Breastfeeding

How to know if my breastfed baby is eating enough

Are you worried about your newborn’s breastmilk intake? After all, the hormones surging up and down (and up and down) make you much more prone to stressing about everything. And let’s be real, your baby’s food intake is your biggest job when he or she is brand new.

At first, this job can be pretty intimidating for some moms! After all, you can look at the side of a bottle and read measurements of how many ounces (or ccs, if you’re outside of the United States) your child is drinking, but breasts don’t come with those markings.

Assuming your baby is healthy, it’s actually not that hard to know whether or not you have fed her enough. Despite this fact, I’ve noticed that there’s a lot of over-complication, fearmongering and misinformation out there. Breastfeeding support is a huge passion of mine, so I want to help. (more…)

Nursing aversion (Or when breastfeeding isn’t magical)


So you may not even be able to tell in this picture, but General Leia is nursing here.  In fact, it’s a picture of the last time my oldest ever nursed.

This was a hard time for me (and for her).  I became pregnant with her sister when she was about thirteen or fourteen months old.  At first, I had no problem with continuing to nurse her while pregnant. In fact, that was easier because it kept her still, and I didn’t have the energy to chase her!

And then came nursing aversion.

Eventually, things changed though.  I started feeling really annoyed almost every time General Leia wanted to nurse.  I was determined to “power through,” though, because I knew breastfeeding until at least two is recommended by the World Health Organization and I knew it was good for her development.  I even continued nursing her after her sister was born.  Ideally, I wanted to let her nurse as long as she wanted and then to let her wean on her own.

little girl nursing

The negative feelings continued though.  Almost every time General Leia nursed, it made my skin crawl.  Seriously, it felt weird and gross and creepy.  But not with Bella Bean, though!  I had no problem nursing my infant, only my toddler.

How it felt to have nursing aversion

Nursing Leia didn’t hurt.  In fact, at the time I wished it did hurt.  Hurt I could deal with.  Pain I could handle.  But this intense feeling of annoyance, even rage, was something I couldn’t battle. Continue Reading

Tandem nursing: breastfeeding while pregnant or breastfeeding two kids at once

Did you know it’s completely possible to breastfeed while pregnant, and  even to nurse two children at once? You may not hear about it often, but tandem nursing can actually be a beautiful, rewarding experience.

I got pregnant with my second when my oldest little girl was only about 14 months old.  General Leia was only 23 months old when her sister was born, but I knew that the World Health Organization recommends nursing for two years or beyond.  Besides, both of us were still enjoying nursing. So we kept it up.

On top of it all, I was exhausted when I came home from work every night.  Nursing Leia was the easiest way to get her to be still so I could lie down and rest! (more…)