Great News For Moms, Babes & Biz In The 'Ham!

Way to go Bham!

Time For A New One?

If you're needing a new nursing bra, here's a great opportunity to get a great one for yourself while donating some money to a great cause!

I love Bravado! bras and love Dr. Jack Newman so this charitable effort is very worth my involvement.

Sesame Street

An online friend posted this gem today...

My Story

In conclusion of World Breastfeeding Week, I thought I'd share a brief version of my breastfeeding story.

In 1996, when Ray was born, I had no idea there would even be such a thing as a breastfeeding story. Back in the day, I was left to rely on the small world of office birth and parenting stories and had very little input from friends. In fact, I really was just going through the normal course of doctor appointments, childbirth classes, and the one-hour breastfeeding class held at the hospital. I wasn't reading any books about breastfeeding because I was still in college and spent my spare time preparing for natural childbirth with the ONE (yes ONE) childbirth book someone had loaned to me. So I really just wasn't very prepared for breastfeeding and I guess I just assumed it would happen normally and easily.

And it did happen pretty well. But when I look back on how it started, it's really a true blessing that we had any success at all. I was very much a closet nurser and did lots of soothing with a paci. I remember being frustrated with those nights when Ray would cry after being put back in her crib or when she seemed to want to nurse again before 2 or 3 hours had passed. But somehow, we made it.

Until she was 9 days old that is! WOULD YOU BELIEVE I LEFT HER FOR AN ENTIRE EVENING SO THAT HENRY AND I COULD ATTEND A GARTH BROOKS CONCERT IN BIRMINGHAM?!? What was I thinking? (I am sooooooo sorry, Ray!) I know she didn't have very much milk expressed for her in a bottle because I wasn't making very much "extra" with pumping. She cried a bunch while we were gone. And I will NEVER forget feeling that music in my full boobs! When the concert was over, I could NOT get home fast enough. I was such a dummy....

At 3 months old, I was starting the weaning process because I knew I'd be returning to work. I tried pumping to supply her needs but the job I ended up having was NOT pump-friendly and by 4 months, I was having to supplement with formula. It only took a couple of days before she wanted nothing to do with nursing and was a full-time formula-fed baby. She got her first ear infection (that never really went away for a year) that first week off of breastmilk.

Fast-forward to Indie. Because of Ray's massive ear infections, I was determined to nurse Indie for longer. I was confident the formula made her sick and I did NOT want to experience that same pitiful baby stuff again. So I swore I'd stick it out.

But it was HARD! I remember wanting to quit at around 6 weeks old but Henry sat with us while I was crying and said, "What can we do? You know you'll regret quitting. What can help? Don't give up yet. Let's figure this out."

So I found some breastfeeding books, read them cover-to-cover, and did every step-by-step instruction in them. And, thank God, things got better. But in hindsight, I realize I probably had a pretty massive breast yeast infection because things never really got perfect with her, just better.

So we worked through all the stages the pediatrician says you're supposed to do...cereal, apple juice, jarred baby food, etc. And around 6 months of age, I felt accomplished and even wrote in my journal, "it was time to wean." Besides 6 months just being the "goal" I also knew we had a Disney World trip planned for the time Indie was 7 months old and I'd surely be insane to be breastfeeding while on vacation! OH HOW I WISH I HAD KNOWN BETTER! The hassle of carrying around bottles of good water and powdered formula was such a PAIN! Breastfeeding would have been a MILLION times easier!

Skip ahead again to Rocky. By the time I was pregnant with him, I was bound and determined to nurse for at least a year. I was into doula-ing by that time and made all kinds of new friends in the natural childbirth world. I was on the internet by that time and found a huge new world to research and interact with. I was finally being changed in the way I thought about things, and boy was it different.

And in all honesty, I don't remember too very much about Rocky's first months. I know it was horribly depressing and hard and that it was only by a mix of committment and laziness that I pushed through those first few months. We had yeast/thrush SO BADLY and I was struggling with post-partum depression in a pretty big way. I remember the agonizing pain of every nursing and the pitiful cries Rocky made as his rock-hard stomach struggled to deal with the massive buildup of gas in his gut. I remember being laid out on the couch while Henry took Rocky outside to calm him. When he couldn't walk with him any more, I'd lay down with him and be miserable in pain as Rocky desperately wanted the comfort of nursing but was painfully unable to latch for long. It was rough.

But when he was 9 months old, my desperation and Henry's prayers brought us to a new understanding of health and nutrition and within a few months, our lives were radically changed! We slowly conquered the yeast problems and our household was sane again! It was by Rocky's 1 year old birthday party that I realized this healthy-living stuff really worked and that I was gonna stick with this breastfeeding for as long as we both wanted because it was working for us in a really big way! I also had a bit of guilt-related stuff going on that drove me to attempt making up for lost time. Mix all of this with a Maya Wrap and we became a crunchy, attachment parenting family without really even trying!

Rocky happily nursed into the first trimester of He-Man's pregnancy. I don't know if hormones made for a taste or supply change but something made him ready to stop. His very last nursing was at the movie theater when we went to see the Jonah Veggie Tales movie. I distinctly remember him saying, "I'm allllll done, Momma." And that was that.

He-Man got the (I'd like to say...) advantage of me being older, wiser, more experienced, and MUCH crunchier than ever before. By the time he was born, there was no question that he'd be 100% breastfed for as long as we both were happy with it and I fully expected that to be at least 2 years. And I was right. It was at least 2 years. It was ALMOST 3 years! But another Disney trip played a part in weaning. By the time He-Man was nearing his 3rd birthday in March, we went to Disney the December before and his nursing was down to pretty much just naps and bedtime. Well, at Disney World, exhaustion was the only thing needed to get a child to sleep. There was absolutely no need for "mik." So with a few, "I think I like to nurse" sessions after our trip. He-Man decided it was done.

And I thought that was it forever.

And now we're to Captain and things couldn't be better. I can't believe I'm blessed enough to be doing this again. And time is going by much faster than it ever has before. I REALLY can't believe it's time to let him start experimenting with solids! I mean the kid's gonna be 6 months old next week!! We've already let him gnaw on a hard-baked dinner roll but I'm sad about the fact that I need to start considering some other foods we can let him play with.

So, you can see that breastfeeding has been a big journey for us. I certainly didn't start out as a passionate, some say millitant, breastfeeding Mom but with the blessings we've seen and the health improvements we've received, and the bonding that's occurred, I can't help but want to encourage other Moms to reach for the same thing. It's MORE than worth the effort. It's really just an amazing way to love and be loved.

Hope you've all had a wonderful Breastfeeding Week!

Happy Anniversary LLL!

Thank you for 50 Wonderful Years, La Leche League! The reaches of your organization are immeasureable!

Here's the LLL story from the women who started it all...

A Beautiful Way To Do A Beautiful Thing

PLEASE don't think you have to be a public nurser to breastfeed successfully. I have to say that being able to nurse discreetly in public is awesome because you can often calm a fussy/squirmy baby without anyone having a clue what's going on. I know, however, that the "discreet" part of nursing is sometimes difficult and often requires lots of attempts, patience, and practice.

So, for those who prefer a little assurance that their 'bidness' is kept private, these HOOTER HIDERS (aka Nursing Covers) might be just the thing for you! The fabrics are GORGEOUS!!!

(Gotta give source kudos to Lactation Consultant Extraordinaire, Amy Spangler, for her site www.babygooroo.com. It's a new favorite I stumbled upon this week.)

Happy Breastfeeding Week!

Did You Know You Can Breastfeed With A Nipple Piercing?

Not that I will ever speak from experience on that one but it's one of the issues mentioned on the "Is This Safe When Breastfeeding?" page.

Happy Breastfeeding Week!

Breastfeeding - A Blessing & A Right!

Tonight, 5 teenagers got their giggles from realizing that I was nursing Captain at Chick-Fil-A. They weren't ugly about it but when the first one noticed and nodded towards us to tell his friends to look at us, their previously loud table got VERY quiet. Then there was lots of whispering. I think they tried to hide the fact that they were staring by changing the subject, which I thought was nice enough. They could have gone on and on about it but they apparently didn't want me to know they had seen us.

I really wish it wasn't such an odd thing for people to see a baby eating at Mom's Diner! Breastfeeding is something that should be seen happening more often than not...

At least no one has ever made a fuss about it with us. Many Moms, sadly, can't say that. There are lots of places that have caused a ruckus over a nursing mother. I guess our day of confrontation could be ahead of us but hopefully we won't ever have to educate anyone of our breastfeeding rights in a controversial manner.

In case you're wondering, here's some info about Breastfeeding Laws for each state.



Happy Breastfeeding Week!

I <3 NY's New Gift Bags!

Go NYC!

New York City’s public hospital system announced this morning that it is no longer supplying free baby-formula samples in the gift bags it provides to new mothers.

Happy World Breastfeeding Week!

Happy World Breastfeeding Week!!!

World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action says breastfeeding within the first hour of birth ensures child survival. "Women have a right to this knowledge and to receive the support they need to initiate breastfeeding," the WABA statement adds.

Look How Easy It Can Be!

World Breastfeeding Week coming up August 1-7!

In India, Breastfeeding Crawl Initiative is saving lives!
http://breastcrawl.org/video.htm

Keys to Ease: Unmedicated labor/birth & Immediate/within half-hour Skin-to-Skin opportunity. From same site : Ten Steps To Success

No Solids Yet

It won't be long before Captain is chowing down some big boy food but for now, it's still just Momma's milk.

This will be baby #3 that we've waited for self-feeding and so far, it's worked very well. Both Rocky & He-Man were around 7 or 8 months old before they ate any type of solids. With Rocky, we just really wanted to make sure his little tummy was ready since he had dealt with so many pains of colic. We didn't worry a bit about his slow take to table food. He was nearly 9 months old before he was eating much of anything from the table but every bite that went into his mouth was put there by himself. He had a mouthful of teeth by that time (which might be why he was slow to take the food - his mouth was too busy growing teeth to learn how to eat!) and really was a great eater once he got going.

So now we're doing the same waiting with Captain. He's showing some interest in food (because he's often sitting in my lap during meal times) but we're not offering him anything until he can sit in a high chair (which will be any day now) and when he has a tooth or two (also right around the corner.) I think this will probably start happening sometime around his 6 or 7 month birthday.

This kind of info has been taught at La Leche League meetings for years but non-crunchy Moms often don't get the opportunity to hear it. So here's my part of sharing the news.

Babies should be breastfed exclusively for the first six months of life and should totally skip pureed baby food and go straight to baby-friendly, hand-held solids.

Continuing Penn State Info

Since I already posted one bit of information about Penn State's breastfeeding advocacy, I thought I'd go ahead and post this second article to showcase what a great job they are doing! I figure it might help their google ranking :)

Go Penn State!

Yeah, it's an odd thing for this Bama fan to praise the Nittany Lions but I'm cheering for their research department to reach people about the importance of breastfeeding. Here's an article with a reminder of some of the merits of breastfeeding and some ponderings as to why so few American women are choosing not to take advantage of these health benefits.

The Second 9 Months Of Pregnancy

I have begun early thoughts and prep for the first 9 months of our new babe's life (also known by AP parents as the 2nd 9 months of pregnancy). It will be nice to be a nursing mom again!

I have a friend who has offered to barter custom-made nursing clothes for Manna products! A deal I can't refuse! This same friend also sent me this cute little song.

For your enjoyment:
"SEE OUR BREASTS" (sing to the tune of "Be Our Guest," from Beauty and the Beast)

See our breasts,see our breasts-
Everywhere, half-naked chests.
While we nurse,
The prudish curse
And wish we'd button up our vests.

Sorry,folks,look away
If we're too de'collete',
But this is what boobs are made for,
Not those Wonderbras you've paid for.

We refuse to go feed
Hunched in bathroom stalls-indeed,
We're appalled that you would make such rude requests.
Would you agree to eat
Upon a toilet seat?

See our breasts, see our breasts,free our breasts!

They Never Cease

My children amaze me all the time.

Rocky came running inside, "Daddy, Momma! We need a bowl for Ray to put the lizard in!"

Yes, my darling, sweet little Ray is a lizard-wrangler.

The big kids are on the porch right now building an ecosystem for their new creature. Poor fella. Hope he's had a good life because it's likely to end today.

And speaking of kids....

Teething has become a nuisance again. He-Man had a really nice stretch of just enjoying his mouthful of biters but now he's growing 2 more. This causes him to want to nurse alllll the time. He wakes crying if he's detatched but if he's latched on, he's fine for the course of the evening.

And during the day, all he wants to do is sit in my lap and nurse. He'll have stretches of wanting to get down and play but many times he wants to nurse for just a little bit. The precious thing is that he is very appreciative. Yesterday evening we were outside enjoying this gorgeous weather and he needed to stop playing to nurse a little while. When he was done he covered me up and said, "Done. Thank you, Momma" and then gave a wonderful little grin over his shoulder as he walked away.

Lord, please help me remember THAT instead of the seemingly constant nagging. Lord, also help me remember that these days are so short and that it won't be long before he's running away from me to catch lizards and chase girls.

Lord, I also pray for a really great sale on digital cameras the weekend of October 29 so Henry can finally go get his birthday gift for us all to enjoy :)