Wednesday, November 30, 2016

November Highlights

November started off quiet, but went out with a bang! We always start birthday and Christmas prep after Halloween, so that's what we were busy doing.

Here are some of our highlights:

{Jillian wanted a picture with Lottie, and I was lovin' her bedhead :)}
{This is also before we told her we ate all her Halloween candy like Jimmy Kimmel does. She was not amused, but forgave us anyways ;) Don't worry, we told her pretty quickly that it was just a joke!}

{Lottie trying SO hard to roll from back to belly}

{Davey fell asleep mid-popcorn bite! HAHAHAHA}

{We decided to make Olive's Gotcha Day her birthday as well. We baked her some pupcakes, recipe found here, and sang to her. She is 4 human years old now!}

{You know, we were really unsure if we'd find a dog that fit with our family well. All I can say is, she is just perfect for us! So sweet and gentle, and only a little rambunctious ;) Love you Olive!}

{Lottie was my voting buddy on election day. We waited in line for over an hour, but she slept almost the whole time. We went with daddy to get a free donut afterwards. Her face says "Where's MY donut mom?!?}

{Such a happy kitchen helper :)}

{This was the final bottle of breastmilk for Lottie. It was 102 days of milk for her, and I'm so proud of our journey together!}

{David is usually in our bathroom playing with various things if I haven't seen him in a while. What a goofy boy}

{We got tickets through Jillian's hearing clinic for a Thunder Game!}

{Excited for the game to start!}

{We were in the top most row, but you could still see pretty well. It was awfully steep though}

{Group photo <3}

{Love this little man}

{Top picture is Jillian, and bottom is Lottie in the same outfit on the same playmat. They are definitely sisters!}

{Well, that's the end of my backup laptop I guess :(}
{I suspect it was stepped on. Great.}

{Sleepy loves}

{Looking extra pretty and dreaming about Montpellier}

{Yes, it is fall. Yes, leaves are turning colors and falling. Yes, my children are wearing short sleeves and shorts. Thank you, Oklahoma weather!}

{My girls ready for the Thanksgiving feast at preschool!}

{David at the feast in his awesome turkey hat!}

{Time to bring out the jumperoo! She can touch the floor with her tippy toes, but seems to like the change of scenery}

{We decided to go on a walk, then make some leaf art for Thanksgiving}

{This ended up being a great project for the family! Plus, the kids were dying to glue something, so this worked :)}

{She looks like a doll}

{Someone woke up extra early, so mama made her try on some hats}

{Heartbreaker}

{Playing in the leaf pile at Grandma and Papa's house}

{So much fun!}

{My precious kiddos on Thanksgiving}
{Davey asked to hold Lottie, and he did pretty good!}

{Home again after the holiday}

{Lottie got her White House greeting in the mail!}

{David's birthday presents are wrapped, and ready for his birthday!}

{There was a large grass fire near us, (2 miles west, and 3 miles north), and the smoke was incredible to see}

{We have some Shopkins and Grossery Gang figures, so we made a little world for them. We used toys we already have, but it seems to work just fine!}

Monday, November 21, 2016

My Exclusively Pumping Journey

Disclaimer: This is about my personal pumping journey. It involves some info for me, as well as affiliate links of which I get no benefit from aside from being a way for me to remember later. If this helps someone on their journey, great! If not, this is for me :)

When I was pregnant with Jillian, several trusted sources told me I may have a difficult time breastfeeding because of my breast reduction surgery. With that in mind, I had a very low expectation in terms of my milk supply. I started with a single electric breast pump, then eventually purchased an electric double pump. I pumped what I could as often as I could. My supply lasted a little over 3 weeks, and I was very much satisfied with that outcome!

Once I was pregnant a second time, I decided to see if I could do a little bit better. I enrolled in a breastfeeding class, and tried to prepare myself for exclusively nursing. I figured that having some sort of supply before meant I could potentially nurse! Well, that didn't work out. David had a poor latch, and he hardly made any wet diapers in the hospital. When I would pump, Jillian had to be distracted somehow because the noise scared her every time. Once I realized it was better for David and myself to pump and supplement with formula, that's what I did. I lasted almost 4 weeks, and was satisfied in the end. It would have been nice to nurse, but that just wasn't in the cards for us.

When we knew for sure I had a healthy, and viable pregnancy in December, Phil and I discussed what I would do. After David had issues getting enough wet diapers, I told Phil I wanted to exclusively pump until my supply ran out. We looked into the free breast pump through our insurance, and saw that I could get an upgrade in pumps from what I had before. I prepared for having a good month's worth of supply before things dwindled naturally. At the hospital, I was given a handout from a lactation consultant that gave me clear guidelines for how often to pump when exclusively pumping. With the information I was given both by the lactation consultant, and from some trusted resources, I established a really good supply. Good enough to be getting nearly 32 ounces of milk a day. That was awesome! However, I was extremely tied down. It was hard planning our schedule around pumping, and Jillian & David were getting into mischief every time I pumped. I tried a few times to nurse Lottie, but she is a lazy feeder just like her sister. After discussing it ad nauseam with Phil, and my doctor, and my mom, I decided it was time to start weaning off.

My pumping journey ended after 9 weeks and 3 days. It ended by choice, and not because my body stopped producing.

As hard, (and tiring!), as it was, I am so glad of what I accomplished and what I learned. Here are some of the main things I want to remember about the journey.

I don't lose weight while nursing
Some women do, but I do not. I even tried counting calories to see if that was the culprit. Nope. I just don't lose weight, and that's ok! I was also SO hungry every time I finished a session.

It can physically hurt to pump sometimes
I would have a pain on my right side. I'm not sure if it was muscles or what, but it was not comfortable sometimes.

The pump can make a difference
I had this pump before {Lansinoh Affinity Double Electric Pump}, and then got this pump through insurance {Medela Pump In Style Advance Starter Set}. Both have their pros and cons, but I knew I would need as close to a hospital grade pump as I could. You have to figure out the right settings for you, and know that it can change over time. Once you figure out what your body needs, it's much easier to figure out.

They make sizes for pump parts, and it is important to get the right fit
Medela makes different sizes for a specific pump part. I had NO idea about this! It really did make a difference for me to have the right size. It took some trial and error, but I finally figured out what worked for me. You may even need a difference size for each side. Whatever needs to be done!

You can have all kinds of issues, and even a mix of a few
If you read some of the issues women run into while nursing or pumping, it's no wonder so many women give up. I actually had a weird mix of a couple different problems. I was able to work through them, but I was not expecting any of it!

Lactation cookies can be yummy and helpful, but do have a downside
I had a really good recipe that I liked here. However, because of the brewer's yeast, there were some interesting diapers coming from David. In fact, he almost got a full on yeast diaper rash because we let him eat a few. They can help, they are definitely yummy, but it may cause horrible farts. You have been warned.

Dark beer didn't help, but it tasted good
I was willing to try anything, so a little dark beer sounded easy to do. However, it did not help my supply at all. Also, I had to pump and dump after I was done. Not worth it to me.

Sometimes celebrities know what they're talking about
I found out about about some bars from Tamera Mowry-Housley. While I'm not a big coconut fan, these bars did make a noticeable difference in my supply! I ordered one box of the chocolate, and it was good. They were not the most delicious things I've ever eaten, and they had a spicy kick I was not expecting. However, I went from making most of what Lottie needed, to pumping exactly 32-34 oz a day. You eat the box, and can stop if you want. If you want to keep going, that's fine too. However, this did make a difference for me personally.

I had a routine of tea and oatmeal, even though it was the "wrong kind" of oatmeal
I drank Mother's Milk tea, and ate instant oatmeal every morning, and every night. The type of oatmeal that is helpful for lactating is the rolled or old-fashioned kind, and NOT instant. However, I like instant better. Who knows if it really made much of a difference. I liked the tea, even without any additives!

Netflix saved my life/sanity
I got through several TV series because I was tied down for so long. It also helped keep me awake when I was pumping at 2 am.

I was hungry all the time
I tried to start carb-cycling again, but I was just starving at the end of a pumping session. Even if I ate before, I would need something!

Mastitis is scary, but not a guarantee
I was so worried about having mastitis at some point that I tried to be extra careful about not being too long between sessions and completely emptying myself. Even if you're careful, you can still get it. However, you may not get it at all like myself. Just do the best you can :)

My favorite products
Wipes - good for those 2 am pumping session when you don't want to full on clean them
Breast Pads - these were good when I had lots of milk, and these were good for when I was drying up
Milk Bags - I used both this brand and the Target version. No preference, but I do use extras for snack bags!
App - I have used this timer for all my babies now. It's $5 (worth every penny!), and it works well for what I want in an app
Cream - When I needed lots of moisture, I used this. Otherwise, this was good enough for me
Website - This site and this site were my main online resources for everything from storage and defrosting to pain management. I was lucky to have lactation consultants I could call through my hospital as well. That was REALLY helpful!
Hot Pad - I had to use this almost every time I pumped to help with my letdown. It was very helpful and nice to have the times I was becoming engorged. Also, because it had little rings on the ends, I could attach it to my body using a towel, scarf, or my nursing bra so that it could stay on hands free

I recently fed Lottie the final bottle from my stash. We made it 102 days where she received at least one full bottle of my milk every day. Even though I wish I could have given her more, I am thankful and proud of this journey.

Tuesday, November 1, 2016

Lottie: {Three Months}

Lottie –

You are three months old today! You are officially an infant, and out of the newborn stage of life. It's hard to believe it's been that long since you jetted into our lives that summer morning :)

According to our measurements at home, you are 12 lbs, 9 oz and 23-1/2 inches long.

Mostly 3 Month, and a few 0-3 Month clothes are what you are wearing these days. You wear size 1 diapers, though we may move you up to size 2 soon.

For feedings, you have about between 6-7 feedings a day and eat an average of 25 ounces. You were eating really well up until your 2 month vaccines. You dropped to eating about 20 oz a day, and it took us nearly 2 full weeks to get you back to your old feeding rhythm. You did well with the shots otherwise! We also just moved you to the next level of nipple for your bottles. This has cut down on feeding lengths, as well as keeps you from taking a cat nap in the middle of your feeding. I suspect you were getting too tired of sucking so hard that you needed a little reboot before finishing :) You eat mostly Similac Supplement formula, and we're on our final freezer bags of mommy's milk. We've also started mixing a little Similac for Spit Up with added rice starch to help with refluxing. You were starting to vomit due to reflux and your incredibly sensitive gag reflex. You threw up about 4 times in 5 days. Since added the different formula to our regimen, you have not thrown up, and your spit up episodes are less. You still hiccup a lot, which is fine ;)

Your clogged tear duct finally opened up about a week after your 2 month birthday! I'm sure you appreciate not getting your eye messed with constantly by mama. Unfortunately, you are getting over your first official cold. We've all been a little stuffed up with light coughing. Hopefully, we'll all get better soon!

Bath and floor time are your favorite activities as of now. That is, unless you're hungry ;) You're starting to kick in the tub just a little, and you grabbed your toes a few days ago! You have smiled for all of us, and you love to hear how pretty and sweet you are. When mama greets you with "Hey Girl, Hey!" you usually give a big grin :) You laughed for mama and daddy, though you won't do it for the camera just yet. The ceiling fan is your new favorite "person" and you could smile at it all morning. 

You are starting to recognize us more and more. Our voices can get you calm, and you usually smile when you first see us :)

The swing is a love/hate thing for you, but you would rather be held. You're starting to enjoy sitting up more than laying down. You're still getting used to Bumbo seat.

You can get overwhelmed easily in our crazy house, but mama does too sometimes ;) We just swaddle you, give you a pacifier, and take you to a different room for a little bit. Sometimes white noise stuff helps, and other times it makes you madder. Also, you're still not sure about pacifiers, but you're taking to them a little more than before!

Bedtime sleeping is great, though that makes you a cat napper during the day. The doctor told us to just be thankful you sleep through the night :) You usually got 9-1/2 hours between your last bottle of the day, and your first bottle of the morning.

Tummy time is not horrible, but you certainly get tired of it easily. You were trying SO hard to roll from back to belly the other day! You got stuck on your side, and never quite made it. That's ok, there's plenty of time for all that.

You're a good errand buddy because you usually sleep through it! HAHAHA I also get lots of sweet comments about how lovely you are :) I love that we get some special time just the two of us on Tuesdays when brother and sissy are at extended day for preschool. It'll be even more fun when we can play together!

Most car rides are ok with you. If you're going to be fussy, usually have the car in motion with the radio on will get you to settle down. Well, maybe 95% of the time. That other 5%? Well, we don't really talk about that ;) We get through it as best we can!

Lottie Dottie, we just love you to pieces. You are a wonderful baby, and we're so glad you're a part of this family. We're excited to see more of your personality come out as you continue to grow! 

And now a few outtakes:
{Sleepy baby was not wanting to wake up for pictures!}

{Say whaaaaa?}

{Making spit bubbles and scootchin' down her chair}

{Ole senorita!}

{Stretch}

{This bear again mom?!}

{Ack! Mama save me!}

And a few comparisons :)
{Lottie at 1, 2, and 3 months}

{Left: Jillian 3/2012 Middle: David 3/2014 Right: Lottie 11/2016}

But I Know What It Feels Like

This post is going to be awfully vulnerable and hard for me, but I really want to finally say it out loud. I got permission for my daughter ...