Collected and Saved Breastmilk--What Now?

Thanks to my Milk-Saver, I have been effortlessly collecting milk while Collin nurses.  I've been making milk cubes and storing them in the deep freeze.   I have quite the stockpile going.  Often, I am asked why I am saving my milk.  To begin with, I was saving it in case I were to get sick or injured and couldn't nurse Collin; or I use it to make a bottle if I'm going to be gone during one of Collin's feedings.  And this all got me thinking about collecting and donating milk to milkbanks.

Imagine if every breastfeeding mother who was blessed with an abundant milk supply like me used a milk-saver to collect milk and then donated it to a milk-bank?! Wouldn't it be so cool to overwhelm a milk-bank with ounces upon ounces of breastmilk? Think of all the adopted, ill or premature babies that are out there.  Indiana has a milk-bank and I know I would be taking the steps necessary to donate my milk if it weren't for a more personal opportunity that presented itself recently. 

I knew God blessed me with an abundant milk supply for a reason and a few weeks ago he revealed that reason to me.  I know some people who are hoping to adopt and thanks to my milk-saver, I am going to be able to supply them with breastmilk to use.  I am genuinely so excited about doing this.  I am currently collecting milk with my milk-saver but am considering pumping once a day to boost my collection efforts.   Whatever I decide to do, I know every little bit helps. 

My cup(s) runneth over and it's time to share :)

Delicious and Easy Recipe

Crockpot Salsa Chicken:

Ingredients:
1/2 pack of dry taco seasoning
1 pack of chicken breasts (thawed)
1 cup of salsa

Optional Ingredients:
Shredded Cheese
Taco Sauce or Ketchup (my preference)
Sour Cream
Fritos or Tostitos or Taco Shells (soft or hard)

Directions:

1.  Slice the chicken breasts in half and put them in the crockpot.
2.  Dump the seasoning (only half the package) on the chicken
3.  Pour the salsa over the chicken and seasoning
4.  Cook on high for 2 hours
5.  Shred the chicken and serve however you would like (see optional ingredients)

IT IS DELCIOUS!!

A Good Bedtime Routine

For the last week, Mark and I have been winding down with Collin between 6 and 7 p.m.  We cuddle him, let him sit on our laps, and then he eventually nurses.  We change him, get him in his night time diaper, and then I hold him a little longer until I lay him down in bed.  We've been laying him down while he's still awake and he falls asleep without fussing or crying. 

It's worth noting that this concept of winding down or "riding the sleepy train" is one I got from the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child.  It basically recommends watching for sleepy cues from your child and then winding down from there and getting in the bed time mode.  I didn't quite understand it all until recently when Mark and I realized we weren't paying attention to his sleepy cues (staring off, glazed eyes, etc.) and so we were overstimulating him which led to screaming and crying.  Now we know what to watch for and we go from there. 

We're really liking this routine; no more wailing to sleep...as of now.  But we have quickly learned, just when we think we know what we're doing, Collin throws us a curveball.  But for now, we'll relish in the fact that we've got a good betime routine.

Sunny Days

There's nothing better than drying my cloth diapers outside on a sunny day!

Cloth Swim Diaper

Last week, Mark, Collin, and I stayed at a hotel before Mark flew out to Florida.  We were excited to take Collin swimming for the first time! So, a few weeks before I was delighted to find out there were cloth swim diapers! I purchased a Bummis Swimmi diaper and LOVED it.  Not only do they come in cute prints, but they are not bulky and do a nice job containing the mess.  They also wash up wonderfully.  I can't wait to buy more for the summer!

Love and Laughter

Collin had his first real person laugh tonight! It was so adorable.  He was swinging in my friend Jennie's baby swing and he was kicking his feet and then he laughed! It was such a neat sound.  I can't wait to hear it again.  I made sure to write it down in his journal that I keep for him! What an exciting night!

Great Deals for a Great Cause

Barb, Collin, and I just got back from the Kids Market up in Winona Lake, Indiana.  It's a huge consignment sale that happens twice a year.  The proceeds go to non-profit organizations that support Kosciusko women and children. 

This was the second time that I went and I got some great deals! In all, I spent 74 dollars on Collin and got 44 different articles of clothing ranging from sleepers and onesies to pants, shorts, and overalls! I was also able to pick up 2 BRAND NEW girl outfits for an expecting cousin and those two outfits cost 5 dollars all together.  I also picked up a gift for my expecting sister-in-law.  In all, I walked out of there spending 84 dollars.  It's incredible! And the best part is, part of my money is going to help other moms and children. 

Feels good to shop when you're helping others!

Nursing List Update

Mi pueblos....

ole!

and  The Brickhouse Burger Company....

Beautiful Day

Today was absolutely gorgeous! Collin and I took a stroll through downtown North Manchester.  The sunshine was delightful! While we were down there, Collin got his passport pictures taken.  We hope to take a family trip to Niagra Falls this summer.  He was such a good little boy; he didn't cry or anything.  I really just enjoyed breathing in the fresh air and strolling with my little boy.

I've said it once, and I'll say it again...life is good :)

Interesting Product...

On Organic Girl's blog she talked about Moboleez Nursing Bonnets! These look so neat.  She's doing a giveaway:

http://www.mommybloggers.ca/2010/03/moboleez-review-and-giveaway-ends-april.html

The Moboleez company has a great story and really neat products:

http://www.moboleez.com/

Even if I don't win this, I think I may still buy one! I'm always looking for things that support/celebrate/encourage breastfeeding!

Ergo Baby Carrier

So, I currently have a Jeep carrier but I'm looking to get a carrier that I can use with Collin for awhile.  I came across the Ergo baby carrier.  I really want one but they are expensive so I'm always on the lookout for deals or giveaways (because you never know!)

So I found this giveaway:
http://www.mommybloggers.ca/2010/02/ergobaby-organic-carrier-giveaway-ends.html

...gee, can you tell what I'm up to today while Collin naps?

Bummis Giveaway

So I always like to see what other kinds of one size fits all diapers are out there.  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the ones I'm using.  But it's always fun to see what else there is! When I look around, I come across giveaways- the most recent one is the Bummis Easyfit Giveaway:

http://www.mommybloggers.ca/2010/02/bummis-review-and-giveaway-ends-march.html

You can read about the new Bummis diaper here:

http://www.bummis.com/us/en/easy-fit.php?adr=QTAjQTE1I0E3NzMzMiNQMjE5

I've entered! *Fingers Crossed*

Collin's Baptism and a Family Dinner

What an amazing day we had today! Collin was baptized at Christ United Methodist Church in the presence of his grandparents, great grandparents, great great Aunt, and one of his aunts and one of his uncles.  Again, I think how lucky he is to have so many generations of people loving and caring for him.

Being baptized and watching my son get baptized were two incredibly different and meaningful experiences.  I was baptized in the baptist church when I was younger.  I remember how excited I was that I was dedicating my life to Jesus.  I remember being nervous about getting dunked under water.  And I remember wondering why the pastor got to wear waist high rubber boots when I had to get soaking wet in my clothes and white robe. 

Today, I got to hold my son as his father and I promised to be examples for him, to show him God's love, and to help lead him down the path God has chosen for him.  What a promise we are making to him! It's one thing to hold yourself accountable, but to know we are accountable to Collin, that it's our actions that he will see and learn from--That thought makes my heart swell. 

The most heart warming and tear invoking part of the service was when the pastor asked the congregation to bring their water forward and pour it into the pitchers at the front.  Our pastor has everyone in the congregation bring water that he then uses to fill the baptismal font.  I had no idea how many people would remember or even bring water.  Well, when he called for those who brought water to come forward, it was...there are no words.  So many people, so many walks of life were mingled in that baptismal font.  What an awe-inspiring thing to see so many people who are going to help be Christian examples for Collin. 

When it was time to baptize Collin, Mark and I, along with my parents, his parents, and Craig and Kristen (Mark's brother and his fiance (my cousin)) all went up front.  Mark and I held Collin as we made our promise to be Christian examples and to raise him knowing God's love.  Collin was so good! Mark and I were very nervous about how we would act.  He only started to cry when the pastor poured the water on his head.  But, in his defense, who likes having cold water poured on their head?!

Afterwards, we walked him down the aisle and got to share him with the members of the congregation.  I mean, I know Mark and I have been parents now for 3 months, but this experience made it REAL.  Our son's physical, emotional, and spiritual well being rests in our hands.  Wow.

After the baptism, we had all of the family that was at Collin's baptism over for lunch.  Another first! Everything went so well! The lasagnas I made were excellent.  All the dishes that the others brought were equally as delicious.  We are so happy with the way we designed our kitchen, too! It is quite conducive to hosting buffet style meals.  While everyone was fixing their plates, Mark and I commented that we felt like grown-ups--this was something that our parents would have done.  But we're the parents now...pretty cool. 

So, once again, I'm reminded of how blessed and fortunate we are.  Life really is good.

Nursing List Update

Walmart parking lot

Milkies Milk-Saver: Final Update

So, I've had my milk-saver for a little over a month now and I wanted to give one last milk update.  In one month's time, I collected nearly 70 ounces of milk! I've had to start a second ziplock bag full of milk-cubes! I want to buy these for all my breast-feeding mommy friends!

Cloth Diaper Update

A friend of mine recommended I try California Baby Diaper Rash Cream which is cream that is safe for cloth diapers! Normally, it will run you about 12 dollars at a place like Target but she found it for 4 dollars on Ebay.  So I ordered a tube and it's awesome! It doesn't take a great deal of the cream to protect/heal baby's bottom.  And the best part is that it washes right out of the cloth diapers--other creams require that you put a piece of fleece between the baby's butt and the diaper so you don't ruin the diaper's absorbency.  I was previously using A and D Zinc Oxide--which works wonderfully!! But it does require you put a piece of fleece in the diaper.  It's not a big deal to have to use the fleece.  I actually bought a few yards of fleece for 8 dollars and cut out my own inserts.  A few yards makes close to 60 fleece inserts. But, now that I have this cloth diaper friendly cream, my fleece inserts will last a lot longer (since I'm not using them at every diaper change-only once I run out of the Calif. Baby cream).

Thankfully, Collin rarely gets diaper rash now that he isn't having so many bowel movements a day--his poor butt was raw because of all the diaper changes he had to have when he was an infant.  Maybe once a week his tush gets a little red so I just put a little of the cream on and it's gone by the next diaper change!

Here's a helpful link regarding good and bad diaper rash creams for cloth diapers:
http://www.pinstripesandpolkadots.com/diaperrashcreams.htm

Lucky

Yesterday, Mark, Collin, and I spent some time with Mark's grandma and grandpa Biehl.  When we left I just kept thinking about how lucky Collin is that he gets to spend time with his great-grandparents!  It was so neat to watch Eldon and Marth Jane with him.  When Mark asked if they wanted to hold him they both seemed a little nervous--but Collin was so good and we ended up taking some cute pictures with Eldon's camera.  It was so fun to watch Eldon with Collin.  Eldon would walk from side to side and he thought it was so neat that Collin was just following his every move!

It's so important to make time for family--siblings, parents, grandparents... We try not to get stressed about that kind of stuff but when we can find time/make time, we try to! We are very lucky to have so much family so close--we figure we better take advantage of this because not everyone is so lucky!

Cloth Wipes

When I started cloth diapering, I was using disposable wipes.  It took me all of 3 days to realize how annoying and stupid that was.  I thought surely there were cloth wipes out there.  Lo and behold, there was! So I bought 24 bumgenius flannel wipes for about 20 bucks.  A month later I got to thinking...flannel...can't you buy flannel fabric?  Why yes you can! So, recently, I bought a few yards of some cute flannel for about 4.44--that made close to 50 wipes!  I cut them up into the size of my bumgenius wipes and had Mark's mom stitch them for me as A) I don't sew and B) I don't own a sewing machine.  Now, I have cute, soft flannel wipes to use! And, as always, I wet them and store them in the wipe warmer!