Well this week I am trying to organize my baby stuff. I have clothes up to a size 5T and as you know my baby is 9 months wearing 6-9 month and still some 3-6 month clothing. I don't have room in her closet to be storing all these clothes. I got some boxes from On Fire (she had some extra from moving) and I am going to put each size in its own box.
I also think it is time to put away some of the infant equipment that she is no longer using i.e. the swing, bounce seat, jumper, boppy, activity gym, etc. I also picked out the little rattles and infant toys that she no longer plays with.
Well she found the pile of toys and wouldn't you know that is what she played with for the next 45 minutes. She hasn't played with those toys for probably over two months. Oh well, they are still getting packed away.
Through this whole process, I am getting a little sad. I know she keeps hitting new milestones (clapping, playing peek-a-boo, sitting up, pulling herself up, and now crawling this weekend - HELP!!!) but this is the first I really had to put things away.
I am thankful that we plan to have at least one more child and I will be getting this stuff out again. I can't imagine how sad I will feel when I know this is it.
I know this is just the beginning of saying "bye-bye" to a phase in her life.
I think the next thing we will say "bye-bye" to is the breast-feeding. Any suggestions?
3 comments:
It is so sad to say bye-bye to those things :(
Here are my suggestions for saying bye-bye to breastfeeding (this is what worked for me with #1)...
First off, be sure to give her more cuddles and physical touch than usual while weaning, as a big part of breastfeeding for the baby is the cuddly closeness to mom.
Don't push the weaning if she's not ready. Do it gradually... she may not even notice if you go gently, and in that manner, your body won't notice it either.
I suggest saving her "favorite" nursing times for last. Find one that's not too important to her (probably in the middle of the day, but maybe not right before or after nap). Try giving her some milk in a cup and a snack instead. See if she'll take that to satisfy her hunger and thirst. If it works, do the same thing at the same time the next day, making it a new part of her daily routine. After a couple of days (or longer as you see fit), try it again with another feeding.
If that approach isn't working, you might try limiting her nursing session. Time her for a couple of days. If she normally nurses for 5 min on each side, you might only let her have one side, followed by a snack... for 5 min total. Then cut that back to 4, 3, 2... and add to her snack a beverage (preferably milk or formula).
Usually the morning or evening feedings are the favorites. If the evening feeding is a big part of the bedtime routine, start now by altering it slightly, moving nursing gradually farther away from the actual time she goes to sleep. For example, if her bedtime routine consists of: bath, pajamas, story, lullaby, nursing to sleep, the first step will be to nurse till sleepy but not asleep and teaching her to then go to sleep the rest of the way without nursing. After she's adjusted to that you might try bath, pajamas, story, nursing, lullaby, bed. Then put nursing before the story, then before the pajamas... etc.
When I replaced the bedtime feeding with a sippy cup of milk, I held my son in my arms and gazed into his eyes while he drank his milk, to give him that sense of closeness that he normally got from nursing.
If the morning feeding is the favorite, you might do the same thing... start by doing parts of her morning routine before nursing her, until you're at a point where you could substitute breakfast (or a cuddly session with a sippy cup) for the feeding. I only did the cuddling while drinking the sippy cup for a couple of days (at night as that was his fave)... but I recommend general extra cuddles throughout the day for as long as she wants it.
(If you would decide to wean cold turkey, be sure to have info for you on how to treat engorgement, and be sure your daughter is able to be soothed and able to fall asleep without nursing... or prepare yourself for a couple of long cry-it-out sessions...)
OK, guess that's a long enough comment :) Just found you a week ago or so... I enjoy your insights (and I often battle thoughts of eating worms too!)
-renee from MIA/CCC :)
It is very sad and very liberating when you pack up those baby things for the last time (better yet, just give them away and then you feel a little better by blessing someone else!).
Sorry, you're on your own. YOu were a bottle baby and you easily gave it up.
Love you.
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