Mills' Three Year Check-up

With another birthday comes another check-up, and it was a good one.  Today, Mills went in for his three year well child check-up.  He was 35.8 lbs-80th percentile and 41.5"-100th percentile.  He has gone through a pretty big growth spurt since last year, growing 3 inches. No wonder everything is so short on him!

He saw Dr. Street and was great while she checked him out.  She talked about how smart he is and listened to questions I had about his activity level.  She reassured me that Mills is young and intelligent and that he will continue to mature with each month.  I am so thankful for a great pediatricians at this practice!  At the end of the appointment, Dr. Street gave Mills a Chuck and Friends truck book, which he already loves!  Our boy just keeps getting bigger and bigger.

Mills Turns Three!

I cannot believe that our Lil' Man is three already! It is amazing to me how fast the years fly by!

This year we decided against a big party, for both Mary Kate and Mills, and opted for an opportunity to make a memory. David came up with the great idea of riding an Amtrak train from Atlanta to Toccoa for that experience and Mills was excited about it! 

Friday evening, August 2nd, my parents drive Mills, Mary Kate, and David to the train station in Atlanta. I was not able to ride because I needed to get the van to Toccoa and to feed Madden and I hated I couldn't go, but it would have been a lot on Madden at 2 1/2 months. David was brave to take on this challenge by himself! 

The kids asked tons of questions and were excited about getting on the train. It was running about 30 and their patience was pretty thin. Mills immediately begun talking to a random and rough looking passenger, who kindly conversed with him. Probably the funniest exchange was when the train left the station and Mills told this man they were moving. David tried to get Mills to leave him alone, but he told David, "No! I'm talking to him." Hahaha! They did well overall, but were tired when the train finally arrived in Toccoa at 10:30. Mills was greeted there by Mommy and Madden, Gege and Papa, Nana and Randaddy, and Ana, Evan, Katee, and Brandon. He was so excited to see everyone. What an experience!

The next evening, we had cake and a few presents from family at my grandmother's house. The "party" was capped off with a little playtime on my aunt and uncle's porch...they live next to my grandmother.

Here is a family picture taken at his family party. I am so glad we started this tradition of making sweet memories. Happy Birthday Mills! We love you!!!

Madden Months 1-3

My original plan was to write a monthly update on our sweet boy...fast forward three months later and I'm jut now writing it. Life had been a bit crazy around here lately! 

Madden went to the dr for a checkup at three weeks. He got a great report! He stats were 9lbs 13 oz and 22" long. That means three weeks from birth he gained 1lb 13 oz an grew lengthwise 3". That must be some pretty thick baby milk he's getting!!  At this point, Madden was eating every 2 1/2 hours an was sleeping about 4 hours at night. At 6 weeks, Madden started smiling and what a sweet smile it is!

At two months, Madden went in for his next checkup and his first set of shots. Again he got a great report. Dr. Miller said he was very advanced with his ability to track people/things and his skill at this was more like a four month old...that's my boy! His stats were 14lbs 5.5oz and 25" long. At this point, he was eating every 2 1/2-3 hours and was sleeping around 6 hours at night. At eight weeks, Madden started laughing. Hearing him laugh makes us all laugh!

Now, at three months, Madden continues to thrive! He eats every 3-3 1/2 hours and sleeps 8 1/2-9 hours at night. He can lay on his stomach with his head lifted and kick like crazy! He also has started grabbing his feet. And, who could forget, that he loves his brother and sister and likes to be sung to.

What a difference just three months makes in size. We are so blessed with a sweet and loving baby boy!

Tips For Nursing Moms

Babies, babie everywhere! May and June this year seem to be extremely popular months to have babies. Recently, I have had many friends who have had babies and have other friends who are due any day now. Many of them are planning to breastfeed and some have been asking questions about things I did/do and helpful tips on nursing. This is an attempt to put my thoughts and advice on nursing all in one place. These tips are particularly good to consider for working moms. I am by no means an expert on breastfeeding, but after nursing two babies, and now having a third, I have some valuable experience to share for those who are interested.

Helpful Book on Breastfeeding and Scheduling

When I found out I was pregnant with our first, Mary Kate, there was no question in my mind about whether or not to breastfeed her. I was nervous that I would not know what to do or how often to feed her. I am the type of person who likes to have some guidelines to follow when doing most anything. Several people recommended the book "On Becoming Babywise" to me when I was pregnant. After reading it through, Babywise quickly became my manual in nursing and scheduling. This book has a bit of a controversial reputation because some people claim it leads to babies not thriving properly, due to not being fed enough, however, it frequently says to feed when baby is hungry and to not watch the clock. I am a true believer in this method and recommend it to anyone who asks!

The premise of the book is to teach your baby to take full feedings, as opposed to snacking, and to sleep through the night sooner than most babies, which was critical in my eyes as a working mom! Full feedings are very hard with newborns, but it does make a difference if you can get your baby to do so. I won't get into details about how to keep a sleepy newborn awake enough to take in a full feeding, but check it out in the book if you're interested. 

Babywise teaches that moms should implement the "eat, play, sleep" routine with their babies. Essentially, you nurse the baby, keep them up for a while, and let them nap for a while before repeating this cycle. We would keep Mary Kate and Mills up before their last feedings longer than normal before their last feeding of the night. If you do this too much, your baby will likely become overtired and more difficult to settle down to sleep. Ultimately, you are teaching their bodies to sleep through the night by using this routine. Keep in mind that the amount of time they "play" or nap is not set and will extend as your baby stretches out his/her feedings.

One last thing I love about Babywise is the healthy/unhealthy growth indicators it lists at different stages of the first year. This is a huge help because when you are exclusively nursing there is no way of knowing how much breastmilk your baby takes in during a feeding. It also gives you suggestions of how often to nurse at each stage during the first year.

There are plenty if great books to read about breastfeeding and sleep habits, but this is the book I both know and have had success with.

Scheduling/Nursing

Scheduling was extremely important to me when I knew I was going back to work. It was important for me to train both my children to eat full feedings at the same time everyday because I had limited windows of time in which to pump. I followed the appropriate hours to set feedings for each stage listed in Babywise. (Mary Kate was easy to schedule and followed the book to a T, but Mills was much more difficult! Keep in mind that every baby is different and do not stress if yours does not do well with this. The important thing is that you give it a try).I will concisely go through it here.

I fed on demand for the first few weeks and did not start eat, play, sleep until around three weeks with all of my babies. During the first few weeks, all three have averaged eating every two hours, sometimes sooner and other times later. I would also not let them go more than one four hour period during a 24 hour period and would keep that during the night if they would do it that early. After 3 weeks, I started eat, play, sleep with them and noticed they all stretched their feedings out to between 2 1/2 and 3 hours.  I would not be strict about it being the same period of time between every feeding each time, but would not let them go more than 3 hours at this point. I also started letting them go as long as they would at night. Around 10 weeks or so, both Mary Kate and Mills seemlessly stretched to 3 1/2 hours between feedings. I went back to work at 13 and 14 weeks, so this is where they were feeding wise then. Around 5-6 months they both transitioned to eating every 4 hours and stayed there until they they were one and transitioned to cows milk.

One question I always had was how long is long enough to nurse my babies. Both Mary Kate and Mills averaged nursing both sides for a total of 12-15 minutes. Everything I read, including Babywise, talked about babies needing to nurse 25-30 minutes. Madden did nurse this long at first, but he to has also resorted to averaging 15 minutes total. After discussing this with both my lactation consultant and pediatrician, I learned that as long as your baby is growing appropriately, and having plenty of wet and dirty diapers, it is fine. Every baby is different, so each baby's needs are differenr. A great suggestion I received was to log feedings and wet and dirty diapers, like you do a newborn. This helped me to see everything that was going in with my babies. I also realized that I have forced letdown, meaning that my milk comes out very fast. It also means that my babies have gotten more milk faster than some others, resulting in shorter nursing periods.

Bedtime and Misc Info

The great thing about eat, play, sleep is that it doesn't have to be done at the exact same times everyday. Those moms who work will do that, but those who stay at home can start each day when baby wakes on their own instead of waking them at a particular time. As a mostly stay at home mom, this time I will not be as worried about the first morning feeding being at the same time each day.

Bedtime was/is important at our house. both kids required a lot if sleep and certainly did not get much at daycare, makinggoing to bed early a requirement for all of our sanity! After going back to work, I would put both kids to bed after they fed around 7-7:30. I would go into their rooms and do a dream feed around 10-10:30 every night until they dropped it at 4 and 5 months. A dream feed is when you don't wake them, but feed them and put them back to bed immediately after eating. This is essentially what you do with newborns, so why not do it with older infants? It gets them used to going to bed earlier and usually provides an easy transition to dropping that last nighttime feeding.

Pumping Info

Speaking of pumping, if you plan to go back to work you need to invest in a good pump. Fortunately for most people, insurance companies are now providing breast pumps at little or no charge. I have used a Medela pump-in-style with all three of mine and love it! This brand was recommended to me by my lactation consultant and, after spending a great deal of time doing my own research into the various brands, I think it is the best quality option available.

I became a pro at pumping and storing milk by the time Mills was born. After my milk came in with Mary Kate, I would pump every morning after her first morning feeding the entire 14 weeks of maternity leave. Some friends recommended doing this and it was hugely helpful in building up a good supply of milk! Somedays, I would pump 6 or more oz after nursing her. Other days it may be more like 3-4oz. What I didn't realize with her was how primarily pumping her feedings during the day, after going back to work, would effect my milk supply. After several months of doing this, I stopped producing a much milk as she was taking at a given feeding. My body was not responding to a pump like it would to her nursing, and that is normal. I tried taking herbal supplements and drinking mother's milk tea, but didn't see great results. I stopped nursing her altogether at 10 months when I found out I was pregnant with Mills. Aside from being pregnant, my supply was so low that she want getting much at this point.

When I had Mills, I never stopped pumping after the first morning feeding until I weaned him at 9 months. (He was so distracted at this point, he was extremely difficult to nurse!) This took a lot of dedication, but it was worth it! After months of being back at work with him, my supply started dropping a bit, but I had plenty of milk stored up from pumping an extra feeding daily and had enough to not have to supplement with formula. 

Another option that works better for some people is to pump at night when your baby drops the last feeding before you go to bed. This feeding was around 10 pm for both Mary Kate and Mills. Mary Kate dropped it around 4months and Mills dropped it around 5 months. With Mary Kate, I should have just pumped that last feeding after going back to work at 14 weeks, but I did not know any better. Because I never stopped pumping that extra feeding with Mills, I had enough milk stored to give him brestmilk for nearly two months after he was weaned...pretty crazy!

When at work, I would pump when I had the kids scheduled to eat. This is important because I kept to the same schedule on weekends or breaks, as much as possible, to try to ensure the greatest success with pumping. Since my milk lets down quickly, I could usually pump a full feeding in around 10 minutes. I would normally continue pumping for an additional 5 minutes. The extra stimulation helped keep up my milk supply as much as possible while pumping multiple times daily. Ladies, it is required by law that your employer give you time to pump if you choose to do so. Certain professions are easier than others to make it happen, but don't not breastfeed because you think you won't be allowed to pump because you can push the issue with your boss.

Storing Milk

After pumping, storing, and wasting tons of milk with Mary Kate, I learned what I was doing wrong. With her, I would simply store what I had pumped in a milk storage bag, label it with how many oz and the date, and put it in the freezer. This led to random amounts of milk being stored. When I would make bottles, I would inevitably end up with extra milk that I couldn't use and would end up pouring it down the sink. That stuff is liquid gold people, and wasting it almost put me in tears daily! Fortunately, I learned that the best way to store milk was in four ounce quantities. 

Here's why this storage method worked best for me. My kids were both on 3 1/2 hour feeding schedules from the time I went back to work, which was 3 months for both, until about 5-6 months, and they would take two bottles during the day. (I would nurse them as soon as I got home from work). At first, they were taking about 5-6oz at each feeding (I always sent a 6oz bottle just in case). When I would make bottles for them, I would thaw three 4oz bags of milk, using a whole bag for each bottle and 2 additional oz from the third bag for each bottle. This was great because I didn't waste milk! When they moved to eating 7-8oz at 4 hour feedings, I simply thawed four 4oz bags and used two bags per bottle, again not wasting any milk. FYI, milk stored in inside freezers attached to a fridge will keep about 3-4 months and milk kept in a deep freezer will keep about 6-12 months. If you have so much milk stored that you feel you won't use it all, you can donate it.

Breastfeeding is hard, no matter how rewarding it is, and I believe it is one of the most selfless things a woman can do!  If you choose to nurse your baby, I highly recommend that you surround yourself with friends and family who are supportive. At times when you at over getting up in the night to fed, pumping, and cleaning pump parts and bottles, this support will help encourage and get you through. Good luck to you on this endeavor and know that there are many women out there that are more than willing to listen to your frustrations and lend a helping hand! 

Madden's Birth Story

After 40 weeks and 2 days Madden is finally here! As you know, we had been waiting and waiting to meet our new baby boy. Madden was very comfortable in there and I thought that he would never come! After my doctors appointment Friday morning, I really thought he would be born that day. I was 5-6 cm dilated and 70% effaced. I started having contractions when I got home and they were the real deal. David called his sister, who was going to be in the delivery room with us, and told her to come on. His mom also decided to come down so she wouldn't miss the occasion.

I continued having contractions all afternoon and followed the midwife's orders to walk. So walk I did. I walked and walked and walked and after walking around 4 miles total, and having great contractions for 7 hours, my labor stopped.

The next morning I woke up so depressed because NOTHING was happening! I pretty much stayed in our bedroom all morning alternating between sitting on my exercise ball and laying down, jut trying to get Madden to drop and kick start labor. I eventually fell asleep. After I got up, I went on yet another walk and it didn't seem to help. However, around 3:30, things changed.

I began having contractions that were every 3-4 minutes apart, but they were only lasting for 20-30 seconds. I was excited, but still not convinced this was it since they weren't lasting very long. After an hour of this, I decided I needed to tell David and had him call the midwife to ask her opinion about going to the hospital. The decision was made to go on to the hospital and have Melissa, my midwife, break my water. The thought was that doing that would help Madden to drop and get him here quickly...and it did!

As we drove to the hospital, my contractions were lengthening to close to a minute and were becoming more like 2-3 minutes apart. When we finally got up to the labor and delivery room, it was shortly after 6. Melissa came in around 6:15 and broke my water soon after that. When she did, I was 7-8 cm, 90% effaced, and +1 station. As soon as my water was broken, Madden immediately dropped to -1 station. We also realized when my water was broken that Madden had had a bowel movement...so gross!! Because of this, NICU was called to the room. We were told that if he cried upon delivery that he would be fine, but if not that he would be taken to NICU.  I was so focused on getting him here that I didn't let myself get upset about the possibility that something might be wrong with him.  I knew if I did it would make the labor process that much more difficult.

I came in really wanting a drug free delivery, but didn't know how I would handle it after my water was broken. As soon as it was broken, I stood up by the bed, thinking it would be an easier position in which to labor. It was for a short few minutes...that was until I hit transition. At that point, I felt like I couldn't stand and that I was losing control of my body and I no longer was concerned about trying to keep my gown from falling (it was never tied after my monitors were put in place and ended up slipping off during transition...oops! I did have on a sports bra at least, lol!). I practically collapsed into David's arms and got in the bed, asking for and epidural. All I can remember is that my back was killing me!  The nurse was behind me looking at David shaking her head. There was no time to get one because he was coming fast.  So, like it or not, I was going to have a drug free birth.

When I got in the bed, I labored for probably 15 or so minutes. I was able to breathe through the contractions while holding onto David's hand, but my back was still killing me! Melissa told me to push when I felt the urge, but honestly I felt like I couldn't even control myself enough push at that point. I was really just concentrating on breathing and not wasting my energy on pushing until I really felt the urge. (Side note: There was also some conversation at this time from the new L&D nurse about where my gown was. Melissa told her, while trying to play it cool and not laugh, that sometimes that happens with natural deliveries, lol)

Melissa was standing at the table with all of her equipment and instruments needed for delivery as I was breathing through these contractions.  While she was preparing, the nurses broke the bed down and it was just in time to get me in position because as soon as they did I had the urge to push and he immediately started crowning...as I was saying,"Get him out!" From what I remember, it took about 3 pushes and Madden Harris Cleveland was born at 6:54 p.m. I was so excited and relieved to see my purple baby, with a full head of black hair, turn nice and peachy as he took a deep breath and let out a great cry!! David cut his cord and he was passed off to the warming bed to be checked out before I got him. We were so excited he was here and also excited that I was able to go drug free like I had wanted. Everyone in the room, especially David, kept saying,"You did it! You did it!" 

Madden weighed in at 8 lbs 19" and was the largest if our three babies. He nursed for almost 45 minutes after they gave him to me. The whole thing still seems surreal. I am extremely thankful to have not hemorrhaged after delivery this time and also for a great practice if midwives who took great care if me and Madden throughout!  This really was my easiest pregnancy and, despite the craziness, the easiest delivery on me physically.  We praise God for another miracle and feel so blessed once again by His miracle of life!

5-10-13: Update

Went to the doctor this morning for my NST. Madden stayed on the heart rate monitor with no trouble for the whole time, 20 minutes, and looked "beautiful" according to the midwife. So grateful to hear that!

Before she checked me, I spoke to her about how dilated I was on Wednesday and about stripping my membranes again. She agreed that it was a good idea to strip me again...this was the third time. So, before she stripped me, she checked me and I was 5-6 cm dilated. I was very excited!

She gave me the option if going to the hospital and having my water broken to try to start up labor. She said she doesn't think I would need pitocin. Because I am worried about stalling out even after my water is broken, I opted to try and wait it out. She told me that she thought I would have him either today or tomorrow. Well, today is over. I am praying that he really does come tomorrow! This is extremely slow and frustrating. As thankful as I am that he is healthy, I am just ready for him to be here. Especially since we now have family in town just waiting. Madden, you are OVERDUE...it's time!

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The Plan...

Well, today is May 9th, my due date. I never thought I would make it this far, especially when I started dilating at 36 weeks. Madden, you seem too comfortable in there and, like your daddy, you have zero sense of urgency.

This pregnancy has been my best yet. I had very little sickness in the beginning, have not swollen like I have in the past, have had great blood pressure the whole time, and been able to exercise fairly consistently throughout. All in all, I can't complain. However, this whole waiting on baby thing is frustrating, particularly when at this point I had an 8 day old and a 7 day old with my past pregnancies.

I have an appointment scheduled for 9:15 in the morning if I haven't gone into labor, which is not looking like it will happen. I will have a nonstress test (nst) done and will asked to be checked again. I was 3 1/2 cm dilated and 70% effaced yesterday. I am praying that all of that real, not Braxton Hicks, labor I had yesterday will have helped me progress further before tomorrow morning. The plan is to induce on Monday if I have not gone into labor...which is what I am desperately trying to avoid! I had to be induced with Mary Kate and did not like it one bit.

Madden, everyone is ready to meet you. We are all praying that happens not just soon, but today!


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