Hannah Morrison

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First Baby Shower + Registry Rundown

This past weekend was seriously one of the sweetest of my life. Celebrating Baby K with an absolutely Pinterest worthy shower hosted by my three best friends, mom, and God Mom made for such a sweet, happy tears filled mush-fest, and I loved every moment. It’s amazing having the same best friends since you were a pre-teen/teenager, because you literally do every single life moment together. The celebrations, the losses, the pivotal changes, and everything in between. I am the luckiest girl in the world. To be known and loved by three people like I am by them is the greatest gift.

I have been asked quite a bit what we registered for, where we registered, what we got, etc. Great news: I am doing a whole nursery reveal and rundown in November, but I also realize many of you are creating your own registries right now for your own upcoming showers, so I wanted to go ahead and start sharing what we’ve received and registered for to help you mommas to be out the best I can. Clearly, I haven’t used any of the items I have received yet, thus personal reviews of my favorite items will come after baby arrives. I registered for the things I have on my list through lots of review reading/friends who have kids advice. I hope it helps you and makes registering for things just a tad bit easier… because HOLY SMOKES it’s overwhelming! So many options for things I have NO CLUE what to do with.

Travel/Investment Items

  1. 4Moms mamaRoo Plush Infant Seat– This is your bouncer/swing (and whole lot more) all in one. With 5 settings, you get to pick what motion to set it to. The price tag feels hefty, but -again- it’s a few different items all in one and high-quality.
  2. Baby Jogger City Select LUX- The stroller abyss is a dark hole that feels bottomless with options, and you just really don’t know what the heckkkk you’re looking for. This one is AMAZING, though. High-quality, easy to breakdown and set-up for travel, easy to maneuver. The price point is a little high compared to other options, BUT it is setting you up for cheaper in the long run if you plan to have more than one kid. It’s made to add onto and move up in years with your growing family. There are tons of different attachments you can get to make it exactly what you want. (And, because of the quality, you can rest assured it actually will make it through kid 2 or 3.)
  3. city GO Infant Carseat– Listen, I didn’t know what in the world I am supposed to have or get until a very nice sales associate at Babies R Us walked my mom and I through every stage and necessity for baby. Like, I literally thought you buy a stroller and baby sits in it… no. Newborns have to have a different carrier and carseat that attaches to your stroller that they will eventually grow into… I KNOW. Mind.Blown. This one is the carrier that adapts with the City Select strollers. You can buy different brands, but you have to buy adapters specifically made to attach that brand of carrier to your brand of stroller. It’s easiest to stick within the same brands, but not impossible to mix and match!
  4. Graco 4Ever All-in-One Convertible Carseat- This seat is AMAZING. Again, slightly pricey, but your investing in something that will last you years. Literally, years. This seat is designed to grow with baby from infant to child. Rather than purchasing other seats as your child hits new milestones, this literally just expands with them for you. This doesn’t attach to your stroller, so you still have to buy the carrier (like the one I linked above) to take on walks in stroller/travel with in tote as a 0-3 infant. (Or longer depending on when they are able to sit more upright in the stroller.)
  5. Graco Bumper Jumper- Kind of stupidly excited about this one. It’s for when bubba is a little bigger, likely 5 months up or so, but it’s going to make entertaining baby while being a working momma from home a whole lot easier! It attaches to the door frame and they can bounce around, be upright and active while still seeing mommy and being “involved” (as opposed to laying in a bouncer or swing, which they will start to dislike during awake time because they’re more alert and want to see). I imagine packing orders, cooking, and getting ready in the bathroom with Baby K bouncing around in the doorway all the while.
  6. Fisher Price On-the-Go Baby Dome- This will be great for tummy time at home (the dome is removable), and for traveling with Bubba. I imagine him laying in this Wednesday nights for youth and Sunday mornings while I am in rehearsal on stage. He can lay on his tummy, play, and see everything going on with confined and protected in public spaces.
  7. Ingenuity FoldAway Rocking Bassinet- To be honest, I first wanted this just because it’s pretty and would go with my bedroom aesthetic… just being honest haha. But, the reviews match its look and we love it! It’s already sitting in our bedroom ready for sleepless (or by God’s grace, SLEEP FILLED) nights as a newborn sleeping by our bedside. It’s incredibly easy to fold up and carry, and will make traveling to grandma and grandpa’s house easy!
  8. DockATot- Everybody registers for them, but… they really do seem like an amazing investment! Our plan is to sleep train in the DockATot. We will swaddle Baby K, place in DockATot, and then place the DockATot in whatever sleeper he is in at that stage (bassinet, crib, etc.) This helps the transition to sleeping alone, in theory, easier because he is in a known confined space despite being in a different room or surrounding. We are aiming to not co-sleep, BUT if there are sleepless nights that Baby K isn’t letting us get a wink… I will do whatever it takes. The DockATot can sleep in between mom and dad in bed safely.

Feeding

I have been told so many opinions of brands for bottles and what not, and so I actually ended up registering for a couple from a few different brands to see what Baby K takes to best.

Comotomo

MAM

Tommee Tippee

Ingenuity Trio 3-in-1 Highchair– This highchair matches the gorgeous bassinet we got, and -like many of the things we are registered- it’s designed with the future in mind.

Boppy- These are great for laying baby on while feeding and then transition to help with tummy time and sitting up. I loved the print of this one!

 

Nursery Decor & Furniture 

When planning our decor, I literally could not come up with words for my “theme” I had in mind except for “zoo animals… but not like cartoony or obnoxious. Classy zoo animals.” I also was dead set on monochrome, creams & tans… Paul loves orange… so we had to find a middle ground. I really think we found the perfect balance of fun & colorful but soft and sweet.

Nursery Set- c/o DaVinci Baby (more to come in full nursery reveal)

Giraffe Painting- I am really sad, because paintings on white wood from Babies R Us that set the whole tone for our nursery are not on the site and I cannot find them ANYWHERE to link for you. But, this is a very similar idea. We are putting our giraffe and zebra painting above the crib as the focal point of the room.

(other safari animal paintings here)

Lion Throw- This was part of the orange vs. neutrals debate. As I mentioned, I wanted creams and beige. I was registered for the cutest sheep quilt and bedding, BUT alas, marriage is all about compromise and I wanted something Paul was excited about, too. So we debated all over the store about bedding that was way too cartoony vs. too monochrome. Then, almost in tears (me, not Paul), we were leaving and we walked by this and I said “THAT! Now that I can do.” We loved it and the rest was history haha.

Gold Foil Canvas Bins- I have so many canvas bins for storage in the room it’s outrageous haha. These are out on display, though, on top of the dresser. I am storing all things diaper changing in them, and all of his swaddles! Cute & organized is the name of the game for me.

Shag Rug

Dust Ruffle

Sheets

Curtains (light blocking!!!!)

Large Plush Giraffe

Lion Bookends

Changing Table

Shaggy Plush Animal Rocker

Roadster Skooter

Gold Hamper

Other

Baby Bather

Baby Tub

 

xoxo- Han

Photos by my talented cousin Kallie Cheves

Baby K’s middle name is my Mamma’s maiden name/daddy’s middle name. It’s a strong name from a strong woman I love so much!

Hey Hey, 3rd Trimester

My toes are disappearing, my belly has rounded out, my back is most certainly starting to ache, and tying my shoes is a task. It must be the third trimester, y’all!

It’s unbelievable how quickly pregnancy has flown by, and I am both anxious and thrilled the closer I get to my due date. The cooler the temperatures drop, the more my mind starts to wrap around the idea that this is all actually happening and that December is fast approaching.

So, how am I feeling and where are we on the whole “prepare for baby boy” thing?

Great question… we are REALLY behind. We have so far built a crib, almost finished one dresser, and failed to start the second dresser. KILLIN’ IT, you guys. Our entire set is from DaVinci Baby, which I will be showing more of here in the near future when I do our official nursery reveal! We need to paint the walls, add shiplap to one wall, and we have zero baby items other than some cute onesies and Solly Wraps. Being I am a very scheduled and timely person, it is both shocking and stressful to me that our nursery is nowhere near being done… haha. But, I know it will be (right, P Mor?) 😉 We have, however, as I mentioned last week picked out our stroller, carseats, and all that jazz. Which, I will say, has made me feel more prepared and educated on this whole baby thing. Before picking them out, I had no clue what I even am supposed to buy or what goes on what, or how to transport a baby.

We started our birthing classes last Monday, and those are every week for a few hours for the next 6 weeks. I am extremely happy with our decision to do this class, and highly suggest it for first time mommas. Especially so if you’re aiming for a non-medicated birth like I am doing. Paul and I go together, and they speak to a lot of questions that we both have. Paul will be trained as a coach how to help me through labor, and I am getting great advice for pushing through the contractions, how to achieve the type of birth I want, etc. It is scary, for sure, but also exciting.

We have our registry just about finished, which is great because all of our showers are coming up in October! We used Baby List for an easy-access, online universal registry. We also will have a Babies R Us registry for our people who would rather touch and pick out things in person.

How am I feeling? Well, I have gained 13 pounds so far from my pre-pregnancy weight, and I feel really good! We are 81 days to my due date which is NUTS, and I can feel the anxiousness that comes with that. But other than the third trimester aches and pains, and insomnia setting in (me and 3 AM have become good friends as of late), I am feeling pretty darn good.

xoxo- Han

Dress: Pink Blush

 

Tips from a Mom of Two

Well, it’s really hard to believe I am inching toward one year of Rory. He is actually, I am convinced, the easiest, sweetest baby on the planet. And with this milestone also comes one year of being a mommy to two. To be honest, I was really scared after the excitement of a second pregnancy died down and reality set in. I remember asking Paul on multiple occasions if he thought it was normal to feel jealous for your firstborn. Like, I genuinely felt jealousy for time with Knox and a gut wrenching feeling anytime I thought about having to share my heart with another baby. It felt impossible to even imagine let alone live out.

Momma, I am here to say the cliche… your heart just somehow really does multiply. You CAN do this. You CAN love more than one kid despite how utterly unreal and difficult to wrap your mind around it you may feel it is. So today, I wanted to give practical tips to those of you mothering two babies. Going on 11 months now, though far from perfect and lots more to learn, I feel I have figured out some basics that might encourage you if you find yourself pregnant or thinking about a second [or feeling currently overwhelmed with two!].

It’s okay to feel sentimental [and jealous] for time before baby is born with your firstborn.

I truly did feel a fiery jealousy in my belly as I would ache thinking about having to split my love between Knox and a new baby in our home. It hurt and genuinely made me sad. I cried a lot about it. The weirdest part was it was completely unrelated to the excitement I felt for Rory to be born. I felt a wild rollercoaster of emotions. And, well, turns out it’s fairly normal. I didn’t feel my pregnancy was fully real the second time around until I was in labor, because I tried so hard to just focus all I had on Knox. I soaked up every last possible thing I could with him – just us. It was a really special time and I am so grateful. COVID also made this time incredibly easy as we were in lockdown the final months of my pregnancy.

Preparations with Your Firstborn.

We included Knox in everything possible for Rory before he was born and talked about all the ways he would make a great big brother. Positive talk was the key to this big life change. We would talk about all the fun things brothers get to do together and would have Knox talk to us about the things he was excited for. Knox had ownership & security of his role in our family and as a brother before Rory was born, and I really think that helped us transition. There were random days/weeks over the last year I felt like Knox was being a little mean toward me, and I know it was from feeling frustrated about a baby. But, for the most part, the transition has been almost seamless *knock on wood*. After Rory was in the NICU for a week, it definitely made coming home over and over without baby confusing. But, the moment we got to bring Rory home and introduce Knox was so special and everything I dreamt it’d be. We let Knox show Rory to his room, holding onto the newborn carseat and helping daddy carry it to the nursery. From the second Rory arrived at our home, Knoxy got to be an important role to Rory.

Also, something I say often to Knox as our firstborn is that I get to be the mommy and tell Rory “no” so that Knox just gets to be the big brother. Already at a young age, I am trying my best to help him know he isn’t responsible for Rory or being held to an unrealistic standard of a “mini parent.” He just gets to be Rory’s brother, for fun and friendship, and nothing else. I say it so much to Knox that he is starting to be able to repeat it back to me or finish my sentence.

Take time alone with each one.

Often, Paul and I will split and conquer with intentionality. Knox loves himself a special daddy date, and likewise enjoys just some one on one mommy time out of the house. We also will take turns going out with just Rory to enjoy that intimate one on one time with him. I used to just stroll for hours with Knox in a Target with a coffee in hand, cooing and showing him things for the home he had no concept of, and I don’t want to miss out on that with Rory. Though it is so SO fun to go on adventures with both of my boys, I think making sure I set aside intimate time with them alone is so important even when Rory is so little. I feel just as bonded to Rory as I do to Knox, and I think that has taken intentionality to not just “survive” with two boys on my hip as I navigate my days.

YOU TIME.

It is what it is, I am a better mom when I get sleep, alone time, my nails done, and a good book in from time to time. Going to the nail salon twice a month is part of our budget – I need it. Telling Paul I need a car ride alone to listen to an Audible book with a fresh cup of coffee is medicine to my soul. Getting in a Peloton ride during nap time is vital to my well-being. It is so easy to put yourself on the back burner in motherhood, and especially as you add more babies to your home. But don’t. I am serious… don’t do it. Your spouse needs to be your number one accountability that you’re getting that to yourself, and visa versa. My number one tip to new mommies is ALWAYS do whatever you need to to feel like you again the quickest postpartum. I truly think this helps you be the best mom you can be and helps battle those baby blues. I also believe that truth remains solid throughout your entire motherhood journey long after those first 6 months or so. It’s true for every season of motherhood. Don’t lose YOU. Become a better you alongside the journey of motherhood. I am a better Hannah Marie-Cheves Morrison because of my sons, but I am still me.

Sibling Love Makes It ALL Worth It.

No, I am serious. Knox can make a toot noise with his hands and Rory dies. I try… and we have crickets. Knox is the funniest person in the room to Rory and I think it is absolutely perfect. It’s pure magic. I don’t know what fairy dust is sprinkled into their little hearts at birth that makes them feel such a sweet bond to their sibling, but dang it’s real. And it’s so sweet. It makes me mushy thinking about my own siblings. Surely we had that, too. I can only imagine we did and it makes my heart swell. Time and distance may make their lives or relationship change, but I think Rory and Knox [and all siblings for that matter] have some special fairy dust forever that bond their hearts.

You will miss the “cute” things like milestone blanket pics… it’s okay.

With Knox, all I had to focus on every day from sun up to sun down was… well, Knox. Now it’s a toddler and a 10 month old. I am just trying to make sure Knox doesn’t run outside without pants on while also making sure Rory isn’t putting his finger into a light socket. I had the milestone blanket pics up on IG on the right day with some magical caption to pair with Knox and I believe Rory has had… three? My love isn’t reflected for Rory in a milestone blanket picture or a grand gender reveal [which I intentionally did privately with my husband for baby #2] or designated highlights on my Instagram just to him, though. I want Rory to see I loved him intentionally every single day as his mom… that’s it. And though I wish I could have done all the things just as cute and beautifully as I did with Knox, the truth is… life changed and my time did, too. But my heart swells and runs over equally. So what I am saying is… forget whatever guilt you might have for not “keeping up” with this one and go smooch them on the lips and spend time with them. It’s better anyways.

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