Got Milk?

From the moment Weston was conceived I absolutely knew that I was going to breastfeed him. I didn't know much about it in the beginning, but I did remember always hearing the term "Breast is Best." Of course like many others I heard all of the dramatic stories about how dreadfully painful it was, but that still didn't deter me away from my decision. All I knew is that I was going to give it my best try no matter what. Anything for baby Weston right? :)
Well I must say being over 3 months deep into it I'm glad I went with my gut instinct. Now don't get me wrong I'm definitely not that person who criticizes women, or makes them feel bad for not breastfeeding. I understand every woman is different, while many unfortunately just can not nurse their baby. I just want to encourage those who may be on the fence on rather or not if breastfeeding is right for you to do so...or at least say that you gave it your best attempt. Honesty is one thing that I will be throughout my posts, and I will say that in the very beginning it HURT! I even went through the whole engorgement moments where I really thought my boobs were going to explode. LOL! But trust me with a little patience, a couple readings, and a lot of practice definitely will make you perfect. My goal is to continue throughout the year breastfeeding exclusively and at his six month mark ween him from the breast onto a bottle. Crossing my fingers on that being a smooth transition. ;-)
 Overall I think I've been pretty lucky with breastfeeding. My son latched instantly. My body was producing the adequate amount of milk from the very beginning. When I decided to start pumping he transitioned to the bottle with ease at 3 weeks old (which was an awesome thing). And now just recently Weston took a bottle of formula. I wanted to try it out just in case I didn't have enough milk for an out of town trip or a weekend visit with grandma. To our surprise he gulped it down as if it was directly from mommy. FYI he didn't like the powder kind so we bought the ready to pour organic. I must say breastfeeding gives me that extra boost of bonding time with my son in which only a breastfeeding mother could receive. The eye contact, the closeness, and the sense of knowing that I'm giving my baby the best makes me smile. I'm including a link to a site I found very useful. ~~~>>> http://www.breastfeeding.com/

To needle or not to needle...that is the question

Nine months prior to June 14 of this year I just knew I had my birth plan all planned out exactly how I wanted it. Go in, withstand the pain, be a soldier, have the baby, in and out. Wrong! I know now things don't always go as planned even when written down on paper. Deciding to have an epidural was one of the hardest decisions I had ever made. All the horror stories from the many nights of googling, and all the pressure to live up to the women in my family to go natural. With so much info I started questioning what was the right choice for me? But that was just it... I had to do what was right for me and my Lo. No one could make that decision but me, and after 6 hrs of staggering pain I opted for the epidural.  Although I steered away a little from our original plan, having an open mind about your all of your options makes things less stressful. A stressless mom equals a happy healthy baby. My pride got put aside that day and I came out with no regrets.