Saturday, January 17, 2009

Week 1 Captured and Zoe's Quilt

If breastfeeding or boob talk bothers you - then do not read this post. Personally I am beginning to think that breastfeeding is one of the most amazing and natural things on the planet!

So the first week is over. It went pretty well. I think we are handling being newbie parents really well. The nipple shields are helping out tremendously and I am now the proud owner of a Med.ela Pum.p N St.yle. So I am totally styling with these big suction cups attached to my breasts a few times a day.
Zoe had a doctor appt on Thursday. I guess they have breastfeeding babies go in during the first week to monitor their weight. You know what the amazing thing was??? From tuesday to thursday she gained 5.5 ounces! Now that is what I call Nipple Shield Magic!
Pumping is going ok. I don't seem to get more than an ounce at a time with the pump. I am not sure how long I am actually supposed to pump? I figure the amount will increase as my supply increases. Should I be worried? I am going to see the LC again this coming week, so hopefully I will be a bit more confident.

I am not worried about Zoe just yet though. There seems to be plenty of supply when she is nursing. If anything she doesn't take in the whole breast supply at the time (not that a breast can ever be empty). I have taken to just giving her one breast at a time because it seems to satisfy her and then from what I have read she gets more 'hind milk'.

I am now the owner of squirting boobs in the morning. Zoe eats about every two to three hours throughout the day. I am not one to set a schedule, I just sort of take her cues. There are times when I have tried to keep her up or I woke her up because I wanted to feed her later or felt like she needed to eat (or my breasts told me she needed to eat). It doesn't really work that well anyways - I mean she is always up for eating at first, but if she isn't hungry she eventually just stops suckling and just snuggles...and if she is tired she is going to sleep whether I try to keep her up or not - she will just be more grouchy on the way.

I cannot tell you how glad I am that I got the Nikon. It is amazing! I almost feel like I won't need to get formal pictures taken - because I can do the settings myself - it is SOOO COOL. I might invest in another flash for it, but I need to research it first. Speaking of the Nikon - I did a little photog session yesterday and this result (I used the 'old movie' feature in Mo.vie.Mak.er - the pictures are actually much crisper than what you see)...




So I think I mentioned back when we were getting the nursery ready that instead of buying a crib set we were having a quilt made out of mary engelbreit fabric. I had been searching Etsy for different quilts and then decided that it would be better to have one made. Then of my co-workers suggested another person we will call her Maria...Maria is a friend and retired former co-worker. She totally was up for making the quilt for us. She took the ME fabric, she and I shopped for the rest of the fabric and the backing and she did all the hard work. I have never quilted in my life. She is awesome at it. She made the quilt as a gift for Zoe. Isn't that great? I have found in the past week that the blankets that were made for her are so EXTRA Special. Another co-worker crocheted a blanket for her and one of my aunts made her a blanket too. They are snuggly and cute. I wish I had the patience to make those wonderful things! Guess what came in the mail today? Zoe's Quilt! Here are some pictures of the quilt.





I have another post brewing about my personal highlights so far.