Weaning Tips

Tips on weaning:

If you are ready to wean then there are several things you can do to ease the transition and possible engorgement that can occur while weaning.

The preferable method is to cut out 1 feed every 3rd day until you are "dried up". It can take weeks or months. This method is the least painful for you and baby. This worked REALLY well for me. It did not take long for me before we ended up only nursing before nap and bedtime. Then, when I was ready for that hurdle, I quit that as well. I did not need to use cabbage leaves or cold packs but I am told those really work. Of course Nizo Wear Nursing Bras have the pocket to hold your cold pack for extra comfort, which could just come in handy while weaning!

The quick wean method is to cold turkey stop all feeds and stop ALL EMPTYING. If you keep emptying you will keep producing. DO NOT BIND your breasts, this not only is painful but it does not help.

You can however use cabbage leaves to aid in the process and reduce engorgement pain. Simply buy a head of green cabbage (red is ok but will stain fabric). Tear the entire leaves off, wash them, put them in a ziploc bag in the fridge to store and place one leaf in your bra until it is wilted. Throw away the wilted leaf and replace. Do this over and over until your milk is gone. It has been known to dry up milk in a day instead of a week.

some advice above was collected from askthelactationconsultant.com, which is a great resource for breastfeeding moms, and some is just what worked for me. I hope it helped. Share your weaning story!

How to teach your children about portion size

I just read this article about portion sizes for children and thought it was definitely worth sharing! How do we teach our children to listen to their bodies to know when they are full instead of cleaning their plate?

Do you have any great tips you are already using at home? The rule at our table is that if your veggies are gone and you have enough to get you to breakfast the plate does not need to be clean. Now if only I can follow my own rule and cut out my after dinner snack I would be doing good...:)

I like how this article talks about how we got to the big portion sizes that we did and it also gives some great tips for at home and for restaurant eating:

AT HOME

• Eat out less. At home, you are in charge of your family’s portion sizes.
• Use smaller plates and bowls – this will give the illusion of more food and signal a sense of being satisfied when the dish is empty.
• Cut bagels and muffins in half before you bring them to the table. This encourages your family to help themselves to half as one serving.
• Make your own single-serving packs of your kids’ favorite snacks immediately after you bring the big bag home from the store.

AT THE RESTAURANT

• Request meals to be divided before they are brought to the table – half goes on your plate, the other half goes in a doggy bag right away for take home.
• Share a meal with another adult or your kid. Or have your kids share a meal.
• Order appetizers in place of a lunch or dinner entree.

 Nicole

great article  Jennifer Blue Rozman. Thanks for sharing.

A good laugh!

So, I am avoiding a few things on my to-do list this week (which means multiple trips to the chocolate chip bag already today-insert stomach ache here) and thought maybe a few laughs would get me through them. I know everyone of you has a funny mommy moment out there. I thought I would share mine and hopefully inspire you to share yours too....I could use it :)

Now I'm not the best at remembering every hilarious or jaw dropping thing my amazing child does but I do have one time that has been forever burned into my memory. My son was about 6 months old when I was home with him alone one day. He does not get sick very often, but on this very special day he made the dreaded throw up/gagging noise. I quickly picked him up, and held him in front of me with both hands to see if he was ok.

Then next thing I knew he was throwing up! I not only had his lovely, smelly vomit on the front of my shirt but it was also nicely placed all over my face! I wore glasses at the time and they were covered as well. I was frozen there for a minute as the possibilities of what to do next ran through my mommy brain mind. I did manage to run into the bathroom before I was forced to close my eyes completely. I under no circumstance was going to set him on the carpet, which I would have to then clean later! Do I set him on the floor or in the tub while I at least wipe my face so I can see (he is still a bit tipsy when sitting by himself so that was out)? Just stand there until help arrives so I dont have to clean anything (wishful thinking).  I opted to put him on my hip, completely covering my entire torso in puke so I could at least get a hand free to wipe us off.

Oh, it was quite a moment!  It is a good thing he is cute... :) I was definitely not laughing at the time, but I get a chuckle every time I think of it now!

This post was inspired by Zarbee’s Hilarious “MOMents" Contest. Happy Tuesday people!


Nicole