Breastfeeding Ain't For Quitters

Well, Gunner is three and a half weeks old, and I feel like I'm a pro at breastfeeding now. It seems like he is several months old though...it's been a long few weeks. Not that it hasn't been good, it's just been so busy and I've been awake for most of those hours that it seems like it's been way longer. He and I had a rough start, but we've both learned how this works and it's so much easier now. I will say that everyone was right: The first few weeks are the toughest. Not that I didn't believe them, I'm just saying they were correct. The first few days were by far the hardest though. I have watched my fair share of "A Baby Story" episodes on TLC, and I have been sickened at the moms who give up after a couple of days, or one day, or as I saw in one episode, the first three hours after being home! Seriously? That's all the trying you're going to do before throwing in the towel? The important things in life are worth working hard for. I went into this with a very specific attitude, one that didn't even leave me the option to switch to formula. I was going to make this work, I had to, and I think that helped me push through.

I had a lot of good advice from family and friends, and had done a whole lot of reading up on breastfeeding and got so much good information. However, I think after I got to the point of feeling comfortable with it, I decided I had strong opinions on all this info. After reading the info from some certain websites, I was feeling like there was only one way it could be done so when it didn't go EXACTLY like they described it should go, I stressed out. I think that now I am kind of irritated at this, because although my experience hasn't been by the book in every way, it works, and I feel like it's not fair for moms to feel like there is only one way it should be and if their experience didn't go that way, it was wrong and they need to remedy it. Not cool. It's probably all in the wording. They should explain it in a way that helps moms find what works instead of listing every problem you might encounter, and stating that you need to get that corrected to be doing this the right way. If you would like to know the specifics on what I am talking about, just let me know and I will be happy to explain.

After three and a half weeks though, I feel like things are going great and I am happy with it all. Gunner is obviously growing and getting fatter, pooping and peeing a ton, so I know he's getting the nutrients and nourishment he needs, and that's the most important thing.

Things have started to feel more normal now which is nice! I was able to go visit everyone at my old job and bring Gunner along, and afterward I even stopped at Sonic! It's the little things in life that make me happy. He did great though. He ended up getting pretty gassy toward the end of the visit and got really angry, and by the time we got home he was very poopy and hungry. I've started decorating our house for Christmas this week too. It usually only takes an afternoon, but I've been working on it for three days and still haven't finished the tree, and that's the first thing I started! Ugh. At this pace, it might take me till Christmas to get it done! It's still nice to be able to do normal things.

This Saturday is my family's Thanksgiving dinner. Half of the family will be with their in laws this year, so we're doing our dinner early so we can spend time together. Next week we will travel to Fairfield Bay for the Babb Thanksgiving! I am so very excited and anxious about it. It normally takes us 3.5 hours to get there. Gunner eats every 3-4 hours, so we will for sure have to stop and change/feed him once. It might take us 4.5 hours or more to get there.... I am also anxious about being away from home with him for a few days. I have everything I need here to take care of him, and I'm worried I'll forget something. I started on his packing list a week ago, and it's already longer than my packing list usually is! Kids sure do make life interesting. =)

Baby Milestone:
Gunner's cord fell off this week! He has a cute little belly button now, and I even gave him a real bath. He hated it of course and screamed the whole time. Maybe it will get easier.

Mommy Milestone:
Like I said earlier, breastfeeding has gotten way easier and I could probably manage to feed him if we were out and about. I have also been able to figure out a good routine for taking a shower each morning and getting ready for the day.