So where have I been?

Well, as I am sure you know if you know me at all (either online or in person) I just had a cute baby 3 weeks ago! And wow... life sure is crazy and hectic trying to adjust to life with a newborn. I knew it was going to be crazy, I just didn't think it would be THIS crazy!

The road has been bumpy, we've run into several issues with getting breast feeding established, and we still continue to do so. We've tried many different tricks and tips to get him to be successful at the breast, but he continues to have trouble. We've met with with lactation consultants, we go to a weekly support group, we've met with the pediatrician, an ear, nose and throat doctor and a chiropractor. I've also sought out my friends/family recommendations as well as reading some online community boards.

We've had to transition to bottles and a pacifier a lot sooner than we anticipated, but Baby L is thriving. He's eating and gaining weight like a champ. Our situation is what is called as exclusively pumping. He's still getting breast milk, I just have to pump it out for him and bottle feed it to him. The situation has it's pluses and minuses, Ben can help with the feedings which no only gives him time with baby L, but also gives me a break from having to do all the feedings. However, the situation means being almost "married" to the pump. Which some women have a hard time wrapping their head around. For me it doesn't seem to be a problem. For me, the bigger problem is that I felt like a huge failure as a mother when I couldn't succeed at breastfeeding. I know now, that I'm doing all I can for my child and he's thriving because of it.

I would say that being successful at pumping means having some good tools at my disposal. My Medela freestyle pump is a necessity. This is a game changer for me, being able to still move around while pumping is huge. And being able to pump anywhere. My concern with this is the hands free device for this, it didn't work for me, it was very cumbersome to attach - especially for me being a large chested woman.

That is where my Pump Ease hands free bra came into play. This bra was much easier to use and accommodates my plus sized boobs perfectly. I actually liked it so much, I ordered another one so that I can have two - JUST in case. Having to pump without it is terrible. I can't say enough good things about this product. It is a MUST for any woman who plans on pumping.

 

I also reached out to the community, I remembered that awhile back Roni had done a post on storing/freezing breast milk and since that is going to be something I need to do, I sought out her post on it so I could develop a system. I LOVE her idea, it's genius, I am honestly surprised that the baby companies haven't come out with something like it.

So things didn't go according to plan... I didn't get the birth I wanted, I didn't get the breast feeding experience I wanted. I've realized that I can only hope things will go according to plan, but I learned to be flexible and adjust.

I saw this on Medela's facebook page this morning, how true! And how I wanted to be part of that 32%.

We are getting out and about and enjoying being a family of 3! This past weekend we met up with some of my college friends and went through a corn maze! It was so much fun and we really had a great time. Baby L slept through the whole thing, and we paid dearly that night when he was up most of the night. Which sparked us to put this shirt on him....

This coming weekend, Baby L is getting baptized. It'll be a great opportunity for some friends and family to meet Baby L. My brother and my sister in law are coming up from North Carolina, as well as some other friends who haven't met him yet.

It's been great having some company. It's nice that our friends love us so much and are so excited for us. But we've also been limiting our company, not knowing what our schedule would be, we didn't want to overwhelm ourselves with a revolving door of company. So we try to space it out, it has worked for the most part. Also it's been partly selfish reasons, Baby L is only so little for so long, and Ben and I want to enjoy him and our time together. Ben also only has a month off from work, I have 3 months. So I wanted Ben to do and enjoy his son while he could, before he had to go back to work. It's scary to think that this is the last week before Ben goes back to work and Baby L and I are on our own (for the most part).

So that is why I haven't been blogging, or even reading blogs - I don't even want to look at my google reader... I've been enjoying my family. And it's been lovely.

And today I start a new weight loss challenge. I want to lose this baby weight and never see 370 on the scale again!

Time to get back in the saddle.