Fun with a laundry basket

Written on Saturday, December 30, 2006 by Jessica

He doesn't seem to think it's funny, but Daddy and I do. 
 

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A terrible thought

Written on Friday, December 29, 2006 by Jessica

"A terrible thought has moved into my mind....It's gonna take a hundred thoughts to make this one disappear." --Poe, "Terrible Thought"

I swore off the news a few weeks ago. A family took a wrong turn in a blizzard and got stranded in the Oregon wilderness. If you don't already know the details and would rather not hear them, I suggest you quit reading now. The family didn't have any supplies save a few jars of baby food. After they ran out of gas, they burned their tires for heat and to signal for help. The mother nursed her seven month old and four year old to feed them. After a week, the father went searching for help in his street clothes. I can't even imagine the despair of the situation. Knowing that no one is looking for you. Having two hungry children who don't understand why you can't feed them. Nursing the children while you can but knowing your milk will dry up due to stress and lack of nourishment. And to make matters worse, the mother and children were rescued, but the father died due to exposure to the elements. Imagine what it must be like to be his wife, knowing that if her husband had only stayed, he'd be alive, too. What kind of conversations did they have before he left? Did she beg him to stay? Or did she desperately scream on the inside for him to stay but put on a brave front and tell him to look for help, it was their only hope.

I tried not to think about it. I tried not to cry. But I kept imagining it over and over. It was all so horrific that I swore off the news. No more news for me.

Except I'm a news junkie, and I can't stop.

I nearly swore off the news after the Tsunami, after Katrina, after that jerk shot his wife and baby and ran home to England. I nearly swore off it when that woman was locked up in jail and her toddler was left to fend for herself at home for thirteen days eating uncooked spaghetti and ketchup. I nearly swore off it when I read about the woman who microwaved her twenty-eight-day-old daughter. But I can't stop, so my mind remains filled with terrible thoughts.

Posted in Miscellany, Motherhood | Comment Now!

Reaching for us

Written on Friday, December 29, 2006 by Jessica

Seth has starting reaching for me. It's one of the best feelings in the world when he puts his arms up in the air to say, "Pick me up, Mommy."

Posted in Milestones | Comment Now!

Six months!

Written on Friday, December 29, 2006 by Jessica

I just realized that I made it six months breastfeeding.

I can still remember when I was pregnant, imagining how I was going to breastfeed for a year or more. No pacifiers, no bottles 'til I returned to work. Just me an' my baby. I'd heard that some people had difficulty nursing, but I figured I wouldn't be one of them. I might have problems in the beginning, but I'd get them ironed out and would be effortlessly nursing in no time.

Then the reality of a child latched to my nipples set in. At six weeks, I was in such despair. I didn't know how I was going to survive even three months, let alone an entire year. The pain was so much more than I imagined possible. I couldn't nurse long enough to increase my supply. He was getting one bottle of formula every one to two days. I felt like a miserable failure. (And I wasn't even dealing with anything serious like mastitis!)

But I kept at it, and slowly things began to improve. I worked tirelessly on the latch. We never got it exactly right b/c it always hurt, but it helped to have a decent latch. I took herbs to boost my supply (being fuller made nursing less painful). I alternated sides, nursing on only one side each session. By far, this helped the most. Once he started eating every three hours, it meant that each side would get a six hour break in between nursing sessions.

And now here I am at six months, toting my pump around work, making enough milk to be formula free (yay me!), and knowing I can nurse as long as I like.

Posted in Breastfeeding, Milestones | Comment Now!

Right on track

Written on Wednesday, December 27, 2006 by Jessica

Baby is in the 60th percentile for weight (18 lbs. 3 oz) and 50th for height. 80th for head circumference, though!

He barely cried for his two shots! Little trouper. Such a good boy.

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Sitting up!

Written on Monday, December 18, 2006 by Jessica

Seth is sitting up now. Plus, Santa gave him his wish early, and he got to try pureed bananas last week. He's also had pureed bananas with oat cereal, pureed bananas with rice cereal, and mashed potatoes. He didn't like the mashed potatoes at all, not even when I added a little gravy! It's the least sweet food he's ever had. Maybe if they'd been mashed using breastmilk instead of cow's milk... :)

Posted in Milestones, My sweet baby boy | Comment Now!

Merry Christmas

Written on Monday, December 18, 2006 by Jessica

Posted in Photos of Seth | Comment Now!

Psssst, Santa...

Written on Wednesday, December 13, 2006 by Jessica

...for Christmas can you make my mommy let me eat solid food?

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It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Written on Wednesday, December 13, 2006 by Jessica

I asked for a garage-door opener, and I got it early! Hooray for me. I get to take my laziness to a new level.

Hooray for Baby's Daddy for buying and installing it for me.

Posted in Miscellany | Comment Now!

What I like about country music

Written on Tuesday, December 12, 2006 by Jessica

Country music is one of my favorite music genres. Here's why:

1. It has songs with titles like "I'm Goin' Thru the Big D and Don't Mean Dallas," "That Was Twenty Years and Two Husbands Ago," and "You're the Reason Our Kids Are Ugly."

2. It has groups with names like "The Tractors."

3. It has songs with lyrics like:

Well, I was drunk the day my mom got outta prison.
And I went to pick her up in the rain.
But before I could get to the station in my pickup truck
She got runned over by a damned old train.

What's not to love?

Posted in Miscellany | Comment Now!

How much is your ego stroked?

Written on Tuesday, December 12, 2006 by Jessica

Dear Father in Heaven,

Please help me find the person who would pay nearly $4000 for my blog. I'd unload it in a heartbeat.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen

Posted in Miscellany | Comment Now!

What I like about winter

Written on Thursday, December 07, 2006 by Jessica

I don't particularly like wintertime. The cold and endless snow and short days can be depressing. (Fortunately, Baby's Daddy does all the shoveling and plowing, so it could be worse.) Anyhow, I'm compiling a list of its good points to help me feel better about winter.

1. No bugs.
2. You can buy perishable groceries during lunch and leave them in the car until you get home.
3. It's a free-for-all in the parking lots because all the lines are covered by snow. You can park anywhere you want!
4. Christmas.
5. [Your list item here.]

Posted in Miscellany | Comment Now!

Eight words with two meanings

Written on Monday, December 04, 2006 by Jessica

1. THINGY (thing-ee) n. Female..... Any part under a car's hood. Male.... The strap fastener on a woman's bra

2. VULNERABLE (vul-ne-ra-bel) adj. Female.... Fully opening up one's self emotionally to another. Male.... Playing football without a cup.

3. COMMUNICATION (ko-myoo-ni-kay-shon) n. Female... The open sharing of thoughts and feelings with one's partner. Male... Leaving a note before taking off on a fishing trip with the boys.

4. COMMITMENT (ko-mit-ment) n. Female... A desire to get married and raise a family. Male...... Trying not to hit on other women while out with this one.

5. ENTERTAINMENT (en-ter-tayn-ment) n. Female.... A good movie, concert, play or book. Male...... Anything that can be done while drinking beer.

6. FLATULENCE (flach-u-lens) n. Female... An embarrassing byproduct of indigestion. Male...... A source of entertainment, self-expression, male bonding.

7 MAKING LOVE (may-king luv) n. Female...... The greatest expression of intimacy a couple can achieve. ....Male.. Call it whatever you want, just as long as we do it.

8. REMOTE CONTROL (ri-moht kon-trohl) n. Female.... A device for changing from one TV channel to another.... Male... A device for scanning through all 375 channels every 5 minutes.

Posted in Darn funny | Comment Now!

Pity party

Written on Sunday, December 03, 2006 by Jessica

It's days like today, or rather middle-of-the-nights like tonight, when I feel like chucking breastfeeding. Been treating thrush now for five weeks. Baby shows no sign of it, but I still have an uncontrolled yeast overgrowth on my nipples. I'm sick of boiling toys, bottle nipples, and pacifiers. I'm tired of the endless pain and itching. I also have a plugged milk duct. Boo hoo. Poor me.

I'm thinking of starting Gentian violet. Having no luck with prescription Nystatin and fluconazole (Diflucan). No luck with a vinegar wash, either.

UPDATE (12/6/2006): Midwife prescribed All-Purpose Nipple Ointment (APNO). Started seeing good results in just three hours. Feeling much more hopeful.

Posted in Breastfeeding | Comment Now!