The other night we were getting the kids ready for bath time. Ryan had the bath water running, Declan was in the tub & I was holding naked Averley while Ryan got things ready to lay Averley in the tub. Apparently Ryan took too long because all of a sudden I felt warmth on my arm/wrist that dribbled down onto my socks. Lucky me - I got peed on. As Ryan sat there laughing at the situation I remembered the time he got "sprayed" when Declan was a baby:
That was pretty funny stuff when it happened :) Ryan's giggles soon turned around on him when later on after bath time Declan gave him another nice spray! We have a little bit of diaper free time before bed time & I guess Declan had his diaper off for too long. All of a sudden Ryan feels warmth on his foot - Thank you Declan for letting mommy have a good laugh! The siblings ganged up on the parents already at this young age.
Being able to stay home with my kids is so rewarding & so much fun! Its something new every day that makes me smile. Today Declan went pee pee on the potty all on his own. He wanted his diaper off and he sat down on the potty. Nothing happened the first 5 times he sat down but he finally went pee pee after about 20 minutes of diaper free time. We did our little reward dance & clapped. It was so great. Then 5 minutes later he peed on his toy car & then really let it go soon after that all over the couch, floor & his foot. He cried about that, haha. Its just another day of fun cleaning up pee!
Declan was full of cuteness today. What was suppose to be nap time turned into babbling at who knows what in his crib & JUMPING in his crib! I caught him actually jumping in his crib - hilarious to open up his bedroom door to see him up in the air and land on his little tush grinning ear to ear.
After getting him out of his trampoline...err...crib, he proceeded to copy me as I got on my tip-toes to see out the top of the front door. He walked up to the door, put his hands on it just like I did, got on his tip-toes & lifted his chin up just like I did to try to peer out the window. Of course, he is WAY too little to even come close to seeing out the window but it was so stinkin' cute. I love him!!
It is so fun watching Declan interact with Averley - he is always bringing her toys & its even better watching him try to give her the pacifier. He does everything he can to try to get it in her mouth. I'll have to load the video up later, so cute!
Yesterday - Valentine's Day - I got a special treat! Getting to see Averley roll back-to-belly for the first time! Ryan got that special honor with Declan so it was nice to be able to experience this "first" first :) Today she was just a rolling machine. There was no keeping her on the play mat - she just wanted to roll & roll. She also tried bananas today. This is her second food - she first tried avocado which she seems to really like. Bananas she liked but I don't think they sat well with her belly. I love making her food for her! That is another blog for another day!
My kids are awesome & I love every second of being with them!
Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding is one of those topics. I've talked to people who felt so strongly about breastfeeding you would think they might call CPS on you if you decide to formula feed. There are others who don't even want to think about it as an option - they will formula feed from day one. Other women might really want to try to breastfeed but it doesn't work out for one reason or the other & they switch to formula (or supplement). Then there is me........
With Declan I tried breastfeeding - it was difficult. More difficult than I thought it would ever be. The issue was never not having a good enough milk supply - I had plenty of milk. Instead, I just didn't "enjoy" it. I want to say part of the reason was not being prepared - not knowing what to expect. I never felt that bond I had heard other mothers say they feel when they nurse their precious little babies. To me it was a job - a job only I could do and it annoyed me. Every 2-3 hours (in the beginning) I was the only person who could feed my son while everyone else could do whatever they wanted. They never had to stop what they were doing & go in the other room (if need be). They never had to get up every 2-3 hours every night for the first few weeks. They got to sleep...they got to leave the house for more than an hour...they got to do whatever they wanted without ever having a baby attached to them.
Yeah...I guess I was a bit jealous. Which is ridiculous when you think about some of the women out there who so desperately wanted to breastfeed but couldn't. How selfish of me, right? I know - I've gone through all of those feelings myself.
Sadly, I only made it 5 weeks with Declan before switching to formula. I didn't think it was "sad" at that point - I felt more of a relief than anything. I didn't feel bad (at first) - I was able to sleep at night since Ryan was able to get up & make a bottle. I thought, "This is great!" Soon after switching to formula Declan started sleeping in longer stretches which was considering "sleeping through the night."
A friend of mine had a baby just a couple days before I had Declan. As the months went on & she continued nursing while I switched to formula I started to feel more & more upset that I had given up. I felt a sense of guilt & even jealousy. She made it a year breastfeeding her child & I just gave up. Sad.
At one point I looked into how to "re-lactate" - I never knew it was even possible but apparently some women have great success with it. Soon after I researched it I found out I was pregnant again!
Here comes Averley :) I was bound & determined to make it longer than 5 weeks. If I could just get over that "hump" than it would be a bit easier. That is what I kept telling myself in those first 6 weeks of getting up ALL THE TIME!
I think Averley was around 2 months when I decided to start pumping & giving her a bottle of mommy's milk instead of exclusively nursing. I felt better knowing how much she was getting & although nursing was going fine for the most part she wasn't getting very good "nursing sessions" since I had to run around & make sure Declan was taken care of while I was nursing her. Sit down, latch on, Declan needs something, get up...oh crap she unlatched, get Declan what he needs, sit down, latch back on - what? Declan needs something else? Sorry Averley - your broken nursing session wasn't exactly what you wanted was it?
It just seemed easier to pump & feed her from a bottle - that way others can feed her if I need to do something else (there I go again..me me me). As the weeks & months went on I continued to exclusively pump. I have yet to have to supplement with formula (only because I have a supply stored in our deep freeze). I am proud of myself for making it this far. I do still nurse in the middle of the night - its just easier that way - but other than that she is fed from a bottle.
I have my struggles with pumping - especially during the days when I am babysitting 1 or 2 other kids. Trying to schedule it out so all of the kids have their needs met & I can be stationed on the couch for 15 minutes every 3-5 hours can be a bit of a task. There are days when I feel it would be so much easier if I didn't have to pump - technically, I don't. I could try to switch back to nursing that way I wouldn't have to pump, then feed. That actually takes up more of my time than it would to just nurse. But then Averley will still not get the nursing sessions she needs/deserves. With taking care of the other kids I will probably be up & running around even more than when it was just Declan.
Another option is to switch to formula. I've battled this in my own mind almost every time I pump. But then I think about how bad I felt "giving up" on Declan & I trudge through it. I think about the difference in taste from breast milk to formula - then I feel bad about that (I know...so silly). Its ridiculous, really...formula may not be AS good as breast milk, but its still pretty darn good & I sit here and feel bad about things that really don't matter. It's so silly.
In the end, I'm just going to continue to battle through for as long as I can. I've made it 5 months so far & I will just keep going 1 month at a time. My next goal is to make it to 6 months. I know I can do it - but what is important is not feeling guilty if I need to supplement for any reason. It is OKAY. It doesn't mean I love my daughter any less or that she won't be a healthy & thriving beautiful girl!
Breastfeeding is hard - Formula isn't bad - The end!
Yes - Snowpocalypse 2011 is what they are calling the ice storm we are experiencing here in the mid-west. We have been getting ice for 24 hours now (about). Many people are having power outages or are afraid their trees are going to fall into their homes from the weight of the ice on the limbs. Highways are shut down, many places of work are closed, schools are not in session.....pretty much only go out if you absolutely have to right now.
Ryan got to stay home today with us & will get to stay home tomorrow as well. We finally got to really clean the house today which we don't really get to do often because I just don't have the time during the day just yet & on the weekends we are both either too tired or just want to spend time with the kids so we do just that.
On to the kids!!! :)~
Declan is so stinkin' cute - I just can't get enough of him. Even when he is crabby he is cute. Yesterday he took off his pajamas & didn't want to wear anything but his diaper & flip flops.....
Apparently he didn't get the memo that there was an ice storm upon us! He is just as ready for spring as the rest of us. I am looking forward to being able to take the kids on a walk or just out in the back yard! SO ready for spring. Not to mention seeing all of the pretty tulips (my favorite flower!).
Declan has been learning what it is to be a boy these past few days. He has taken more stumbles than ever - here is a picture of what happens when he falls into the air return vent in our hallway:
He wasn't very happy after it happened. Then today he was having WAY too much fun on his rocking horse - it "bucked" him off...haha. He just rocked too far backward & landed on his back with the horse on top of him. It was a funny site to see but he wasn't very happy about it. I think his pride was hurt more than anything - he got back on it soon after he calmed down.
I know there are more stumbles to be had - its just what its like being a boy!!
Averley - she is still growing like crazy. I love seeing her smile. Here she is eating the horses ear (yes..the horse Declan got "bucked" off):
See how big she is getting!! UGH! I just want her to stay little, lol. Not really but I am enjoying every single moment of her being not as heavy as Declan - ha!
