nursing poem

“Suess” for Nursing Mothers<?XML:NAMESPACE PREFIX = O /><O:P> </O:P>

Mother’s milk is just the thing!<O:P> </O:P>

Would you nurse her at the park?
Would you nurse him in the dark?
Would you nurse him with a Boppy?
And when your boobs are feeling floppy?<O:P> </O:P>

I would nurse him in the park,
I would nurse her in the dark.
I’d nurse with or without a Boppy.
Floppy boobs will never stop me.<O:P> </O:P>

Can you nurse with your seat belt on?
Can you nurse from dusk till dawn?
Though she may pinch me, bite me, pull,
I will nurse her ‘till she’s full!<O:P> </O:P>

Can you nurse and make some soup?
Can you nurse and feed the group?
It makes her healthy strong and smart,
Mommy’s milk is the best start!<O:P> </O:P>

Would you nurse him at the game?
Would  you nurse her in the rain?
In front of those who dare to complain?
I would nurse him at the game.
I would nurse her in the rain.<O:P> </O:P>

As for those who protest lactation,
I have a perfect explanation.
Mommy milk is tailor made
It’s perfect food, you need no aid.<O:P> </O:P>

Some may scoff and some may wriggle,
Avert their eyes or even giggle.
To those who can be cruel and rude,
Remind them breast’s the perfect food!<O:P> </O:P>

I would never scoff or giggle,
Roll my eyes or even wiggle!
I would not be so crass or crude,
I KNOW that this milk’s the perfect food!<O:P> </O:P>

We make the right amount we need,
The perfect temp for every feed.
There’s no compare to milk from breast-
The perfect food, above the rest.<O:P> </O:P>

Thos nursing smiles are oh so sweet,
Mommy milk is such a treat.
Human milk just can’t be beat.<O:P> </O:P>

I will nurse, in any case,
On the street or in your face.
I will not let my baby cry,
I’ll meet her needs, I’ll always try.
It’s not about what’s good for you,
It’s best for babies, through and through.<O:P> </O:P>

I will nurse her in my home,
I will nurse her when I roam.
Leave me be lads, leave me be ma’am.
I will nurse her, Mom I am.<O:P> </O:P>

Story from Yesterday

Ok last set of new pics....yesterday Brooke made a HUGE mess in her diaper, that ended up getting all over her back, hair, and arms. So I gave her a bath, and took some pics. She really likes her bathtime!!

Well that's all for now. I'll try to write more often this week, but I really won't be able to post regularly again until after May 3rd.

One side note--I decided to sell my breastmilk for a little extra cash. So far I have two interested buyers. I just have to make sure they are not perverts :o/

Bye!

Korker bow!!

Yesterday the Korker bow I ordered for Brookie came in. She looks so cute in it, I had to take pictures! At one point she took it off and tried to eat it, hehe.

Just thought I would share these pics. It's great having a camera again.

quick catch up

I'm just going to do another quick cath up while I have a moment. On Sunday, I was thrown a surprise bridal shower! It was a lot of fun, I had a great time! I got some awesome gifts, including lingerie, the dishes I wanted, and my fav: the crockpot, yay! I can't wait until school gets out so I can start cooking in it.

I did really bad on my Russian Politics presentation, but it only counts for 10% of my grade, so I am trying to to stress out about it. Last night I finished my german paper and project. One week left, yay!

I added some pics from the bridal shower. I'll add more pics later. Bye!

almost done

 

I know I havent written in a while but I have been incredibly swamped with schoolwork! Im done to the wire, only one week left basically! But that means lots of reports, papers, and projects due. But I did want to do a quick update.

Brooke is doing really good, she had a huge growth spurt. She started saying dada this week, which makes DH really happy, as you can imagine.

On thursday I am going to the honory lunch thing for my induction into the political national honor society. They want me to bring Brookie with me, so that should be fun.

Last night I went to a sex toy party...very interesting things....too bad I am broke! The one thing I wanted cost $150! Not good for penny pinching.

My mom is letting me borrow her camera, so I can take pics again, yay! Here are some pics of Brooke's day with Grandma! Enjoy!

Well I really have to get back to work. After May 3rd, I will be writing in this journal regularly again.

Bye!

busy busy bee

                                                

I found this information on the Massachusetts Breastfeeding Coalition website.  Appearantly, the formula companies attempted to get the ads yanked by throwing money at Congress. According to the website, they pretty much failed.  The campaign was launched in 2004. For more info, you can go to the website, which I posted under Favorite Websites.

"The promotion of breastfeeding on a nationwide scale has been called for since the 1984 Surgeon General's Workshop on Breastfeeding and Human Lactation. The Office on Women's Health, an agency within the federal Department of Health and Human Services answered that call with a $40 million ad campaign designed to help mothers choose breastfeeding who would not normally have done so..."

"The campaign reframes the issue of infant feeding in terms of the risks associated with not breastfeeding, as opposed to the more traditional messages which only tout the "benefits" of breastfeeding. The Ad Council reached its conclusion to frame the ads this way after its research found that many women think breastfeeding is like supplementing a "standard diet" with vitamins. The traditional "benefits of breastfeeding" messages thus ignore the copious scientific evidence showing a greater risk for a wide variety of illnesses in children who were not breastfed. Many of these illness are chronic or have life-long health effects, such as type 1 diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease..."

"The infant formula industry has traditionally framed infant feeding as a lifestyle choice rather than a public health issue. They said they do not like the campaign because they fear it will make mothers feel guilty, and they question the science behind the ads. The risk-based campaign puts infant feeding back into the domain of public health. In spite of industry pressure, the ad campaign will go on."

Its sad how some mothers are just uninformed about breastfeeding.  When a baby is formula fed, then that baby is at risk for certain health problems.  I think any mother who is completely informed on this issue could not forego attempting to breastfeed, it just does not make any sense.  To try to breastfeed and not be succesfull is fine, but AT LEAST TRY!!

Anyways, on to my thrilling life...

Today we went to meet the minister that will be performing our wedding ceremony.  The church he preaches at is very small and intimate, with only about 11 people in the congregation.  Beth was telling me that five years ago the Church was packed.  Now they don't even have enough people to use the actual church, they sit in the basement instead.  It was very different from the catholic ceremony.  People pretty much spoke when they wanted.  We all held hands in a circle and prayed, and people just shouted out what they felt like shouting. It was different, and I think I liked it, but it dragged on for a very long time! Anyways, the minister was really nice. He gave us a print out of the ceremony and asked us a bunch of questions, like if we had surreneder to God and Jesus and if we are serious about our marriage.  I'm pretty happy with the ceremony, but I am going to add a few things.

When we got home I did homework and played with Brooke while Jason did some work outside. Nothing exciting happened. I made Brooke some more baby food and gave her a bath before bedtime.  Then I just did homework.

That's about it. Time for bed. Bye!

 

 

 

No Laws in MA!?!

I found this information on the La Leche League website, regarding laws pertaining to breastfeeding in Massachusetts.

MASSACHUSETTS

The only legislation in Massachusetts regarding breastfeeding pertains to maternity patients' right to know the annual percentage of women breast-feeding upon discharge from their admitting hospitals. M.G.L Chapter 111, Section 70E Patients' and residents' rights (not produced here).

This makes me angry. I am angry because when I looked at what laws other states have regarding breastfeeding, I found that Massachusetts is seriously behind.  Other states, for example, have legislation that protect a woman's right to breastfeed in public, they exempt a breastfeeding mother from jury duty, and some states even waive sales tax on products that are designed to support breastfeeding. Other states have laws that require employers to provide a place, besides a toilet stall, to express milk, protects a breastfeeding mother from discrimination in the work place, etc. I am really shocked that Massachusetts has none of these law.

It looks like I have a new summer project.

Enough of my ranting. On to my exciting day, ha! Today was a good day. We woke up late and played with Brooke a while. Then we went over Jason's parents' house. We helped them move Jason's sister into her new apartment. The apartment is nice, but very very small, and it is not in such a good neighborhood.  Also, they have a trucking company right in their backyard. Not very nice. But it will do for her, right?

After that we went home and Jason did yardwork while I watched and played with Brooke. I nursed Brooke in bed at 5pm, and I was planning on doing schoolwork as soon as she fell asleep, but I ended up falling asleep myself! We didn't wake up until 6:30. We then went out to eat with my mom and my aunt, and I fed Brookie her solid food at the restaurant, she did very well with it! After we got home, we got Brookie in bed, and now I am workingon schoolwork.

Tomorrow we are going to meet the Minister who is going to perform the ceremony at our wedding. He is my best friend's father, so we already know him pretty well. It should be fun.

Ok, off to do some more homework. Only about 2 more weeks left, yay!

Oh, one more thing! My Great Grandmother gave me her sewing maching yay! It was made in the 1940's or 50's I think, it is like an antique! The instruction booklet shows a women on each page in a dress with an apron, and talks about how the machine will help women make and repair their husbands shirts. Talk about a blast from the past!

Ok that's all. Bye!

TGIF

Well today has been a good day so far. School went by really fast. When I got home, I played with Brookie. She was so happy to see me, it felt good to see her jump for joy when I picked her up! After a couple of hours of playing with her, I decided that we both needed a nap. I took her into bed with me and nursed her and we both fell asleep until DH came home.

We took Brookie food shopping with us today. We went to both Price Chopper and Stop and Shop in order to get the best deals.  At Stop and Shop they had Pampers diapers on sale for $8.99, and I had a $2 off coupon (thanks to my coupon buddy), and I had a triple coupon from the store, so I ended up paying only $2.99! Not bad, not bad at all. I also bought Brookie a mesh teether, which is basically a mesh net with a handle on it.  You put food in the mesh net, like an apple, and they can chew on the apple like a teether. I'm going to use it tomorrow and see how she likes it.

Tonight Brookie ate all her dinner, yay! The past two days she has done so well with solids! She was so cute,  in between bites she would pick up her sippy cup all by herself and take sips, it was so adorable!

Well I really have to get working on some homework. It's going to be a busy weekend! Bye!

Great day

Today was a great day. In the morning I got a lot of schoolwork done while Brookie played. Then, at 1pm, we went to the mommy's group. There were a lot of babies there! Brookie was one of the older babies, the others were around five months old. Some of them were bigger than her! Its surprising how differently each child develops.

There was one girl there who brought her one year old daughter. Her daughter was the same size as Brooke! She told me that her daughter is labeled as "Failure to Thrive" and hasn't gained any weight since she was six months old. The mother seems to be doing everything right, they can't figure out why she doesn't grow. It's sad, I hope she starts to grow soon!

Also, today Brooke did two new things! First, she waved hello and goodbye at the moms at the playgroup! Then, she used a toy to pull herself up to a standing position and managed to stay standing for about five minutes! I couldn't believe it! It had to be the extra stimulation she was getting by being around so many other people. I can't wait for the next meeting!

Well, that's all that happened today. I'm off to do some homework. Only two more weeks left in the semester, yay!

Bye!

a little better :o/

Well today was an OK day.  I went to school and it went by pretty fast. When I got home, Brooke was sleeping so I got to have some time to myself, yay! Brooke woke up and I played with her and fed and and played with her some more till about 5 pm.  Then I packed her up and drove her to the new bike trail near my house and we went for a nice walk, about an hour long.  When I came home Jason was home and he put Brookie in her pj's and I fed her some avacado. She did so good, she ate all the avacado and kept opening her mouth for the spoon, I was really surprised on how willingly she ate it! I also fed her watered down juice from a sippy cup, which she now uses by herself. My little girl is growing up! I played her cd and danced with her and tried to get her to go to bed, but she was not tired! She was so cute, it was hard to be annoyed with her! She finally went to bed around 8pm.  Now I am off to do some  more homework. Bye!

ugh school....

Well this weekend ended up going really good. On Sunday Jason and I and Brookie went to the Baby Expo at the Bayside Expo Center in Boston. The drive there was really nice, I love seeing Boston, and Brookie did really well in the car. When we got there, there were babies and strollers everywhere, it was hilarious! I had gotten 5 free passes to the expo from Babies R Us, but because Ayden was sick, Tarah and her cousin weren't able to come with us. As we were walking from the parking lot to the building, three ladies commented on how cute Brooke was. I gave them the extra 3 free passes, so at least they didn't go to waste.

When we got into the building, there were so many babies! There were stands everywhere, it was incredible! I must have entered a million sweepstakes and raffles, and received a million free samples of products! We did buy Brookie one thing: a cd that was personalized to sing her name in every song. The cd is really nice and relaxing, and very calming.

There were so many babies there, it was so cute! Brookie was so good, she didn't fuss at all! She just kept looking around at the other babies and smiling.  They even had tents set up for nursing mothers, which came in handy when Brookie got hungry. They also had races for crawling babies, which was hilarious to watch! We almost died of laughter as the parents tried everything to get their babies to crawl, it was so funny!

While we were there I met up with a mom that I talk to online and her beautiful baby boy, who is Brooke's age.  She seemed really cool and nice. Unfortunatly, we had to leave soon after she got there, which was disapointing, because I really wanted to hang out with her.

We got back late and Brookie just got really really cranky. My mom gave her a bath and that seemed to help a lot.  Then I put in the cd that I bought her and we danced to the first song, and then I started to nurse her. By the time the third song was over, she was sound asleep. I think I am going to find this cd very useful, lol!

It was about 9pm when I got Brookie to bed, and I went through my schoolwork and to my horror realized that I had a 20 page paper due Tuesday, and I hadn't even started it! Thank God for Jason, he kept me from panicking and encouraged me to get started. When I got to bed around 2 am, I had six pages done.

Monday school was good, then I came home and played with Brooke until Jason got home. I went to Weight Watchers, and got weighed in. I lost 3.8 lbs in one week, YAHOO!

busy day

yay some pictures! Definatly not good quality, but better than nothing, right?

Well today we went to the Emerald Square Mall. Brookie was really good and cute the entire time. Jason bought a $30 for $5, because the store was going out of buisness. I bought a nice Asian fan on sale for $5, it is going to look great in my living room. I also bought a get well card for Ayden. I'm going to sign Brooke's name to it and send it out Monday. We also ate dinner at the food court, how chic lol! When we got home it was almost 7 pm, and it took forever to get Brookie to go to bed! Then I did a lot of homework and now am doing more!

I've been teaching Brookie sign language, yay! I've learned 60 signs already and work them into everyday conversation. According to the book I bought, it will take around 2 months before she will start signing back. I also found a free sign language seminar that takes place on April 25th, I'm thinking that I will go. I've read about all the benefits of baby signing and I talked to one mom whose baby already signs back and she says its great. I'm so excited, I can't wait until she signs back!

Well, I have to do more homework! Bye!

catching up again

Well I haven't written since Wednesday, so I just thought I would catch you all up with what's going on in my exciting life....ha!

Thursday I got to spend the day with Brookie, yay! I managed to get some laundry done. Unfortunatly, Brookie didn't seem to be feeling well and was very cranky.  I tried to get some homework done but didn't manage to.

When Jason got home we went with my mom to Applebees to eat dinner. I had the shrimp salad, mmmmm so tasty! After dinner my mom went home and Jason and I went grocery shopping. We usually spend about $70 but this week we only spent $50, yay!

Now on to Friday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!! Friday I played hooky from school. Brookie still wasn't feeling well :o(. She was very cranky again so I didn't manage to get any work done. I was very tired and my mind kept going blank. My cousin came over and we went to Micheals, but I couldn't remember what I wanted to buy. She bought the american flag patch for the shirt she wants me to make though, so at least it wasn't a total waste of time. After Micheals we went to Carbonneau's, where Kim bought some great shoes for both the weddings she's in and I bought a headpiece for my hair. Its like a minature tiara. Anyways, normal price was about $60, but I got it for $25 b/c it was broken, even though it was still usable. Grrrr...I still have so much wedding planning to do! We also stopped at CVS to buy my mom birthday cards. I bought one that had a sexy guy on it, and I also bought one that was to grandma and signed Brookie's name to it. I think she liked it.

Friday night Stacie was home and she invited Teresa and Colleen over. We played poker and drank, but then I got really tired and went to bed.

So far today I have done a lot of schoolwork and I plan on doing more. Jason is out shopping for a new car right now and Brookie is sleeping. It is too quiet around here! I was supposed to visit with Tarah, but Ayden is really sick and in the hospital. I hope he feels better soon! I'm so excited for tomorrow b/c we are going to the Baby Expo in Boston, yay!

Back to doing schoolwork. Bye! 

good day

Today was a good day. I was finally able to register, yay! In my second class, we had a debate about abortion. I personally could never, ever get an abortion, but I think that women should have the right to choose. I think we should work on preventive measures, so that abortions would not be necessary. For example, better sex education, more access to contraceptives, etc.

One student in the class was asked the question, "If your wife got pregnant, as planned, and you found out that she would not be able to have the baby and live, would you have her get an abortion?" He said that he would rather have his wife die in childbirth than abort the child. So I asked him, "What if your wife told you she wanted the abortion, that she wanted to live?" He didn't have an answer.

When I got home I could tell Brookie was feeling much better. She was smiley and in a great mood. So of course, I have to get hit with a migraine. It basically knocked me out for two hours. I'm going to the doctors next week because I've been getting them quite frequently lately and they have also been more severe.

I made Brookie some t-shirts. On one, the front says, "Democrat in Training," and on the back it says, "My I.Q is Higher Than the President's." The other t-shirt says, "Breastfed baby--stick around for the show." and the third one says, "Got Breastmilk?" My cousin thought they were really cute and asked me to make one for her friend, who is pregnant.

Today we also found out that Jason's best friend got engaged.  He asked his long time girlfriend to marry him, finally. I'm so happy for him!

Well, I have to go work on my papers. Bye!

Catching up

Well I haven't written since Saturday so I will do a little catch up. Sunday Tarah didn't come over, and we missed Church. So I spent the day playing with Brookie and catching up on homework. I am almost caught up, yay!

Yesterday Brookie was in an awesome mood! When I got back from school, I got back late. I tried to register for classes for next semester, but they wouldn't let me because I still owe $2,000 after financial-aid. Luckily, Andy agreed to pay it for me. But I was still mad that I wasted my time trying to register.

When I got home, Brookie took a nap and then Jason came home from his doctors appointment. They had to lance his toe, ouch! Then he watched Brooke while my mom took me to my first Weight Watchers meeting. The people were really nice and I really think it is going to work for me.  Because I am nursing, I am allowed extra points each day, so that is good!

Today was a good day. I missed classes b/c Brookie wasn't feeling well. I think she is constipated. But I got to play with her all day, and we all went for an hour walk, yay excercise! Soon I am going to figure out how to hook up my camcorder so I can put up more pictures.

I made a shirt for Brooke today. On the front, surrounding the american flag, it says, "Democrat in Training" and on the back it says "My IQ is Higher Than the Presidents" Its really cute!

Well, gotta go catch up on homework now. Bye!

good days

Today was a really good day. Tarah and Ayden were still sick, so they didn't come over to go to the museum.  They might stop by tomorrow though, and that gave me more time to get some schoolwork done.

Brookie was in such a good mood all day! She kept smiling and laughing. We bought a sippy cup and filled it with water. She pretty much has the hang of it but mostly just plays with the cup.

Today my mom and I went to see the florist about the wedding. We got the most beautiful flowers! The total came to about $550, and my mom paid $300, so Jason and I only have to pay for $250, which is really good!

Well I have to go work on my papers now. Tomorrow that is all I am going to be doing, except when/if Tarah comes to visit. Good night!

catch up

Ok, I know I haven't written in a few days, so here is a little catch up.

Jason's car was able to be repaired after all. It cost $200, but at least it bought us some time before we have to buy a new one.

We took my car to be inspected, and found all sorts of problems with it. The tailight is out, the breaks have to be fixed ($325), it needs a tune up ($500), they charged me a $40 diagnostic fee, and it needed an oil change ($30). We told them to just give me the oil change. We're going to try to find somewhere cheaper to fix it.

Well Monday I am going to my first Weight Watchers meeting. I was going to sign up for the online version, but it is not suitable for nursing mothers, so I have to do the live meetings and such. I'm actually excited. If I lose 2 lbs a week up to my wedding, then I will be down to 35 lbs, yay!

What else....hmmm....well yesterday Brooke made the biggest mess I have ever seen! She pooped out the side of her diaper, all over her legs and feet, and all over the floor! Very messy!

Oh, yesterday I brought Brooke for her 6th month checkup at the doctors. She weighs 15 lbs 4 oz and is 28 inches long. The doctor said she will most likely be a tall girl. She also said that Brooke is very healthy and strong and doing beautifully.  She gave us a free book, told us to make sure to read to Brooke every day, and told me I was doing fine with my method of introducing solid foods.  Then the nurse came in to give Brooke her three shots. Brooke started screaming right away, and held out her hands for me to pick her up, but when I went to pick her up, the nurse yelled at me because she hadn't put the band-aids on her yet! I picked her up anyway, there was no way I was going to leave my baby screaming like that! Some people are really irritating!

I've been really busy trying to catch up on all my schoolwork, and I have lots of more to do. So, I must go. Bye!