"My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard..."

(be sure to scroll down to see my blog post for today!)

 

Introducing a weekly blog hop to connect with other breastfeeding-friendly bloggers!








Host: @LifeWithLevi



Co-Hosts: @PlayersNamed, @iamambermccann




This Week's Guest Host:



@briemarisa1977





Here are the guidelines for this blog hop:




  1. Visit the 4 blog hosts for the week (spots #1-4) Spot #4 will always feature a blogger randomly selected from the previous week's blog hop. Be sure to leave a comment that you found them through the Breastfeeding Blog Hop so they can follow you back!
  2. Please only link up your blog if you are breastfeeding-friendly. If you have posted about breastfeeding (and/or pumping) in the past or plan to post about breastfeeding, that's you!
  3. Repost the linky (link for the code is in the lower right-hand corner of the linky below) on your blog to help promote the blog hop. Be sure to add some info about YOU so others have a place to say "Hi" & let you know they're following.
  4. Grab the button below if you'd like and display it in your linky post or your sidebar.
  5. This blog hop will be active from Thursday, 01/13 - Sunday, 01/16.
  6. Be sure to include these guidelines when you add the Blog Hop Linky Code to your blog.


If you're new to blog hops, please check out this post by Jen at Life With LeviHow To Blog Hop


About ME (A Breezy Life...) - Hey y'all! :-) I'm Brie! I'm a mother, a reader, a Gossip Girl watcher, and my milkshake brings all the boys to the yard. I have a beautiful, hilarious, stubborn 13-month-old son named Peter Joseph who is the love of my life and really, the only boy who comes to the yard for my milkshake, since he's been nursing since he was a few hours old and is still going strong! My husband Pete is a super-sexy firefighter/registered nurse combo who is amazingly supportive and rubs my back whenever I ask! I am VERY excited to co-host the Breastfeeding Blog Hop this week! Can't wait to meet you all!





Life With Levi


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I had always known I wanted to breastfeed, so when I found out I was pregnant with PJ, my mind was flooded with thoughts of me nursing my son, my shirt neatly folded aside to give my sweet babe just enough eating room, while I looked down at him with a dreamy, serene look on my face.

Pffft.

It didn't really go that way. PJ was born with jaundice that wasn't clearing, so I had to supplement with formula to give his body the sugar he needed to clear the jaundice. So, here's me, already an emotional, slightly confused, brand-new mama, taping a little tube to my boob so I could still teach PJ to nurse while getting the formula into him. Trust me, it was a sight to behold. Still, it both exercises worked, and PJ soon was jaundice free and nursing like a champ!

That hurdle aside, it still takes a bit of getting used to. Engorgement, leakage, pain, soreness- it can all be part and parcel to this breastfeeding business. You plug ahead thought, because you know. Breastmilk is best for baby. It aids in their development. It provides antibodies to keep them healthy and protected. The poops are less smelly!

Oh. And it's worth it.

Seriously. Even thought it hasn't always come easy, I love, love, love nursing my son. It amazed me that I was able to nourish this babe that came into the world a scrawny 6 pounds and morphed into a chunky, healthy, smiling ball of sunshine! Others might have held my baby, changed my baby, rocked him down for a nap or made him smile. But for almost 6 months, it was just PJ and I, working as a team to help him grow in as healthy a way as possible. I could slip him into my arms and steal away, and in those quiet moments, when it was just Mama and baby, I would marvel at how I was built for just this thing, to provide for my child.

Now, PJ is 13 months old. He hasn't depended on my exclusively for nutrition for some time now. Sometimes, he'd rather crawl across the room, laughing his head off, then settle down to nurse. Still, we nurse, in the mornings when he first awakens, a night before he goes to sleep, before his naps, and any other time he needs the comfort of nursing. I know there will come a time when he will be done with nursing, and- perhaps because he is my first child- I will be sad. I cherish the simple moments with my son, even when they are few and far between, because I know it's something that only I can share with him.

I don't think breastfeeding is for everyone. As long as your child is healthy, nourished, and happy, there are many ways to do that, and only one way that's best for you. I know loads of amazing moms with amazing kids who have different, equally amazing ways of parenting. My parenting choice was to breastfeed, and for every way it wasn't like I had dreamed, there were a million ways it far exceeded it.

8 comments

Jen - LifeWithLevi said...

Please don't think I'm dumb, but somehow I wasn't already following your blog. Good thing I'm hosting this blog hop, huh? LOL.

Emily @ Baby Dickey said...

I'm following from the blog hop! Haha, love your post title :)

SM said...

new follower here! Would love for you to follow back.

Jenn said...

I breastfeed, but I don't think I've ever blogged about it. I hope you get lots of followers, though. Your blog ROCKS!!! I'm always so happy that I hit the *Next Blog* button and found your site! Follow her, humans!!

Erin said...

I'm following from the Blog Hop. Isn't jaundice just the pits? Two of my three boys came home with jaundice and it was such a stressful beginning. Thankfully this time we pushed through and are thriving. I would like nothing more than to be where you are at, 13 months and counting. I'm less than a month away from my short term goal of 6 months and don't see an end in sight.

Nicole Siswick said...

Hi, Brie (that's my sister's name, too!). Just stopping by from the blog hop. My son was jaundiced, too. We didn't have to supplement with formula, but I well remember those early days of round-the-clock feedings, and my determination to get the yellow out. Good work, mama!

Tüpbebek said...

soo good page.. thanks admin.

Mama Campbell said...

Hi! Stopping by from the breastfeeding blog hop!