Best for Babes

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Post-Milk Sleepiness


This was taken when Addison was about 14 months old (I'm guessing...we lived in that house when she was between 12 months & 15 months).


Pure Happiness!
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Pumping Sucks

Welcome to The Breastfeeding Cafe Carnival!


This post was written as part of The Breastfeeding Cafe's Carnival. For more info on the Breastfeeding Cafe, go to www.breastfeedingcafe.wordpress.com. 

For more info on the Carnival or if you want to participate, contact Claire at clindstrom2 {at} gmail {dot} com. Today's post is about breastfeeding and employment. Please read the other blogs in today's carnival listed below and check back for more posts July 18th through the 31st! 
 

I had a very demanding job when my daughter was born.  I was the nursing manager of a very busy unit in a large hospital.  I had over 100 employees that reported directly to me.  I was acquiring more responsibility when I went back to work.  The deck was stacked against me.  When I returned to work, I had only been breastfeeding comfortably and easily for 6 weeks.
Within the first few weeks of returning to work, I attended a breastfeeding symposium.  I learned, in Oklahoma, a very small percentage of women still breastfed at 1 year of life.  My heart was broken.  I really felt I was up against all odds.  I was determined though.  I was NOT quitting breastfeeding for my job.  Fortunately, my boss was incredibly supportive.  No questions asked, I pumped when I needed to.  Actually, I think it made her a little uncomfortable, so she let me do it when I needed!  It doesn't matter, I got to pump.

Also, very luckily for me, I had a private office.  I was able to close the door and pump.  I also worked with a great group of lactation consultants, so they totally supported me.  I quickly learned, although the statistics and my job (sort of) were against me, I had a lot on my side.  So, I pumped.  I pumped and pumped and pumped.  When I returned to work I pumped 3 times a day (and that was in only 8-10 hours). It decreased to 2, then finally to once per day.  I actually started enjoying my pumping time (although I never enjoyed hooking myself up to pump).  It was nice to close my door and have some peace.  It was lovely.  Quiet...except that stupid sound pumps make!

Now, actually breastfeeding after returning to work was a different story.  I was so exhausted from working so much, I could hardly stay awake when my daughter wanted to nurse at night.  We, out sheer exhaustion, began to co-sleep.  It saved my sanity.  My daughter began to cluster nurse at night.  She would take a bottle during the day, but much preferred momma to that bottle!

I was also finishing graduate school during my daughter's first year.  I remember sitting in our living room with her nursing and me reading article after article.  What fun that was!  Breastfeeding while working is completely possible.  If you're returning to work, pumping provides you some quiet time.  Some time to think about your baby.  Some time to get away.  Think about that while you're pumping, don't think about that silly pump!




 Here are more post by the Breastfeeding Cafe Carnival participants! Check back because more will be added throughout the day.
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Monday, July 19, 2010

Nursing in Public



Welcome to The Breastfeeding Cafe Carnival!










This post was written as part of The Breastfeeding Cafe's Carnival. For more info on the Breastfeeding Cafe, go to www.breastfeedingcafe.wordpress.com.  For more info on The Carnival or if you want to participate, contact Claire at clindstrom2 {at} gmail {dot} com. Today's post is about Nursing in Public. Please read the other blogs in today's carnival listed below and check back for more posts July 18th through the 31st!



I will never forget the first time I nursed in public.  It followed the last time I tried nursing in my car in July...with a 6 week old baby.  We were in the tiny town of Eufaula, Oklahoma.  We were there for the weekend.  My mom and I had taken my daughter to a cute little cafe in town for lunch (for us, not her!).  This little cafe (sadly, now closed) was also the town flower shop.  About half-way through our lunch, like any good little baby would, mine decided she was hungry.  I tried nursing her there, but it was awkward.  I have large breasts and was just figuring out what to do (yep, it took me about SIX weeks to figure it out!).  So, I headed to my BLACK car in July in Oklahoma.  On a side note, I'm not sure if you know anything about summers in Oklahoma...but, it's HOT! In fact, yesterday Oklahoma City was the 3rd hottest city in the country, right behind Las Vegas and Phoenix.  Now, they're in the desert, so they don't have all the lovely humidity (and mosquitoes) we do.  So, it's HOT here!  Back to the story....


I'm headed out to my car with babe in tow.  I attempt to get all cozy in the backseat.  Of course, the black leather interior does not help the fact I'm already drenched in sweat.  About this time, this cute little woman comes running out of the store.  She was one of the waitresses.  She told me the owner of  the store (a man, no less) saw me going outside with my baby.  He knew I was taking her outside to feed her and he thought that was not right. (And, I sit here sobbing, thinking of how his grace and kindness changed my life...and my daughter's...literally.)  She told me he insisted I come inside.  He would find a private...albeit strange...place to nurse my daughter.


And he did.  He brought me a chair to the flower shop part of the store.  Strangely enough, the man loved birds.  I don't.  I sat their among flower, birds, and one lady making arrangements and nursed my baby.  What happened that day changed my world.  I am forever grateful to him.  His beautiful act of kindness made this momma proud. 



And so, at dinner that night (on a dock) I nursed my daughter.  Now, I was not about to walk all the way back to the car (and down the pier) to feed my child.  Other people were eating there.  My dad (who was seated across from me) said many women were looking at our table...some in support, some condescending.  I don't really care about the naysayers.  A kid's gotta eat.  But, I was saddened.  I had entered the dinner so proud and confident of myself.  I thought everyone should be supportive of nursing in public.  And, I did use a cover-up...because I exposed no less than half of my upper body when I nursed!  Women giving my family dirty looks, like I was some kind of heathen.  It was amazing the difference in two meals in one small town.



I learned a lot that day.  Unfortunately, I learned people can be mean.  People can be unsupportive of women feeding their children the best food possible in public.  I learned, more importantly, people care.  For every one person that gives a dirty look, there are dozens more that don't give a hoot what you're doing.  And, there more supporters than not.  People do care.  The tide is turning.  Nursing in public is accepted.



I have nursed in some crazy places too....the state fair, in a car (she stayed in the car seat!), at Sonic (I took her out of the car seat for those), and many many more! So, go in peace, nurse in peace, nurse where you feel comfortable!










 Here are more posts by the Breastfeeding Cafe Carnival participants! Check back because more will be added throughout the day.
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Monday, June 14, 2010

Sometimes

Sometimes I wish....
I didn't care.
I didn't make my own salad dressing.
I'd used formula.
I didn't care about cloth diapers with baby #2.
I didn't care about VBAC.
I loved strollers for newborns.
I didn't know about aspartame, sucralose, or high-fructose corn syrup.
I didn't know about Red-40.
I didn't love to go to the health food store.
I didn't know about hormones in milk.
I didn't care about those hormones.
I didn't know or care about antibiotics in our foods.
I didn't know about BPA.
I didn't care about all the plastic I try not to throw about.
I didn't care about organic.
McDonald's was healthy.
Ice cream made you skinny.
Processed foods were good for you.
The more ingredients, the better.
Eating meat was really good for you.
It was okay to take a lot of medicine.
I didn't recycle.
I didn't compost.
I didn't want to plant my own garden.
I didn't believe in attachment parenting.
Dr. Sears, Dr. Mercola, Dr. Greene, Elizabeth Pantley, & Dr. McKenna weren't smart...or right.
I just didn't care.


But, then I pull my head out of my ass & realize I made a conscience decision to do or not do those things. I made, and am making, everyday, a conscience decision to make my life better. And more importantly, my family's life. And those who come after us.

So, I'll stick to my baby-wearing, VBAC-believing, organic-eating, junk-food-avoiding, recycling, breastfeeding self.

Suck it up. One person can make a difference. They can. And they do.
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Saturday, May 29, 2010

3 years of co-sleeping & breastfeeding....good-bye?

As I deal with the emotions of having a 3 year old, we are in, yet another, transition period in our life.   Maybe tomorrow I'll post about how I'm feeling about how my life changed 3 years ago...but, today, I'm going to share with out our new adventure!

For quite a while now, Miss A has been telling me she's going to quit having milk on May "thirtya". As  we approached the date, we kept asking if she knew what was coming.  I kept asking, are you sure?  When are you going to quit having milk?  Her response was always, May thirtya.  Always.  And, guess what tomorrow is? May 30.

I've been dealing with my daughter saying she's going to stop having momma's milk on her birthday.  And, now that I'm in school and working night shift, I am SOOOO tired all the time.  She likes to have milk for nearly an hour before she drifts off.

In sense, I was getting desperate.  I needed help.  My husband agreed to help me.  The past two nights he's taken Miss A to her bed.  Just like that.  There were 5 seconds of tears last night, none the night before.  She just fell asleep.  Now, she did wake up both nights.

But, Miss A fell asleep in her bed without milk the past two nights! Wow!  And, tonight, she's spending the night with her grandparents, so no milk tonight either!

While I am very excited about this transition, it saddens me too.  We starting our nursing relationship when she was less than an hour old.  I've had bleeding, cracked nipples; delayed milk production; decreased milk production; engorgement; leaking milk; plugged ducts; and mastitis.  Yep, I'm pretty sure I experienced every breastfeeding issue there could be.  Oh, did I say biting?  Because she bit!  Every new tooth caused Miss A to bite me.

I pumped for over 15 months.  When I went back to work, as a nursing manager of a mother/baby unit, I couldn't listen to the babies cry or I'd have to go pump.  Pump, pump, pump.

While I don't think she's totally done, I think we're headed that way.  I'm ready.  I'm more than ready.  I think Miss A could totally do fine without milk.

Just like every parenting transition, it may or may not be smooth.  Only time will tell!
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Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Breathing Experiment

So last night when I couldn't sleep I was trying to do ANYTHING to fall asleep. I started paying attention to DD's breathing. We co-sleep and she happened to be face-to-face with me. I love it. I love being that close to her and her not wanting milk! So, I was trying some deep breathing to try to relax. It didn't work, but I learned some cool stuff.

You know, "they" say babies who co-sleep follow the same breathing patterns as their moms. Well, it's true for toddlers too! When I took a deep breath, so did DD. Her breathing became very rhythmic and deep. Thinking that she may just be relaxing, since she does have a tendency to fall asleep better (she was asleep at the time, but in general) if I'm relaxed, I sped up my breathing, almost panting. Guess what? She did too. She altered her breathing as I intentionally changed mine.

How cool is that?

I love co-sleeping. And, lots of people say it's safe (if it's done right). Dr. James McKenna and Dr. Sears are, I believe, leading experts in the field. Dr. McKenna has actually done research on co-sleeping in a real sleep lab. Not sure why the ENTIRE world doesn't know that. They should.  And Dr. Sears is such an awesome pediatrician (seriously, when DD was a baby, I wanted to move just so we could use him as a pediatrician!).

Co-sleeping can be unsafe. But, overall, it's been done for years. And, I'm pretty sure more deaths occur in cribs than in parent's beds (especially when you've taken safety into account).

I never intended to co-sleep, it was just easier. That's how we got to where we are. I have read Dr. McKenna's and Dr. Sears' information. I made an informed, educated (half-desperate for sleep, but still 100% educated) decision about co-sleeping. You should too. And, if you do co-sleep, you'll learn really great things about your child. It's amazing watch them sleep!
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Tuesday, May 11, 2010

What have I done to myself?

About 2 and a half weeks ago my brother ran in the Oklahoma City Memorial marathon. He did the half marathon for at least the 3rd year in row. He's always been smarter and more athletic than I could ever dream of. He doesn't rub it in your face though (well, unless he's playing golf). I really thought I could get on the running band wagon. He was very supportive. With his encouragement I started the Couch-2-5k program 2 weeks ago Monday.

The idea is you can get in shape and train for a 5k running 3 days a week. Anyone can do 3 days a week. I work part-time, go to school full-time, have an almost 3 year old, and have a husband who is busy with work right now. But, I can do three whopping days a week. Right? Right!

The first Monday, I got out there and I could barely run 20 seconds without my shins killing me. I've always had shin splints when I run. I kept up with the program, doing what I could do. On Wednesday, I could actually run a full minute without stopping. (Okay, stop laughing.) By Friday, my shins still hurt quite a bit, but they were tolerable. AND, I could run for a full minute multiple times! I thought I could do this! I didn't run over the weekend (you have 2 days off). The next Monday, when it was time to run again, I really felt good. My shins hurt less. I felt like I could actually take strides and not just walk in a bouncy style. This was going to be good. I was going to run a 5k.

Then came Tuesday (a week ago). Tuesday. Oh Tuesday. How I loathe what you did to me. I did some yoga...bound & determined to be active most days of the week. It felt great. I noticed I could do more before I sank to child's pose. But, I had a nagging, aching feeling in my knees. I thought it would go away. Just a little ache. I was sure I was sore from Monday since I did really push myself.

Then came Wednesday. Running day. I laced up and hit the road. And. Oh. My. Goodness. Pain, pain, pain. My knees could not take it. Knee pain was new to me. I'm pretty overweight and have felt my fair share of pain, but never have I felt knee pain. Holy smokes. But, like a trooper, I walked for 20 minutes.

Thursday was a rest day, so I knew it would get better. Can I just say knee pain sucks? Because lo and behold it was still with me on Thursday. And Friday. Then, I had to work Friday night (no, I'm not a hooker, I'm a nurse!). And Saturday night. And Sunday night. Twelve hour shifts on hurting knees. All I can say is I was THRILLED for the furlough Monday night. I was not thrilled I ended up going to my parent's cellar Monday night, but at least I didn't have to walk halls all night long!

Now, it's technically Wednesday morning. I can't sleep. My knees freaking hurt. I feel old. I feel fat. I feel crippled. My dimpling, jiggly thighs will never be the same with this much pain. Of course it feels as if I'm going to live with this forever. It felt that way when I hurt my back last summer and now it's about 95% better (really only 95% when my lovely chiropractor works on it!).

Okay, so now I'm just griping because I really want to sleep. And run. And do yoga. And not feel old and fat.

Here's to hoping for healthy knees!
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