Breastfeeding a Toddler.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding for the first year of life. The World Health Organization states breastfeeding should continue for the first two years. Despite this, very few women continue to breastfeed for longer than a few months.

According to the CDC, in the U.S., about 75% of babies are breastfed at birth but by 12 months of age this number drops to about 20%. By 18 months only about 6% of babies are still breastfed.

Now, I'm not here to try to convince others to breastfeed for longer than they feel comfortable with. Every mother has to do what is comfortable for her and her baby. But I would like to clear up some of the misconceptions of breastfeeding beyond a year.

First....breast-milk does not lose it's nutritional value after a year. I have heard this many times. People have asked "Why continue beyond a year when breast-milk is no longer providing any nutrition?"

In the second year of nursing, breast-milk provides 43% of the required protein, 36% of the required calcium, 75% of the required vitamin A, 76% of the required folate, 94% of the required vitamin B12, and 60% of the required vitamin C. (breastfeeding.com)  As a mom of a 2 year old picky eater I am glad I am able to provide these needed nutrients just by nursing him.

Second....breastfeeding beyond a year does not make me weird, gross, or overly attached to my child. I can guarantee that I am not causing any psychological damage to my child. I understand in the U.S. I may be in the minority, but the natural age for weaning is 2.5 - 7 years.  Unfortunately, since breasts are so over-sexualized in the U.S, breastfeeding a toddler is considered freaky by many. It is time to move beyond this belief and realize extended nursing is very normal.

Third....breastfeeding beyond a year (or any amount of time) does not take away from the relationship my husband and I have. Regardless of if I chose to breastfeed or not, having kids changes the marital relationship. You just need to go with the flow and trust that when the kids are older, you will once again have more time together.

And finally, breastfeeding beyond a year will not make my child overly dependent on me. He has grown in his independence, as most two year olds do, and he knows that he can come to me for comfort when he needs to.

Can breastfeeding into toddlerhood be tiring and challenging? Yes, of course. Sometimes you just get "touched out",  sometimes your little darling gets a little rough, or sometimes he wants to play (or stand up, or talk...) and nurse at the same time! It isn't always easy but it does have it's rewards........

Sebastian happily nursing.

And for those that are still unsure of how long is too long....I can promise, he won't still be nursing when he goes off to college!

It must be love.....

I haven't been able to get the smile off my face since this morning. I feel like a high school girl waiting for her date to come pick her up!

I haven't seen Mark since he left for Florida on Sept. 11 (unless you count Skype). He is coming home today! I am so excited to see him and to spend time with him. I'm trying to keep busy with things around here to help pass the time.

The love I have for this man just grows stronger with each passing day. Whenever he travels I miss him so much and get butterflies in my stomach when I know he is coming home. It has been tough with him being gone. I've missed him so much. I only wish he could stay and not have to go back. But I'm not going to think about that right now. I'm going to enjoy the 2 weeks I get with him and deal with him leaving again when that time comes.

Reaching out......

One reason I decided to start this blog was to take inventory on my life. I thought it would be a good way to share with others things about myself. This is something I'm not very good at. Most of you know the general information about me....I'm married, have 5 kids, want to be a midwife, etc....but I'm not much of a sharer when it comes to feelings. I tend to keep things to myself and not ask for much from anybody. If you ask me if I need anything or if there is anything you can do to help, my usual response is "No, I'm good. Thanks."

With Mark being in Florida, I've found this is not a good way to be. Usually, if I need anything I go to him but since he's not here, I'm on my own. For the most part I've been dealing okay with this.  Just doing what I have to to get things done. But I've decided it would be more fun and less stressful if I turned to others. So this is my first step in doing that. Admitting that this is something I'm not good at will hopefully help me overcome it.

I will be honest and say that this is not easy. I am definitely stepping outside my comfort zone but I think it's time. At some point in a future post I may share why I am  like this, but for now, just putting this out there will have to do.

On Hold....

A few days ago I received an application in the mail for The Midwifery Institute of Philadelphia University. I so desperately would love to fill out the application and send it in before the deadline, which is Nov. 1, for spring semester.  I know, however, this is not the right time to start it.

I assume it was sent to me because I inquired about the program some time ago with hope of immediately continuing my education after I finished with my BSN.  Since then, my life has definitely been in an upheaval.

I successfully graduated with my BSN in May and shortly after my husband received his PCS orders to Florida. I thought, no problem. The University of Florida has a midwifery program as well.  We'll move there and I'll get my application in and be back in school by spring semester.

We spent the summer getting the house together to sell. Making a few repairs and applying some fresh paint before getting it on the market. I really was hoping the right person would come along and buy up our house so I could move with my husband. Since we are not the Rockefellars, if the house didn't sell, I would need to stay here because we can't afford two house payments. I was excited when we had a couple come look at the house the first week it was listed. Unfortunately, they have been the only couple to look.

When my husband left in September to report to his new duty station we tried to remain somewhat optimistic. Our hope at that point turned to getting the whole family to Florida before christmas.  As each week goes by, I get slightly more and more discouraged.

I of course miss my husband and want my family back together again. But another reason I want to move and get settled is I'm tired of putting this dream of becoming a midwife on hold.  This has been a dream a long time in the making.

I first got involved with the birth community back in 1994 when I became a childbirth educator. In 2000 I was trained as a doula and I graduated nursing school in 2003 with my associates degree.

That was the first time I put this dream on hold. I was going through a nasty divorce and the time was not right for me to continue with my education. I dropped out of my bachelors program and dealt with the situation at home.

Things eventually settled down and I moved on in life. Remarried and had 2 more kids. I started working with my midwife in 2006 as a birth assistant and went back to school in 2007. As I got closer to graduation, I started to look into my options for my masters. I knew I would probably need to do a distance program because there are not too many universities that have midwifery programs. That is when I sent for information regarding the program at Philadelphia University.

This brings us to the present day. An application in the mail reminding me that I need to put this on hold for a while longer. The time and commitment needed for the program is something I can't do while my family is separated. There is enough stress right now. Adding to it would make it very difficult for me to be successful. Maybe we'll get lucky and the house will sell soon and I'll be able to head down to Florida. Realistically though, the way it looks is we'll have to take a big hit on the house and I probably won't get down to Florida until after the new year. Too late to start the spring semester of school. Blah!

I know I'll eventually reach my dream of becoming a midwife. It's my calling and I can't ignore it. I have no doubt I'll get there. It's just a matter of time.  I just needed to complain a little bit. Thanks for listening.

Can we keep it???? Please!

Currently we have 2 dogs, 2 cats, and 2 goldfish.  As much as I love my animals, Mark and I have both agreed to no more pets. Having this many animals can be fun and entertaining but it is also a lot of work and a big expense.

Since Mark has left, it has been mostly my responsibility to care for all the animals. I do enlist the boys to help but I am the one who does the messy and more time consuming jobs (cleaning up dog poop and cleaning out the fish tank). The expenses of this many animals add up with pet supplies, grooming, and vet bills.

Not only is it a lot of work, but at some point my house is going to sell and we will be moving to Florida. We have to get all these animals down there. A 17 hour drive without the added needs of pets and kids!

Well, this morning a new pet was added to the mix. Now in my defense, I did not go out and adopt a new animal! It came to us!

My dogs were barking wildly this morning. I am use to them barking at squirrels or other dogs but usually they quiet down after a few minutes. I knew something was sparking some interest when they did not stop barking after a few. So I peeked out the window to see what was going on. I saw something sitting under the swing-set. At first I thought it was a groundhog but then it moved. It was a bunny!

We have plenty of bunnies that hop around our yard but this one looked different. It didn't look like the wild bunnies I'm use to seeing.  So I decided to go outside to check it out.  I put on my robe and grabbed a piece of celery and went outside. As I got closer, I could see it was not a wild bunny. It didn't hop away from me and happily ate the celery stick I offered. After a few minutes, I picked it up and brought it in the house.

I'm not sure how this bunny ended up in our yard. It's not like bunnies can open up a hutch and escape so I'm wondering if somebody decided to "set it free."

Now I have this bunny and no supplies for it. Not to mention, I did make an agreement with my husband! What am I suppose to do? So I sent a text message to Mark telling him my tale and asking him what I should do.  He told me if I really wanted to keep it, he was fine with it.

That's all I needed to hear. I packed up the boys and went to the pet store to buy the needed supplies to give the new bunny a home. Now all we need is a name for the little guy!

Pudding for Breakfast!

Sebastian is a very picky eater. He will not eat a single vegetable and except for the occasional hot dog, will not eat any meat. He does love most kinds of fruit, cheese, and pasta. His diet is not as varied as I would like it to be, but I do try to keep it as healthy as possible.

I always offer him whatever we are eating with hopes that he will try it and discover a new food he likes. Usually he looks at it and throws it back at me or offers it to the cat.  But I keep trying anyway.

Being the typical 2 year old, there are times he has his mind set on getting what he wants. For example, this morning he wanted pudding for breakfast. It's not what I would consider a "breakfast of champions", but in all honesty, I didn't want to deal with the tantrum if I tried to convince him otherwise.  So I gave in.

I will convince myself that it isn't so bad since it is a dairy product and he's getting the calcium he needs for his growing bones!

Sebastian was happy.  I got to avoid the tantrum and enjoy my coffee in peace, which is sometimes worth the not-so-healthy pudding for breakfast. So, all in all, a good start to a Sunday morning!