link party: breastfeeding style

World Breastfeeding Week is coming to a close so I thought I'd wrap things up with some links to good stuff I read this week. Some of these aren't necessarily new, but they were new to me.

At Mother's Breast: Your Breastfeeding Photos!

 The Normal Newborn and Why Breastmilk is Not Just Food 

Breast Milk Sugars Give Infants a Protective Coat

The Case of the Virgin Gut

Actress Kaitlin Olson Has a Sunny Outlook on Birth and Breastfeeding

 Why I Protest Nestlé’s Unethical Business Practices

 Ok the last link about Nestle has tons of great and scary info about the crappy stuff Nestle does. Definitely check it out. I for one am going to do my best to avoid buying any Nestle products from now on, which isn't that much of a sacrifice since we don't buy most this stuff anyway. Mostly just the occasional Dreyer's ice cream. I am sad about that. Did you know Nestle owned so many brands? Crazy, huh?

floral friday

I promised you flowers from my grandma's garden and that's what you are going to get the next few weeks. I took all these just a few days before Miriam was born when we were hanging out at her house one Sunday afternoon. My grandma happens to be rather famous for her beautiful garden. Instead of grass, my grandparents entire front yard is a flower garden surrounding a patio. We used to love playing in it as kids. It was like being in an enchanted forest.

This is the view along the street. 

I'm now wishing I had taken more photos of the entire yard, instead of just flower close ups.

I'll have more photos in the weeks to come, but for today here's a look at Grandma Teddy's red, red roses. 

(Hmm.... not sure how these are looking on your screen, but they are looking way glary after uploading them to the web. Oh well. Red is hard to capture. They are prettier in person!)

pirates....argh!

We have some mighty creative kids around these parts. A couple weeks ago they all morphed into pirates. Complete with paper telescopes and swords. And an eye patch for Grace!

Is this not the cutest pirate you ever did see?

They have their faults as we all do and they fight sometimes, but these kids really are great friends. I'm amazed at how much they love to play together and all the creative things they come up with. You should see what fun they have going on downstairs right now with a very large box. I still need to take some pics and then I'll post about it. What kid doesn't love a box after all? Sometimes I wonder why we buy them toys at all. They seem to have way more fun with recyclables.

email glitch!

Hey Everyone,

Just wanted to post a quick note to say that I just discovered that my redbeanphoto gmail account has not been forwarding my emails to my personal account where I always check it. For some reason all emails sent to redbeanphoto after June 12 have not made it into my normal inbox. So my sincere apologies if you have emailed me during that time and haven't received a response. I have quite a few emails to go through and will be in touch as soon as I can. Thanks for understanding!!!

Katrina

PS.... You have until tomorrow to send me breastfeeding photos. Please do! You can still send them to redbeanphoto@gmail.com. I fixed the problem. And those of you who already sent them, don't worry I did get them. I just didn't know I had until today!

my body is not my own

I've been thinking lately about the sacrifices we make as mothers. Pregnancy, birth, and mothering young children are very physical endeavors. Being a mother definitely involves sacrificing our bodies. It's not just the 9 months of pregnancy either. It's saying goodbye, at least temporarily and maybe forever, to the pre-baby body. It's watching your breasts swell to previously unheard of proportions as they fill with milk to feed your baby. It's spending hours and hours suckling said babe. It's losing sleep and sometimes a bit of sanity along with it.

Yesterday was one of the most trying days of my young career in motherhood, but it was also one of the most rewarding. Asher was sick. The kind of feverish sickness that just left him tired and weak and clingy. He woke up from his Sunday afternoon nap with a fever. He had refused to eat much breakfast or lunch but had nursed. After napping much of the afternoon he nursed again and then threw up all over me. This was actually my first experience having a child vomit all over me. It was nice to realize that it didn't gross me out at all. I just picked him up and took him to the bathroom where we both showered. The poor kid had never really vomited before and didn't understand what was going on. I will never forget the look on his face as he looked at me with scared questioning eyes before throwing up again.

He actually had a good nights sleep but woke with a fever still. He refused to eat more than just a few bites of oatmeal. All he wanted was to nurse. Thus commenced the day that I spent doing nothing else but nursing my two babies. Miriam is a newborn so of course requires lots of breastfeeding and Asher in his misery didn't want anything but Mama. If he wasn't nursing, she was. Or they both nursed at the same time.

I've never felt so used before. I mean that in a good way. It was very draining to be needed so much, but I never resented my sweet children for it. I never felt upset with them for needing me in such a physically demanding way. We spent most of the day in bed snuggled up. I just feel so grateful that I am able to provide for them in this way. Breastfeeding is about so much more than food.

It made me think about how at this time in my life, my body is not my own. I am sharing it with my children. It's not always easy, but it's the way it is supposed to be. This time is so short. They will be big so soon. Then they will need me in a different way. But right now even with my leaky breasts and squishy belly, I am so fulfilled in being their mother.

These pictures are actually from the week before Miriam was born.

Happy World Breastfeeding Week!

It's World Breastfeeding Week! If you've read this blog for anytime at all you know that I am huge supporter of breastfeeding. I feel so strongly that it is the very best way to feed our babies. I want all mothers to feel supported and get the help they need to breastfeed successfully. I also want breastfeeding to be viewed as completely normal so that more women feel comfortable nursing wherever they need to.

Over on AtMothersBreast.com I am asking for mamas to send in photos of them nursing their babes for a special post this Friday. See the details here and send me your pics! 

If you live in Salt Lake, The Breastfeeding Cafe is going on for the next two weeks at the Main City Library. Four of my breastfeeding photos are on display along with photos by Timbra Wiist and Alisha Stamper. Here is the calendar of events. 

I plan on going soon and will post about it again once I do, but I have a sick toddler today so we will be doing lots of cuddling and movie watching at home. And lots of nursing! I'm so glad that I have lots of milk because that is about all Asher will eat right now. Poor little guy. He's been sick so rarely in his life and this is first time since last fall. Its weird to have him so mellow when he's usually running all over the place. Hopefully he'll be better real soon.

the last birthday candles until winter

In our family, we have somehow managed to have 5/7 birthdays in June or July. You ready for this?

Miriam- June 23

Isaac- June 26

Grace- July 20

Asher- July 21

Jared- July 29

That is a lot of birthdays in just over a month's time! Fortunately, Olivia and I are in December and January respectively to help spread things out a bit. 

On a side note, after Miriam was born just three days before Isaac's birthday and Asher having been born the day after Grace's, Olivia asked when we were going to have a baby for HER birthday. I said, "Fat chance! While I don't want any more summer babies, I really hope I don't have a baby in the middle of winter either!"  I'm shooting for April or May next time around. I've decided Spring is the perfect time to have a baby (at least in these parts) because its nice outside, you are pretty much past flu season, but you don't have to be pregnant in the heat of summer!

So Jared's was the last of the big birthday season around here. We celebrated by going to lunch and then out to see Inception. (GREAT movie! A must see for sure!) Asher played at my grandparents and Mimi came along with us to the theater. 

Friday night when the big kids were here we had Jared's always requested key lime pie birthday "cake". Check him blowing the candles out whilst holding two children. He's got skills.

So Happy Birthday once again, my dear! But I am ready for a break from birthdays!

floral friday

Another of my roses today.... but next week I'll have photos of flowers from my grandma's garden. 

There are some pretty ones!

happy birthday to my handsome man

Did I get lucky or what?

I get to look at this handsome face every day!

Even if he is getting SO old!  ;-)

(He's 33. I know, he doesn't look it.)

Today is also the anniversary of the first time we talked.

Its been a great 4 years.

Love you more, babe.

the party

For Asher's birthday last week we just had a low key family get together. We also celebrated Grace's 7th birthday which was the day before. Grace requested a chocolate cake with raspberries, and keeping with the fruit theme I made Asher a chocolate cake with strawberries. I also mixed strawberry jam into the whip cream for the icing. They were both delicious!

Jared's step-dad Mike and my Grandma Teddy meeting Miriam for the first time.

The G 7 on the cake was Grace's idea.

It was fun that Asher got to blow out his candles this year. He was quite intrigued but had some trouble blowing out the second candle and actually burned himself a little getting too close.