Milking it

Breastfeeding is wonderful.  Or so they say.  All doctors, books, and every other parent you ask.  I never really considered anything other than breastfeeding with Owen.  And it was not because of books and doctors and other moms who told me how great breast milk is for the baby and how he'll grow up to be a genius vs. formula babies yada yada yada.  Please....  I'm sure there is some scientific evidence on how much more beneficial breast milk is compared to formula but I along with billions of other babies that have walked this eart were fed formula.  And I think we turned out fine.  Had someone asked Bill Gates or Albert Einstein if they were breastfed?  Sadly, my decision was not based on the benefits Owen will reap from breastmilk. (I know...so much for maternal instinct.) My decision to breastfeed took a millisecond when I found out how much formula cost.  And it took an even shorter millisecond when I heard how quickly you can lose your pregnancy weight if you breastfeed.  I am half ashamed and half proud to say I didn't do a single activity that can be considered as "exercise" after Owen's birth, unless you consider walking around Target or Costco "exercise".  Yet, those nasty lbs. sure did come off thanks to breastfeeding (although, you just never look the same no matter what the scale says).

If formula wasn't so darn expensive and the pregnancy fat stayed put no matter how much milk my body extracted, I think I would've decided on formula for Gavin.  Owen never had issues latching on, I enjoyed the bonding I experienced, it was convenient, the pro's can go on an on.  But two words....CLOGGED.  DUCT.  I tell everyone that I'd rather go through contractions at 8cm dilation than clogged duct. 

I had crazy milk supply with Owen.  I seriously believed I was a cow if there ever was a life before this one.  And when you have crazy supply, it means you better nurse or pump every 3~4 hours.  And if you don't...you must pay for it because clogged duct will make it's nasty way to your boobies.  I eventually figured out a rice & sock method that would help it unclog but sometimes it took 2 days of immense pain and effort to get those suckers unplugged. 

So with Gavin, I knew I wanted to control my supply if at all possible.  So I consciously pumped more but less frequently.  And I think my efforts are paying off but now I'm starting to wonder if I'm going to regret this because maybe my supply is TOO low now?  I love that I can go somewhere and not worry about lugging my pump along or finding privacy to nurse because sometimes, you just want to give him a bottle and enjoy what you're out to do.  We went to a wedding this past weekend and I actually enjoyed a couple glasses of wine without worrying about nursing him or feeling my boobs getting engorged as I would have with Owen.  But I hope I'm not shooting myself in the foot. 

Our freezer used to look like this with Owen:

This was just the freezer door.  Imagine what was in the actual freezer!

But now our freezer looks like this:

Now I'm hoping my supply keeps up.  But if someone asked me to choose formula or clogged duct, I'd choose formula in a heartbeat.  So maybe my "lazy" pumping/nursing is going to cost me financially if my supply doesn't keep up.  If that means not ever experiencing clogged duct and more than 1 inch of available space in the freezer for actual adult food, I'm all for it! I used to return ice cream from my shopping cart back freezer whenever Albert reminded me that we had no space!  Come to think of it, maybe it wasn't breastfeeding that helped shed the pregnancy weight but the deprevation from ice cream and frozen pizzas and mandoos back then.