No Time to Pee

When I was pregnant, I spent a lot of time in the bathroom. When I drank the amount of water I was supposed to, I felt like I was in the bathroom every 15 minutes. Now Paige is here and I can multi-task pretty well with a baby in my arms - pumping, cleaning, walking the dog, making the bed. But there is one thing I just can't do - pee! As soon as my baby cries, I'm up and running towards her to cuddle and soothe. It's only once she is in my arms that I remember that I have to use the bathroom. And at that point, it's too late. There have been a number of times over the last 3+ weeks that I'm rocking back and forth not only to soothe the baby, but also to keep from peeing on myself : )  My sister, brother-in-law and niece were visiting this past week, and I think my bladder got spoiled. Now it's back to solo-mommy duty... any way I can get that catheter back in? Just kidding... kind of : )

The Quest for Liquid Gold

For some reason I always thought breast milk was plentiful - like a tap, that flowed whenever, wherever. Pretty much filling gallon containers on a moments notice. WRONG! Breastmilk is like liquid gold. I produce about 2 - 3 oz. per pumping. That's like a single gulp by adult standards. And it takes 20 - 30 minutes just to pump that! And once I do pump it, the process of transferring the pumped milk from the pump to the storage container is a highly orchestrated dance making sure every single drop makes the transition. When you're only producing 2 oz - every last drop counts! First I take the pumps off and shake every droplet into the container - no holdouts in the suction cup! Then I gingerly walk from the living room to the kitchen - paranoid the entire time that I'm going to trip and spill the goods. Then comes pouring into the storage containers. Anyone watching me would think I was disasembling a bomb with the level of concentration I have at the moment. And next thing you know, Paige gobbles it up and its time to pump again. I go to the doctor again this week - hopefully she will have gained weight and all this is working!!

The Truth About Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding is no joke. Before I had Paige, I was told that the first few weeks of breastfeeding would feel like someone was rubbing Brillo pads over my nipples. And I can tell you this - they weren't lying! A Brillo pad combined with a vice grip with super human power. The first week I must have been in a new Mama fog - it hurt, but I figured it would get better. By the time I realized something was very wrong, my nipples were bloody stumps (literally). SO GROSS! A normal person would seek help - I decided this was the process I had read about of my nipples "toughening up". Week 2 came and went, and reality set in - this is pretty much the most painful thing EVER. I literally had tears running down my face every time. I didn't want to throw in the towel, because I know how important breastfeeding is for the baby. But, at the same time, I knew I couldn't go on like this for much longer. After talking with my mom and sister, I figured out Paige was latching on wrong... yikes! When I went to the pediatrician for the 2 week check up, I also found out Paige wasn't gaining as much weight as she should be. Basically, a combination of not latching right paired with severe pain on my end (causing me to tense up and not let the milk down) was causing her to not get enough food. So for the past week, I've started a new feeding routine that has been working MUCH better for me. I do a combination of breastfeeding (with a revised latch), pumping and formula. It's not what I had thought I would be doing - especially the formula part - but I have to say that it is working out really well. Everything is healing up, and its becoming a much more pleasant expereince for mama and baby.