7/6 Mommy Milk Monday

[krispy83]

How old is your LO? 5 months

Are you nursing, pumping, supplementing? Nursing and pumping occasionally for a bottle

Solids? Not yet

Has your period returned? What BC are you using? No. I'm on the mini-pill.

Questions/AW? None at the moment

GTKY: Body art/modifications! Tattoos, piercings, do you dye your hair? Do you want something you haven't done yet? My ears and navel are pierced. No tattoos or dye or anything else. I don't plan on anything other than eventually dyeing to cover grays.

[seamonster]

Jul 6, 2015 16:13:50 GMT -5 misshart00 said:

lilyelayne He seems to be doing better. He likes to chew more but I'm not sure if that's from the tongue tie getting fixed or just age. He's closer to taking a bottle but he doesn't quite get it.

Is it like clamping down? DS did that for a while afterwards and it may be a way to slow down flow now that he can use his tongue to help get milk out. The new rush of milk feels like an overactive letdown until they get used to the amount of milk. He probably did it for about 2 weeks while he got used to the new state of things. It was not a comfortable 2 weeks for me.

[misshart00]

Jul 6, 2015 19:17:02 GMT -5 seamonster said:

Jul 6, 2015 16:13:50 GMT -5 misshart00 said:

lilyelayne He seems to be doing better. He likes to chew more but I'm not sure if that's from the tongue tie getting fixed or just age. He's closer to taking a bottle but he doesn't quite get it.

Is it like clamping down? DS did that for a while afterwards and it may be a way to slow down flow now that he can use his tongue to help get milk out. The new rush of milk feels like an overactive letdown until they get used to the amount of milk. He probably did it for about 2 weeks while he got used to the new state of things. It was not a comfortable 2 weeks for me.

I have an overactive let down, so I would think it would be normal. But we tried a sippy cup and it seems slightly better.

[seamonster]

lilyelayne I may just keep fighting it then. It's usually when we're out to eat so the car kind of defeats that. Maybe it is more a Daddy is here thing. We're talking over dinner so DS wants in on the conversation.

dmorgendorffer I haven't had issues with DS taking bottles at daycare, but I also introduced a bottle at a week so he's well used to them. She could be reverse cycling on Monday, but I have no idea how to stop that. Babies are hard.

[cougarette]

4 months

Nursing together and pumping at work

No solids yet

No period and using condoms, though like others it's basically abstinence. I want to want it!

No questions this week

I only have my ears pierced. I can't make a commitment for a tattoo, but my sisters want to do something together. I've never dyed my hair, but I've put in a rinse a couple of times.

[misshart00]

I feel like the awkward one over here having sex.

[duckker]

Jul 6, 2015 21:20:44 GMT -5 misshart00 said:

I feel like the awkward one over here having sex.

Thank God someone is! I can NOT believe the total death of my libido. It's not just disinterest--I'm actively grossed out by the thought of sex. Anytime DH gets too flirty I feel like a 12 year old crossed with a cantankerous old lady. It's all "eewwwww!" And "That is SO inappropriate!" If this kid ever gets a sibling it will be a damn miracle.

[misshart00]

Jul 6, 2015 21:51:23 GMT -5 duckker said:

Jul 6, 2015 21:20:44 GMT -5 misshart00 said:

I feel like the awkward one over here having sex.

Thank God someone is! I can NOT believe the total death of my libido. It's not just disinterest--I'm actively grossed out by the thought of sex. Anytime DH gets too flirty I feel like a 12 year old crossed with a cantankerous old lady. It's all "eewwwww!" And "That is SO inappropriate!" If this kid ever gets a sibling it will be a damn miracle.

I think that my sex drive is way over the top anyway so the fact that we're only dtd 3 times a week is it taking a hit.

[cginge]

Umm I suddenly got a cracked nip. I thought I was done with that shit.

[cloe111479]

Jul 6, 2015 21:20:44 GMT -5 misshart00 said:

I feel like the awkward one over here having sex.

Not just you. We are too. About 1-2 times a week. (not exactly our normal but pretty close to it) though last week took a hit since we were out of condoms. Lol!

[hollydfromtn]

How old is your LO? 5 months + a week

Are you nursing, pumping, supplementing? Nursing

Solids? Not yet, I plan on starting with some purées next week though. We are covered up with squash from our garden and I'm dying to let him try it.

Has your period returned? What BC are you using? No AF yet thank goodness. We're still struggling to get our "groove" back, so we're just using condoms for the rare times we've actually DTD.

Questions/AW?

GTKY: Body art/modifications! Tattoos, piercings, do you dye your hair? Do you want something you haven't done yet? Currently have double piercings on my ears, except I very rarely wear earrings in my second hole. I have to wear hypoallergenic studs in my second hole but not my first, it's really weird. I used to have my cartilage and belly button pierced but I've let both of those grow back up. No tattoos yet but I'm toying with a few ideas. I also dye my hair all the time. I usually change it up about every 6 months or so with a new cut or color.

[lilyelayne]

Jul 7, 2015 10:35:49 GMT -5 cloe111479 said:

Jul 6, 2015 21:20:44 GMT -5 misshart00 said:

I feel like the awkward one over here having sex.

Not just you. We are too. About 1-2 times a week. (not exactly our normal but pretty close to it) though last week took a hit since we were out of condoms. Lol!

We're about once every 7-10 days, though June was unusually sparse. It hurts very little now; I think my scar tissue is mostly stretching out or whatever.
Even when I want to DTD it's hard to summon the energy/effort to initiate. It's like I've got a seduction block and instead just say "hey. Sex?" Which usually works but is kinda lackluster on my end.

[osumegs]

Jul 7, 2015 15:03:35 GMT -5 lilyelayne said:

Jul 7, 2015 10:35:49 GMT -5 cloe111479 said:

Not just you. We are too. About 1-2 times a week. (not exactly our normal but pretty close to it) though last week took a hit since we were out of condoms. Lol!

We're about once every 7-10 days, though June was unusually sparse. It hurts very little now; I think my scar tissue is mostly stretching out or whatever.
Even when I want to DTD it's hard to summon the energy/effort to initiate. It's like I've got a seduction block and instead just say "hey. Sex?" Which usually works but is kinda lackluster on my end.

That's about the extent of our game over here lol.

[cloe111479]

Us too. Though it is getting better. But at least every other one is ... Tick tock -- she's napping make it snappy.

Lol!

[FlutterOfYoshis]

Jul 7, 2015 13:40:06 GMT -5 badw0lf said:

I dye my hair boring brown as work won't allow fun colors but trust I would have pink if I could. I used to want dermals but not anymore that I've gained so much weight.

My friend got around this by dying the underside of her part. When she goes to work, she styles it in a way that the color is covered, but otherwise when she flips it over, it's got a bright purple accent. It's pretty cool.

[mommadozer]

hollydfromtn same here with my ear piercings! I leave the first hole open for fancy earrings. I am too lazy to move my screw on studs back to my first hole.

[seamonster]

Jul 7, 2015 10:35:49 GMT -5 cloe111479 said:

Jul 6, 2015 21:20:44 GMT -5 misshart00 said:

I feel like the awkward one over here having sex.

Not just you. We are too. About 1-2 times a week. (not exactly our normal but pretty close to it) though last week took a hit since we were out of condoms. Lol!

I'm glad someone is getting laid and your SOs are making you feel sexy.

[lilyelayne]

The BF board started a Pumping at Work FAQ thread that they intend to sticky, so if anyone wants to go over there and chat about your experience, please do!

[lilyelayne]

goodbyecb.proboards.com/thread/49206
Should be the link, at least until the site moved to the TCF PB url.

[greenpony33]

How old is your LO?
5 Months tomorrow

Are you nursing, pumping, supplementing?
Nursing and pumping while at work

Solids?
Not yet, I think he's ready but DH said that since the pedi said 6 months that we can't start yet. DH also said he read somewhere that their milk consumption decreases once they start solids and since 'milk is best' he doesn't want to compromise that yet- I thought that their milk consumption stayed the same at first? Anyone who has started solids yet have any experience regarding this? (And I have no idea where DH gets his info but sometimes he surprises me with the info he comes up with)


Has your period returned? What BC are you using? No real peroid yet, just some cramping and spotting twice so far. And just condoms for BC but like others said its not too much of an issue right now, I have always been the one to initiate sex more than DH and now that I am not as into it we have been averaging once/week to 10 days
Questions/AW?
Has anyone started introducing a cup? Did you put water or BM in it? I am thinking about getting one but wasn't sure which one or what to put into it.

GTKY: Body art/modifications! Tattoos, piercings, do you dye your hair? Do you want something you haven't done yet?
I have 2 holes in each ear, but don't wear earrings often, and I had my bellybutton pierced but took it out at about 17 weeks prego. I have 2 tattoos- one on my side and 1 on my ankle. I want more, and my brother and sis in law are tattoo artist I just have to set up the time to go see them to get work done, and the money (which they say I don't have to pay but I feel bad taking there time away when they could be tattooing someone they would could be getting paid for). I am currently complementing dying my hair something funky (thinking some purples). I would have to do under part thought so I could hide it at work if I pulled my hair up. DH actually just told me last week once he gets paid next he'd pay to get my hair done (he knows I am wanting to get it done but not wanting to spend the money) but that I had to do 1 of 2 things- either cut it shorter than I ever have before or color it something crazy (i aware DH is the only guy I know who doesn't prefer long blonde hair (my natural hair)). Well I don't think my face us the right shape to go super short and I was thinking color anyway so I'm pretty sure that's what I'll go with.

[lilyelayne]

greenpony33 once LO is eating a decent amount of solids milk consumption may go down, but babies this young the primary source of nutrition should still be BM or formula. As my pedi said yesterday, solids right now are for taste, texture, & learning how to eat (and iron for EBF babies after 6 months if not giving a vitamin).
When you do start solids you can nurse, then do solids immediately or 15-30 minutes later so you know LO will be hungry at next milk time. Solids as dessert
DS grabbed my cup and figured out how to suck on the rim so I gave him a sip of water. Bleh he hated it! But still loves the cup. I'm gonna put some BM in a cup for him once a day or so and see how it goes, fully understanding that I will likely be pouring that BM down the sink at the end of "mealtime." Since he doesn't drink bottles and I SAH anyway, my paltry freezer stash can be sacrificed this way.
Love crazy hair colors!

[cloe111479]

Ok so. DH and I counted the frozen bags last night. We have approximately 1,400 ounces frozen. It's enough to get us though about 60 days.

We had a real discussion about it last night and my guilt for wanting to stop pumping but also that I felt it was only for selfish sorts of reasons. But we decided that I'm going to try and keep going until Labor Day then I will start to wean. That give us getting her to 7/8 months with fresh and then to 12 or close enough through the year.

It also gets me free from a pump by the time I have to really hunker down and train for my 1/2 marathons.

I feel better talking it out and having an actual plan.

[cloe111479]

Jul 8, 2015 12:22:53 GMT -5 badw0lf said:

cloe111479, jealous of your stash. I feel you with the guilt about stopping pumping, but it is such a PIA!!!! I do supplement every once just to take some stress off myself and the first time I did that it was rough.

I'm still amazed at how much I have frozen. I wish she had latched well and we hadn't done a bottle so early but it is what it is.

At least now I can guesstimate how much longer I will do this.

[duckker]

I'm Xposting this here from the Breastfeeding board, because I could sure use some input and I don't wanna wait til Monday...

Babygirl is 4.5 months right now, and after a little scare around Memorial Day weekend, my supply seems to have finally evened out and I'm slightly overproducing. I'm comfortable with that and am not trying to scale back, in case things go too far in the other direction again. However, I have a nice little freezer stash and no deep freeze. I'm running out of space to store frozen milk and I know I won't use it all, so will end up having to chuck a lot of it in another month or so. I went on hm4hb after seeing it mentioned here, hoping to find a local mom in need.

I saw a request posted from a woman I know from a mom's group. She is right down the road, and we actually hung out a few times outside of our group meetups. I really like her--her daughter was born around the same time as my girl and we've had some of the same struggles (tongue ties, AMA issues, etc.). She'd mentioned to me a couple of times that she is relying on donor milk to supplement and that it's been tough to get her supply up enough. I would love to give her the milk I have, and to offer to continue to set aside some milk every week for her little girl. Is that weird/too much? My husband and I talked about it, and he's totally in support of it, but said she might prefer the anonymity of the donor list.

Any thoughts? It's that odd territory where if I were friends with her I wouldn't hesitate to ask/offer, and if I didn't know her as well as I do, it would be a no-brainer to reply via facebook...

[cougarette]

duckker I understand your hesitation. Honestly, I think given that you do know her and know that she'll actually use it, I'd be more likely to give some to her. I'd hate to give some to a stranger and not know what happened to it.

[lilyelayne]

duckker since she's already told you that she's using donor milk, I would feel comfortable reaching out to her. I'd tell her just what happened - you have milk to donate, you went on the group, saw her name & then it clicked: she could use your milk, and you'd be happy for her to. She may be all set up with a continuing donor already, or maybe not, but I as a mom would be glad to know there's a reliable source of milk for my kid.
I guess you can mention she may already be set if you want her to have an easy out to say no thanks.

[misshart00]

duckker I think it's fine to ask her. You could even pose it as her doing you a favor by taking it off your hands if that would be more comfortable.

I told a friend of mine that she could have some of my milk if she wanted it. Her DD was born the day before DS.

[duckker]

Thanks for all of the advice lilyelayne, misshart00, cougarette. I messaged her yesterday and offered and she was so touched. I felt a huge sense of relief and then immediately started wondering why I thought it was such a big deal to begin with. Maybe just more proof of how much our society has sexualized breastfeeding and breastmilk that I'm worried someone might find it skeevy for me to give my milk to another baby. I donate blood and am in the marrow registry. This is even easier and less potentially dangerous medically. Weird how much stuff gets in your head without you realizing it.

Anyway, I'm taking her most of my freezer stash this morning and we're going to work out logistics, etc. I have my first wellwoman check Monday morning, so I told her I'll bring her the test results (she didn't ask but I think the peace of mind is worth it). She lives right next to the farmers market I go to every Saturday, so I'll just drop off on my way there each week. It couldn't be easier, and I'm excited to be able to do this for someone.

Now I need to make a few batches of those cookies y'all keep talking about!

[lilyelayne]

That is so super awesome, duckker! What a wonderful gift for you to give!

Have you read this article? Why I Breastfed a Stranger's Baby m.huffpost.com/us/entry/7252576

[flyster]

How old is your LO?

Are you nursing, pumping, supplementing? This week all nursing, except one day I pumped so I could go on a boat tour/wine tasting on vacation. LO stayed at the rental house with his dad playing board games.

Solids? Not yet. Gotta figure out the baby Brezza next weekend. We'll probably start in 2 or 3 weeks.

Has your period returned? What BC are you using? Nope. Using condoms.

Questions/AW? Got way more comfortable about NIP this weekend, living in a house with 16 other adults. LO is not loving the cover and plays with it if I have it on, so most days just went without. In 'real' public I still give it a go.

GTKY: Body art/modifications! Tattoos, piercings, do you dye your hair? Do you want something you haven't done yet? I have a small tattoo on my right hip...its placed so its always covered unless I'm naked...even thongs cover it. Its from a Moroccan Carpet design, and I got if after living 2+ years in Morocco. Also I have 6 ear piercings total, although I don't wear anything in 3 of them anymore...just bottom ear lobes and cartilage.