Murphy Brown, attempting to nurse her son for the first time:
"I have breasts for the first time and the only man in my life doesn't know what to do with them."
I have to wean Crazybaby. I know that the official recommendation for breast-feeding is now two years, but if I have to work part-time in September, I'd like to end my career as a milk-machine before then. Fifteen months is pretty good, isn't it?
I've made a few half-hearted attempts to cut out the mid-day feeding, with no success. Thus far, Crazybaby has been very reluctant to take a bottle; translation: she screams and knocks it out of my hand. On the other hand, she likes her water bottle and sippy cups, so I'm thinking that we'll skip the bottle altogether and transition straight from the breast to the sippy cup. Any advice? I need a plan.
It's new territory for me to wean a baby who has no interest in giving up nursing, because Pip was just so darn cooperative. I cut out one feeding a week, and after a month we were done! No problemo. Aside from requiring a few cabbages to soothe my engorged breasts, it was a piece of cake. Crazybaby is a different story. She has a mind of her own and her mind really likes nursing.
To be honest, I like it too. I usually nurse Crazybaby upstairs in her cosy, golden bedroom. I have a comfy old green rocking chair up there and the two of us snuggle into it beautifully. She usually gives a little giggle of anticipation as I lift up my shirt, then she dives onto my breast. Her hand usually reaches up to touch me on the face or play with my necklace. Sometimes she brings my hand up to her chin to give her a little tickle and her eyes smile up at me. When my milk comes in her eyelids grow heavy, and by the time I put her on the second breast she is nearly asleep.
There is nothing like looking down into the face of your child as you are nursing. It is one of the most intimate, tender experiences I have ever had. I had my share of soreness at the beginning; clogged ducts and mastitis a few times, but that is all forgotten now that I'm nearing the end of my breast-feeding days.
Enough sentimentality. I've got to look on the bright side, right? No more breast pads, no more nursing bras, no more boobs.
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What a beautiful vision of breast-feeding... lovely :)
ReplyDeleteI have tip for you... it involves sage.
We went from boob to sippy cup with Carly no problemo...good luck!!!
ReplyDeleteI miss my boobs :( thank goodness for padded bras :)
Okay Bethany...bring on the sage tip!
ReplyDeleteAs for you Boobless, I've seen them and they look smashing so your bras must be working for you!
I also love your detail of a nursing relationship - beautiful!
ReplyDeleteAre you sure you have to quit altogether? Perhaps you could wheedle her down to a few feedings a day.
For the last many months, the Sparrow only nurses twice a day - at nap time from the left breast, and at bedtime from the right. To make up for the lack of milk in his diet once we cut down on nursing he has cow's milk from a sippy cup. (I tried goat's milk but honestly it was too strongly-flavoured, even I thought so.) He never liked bottles but has taken water from a sippy cup for a long time, so sippy cup it is.
You could give her one morning feeding from one breast and an evening feeding from another.
Whatever you decide to do, good luck! <3
Chelsea,
ReplyDeleteGreat minds...I'm doing exactly what you've described. She only has two feeds throughout the day. The only addition is that she's been waking up for a 5am feed, then going back to sleep. She's a big girl, so I'm thinking she may actually be hungry. She likes cow's milk from a sippy cup, but not during the times when she's used to having boobie!!!
It's just tough because if I go back to teaching, I'll be away for the naptime feed, and the 7:30pm feeding really impacts what I can do in the evenings...ie: getting to last night's meeting late! I know it's going to last a brief time in the grand scheme of things though.