On location with Jess and James, part 2.
Jess and James recently welcomed their new baby girl, Rocket, into their adventurous life. They traveled to Mexico on their boat and had Rocket at a birth center in Guadalajara. Now they’re gearing up for a quick trip to visit family in Canada, which means little miss Rocket needs her first passport.
Jess has been filling us in with the itty bitty details of life with a new baby: little obstacles, little milestones and a whole lot of change.
The weight of a name.
Deciding on the name for your baby is possibly the first major decision you have as a parent. Very few parents opt for the “meh, we’ll figure it out in a few years” approach. It’s time-sensitive, personal, and can come packed with emotions. A name is the forward-facing identifier that this human being will have for her whole life. Jess and James chose the name Rocket Amélie for their baby girl, a name that sung to them, yet they were met with some heart-wrenching reactions from some family members.
What do you do as a parent when you make a decision for your child and you don’t feel supported by friends and family?
“All is good with the family though. Both our mums are still a bit unsure about the name, but that’s been totally outweighed by the amazing response we’ve had from extended family and friends saying how much they love it. Rocket is now making happy bleating noises, as she’s definitely fond of her name.”
And a cool name comes with some cool personalized gear …
We learn together.
Jess sent us an email with the subject line “g is for guilty!”. She told us about some of the milestones and celebrations she’s discovered thus far as a new mama (one-handed eating while feeding Rocket at the same time, sleeping in short bursts, adapting, evolving, etc.). But then she got to the “guilty” part and admitted she’d realized she’d made. She had thought that the gPants weren’t yet fitting Rocket, and so had continued to use the newborn disposable diapers they had. But then she realized she had been putting Rocket in the wrong size gPants! I had to laugh and ask if we could share her experience here. This is perfect! We asked for 100% honesty. Mistakes are great! What are mistakes, after all? They’re opportunities! Right? Right!
“You see, I made the mistake of assuming that the 12 little pants that had all the g words on them were the same as the two loose ones in our newborn bundle and happily put Rocket into one of these for our first proper experiment (with gDiapers).”
Jess brought up a valid point. Our newborn gPants (fitting babies 6-10lbs) are white fabric with gWords on them. Also included in the newborn bundle are 2 size small gPants (8-14lbs) that are covered in the same white, gWord print.
If this was a confusing stumbling point for Jess, we had to wonder if it has been confusing for others as well. Definitely something for us as a company to consider. Jess had used the small gPant on Rocket who was still only 6.3lbs, when she would have still needed the newborn size, which is specifically designed for the newborn shape. It snaps down in the front for the umbilical cord and has adjustable legs to accommodate little legs that like to curl up. Without a proper fit in the size small, there were leaks. Leaks of the poopy kind, no less. Jess is now on the right track with the right fit using the newborn gPants and the poopy mess has been contained. No guilt necessary. We’re learning as we go. All of us.
“We’ve done some changes on the go. Rocket’s cold has resulted in some pretty runny poo so there’s been a bit of leaking over into the shell by one leg hole but nothing leaking out of the pant. And we are at least smart enough to bring spare pants out with us
So we’re pleased with the results.
Her cord fell off after day 5 but the fit of the x-smalls (newborn size) are actually great for her as it’s quite common for her to have a big distended belly. The g’s are looking much more comfy for her than the disposables we had used (Huggies) when she has this big belly, but still being tight enough to stop leaks. So happy campers here. In fact, we went out and bought a t-shirt to use with the gPants, rather than the onesies we have with us, as we love the feel of the new pants on her and want to show them off.
So what’s next? When will Jess, James and Rocket resume their life at sea? Soon! But first they’re taking Rocket on her first plane ride up to Canada to visit family. It’s gDiapers by land, sea and sky.
Visit the other stories in our On Location series on our blog and check out more updates and pictures from Jess and James on their website.
0 comments