Day 126- Happy Friday

First, I have to start today by saying congrats to my friend Amy on her beautiful baby boy- Kipton. Today's work day was cut short with a call from the sitter about Jackson's diaper rash, it started to bleed. So off to the drs we went. We got some antibiotic cream and he's cut off of fruit. We have a weekend full of naked baby time ahead of us, so he should heal soon. That stomach bug is still haunting us!

Jackson took a good nap when we got home and then we got a chance to play. Russell made breakfast for dinner and Jackson loved everything (of course). Then it was time for naked play time, bath time, breathing treatment, and bed. I'm hoping he sleeps well tonight b/c I'm beat! But if he doesn't I will have to stay away from the computer and nap when he does tomorrow.

I am so excited tonight- I got my prize pack from Mama and Ruby's Easter Egg Hunt. It is so awesome! The ladies donated some awesome things. There is laundry detergent, a nursing/teething necklace, a newborn diaper, a cool 80's diaper, bibs, burp cloths, ice packs, lip balm, cd safe diaper cream, oatmeal bath (which Jackson is going to try out tomorrow!), a hat, and so much more. I'm so grateful to have won this :)

Day 125- Late night

Last day of tutoring plus out to eat with friends plus working on an IEP= one tired mama! Jackson only got a little bit of playtime at home so here are a few pictures. I'm also so excited to share our custom diaper! I can't wait to get Jackson in it :)

Day 124- one more long day

Tomorrow is my last day of tutoring. It was a lot of fun, but made for some REALLY long days. I didn't get to spend a ton of time with Jackson and his bedtime got pushed back b/c it's too hard to get home at 6 and have him fed, played with, and a bath by 8. I'm really looking forward to being home by 4:30 every day and having some great time with Jackson, walking the dogs, and playing outside. Here are some pics of Jackson doing naked butt playtime (healing from a strawberry/pineapple diarrhea rash) and watching sesame street.

Day 123- Happy Baby

I am headed to bed but I've been working on IEPs all night. Russell took some pictures from when he was playing with Jackson who was in a very silly mood tonight.

Day 122- Good Mood, just not on camera

Jackson really wants to stand all of the time. He can't do it on his own yet, so he fusses until I give him my hands to pull himself up on and hold on. This has made taking pictures very difficult! However, I will definitely take a few days of crappy pics to help this little squirmer get mobile. Too bad he's too stubborn to crawl, it's driving him crazy that he can't get where he wants to go. I'm definitely in trouble when he finally figures this all out. I hope the dogs are enjoying their peace now, I'm not sure how much longer it's going to last!

getting into his outside toys

favorite toy- because he can chew on it

lots to choose from

the grass is pokey

mom, I want to stand up

the sun is bright

picking flowers

the only smile I got, when he was trying to steal the camera

Day 121- Survived the strike!

I really hope that I'm not posting this too early, but I believe that Jackson and I survived a 7 day nursing strike brought on by the flu last week. For those of you who don't know what a nursing strike is- it's pure Hell. Starting on Saturday when Jackson started to feel sick, he stopped nursing. It moved to where whenever I started to move him into position to nurse, he would arch his back and scream. He was hungry, but still refused to nurse. It was very frustrating. After reading story after story on LLLI and Kellymom- I felt confident it would last only a couple of days. As soon as he feels better I kept telling myself. But day after day he was more and more frustrated and I was feeling more and more hopeless. Don't worry- in this time I gave him milk via a cup, water and pedilyte in a bottle. I felt like he was so stubborn, this was never going to end. However, today- something changed. The third time I tried to feed him, he ate for 1/2 and hour. Then slowly he was less and less resistant every time. By the end of the night it was like nothing ever happened. No tears, no screaming, no stress, no panic.

I didn't realize how important breastfeeding was going to become when I made the commitment to myself to do it until 6 months. After the pain of the first two months learning to get the latch just perfect, I realized that I definitely wanted to go until at least a year. As a year grows closer and I've read more- it will be 2 years or when he self-weans. There are many, many benefits, but this strike taught me that one of the biggest is the special bond that only he and I share. Not that mothers who chose (or life has chosen for them) to formula feed don't have a special bond, but I feel exclusive breastfeeding creates a very special tie.

Looking back over the past 8 1/2 months I have learned so much. It always seemed to me that breastfeeding was natural, so therefore it was easy. Boy oh boy was I wrong! First, since I had a c-section, I was already at a disadvantage, missing the prime time to learn a good latch. Secondly, no matter how many books you read- there is nothing that will teach more more than a good nurse and lots of practice. Third, if you don't get it right the first time- it will hurt for a good while. You have to heal, yet there is no time. Fourth, it's time consuming, but in the end- you won't mind it. Fifth, every new tooth bring new pain as he has to learn a whole new latch, again it's worth it. There is a lot more, but I just can't pin point it today.

I have learned over this last week that I will not complain about the pain, bites, or occasional inconvenience that breastfeeding has caused because I wouldn't give them up for anything. The thought that our relationship was over was way more devastating than I thought it would be. I think a big part was I felt like I had failed him. I will appreciate each and every time that I feed him, because I will never know when something like this might happen again. It's crazy how much this has effected me- but it definitely made me recommit to breastfeeding for his first two years and made me appreciate that I've been able to do it successfully for 8 1/2 months.

The reason I wrote all of this out today was because when Jackson began his strike, I read and I read and I read. Most of the posts that I read that had nursing strikes over a couple of days ended up in premature weaning. A lot were from stay at home moms and a lot were easy to see why they stopped and why the started back up. I just wanted to share in case any other moms needed a positive story about a strike that was a little longer than average and ended in success.

Oh and any mom's that are breastfeeding or want to breastfeed in the future you need to bookmark these two sites- they are beyond helpful! I also recommend you find a support group. My August mom's group has been beyond helpful in keeping moe committed to cloth diapering, baby led weaning, and especially this week, breastfeeding. http://www.llli.org/ http://kellymom.com/

So in addition to all of that here are some pictures from our much happier day!

Look Mom, no hands!

The only way to get tummy time- he rolled from back to tummy and moved a little!

Who needs toys when you have ads to tear to shreds?

Hanging out with the Bern dog

Mom, he's messing up my blankets!

Protecting his egg

Yum, he had 2 eggs with dinner tonight!

Day 121- Survived the strike!

I really hope that I'm not posting this too early, but I believe that Jackson and I survived a 7 day nursing strike brought on by the flu last week. For those of you who don't know what a nursing strike is- it's pure Hell. Starting on Saturday when Jackson started to feel sick, he stopped nursing. It moved to where whenever I started to move him into position to nurse, he would arch his back and scream. He was hungry, but still refused to nurse. It was very frustrating. After reading story after story on LLLI and Kellymom- I felt confident it would last only a couple of days. As soon as he feels better I kept telling myself. But day after day he was more and more frustrated and I was feeling more and more hopeless. Don't worry- in this time I gave him milk via a cup, water and pedilyte in a bottle. I felt like he was so stubborn, this was never going to end. However, today- something changed. The third time I tried to feed him, he ate for 1/2 and hour. Then slowly he was less and less resistant every time. By the end of the night it was like nothing ever happened. No tears, no screaming, no stress, no panic.

I didn't realize how important breastfeeding was going to become when I made the commitment to myself to do it until 6 months. After the pain of the first two months learning to get the latch just perfect, I realized that I definitely wanted to go until at least a year. As a year grows closer and I've read more- it will be 2 years or when he self-weans. There are many, many benefits, but this strike taught me that one of the biggest is the special bond that only he and I share. Not that mothers who chose (or life has chosen for them) to formula feed don't have a special bond, but I feel exclusive breastfeeding creates a very special tie.

Looking back over the past 8 1/2 months I have learned so much. It always seemed to me that breastfeeding was natural, so therefore it was easy. Boy oh boy was I wrong! First, since I had a c-section, I was already at a disadvantage, missing the prime time to learn a good latch. Secondly, no matter how many books you read- there is nothing that will teach more more than a good nurse and lots of practice. Third, if you don't get it right the first time- it will hurt for a good while. You have to heal, yet there is no time. Fourth, it's time consuming, but in the end- you won't mind it. Fifth, every new tooth bring new pain as he has to learn a whole new latch, again it's worth it. There is a lot more, but I just can't pin point it today.

I have learned over this last week that I will not complain about the pain, bites, or occasional inconvenience that breastfeeding has caused because I wouldn't give them up for anything. The thought that our relationship was over was way more devastating than I thought it would be. I think a big part was I felt like I had failed him. I will appreciate each and every time that I feed him, because I will never know when something like this might happen again. It's crazy how much this has effected me- but it definitely made me recommit to breastfeeding for his first two years and made me appreciate that I've been able to do it successfully for 8 1/2 months.

The reason I wrote all of this out today was because when Jackson began his strike, I read and I read and I read. Most of the posts that I read that had nursing strikes over a couple of days ended up in premature weaning. A lot were from stay at home moms and a lot were easy to see why they stopped and why the started back up. I just wanted to share in case any other moms needed a positive story about a strike that was a little longer than average and ended in success.

Oh and any mom's that are breastfeeding or want to breastfeed in the future you need to bookmark these two sites- they are beyond helpful! I also recommend you find a support group. My August mom's group has been beyond helpful in keeping moe committed to cloth diapering, baby led weaning, and especially this week, breastfeeding. http://www.llli.org/ http://kellymom.com/

So in addition to all of that here are some pictures from our much happier day!

Look Mom, no hands!

The only way to get tummy time- he rolled from back to tummy and moved a little!

Who needs toys when you have ads to tear to shreds?

Hanging out with the Bern dog

Mom, he's messing up my blankets!