t pay much attention to the game because I was too busy chatting and chasing Hudson around, but it’s always fun to be with friends. I took a fun little appetizer over for the party that I got from Samma‘s blog. It’s Kate’s recipe and Nina also made these for the Super Bowl. I knew if they were getting so much praise in the blogosphere, they’d be a hit. And they were! I was just calling them “sausage cups” for lack of a better name.

you can find the recipe here

5. Speaking of the Super Bowl, the one thing I paid any attention to was the National Anthem. It’s my favorite part. I usually don’t even care who’s playing in the game, but I always want to know who’s singing the National Anthem. It’s such an honor to sing such an important song.

But this year they picked Christina Aguilera? She typically has a powerful voice, but she never sings songs as they are written and adds endless amounts of runs to them. And runs can be very impressive, but in excess during the National Anthem? It’s a well-known melody! Make it recognizable, Christina. And worse than that, she couldn’t get the words right! I caught two instances where she messed up the words. You should know the words to that song like the back of your hand. One of those things that you don’t even have to think about. And if you don’t know the words? Just pre-record it or get a prompter! So embarrassing!

I’ll get down off my soap box now.

My all-time favorites are by The Dixie Chicks, Beyonce, Whitney Houston, and Faith Hill. I tried to embed them all from You Tube, but it didn’t work for some reason. So if you want to see some awesome Super Bowl performances, go look for those four!

6. Just for a laugh this morning, I thought I’d show a screen shot of an email from TC. I am not a Kenny Chesney fan and he knows that. I may be the only person on the planet that doesn’t like Kenny Chesney. So this was hilarious to me!

But if anyone wants to see Kenny Chesney in Columbia- there’s a presale opportunity!

So I loved my little opportunity to tell it like I see it in my “honestly…” post from a few days ago. I’m thinking I may need to end every week on that kind of note. I’m not so great with keeping up with days-of-the-week-blogging, but we’ll see how this goes.

1. It is cold. But. I have made a vow to myself never ever to complain about the cold because I really can’t stand the heat and I live in the South. The heat is gonna come every single year no matter what, so I’m just taking advantage of the fact that I can put on more clothes than I can take off!

2. I am mourning the loss of Lost. A year later. If I had a little bit more time on my hands I might break out my DVDs and watch from the first episode. Rachel, are you with me?

3. I made a casserole (Bow Tie Fiesta to be specific) stretch from Monday until today’s lunch. That’s a lot of casserole-eating. And I only ate one supper that wasn’t that casserole this week.

4. TC was gone a couple of nights this week because of work– and the back of his head was even on TV for a second. If he’d been at home, I promise we wouldn’t have eaten Bow Tie Fiesta for that many meals!

5. Budgeting is the most depressing thing on the planet. Especially when you’re saving for college for two kids. So much of our money goes to things that we will never ever touch. (And I know things like insurance and savings are immeasurably important.)

6. I could listen to the following songs on repeat every single day and never get tired of them:

• “Midnight Train to Georgia” by Gladys Knight and the Pipps
• “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” by Elton John
• “Second Hand News” by Fleetwood Mac
• “And So It Goes” by Billy Joel
• “S.O.S.” by ABBA
• “Cowboy Take Me Away” by The Dixie Chicks

7. You know what else is depressing? Cleaning out your closet and refusing to sell or donate the dresses you wore on your wedding weekend. But also knowing that you will never be a size 2 or 4 again. Excuse me while I go weep into my ice cream.

8. When discussing turning 30 in 2012 with a friend, we both decided that these late 20s and no doubt the early 30s will be so much better than the early and mid-20s were. Those were some fun years, for sure. But I wouldn’t trade where I am now for anything. And I have a feeling that every year that goes by and every little line on my forehead or around my eyes will be welcomed. Laughing is so much more fun than unnecessary drama and uncertainty.

9. I finished The Art of Racing in the Rain during one of Hudson’s naps this week. It’s a good thing I was home and my child was sleeping because the sobbing noises I was making would have frightened him for sure.

10. The worst SAHM days are when it’s freezing and rainy or snowy outside. Hudson wants to play outside or go somewhere so badly, and there’s just no where to go. So we’re getting creative with sticker books and baking. But I honestly wish I could just ask Boudreaux to keep an eye on Hudson for a minute while I go take a nap.

11. That last sentence is a joke.

12. I am stupidly tempted by anything in the stores that is red and pink. Valentine’s Day was made for suckers like me who just like to buy cute heart-shaped things that serve no purpose. A cute little bath mat at Target with hearts on it? Yep- made just for me. For me to enjoy for a couple of days and then beg someone to take it off my hands!

I’m such a bad giveaway host! I never announced the winner of the Southern Tots play case giveaway.

Congratulations to Kristin!

And it’s not too late to buy your own play case for the girl or boy in your life. They’re perfect Valentine’s Day gifts or Easter gifts. Click HERE to purchase!