Breastfeeding Rant!

I feel like everyday there's a post on facebook by one of the many parenting/motherhood type pages I follow talking about breastfeeding and usually in what I see to be a negative light. I'm sure you've seen the video (which admits to being a set up) where a breastfeeding mum is feeding her child on the tube when a man sitting a few seats down tells her to stop and that he doesn't want to see it. I think the aim of the group who set it up is to see how the public react to this situation. The public react in a good way defending the mum but I can't help but think that this video may put off mothers to be who are planning on breastfeeding. Yes it shows that people will generally back up the mum but a nervous or shy mother to be may think they will get this every time the feed in public. They maybe dreading the confrontation that might occur when they want to feed in public. Today there was a post by a lady who struggled to breastfeed talking to other mothers who struggled, the outcome in the end was they all continued to breastfeed and it was all ok. I understand that for someone struggling watching the video may help them to see that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, but it may also make people feel that everyone struggles. There was no balance in the video to show that for some it can be easy.
Because of all these posts I keep seeing about how hard breastfeeding is and how confrontational it can be to feed in public I would like to share my experiences. My son was born premature at 31 weeks and 3 days gestation, breastfeeding would be hard to establish quickly as he was in hospital and I was at home. I pumped every 3 hours as was advised by the midwives and nurses to ensure I had a good supply that could be fed to him when I wasn't there. He was fed to start with by tube but after a few days they fed him with a cup rather than bottle so he didn't get used to the feel of a bottle. I also did a lot of kangaroo care and we attempted a breastfeed at every feed before he had my milk from a cup. It was tiring having to pump around the clock but not painful and my supply was very healthy. I ended up filling the hospitals freezer, ours and my mother in laws with my milk! The only time I felt a bit uncomfortable was if I didn't pump often enough and was really full, then I would just express a little into a sink until I could pump! After about 3 weeks I was able to go into transitional care to establish breastfeeding before he would be allowed home. We were in for about 10 days, he had to be consistently gaining weight whilst breastfeeding. It felt like a long time but really 10 days is brilliant. When we got home I continued to breastfeed until about 5 months when I got paranoid about how much he was getting. Something I imagine most mothers of premmies feel. So I thought give him a bottle of expressed breast milk for a few days just to see what he was getting, then of course he wouldn't go back to breastfeeding!
Whilst I was breastfeeding I didn't have any negative experiences, whilst feeding in public. I had no stares, no whispers, no frowns and no comments from anyone. I suppose maybe I could have had some looks but didn't notice them?! I did have some positive experiences I found a lot of local coffee shops would come and wait on me rather than letting me come to the counter and they always asked if I wanted any water. One owner of a café said to come back anytime I needed to feed and I could just sit and didn't need to buy anything.
What I'm trying to say with this post is that although some mothers can struggle and it maybe too painful to breastfeed for others it can be very easy. If you're a first time mum and the thought of how painful breastfeeding might be scares you, It might not be painful. Or maybe you're worried about how the public will react, you might be surprised! Give it a go! If it's too painful you can stop, there is no shame in bottle feeding but you won't know unless you try. And as for any negative public reaction, I've always had some lines ready to use in case: 'it's the law that I can breastfeed anywhere' is what I would say and then ignore them, I don't imagine anyone would say anything in response but if they did I would tell them to take it up with the manager of the venue I was at, as they would have to support me as it is the law. As I said though I have never had any negativity or confrontation, mothers to be thinking of breastfeeding give it a go you might like it!

Some helpful links!:
https://www.nct.org.uk/parenting/feeding
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/pages/breastfeeding-positioning-attachment.aspx
https://www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/
http://www.breastfeedingsupporters.org.uk/

4 weeks until due date!!!

So since my last blog post I have had my last scan at 34 weeks. It was an extra growth scan due to my previous premature labour. Although as I've said before I'm not sure that I need the extra growth scans seeing as my sons size was never an issue! Any how it was lovely to see Boy again and to know that everything looked ok. They said he was measuring perfectly average for gestation, which would have been about 5lbs, so that was great. I had a midwife appointment later that day as well and when she measured my bump it measured 3 weeks ahead! 37 weeks instead of 34! And as I've heard that scans can be up to a lb out I cant help but wonder if Boy is going to be a big baby like his brother! I know measuring a bump isn't the most accurate either, but I cant help thinking he's going to be big! I'm not actually worried about the birth at all, even though this baby will be much bigger than Reubie who was only 3lbs15. I'm also quite laid back about my birth plan. I'm not really sure they're worth having, I think it would be disappointing if you set your mind on a water birth and then were unable to have one. My plan if you can call it a plan is to have pain relief if I feel I need it and to give birth in my local maternity hospital. I don't want an epidural the thought of that needle freaks me out! And I'm really not afraid of needles usually. Epidurals aren't available at the maternity hospital anyway. I don't like the thought of a water birth but if its suggested by the midwife and I feel like it at the time maybe I will! I haven't really thought of positions as I think that's something you can only decide at the time. With Reubie I had been in hospital and having contractions for 2 days before I was in active labour so I was so tired there was no way I could do anything but lie down. I remember close to the end of labour the midwives asking me to sit up more as the gravity would help and I said 'I can't you'll have to drag me up!' which they did! I hope this time around I won't be so tired and I can try some different positions which may help me to have a faster and more comfortable labour.
Just one more week and I will have reached full term, I really never thought I would make it this far!!

Nearly Full term!

This pregnancy is zooming by I can't believe I'll be 34 weeks in 2 days time! I also can't believe that this time last pregnancy Reubie was born! I've never been more pregnant than I am now and I definitely am looking very pregnant! I definitely felt a great relief after reaching Reubie's gestation of 31 weeks and 3 days, then I had the worry of what if this one comes just before Christmas or on Christmas day! Luckily he didn't and another sigh of relief was sighed. Having a baby in hospital is bad enough but when it's Christmas time and you have a toddler you want to make it as special as possible for them.

me at 33 weeks!

So now I am 33 weeks and 5 days and feel reasonably calm about the rest of my pregnancy. I feel like if this little boy decides to be born today all will be okay. I'm sure others who have had full term babies would be scared to death if they went into labour this early but I'm feeling positive. I have a growth scan on Wednesday when I will be exactly 34 weeks. this is just part of my high risk care from having a previous prem labour. I'm not really sure there's any benefit to having the scan as Reubie was big for his gestation so he wasn't born early due to any placenta issues i.e not getting enough nutrients to grow but it's lovely to get another peek at him! At my 20 weeks scan he was measuring slightly big and at my last midwife appointment my bump was measuring a bit bigger too, so I'm expecting this scan to say he's going to be big! Hopefully not too big! Especially if I go to my due date or later! I'm quite excited by the fact that I may even go over my due date! I'm sure if I do reach it though I'll be trying everything to bring on labour!

Only 3 weeks and 2 days until I reach full term and I can have this baby at my local midwife led hospital. As there are no doctors you have to be low risk and have reached full term. I would really love to give birth there my husband and I were both born there and it's only a 10 minute walk from our house. Now I really need to finish packing my hospital bag!!

My first week of maternity leave

So I haven't written any blog posts for a while, with Christmas and work I've just been run off my feet and sooo tired! But at last my maternity leave has started! It really came at the perfect time, I feel so tired and achy at the moment. I'm basically not doing anything physical unless I absolutely have too. Just walking the 5 minute walk into town I get about 5 Braxton Hicks, which aren't painful but are so uncomfortable and the way Boy is positioned in my belly means he's bouncing up and down on my bladder every time I walk! I was hoping being on maternity leave I'd be able to get the house tidy and then relax and try and get vaguely organised for Christmas. I've sort of managed it but it's been a rather busy week! My sister Beth who lives in Australia came to England so was staying at ours and we had a early Christmas dinner with all of the family as my Aunty and cousins will be abroad for their Christmases this year and Beth will be back in Australia. It was lovely to have everyone together and I think it'll actually be quite nice to have a quieter Christmas this year, especially as........ my little sister finally had her little baby girl Nancy (a week and 1 day overdue)! She's such a cutie but seems so big even though she's on 7lb 3oz, I guess it's because Reubie was so tiny!

 Nancy's birth makes me think about giving birth to baby number 2 at the end of this week I'll be 31w and 3ds the gestation I was when I had Reubie. I see the midwife mid week and it will be a relief once I past that milestone, I really, really hope I can make it past Christmas, I'm worried that going into labour before Christmas will make Christmas stressful for everyone, having a baby in NICU is hard enough without it being Christmas, and this year with Reubie being nearly 3 it's the first Christmas where he'll really understand what's going on so I want it to be special. It's funny earlier in my pregnancy I was fairly positive about reaching full term but now I feel like I probably won't, maybe because I'm so uncomfortable. I think my build doesn't help I'm very slim about 1 1/2 - 2 stone under weight so carrying a baby of about 7 months gestation feels like carrying the weight of a baby at term and I've still got 2 months to go if I do get to full term!

This week I've also been trying to get into the Christmas spirit and I decorated our living room windows with chalk pens, it was really hard to photograph but it looks really effective in real life! I was inspired by a post I saw on Instagram. Reubie and I have also been making Christmas tree decorations out of air drying clay to give as Christmas presents, he drew a little picture on each decoration and I wrote what they were on the back, some were quite random like a princess with toes!? And a gingerbread man with a tail?! I don't know where these ideas come from!                           

I did get some time to relax this week an I made two more crocheted cardigans for Reubie! Let's hope I have a bit more time to relax this week! Happy Holidays everyone!!

Crochet Pixie Baby Bonnet Tutorial /Pattern

This pattern is super easy and a great first project for an amateur crocheter. I'm going to give basic instructions, which can be adapted very easily to make the bonnet bigger or smaller. You could also embellish the hat with a bobble as I have or with some crocheted flowers. I've also made this hat using a bobble stitch for the first 2-3 rows in a different colour, which looks awesome and could be done in Red and white to make a cute Christmasy bonnet! I am making this bonnet to match a Christmas jumper I am making for my sisters baby that is due in December so this pattern is for a new born size but as I said to make it bigger you just simply add more stiches to the initial chain and then crochet extra rows. I am using a 4mm crochet hook and double knit yarn, a bigger hook could be used for to add more stretch to the hat and also to create a bigger hat.

Step 1
Chain 55, then half treble crochet (this is the british term the American term is half double crochet- yarn over hook, insert hook in the next stitch to be worked, yarn over hook, pull yarn through stitch, yarn over hook, pull yarn through all 3 loops on hook) into the second chain from hook continue all the way along, this will make 53 stiches. Then chain 1 turn and HTC all the way to the end again, continue doing this until you have a rectangle that when folded makes a square. See photos 1 and 2 below. To make a larger hat chain more stitches and continue in the same way ensuring it forms a square when folded.

Top left photo1, top right 2, bottom left 3, bottom right 4

Step 2
Fold the rectangle and crochet together from bottom to top, this is the back of the hat and forms the little pixie point. Cast off yarn

Step 3
Now to make the strings to tie the bonnet on with, these can be as long or short as you like, I like them to be just long enough to tie in a bow(see picture 3.) Here I have chained 45 stitches. Then attach to the bottom corner of the bonnet and slip stitch around the bottom to neaten up the edges. When you get to the edge of the bonnet chain 46 stitches and then turn slip stitching in first chain from hook and all the way along the chain and along the edge of the bonnet all the way along to end of the first string. Cast off yarn.


Step 4
Sew in ends and turn the hat inside out. Tah Dah! Finished. Like I previously said you could embellish your hat with a bobble / pompom, you could add pompoms to the strings, you could make it into a cute Christmas hat by doing the first few rows in white and adding a white bobble. you can also use any crochet stitch you like, a double or treble would add a bit more stretch, or you could mix it up doing rows of different stitches to add texture. A scallop edging would look nice to frame a babies face. Heck you could even make an adult sized one!! You can see more of my makes on my instagram page cotswold_mama