Showing posts with label breastfeeding. Show all posts
Showing posts with label breastfeeding. Show all posts
Sunday, August 12, 2012
World Breastfeeding Awareness Week: My Breastfeeding Experience
I talked briefly about my breastfeeding experience on this blog. However, I made a YouTube video, giving more details about it. Please check out my video, that I filmed just a few days after World Breastfeeding Awareness Week:
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Word of the Day: Sixteen
My munchkin is 16 weeks old today! In just a few days, she will officially be four months old! Here is a list of all the things Munchkin has mastered since being born:
-she has a clear preference for Mommy :)
-she can hold her head up without assistance
-she has different cries for different things: a hungry cry, a sleepy cry, and an "I want attention" cry LOL
-she does A LOT of social smiling
-she automatically knows when she is in prime breastfeeding position
-she doesn't cry after baths anymore
-she had hold gazes easily
-she can wiggle close to Mommy when laying next to me :)
-she can stand up for long periods of time (with Mommy's assistance, of course)
-she can sit up for a period of time without automatically toppling over
-she coos a lot and can make baby noises (talking attempts) for 30 minutes or more
-she has trained us to hold her in certain ways: either seated upright or standing up
-no more constantly balled fists! She's learning to use her hands to explore her surroundings
-she does a lot of drooling-teething is imminent
-no more random sleeping! She now sleeps for 6 hours stretches (even longer, if she gets a diaper change and a feeding while she's sleeping.)
And, since I've been gone for a while, updated pictures are in order ^_^
Look for more updates soon-things have been hectic, but I'm about to transition into working mommy mode next month! Talk to you WAY before then :)
-she has a clear preference for Mommy :)
-she can hold her head up without assistance
-she has different cries for different things: a hungry cry, a sleepy cry, and an "I want attention" cry LOL
-she does A LOT of social smiling
-she automatically knows when she is in prime breastfeeding position
-she doesn't cry after baths anymore
-she had hold gazes easily
-she can wiggle close to Mommy when laying next to me :)
-she can stand up for long periods of time (with Mommy's assistance, of course)
-she can sit up for a period of time without automatically toppling over
-she coos a lot and can make baby noises (talking attempts) for 30 minutes or more
-she has trained us to hold her in certain ways: either seated upright or standing up
-no more constantly balled fists! She's learning to use her hands to explore her surroundings
-she does a lot of drooling-teething is imminent
-no more random sleeping! She now sleeps for 6 hours stretches (even longer, if she gets a diaper change and a feeding while she's sleeping.)
And, since I've been gone for a while, updated pictures are in order ^_^
Look for more updates soon-things have been hectic, but I'm about to transition into working mommy mode next month! Talk to you WAY before then :)
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Word of the Day: Constipation
My poor little munchkin was so constipated over the past day. She was extra fussy and could not sleep more than an hour or two at a time. I perused a few forums, looking for something to give my baby relief. I found my answer here, at BabyCenter. I decided against doing a suppository (the gross factor was just a bit much for me LOL!) I didn't have any dark Karo syrup, but my mother had purchased some baby juice-apple-prune juice- just in case the munchkin needed it. So I did a half juice/half water bottle. I used one ounce of each. After a few hours, the little one filled her diaper, and she slept soundly after that.
I will be giving her juice/water bottles for another couple of days, just to keep her regular, along with cutting back on baby formula and breastfeeding her more. In the meantime, here is another picture of my little pooper-star :)
I will be giving her juice/water bottles for another couple of days, just to keep her regular, along with cutting back on baby formula and breastfeeding her more. In the meantime, here is another picture of my little pooper-star :)
Monday, May 14, 2012
Word of the Day: Breastfeeding
Psst, guess what? I'm doing it, my sister-in-love is doing it, and even Beyonce is doing it. What are we all doing? Breast feeding, of course! It's free, helps promote the bonding process, gives baby the best nutrition, helps your stay busty longer, and helps you lose the baby weight super-fast. So many bonuses to it, why would anyone opt out of breastfeeding?
Well, it isn't exactly a "natural" sensation, especially for first time mothers. It actually hurts when you're figuring it out (and forget all those folks who say that it doesn't hurt once the latch is correct: it hurts until you get used to it.) It means that you have to feed frequently (baby's bodies process breast milk far faster than formula.) You also have to keep up your healthy pregnancy eating habits (along with eating an additional 350-500 calories a day), which can be time consuming for a new mom. You will have a wet shirt or two, until you get baby on a good schedule or until you start buying those breast milk pads for your bra. Oh yeah, only you can produce your breast milk so, unless you pump, you can't hand off the baby for feedings: you will have to do all of the feedings yourself.
I weighed the option and decided to primarily breast feed, while giving the baby no more than 4 ounces of formula per day, to start. Now that she's eating 4 ounces per feeding, I do 8 ounces of formula per day (2 small bottles) and breastfeed for the rest of the day. So far it's been working well. I'm glad that she hasn't had any issues with nipple confusion or problems with digesting formula. I use Enfamil's Newborn formula, but I'll be giving Similac a try, as well. I registered with both the Enfamil and Similac websites. I received lots of formula to try (nice sized cans: no wimpy sample sizes LOL!) I'm making mental notes of how her stools look when using Enfamil (per Similac, their formula creates stools that are far more similar to the bowel movements of breastfed babies, since their formula is supposed to be closer to mother's milk.) I'll then compare her stools to how they look with Similac. I'll be monitoring for general gassiness, vomit, fussiness, etc., to see which formula she favors, then I'll make my final decision.
Like I mentioned earlier, breastfeeding can be uncomfortable. It doesn't help when you have dry, sore, cracked nipples. I tried Medela's nipple cream while I was in the hospital, and it worked well. However, I had a sample sized bottle so I either had to buy more or find an alternative. Also, I still use soap on my breasts (which is generally discouraged while breastfeeding, since it removes your skin's natural protective oils.) Here's a little tip that I have for breastfeeding moms: olive oil, post shower, is great for applying to sore, dry breasts and nipples. It absorbs into skin easily, it's all natural, and it's a food product, so you don't have to worry about it making your baby sick, should you have to breastfeed soon after applying it. Any olive oil works, though heavier versions (extra virgin olive oil, as opposed to extra light olive oil) tend to be a little better for me.
That's my words on breastfeeding. For more breastfeeding information, I go to this site: http://breastfedblog.blogspot.com/ Yeah, you can Google your answers, but I find this blog more informative and fun :) The information on co-sleeping was very useful, as I had a c-section and found that hopping out of the bed every couple of hours to get a hungry infant was just too much. I have been co-sleeping-though slowly weaning her off of it-since the baby came home (she's napping in her bassinet more, now that my incision has healed considerably.)
For the moms who want to supplement breastfeeding with formula feedings, check out the websites for Enfamil and Similac. Those freebies are a big help!
Well, it isn't exactly a "natural" sensation, especially for first time mothers. It actually hurts when you're figuring it out (and forget all those folks who say that it doesn't hurt once the latch is correct: it hurts until you get used to it.) It means that you have to feed frequently (baby's bodies process breast milk far faster than formula.) You also have to keep up your healthy pregnancy eating habits (along with eating an additional 350-500 calories a day), which can be time consuming for a new mom. You will have a wet shirt or two, until you get baby on a good schedule or until you start buying those breast milk pads for your bra. Oh yeah, only you can produce your breast milk so, unless you pump, you can't hand off the baby for feedings: you will have to do all of the feedings yourself.
I weighed the option and decided to primarily breast feed, while giving the baby no more than 4 ounces of formula per day, to start. Now that she's eating 4 ounces per feeding, I do 8 ounces of formula per day (2 small bottles) and breastfeed for the rest of the day. So far it's been working well. I'm glad that she hasn't had any issues with nipple confusion or problems with digesting formula. I use Enfamil's Newborn formula, but I'll be giving Similac a try, as well. I registered with both the Enfamil and Similac websites. I received lots of formula to try (nice sized cans: no wimpy sample sizes LOL!) I'm making mental notes of how her stools look when using Enfamil (per Similac, their formula creates stools that are far more similar to the bowel movements of breastfed babies, since their formula is supposed to be closer to mother's milk.) I'll then compare her stools to how they look with Similac. I'll be monitoring for general gassiness, vomit, fussiness, etc., to see which formula she favors, then I'll make my final decision.
Like I mentioned earlier, breastfeeding can be uncomfortable. It doesn't help when you have dry, sore, cracked nipples. I tried Medela's nipple cream while I was in the hospital, and it worked well. However, I had a sample sized bottle so I either had to buy more or find an alternative. Also, I still use soap on my breasts (which is generally discouraged while breastfeeding, since it removes your skin's natural protective oils.) Here's a little tip that I have for breastfeeding moms: olive oil, post shower, is great for applying to sore, dry breasts and nipples. It absorbs into skin easily, it's all natural, and it's a food product, so you don't have to worry about it making your baby sick, should you have to breastfeed soon after applying it. Any olive oil works, though heavier versions (extra virgin olive oil, as opposed to extra light olive oil) tend to be a little better for me.
That's my words on breastfeeding. For more breastfeeding information, I go to this site: http://breastfedblog.blogspot.com/ Yeah, you can Google your answers, but I find this blog more informative and fun :) The information on co-sleeping was very useful, as I had a c-section and found that hopping out of the bed every couple of hours to get a hungry infant was just too much. I have been co-sleeping-though slowly weaning her off of it-since the baby came home (she's napping in her bassinet more, now that my incision has healed considerably.)
For the moms who want to supplement breastfeeding with formula feedings, check out the websites for Enfamil and Similac. Those freebies are a big help!
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