*Baby Corner*

[nannygirl82 0]

@Belwin: Do you pump? I'd pump and supplement so your boobs keep making more milk. Baby is just gonna get more and more demanding and breastfeeding is a supply and demand thing. It's unfair how some women make too much milk (see me or Chnst) and some women - unfortunately - don't make any milk at all. Why can't all make the same amount...don't get it...Nature is a weird thing .

@Chnst + autumnchick: Sorry, you have to use nipple shields, I've heard these things are a pain in the butt. Hope and wish for you that it will get easier over time. Some babies get it only after a couple of months when they are strong enough. Soon enough they figrue out how to open your bra and just latch on (Adam did that in the end..he just came up and docked right on).

As for me...I can't breathe these days. I wish that baby would just engage a little bit. I'm wheezing like a chain smoker and have problems sitting in the car for too long because of all these frigging braxton hicks contractions. Feels like the baby is gonna fall out of me, argh.

yes these nipple shields are a pain.... I am constantly running the sterilizer and these things are clear, so they get lost easy. I tried weaning him from them ,but he got so upset and frustrated last night that he threw up.

hey you should come visit me in NYC! we are in the 50ies, it's freezing cold and I got my wintercoat back out.

hang in there, just a couple more weeks and your little girl is here!

Both of you are strong and inspiring. I believe breastfeedimg IS worth the effort, indeed! It gets better...I promise.

I have one breast that makes twice as much milk as the other - literally So I'm always lop-sided!

thanks Tracy! how old is your little guy now?

@nannygirl: she's so adorable! where did you go for the pictures? We didn't get any pics done yet, we wanted to get some birth announcements, but he had jaundice during week 1 and we didn't have time the last 2 weeks with our move.

can someone recommend a good place to go for these pics?

I heard good things from SEARS and Babies R Us, but they charge A LOT for a small package of 8 pics.

i have gone to both places before...babiesrus with the kids i used to nanny for and you get those pics the same day which is nice...and i got hers done at sears which i though they did a great job...for the package i spent 130.00 i know that sounds like a lot but you do get a lot of pics an i figured she is only going to be this tiny once and i never got the pics from the hopital they were HORRIBLE....oh and with this package you get the cd of all the pics which is nice..

[Mommy2ZaidnSalma 11]

for those having breastfeeding problems, seriously give yourself a pat on the back...I gave up after two days, It is the most frustrating thing, You deserve alot of credit...me personally, I just couldnt do it

Eveline...I soooo know how u feel, Zaid dropped at like 34 weeks and I coudlnt pick my left leg up off the ground cause he was like pinching a nerve, and he def felt like he was just gonna fall out...Could have something to do with the fact that the lil booger was 9LBS...lol...

jess....THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS

[BelwinMills 0]

Thanks Ladies,

I pump once a day. That is how I figured out this weekend I was not producing enough. Iwent to pump and only got 3oz in 45mins from both pumps. I gave her formula and shewas out cold for the night. i tried the pump in the morning and got 6 ounces in 20 mins from each pump. She refuses formula sometimes too.

Eveline hang in there!! I remember being there. The one thing that got me was the swelling it took 3 weeks after she was born for my feet to look normal.

Shauna love the picture so sweet and precious!

[Autumnchik 6]

Thanks for the words of support about breastfeeding everyone. It is THE most difficult thing I have ever done, and I want to do it so badly. I think about giving up a lot, because I am spending so much time crying because the baby won't latch or he only spends 10 minutes feeding on one breast (after TONS of prompting by me and waking him up over and over). And when I pump, it takes forever to get 3 ounces (Belwin, I am SOOOO envious of your 6 ounces!!!). I am going to keep trying, but I pray things get better soon.

Does anyone know how long it takes for fenugreek to build up your milk supply?

Nanny, the pic of Kaila is adorable! I can see why you bought the $130 package!!!

[chnst 6]

aww sorry to hear that you're having such a hard time building up milk! It's not fair. I have the exact opposite problem. I think about giving up every day too, but the problem is, I can't, even if I wanted to! If I don't feed him every 2 hours or pump, I'm dying because my breasts are so full it hurts like crazy.

I totally did not know how hard and painful this was going to be, but I guess it's all part of mommyhood and it can only get better!

I don't know much about fenugrek, I hope it'll help you, be patient and keep pumping (thats what built up my milk supply). Make sure you drink a lot of fluids and don't put too much pressure on yourself, because that

could make it worse.

[Anna C. 4]

Ladies, I'm putting together my baby shower registry, quick question: which breast pump are you happy with??? I'm considering the Medela Swing. Avent isn't a choice for me, their plastics and bottles contain BPA.... But I know there are other choices on the market as well, please let me know your experiences!

Thanks!!!

[Eveline 9]

@Anna: If you are planning to work definetely get an electric pump. I've heard good things about the medela ones. If you stay at home, I think manual will do just fine since you breastfeed more than you'll pump. I have the Medela harmony and it worked just fine. I've heard some had problems with the 'suctioning' of that pump when you are a little bigger but I haven't made that experience (I'm a D, when I don't breastfeed)

Well, I got admitted to the hospital on Monday night because I was throwing up over and over and in the TX heat of almost 100 degrees I got so dehydrated that they couldn't even poke a needle in me to give me IV fluids. I went into preterm labor with contractions only two minutes apart but they didn't hurt since the stomach pain was way worse. At times I just wanted to pass out. One nurse did find a veine (sp?) to poke the smallest needle in me and they gave me something for the nausea. In the end I was dry heaving since there was nothing left in me (I threw up five times in three hours...not nice). My doc checked me but my cervix was closed and baby was moving just fine. My white blood cell count was too high. More than twice the amount it should have been, indicating some kind of infection. My bladder was fine and the doc said he didn't know where the infection came from, might have been a stomach bug or food poisoning, since my husband had it too (they kicked him off L&D when he started vomiting since they can't have sick people up there). The nurse wheeled him to the ER but he decided to go home and suffer there. He's better now and went to work today. Anyway, I got antibiotics and six bags of IV fluid. It took me almost 20 hrs to go pee agian. I'm still on abx but I'm doing better. My blood cell count was down to 11.000 cells per microliter (from over 21.000 on Monday) and they released me last night. I'm glad my MIL could watch Adam. That was the longest I've ever been away from him and I missed him soooo bad. Next time I'll go to L&D will be for the tour or in 10/12 weeks when I'm in labor, hehe.

The nurses were really nice and I knew both doctors on station since one was my OB and the other one his backup I met when my OB was on vacation. It's nice to know your docs. I didn't have that in the military hospital. I can definetely see me having my baby there, either way (C/s or vaginal) just because it was much more pleasant than the military hospital. People actually cared and would chit chat etc...very nice

[chri'stina 190]

Anna C....I have the Medela Swing. Now I wish I had gotten a double pump. I have heard good things about Lansinoh's double pump which is the same machine as Ameda Purely Yours, and cheaper than Medela's PIS. But I know the more pricey Medela double PIS is the most popular, probably because it works really well. My problem with the Swing is that I thought I'd only need it once a day or so, thinking breastfeeding would work really well for me. But since Kavi couldn't latch, I started pumping a lot and having only one pump was really hard and time consuming. I wish I would have gotten the double pump.

Here's an idea I wish I would have done: If you buy the Swing, don't open it and keep the receipt(Once you open it you can't return it). Once the baby is born, see how things go at the hospital. If they breastfeed really well, you would do good probably with the Swing. If there are breastfeeding problems, ask while at the hospital for a pump to use(they usually provide one), and by the time you are discharged you might know if you should return the Swing and get the double pump instead. Best of luck!!

*HUGS* to everyone having bf-ing problems and just healing from pain. Oh the crying and frustration is so common! Since Kavi wouldn't latch (until 3 months old!! when most of my milk is gone) I pumped a few times a day and even that, with also feeding him formula, and not sleeping a lot, made me exhausted and cry every day wanting to give up. But I pumped for about 2 months in total, but by the end it was only 2 ounces a day, and then BF once a day for a couple weeks after he could latch, but by then it was probably only 1/2 oz at a time. I never ever knew how hard bf-ing was. I wonder how people in the past did it and how the babies didn't starve when there were problems. Well I guess there was higher infant death so it was a problem for some I am sure. I just don't know what I would have done if formula wasn't available since Kavi just would not latch after trying and trying and trying. It's a scary thought!!

We are going to the Dr today.

I love all the baby pictures!!! So adorable!!! Thanks for sharing. I'll have to share some new ones soon.

[nannygirl82 0]

Eveline...oh my goodness...i bet that was scary!!! I hope get better!!! and drink water like it is going out of style!!

[chri'stina 190]

*Swing is electric but it's just one pump instead of two

Eveline-Glad you are ok!!

[Chrissy25 0]

glad your okay Eveline, something similar happened to me when i was in the early stages of pregnancy with Dylan,about 4 months i think, i was throwing up constantly, could not keep anything down, not even water. I ended up going to the ER and they instantly took me to labour and delivery when they found out i was pregnant, i was really dehydrated, they believed i had a stomach bug, i was in for 5 hours, i think they pumped about 4 bags into me through an IV. It was horrible! hope your feeling a little better now

Edited May 21, 2008 by Chrissy25

[~Jess~ 0]

8 more full days!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i just hope the days continue to go fast.......but then again im nervous at the same time as being excited. not really looking forward to the recovery from my csection, although i did pretty good with my first one, but that was 8yrs ago, my body is older now and may not recover as nicely...buttt hopefully it will.

[Eveline 9]

Jess: Wishing you all the best for the last couple of days. They'll just fly by I'm sure.

I'm a lot better and stomach pains aren't fun. That is the second stomach bug I have in this pregnancy. I had one when I was about 8 weeks or so along but that wasn't as painful. I got six IVs all togehter and three bags of abx. I'm still taking medication but here's one good thing. I've finally overcome my whitecollar hypertension. My bloodpressure used to be through the roof when I went to the OB and now - after the hospital and constant monitoring - it was at 120/70 this morning. Sounds alot better than 140/95 huh? I've also gained 5lbs in two weeks which is - I believe - due to the IVs from the last two days. Everything looks good, my diabetis test came back negative so we're fine and ready to go another 10-12 weeks.

[nane1104 146]

Eveline...oh gosh, that sounds scary. I am so glad you are feeling better and that everything is okay now.

I felt a lttle sick myself yesterday, I think the Las Vegas heat (we had 108 F here yesterday) is a little bit too much for me!

[chnst 6]

@Evi: glad you're better! I'm happy for that you liked that hospital!

@Anna: what the heck is BPA??? I have an Avent hand pump and all Avent bottles, nipple shields and storage system even Ben's pacifier is Avent! I hope its nothing toxic!

I also have an electric breastpump made by evenflo. it works great, but I don't use it, I just use the handpump to get excessive milk out. I pumped with a double breastpump in the hospital (Medela) and I would definitely suggest getting that thing if you're going back to work soon, because its so much faster!

@Stina; i agree with you, i wonder what people did when breastfeeding didn't work hundreds of years ago and there wasn't formula available. I guess they substituted with someone elses' breastmilk, but thats a scary thought!