In the beginning of this summer we were at the Parker's house and they asked all the friends there to say a summer goal, or two, or three.
Immediatly I thought...I want to have a healthy little boy this summer. But now that I have had time to think, I have some more to add.
1. I want a healthy baby to be born into our family.
2. I want to feel empowered by this birth. I was scared and felt very guilty after Max was born, but this time I want to feel good about myself.
3. I want a shorter less complex labor and delivery. (54 hours was just crazy long!)
4. I WILL BREASTFEED. I only did for a few days with Max, before I gave up, didn't ask for help, and didn't make the effort to try harder.
**This time I have a lactation consultant coming to the hospital.
**I have done a lot of research about breastfeeding and feel A LOT more prepared.
**No bottles will be offered to the baby until breastfeeding is WELL established. If this is a month or four months, then so be it.
**I am determined to make this part of my life work. I am REALLY excited to be the only person to feed my baby. I am excited to share this bond with him.
If you don't support breastfeeding and have negative thoughts about it, then don't share them with me! I don't want to hear them! I am doing what I feel is best for my baby.
5. I want Max to feel special at the hospital and when we come home from the hospital. I want to make sure we take time just the FOUR of us at the hospital, and make sure the four of us bond.
These are the most important goals to me. These are the goals that I think about often.
I am so excited to have Baby Peanut. I can't wait to meet him. I can't wait for Max to meet him. And I can't wait for Will to look into his sons eyes and tell him how much he loves him.
34 weeks + 3 days...almost full term. Bring it on!!
Immediatly I thought...I want to have a healthy little boy this summer. But now that I have had time to think, I have some more to add.
1. I want a healthy baby to be born into our family.
2. I want to feel empowered by this birth. I was scared and felt very guilty after Max was born, but this time I want to feel good about myself.
3. I want a shorter less complex labor and delivery. (54 hours was just crazy long!)
4. I WILL BREASTFEED. I only did for a few days with Max, before I gave up, didn't ask for help, and didn't make the effort to try harder.
**This time I have a lactation consultant coming to the hospital.
**I have done a lot of research about breastfeeding and feel A LOT more prepared.
**No bottles will be offered to the baby until breastfeeding is WELL established. If this is a month or four months, then so be it.
**I am determined to make this part of my life work. I am REALLY excited to be the only person to feed my baby. I am excited to share this bond with him.
If you don't support breastfeeding and have negative thoughts about it, then don't share them with me! I don't want to hear them! I am doing what I feel is best for my baby.
5. I want Max to feel special at the hospital and when we come home from the hospital. I want to make sure we take time just the FOUR of us at the hospital, and make sure the four of us bond.
These are the most important goals to me. These are the goals that I think about often.
I am so excited to have Baby Peanut. I can't wait to meet him. I can't wait for Max to meet him. And I can't wait for Will to look into his sons eyes and tell him how much he loves him.
34 weeks + 3 days...almost full term. Bring it on!!
Yay, breastfeeding! You can do it!
ReplyDeleteI was surprised how painful breastfeeding was. And it definitely took longer than two weeks for that discomfort (and sometimes downright agony) to go away. I had callouses on my nipples for a long while because Charlie had a "chompy latch" as the LC at our hospital put it. Ouch! Seriously. Sometimes I'd almost start crying when Charlie was ready to nurse. It was so terribly painful at first.
I also had a really hard time with super aggressive let-down once my supply was established. I dealt with painful fullness and leaking for about 8 months. But I learned to always keep my pumping stuff with me in case I needed some relief but Charlie wasn't ready to nurse. It ended up being a great thing because I could build up a freezer stash and always have milk on hand for sitters or an emergency.
A few weeks ago my supply suddenly seemed to dry up! I freaked out because I so want to nurse until a year, and Charlie still has interest in nursing. I started taking 2 fenugreek capsules 3 times a day. Holy cow, what a difference! Of course, your LC will advise you best, but I am a huge fan of fenugreek. Plus I smell like maple syrup all the time! :) A friend who experienced the same supply dip once her daughter started eating solids said mother's milk tea did wonders for her.
And mostly, for me, I had to look at breastfeeding like pregnancy: there's no backing out now! On the worst pregnancy days, I just had to look at my situation and tell myself that I had to endure, there was no other option. I found myself doing the same thing with nursing: this is the only option, so let's get to it!
I'm so excited for you, Tiffany. Good luck and if you ever feel like you need to vent, please send me a message!
Sorry, one more thought! Charlie never did well under a nursing cover. They can get hot and stuffy, and once he could wave his hands around, he'd pull the cover away from his face. So I was still self-conscious about nursing in public uncovered (now I do it everywhere, past caring!), so I would pump under a cover and give Charlie the bottles. I did this mostly when we did a lot of traveling. But after about 6 months, I stopped pumping so much and would mix extra milk into Charlie's food, and he's already forgotten how a bottle works! It's been such a smooth transition to a sippy cup and straws. He even does alright drinking out of a regular cup. Another nursing perk!
DeleteI am excited to hear how breastfeeding goes for you. I did the same thing with Davis as you did with Max, so it will be interesting to see if it works this time. Good luck! You will do great!
ReplyDeleteyou can do it! My LC told me to introduce the bottle around 2 weeks so that they learn to use it...if you wait longer, they won't want a bottle and they'll only want to nurse! Make sure to request Lansinoah cream and apply it on your nipples after each feeding to prevent cracking. :) I'm totally hear for you!!! Love you! you can do it all!!!
ReplyDelete*here, not *hear. ugh, it's the middle of the night feeding and I'm not all there. :)
ReplyDelete