Category Archives: Breast Feeding / Lactation

Six Months Old Already – The 411

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Six months ago today, I gave birth to the most beautiful,  sweet, fiesty, tiny angel. 

She has grown and changed so much over the past six months and I can not believe that she is six months old and twenty six weeks already !

I am so very sad that my mother is on life support still and is not awake to celebrate this milestone.

My mom got pneumonia last week, her lung collapsed, and she was in ARDS. (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome)  It progressed extremely rapidly and she has been on a ventilator for seven days now.   Her vitals are now stable.  She is out of septic shock and they are now draining the fluid from her lungs so that she can be extubated.  She was alert earlier during the wean test but the doctor felt there was too much fluid in her lungs to risk extubating and decided to administer more lasix to drain the fluid and then wean her tomorrow and wake her up.  

My baby, now a new face for Carter’s children’s clothing, is meeting and exceeding all of her developmental goals.   She is now starting to scoot and trying to rock on her knees.   She loves to be read to, loves music, and has great motor skills.

She, too, has contracted the nasty cold virus that is going around and is very congested.   She seems to be rebounding pretty quickly, and I attribute it to her having been breastfed.  My nephew has the same virus now and he is struggling and has an ear infection.  My baby’s phlegm went from yellowish-green to clear in 24 hours. 

She still has silent reflux, which we address with her doctor and look at putting her on medication.  She is doing well with solids and I am expanding her palate.  The only thing she seems to not like is green beans. I am going to puree them with avocado and sweet potatoes and that should take care of that issue.  

I will update on my mom once there is something to tell…

Twenty-four Weeks Old – The 411

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My baby is now 24 weeks old.  She weighs 16 pounds and is 25 1/2 inches long.  

She is growing by leaps and bounds and is now eating and demanding solid food.  She loves fruit and so far enjoys sweet potatoes, and carrots.  She was not a fan of peas.   I am going to make sweet potatoes and spinach and see how that goes. 

We have been in NYC for a week now.  The baby had an audition last weekend for Carter’s.  Her agency called to say Carter’s requested her for an audition.  We flew to NY, which was her first flight, and she did well on the flight.  Her ears popped and she didn’t care for it much, but did well otherwise.  She slept the majority of the flight and slept in the limos to and from.

We flew back to the beach and on Monday night, the production team called to request her for a fitting so we told them we could be there on Wednesday morning.

We drove from the condo, stopping for an hour or so in DC at my sister’s and then got on the road to NY.  We got in that night before midnight and rested up.   The baby had a fitting at 11 am in midtown the next morning.   After the fitting, we did not get a call until yesterday, telling us that the company was putting us up in a hotel for the night in the Hamptons so that the baby could be well rested for the shoot Sunday morning.  We drove the 3 hour trip to the Hamptons, checked in and the hotel is fabulous. We were placed in a 1 bedroom, condo-like suite complete with two full baths, kitchen, den with pull out sofa, and a king bed in the bedroom.   

They are really giving these babies the first class treatment.  

This is a welcome distraction given that my mom’s surgeon called yesterday with news that her biopsy came back positive for breast cancer AGAIN.  THIRD time !  Really?  

She just finished two rounds of aggressive chemo and 32 or 38 sessions of radiation in June 2015.  Now there is a knot under the breast below where they radiated.  Prayerfully the cancer is contained to that breast and had not spread to anywhere else. 

Needless to say, with all the deaths of late, I am not handling this well.  I am not ready to lose my mother.  She and I are extremely close and I want my baby, her twin, to enjoy Grandmom.  

I welcome your prayers !  

Until later…..  going to try to put little diva back to sleep so that she will not be cranky in the morning.  

Twenty-three Weeks On The Outside – Post Partum 411

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Mommy’s little angel is now 23 weeks old.  It is still so surreal and I keep waiting to wake up from this dream.

Tomorrow we are headed home to NYC for the weekend as the baby has a casting with Carter’s for their infant clothing line.

I was looking at an online ad for them a week ago saying I could not wait to see her little face on a Carter’s ad and they called for her the next week. I wish God would listen to my other desires that intently ! Lol

Last week was my last week nursing. I made it a full 5 months and since we are a lot more mobile and she will likely be doing a lot of shoots through the summer, I am not going to want to be finding places to pump and I am only pumping 8-10 oz on a good day anyway. 

She is now eating fruits and veggies twice a day so I am glad we made it this far.

Her passport finally came last week and of course, they mispelled our last name so I had to send it back.  We are taking a family trip soon and she will need it !

I am in the process of planning her Safari themed 1st birthday party at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme park.  I was referred to a cake designer so I am getting the ball rolling.  My sisters and their families are flying in.  

I am sitting here awaiting a call from my mom’s surgeon.   Her surgeon looked at the knot and thinks its just scar tissue but did a biopsy to be sure.  Prayer would be appreciated !  

Twenty One Weeks Post Partum – The 411

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21 weeks !  Can you believe it?  In six more days, my baby will be five months old !  Jeeeez !  Time flies !

My little chunk munk weighs almost 16 pounds, is 24 inches long and is the most amazing creature God has ever created. She has a temper and has mastered tantruming already.   She says HI and coos quite a bit when you talk to her or read to her.

Today, I introduced solids via spoon. I gave her pureed bananas and she knew exactly what to do. She ate the bananas and she loved them. The oatmeal cereal we were putting in her last bottle at night seemed to constipate her and the probiotics and Karo syrup were not helping enough to regulate her poop texture so I stopped the cereal. 

My baby is thriving and still sleeps a lot.  She loves to take catnaps too.

On Monday, we are starting what I like to call, our baby daycare program.  I ordered a monthly infant curriculum subscription program by Mother Goose Time that is specifically for infants.   I also had my mom get her a gray Bumbo and sensory toys, kinectic sand and play-doh.  I am going to pick up two large mirrors tomorrow for floor play and incorporation into her tummy time.   She has a few mirrored toys but I want to get some large ones to put in the play/ learn area.  

The only item I need to order from Ebay is the Baby Can Read program to start with her.  One of my friends has already started it with her 3 month old and her son was reading by 2 yrs old.   I want to work with my daughter to start education early thru play so that she can start music lessons at the age of 3.

My daughter has been added to the roster of five New York top talent agencies so in lieu of heading back West, we will be up North for six months.  After I get her established, I will then relocate her to the LA area for modeling / acting unless NYC ends up being more profitable. #collegefundonfleek

My baby is now wearing 3-6 month and 6 month clothing.  She still hates getting dressed and getting her hair done.   While her hair is growing in the top, the sides and back are thinning out ! 

She has been doing the four month sleep regression thing and goes to bed at 8pm but she wakes up at 1 am, 4 am and 6 am most nights.   Tonight, she is spending the night with Grandmom so I get a little break and can get some work done

I have been studying credit repair services and am launching a credit repair company.   I have already started receiving clients !  In this economy, this service will be invaluable to people.  Most people have things on their credit report and consumer file that are incorrect. Good credit is a must in order to conduct good business these days!

I am looking forward to helping people change their lives for the better.

Mommy News:

I am going to start going for long walks again and am also going to purchase Cize to workout to.  I have gained 3 pounds and I refuse to gain anymore.   I love being this small and I know that breast feeding parttime is not going to help me keep weight down. It gave me an amazing start, but now I have to put in some work !

Grandmom News:

Please keep my mom in your prayers.   She has to have a colonoscopy on Monday to determine the cause of her iron deficiency.   She also found a knot under her breast area that wasn’t there before.  She sleeps an awful lot and doesn’t feel well most days.   I am very worried about what this means.   I am not ready to say goodbye to my mother.  I do not think I ever will be, but I am praying that this is anything but cancer so that we can travel and do things she has dreamed about and so that she can be here for my daughter to watch her grow.

Twenty Weeks Post Partum – The 411

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My angel is now 20 weeks old !  

She is growing by leaps and bounds and is growing super long.  She now weighs almost 16 pounds.

She can sit up with assistance for a little while before falling forward. 

She hates to sit down or lie down. She now prefers to sit up and stand up.  

A friend sent her an Amazon gift card for her christening so we ordered her a Fisher Price Jumperoo. I am still trying to put it together.  I deplore reading instructions and putting things together. Hopefully I will figure out how to get this seat part together this weekend before calling in the calvary lol.

I am completely and head over heels in love with my daughter !  She is the culmination of every dream I have ever had of a child.  

I soooo want to give her a sibling. I have been very depressed about that lately.   Because of the emergency hysterectomy,  I can not carry another baby. I am blessed to have four eggs on ice so that once I find a willing surrogate, my little girl can have a sibling.   I worry about leaving her in the world alone.  I want her to have a sibling that she is close to and to experience having a life growing up fighting and loving a sibling.   There is nothing like it !

I can’t believe that in a few short days, my baby will be five months old !  I am starting to plan her 1st birthday event.  I am doing a safari theme and am looking at trip packages to either Tampa Busche Gardens Africa or to Disney’s Animal Kingdom.   I am hoping my family will be able to go, but if not, it will be just us.

I ask that you all keep my mom in your prayers.  Not only has a knot formed under her breast that she just had surgery on (hoping its just scar tissue) but her anemia seems to be caused by something other than iron deficiency.   The doctor has ordered a colonoscopy and referred her to a Gastroenterologist for further review.  She is nauseated all the time and has been for quite some time.   The doctor assumed is was reflux.  Now I am scared to death, that given how much she sleeps and the fact that even with nausea medications are not very effective, that we are dealing with something far more serious. It is my prayer that God could not and would not be that cruel to allow her to be sick again.  There is only so much the human body can withstand.   Now that she is retired, I want her to be able to travel and enjoy her life and not have it marred by illness and fear of illness. 

Until next week….

Seventeen Weeks Old – The 411

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My precious girl is now 17 weeks old !  In a few days, she will be 4 months old ! Where does the time go?

She is now 14 lbs 4 oz, 24 inches long, and has mastered rolling over, sitting up with support and standing with support.   She is a lot more engaged and holds a whole conversation with you when you talk to her.  She now even initiates conversation.  I would love to know what she is trying to say.  

Mommy News:

I am doing well.  I am down 67 or 68 pounds from the day of delivery.  My incision has healed well and the feeling is starting to come back in that area though it feels strange.

I am still exclusively pumping and giving the baby half her daily intake and supplementing the other half with Earth’s Best Organic Sensitivity Formula. 

My legs still feel weird off and on from residual effects of the edema.

It still feels surreal to me that I had a baby and that she is here.

Sixteen Weeks Post Partum – The 411

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16-weeks-post-partum

16 weeks ago, God gifted me the most precious gift, my baby girl.  She is hands down the love of my life and I could not imagine how I lived or loved before her.

She is such a good baby and has the most pleasant disposition !  She is incredible.

She has amped up her conversation when she is spoken to or if you sing or read to her.  She laughs and giggles and smiles so…   Her latest milestone or developmental fete is that she completely rolls over and back.  She enjoys tummy time and she is not as cranky in her carseat anymore.  She travels a lot better !  Thank goodness.

This week, we are headed to NYC, as she has her 4 month well baby checkup and vaccines. I hated watching her get vaccinated last time, but realize it is necessary to keep her healthy. She did not cry long and she slept a lot after she got her vaccines.  I had given her Tylenol and Motrin before we went to help offset a fever.

In other news, our mother retired on Friday and also won her EEO complaint she filed against the new Director who started targeting female employees.  She is so happy to be a full time Grandmother now !  She says she and baby girl will be hitting the road and traveling the globe.

I am still losing weight… just a pound or two every few weeks.  I feel great.  I assume it is because I am nursing. I have to see my doctor this week because the front of my left leg is numb.  My sister thinks I have a pinched nerve.  We shall see…

I am trying to pull myself out of the dumps.  My make up artist / dear friend died on December 2nd and last week, my friend, comedian/ actor Ricky Harris passed away of a sudden heart attack.  I had just communicated with him two days prior.  I am labeling 2016 a serial killer !   I went to church this morning with my mom and the baby and it was announced at the end of service that one of our Ministers, Karen Hampton passed away after a long battle with cancer.  She was in the choir with me when I was there full time. I am so sick of hearing about death, I do not know what to do !

Anyway, Happy New Year to you all !   I am spending the day with my family and my sister and I are cooking a fabulous meal.

Four Month Well Baby Check Up and Vaccination – The 411

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Yesterday, we arrived in NYC early am for baby girl’s four month well baby visit and second round of vaccinations. 

The baby is 14 pounds 4 ounces and now 24 inches long.

She is growing well according to her Pediatrician and the doctor said we can start her on solids anytime between now and six months of age. She suggested we start her with cereal and then wait a few days to introduce a pureed fruit or vegetable.  I am going to wait a little while and introduce cereal when her demand for more ounces of milk is noticed.   Currently, she still drinks 3-4 ounces per feeding and averages 18-24 ounces per twenty four hour period. She seems to be going through a growth spurt the last few days and has taken in 5 – 6 ounces at a few of her feedings. She still doesn’t like medication so I have been putting the Benedryl and Tylenol in her bottle with a 1/2 ounce or so of milk to get her to take it.  Otherwise, she spits out most of the medication.  

The baby demonstrated her newly found skill of flipping over by trying to flip over and off the exam table !

She is doing better with taking in formula.  Most days we are doing 1/2 Breast milk and 1/2 Earth’sBest Organic Sensitivity Formula.   I add probiotics to the 1st bottle of the day, every other day and that seems to be working for us. 

After the vaccines last time, I gave the baby Tylenol, Benedryl and Motrin for two days. This time I gave her dose before we left for the doctor and once when we got back that afternoon.   This morning, she awoke with a 102.1 fever.   I gave her Tylenol and Motrin and called her doctor. Her doc says it’s normal after vaccinations and to give her 2ml of Tylenol only and hold off on Motrin until after 6 months of age.   She said she doesn’t need the Benedryl now.

I gave the baby the additional dose of Tylenol mixed with a little formula and her fever has finally broken.

I am in love with her Kinsa thermometer that attaches to the smartphone and works via an app.

Now that the baby is no longer feverish, we will head out and grab some lunch before going to the post office to retrieve mail and packages.

I just hope the Tylenol keeps her fever under control and that she feels better.   It is horrible watching your baby be miserable.   

Fourteen Weeks After Baby Eviction – The 411

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Mommy’s angel will be 14 weeks old at 4:18 pm today !

I can’t believe how fast time is going by.

The baby holds her head up and pushes up off the floor.  She has gotten very proficient at scooting across the bed in her sleep so that she ends up right on my side.   

She is now pitching a fit when she is given a bottle and it’s not breastmilk.   I’m still pumping ,  but only enough for her to snack on !  

I am going to join the local Le Leche and also another breast milk group and try to get donated milk for her.   I am unsure if she will balk at another’s breast milk and if it would have a different taste.  She eventually will settle down and drink the formula but she definitely prefers breast milk.  

Baby girl now weighs 14 pounds. She is getting heavy.  She has the cutest little fat rolls and gets mad when I have to clean them all. She decides when she likes her bath or not.  Diva baby for sure ! 

She still doesn’t like getting her hair done, getting lotioned, getting dressed, nor sleeping in her bassinet. All of her #OOTD pics are of her screeching !

This little one has developed a real temper.  To show disdain, she will stretch out and tantrum!  Oh boy !!!

It is truly amazing to watch her personality shine thru and trying to figure out who this little person is.

This weekend, we are going to take passport photos and send in the application for the baby’s passport so that we can take a trip soon.  

I am hoping that funding for my feature comes in after the new year and that we can start shooting by mid Spring.  Fingers crossed ! Prayers Up !