Archive for ‘Baby Beluga’
Things I Love Thursday
♥ Upcoming makeover. It’s that time of year! I’ve been consulting with my best friend/hair stylist to come up with my perfect look for spring. I’ve always loved shaking up my style every few months, and it’s even more exciting since having my son and inevitably losing a lot of ‘me’ time. I am thinking of doing a long, clean bob with heavy bangs. I am also working out a way to add a burst of color to my hair, possibly a purple like this for my tips.
I was really excited to finally have my hair long, and I LOVE a good top knot, but I just don’t think it’s the most flattering on me. When will I learn to just stick to my signature look?
♥ Fabulous sunnies. Sunglasses are always on my love list. These Joe Fresh Retro-Inspired Sunglasses (top right) are at the top of my wish list right now, as well as these cat-eye and wayfarer style sunnies by Rebecca Minkoff. I typically wear contacts all spring/summer, but I’m considering a pair of prescription sunnies from Glasses USA – Right now you can get a complete pair starting at just $67!
♥ Baby playdates. *meltdowns not shown* A friend met us at the park last weekend so that our toddlers could play together for the first time. Hopefully we’ll be seeing a lot more of them – Our kids are just three months apart and his mom and I share a fair amount of hobbies and values. That’s a rarity (unfortunately), especially among other young moms I’ve met.
♥ Toddler walks. Sebastian has been rejecting his stroller lately, demanding to walk on his own. It’s less convenient than pushing him but I love that he’d prefer to be active! Thankfully, he’s great about staying right with us and is easily re-directed if necessary. Yesterday evening he was tired enough to sit in the stroller, and he and I took a quick walk to a nearby park. On the way we picked up some nature items to feel and inspect, including a dandelion and a pine cone. The park we visited is used mainly for live music and other events, no playground equipment, so we ran around looking at structures, picking up rocks, etc.
Inspecting a dandelion and a pinecone on our walk – This is the face he makes when you tell him to “Say cheese!”
Disapproving of the No Skateboarding sign
More little mentions:
♥ Having baby soap and alphabet books in my bathroom. More and more, the addition of Sebastian’s stuff to our home makes me happy and fulfilled, and just makes our apartment feel cozier and more full of life.
♥ Rearranging our living room this week has made the space MUCH more conducive to playing and hanging out as a family. There has been lots of couch-jumping and father-son guitar playing lately.
♥ Makeup tutorials. This list of 10 Best YouTube Makeup Tutorials covers all of the basics – the perfect red lip, winged eyeliner, and face contouring. Sebastian likes to watch me put on my makeup, so I can get away with spending a reasonable amount of time on it. (Seb frequently asks for the Pretty Powerful palette
♥ Good toddler sleep. Not perfect, but good enough that I’m not worried about night-weaning anymore – His sleep is naturally improving. Best of all, once he’s stopped actively nursing and is mostly-asleep, I’m able to say, “Time to be all done and go night-night,” and most of the time he’ll unlatch and roll over with no fuss. I can even give him a quick kiss, say goodnight and just walk out of the room. That’s a huge step forward from having to sneak my nipple out of his mouth and covertly tiptoe away!
♥ This week Donny is loving Sebastian’s increased balance and interest in skateboarding. He pulls his dad’s skateboard out of the hall closet often and on carpet he can stand on the board unassisted. He can maintain his own balance as Daddy helps him skate around the apartment and is learning to shift his weight when one end is popped up. Seb also puts on his helmet and sits on his tricycle (which is currently parked in the kitchen) a few times per day, although he hasn’t quite mastered the concept of pedaling yet.
Sebastian’s “first” Easter and making traditions
As atheists, Donny and I are working to establish holiday traditions that are in line with our personal values while still allowing us to celebrate along with everyone else. I really want Sebastian (and future siblings) to be able to share holidays with friends and classmates, so we intend to celebrate Easter on the same day as everyone else, with our own annual traditions. As Sebastian gets older, I would like our festivities to focus on the beginning of springtime, more similar to Ostara than mainstream Easter. (We are still very much on the fence about the Easter Bunny!)
This was technically Sebastian’s second Easter, but his first year dyeing eggs and our first year putting together a basket.
Eggies!
It’s pretty easy to celebrate Easter as a non-Christian, as the rituals are largely based in Paganism anyway. Eggs are a symbol of fertility, and decorating eggs is probably my favorite part of the holiday. Sebastian loves eggs – holding them, shelling them, eating them – and I was excited to share this activity with him.
He was completely enthralled from the get-go. There were no smiles, but only because he was concentrating so hard the entire time. I let him crack & smoosh some of the hard-boiled eggs, although I encouraged him not to break all of them. He tried to color them with crayons, but mainly enjoyed dunking them in the color cups over and over, alternating with arranging them back in the carton. (He also liked to dip the crayons in the vinegar-dye solution and suck on them.)
Out of a dozen eggs, we ended up with five that weren’t broken. Three out of five cups of dye also ended up completely spilled. But it was so much fun!
The basket!
I really wanted to find a nice basket at Goodwill and paint it myself, but every outing with Seb this week ended in massive amounts of wrangling and meltdowns — Just thinking about thrift shopping made me exhausted. This year’s basket was from the good ol’ Dollar Tree. Donny picked up a package of fake grass but the chemical smell was SO strong that it went immediately into the trash. (I had dreams of growing our own Easter grass this year but that too got pushed to next year.) Instead, I cut some felt panels into strips, which I was really happy with.
Donny and I have different preferences when it comes to treats and decorations, so I assume we’ll always do a combination of natural and more commercial Easter treats. I’m sure we’ll do more full, elaborate baskets as Sebastian gets over – I’m really inspired by this Toddler Basket and Baby Easter Basket – but for an 18 month old, this was perfect. Daddy hid a few jellybeans in the plastic eggs. Those and an organic “squeezie” were the favorites. I ended up eating half of his chocolate egg and all of his Peeps – Proof that kids’ gravitation towards candy is learned and not a natural preference!
Future traditions
Pysanky – Ukrainian eggs, hollowed out and decorated in a batik style. More intricate and permanent than dyeing hard-boiled eggs, I hope to start making these part of our family tradition in the coming years. Donny created Pysanky with his mother growing up, so it will be an especially nice project to carry on. ♥ An alter – I have always loved the look of altars and shrines, and would love to set up an alter to usher in the springtime each year. ♥ Daisy crowns/floral headpieces ♥ Ostara pouch – My friend Tiffany’s easy low-budget idea, for candy or other small treats that don’t go in the basket.
What are your family’s Easter traditions? I’d especially love to hear how other atheists/non-Christians celebrate this time of year!
Breastfeeding Update: Nursing my toddler (18 months)
Online, I know a lot of other moms who are breastfeeding their toddlers. A lot of them have nurslings much older than Sebastian. Offline though, I only know TWO other moms who nursed their kids past one year old, and one of those is my mom. I’ve been asked a few times how long I plan to breastfeed Sebastian. The short answer is, as long as he wants. My initial goal was to breastfeed for at least one year. (Sebastian is currently 18 months old.) The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding for at least one year and the World Health Organization recommends breastfeeding for two years or more (with solid foods added to supplement breastfeeding after six months). At this point, I cannot imagine Sebastian weaning before two years, which (most of the time) is just fine with me.
Breastfeeding a toddler might be weird if a walking, talking kid just started sucking milk from your breast one day. But that isn’t how it happens. Kids grow day by day! You start off nursing a sweet newborn, and it’s a learning process. For me, the first six weeks were very hard, but it was smooth sailing after that and suddenly we were halfway to my goal of a year. He breastfed less as we started introducing solids, and less when he started walking. In the past few months though, his nursing has really skyrocketed. At 18 months, I would say he is now nursing more often than he did at six months.
At this stage, Sebastian nurses in bed upon waking, then again on the couch about an hour later. He nurses several times a day, sometimes before and after meals. He breastfeeds down for his daily nap and at bedtime. Sometimes he nurses once or twice during the night, other times he wants it every 2-3 hours or more.
The Bad – Feeling touched out
For the most part, it’s the daytime nursing that gets under my skin. If I sit down to eat and he wants to nurse, he will attempt to knock the food out of my hand. If I’m on the computer, he slams my laptop shut and signs “all done” before tugging at my shirt. I’ve been (gently!) making it clear that his bossy behavior doesn’t fly with me. I know that he doesn’t realize that what he’s doing is rude. He is just now learning (genuinely) that the world doesn’t revolve around him – That must be a hard revelation!
All nursing mothers feel touched out at some point, and I definitely have moments where I want to cry and crawl into a hole where no one can touch me! Donny does his best to support me but my complaining gets to him sometimes, and things tend to escalate at that point. I’m really working on keeping the bulk of my complaints to myself (or venting on Twitter instead). It’s hard to stay positive when your boobs hurt and your kid wakes from a DEAD SLEEP the second you try to slip your nipple from his mouth. But even on the very worst days, the thought of actually weaning right now makes me choke up.
The lovey-dovey good stuff
- Magic sleepy-calm juice. Lounging at a friend’s house recently, she marveled at how content Sebastian was just to lie on the bed with me, nursing lazily. Breastfeeding is an easy, instant tool that we can use anywhere. I can get Sebastian to sleep anywhere. At 1.5 years old, there is yet to be a meltdown that nursing won’t stop in its tracks. Aside from the routine, the composition of breast milk itself is conducive to sleep. During nighttime feedings, melatonin is released into breast milk. There is a reason that even adults still crave warm milk at bedtime!
- Sleep-aid for mamas. Your body produces the feel-good hormone oxytocin during breastfeeding. Not only does oxytocin provide what feels like a mild buzz, it also makes you sleepy. I try not to nap when Sebastian naps because I fiercely covet that free time, but occasionally we’ll have a nursing nap together and it is the best, most refreshing thing ever. Last week we slept for three straight hours in the early afternoon and it felt like being born again.
- The bonding. While having a kid who wants only you can be very frustrating, there is nothing sweeter than when Sebastian wakes up, pats his chest (“want”) and then signs for milk. Except for maybe the little giggle and relaxed sigh he lets out as I lie down next to him.
- Nursing through sickness. Breastfed kids get sick less but when they do, you’ll be happy that it’s just breast milk being spewed all over you. Honestly, it’s no worse than newborn spit-up.
- Hilarious nursing positions. Sebastian rarely just settles in my arms to nurse. Instead, he pushes his butt into the air, claps his hands and gives his daddy fist-bumps while he eats. Sometimes he kicks his feet up on the back of the couch, nursing completely upside-down in what we’ve dubbed “the keg stand”. The rare times when he does just relax & cuddle up to nurse in my arms, he feels like my baby again and it’s extra special.
- Tig ol’ bitties. I love my breastfeeding boobs — Hello, two new cup sizes! It almost makes up for breastfeeding totally not making the baby weight drop off the way I’d hoped.
Nursing in public
I posted a few times recently about not breastfeeding Sebastian in public anymore — and of course I Twitter-jinxed it! He has been asking to nurse while we are out lately and I’m happy to oblige. I prefer eating one-handed to chasing my toddler around a restaurant any day!
I really like breastfeeding in public. I like to think that I’m helping more people view breastfeeding as normal, and that I’m encouraging other mamas and future-mamas to do the same. I feel like being young and having a certain style, I might influence a set of people that wouldn’t pay much attention to breastfeeding otherwise. I never use a cover and don’t go out of my way to be especially discreet. Most of the time though, I think people assume I’m just snuggling my kiddo.
As I have written here before, there was a time when I found the idea of breastfeeding toddlers off-putting. I’m not proud of it, but I do get it when people have that initial reaction. You can see that post here – Breastfeeding a child who can chew steak. I am happy to be older and wiser, and my husband is equally on board if Sebastian wants to nurse for a couple more years.
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Past breastfeeding posts that you may also find helpful:
How-to: Comfy Mama Style An easy guide to breastfeeding-friendly fashion
Breastfeed Lying Down Tips & information about my favorite breastfeeding position
My breastfeeding product reviews:
Bravado Body Silk Seamless Nursing Bra review Hands-down the best bra I’ve ever owned
Glamourmom Nursing Tank review (The striped tank I’m wearing in the third pic in this post)
Danish Wool Breast Pads review I don’t need breast pads anymore but these are the best
My New Mom Must-Haves Includes my favorite certified non-toxic breastfeeding pillow
Quick links to my favorite breastfeeding products:
Bravado Body Silk Seamless Nursing Bra
Bravado Sublime Nursing Bra
Gilligan & O’Malley nursing tanks Comfortable and affordable for everyday wear
Earth Mama Angel Baby Natural Nipple Butter
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I’d love to hear about your breastfeeding experiences, and am happy to answer any questions in the comments!
Things I Love Thursday
This Indian girl tattoo design by Zach Spurlock is pretty amazing – I would love something like this as a print. I am still really feeling Native American-inspired clothing and accessories, like these Caballero boots from Free People. I am thinking about tattoos a lot lately too. We had been following the show Ink Master, which just finished, and I would really love for Donny & I to get inked for our anniversary in a couple of months.
Most of the shoes in my current collection are proving to be uncomfortable for stomping around town, especially while chasing a toddler. I have my eye out for a great pair of slip-ons and some awesome sneakers for the warmer weather. These Vans by Peter Som would be adorable for spring, and these Jeremy Scott X ADIDAS high-tops (above) are even better – I want a pair for everyone in my family!
This week marked the warmest days of 2012 so far – It was warm enough to hang out at the park! The place was pretty packed but Sebastian took it in stride as the mini-mobs of bigger kids pushed past him. He enjoyed the swing for exactly two pushes before taking a peek down and deciding he’d had enough. The slide was another story – He did this smaller one several times and even gave the big kid slide a go. Whee!
The awesome Portland weather was really the star of the week. We drove around in the sunshine, had our monthly family sushi date, and did a bit of shopping at the Asian supermarket. (Yay for the container of kimchi now in my fridge!)
I also ordered two pairs of denim valued at around $200 total for less than $50 on Zulily, free for me as I only spent store credit. (Thank you to everyone who has signed up and shopped through my affiliate link!) I was stoked to find out that Zulily allows earned credit $$ to cover shipping as well. (You would expect this, but Beyond the Rack makes you pay shipping separately, regardless of how much credit you’ve acquired.) Ordering denim online is always a gamble and I ordered two different sizes. I lost a couple more pounds of baby weight (Am I still allowed to call it that?) this week and am using my new jeans purchase as motivation to keep the momentum going.
What are you loving this week?
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