Six Months of Breastfeeding

by | Motherhood

6 Months of Breastfeeding

This weekend, Parker will turn 6 months old. And it kind of blows my mind to think about the fact that I have provided every last drop of nourishment for his entire life thus far. I knew before Parker was born that I wanted to try breastfeeding, but I had no idea how much I would enjoy it and how important it would become to me.

I also had no idea what a huge commitment it would be, and that there would be bumps along the road. I was extremely lucky that Parker latched on right away and the first few days went so smoothly, but I’ve dealt with quite a few plugged ducts (even as recently as this week) and supply issues before I realized I was exercising too much and not eating enough. Those were easy fixes, to say the least!

6 Months of Breastfeeding

Being a nursing mom is a full-time job, or at least it feels that way at times. I feed Parker every 2-3 hours throughout the day, and on top of that I pump at least twice so that he has bottles when I’m working. As soon as I finish work at night, we do bath time and then I nurse Parker to sleep, which can take anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour.

And I’ve excused myself from parties, family gatherings, and dinners on countless occasions — not because I’m opposed to nursing in front of other people, but because Parker is SUCH a distracted eater. If there are other people around, a TV or music playing, or even bright lights on, I can forget about a successful feeding.

But I wouldn’t have it any other way; I never take for granted the fact that I’ve been able to breastfeed this long. I’ve been a little reluctant to start solid foods just because breastfeeding is so convenient (no preparation or cleanup involved!), but I’m pretty sure Parker will love exploring new foods. Not to mention that it will be super cute, messes and all.

6 Months of Breastfeeding

The older Parker gets, the more busy and wiggly he becomes. Our daytime nursing sessions are getting shorter and shorter, but I look forward to cuddling him at night and nursing him to sleep. I know I’m going to miss it so much when it’s all over, and I can only hope to make it at least another six months.

{Parker Weekly} 24 Weeks Old

by | Family Life

24 Weeks Old

This week brought a BIG first in Parker’s life: baby’s first Thanksgiving! I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again — having a baby in our lives makes everything more exciting and joyful, especially holidays.

Thanksgiving is always a pretty low key day in our family. Parker slept through the night and didn’t wake up until around 8 that morning, which was a nice treat for mommy and daddy! We lazed around the house in our pajamas (not surprisingly, Parker had multiple pairs of themed jammies for the occasion) and then Parker hung out with Zach while I baked cookies to bring to dinner.

Baby's First Thanksgiving

We headed to our first dinner with my family, hosted by my mom and Joe, where Parker got to hang out with my cousin Steph and my aunt Julie. After that, we made a quick stop at my uncle and aunt’s, and Parker spent some quality time with grandpa Alan.

Baby's First Thanksgiving

Our last meal of the day was with Zach’s family at his cousin John’s house. All of the Rambach cousins were there, so Parker had lots of playmates. It was an awesome day filled with family, and as much fun as we had, it felt so nice to come home and relax as a little family of three.

Baby's First Thanksgiving

{Mama Moment} Pianist in the Making

by | Family Life

Parker sitting up at the piano

From the time he was just one month old, Parker has been a huge fan of his kick ‘n play piano. He’s spent countless hours on that mat, kicking away at the keys to the point where I have every single tune completely memorized. It’s where he first learned to grab at toys, and he perfected his rolls on that mat as well.

Add another skill to that list: he’s working on sitting up on his own with the help of his little piano. He hasn’t mastered it yet, but when I place his boppy pillow behind him, he does a pretty great job staying upright and tickling those ivories at the same time.

It’s so exciting to watch Parker discover all the things he’s capable of, especially when they are musically related! Everyone always comments on his long “piano-playing” fingers; this is just the beginning step on his journey to becoming a little pianist. Hopefully he’ll be a more diligent piano student than I was as a child ;)