Breastfeeding = Best feeding

This week is/has been National Breastfeeding Awareness week.... or something along those lines. Honestly? I had a sick baby, I have barely turned on the TV (at Mom's house, because we don't have TV), and I haven't checked my Mommy boards, nor, really, read any blogs.

But I wanted to write a small post about how breastfeeding has changed my life, and how it's my favorite part of Mommyhood.

It really, really has changed my life. I used to be selfish, I used to be modest, and I used to be timid. When you breastfeed, you can't be selfish. Your little sweetie has to come first in EVERYTHING. You have to watch what you eat (will that make him/her gassy?), you have to watch what you drink. Doctors appointments (for the mom) become tedious because you have to repeatedly ask "Can I take that while nursing?" and when they tell you no, you have to tell them to find another option. You have to be proactive (notice I said I used to be timid), and speak up when you don't think that they're making much of an effort. You have to be informed.

And modesty (at least on my part), went flying out the window. Oh, I tried at first. I did the whole blanket thing. But then about 9 weeks, I had an undiagnosed oversupply of milk and Keevia had colic. And she screamed. Constantly. And she was was starving, but she'd scream at the boob, and the ONLY THING I wanted was for her to latch on and nurse because that was all I could do to make it better. I didn't give a flying flip if I was sitting in an easy chair in my living room, in the baby section of Wal-Mart, or in a five star restaurant. My baby was hungry. She needed to eat. I wore two shirts so I could pull one up, one down, and I nursed. And sometimes I'm sure my boob was exposed (for short amounts of time), but it was that, or have my baby scream... and I'm sorry y'all, I chose the unmodest responses.

I know there is a ton of controversy around the topic of breastfeeding recently... and I honestly try and stay away from it. I turn away from news stories about it, because I would probably, in all honesty, chuck something at the tv. And since it would be my parents TV, I don't think that would be a good thing.

This is getting off topic. I digress.

Breastfeeding has molded me into a better mother. It's calming for Keevia, but it's also calming for me. It soothes me. It relaxes me. It makes everything else float away for a moment, and the world suddenly revolves around me and my baby -- just as it should at all times.

It reconnects us. Even on the days (like last Wednesday), when she's fussy and clingy and nurses around 30 times a day... it still reconnects us, because I know she needs that comfort. She needs that nourishment, and she needs the love that I can feel pour through me as she nurses. She doesn't just get milk as nourishment, she gets love. And I love giving it to her.

I wouldn't be the Mom I am if I didn't nurse her. I plan on continuing until she decides to stop. Weird? Maybe... but this is our relationship, our bond, and whats best for my baby.... it can't get any more natural than that!

Great Day!

Man oh man, has today been a great day!!

First off, on Thursday evening, after a screaming fit, Keevia had a bowel movement. Not unusual, but when I changed her diaper I noticed 2 little streaks of blood. After googling it, I discovered it can be an allergy (most commonly milk), a anal fissure (usually from straining, I don't see how she could get it from liquid poo), or an oversupply of milk.

So, I read the oversupply symptoms. Keevia has EVERY. SINGLE. ONE.

"Babies whose moms have too much milk will often exhibit symptoms such as fussing, pulling off the breast, colicky crying, gassiness, spitting up, and hiccupping. They may want to nurse frequently, and they may gain weight more rapidly than the average baby (who usually gains 4-8 ounces each week during the first 3 or 4 months), or they may gain weight more slowly than the average baby. Their stools may be green and watery, and their bottoms may be red and sore. The mother’s letdown reflex may be so forceful that the baby chokes, gags and sputters as he struggles with the jet of milk that sprays too quickly into his mouth."

Yep. That's my kid. To a T.

So, I read how to fix it. If Keevs nurses at say, 1 pm, I'm only supposed to offer her the left side. If she wants to nurse again at 2pm, I'm supposed to offer only the left side again. If she wants to nurse at 3pm, offer the left side again, and then the right, then begin nursing only on the right for 2 hours.

Simple fix. AND IT WORKED.

My child is a different baby. Today she woke up, played a little, nursed, went back to sleep in the swing for 2+ hours, I woke her up, changed her, we headed out (more on that in a minute), she pooped while we were out, then pooped again. She didn't fuss AT ALL. She nursed before the second poop, but she fussed a little with it. Then she napped about 20 minutes on the way home, nursed again, and then was up for about 3-4 hours! Got a bath, nursed a little and went to sleep, woke back up and pooped, and finally went down around 11 pm.

NO SCREAMING. ALL DAY! Do you UNDERSTAND? She's been giggly, she's been awake, she's been so pleasant! And you can just tell she's felt better, like, a LOT better.

I never would have thought that simply nursing only on one side would change her so drastically. In my opinion, my pedi and lactation consultant have somewhat sabotaged my nursing in the past. They instruct you that a baby only needs to eat on one side for 10 minutes, which just isn't true. They get too much foremilk that way, and not enough hindmilk, which makes the baby eat more frequently, because the hindmilk contains the essential fat that keeps them fuller longer.

Okay, whole nother post about our activities for today will come tomorrow. My daughter is asleep, and I need to follow in her footsteps so I can shower in the morning.

Is that a light I see?

At the end of the tunnel called colic?

Keevia has had a GREAT day today. We had gone through 3 poopy diapers by about 9 am (none of them were HUGE poops, but we changed her when we thought she was done. Obviously we were wrong.) Then she napped... nursed, had a photo shoot, nursed again, let Mommy take a shower while she chilled in the bouncer, napped and nursed...see a pattern? I'm trying to teach her that she does not have to scream bloody murder to nurse, as well as read her tired cues better.

Now, that whole, reading the tired cues works great WHEN SHE GOES TO SLEEP. Right now she's screaming in the living room while my Mom rocks her, because Mom is spelling me. I gave her a bath around 8, and she hasn't gone to sleep yet other than tiny little cat naps. She doesn't seem to be gassy or anything, just super-overtired.

But, overall, today has been marginally better than other days.

Yesterday, she discovered the mobile at church, and was so enthralled by it that it lead me to a frantic internet search, where I located one for $10 from Wal-mart on clearance. SCORE. So, that should come soon. I'm going to invest in some white noise for the car-rides, as well as for colic time... hopefully those spells get less and less!

I leave you with pictures from our photoshoot today!

Chiropractor, take two

I took Keevia to the Chiropractor yesterday, and after having her T5 and her occipital adjusted she feels SO much better. She literally is a different child.

I sit back and think about how if people just took their babies to chiropractors more often, the number of babies who had to undergo radical treatments might just be lowered. Yet everyone looks at me like I'm crazy when I take her to the chiropractor. Seriously. I have the best natured child in the world when everything is in alignment. When she's out of alignment she screams all. day. long. Evenings are still a little bit rough, but I think it's mainly because she gets super overtired. I'm trying my hardest to read her signals better!

I feel like a horrible mother when we're in the car. She still wants to nurse to sleep, and this includes in the car. Obviously I can't nurse her when we're riding in the car... so I give her a taste of hard candy or a tiny bit of whatever I'm drinking, then shove the paci back in her mouth....usuallly it works wonders... but it's something I always said I would NEVER do.

Then again, I also said I would never bedshare. Carl was all for it, while I said that I wasn't comfortable with it. My my how things change once baby shows up!! I'm still nervous about it when Carl and I are (*gasp!*) actually in the same bed, but I keep my arm around her, and he is extremely aware of her being in the bed with us. She generally starts off the night in her pack n play and then moves to my bed when she wakes for a feeding. The last 2-3 nights she's slept 5-6 hours at a time!!!! I'm trying not to get used to it, but loving the extra sleep!

I'm having some cluster headaches this evening, and Keevs is fast asleep on my lap, so I believe I'm going to lay her down and take out my contacts, brush my teeth, and join her in dreamland.

Coming soon: A "Shaina's Must Haves" of baby gear!