Well, after three months of breastfeeding not going all that smoothly, I've thrown in the towel. Yup, that's right...Joshua is (as of today) a bottle-fed baby! I never ever in a million years considered myself a formula type of mom...mostly because of the cost, but also because breastfeeding was, for the most part, an enjoyable experience with Ellie. With Joshua if it hasn't been one thing (gas) it's been another (recurring thrush). It's been pretty stressful constantly trying to figure out what the problem is. The last three days were the worst...Joshua could hardly stay latched on for more than a swallow at a time. Whenever we gave him a bottle, he was fine. So instead of analyzing every bite I eat and every speck of thrush, we've decided formula is probably the best thing for this family. Joshua sure seems to enjoy it! 
Here is Joshua pondering the breastfeeding days of old...
Here is Joshua pondering the breastfeeding days of old...
...and feeling a bit sad that it just didn't work out. (Mama feels a bit sad, too.)
Here's Mama celebrating her newfound dietary freedom - with CHEESE! (yes, that's real cheddar, folks.)
Joshua enjoying a snuggle with Daddy, who can now participate in feedings. Even at NIGHT! (Didja hear THAT Daddy?!? :)p.s. Anyone with bottle-feeding tips out there can gladly fill me in. This is definitely new territory and your wisdom would be appreciated!
6 comments:
Way to hang in there for as long as you did! It's only a couple more weeks until we start adding rice cereal, so I'm kind of looking forward to that! Must be nice that Rob can now do the feedings, too!
Love the picture of you and the cheese. So happy that now you can eat whatever you wish. I am so proud of you girl, you've done good. No guilt, ok. 3 weeks after putting Azelin on the bottle she slept through the night. Maybe this will soon be a benefit of the bottle for you as well. Have you tried the cabbage? :). Much love,
Allison
I had trouble breastfeeding my second one as well, and I'm not sure if I have much advice on the actual bottle feeding - but as far as the guilt goes - don't worry about it. My doctor even told me "Sure, breastfeeding is great but a bottle feed baby with a happy mom is still healthier then a breastfeed baby with a stressed out mom."
Yup, my doctor said the same sort of thing. She actually advised against breast feeding because I just couldn't do it and stay healthy. Unfortunately, I think our bodies are very capable of feeling SUPER guilty about making that decision even when our husbands and friends think it's an obvious decision!
Um.. advice- buy a bottle brush (or something like)- they're wonderful! We really liked the Walmart brand of formula- it was the best for Aiden with all his gas. I've also heard good things of the Superstore brand. According to my doctor- as long as you have the DHA/ARA stuff in there some of the time, there is really no difference between the expensive brands and the cheaper stuff.
How is the drying up going? The best thing I found for going quickly was to wear a really tight fitting sports bra- lots of support!!
Feel free to give me a shout if you have any questions or comments or frustrations about bottle feeding. We've put together quite the system! It's a little sad that I'm starting to retire the last of the bottles :)
If you need any bottles, just let us know.
how did you get those profile pics with the fabulous black background? I LOVE them.
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