Sunday, January 30, 2011

The Thing I Dislike the Most

Good morning. It is not that early here, but I wish I was still sleeping. I'm watching Milk Dud roll around on the floor blowing bubbles and Squirty is watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. I just did my least favorite thing about being a nursing mom... I pumped a bottle to leave when we go out tonight.

I DESPISE pumping. Squirty was almost 7 weeks early and I pumped for 3 months almost exclusively with him. It was one of the most tedious things ever. I hated having to hook myself up to a machine every 3 hours. It was painful in the beginning and boring... I give definite props to those who either exclusively pumped or managed to make it to a year or more pumping while at work.

Some people set nursing goals. "I'm going to nurse a year." When you are pumping, your goals are shorter. "I'm going to make it through this week." I always say it is 5 times harder to pump than it is to breastfeed traditionally. You have to set up your pumping equipment, pump (which takes longer and is less productive than nursing), store your milk and clean up all of the equipment. THEN, you have to feed the baby and clean those supplies. It SUCKS.

As I pumped the one bottle I will probably have to do this week, I realized how thankful I am that I don't have to do it all the time. I was blessed with a healthy full-term baby this time. I'm also blessed with a husband who works hard and is able to make enough to allow me to stay home. All of you who have to pump or did in the past, give yourselves a round of applause. It is SO much work to give your child the perfect food that way. You are awesome for doing it.

2 comments:

  1. I always hated pumping too. Its wasn't only boring and but I felt like a cow.

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  2. I loathe pumping too. Every weekday two to three times a day. The sound of that thing annoys me to no end! That being said I wouldn't have it any other way because being able to nurse my kids is such a blessing. Hope you had fun on your date night!

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