Happy Holidays!

In case you have not noticed, posting is a little slow! I have decided that this year I was going to be very frugal and make most of my Christmas Gifts, which has kept me quite busy. (As part of the Holiday Spirit- this post is being brought to you in the color RED!)

I just wanted to pass along a thought and let you know that posting will resume a more normal frequency after the holidays.

Often times, during the holidays- be it Christmas, New Years, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Yule- we end up in this fast pace hyper drive. We are on the go constantly, shopping, baking, party going, the list never ends. So, two thoughts (yep- I said one before...I guess you get a BONUS thought today!)

Thought One~ I read a post somewhere about unexpected Holiday Weaning....I thought I would just touch on that. In the hustle and bustle it is easy to go to a bottle of formula, skip a nursing session, push the solids, etc and in doing so begin the weaning process much earlier than we ever intended. So, please be aware of your nursing "schedule."

Thought Two- the original thought- goes along with thought one~ Take the fact that you are a breastfeeding mother, or even just a mother (if your children are already weaned), to slow down. Enjoy a nursing session, reading a book together, sitting and playing a game, anything...just slow down. Don't let these moments get lost while trying to finish the to-do-list that appears never ending. Breastfeeding is the perfect reason to just take a breather- let the world slow down for a minute- or twenty- and enjoy some precious time with your child(ren).

No Matter what holdiay you may be celebrating- Happy Holidays! May you take this time to enjoy family, friends, community, reflect on your blessings, and look forward to the New Year!

Becca

Extended Breastfeeding Views

HERE is a story about how extended breastfeeding is viewed by people/media. Granted, I personally can not see myself nursing a 6 year old...but this lady is not a freak. She only nurses her son 1-2 times a day and it is only because he asked for it when he saw his younger sibling nursing.
In western culture we somehow think that children suddenly see the breasts as sexual. Our culture puts the breasts as sexual first and food sources second, the opposite way most the world does. Not only do we scoff at anyone who chooses to nurse past a year or 18 months, but we think nursing in public is dirty and want to banish nursing mothers and babies to dirty bathrooms. Our cultural views towards breastfeeding need to change in order for change to begin. After our views are changed, then education and support need to improve and then we will hopefully see an improvement in the success rates of breastfeeding.
In many countries it is normal to breastfeed to 3 years and beyond.
What are your thoughts?
This came perfectly to fit in with our how old is too old posts.

I Never Imagined

This is not really about breastfeeding, well, not completely....

I just was thinking, I never imagined in my wildest dreams that this is the kind of parent I would be. I was sure that while my son would sleep in our room (in a bassinet) he would be moved to his crib around 6 months. I would breastfeed exclusively, but I was not going to be that supper crazy breastfeeding advocate. I was going to wear my baby, but the stroller would get more use than any carrier. I was sure I would go the normal route of rice cereal, oatmeal, veggies, fruits, etc with the purees before adding any table foods.
Well, I have found I am the super crazy breastfeeding supporter, I LOVE wearing my baby (as does Hubby) and hardly use the stroller, I am basically skipping purees and going the Baby Led Weaning route (not weaning from nursing- a form of starting solids), I combo feed- though not by choice, and mostly, I NEVER EVER imagined we would co-sleep and we do! While I don't see it continuing into toddler hood (unless we invest in a king size bed) we found the best thing for our family was to bring our son to bed with us. He is a super alert baby and has always hated sleeping, so the only thing that kept us sane was going the co-sleeping route.
Here is a picture of Lil Man enjoying some play time on the bed after we changed the linens. Such a precious moment that I can't imagine going a different route with him. While we may not take this route with future children, this is what was best for Lil Man, and us.

A Whole New Meaning

This holiday season I have found that all the Christmas songs about Christ have a whole new meaning. "Mary Did You Know" puts me in tears. Any song that addresses Mary or Joseph holding the baby Jesus and just wanting to think of Him as theirs and not worry about what will happen to him makes me sob. Especially if I am holding my son.

The other night, my teething son was fussy at bed time so as I held and nursed him I sang "Silent Night" to him. Suddenly, my eyes watered up and this thought occurred~ I bet Mary had nights where she was up nursing baby Jesus, rocking him to sleep and singing to him.

Isn't it crazy how differently you see everything when you become a mother?

Nursing and Travel

Hey all! Back from vacation! It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed the warm weather in San Antonio, TX this last week. I am home and adjusting to a 70 degree change in weather.

This trip made me realize just how much I wish I was able to exclusively breastfeed. While I didn't have to worry about taking prepared formula through security as I knew I would be able to just nurse during the flight, I had to travel with bottles, formula, and my pump. It took up a lot of extra space.

I wish, that as we had planned each days activity, I would not have had to plan on if I would need formula with me. If only my biggest concern was making sure my clothing was nursing accessible and that I had a cover in the bag.....

But, I am grateful that I was able to often not even use the formula and bottle with water in it that I brought along. I am thankful that I had a wonderful friend, who nursed 5 children, who was a support and would take Lil Man so I could go pump.

I am grateful that, for the most part, I am able to take this perfect food with me and feed my son so easily on the go. That during the flights, when he got a little anxious, I was able to calm him without having to prepare a bottle.

I hope that the next time I travel with an infant I will not need the bottles and formula I had to take this time. But I am so grateful that I was able to pack minimal amount of these items this time. I am grateful to be home and hopefully settle back into more of a routine.

Here is a picture my friend captured of me nursing Lil Man in La Valitta. I love how under the cover I can tell that his hand is straight up in the air (this is his new thing).

Becca

What A Pain!!!!

I never would have thought this would happen to me. As someone with low supply, I never imagined it. Yet, as I lay on the couch the other night, shivering, cold sweats, and a fever- wondering if I was going to vomit....I thought to myself "Could it really be?". I had just nursed Lil Man and had found myself in tears.

The next day, I already had a meeting set up with the LC at the local hospital for something we are working on together. When I went in, still feeling ill, I asked her what she thought. She agreed....indeed, even with my low supply, it looked like I was dealing with the beginning stages of mastitis. I still am not sure it was really mastitis...so I am calling it a clogged duct.

I never thought I would be dealing with that. After all, I have a low supply! It seems that even with less then ample milk jugs- the fact that my son has not been very interested in nursing, plus my taking herbs to increase my supply, and finally a breast that does not respond to a pump well- I indeed was suffering from this awful, painful issue.

So, I have spent much time heating, nursing, hand expressing, and more.

I send this warning out- if you start to feel a clogged duct- take care of it as quickly as possible because Mastitis is not just a pain in the boob but a pain in the......