sleep tips & soothing relief from st. joseph’s {giveaway}

Some days it seems like a blur and others it seems like an eternity has passed since Braylen was born. I may have forgotten some of the details in between (which is why I’m thankful to have this blog), I may have forgotten some of the sleepless nights, but I may never forget the overwhelming feeling that being a new mom brings. Don’t get me wrong, I was overjoyed, over the moon happy when I first laid eyes on her in that hospital room. I was in love, in a love like I had never felt before.

 

However, I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you that I also felt clueless when it came to raising a child. How in the world could I protect this tiny little girl from everything and everyone? How would I know all the right things to do? I don’t think any parenting class in the world can prepare for you for the mix of emotions that floods you when you step outside that hospital door for the first time, with your first child.

Thankfully, those feelings subsided as I realized that a mothers instinct kicks in faster than anything else I’ve ever experienced. Soon, I was a pro (or so it seemed to me), I could change the diaper of a sleeping baby without even waking her up. I could make a bottle in the wee hours of the morning while soothing a hungry infant. I learned her cries and figured out just what she needed.

Those first few days and even weeks were tough, but they were some of the sweetest days of my life. Those first few weeks were important to me. I knew I wanted her to be on a schedule, I had read books about sleep training before she was born. Thankfully, the key to getting Braylen to sleep through the night was simple; she wanted to be swaddled. Allen and I both learned to swaddle like a pro, we would wrap her up snugly and she would sleep for hours. It was my saving grace. And soon she big enough for swaddle blankets and zip-up swaddles. Then on to sleep sacks and eventually transitioning completely away from anything that resembled a swaddle. From that day on, every friend that becomes a new mom gets a swaddling blanket and a note from me that shares our sleeping success story.

As she grew and the new mom fears subsided I also learned tips and tricks that helped to calm her when she was upset. One common problem in infants is gas, when their little tummies are upset no amount of swaddling or rocking can calm them like gas drops. I want to introduce St. Joseph Infants’ Gas Relief drops to you. They work quickly to break down gas bubbles that cause discomfort and when your infant is in pain, you want something that works as quickly as possible. Rest assured, these drops are safe to use at every feeding, and are free of any dyes, alcohol or saccharin. That’s refreshing for any new mom.

You can follow this link to print a $3.00 coupon.

Tell me, What is your #1 Tip for a new mom? Answer this question in the comment section below for a chance to win 3 packages of St. Joseph Infants’ Gas Relief Drops. That’s one for you and two to share with friends!

Sweepstakes Rules
No duplicate comments.

You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

1. Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
2. Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
3. Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
4. For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here.

This sweepstakes runs from 2/6-2/28.

Be sure to visit the sponsor’s on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!