Birth Announcements and Other Thoughts
In between feedings and diaper changes, I have begun to work on Elias’s birth announcements. I am using my xyron to adhere the pictures and ribbon on the cards I printed, which is making the process go so quickly. There is no way I could do close to 200 without this great tool! I’m so excited about them… even if the design is fairly simple. I love that they are handmade.
Here is a picture of the progress. 
Matthew’s mom is a paper crafter too, so hopefully we are going to get them done while she is here this week. I’ll be sure to post a picture of the finished product.
Thank you to each of you who have left spirited, encouraging and honest comments about the Smoothie King man. They have made me smile.
I love this picture I took of Matthew and Elias together on Sunday night.
Today, Elias and I took our first car ride together – just us – to go to Vanderbilt and meet with a lactation consultant. Despite all my efforts, Elias has been nursing great, but my milk would not let down when I tried pumping. Being that I go back to work next month, it was stressing me out a bit. So, off we went to Vanderbilt and solved the “problem” – I needed to pump both breasts at the same time. (Is this TMI – I hope not. So many of you have reached out with advice, I feel like I must tell you what I have discovered.) Why both at the same time, you ask? It has something to do with the hormone that is released and by doing both at once (which I hadn’t been doing) the hormone more than doubles, causing the milk to let down easier (in my case). I have A LOT of milk, so it was a huge relief to pump. Today has since been a very good day on the breastfeeding front. (Aren’t you so glad how much I talk about my breasts? I never thought I would be telling thousands of strangers around the world about my breastfeeding adventures, but here we are…)
Okay, enough about nursing and my milk. 🙂 I just got Elias to go down for a nap, so I am going to try to get a little one too, before bible study tonight with my girlfriends.
I am sooo happy to be the first one to comment 😀
Just wanted to let you know (what is obvious and you already know, but here it goes anyways) Elias is BEAUTIFUL!!! and that smothie man is a jerk (hate it when people are that stupid)…
aand also good to hear about the pumping the two together I will keep that in mind when I have my own little one 😀
Well I am SOO glad that things are getting better with the milk situation. I know that had to be painful and now you can fully enjoy the bonding time with that gorgeous fella! 🙂 I hope you have a great time with Matthew’s parents!! You rock girl, Dani
Yay for breastfeeding help! Aren’t lactation consultants wonderful?
Your talk of breastfeeding makes me laugh! I can relate with it feeling a little weird but also completely natural. A friend of mine is a huge fan of nursing and is still going strong with it and her daughter is only a year old. A couple of weeks ago she came to visit and we both ended up on the couch nursing together. It felt like we had our own private La Leche League. We laughed so much about it. Then the other day I had what turned out to be a clogged duct. I called her to ask her advice and she looked up all kinds of information for me in her books. The next day she called me and I knew what it was about and I answered the phone and said, “My boob is better. Thank you.” It all comes with the territory! Congrats on working out the issues with let-down. It can be a real pain to deal with sometimes – Literally!
Ha ha ha ha ha! Your last paragraph made me laugh. It’s AMAZING what we share with perfect strangers! It’s so natural, so don’t feel weird about sharing.
I LOVE the birth announcements. Okay I need to get me one of those machines!
Good to hear that the milk issues are being solved. I promise it does ger beter as every day goes by. Your production hasn’t regulated yet because it is still early, your body is just starting to “get to know” how much milk your little guy needs. In a couple of weeks the production will regulate by itself and will increase as Elias’ needs do too…. It is truly an amazing thing.
Keep up the good job momma, you will really enjoy the bonding breastfeeding gives us!
Hey Jessica! Just some nursing tips that I was given…I would always pump after I nursed my little girl. I wanted to be sure by breasts were completly “drained” so I could build back up for the next feeding. FREEZE, FREEZE, FREEZE! I also had to go back to work and I didn’t want to give up nursing so I froze as much as I could. At one point, I had about 100 frozen bottles. And while I was away she could still be a part of me. The double pumping is the best way. My milk ducts clogged the first week so I had to use hot compresses until I got the hang of it. Your son is beautiful. Congratulations and best of luck!
Jessica,
I have been reading your blog for a few weeks now and just LOVE IT!! i too, am a scrapper and mother. I am so happy that your little bundle of joy is now here for everyone to enjoy. He is such a beautiful baby. The breastfeeding issue are not TMI. What you were told about pumping BOTH sides at the SAME time is so true!! I would have to feed my daughter, and then pump. It worked out great because I was able to store milk for when I went back to work. Hang in there!!
Elias is such a sweetie!!! I’m glad that breastfeeding is going well. For something that is supposed to be so “natural”, it sure can be tough.
Call the smootie store, and ask to speak to the store manager. If you let him/her know what’s going on, they will put a stop to it. If it is the store manager, call and ask how to get ahold of the district manager. You shouldn’t have to have someone say that to you.
I hope that you have a good week.
Hey there. I just wanted to say congrats on your new little boy. He is so precious. I found your site through Angie’s. I also wanted to let you know about a great resource site for breastfeeding. It is called http://www.kellymom.com. I have nursed both my girls (my second is still nursing) and I have found very helpful info there. Hope the site helps with any future problems. It is a great resource to have when you can’t get to the LC.
Take it easy Mama and try and rest when your sweet little one does. 🙂
Bring on the boobs! Not enough women talk openly about the way God intended our bodies to be used.
A word of caution though – keep in touch with your LC and don’t pump too much, even though it provides awesome relief. The relief is momentary and your supply is based 100% on demand, even artificial demand from pumping. You’ll be producing waaayyy too much milk and be eternally uncomfortable if you always pump. I pumped after nursing my newborn to help establish supply but it went too well. AFTER he nursed, I would still feel full and pump 10oz – ugh! – only about a week post partum.
Got to love the breast pump! I pumped for my 2nd son quite a bit and had trouble with my milk supply. Yep, the double pump action seems to be the way to go. One LC also told me to close my eyes and picture a “huge milk waterfall” as the pump worked. I don’t know why but it worked–I got a better let down every time! In fact, my boobs tingle now just thinking about the “milk waterfall.” LOL! Funny how the body works 🙂
Take care-
Laurie
Hi Jessica…..I come to your blog from Angie’s!! 🙂 Thanks for sharing your beautiful birth story, may God richly bless your family.
Now…her is my nursing tip for the day (I nursed my 2 for 13 months each) hee hee:) When you are pumping and have your 1st let down continue on the pump for another 5-7 minutes even if nothing is coming out and your will get another let down!! That is something I wish I had known with my 1st and didn’t learn until my 2nd. It totally almost doubles the amount you can get out each pumping. Hope this helps!! Please feel free to email me any questions!
Hugs!
Dee Anne Wheeler
Mommy of 2
Ponte Vedra Beach, FL
I can’t wait to see the finished product! That’s my favorite picture so far too! What printer do you have, the pictures look awesome! I spent all day yesterday looking for a good photo printer.
Elias is so beautiful. I started reading your blogs thur Angie and I’ve been addicted, I’m so enjoying watching him grow. My youngest is 6, so it seems like forever ago!
The guy at Smoothie King needs to find a new job. We don’t have a Smoothie King here, or I would also boycott them!
Blessings, can’t wait to watch the little man grow, Emily Rowe, Sayre, PA erowe1@stny.rr.com (in case you have any printer advice 🙂 http://eerfamily.blogspot.com/
Jessica,
Congratulations on your sweet baby boy, Elias. Is there anything more wonderful than motherhood?! (okay, maybe your son and watching your husband as a father…so awesome!)
And just for the record, there is nothing wrong with talking about all things baby-related, including pee incidents and milk production. It's all normal & expected. You're doing a great job of collecting resources from around the world 🙂 I'm glad you consulted with a LC to find relief! Aaaahh…happy nursing!
Love and Mommy Hugs,
Beth in Michigan
I’m just a random person who reads your blog because I found it through Angie’s – but I just wanted to tell you I found it MUCH easier to pump if I was feeding my daughter at the same time – just pump the other side. Just a little info I loved knowing – oh, and it was best the first feeding of the morning. :o)
LOL, there is no such thing as TMI after childbirth- didn’t you get that memo??
I missed the smoothie man incident- what happened?
Good to know about pumping at the same time! When Madi was born I had the same problem with engorgement. But my lactation consultant was a nazi and she scared me so I didn’t know who to turn to for help. (Note, not all lactation consultants are mean….just some and I happened to have one of them lol!)
Good for you for nursing your son. He is adorable. And your annoucements are going to be adorable.
Blessings,
Tiff~
Jessica,
As you can see from the many comments – you are doing a great job. As natural as breastfeeding is – sometimes it takes time and practice to get good at it. Don’t get discouraged – it really is wonderful once you both get used to how your body works!
I look forward to seeing the finished product – the announcements look beautiful so far!
Blessings – Jill
For a first time Mom, you seem to be pretty calm. I am totally impressed! It is very cool the way you are persevering with the breast feeding….seeking a lactation consultants help rather than just giving up. Breast feeding is not, as many assume, a “natural” thing. Many women and babies struggle through till they either get it or don’t. And it’s ok if some don’t.
Anyway, the birth announcements are going to be beautiful…I wish I was on the list! Congrats again….you and your hubby sure baked up a good baby!
I too found your blog from Angies and have been stalking!!! But I am about to die to see the Birth Announcements and I love the black and white picture with Little Elias in the bath tin as I would call it. You look great for just having a sweet little boy.
The birth announcements look ADORABLE.. can’t wait to see the finished product 🙂
Hi. I surfed over here from Angie’s blog. Congrats on your little one and your decision to breastfeed. I heard recently that one of the better LC’s from Vanderbilt recently left there and went into private practice in Brentwood where she is working out of the Maryland Farms Pediatrics office. If you ever have any more complications and don’t want to have to deal with the hospital system (and get better care to boot!), look up Kate Cropp at http://www.ninemonthsandbeyond.com. Seriously, she’s best!
You don’t know me, but I just linked here from Angie’s blog. I love the book Happiest Baby on the Block by Dr. Harvey Harp for great ideas to help newborns sleep. It has been a lifesaver for my three kids. Mainly, SWADDLING is key!! And I don’t mean just wrapping them loosly in a blanket; you need to do it tightly with a lightweight blanket. Then, swinging in a swing while they are swaddled WITH white noise in the background is really helpful. When I started using those techniques, I never had to be up with my babies in the middle of the night except to feed, and then they were back asleep in 30 minutes. The best swaddle blankets I’ve found (and I’ve tried lots) are cotton musling in large 44 inch squares which fold best for swaddling. They are from adenandanais.com. Just a few tips that I hope help with the sleeping part!
Found your blog through Angie.
Kudos to you for breastfeeding! I breastfed both of mine until they were 12 months old.
Just remember that it takes approx. 6 weeks for your milk supply to establish. At least for me, that was never soon enough the first time around!! My other tidbit of advice would be to pump when you first get up in the morning. That was when I pumped the greatest amount of milk.
You will be amazed at what you will discuss with strangers once you have a baby.
Good luck and congrats!!
Diana in OK
Oh my word-I think I saw you at Hobby Lobby yesterday!!!!! I was too embarrassed to say anything like you would think I am a stalker! I found your blog through the sweet blog of Baby Audrey Caroline! Anyway-I guess you are a star since you were recognized out in public!!!!!! 🙂
Jessica,
I love your blog!! Matthew and your video blogs are the best! I found your blog through Angie’s and have fell in love with it. Thanks for your fun posts. Elias is Beautiful! God Bless you and your new little family!
Cindy
Jessica,
First time to your blog. You’re adorable. Your son is amazing! I love watching your video updates with your husband. You guys seem like such a great couple and now with this little guy, what a beautiful family you have.
I’m glad the breastfeeding stuff has worked out. I had the same thing happen with my pregnancies. I had to pump at the same time to get relief at the beginning. And, I had to rent an industrial breast pump from the hospital to do the job effectively. Wow…what memories! I’ll be checking back in to see how you guys are doing. I’m glad I found you. I wish you guys lived next door. I’d be right over with dinner! Blessings to you!