With baby three arriving any time now, I’ve been thinking a lot about what essentials I want to have out and ready to make the transition to three (!!!) babies easier. There are a few things I’ve used with baby boy 1 and baby boy 2 that I will for sure use again with my third. We haven’t bought much (anything?) new, and I think this third time around it’s really easier to narrow down exactly what we need to take out of storage and what can stay away. Here’s what I’ve come up with so far for my top essentials for baby number three –
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Turning Two and Starting School
Already a week into September, and got through some of our major milestones! I can’t believe we are in (what is most likely) New Baby Month. I haven’t even had a chance to truly process birthing for a third time, as I have been mentally preparing for having a two year old and a child in school! Now that the first week of September is behind us, I can begin to slow down, and hopefully go full nesting mode in prep for B3. Before we get too far ahead, I wanted to recap our August outdoor time! We had our best month yet, at 99 hours outside.
We have already hit out 500 hours this first week into September. I had no real goals, except to see how close we could make it to 1k. I plan on continuing to track into next year, so at least I will have a year of data to compare. I’m grateful that BB1’s school schedule allows them 2 hours of outside time a day, regardless of weather, so its easy for us to rack up another hour at home, especially since it takes us a good 10 minutes to walk to the bus stop. (It’s very close, I am just very slow). Speaking OF –
Making the Big Boy Bed Transition
We decided to transfer BB2 to a Big Boy Bed, even though he isn’t yet two. He isn’t climbing out of the crib or anything, in fact he isn’t even sleeping in the crib at all. With so much change and disruption during his little life, I never got him in an established schedule, and much like BB1, he didn’t turn out to be a big crib fan.
Making the Big Boy Bed Transition
The transition to “Big Boy Bed” for BB1 came when we moved. New house, new bed. The transition was rough, but I attribute it to the move in general, and not necessarily the bed. But in the case of both boys, the transition really comes from not wanting to buy another crib, and not necessarily any other reason. With B3 coming soon, we thought BB2 should get on with the transition sooner rather than later.
Third Trimester Woes Barbie
Didn’t they discontinue the pregnant Barbie?
Ah, the trifecta of third trimester pregnancy symptoms: restless legs, insomnia, and heartburn. Combine these into a with life with two toddlers and you’ve got a recipe for an exciting time! Been trying to keep my caffeine intake down, and thankfully Matt only worked mornings last week so I have been able to nap, but knowing I still have (fingers crossed at LEAST) four weeks left.. is an exhausting thought it itself. BB2 is still having nighttime sleep troubles, and what used to work – co-sleeping – is becoming harder and harder for me. I remember this happening at this stage with BB1. Eventually it somehow works itself all out but I know the transition for everyone will be tough.
Anyway, we had a great end of the week last week. We impulse bought the kids a swing set / slide and although the purchase hurt initially, it’s already paid for itself in joy for the kids and a bit of relaxation for us. We are spending tons of time outside, racing down the slide and swinging on the swings.
Tackling Outside Time with Toddlers: 1000 Hours Outside Challenge
As if my daily life of raising two toddlers 3 & under while pregnant with a third isn’t challenging enough, I also decided to take it upon myself to attain a nearly impossible goal of spending as much time outside as possible – specifically: spend 1000 hours outside in a single calendar year. This was prompted by the 1000 Hours Outside Instagram page, which I learned about from my sister-in-law. The idea is that you balance screen time with outdoor time. According to the 1000 Hours Outside website, the average American child spends 1,200 hours in front of a screen. That’s over 3 hours a day. Comparitvely, kids spend only 4-7 minutes playing outside a day. Now, we aren’t a screen free family, but I will admit that I fear that some of the wonder of childhood can get lost between all the screens we have access to. This topic is probably almost as dividing as sleep training, and not an issue I wish to debate with other parents. I think we all do what works for us and try to do what’s best for our child(ren). But I personally love the outdoors, and find my children are better behaved outside (and I worry less about messes, things breaking, etc) and want to raise the boys with the same love for camping, hiking, and general exploring that my partner and I have. So, I took upon this rather challenging goal.
