We All Need Somebody To Lean On & A Great Top 10

So that song is what comes to mind when I think about the group of moms that make up the Moms Group that originated from the hospital we all delivered at.  We try to get together once a week for play dates (they get together because I can't get off work to go) and make special arrangements on the weekend with the entire family.  When we're not together, we're communicating through a message board which gives us the opportunity to share stories, vent or consult and comfort each other.  If you don't have a group like this, use the bloggosphere.  I'm always here to listen, support or comfort.  We mother's have to stick together.

We all love our husbands and our family support circle but sometimes is just nice to talk with someone going through the EXACT same thing you are.  They are a great group of women from all walks of life but in the end, we're all moms asking questions about sleeping, bathing, eating and nursing.  It is truly therapeutic. 

The latest string is about weening off breastfeeding.  Most know that I've been nursing and pumping since E was born 8 months ago.  I've been pretty dedicated to the cause, even having my milk shipped home from business trips.  Unfortunately, life is moving faster than I can manage and something has to give.  E is doing well on formula and is eating solids now so I know he's well nourished. I've been able to get him down to nursing once a day and pumping once a day but nighttime is still an issue.  He refuses to take a bottle from me at night and face plants into my chest every time he wakes up. 

We've been talking about our challenges and struggles with weaning on the message board and one girl came up with a pretty good "Top 10 Things I'm Looking Forward to Once I Wean" (Thanks Kim!)  What do you think?

Top 10 Things I'm Looking Forward To Once I Wean

10 - No more nursing bras. While very functional, they do very little for the ta-tas. Remember those bras that you used to wear and have been hibernating in the back of your drawer? Not the ones that you bought when your boobs swelled to three times their size during pregnancy, but the ones that you used to wear when you were driving the boob bus? Yup, you get to wear those again.


9 - No more being the first responder. When the baby wakes up early on the weekend, you no longer have to be the first person on the scene, boobs at the ready. That sleeping guy next to you in bed is just as capable of filling a sippy cup with milk as you are.

8 - No more hand washing pump parts and bottles. How much time will we get back in our day when we're not disassembling pump parts and bottles, washing them in hot water, letting them dry overnight, reassembling the next morning and repeating...every day? I can't even wait until our hand washing chore boils down to the sippy cups used at daycare.

7 - No more disrupting the work schedule to stop, find a pumping location, relax and sit still for 20 minutes. How much more productive will we be when we can work continuously throughout the day? We might even qualify for a promotion.

6 - No more of that smell. You know what I mean...on the pump parts at the end of the day, on the pumping wrap, on your breast pads, on the dirty bottles. The smell of breastmilk is pretty nauseous after a while. Good for baby, not so good for adults with developed olfactory senses.

5 - Getting to wear dresses again. Remember those cute summer dresses in your closet that you couldn't wear last year because you were 9 months pregnant and can't wear this year because getting naked to pump is not exactly your idea of a good time? Well, you get to bust them out again. And, you can store all of those "easy to nurse in" tops that you've worn to their last thread. No more worrying about button downs, shawls, etc. No more worrying about what will be easy to nurse in public. Whatever you want to wear.

4 - When you get sick, you can take whatever you want. Back to better living through pharmaceuticals. No more reading the labels, wondering what will transfer to the baby. Whatever you want. Even that blasted ibuprofen.

3 - Getting to eat whatever you want. For babies with allergies, we've been sacrificing some of our favorite foods. For me personally, I'm celebrating Linc's birthday by going to the Cheesecake Factory and getting a huge piece of Peanut Butter Cheesecake with real whipped cream. I would get two, but I'm no longer burning 500 calories a day so I can't get too crazy.

2 - Not lugging that blasted pump around. Can you imagine what it will be like to not have to carry your work bag, your purse, your pump and the insulated bag for the bottles to work every day? And I swear, I am going to be so happy to not hear snarky comments about the size of women's purses and what could I possibly be carrying in that thing. While very reliable and dependable, it will be a happy day when the pump goes down to the basement.

And drum roll please...the top thing that I'm looking forward to...



1 - The badge of pride I get to keep knowing that I helped make my baby who he is today. I get to look at Linc and know that I gave him the nutrition to grow into a toddler and that I gave him the antibodies needed to fend off illness. Whether you made it to 6 months, 9 months or a year, or if you have to supplement with formula, you made your baby who they are today...and you have free license to remind them of that as frequently as you want for the rest of their life (evidently, even if they’re 35 years old). And not a single person can take that away from you.