New mom, Lindsey Holt talks about how her life has changed since bringing her tiny baby home! Plus, advice on newborn photo sessions, healthy snack ideas and the #1 thing that keeps her baby happy. (most of the time)
Name: Lindsey Holt
Occupation: Executive Recruiter
Kid: Wyatt, 2 months old
HFM: You are a new mom… how does it feel?
LH: My husband and I got a bit of a late start at parenting, having just had our little boy at 34. In some ways, my transition to motherhood has been easy, while in other ways I’ve found giving up my old carefree life a bit difficult. I spent my twenties doing exactly what I wanted to do – gaining two masters degrees and working abroad for several years. When I married my husband at 33, I felt completely ready to settle down and start a family last year. Now that I’ve had Wyatt for the past two months, I’ve felt restless at times – I certainly miss my former freedom to just grab my bag and keys and go wherever I want, whenever I want. Generally, however, I don’t feel like I’m missing out on very much and I’m really enjoying learning how to be a mother every day! I love watching him grow and his little personality blossom each day – he’s also been a pretty easy baby, which has made motherhood a lot easier! Some days I look at him and I’m shocked that I created this beautiful little creature – it’s fairly surreal and magical to me still. I’ve also fallen even more in love with my husband, watching him interact with Wyatt and creating their bond by helping with feeding every night so that I can get a solid 5-6 hours of sleep!
HFM: Do you have any tips or tricks that have helped you so far?
LH: When Wyatt is beyond fussy and inconsolable, my husband and/or I will take him outside and walk him around the trees and bushes, talking to him about what the forest and all the critters. Wyatt loves this and will calm down most of the time. When all else fails, we take a car ride 🙂
HFM: What have you found to be your favorite “go-to” item so far for the baby?
LH: My favorite go-to item for Wyatt is the boob – I normally feed him expressed milk through a bottle, but when he’s really needy, I’ll breastfeed him in our darkened bedroom with the white noise maker going beside us.
HFM: What has surprised you most about being a mom?
LH: The thing that’s most surprised me about being a mom is the amount of time it takes me to get out the door now with a baby in tow. It’s kind of ridiculous how much gear is required by such a tiny little person!
HFM: What advice would you give to a new mother?
LH: The one piece of advice I would give a new mother is (if they are open to the idea) to get a great breast pump and let your husband take the first feed of the night after the first couple of weeks that you are feeding on demand to establish your supply. By day 10 I was exhausted and incapable of continuing without a solid block of sleep at night, so I would pump all day so that I could get at least an extra feed’s worth into a bottle. I go to bed when Wyatt does and then Matt takes the first feed so I have been getting at last 4, usually 5 or 6 hours of straight sleep nightly for the past 6 weeks and it’s made me a much better, happier mother!
HFM: You had newborn photography done, as do a lot of moms, any tips for getting great shots out of the session?
LH: We had our newborn photography done by Lauren DeFrehn, who came over on our second day home from the hospital. She had us raise our thermostat to 80 degrees so that Wyatt would be calmer and nap for most of the session. It worked great and he was so calm and cute in all of the shots! For the mamas, I would recommend having a maxi dress ready for the session – I felt so bloated and gross, it was nice to have a long flattering dress on to hide my bloat.
HFM: What is your go-to meal when juggling everything during the day?
LH: My go-to meal during the day with Wyatt napping/waking/partying/eating is the same now as it always has been – I do lunch meat, cheese, hummus and corn tortilla rollups zapped in the toaster oven for a couple minutes. I also eat a lot of Larabars and Kind bars and spoons of peanut butter.
