Community
rcorinne's Pregnancy
My Due Date: July 19, 2015I have given birth!
Age: 39 years old
View All My Journal Entries
Back to work and milking
By rcorinne » Posted Oct. 6, 2015 1:59am - 620 views - 7 comments
Last week I went back to work. I decided to take two weeks to transition working M/W/F. Emma has shown a trend of taking really short naps during her 4 days at daycare so far. Then she sleeps a lot the next day. It sure makes getting errands done during my days off easier. Also, she's finally had some diapers she didn't poop in. That probably helps her to sleep longer. Last Wednesday was especially weird. I picked her up from daycare and then she slept for 9 hours in her carseat. I was so paranoid wondering when she would finally wake up. However, I know better than to purposely wake a sleeping baby. I pumped and went to bed with her carseat a few feet from me. Speaking of pumping, I've been overproducing. I have quite the surplus in the freezer. I figure this comes from not locking her into as strict a feeding schedule as Cameron had, and also her desire to sometimes eat more often (or less) depending on her ability to nap during the day. This unpredictability has led to some uncomfortable mornings. This Saturday was especially bad. She slept all night after only feeding on one side before bed. In the morning my reusable pads had moved out of place and my bra and shirt were all wet. I stood over the sink and let myself drip into it for awhile. Then, when she still slept on, my husband and I had sex and I made more milk puddles on the bed. That was annoying. I've decided that the annoyance of too much milk is worth more than stressing about having enough milk. I am a scientist. Numbers are my thing. When I pump, I think numbers. When I drop Emma off a daycare, I think number of bottles, volume of bottles, times of feedings. When I pick her up, I add up all of her feedings and compare those numbers to how much I've pumped. It's an ongoing game in my head. It seems that if I pump 3 times at work I can get out anywhere from 20-22 oz of milk. My 11 week old CANNOT possibly drink that much while at daycare. My body seems to think I have twins every morning and realizes around midday that I only have one child. It's silly. I am very blessed. The only thing I wish (well, I probably wish other things, but the only relevant thing) is that I had a deep freezer to put all the excess in. My tiny little freezer on top of my fridge is no match for the extra volume. Eventually I'm going to have to start producing what Emma needs and stop storing up so much. It will happen pretty quickly, I'm assured. Around the time Cameron started solids, my milk began to taper. For now I will enjoy being a good lactation machine. Emma may be drown by my letdown at times, but it's nice not to worry about formula and making bottles when I'm with her. There's enough dishes from the times when we are apart. Emma is starting to wear 6 month clothes now. It seems that her MCAD isn't holding her back. I'm not sure if it's causing her to demand meals more often than my son did. Maybe she is just destined to grow at a faster rate, no matter the circumstances. Overall, I'm more laid back about feedings this time around. This is good. I stress entirely too much about other things in my life. It's good to have something I'm less worried about. I know I'm not stress-free, but I'm better than I used to be. I guess we all had a bit of growing to do. Hmmm.
My Journal
Back to work and milking
By rcorinne » Posted Oct. 6, 2015 1:59am - 620 views - 7 comments
Last week I went back to work. I decided to take two weeks to transition working M/W/F. Emma has shown a trend of taking really short naps during her 4 days at daycare so far. Then she sleeps a lot the next day. It sure makes getting errands done during my days off easier. Also, she's finally had some diapers she didn't poop in. That probably helps her to sleep longer. Last Wednesday was especially weird. I picked her up from daycare and then she slept for 9 hours in her carseat. I was so paranoid wondering when she would finally wake up. However, I know better than to purposely wake a sleeping baby. I pumped and went to bed with her carseat a few feet from me. Speaking of pumping, I've been overproducing. I have quite the surplus in the freezer. I figure this comes from not locking her into as strict a feeding schedule as Cameron had, and also her desire to sometimes eat more often (or less) depending on her ability to nap during the day. This unpredictability has led to some uncomfortable mornings. This Saturday was especially bad. She slept all night after only feeding on one side before bed. In the morning my reusable pads had moved out of place and my bra and shirt were all wet. I stood over the sink and let myself drip into it for awhile. Then, when she still slept on, my husband and I had sex and I made more milk puddles on the bed. That was annoying. I've decided that the annoyance of too much milk is worth more than stressing about having enough milk. I am a scientist. Numbers are my thing. When I pump, I think numbers. When I drop Emma off a daycare, I think number of bottles, volume of bottles, times of feedings. When I pick her up, I add up all of her feedings and compare those numbers to how much I've pumped. It's an ongoing game in my head. It seems that if I pump 3 times at work I can get out anywhere from 20-22 oz of milk. My 11 week old CANNOT possibly drink that much while at daycare. My body seems to think I have twins every morning and realizes around midday that I only have one child. It's silly. I am very blessed. The only thing I wish (well, I probably wish other things, but the only relevant thing) is that I had a deep freezer to put all the excess in. My tiny little freezer on top of my fridge is no match for the extra volume. Eventually I'm going to have to start producing what Emma needs and stop storing up so much. It will happen pretty quickly, I'm assured. Around the time Cameron started solids, my milk began to taper. For now I will enjoy being a good lactation machine. Emma may be drown by my letdown at times, but it's nice not to worry about formula and making bottles when I'm with her. There's enough dishes from the times when we are apart. Emma is starting to wear 6 month clothes now. It seems that her MCAD isn't holding her back. I'm not sure if it's causing her to demand meals more often than my son did. Maybe she is just destined to grow at a faster rate, no matter the circumstances. Overall, I'm more laid back about feedings this time around. This is good. I stress entirely too much about other things in my life. It's good to have something I'm less worried about. I know I'm not stress-free, but I'm better than I used to be. I guess we all had a bit of growing to do. Hmmm.
Comments for this Journal Entry
 | Comment from rcorinne » Posted Oct. 7, 2015 12:10pm You can do it! Gather as much info as possible, then do what works for you. I felt like lactation specialists were a bit patronizing, but perhaps that was all in my head. I hope I'm helping. I know everyone is different with their expectations and experiences. Breastfeeding can be an emotionally charged topic. At least for me it is. |
 | Comment from pbc910 » Posted Oct. 7, 2015 10:00am Yeah I was planning to pump regardless to build a daycare supply. My dream is that I can tandem feed them before going back to work. I know that's asking a lot but I hear it can be done. |
 | Comment from MalPal85 » Posted Oct. 6, 2015 12:35pm Glad back to work and daycare are going well for you. I'm worried about having time off with the baby and then transitioning back to work. Also, send me your pumping vibes! I hope I can produce that much for my little one. |
| Comment from rcorinne » Posted Oct. 6, 2015 11:51am pbc910, I had to pump while Emma was in NICU. It had it's downside. My milk came in really quickly, and my nipples cracked. I was probably a bit too ambitious. I produced more colostrum than expected. I ended up hand expressing several times over the next couple weeks because of engorgement. Look into hand expression. It's much more gentle on your nipples than pumping as you're adjusting to your new milk supply. The act of massaging helps your breast tissue give up the milk more efficiently than pumping alone. And just because you pump or hand express doesn't mean that you have to give bottles early. Just start saving any excess you can muster. Also, you can increase your supply by pumping after breastfeeding. All of this is said from a mom who has only had single births, though. I'm not quite sure how it works with twins. Even if you choose formula at some point to spread out the burden of feeding to other caregivers, they'll be fine. I'm sure you'll make good choices for your family. |
 | Comment from Kitten90 » Posted Oct. 6, 2015 10:14am Wow that is an awesome milk supply! Sorry about the all the leakage though lol, I know how irritating that can get! |
| Comment from pbc910 » Posted Oct. 6, 2015 9:30am Give me your pumping luck!!!! That's my biggest worry is feeding 2 babies? When did you start pumping? I has been advised to try to wait between 4-6 weeks so the twins can get used to breastfeeding but honestly, the earlier I can pump, the easier my mom and husband can help with feedings. |
 | Comment from ericalee » Posted Oct. 6, 2015 8:39am Not sure where you live or if you've considered it but there is a Facebook group for "Human Milk for Human Babies" and one for each state in USA. There are probably others too! As a mom who couldn't produce nearly enough for her baby, I've had to rely on a lot of awesome moms who produce more than they needed to give my little girl breastmilk. It is an amazing gift! Glad to hear your little one is doing so well!! :) |
