3 Months today

Dec 14th 2010

So i was checking out my ticker on the bump, i noticed that it says 3 months. 

we have come so far. we are hitting a little roadblock though. i have totally almost run out of domperidone and cuz of christmas havent been able to restock, im trying to pump everything i can but its WAYYYYY down from even last week so hopefully i can get it back up, i would hate to work this hard and have it go away AGAIN.

hopefully i can make it through the next couple weeks or ill be starting from square one, but thankfully i know i can do it now right.

December Already

2 Months 3 Weeks and 3 Days of Re-lactating

Hi ladies, 

sorry i havent updated in a while, things are going alright, im starting to pick up on my own, im getting about 2-3 full bottles aday for Samantha, which is about half of what she takes in. im slowly weaning myself off the domperidone so im only taking about 1 dose a day now, only because we cant order anymore right now (maybe after the hoildays if i crash again) but so far so good. 

im not up to where i was before i started nursing Samantha a month ago but we are getting there slowly. 

my new hate is my pump i hate pumping ALL THE TIME. however because nursing wasnt working out for us (HUGE supply decrease with the week i did nurse her) however i will tie myself to this pump if it means my baby is getting some good mommas milk.

i am noticing that Samantha is getting more distracted now that shes 6months old, barely finishes a bottle cuz she would rather roll or play. she is teething so that doesnt help either. she did learn how to hold her bottle just before thanksgiving, and hardly lets you help her now. shes so BIG.

i hope to keep you ladies updated as much as possible with the pending holidays just around the corner.

Two Months and Counting

So we have hit the 2 month milestone, a few days ago 

things have started to slow down, with me being sick Samantha being sick and having no desire to pump. so i have to get back on the band wagon. 

Samantha was doing well with nursing however even though my supply is great she would nurse awesome for the morning and early afternoon, then we wouldnt nap and no nap leads to cranky baby. so my husband and i decided that we would just pump, so i accepted that i will no be nursing now longer but i know shes still getting the benefits of breastmilk. who knows in a week ill change my mind lmao. i do however try to keep her latching cuz i like that closeness, just wish we had re-lactated sooner she might be nursing now. but its harder trying to teach her when she is so active now.

i had to dip into my freezer stash a little bit but thats okay cuz if i dont then all that hard pumping work is going to expire and well she wont get it and it will KILL me to put it all down the drain. so im going to keep pumping as much as i can, and latch her when i can and we will all be happy. 

** sorry we havent up dated in a while its been super busy here**

Nursing all the way

This week we have really be focusing on nursing. Samantha is doing very well, some moments where i feel my supply isnt there anymore, i just feel empty, but i know im probably being paranoid but after having to go through losing your milk to having it you hold on to any milk you got, even if its MORE then you need.

i have a nice sized freezer supply to get us through any rough days we may have while nursing, and i still try and pump just because i want to make sure i dont loose my supply. there was a tea that was recommended on the leaky b@@b site i found on facebook (The Leaky B@@B) this is a great group of woman who are proud of their shall i say super power.  im going to look into getting that as it seems to work :)

hopefully the weekend goes well and we can continue on a good path.

Re-Lactation Day 49

Day 49 (Nov 2 2010)

things are going very well. i stopped pumping as much because we are working on nursing more and more. 

Samantha and i went and seen the lactation consultant today and that visit went well, and Samantha took in lots of milk and had a great nap too. im so glad that she is nursing more. 

The LC told me to stop giving bottles all together because once Samantha latched on and started sucking she did well, just takes a bit of patience with her. seems like she will pitch a fit at the breast and we break down and give a bottle well seems like thats what little Miss Samantha wants us to do. so we have only had one bottle today and that was at 6am before our appointment. she has nursed everytime after that.

im very happy with my progress so far. who would know 49 days ago my daughter was just one formula not nursing not getting any breastmilk.

I am very thankful for my support group of re-lactating ladies on the Bump, and everyone else that encourages me to do more and better. and by far my very understand husband. i couldnt do it with out all the help and support. Thanks Guys.

The Number Crunch Week #4

4 weeks already, wow the time and flew by.

This week we had nursed more so our input numbers are a little different.

Total Breastmilk given:   64.5 ounces

Total Formula given:        40 ounces

Total pumped:               87 ounces

Total take in:             104 ounces (FMLA & BM)

Total Time Nursing         165 Minutes

 

so our formula intake is higher only because she gets one bottle at night before bed, and if she gets up in the middle of the night she will get one then as well. hopefully with nursing we can wean that out too.

Weekly Goal

This week i decided i would start making weekly goals to get Samantha back to the breast. Last week she did 15mins at the breast all week. well this weeks goal i would like her to nurse 15mins a day. she will never get to the breast unless i offer it so i have to offer it to get her back to it right. i think 15mins a day is a good start.

Re-Lactation Day 42

Day 42 (oct 26 2010)

last week alone we have 5 whole days without formula WOOOHOO im so proud of myself. also i have only been giving Samantha fresh pumped milk instead of pumping and freezing so im pretty happy that i got a good amount in the freezer in case i have a low pump day. this week i dont feel as full all though i know it might because my period is coming. i know my period had no effect on my breastmilk output last month but this month i think it is. also i guess my supply is almost regulating to what Samantha needs. she seems to be eating about 21oz aday (hope this is a healthy amount, her weight was alright at her appointment yesterday). 

My husband and i both came to the conclusion that it would be SOOOO much easier if Sam latched so we are going to work on this more and more. and hopefully she will just get it one day. but either way im just glad shes getting as much breastmilk as she is getting.

we have also noticed that 1 formula bottle a day seems to help Samantha sleep, it could be flook but i noticed it the last couple nights she has gotten one before bed. so guess we will keep giving her one.

The Number Crunch Week #3

so this week we were doing so well with no formula, but then we hit the brick wall of formula does make her sleep longer so we will continue to give her a formula bottle before bed because it seems to help (i dont know why but it does).

so here is are our numbers for this week

Total Breastmilk given:   128 ounces

Total Formula given:       10 ounces

Total pumped:           172.5 ounces

Total take in:            138 ounces

Total Time Nursing         15 Minutes

im still able to pump more then Samantha is taking in WOOOHOO im still up 34.5 ounces on Samantha's intake. we are also down on our formula because we went 5 days without any formula at all and just breastmilk. so we are down 16 ounces from last week on formula.

Re-Lactation Day 37

 Day 37 (Oct 21st 2010)

okay so today marks DAY 37. things have gone pretty good. i have been slacking on my day to day updates but i dont want to sound like a complete repeat.

we are down to two 30mg doses of domperidone now and still going strong. on day 33 i was able to pump 31.5ounces woohooo (highest amount yet), and it keeps looking up from there. 

Day 35 -> 29.5 ounces

Day 36-> 30 ounces

so we are doing okay, i am now able to pump what she eats and have her have fresh milk instead of just frozen (so i could stay ahead of her) i now have a freezer full of milk lmao go figure.

this week is a big marker for us because so far this week we have had NO FORMULA wooohooo,

you can see the breakdown in our numbers from last week on here my blog and see how far we came from week to week. 

i like being able to see how much Samantha takes in and i pump, so the supplement weaning page i got on kelly mom is totally working for us.

The Number Crunch Week #2

So this week we continued to mark what we are giving Samantha. this is what our numbers are this week

Total Breastmilk given: 116.5 ounces

Total Formula given:       26 ounces

Total pumped:           176.5 ounces

Total take in:          142.5 ounces

 

 

so with that im UP 34 ounces from Samantha's intake WOOOHOO so essentially we didnt have to supplement at all this week. however we are DOWN 61 ounces of formula from last week (even though i know last weeks formula count was high because of our one day of complete formula)

Re-Lactation Day 28-32

Day 28 (oct 12 2010)

This is the second week i have been tracking Samantha's intake of formula and breastmilk, as well as my pumping. so far this week im pumping 20-26 ounces a day. i have been trying to fit in some more pumping sessions to increase my pumping to about 30-35 ounces, but with a 41/2 month old thats hard, so i figure that as long as i pump at least what she takes in after she eats everytime  then im doing  good. and so far that has been working. today Samantha only had 3oz of formula WOOOHOOO makes me feel so good to write that.

Day 29 (oct 13 2010)

Today i pumped one less Samantha's feedings and i feel bad for that but i was still up on how much she took in as far as breastmilk today 16oz however she did have 6oz of formula, so that brings my pump up to 20oz and her whole intake for the day 22oz

Day 30(oct 14th 2010)

ONE MONTH TODAY!!!! wow we have had great success so far, if you asked me a month ago i would be giving Samantha more then half her feedings breasmilk i would have told you that you where crazy. but here i am supplementing about one 6oz bottle a day, and it looks almost like we can drop that.  we will still have formula here incase we have one of those nights. Samantha seems to still be getting up at 3am most nights, except im not convinced its not because shes hungry.and i know its not because of the breastmilk.

Day 31 (oct 15th 2010)

Today went well. i was a little behind on pumping what Samantha took in and she had two 4oz bottles of formula. she did clusterfeed last night, which made it harder to know how much milk i needed defrosted from the freezer. i however have been giving her fresh breastmilk instead of freezing it all, that way i rotate some of the freezer stash.. oh yes i said stash! i have some pictures i just have to figure out how to post, im pretty proud of the accomplishment i have started. and my husband has been so understanding even though he had his doubts. 

So the stats so far this week

Breastmilk: 73.5 ounces
Formula:      17   ounces
Pumped :     98    ounces

So right now im up 24.5 ounces of pumped milk so i know that 17 ounces of formula Samantha didnt HAVE to have.

Day 32 (oct 16 2010)

Today we are off to a great day. i managed to pump two 4oz bottles from my 10pm pump session and my 3am session. and another 6.5 ounces after i woke up YAY. Samantha is however going to the babysitters so we are going to try sending breastmilk with her, i will send formula just incase she goes through all that we send. its hard to say how much shes going to take in. better to be safe then sorry. ill update tomorrow to see how it went.

The Number Crunch

As we all know i have been writing down all my numbers breastmilk given,formula given, and amount of pumped breastmilk.

so i crunched the numbers and here are our numbers for the week

Total Breastmilk given:  71 ounces

Total Formula given:     87 ounces

Total pumped:           151 ounces

Total take in:          158 ounces

so when its all said and done she took in 158 ounces all week, and im 7 ounces short for her total intake. meaning she can take all breastmilk for the week and i would only have to supplement 7 ounces!

This weeks goal is to cut down our formula intake (its a little higher this week because we did one full day of formula thinking it was the switch that was effecting Samantha's sleeping)

Re-Lactation Day 26

Day 26 (oct 10 2010)

 today has been a very good day, i woke up engorged this morning and pumped 10oz like it was nothing guess i should have woke up and pumped sooner then 8am however with Samantha waking up and staying up for two hours at a time sleep was more important at that moment.Not to mention the 2.5 hour battle to get her to sleep tonight as it is today i have pumped 20oz so far and she took in 25.5 oz but i havent pumped yet before bed since im not in bed yet. i have been using my Mipump since it isnt as violent on my nipples. yes it takes longer to pump since its only a single (now i really wish i gotten the double.) however its either the loud  nipple eating Evenflo double pump or the quiet Mipump.

Re-Lactation Day 24 and 25

Day 24 (oct 8th 2010)

Today Samantha didnt have more breastmilk then formula but it was close. 12oz of breastmilk to her 15oz of formula. i was able to get her to latch without a nipple shield and nurse for a while, but then ended up having a bottle but im okay with that we had the breakthrough with the nursing. she isnt nursing for long periods yet but im just happy shes latching without a shield. i didnt pump as much as i would like yesterday i only yielded 23 ounces and she took in 27ounces all day. cant always have good days i guess.

Day 25 (oct 9th 2010)

Samantha was up VERY early this morning 4am early (yawns) she was all happy and such so i pumped since i was leaking everywhere before i tried to feed her, so i pumped and i easily got a 4oz output. and then we nursed, she did very well, however is was more concerned about talking and babbling then nursing. but she did nurse about 10minutes. today my output has been just as much as shes taken in. my husband was worried that the breastmilk was making her not sleep anymore so he asked if we could try and give her just formula for a day. so i agreed, since im still pumping this will allow me to be more ahead on my stash then i was already. so i thinking we are doing very well. 

I have been using this weaning of supplements (http://www.kellymom.com/store/freehandouts/wean-supplements-log-sample.pdf ) page from kellymom that i mentioned before and its really helping me figure out how much Samantha takes in,  doesnt matter if its the breast or just formula or breastmilk bottles.

today i have been able to pump just as much as shes been taking in thank goodness.

Re-Lactation Day 23

Day 23 (Oct7 2010)

Today i thought was a down day but the Hubby pointed out not really, i was able to pump 7oz this morning at 5am and then my next pump i only got about 3.5 and then a 2oz i thought i was low, but when i look at the bigger picture im right about on track, after my 2oz pump i was getting nervous, so i downed a bunch of water and about 2.5-3 hours later i pumped again and got 4oz so i guess i wasnt drinking enough. im hoping i get close to what i pumped yesterday, i try and pump every feeding that Samantha has, because if i get 4oz at my pump session then i know i just replaced the bottle she just took. we are still supplementing 2 bottles a day (first thing in the morning and at bedtime) im okay with this. we are drinking milk from Oct 1st so i have plenty in the freezer for me to do all feedings but i dont want to start giving her full days and then have her skip a day i rather her have two bottles of formula and get breastmilk EVERYDAY then skip a day im sure it would mess her system up. i really hope to get back to my every 2 hour pumping but its hard sometimes with the baby, and me being home, and then when my husband gets home i want to spend time with my family not with the pump, so we have to work that back in. at least pumping every two hours through the day.

hope i can catch up today (im sure ill be close to it)

Re-Lactation Day 22

Day 22 (Oct 6 2010)

Its been a couple days, since i have updated we celebrated 3 weeks of re-lactation on October 5th which is a great thing knowing im able to give Samantha as much breastmilk as i am just 3 weeks into this journey. i expected to be able to only give about an ounce or two by this time, but today i gave her 16oz of breastmilk, she only had 11oz of formula (two bottles one in the morning and one before bed) i was able to pump 26oz today so im one ounce shy from being able to feed her all day according to yesterdays readings. i started recording my pumping amounts, formula and breastmilk amounts. i got the template from kellymom.com its the weaning from supplements weekly log. its truly helping seeing how much of each shes getting and how much output im giving out.

we did have a slow day, i noticed i wasnt drinking enough water (more water the more milk hehe go figure) so i think im going to start having water goals as well, that way i can keep my water intake up, now sure where to start on that though. i think someone had mentioned you need 32oz of water a day i could be wrong on that one, not sure if i could drink a gallon of water a day i go to the bathroom enough with the water i do drink i would live in the bathroom. so ladies on average how much water are you drinking.

oh i never thought i would talk or be proud of this but Samantha had her first official Breastmilk poop, since we started breastfeeding her more milk.

going to make some more lactation cookies this weekend, but maybe ill get the stuff to make the lactation banana bread (anyone know if it works like the cookies?) instead.

all and all im very happy where we are in our journey im also glad my husband is on board now and i love hearing how proud he is for me trying this again. and how much he makes sure i eat right and drink lots. 

heres to another great day of pumping *cheers*

Re-Lactation Day 20

Day 20 (Oct 4 2010)

Today i woke up leaking, so right now leaking and i have a love hate relationship. i love that im leaking cuz that tells me my supply is becoming plentiful yet i hate leaking because all the precious breast milk is going on the bedsheets and on my shirt rather then in a bottle. this morning i was able to pump 6oz in one sitting WOOOHOOO one whole bottle without blinking. today Samantha has had 2 breastmilk bottles and 1 formula bottle. she is now only taking in the milk that i pumped on Oct 1st. i started putting the milk into freezer bags and freezing it and this way its easier to keep track on which day shes drinking milk from that and i was running outta bottles. i have also spread out my pumping closer to the 3-4 hours mark, and i also pump after every time Samantha eats (which is normally 3-4 hours anyways) sometimes in the morning i do every 2 hours still. its easier to pump when Samantha is sleeping rather then when shes awake. i got in a bad habit of propping her formula bottles up and im now trying to get her right close into me to simulate the nursing position while shes bottle feeding .

Today Samantha fought be to nap she had just eaten and was tired, and oh boy did my breast ache while she was having her little screaming fit. i wish she would be more inclined to comfort suck on the breast then the paci or Nuker as we call it.

tomorrow marks our 3 week milestone. YAY its been alot of hard work to get to this point but im so glad im doing this even for a the little benefit Samantha would get from even an ounce of breastmilk.

i am also reaching my goal this week to pump as close to or even 2oz of breast milk every pumping session. its great when i can have two sessions and i have 8oz, thats one full 6oz bottle PLUS 2oz for the next its awesome.

Any ladies that are following make sure you try and click the follow button, and dont be afraid to comment. im looking for any encouragement or pointers anyone has to give.

Re-Lactation Day 19

Day 19 (Oct 3rd 2010)

Today went well, i didn't take any domperidone yesterday, but it doesn't seem like it effected me too much, today i was able to pump a 4.5 bottle in on session which is awesome. i have also the great joys of leaking again i have done it several times. Samantha did so well, she nursed today for a good 10mins (i wasn't really looking at the time, i was just happy she nursed) i will however be making an appointment to the Lactation Consultant (LC) about her latch, she would rather nurse on my nipple (even with the shield on) but i think that's from the bottles because she doesn't have to open wide to take a bottle so we are going to have to work on that. but i want to get her more comfortable coming to the breast before i annoy her with latch (since nursing is still few and far between) so maybe next week we will make an appointment. and i will continue working with Samantha on this and you never know she just might get it. (i know she got something too because she left 2 ounces in her bottle afterwords) i wish my double electric pump wasn't so CRAPPY and hurt me, heck it hurts my nipples more then Samantha's no existent latch. its got like one level of suction and that is it. my MiPump is awesome however i WISH i got the double rather then the single. boo on me for that one, looks like ill just put my little glad cup under my other breast and keep catching it. if all goes well i wont need to pump for all bottles and only for when she goes to the sitters. we are never out in public for very long so i will probably never have to Nurse in Public (NIP)  and if i have to then that's what i have to do. when a baby is hungry you feed her right. i am SOOOO disappointed that my cookies are almost gone, guess ill have to make more next week give me something to do (lmao like i don't have enough right). today was a great day none the less.

Re-Lactation Day 16,17,18

Day 16 (sept 30 2010)

I am starting to see quite an increase of my output, im now able to pump just over 12oz a day which is totally awesome. my breast feel fuller and i even got Samantha to nurse for 5 mins. 

Day 17 (oct 1 2010)


Today i have been very relaxed on pumping, i was still able to get the normal 12oz a some but i just wasnt feeling up to it. i have noticed that my period did no effect my milk production. i just pumped about every 3-4 hours vs the normal 2 hours i have been pumping. we started mixing half and half bottles because we thought the new waking up at 3am was because of the full breastmilk bottles, but she has slept all night on a 6oz breastmilk bottle before so i dont know whats going on there but i dont like it one bit. i have had to star pumping at night because im just too full, and the only way to keep supply is to make sure you get the milk out. 

Day 18 (oct 2, 2010)

Last night i woke up LEAKING so that tells me im doing well. also this morning i woke up pretty engorged despite pumping right before bed and in the middle of the night. today i didn't take any domperidone, and so far it hasn't had an effect on my milk. i have 6 bags frozen in the freezer YAY. we continued with the half and half bottles today. sleeping was not happening in my house today, i got to sleep in until 9:45 and that was horrible because of the engorgement but felt good, however woke up to a baby that wont sleep for the rest of the day. hope this stops soon.

Questions from Bumpies

I have had a couple of questions already regarding what i'm doing. so im going to try and answer them in this post.

Melissaorlando wrote:

Do you have a "method" that you follow?

Answer: the only "method" i use is i take herbals twice a day morning and night and domperidone 3 times a day. i sneaked in the lactation cookies. but the key is pumping pumping and more pumping. i pump once every 2 hours (if life lets me because i still do have an infant to look after) and i now have to start pumping at night because i feel full, and i dont want to get to full that it develops into something nasty or worse LEAK. every drop counts right now.

eSynergy Wrote: 

how long did you stop BFing for, before you started up again? 

Answer: i had stopped breastfeeding all together after about a month, i still tried to latch Samantha on until about a month ago, now i wish i hadnt stopped trying to latch her as it has now made it difficult to get her back to the breast. so im just pumping and trying to introduce the breast and hopefully she will just take it.

Re-Lactation Day 15

Day 15 (sept.29 2010)

today was a great day, Samantha got 3 breastmilk bottles she had two 6oz bottles and a 5oz bottle, so she only had one formula bottle all day. YAY. i was also still able to pump two full 6oz bottles today. so that means we are up to pumping 1oz per breast per pump session making a full 6oz bottle in just 3 pump sessions.

the lactation cookies seem to work wonders, and they are so so so good. ( Lactation cookies recipe ) they are even good if you where not lactating. hopefully they keep working.

all in all im pretty happy about our progress and hope it keeps up.

Re-Lactation Day 14

Day 14 (Sept 28 2010)

Today was a good day, right now i have two 6oz bottles a 5oz bottle and a 2oz bottle in the fridge. which i think is totally awesome.

i also spoke to the LC at the hospital today, and THANKFULLY i can make an outpatient appointment. she also said that it is VERY possible to get Samantha back to the breast with some persistence. she also said she doesnt normally recommend nipple shields but if i think its going to help then to start with it, and said she likes the Medela ones.

so i think we are going to work on going back to the breast this week, and if all goes well then ill make an appointment. i know if i can get her back to the breast our formula supplement will cut down alot, since a baby is more efficient then the pump.

and she also said im doing a great job, and said for 2 weeks im doing fantastic at pumping, and said the pumps i have are fine and i didnt need a fancy top of the line pump.

Re-Lactation Day 13

Day 13 (Sept 27 2010)
*we missed a few days*
3pm and i already have a full 6oz bottle in the fridge. we have been making 6oz bottles for a couple days now, (missed a few updates)
so today i managed to pump a full 6oz bottle plus 3 extra ounces so im already half way to tomorrows bottle already so 2 bottles tomrorow you think? (last pump about 6:30)

well she will have at least a 4oz (from tonight she didnt end up finishing it before her bedtime, and she had formula at 5:30 and finished 2.5 ounces of it JUST before her bath. (she went down about 7:30 almost 8. we have tried to move her bedtime to 7pm rather then 8 mommy and daddy need some time. and then the 6 oz bottle she would normally have

so i still have about 2 more pumps to do tonight so i should be pretty close to having a full 6oz bottle before the end of the night.

so currently in the fridge i have 13 WHOLE ounces. WOOHOOO

the cookies seem to have made a little bit of a difference. and brewers yeast in milk (like it tells you to have it) is NASTY. i had it in my oatmeal. so well will see if that helps any.

we are still having trouble getting Samantha to relax enough to latch, she FREAKS everytime i try. i can get her to latch but then she wont suck and pop right off. i know there is milk there now so i know if she latched and sucked she would get it. the SNS isnt working yet and its difficult to run it and worry about Samantha thrashing about. im going to call the hospital tomorrow to see if i can meet with the LC they have on staff since i didnt get to see her in the hospital (Samantha was born on a Saturday and she isnt there on the weekends) we will keep working at it but i have a feeling i wont get her to get back to the breast but breastfeeding doesnt mean being at the breast.

 i ordered some more domperidone. since inhousepharmacy is going from a .com domain to a .biz they are having a 10% discount for october. so instead of paying 50 bucks so 48 after their 2 dollar discount, i paid 50 but with a 10% which was 5 bucks off so 45 bucks which is totally awesome! 

Re-Lactation Day 9

Day 9 (sept 22 2010)
 From my bedtime pump last night and the 2oz you heard it 2oz that i have gotten today so far makes a 3oz bottle!!!! not bad. now if only i can get to my goal of 1oz per pump session would would be back in business. but my nipples are killing me.if only i could get my let down to happen i want to feel that warm tingly feeling again! i think i would have more of an output. i had no problem before do it why is it such a problem now. no luck latching today because of the lack of nipple shield.

Re-Lactation Day 7&8

Day 7 (sept 20th 2010)

Morning, i have come to find out the best time to pump is abut an hour after i have taken the domperidone, also the new found pump for 5-7 mins (normally the flow has stopped by then) get on all fours and do the shake, i guess this brings the milk down in the ducts, not sure how true but its working, i then pump again for another 5-7 mins.  it looks like i almost got a half an ounce from one breast WOOHOOOO half way to my goal of getting an ounce per breast. my left one seems to be a little more receptive to the pump then the right, but if i would have though i would have come this far in a week i would have tried this MONTHS ago.

Day 8 (sept 21st 2010)
today was pretty good, i used the 2oz bottle that i had collected over the last couple days and with my ounce i pumped i made a 3oz bottle. my nipples are killing me from all the pumping.

Re-Lactation Day 6

Day 6 (sept 19th,2010)

Yesterday was a difficult day, Samantha was fussy most the day which made it hard for me to pump. so i wasn't able to pump as much as i would like. I did however got her to latch for a moment after her bath, she was nice and relaxed and i managed to get her (i know i have enough of a supply now that she wont pull of right away now) now just trying to get her to latch well thats a struggle. i think my output would increase when she latches more often. so we are working on that, any hints ill take them.

i finally got my husband on my side again, he just doesn't want to see me be disappointed again if this doesn't work. i explained to him that i want to do this for the benefits it has for Samantha i also let him know there is probably a chance that i will have to continue supplementing which im okay with i just want her to get as much breast milk as possible. and i was pretty proud that i got 1.5 ounces for all day. so that is 1.5 ounces that Samantha wont be getting formula today.

i know that this journey is what is best for both Samantha and I, im a stay at home mom so i have the time to focus on pumping and reestablish a breastfeeding relationship. now im not saying working moms cant do this either (i know most the girls that i doing this with are working moms)

also im proud to announce that i had a SOLID stream coming out of one of my breast last night i got so excited it stopped lmao.

Re-Lactation Day 5

Day 5 (sept 18th 2010)
today we had a slow start. so far today we have pumped about 2ML

i have a little two oz bottle i stared to put in what i pump so im not discouraged by the looks of a little bit in a HUGE bottle. my goal is to get 1oz pumped altogether today we are well on the way. my over all goal is to pump 1oz a sitting but right now ill go small and say an oz a day for now.

we tried mommy and baby bath this morning to encourage Samantha to latch and suck this end with a great big FAIL but still got some great cuddle time.

Re-Lactation Day 4

Day 4 (sept 17th 2010)
used the breast pump and I was able to have an output of a tablespoon on our first pump of the day. Samantha latched for a moment. And it looks like we are getting another tablespoon or two this afternoon. I have given up coke for more water and it seems to me working

Re-Lactation Day 3

Day 3 (sept 16th 2010)
used breast pump was able to have an output of a tablespoon from both breasts combined. still taking domperidone and the herbal (2 times a day) had one can of coke all day had a hugeeeeeeeeeeee headache and didn’t get up and pump at night.

Re-Lactation Day 2

Day 2 (sept 15th 2010)
today I  used the breast pump was able to have an output of a half a teaspoon of both breast combined. continued with domperidone and started taking a lactation blend herbal.

Re-Lactation Day 1

Day 1 (Sept 14th 2010)
This is the start of the re-lactation journey. started using the breast pump and started to see a droplets form on the breast. No input into the bottle.I started taking 30mg 3x a day of domperidone.

Starting of the Blog

It has been suggested to me by some fellow bumpies that I start a blog on my Re-lactation journey.  I had already started keeping a short journal of my updates I had and the difficulties i had on a day to day bases. forgive me if I'm not the ultimate blogger as I have never blogged before.