This is going to be a random grouping of topics because there've been several things happen since I last blogged. Okay, maybe not a lot, and not that exciting, but enough. Also, I'm not feeling very well today so I hope it even makes sense.
~I had my 35 week appointment on Tuesday. Everything was totally normal. BP was like 118/80. Weight was up maybe another pound or so. According to my scale at home, I'm still down about 2 lbs from my pre-pregnancy weight. Sarah's HB was around 150. With the holidays and since everything has been progressing normally, my next appointment isn't until after the new year. I'll be 37 weeks and 3 days when I go in again. I'm still having trouble believing that I'm only a week away from being term! I've had a feeling that Sarah's going to come early. But now that I've said that out loud, she'll probably be 2 weeks late or something!
~Josh's mom came to visit last week. She brought 2 or 3 boxes of girl clothes for us. Some of it is hand-me-downs from my niece who is now about 2 1/2. That's one of the good things about having a girl even though that's what most of the rest of the family has. I've also got a big box of clothes that my mom had saved from when my sisters and I were babies. Now, I've got a lot of stuff to go through to see what I actually have and what we still need--clothes and blankets wise. My shower will be in a couple weeks so then we'll see what else we'll actually have to buy for the nursery and toys and stuff.
~Christmas was really nice. It was kinda weird not visiting family though. Ever since I can remember I've spent some of the Christmas holiday with either my or Josh's family. This year we decided not to go anywhere with me being so close to my due date and Josh's shoulder still bothering him from his surgery. Our closest family is about 5 hours away. On base, any servicemember E6 and below can get a free turkey dinner for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Since it's just the two of us, we didn't sign up for it for Thanksgiving, but someone signed us up for it for Christmas. So I made my first big turkey dinner this year. We still have so much turkey left over!
~Friday night, Josh took me to see the movie "Marley and Me." We haven't gone to a movie in so long. We used to go all the time, sometimes even 2 or 3 a weekend--especially if they were playing anything good on base where it would only cost us about $10 for the movie and snacks! I think the last movie we went to see was either Prince Caspian or Indiana Jones. I just hadn't felt like going out and trying to sit for 2 hours or so without having to run to the bathroom or being able to stretch out. But I'm really glad we went to see this one. I highly recommend it. Though I will warn you that it's not just a cute funny "family" movie the way it looks in the commercials. It's a real movie that deals with grown up issues. I don't want to give too much away, but you'll need some tissues. Also, as fair warning, there's a particularly emotional scene that will be hard for those dealing with IF or loss.
~I ordered some nursing bras and got them in the mail the other day! But I do have questions for all the BF moms out there. I went to a BF class so I have a basic understanding of how nursing works, but how does it work practically? I mean, I get how you can do it if you're wearing a button down shirt or something. But how does it work if you're wearing a t-shirt or something? Do you just pull your shirt up and stick the baby up under your shirt or what? Also, when do you start pumping and using bottles? The lactation consultant here suggested not using bottles until nursing was well established--like 4 weeks or so. But I've seen some mention pumping much earlier so that dad can help with the feedings. Do you make enough milk to pump and to BF at the same time? How often do you pump once you've started back to work? Do you have to take your pump to work with you?
Okay, so this has gotten really long. And it's been a while since I've gone through Reader so I'm sure I have several blogs to catch up on. Happy New Year's everyone!!
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Infertility's Common Thread
About Me
- Monica Fayth
- San Angelo, TX, United States
- I'm 30 years old and married to a wonderful man. I'm a teacher currently working at a daycare, and he's a Sailor in the US Navy. We are the parents of 2 cats and 2 dogs. After trying for 2 years, we have finally succeeded in conceiving our first human child. I have learned alot about IF through many lovely ladies I've met online. I pray that each of you succeeds in your journey towards motherhood.
5 comments:
I breastfed everywhere this way: I wore a tank top under everything. So when baby needed to be fed, I would simply pull the tank top down under my breast and pull my shirt up to feed the baby. This way, my belly was always covered and the top of my shirt would cover the top of my breast. Totally covered without having to carry a blanket or something, which I think smothers the poor baby.
Breast feeding was very awkward for me at first, but really - after a while you'll find what works for you, you can pull your shirt up, down, over the baby if it fits, put a blanket over the baby, or just go exposed, depending on the place and what’s comfortable for you, but you’ll be a master in no time.
What's funny is when you think you've got being discrete mastered, she latches on and the gulping and breathing totally gives is away, I’ve turned heads in a restaurant with nursing noises, it’s so damn funny.
Generally you’ll make plenty of milk to feed and store, supply and demand – if you demand it, your boobs will make it. And yes – you can take your pump to work, it’s very helpful if you have a freezer at work, one the gals at my work use the plastic inserts to fill the milk, and then put them in brown paper bags to freeze. I’m not sure about new technology and have no idea how they tied them off. Another gal just used bottles, put the caps on and froze them in the open. Nobody minded where I work.
I've read "Marley and Me," so I'm dying to see the movie. But we'll probably have to wait for the DVD.
Answers to some of your BF questions:
1) I just put Carina under my shirt if it's not button-down. You can also get a nursing apron if you're uncomfortable with hiking up your shirt in public. A friend of mine is letting me borrow hers since her son is weaned.
2) I was told that I could start pumping at 3 weeks to build a freezer stash, which I did. We didn't actually give Carina a bottle until she was 6.5 weeks old due to early latching issues. When Carina was a newborn, I could pump and feed at the same time--pump one side and feed the other. I'd get 1-2 ounces at that point. Now I have to do them separately because she gets too distracted by the pump. If you're going to work for more than a couple of hours at a time, you'll have to take the pump with you. If she's not eating directly off you, you have to substitute a pumping so that your body knows to keep producing milk. I've heard that you'll need to pump about every 3 hours, but some women do it even more frequently to make sure their supply stays up. A pump isn't as efficient as the baby, so you may not get as much out as she would nursing.
I have no help with the breastfeeding questions- I'm actually reading all the comments for that one too!
But how fun to go through all your old stuff for your daughter! I have no clue if my parents even know where mine is- they very well may have donated it years ago!
so glad things are going well! i have a nursing cover i use to nurse wherever i am. it's really lightweight and a strap goes around your neck so you dn't have to worry about holding it up. breastfeeding is always a little awkward at first, but you'll get a system down that works for you. i don't have any advice for pumping and such b/c i was never able to get anything to come out when i pumped.
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