Tuesday, August 13, 2013
My life as a "crunchy" mama.: My breast feeding journey. The first 3 months.
My life as a "crunchy" mama.: My breast feeding journey. The first 3 months.: From the very moment my son came into this world until he was about 3 months old he wanted to be latched on the boob. I'm not making thi...
Sunday, August 4, 2013
The "Second" 3 Months (4-6 months) of my breastfeeding journey.
The "Second" 3 Months (4-6 months) of my breastfeeding journey.
Around 4 months the little man decided he wanted to sit up, it would be until 6 months before he could sit up all by himself. However, that didn't keep him from working at it every day until then.
By this point I was able to get 1-2 hours at a time without nursing him. I couldn't believe it! I had time to fix lunch, and eat! I had time to put something in the crock pot for dinner, and throw a load of laundry in the wash. It was simply amazing to be able to get a few little things accomplished during the day. Assuming you read my blog post about "the first 3 months" you know that I was overjoyed to be able to just fix a glass of water without the little man screaming, so to be able to do laundry was almost more time then I knew what to do with.
Occasionally, I could even slip away while he was taking a nap and have a little "me" time. We were co-sleeping from the beginning, but we began part-time bed-sharing around 2 weeks. By 2 months we were full-time bed-sharing. Nights were so easy, I would lay down with him, he would nurse to sleep, and I could slip out of the bed and go do whatever I wanted for an hour to two. Sometimes I could even get 2-3 hours of a sleeping, happy baby that wasn't latched on or touching me. Don't get me wrong, I happily practice attachment parenting, however when you have been either holding, nursing, or in some way touching another person constantly for nearly half a year, then I don't think it is too much to ask to have a couple hours to yourself now and then...even if it is at 2am.
During the daytime he pretty much nursed every hour, or maybe once a day he would go two hours before he would want to nurse. This was AMAZING! I realize that doesn't sound all that great, but it was constant nursing before that. He spent quite a bit of time trying to sit up, and I spent quite a bit of time watching him, talking to him, reading to him, and just looking at the world with him.
Then came the teeth. By 6 months the little man had two teeth (two more the next month). Once teething started he needed me a lot more so my few hours a day turned back into a few minuets during the 2-3 weeks at a time that he was teething.
There were quite a few challenges during the "second 3 months", such as moving from Hawaii to Arkansas. Which meant the little man and I had to fly across the country (we were by ourselves for that trip). I will say that during the trip I was SO thankful so many times that he only took boob and nothing that could be dropped on the floor, or that had to be mixed. I was also very thankful for my ergo baby carrier. That way I could hold him close, away from all the strangers in the airport, nurse him if he wanted, and load the stroller down with everything I didn't want to carry.
Overall the "second 3 months" were very different, easier, and more difficult then the first three months. They were a preview of what was to come when he started seriously teething, and it was a welcome and much needed time that I had a tiny bit of freedom to just take care of me now and then.
Click here for my doTerra essential oil page.
To read about the "First 3 Months" of my breastfeeding journey click here.
Around 4 months the little man decided he wanted to sit up, it would be until 6 months before he could sit up all by himself. However, that didn't keep him from working at it every day until then.
By this point I was able to get 1-2 hours at a time without nursing him. I couldn't believe it! I had time to fix lunch, and eat! I had time to put something in the crock pot for dinner, and throw a load of laundry in the wash. It was simply amazing to be able to get a few little things accomplished during the day. Assuming you read my blog post about "the first 3 months" you know that I was overjoyed to be able to just fix a glass of water without the little man screaming, so to be able to do laundry was almost more time then I knew what to do with.
Occasionally, I could even slip away while he was taking a nap and have a little "me" time. We were co-sleeping from the beginning, but we began part-time bed-sharing around 2 weeks. By 2 months we were full-time bed-sharing. Nights were so easy, I would lay down with him, he would nurse to sleep, and I could slip out of the bed and go do whatever I wanted for an hour to two. Sometimes I could even get 2-3 hours of a sleeping, happy baby that wasn't latched on or touching me. Don't get me wrong, I happily practice attachment parenting, however when you have been either holding, nursing, or in some way touching another person constantly for nearly half a year, then I don't think it is too much to ask to have a couple hours to yourself now and then...even if it is at 2am.
During the daytime he pretty much nursed every hour, or maybe once a day he would go two hours before he would want to nurse. This was AMAZING! I realize that doesn't sound all that great, but it was constant nursing before that. He spent quite a bit of time trying to sit up, and I spent quite a bit of time watching him, talking to him, reading to him, and just looking at the world with him.
Then came the teeth. By 6 months the little man had two teeth (two more the next month). Once teething started he needed me a lot more so my few hours a day turned back into a few minuets during the 2-3 weeks at a time that he was teething.
There were quite a few challenges during the "second 3 months", such as moving from Hawaii to Arkansas. Which meant the little man and I had to fly across the country (we were by ourselves for that trip). I will say that during the trip I was SO thankful so many times that he only took boob and nothing that could be dropped on the floor, or that had to be mixed. I was also very thankful for my ergo baby carrier. That way I could hold him close, away from all the strangers in the airport, nurse him if he wanted, and load the stroller down with everything I didn't want to carry.
Click here for my doTerra essential oil page.
To read about the "First 3 Months" of my breastfeeding journey click here.
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Why I became a doTerra consultant.
Essential oils
Essential oils have so many benefits. If you have the right kind, you can use them on your skin, you can ingest them, and use them for aromatically. There are many many reasons to use them, they truly are healing oils when used properly, and when you have the proper oil.
The oils I had been using seemed fine, they weren't the most expensive or the cheapest. It wasn't until learning more about essential oils that I even began to question if I should get a different brand. The oils I was using were only recommended for aromatherapy. I wanted to use them topically, and was interested in learning more about cooking with them and using them in ways to be ingested. Because of this I started looking for a new brand, one that I could get oils that were organic, free of GMO's, safe to use inside and out of my body. That is when I found doTerra.
DoTerra essential oils are certified pure therapeutic grade. Which is extremely important when you are picking out essential oils. Especially if you want them to be safe to use inside and on your body. They are much more effective then the "cheaper" oils, so even if they cost more per bottle, you are saving money in the long run because it takes less of a quality oil to be effective. Here is what doTerra has to say; dōTERRA CPTG Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade® essential oils represent the safest, purest, and most beneficial essential oils available today. They are gently and skillfully distilled from plants that have been patiently harvested at the perfect moment by experienced growers from around the world for ideal extract composition and efficacy. Experienced essential oil users will immediately recognize the superior quality standard for naturally safe, purely effective therapeutic-grade dōTERRA essential oils.
I decided to become a consultant because it was so much cheaper for me to get the products that I wanted if I was a consultant. It only cost $35 to join, and I got $50 to spend on products, plus a very nice discount on all of the products I buy. I'm pretty sure it would just be silly not to sign up since I had already decided these were the oils I wanted to use for me and my family. I feel that these are some of the safest, and best quality essential oils on the market.
If you would like to learn more, buy, or become a consultant just click here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=5KNjWl1Zm4w
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