Almost made my goal...
When I had Izzy, there was a no question that I would nurse her. Nursing my kids is something I have always known I would do and am thankful that I chose to do so. Also, Robert, my husband was a great support and helped me out so much which made nursing her a lot easier, especially in the first 5 weeks when it seemed to be non-stop! So thankful to have him as my husband!! Izzy has never had a problem eating and nursing her has been a really awesome experience for me.
I also knew that I would not be a full time stay-at-home Mom, and I would have challenges with nursing exclusively for a whole year. So I made a goal to Nurse Izzy exclusively until she was 9 months old, and then see how she was doing at that point.
Izzy is now a week away from being 9 months old and I ended up giving her some supplemental formula for the first time. I only have a weeks worth of my milk stored up and wanted to stretch that out for as long as possible, and Izzy seems to have hit a growth spurt and wants to nurse more than I am able to provide.
I don't know why, but I felt bad giving her formula, like somehow in my mind, it wasn't the best, so it wasn't good enough or something. I'm an L&D nurse and feed babies formula at work all the time, so I know its ok, it's just not what we're used to. Izzy, of course didn't even seem to notice and drank it all up, no problems, no gas, no reflux, so all is well. She will get formula at least once a day when I am working until she is 1 year. I will continue to nurse her until her 1st birthday as best I can, and hopefully she will start eating more & more table food too.
When I think about it, I'm pretty proud that I have been able to nurse her, and have overcome several difficult challenges:
*At 4 months I went back to work full time, working 12 hr NIGHT shifts. very HARD to do. that meant somedays I sleep in the day, somedays I sleep at night, and some days I don't sleep - all of which makes you uncomfortable and very full at times (which can be PAINFUL!) mixing your nights and days is hard on you without throwing nursing in the mix!
*As a busy RN on an L&D unit I didn't always get to take a break to pump (engorgement makes you a very TOUGH but cranky person to work with!)
*I was sick once and on antibiotics. Izzy was sick once with a stomach bug and didnt eat for several days.
*Izzy has 6 teeth (and yes, she tried to let me know a few times when nursing that she had teeth) Not fun at all. Flicking her resolved that issue, thankfully.
Some other pluses to nursing have been:
I lost all my baby weight by 5 weeks postpartum and an additional 20 lbs,
I drink water constantly and enjoy it,
I get a lot more quality one on one time with my sweet baby girl,
Izzy is a very HEALTHY and happy baby!
I also knew that I would not be a full time stay-at-home Mom, and I would have challenges with nursing exclusively for a whole year. So I made a goal to Nurse Izzy exclusively until she was 9 months old, and then see how she was doing at that point.
Izzy is now a week away from being 9 months old and I ended up giving her some supplemental formula for the first time. I only have a weeks worth of my milk stored up and wanted to stretch that out for as long as possible, and Izzy seems to have hit a growth spurt and wants to nurse more than I am able to provide.
I don't know why, but I felt bad giving her formula, like somehow in my mind, it wasn't the best, so it wasn't good enough or something. I'm an L&D nurse and feed babies formula at work all the time, so I know its ok, it's just not what we're used to. Izzy, of course didn't even seem to notice and drank it all up, no problems, no gas, no reflux, so all is well. She will get formula at least once a day when I am working until she is 1 year. I will continue to nurse her until her 1st birthday as best I can, and hopefully she will start eating more & more table food too.
When I think about it, I'm pretty proud that I have been able to nurse her, and have overcome several difficult challenges:
*At 4 months I went back to work full time, working 12 hr NIGHT shifts. very HARD to do. that meant somedays I sleep in the day, somedays I sleep at night, and some days I don't sleep - all of which makes you uncomfortable and very full at times (which can be PAINFUL!) mixing your nights and days is hard on you without throwing nursing in the mix!
*As a busy RN on an L&D unit I didn't always get to take a break to pump (engorgement makes you a very TOUGH but cranky person to work with!)
*I was sick once and on antibiotics. Izzy was sick once with a stomach bug and didnt eat for several days.
*Izzy has 6 teeth (and yes, she tried to let me know a few times when nursing that she had teeth) Not fun at all. Flicking her resolved that issue, thankfully.
Some other pluses to nursing have been:
I lost all my baby weight by 5 weeks postpartum and an additional 20 lbs,
I drink water constantly and enjoy it,
I get a lot more quality one on one time with my sweet baby girl,
Izzy is a very HEALTHY and happy baby!
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