How to Make Breastfeeding Enjoyable

The truth about breastfeeding is that even though it can be a powerful bonding experience, very few people actually call it enjoyable. The cracked nipples, midnight feeds, and loss of freedom are just a couple reasons why many new moms find breastfeeding to be challenging.

However, there is definitely joy in breastfeeding. The snuggles, the skin-to-skin contact, the feeling that you are able to provide sustenance to your child when nobody else can — those are all reasons to celebrate breastfeeding and embrace the joy it provides. Read More

4 Tips on How to Wean Your Baby

Weaning your baby comes with two very distinct categories: emotions and logistics. Today I’m going to tackle the logistics part of weaning a child, and next will come the emotional post.

Every mother will experience weaning differently. For some it will be wonderful and freeing, others will find it difficult and emotional. Additionally, it can also be very painful. Here are four tips for how to wean your child with the least amount of hassle and pain possible. Read More

How to even begin this post? Going back to work after having a baby is one of those experiences that you will think about and remember for a long time, if not forever. When I left my daughter to return to work, she was 12 weeks old. I was lucky to be able to take my full maternity leave (I believe it was 60% paid).

Emotions

The first day I remember feeling so many mixed emotions. On one hand, I did not want to leave my baby. Read More

When I started pumping for my first baby, I enjoyed looking at all that milk in my fridge so much that even if my little one didn’t eat it, I didn’t freeze it. It felt like such an accomplishment to have pumped so much milk and I liked seeing it every day.

Then a few days after I’d started pumping, I realized by not paying attention to when I’d pumped I had wasted so many ounces of milk!! It was so demoralizing. Read More

The Most Useful Supplies for Pumping Moms

A common misperception amongst moms who pump is all you need is a pump and some grit and you’ll be good to go. A minimalist at heart, when I first started pumping I decided I would invest in as few things as possible. The way I saw it, this was a finite time in my life, I didn’t plan to pump more than a year per child, and I didn’t want to be stuck with a bunch of things I didn’t need when it was all over. Read More

Our Five Favorite Tips for Boosting Milk Supply

What is more frustrating than wanting to breastfeed and not having enough milk? When my son, Max, was just a few days old I took him in for a weight check. With my other two babies, they didn’t have any trouble gaining the weight back, so I went into this appointment feeling confident. I was assuming I’d hear what I heard before, “your baby has regained his birth weight, go home and pat yourself on the back.” Read More

How to Pump the Most Amount of Milk in the Shortest Amount of Time

The goal of the pumping mama is to get as much milk as possible in the shortest amount of time as possible. The less time you spend attached to your pump, the more freedom you have. And the more milk you pump, the less you have to worry about having enough for your babe.

When I was a pumping, working mama, I would try to time myself to get 8oz in 15 minutes. Read More

The Importance of a Free Breast Pump

When I was a brand-new mom, I knew that breastfeeding was something I wanted to try. I had no idea that I would fall in love with it. Having my little baby cuddled in my arms getting all the sustenance they needed made me feel powerful and strong. I also didn’t know how important pumping would become to my ability to continue on with my pre-baby life when I felt ready.

With my first two babies, I went back to work when they were 12-weeks-old. Read More

Spectra Breast Pumps Covered By Insurance

We’ve been hard at work talking to pumping and nursing mamas about their pumps and which ones they love. We first talked about Medela and today we’re going to talk about why Spectra breast pumps are among the most popular pumps on the market.

Spectra breast pumps extract milk equally as well as any pump on the market. Here are a few reasons that nursing moms love these pumps:

1. Spectra breast pumps are very quiet and lightweight

What is great about Spectra breast pumps is they are much quieter than other pumps. Read More

5 Important Tricks for Boosting Milk Supply

Let’s be honest, when you want to breastfeed and something goes wrong, it can be heart-wrenching.  And there are so many moms who experience so many problems! From a poor latch, to a fussy baby who is refusing the boob, to low milk supply, there are a million and one different problems that nursing mamas face. Breastfeeding is hard!

One breastfeeding problem that so many new moms experience is low milk supply. Luckily, it’s also a problem that can sometimes be solved quickly and easily.  Read More

Recovering From Childbirth

My cousin had a baby a week ago. I was talking to my aunt and she said about my cousin — the new mom, “It’s like she never even gave birth, she bounced right back!” I had to silence my gag reflex. Obviously I was happy for my cousin that she had such an easy recovery, but it was still hard to hear considering it took me over a month to move without pain after my births.

I’ve had three c-sections which you can read about here, here, and here. Read More

Oh boy, the third trimester is often a doozy. I’m sure there are some lucky people who have no issues, but for many women (yours truly included) the third trimester is filled with aches, pains, anxieties, and so. much. swelling.

During the third trimester you are carrying around an almost fully grown baby, plus all the blood and fluids that goes along with it. Your organs are compressed, your hip ligaments are loosening, and your bladder is working on over time. Read More