Crazy Mommy

Always do things when you feel its best, you can listen to all the advice in the world but you decide by reading baby’s cues. No one knows your baby better then you!

Reaching out for your food while your eating, sitting up on their own, when the tongue thrust reflex is gone, these are all signs baby may be ready. Honestly, your baby doesn’t need to eat anything but breast milk or formula before the age of six months so if you’re not ready and you feel baby isn’t ready, don’t worry about it. Some mothers have told me they even waited longer, 10 months to a year. In my opinion (I’m not a doctor.) as long as baby is thriving, still gaining weight and has enough wet diapers then why push it?

I personally am skipping the rice cereal. I looked at the ingredients on the box in the store, if I don’t understand half the names on the box, why am I going to give it to her?

It’s also important to speak to a doctor, let them know your wishes. Find a doctor you can agree with and can help you follow your wishes. I felt like I knew more than my daughter’s doctor so I’m in the process of finding a new one. Ha ha. Why does she go through all that schooling if I can read a book I bought for $21 dollars and know more than her.

When I give my daughter banana I give her a few spoonfuls and then give her some breast milk a little afterwards and I only give her the banana once a day. I don’t yet feed her solids on an everyday basis.

Some helpful sites to read on making your own baby food are;

http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/solids.htm

http://www.annabelkarmel.com/

Don’t watch the clock, you’ll drive yourself crazy. Feed on demand, when baby tells you their hungry and let them eat for however long they need. Sometimes baby may eat for five minutes, sometimes an hour. Remember, you’re not only your child’s food supply but also their drink. On a hot day your baby may be thirsty and may just want to feed for a moment. The first little bit of milk that baby eats is lower in fat, then as baby is truly hungry they will suck more which will eventually produce higher calorie milk.

Did you know that your breasts never really empty and that you don’t need to wait in between feedings? Your breasts may feel empty but don’t let them fool you, there is no need to wait for them to fill up.

I think all mothers worry whether or not their producing enough milk, and when baby is fussy during a feeding it doesn’t help your worries. One way to know if baby is getting enough milk is how many diapers you’re going through. Between four to six (disposable) diapers a day (after the hospital) is a good indication that your baby isn’t starving. Another way is by baby’s stools. The yellow stools are an indication of the higher calorie milk, and greenish stools show that your baby had more of the lower calorie milk. One mistake I made was thinking that my daughter wasn’t getting enough milk at night. She was fussy for weeks, not wanting to sleep until 5am most nights and sometimes even later then that. She was cranky for hours, even when I’d try and feed her. My husband and I gave in once or twice and fed her formula, and of course we felt instantly like my milk supply was the problem. However, it’s important to realize that bottles disperse milk quicker than your breast so baby will swallow the milk that’s dripping into their mouth and this will cause more milk to disperse so now it looks as though baby is vigorously sucking away on this bottle when really they are just trying to empty their mouths. Try thinking of other problems that could be going on, not just your supply; is baby too hot, too cold, does baby have a diaper rash, need a change of clothes, wet diaper, just needs to be held, wants to be swaddled (misses womb) - maybe you’re stressed and you should try taking a break, giving baby to someone else for a moment. The problem with Em was that I was drinking soda in the day time. Even one or two a day was too much for her and gave her a horrible diaper rash. As soon as I stopped drinking soda her rash was gone completely in four days and she was able to sleep better at night.

Did you also know that sexual feelings can occur while breastfeeding? It’s perfectly normal so don’t freak out. According to “The Baby Book” by Dr William Sears it says, “The same hormones that make milk and make woman feel motherly (prolactin and oxytocin) are also a normal part of female sexuality. They promote feelings of relaxation and pleasure and help mother bond to her baby. Breastfeeding is supposed to be pleasurable. The human race would not have survived if breastfeeding were not enjoyable.”

It can often be intimidating when it comes time to cut baby’s nails. Here are some helpful tips to help you get through it with out hurting your baby.

First, try trimming baby’s nails when they are in a deep sleep. You’ll know when they are in a deep sleep when you can pick up their arm and it’s limp. You can also try during a night feeding when they are relaxed. If baby is squeamish then it makes it harder to cut and you may end up hurting baby.

Next is to make sure you have a good set of nail clippers. Baby’s nails are brittle and if you are using a dull set of clippers you have to push down harder. I have also found the smaller nail clippers work better than the adult sized nail clippers.

Don’t try and cut the whole nail all at once. Start on the side and if you’re still squeamish then leave a little bit of white, don’t try and get so close to the skin. You can always go back and re-cut if you’re not happy with the length. I glide my finger over the tip of the nail when I’m done to see if it’s still sharp.

I thought I’d post some helpful resources for breastfeeding.

http://mother-2-mother.com

http://www.askdrsears.com

http://www.breastfeeding.com

http://www.kellymom.com

Life since I found out I was pregnant has been extremely stressful. I struggled with finding health insurance, it seems that pregnancy is considered a “pre existing condition” and no one will accept you. After three months of searching I was able to sign with Cobra. (Which is a story in itself and insurance I’d never recommend.) Family issues didn’t make things any easier as a certain loved one struggled with post partum depression. Then my “best friend” accused me of over charging her rent which caused a huge argument ultimately leading to her moving out and no longer speaking with me. I spent 12 hours a day away from my home, coming home for just one hour then heading off to bed to start another day of commute and office work. Needless to say I was exhausted! 

So after those four months of hell, Christmas was coming and I looked forward to things getting better as the New Year approached. Then eleven days before Christmas I was fired, the boss was out of town so the guy next in line decided to take it upon himself to let me go. He told me “You can’t work the hours required, you need too much time off, since you’re pregnant.” But when the others in the office confront him about this, he denies it and gives them another reason. Being 28 weeks pregnant and that close to Christmas, my chances of getting hired somewhere else were slim. I attempted to collect unemployment but that was a bust. I attempted to get food stamps but that too was another disappointment. I counted the days until my daughter was born.  I needed her to hold, to show me all of this frustration and disappointment was worth it.

My daughter has been here now for five months and I can honestly say I’d do it all again. We still struggle with bills; I can’t afford daycare so I can’t get a job. Collections call all day long and sometimes we struggle with rent. I no longer have faith in our government, when I went to see about food stamps they denied us because my husband had two hundred dollars in overtime. She told me to come back if he doesn’t have overtime because then we would qualify.  My neighbor told me she was once denied because she was over by twenty dollars, so ridiculous. We’ve had ups and downs but we get by and having my daughter here makes it all worth it. I wouldn’t trade her for all the money in the world.