Encouragement

Today I had a really nice conversation with my neighbor who induced lactation using the short version of the protocol I'm using.  We have played phone tag for a while and finally chatted!  She had a friend who has a lactaid that she is going to loan me.  The lactaid can be used by anyone and is known as a supplemental feeder.  The baby is at breast and the lactaid has a small tube that ends at the nipple so when they suckle they are drawing milk from the lactaid and possibly from the breast as well.  In my case I hope to only need the lactaid initially but I'll do what I need to do to feed my baby.  The funny thing is last weekend I almost bought one but didn't.  They are a little pricey but you can get them with a prescription and then its a medical expense.

She answered my questions about her experience with the medication, supplements she used, and formula.  She has similar beliefs as I do about formula which is why she chose to and I am choosing to induce lactation.  Besides the health benefits to breast milk I'm also leery of the health effects of soy.  Anything in moderation is good but to feed a baby only soy based products seems like a poor health choice.  She provided me with a cookbook that had a homemade formula that she started to use w her baby when he was six months.  She also shared her experience of getting only 1 oz per day initially!!  She used the fast track and i'm using the long method so we shall see if I have better luck initially.

Before speaking with her I had sketched the mural that I'd conceptualized over a year ago.  I had planned on maybe finishing it at some point this week.  Her encouragement carried over to the rest of my day.  I worked for the rest of the day on the mural.  Besides a last coat of paint on the leaves and some shading of the tree trunk... my fall tree is done!  It stands about 6 ft tall and I LOVE it.  I think I was in part terrified of drawing on the walls... now I can't wait to paint on the walls again!!  In honor of my success I am going to attach my first picture for my blog :)  The picture is a few coats back but it will give you the idea of what it looks like.

I was telling my mom that I hope I'm not sending out fall baby vibes because I can't wait that long.