What I didn’t find? Life hacks for the working veterinary mom. So here are my top 5 life hacks for the working veterinary parent (and yes, this applies to you dads, too.)

1 Don’t Unswaddle at Night

  I prepared as much as I could by reading all the parenting and baby books early. But there are some lies in the books that no one fills you in on—and I’ll share the two biggest right now. First, “skin to skin.” Really? You don’t think your baby is going to naturally bond to you? You don’t need to strip the baby out of his PJ’s and unswaddle at night while breastfeeding. That’s what I was doing; maximizing the skin to skin by unswaddling, breastfeeding, changing the diaper, and re–swaddling…and now I had a totally awake baby. After my sixth week of doing this, the teacher of my mom’s group yelled at our whole group of new moms. “NO,” she replied. “Slather a ton of baby diaper rash cream on, feed with the lights off, and let him sleep off the milk coma.” You don’t read that in any baby books!

2 It’s Ok to Introduce the Pacifier Before 30 Days

Ah, the pacifier. All the books say that babies get nipple confusion and not to give them a pacifier for one month. I learned all my mom friends had introduced a pacifier after day two…while in the hospital. I’m so rule–abiding, I waited for one month —but regret not starting sooner! All those long nights…why didn’t someone tell me it was ok to start earlier?!

3 Prepare as Much as You Can

At least one month before the baby was born, I pre–organized as much as I could. Ordered all the dog food in advance. Topped off all the supplies at home. Got my oil changed. Set up Amazon Prime Subscribe & Save. Stocked the pantry as much as possible. Put all my bills on auto–pay. Automate as much as you can, because you’ll seriously not have time to for the first few months…to years. For real.

4 Join A Mom’s Group

If you have one in your area, it’s worth joining a mom’s group. Typically, this is started around 5–6 weeks of age (for your newborn). I found this an amazing way of connecting with some women who I could text with emergency questions, general support, relationship venting (because the first 12 weeks are tough for you and your partner) and general advice. I ended up creating some strong relationships with a few of the moms, and their kids continue to be our playdates!

5 Learn to Let Go

The sooner you learn to let go of your expectations, the easier parenthood will be for you. Have low to no expectations for what you think you’ll be able to get done during maternity leave, and just enjoy the time. One of my “to–do” lists during week two, post–C–section? Feed the cat and fill the Q–tips. And keep the kid alive.

Being a working parent is tough, so hopefully these life hacks help. And when in doubt—get support—because parenting is hard! +

The post 5 Life Hacks for the Working Veterinary Parent appeared first on PetVet Magazine.

So, I wanted to share a few tips on how to be a more efficient veterinarian and mother. Find out what you really need to help you survive those toddler years. Here are the top 10 things that I found necessary to help me survive my toddler years as a busy working mom!

P.S. Wine, Netflix subscription, an uber–supportive spouse, a moms’ group, and a good reserve of babysitters or nanny not included in the list…

1. Bathtub Letters & Numbers 

These were the best gift I ever got for tub time. They keep my kid occupied during bath time, and it lets us practice how to say certain letters. They stick to the tub, your forehead and walls for lots of entertainment and bath time giggles.

2. Amazon Prime Now 

One weekend night, my husband was out ice fishing and I was all alone with a sick toddler…and we ran out of Children’s Tylenol. Seriously? I almost ran down the block to Walgreens, but I couldn’t leave the kid alone. And then I remembered: Amazon Prime NOW! I’d never used it. Does it work? Within 2 hours, 4 bottles of Children’s Tylenol and Children’s Motrin (plus 1 pint of Ben & Jerry’s) arrived, delivered to my door. Reasonable prices. Plus, easy to tip. And I wanted to weep with joy. Amazon Prime Now, you had me at “Hello.”

3. A Library Card

Support your local library! Mine has a story time twice a week, great toys to play with, and an incredible selection of board books to read and return.

4. Crayola Color Wonder Markers

Save your walls. These markers only work on special paper, which saves the rest of your books, magazines, journals, etc. Worth the gift!

5. Silicone Bibs 

These are great to catch all the food that your toddler doesn’t throw on the floor to your dog and cat. (To the “I’m–on–really–expensive–hypoallergenic–food” cat, at that.)

6. Litter-Robot: The Automatic Kitty Litter Box

You’re probably wondering what this has to do with having a toddler. Well, I have no time to do anything anymore, and the last thing I need is to stress out about having to scoop litter. I’m actually surprised how much this $500 splurge improved my QOL dramatically (along with my Roomba). Apparently one of my anal retentive stressors was making the house not reek of cat feces and kitty litter. And this thing has brought me so much joy. No scooping, ever. I dump the box every 7–10 days. And I can neurotically look at my app for the Open Air to make sure my cat doesn’t have FLUTD.

7. Magna–Tiles

OK, the textbook answer is that these “tactile, colorful translucent Magna-Tiles” are easy to use and let you create 3-D shapes that help with “patterning, shape recognition, building and motor skills.” The real reason? You can step on them in the middle of the night and they don’t drive you to a 4-out-of-4 Colorado Pain scale like stepping on a Lego!

8. Gerber ‘Lil Crunchies (aka, I–love–these–like–crack–cocaine–crunchies) 

I mean, what’s in these things? My kid purposely digs into the diaper bag and pantry closet to get these things out. I think they may contain some weird, addictive ingredient that this toxicologist hasn’t identified yet.

9. Boogie Wipes 

I hate the idea of paying money for saline-infused wipes just for boogers, but these really are so soft. And, as you will soon discover, toddlers snot constantly!

10. Cooking shears to cut up toddler–sized food! 

My husband makes fun of me for using scissors to cut up everything in the kitchen. I use these to cut noodles, PB&J sandwiches, blackberries, etc. into non–choking–sized-–bites for kids. Obviously, keep all sharp and dangerous things out of your kid’s reach. +

What hints or items are a MUST HAVE in your toddler house? Share!

The post 10 Must-Have Toddler Items for Every Working Mom appeared first on PetVet Magazine.