Tag Archives: Bonding

On breastfeeding, 5.5 months in

breastfeeding gorilla

There was never any doubt in my mind that I wanted to breastfeed my little one. Before I knew that I was having a little girl, I knew that I wanted to nurse her. Back then, there were so many reasons that I thought I knew – it was healthier, “breast is best” and it’s free. What more could I want? Besides, I figured that my mom was a La Leche League leader back in the day, so she could help me if I ran into any problems. So, with everything sorted, I figured that was that. But it’s been so different than I imagined.

First of all, I never would have thought that my first couple months on this journey would mean pumping instead of nursing. Thanks to Harley being so premature and in the NICU for 5 weeks, I had to pump for her and deliver the milk every day. Then she came home and simply wouldn’t latch. I was devastated about it, but at least she was still getting the good stuff with the pumping. Thankfully, once she was a bit bigger, she latched like a champ, and has been a boobie monster ever since. That has come with its own unique ups and downs. Continue Reading

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6 Comments Breast feeding, Parenting

Missing something is the best sign

I went to an event yesterday. It was in the middle of the day, and ended up taking me away from home for quite a bunch of hours. I was so grateful to have my mom around – she was able to watch Harley and keep in the loop about how things were going so that I could just try to enjoy myself. After being out for over three hours, Harley was starving and my boobs were bursting and we had a wonderful reunion. But it was more than feeding time; I was missing her.

When I’ve missed her before, it was sort of like leaving the house without your bag. It felt like something was missing and I was worried the whole time. But now that Harley is developing her own personality, I actually missed her. Not the idea of her, not nursing or whatever else, I missed her silly smile and laugh. I wanted to cuddle her and love her. And it was the most wonderful sign for me. Continue Reading

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Comment Parenting, Rambling

Stop asking about solids

baby solids

I don’t know what it is about becoming a mom, but suddenly it seems that everyone feels entitled to tell women what to do. I’ve had complete strangers tell me that I needed to put a hat on my baby, or socks, or to not bundle her up so much. Excuse me, but don’t you think her um, MOTHER would know what she needs?

At the moment, Harley is five months old. She is exclusively breast fed and gloriously chubby. I mean, really chubby. She even has fat rolls at her wrists and her ankles. Her growth  has continued to impress the sister when I take her to get weighed, and she is absolutely thriving. It is an incredible feeling for me – breast feeding has done so well for her. She went from being a tiny little preemie, to being a healthy chunky monkey. I am so grateful to be able to provide for her, to be able to give her the best possible food, and to be setting her up for a future of fewer allergies, illnesses and other issues. However, plenty of people have other opinions. Continue Reading

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6 Comments Breast feeding, Parenting

I had the best first Mother’s Day

Baby with controller

I was so excited for Mother’s Day this year, because it was my very first as a mommy. I’ve always enjoyed Mother’s Day as a day to treat my mom, to make her feel special and hopefully make sure she knows just how much I love and appreciate her. That’s why for my first Mother’s Day, I was so happy that she was here, able to celebrate with me. Obviously Harley is too young to know what yesterday meant, but it was still such a special day. While I was spoiled with delicious treats, it was something else that made it such a special day.

Despite being in the early stages of teething, and struggling with intermittent pain the past few days, Harley was remarkably delightful yesterday. She was full of smiles and laughs, enjoying all her time with her mommy and daddy, her omi, her granny and grandpa, her auntie Kelly, and her godparents. She was so adorable, and we had glorious cuddles and fun together. Becoming a mommy has been such a crazy journey, and it’s only just begun, but my first Mother’s Day just solidified that this was truly the right life choice. Continue Reading

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2 Comments Parenting

Why Tummy Time matters and how I keep it interesting

Tummy Time

When I was still pregnant, I started reading about tummy time. I knew it was good for babies, but I wasn’t quite sure why. Especially in the early months, it seemed a bit useless and impossible, but I did it anyway. Now I’m seeing the results, and I can’t recommend it enough. But what is tummy time and why does it matter. And even more importantly, how can you make sure that you and your little one enjoy it?

The first thing to always remember is that babies are advised not to sleep on their tummies. By putting your little one down to sleep only on her back, you vastly reduce her risk of SIDS (aka Cot Death). Tummy time isn’t about sleep, it’s about active, attended time for playing and developing. In fact, tummy time is incredibly important for development – by holding up their heads babies develop their neck, shoulder, back and trunk muscles, all of which are important for turning over, sitting up and crawling. Harley loves tummy time, but that’s probably because of how I introduced her to it and how we keep it fun. Continue Reading

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5 Comments Child Development, Parenting