When this post publishes I will probably be a few thousand feet in the *hopefully* blue sky on the way to San Diego for BlogHer ’11. The irony for me during this year’s World Breastfeeding Week is that for half of it I’ll be on the other side of the country and away from my nursling.
As a psuedo Attached Parent this is a logistical and emotional nightmare. I pumped virtually every single day for 30 days to make sure my baby would have enough of my milkshake for 4 days. I was aiming for the low number of 100 but I made it to 140.25 ounces of liquid gold. It would have been 144.25 ounces but one of my bags mysteriously leaked out. I may have cried. I seperated my milk into freezer bags with about 29 ounces in each bag, one per day. And then there is another bag with 25 ounces extra in case he needs it. I got that tip from a Twitter user and it is a fabulous one!
Everett has always taken a bottle so thankfully that is not an issue. My first son never took a bottle, ever. This meant I was never away from him more than 2 hours at a time for the entire first year and beyond). Still I have never left Fletcher for more than 8 hours and I’ve really never left him overnight either. I even gave birth at home to avoid that for crying outloud!
I trust that my chunky monkey will take his bottles and even eat solids to stay alive. Thank Goodness for small miracles.
But here is the kicker: he sleeps in bed with me every night and has since he was born. Sure he spent a few hours here and there in his hammock, Mamaroo, or crib- but the majority of his nights are in the crook of my arm. He has slept wonderfully since day one. He sleeps all night starting at 7:30- 8:30 pm until 6:30- 8:00 am. He wakes to eat then turns his head and falls back asleep. I can count the number of times I’ve had to get out of bed to get him back to sleep on my fingers and toes (he is a baby afterall). If it weren’t for co-sleeping I know I would have lost a lot more sleep. That is all well and good until you take me out of the equation.
I need your help! What have you done when you leave your co-sleeping, Exclusively Breastfed baby home with Daddy? Did Daddy sleep with the baby in your bed? Did he rock the baby back to sleep each time they woke and put them back in the crib? Did the baby demand a middle of the night bottle? I am so clueless…
My husband is a deep sleeper and refuses to sleep with Everett since he is so young. He will sleep with Fletcher when the rarity occurs that he ends up in our bed.
I’m hoping you, my wonderful and knowledgable readers, will offer your nuggets of wisdom to my husband. I have instructed him to read this post and comment/ ask questions if he needs to. A part of me thinks he has no idea what he is getting into but the other part is confident he can handle it. He has really grown into a wonderful father. I don’t think I would have considered this when my first son was 9 months old even if he did take a bottle. That is probably more to do with my first time mom jitters than anything but I definitely see how much hubby has grown in the 2.5 years he has been a dad.
I’m leaving him with a long list of cloth diaper washing instructions, breastmilk storage, heating, and handling instructions, the boy’s (general) nap and bedtime schedule, and a house full of clean clothes/diapers. I’ll also be leaving him with my Boba for Everett. It is my manliest and best fitting carrier for him.
If there is any silver lining to being away from a nursing baby for 4 days during World Breastfeeding Week it is that I will be able to donate my pumped milk to another mother through Eats on Feets. I’ve never donated milk before but I am thrilled that my liquid gold won’t be going down a drain.
Wish me luck on my first trip away from my family (and hopefully last for a long time.)
