Baby-led weaning

So Audrey is almost 6-month-old.  Only a few days left of EBF (Exclusive Breast Feeding).  On the 17th, we plan to introduce solids.  I'm not sure how I feel about this new stage of her life.  Up until now all 17 lbs of Audrey have come from me.  Every little roll, chunky toe, and double chin have come from me. 

I'm not sure I'm ready to share her with others.  I have taken her meal times as mommy and me time.  We talk and I get her all to myself.  But I know it's time.  To be honest, it's been time.  She's shown interest in "real food" at like 5 months but I wanted to hit the 6-months of EBF mark.  With all of the food allergies that DH has I wanted to give her the best chance at living allergy-free.  I hope the EBF helps. 

We are doing baby-led weaning so no baby-food.  We will start with some cut up banana.  I'll post pictures.  I also plan to video.  It is a new phase and here we go.

EC - 2nd week

Okay so first I owe DH an apology.  In my last EC posting I made him sound very unsupportive of the whole EC thing but this week he has actually been trying it!  Tuesday, I got Audrey to poop in her new Baby Bjorn potty!  Then later that day, DH put her on the potty again and she peed!  We are still just occasional ECers but at least we are trying.  We aren't pushing her just giving her a chance.  If I put her on the potty and nothing happens, it's cool.  It's not about training her, it's about learning how to communicate with her.  When does she go potty?  What are her signs?  Not sure just how far we are going to take it.  I think the occasional potty trip is plenty here.  I think anytime we save a diaper we are doing well.

We are also starting to cloth diaper.  Again nothing big just the occasional cloth diaper here and there.  I'm beginning to build a stash.  I have 6 GoodMamas and 3 TotBots but only one wool skirty :( We are also in the middle of moving and still don't have a washer so we are nowhere ready for full-time cloth.  But I'm hoping with a little more stash building that I'll be able to save the disposibles for the rare occasion rather than the everyday.  We'll see.  Back to packing  . . .

Even after 5 months I'm still a Breastfeeding Newbie

So the other day I noticed that my afternoon pumping session was yielding a lot less milk, like down almost 2 oz.  I freaked out.  My baby!  She's going to starve!  I starting thinking what could be going on!  I emailed my Breastfeeding mentor but she's out of town so it could be a bit before I get a reply.

So I kept thinking, what is different?  What did I do before that I'm not doing now?  I think I've got it.  I stopped eating my mid-morning snack!  Ever since I was pregnant I had to get in the habit of eating breakfast and a mid-morning snack.  I"m usually on of those eat lunch and huge dinner people but that wasn't going to work for Audrey inutero or out in the real world.  I have to eat.  Maybe all the smaller meals is why I've lost 20 lbs on top of my "baby" weight, but anyways.

Yesterday I made sure to eat a mid-morning snack and guess what, I pumped back at my usual total.  I guess it's not just how many calories I eat but also when I eat them.  Most mornings I am hungry for breakfast, so that habit is easy but I'm usually not so hungry for a mid-morning snack.  That is going to take a little bit of effort on my part but in the end Audrey is worth it and if I get a smaller waistline too that isn't a bad thing.  So despite all of my knowledge, I still feel like a breastfeeding newbie.  I bet that is why groups like La Leche League exists.  Sometimes we need a little help even after the 6-week postpartum check.

Moral of the story: If you need help then ask for it.  While breastfeeding is natural, it doesn't always come naturally.  Never be afraid to ask for help and to ask questions.  No one knows it all and people are always willing to help if they know you need it.