got milk? (p 2)

Since this episode, I've been asking T (2.5) to nurse less (less than 5 minutes total and usuallly less than 3 minutes total), and she's not been asking to nurse some nights too. We're on our way to weaning. How long have I been saying that? She's officially 2.5 now (HOW DID THAT HAPPEN), and I'm good with weaning. I just don't want it to be painful. I'm not into pain.

Let's do some math for fun...

N (6) nursed until she was 15 months old and then weaned very quickly. I didn't have pain.

K (3.75) nursed until she was 3 (officially) but was mostly weaned by the time she was 2.75... It was all in the formality the last few months... No pain because T picked up the slack as K was weaning. I had nursed K for 36 months.

Now, T has nursed an additional 9 months.


For our math problem, the important numbers are the number of months. [15+(36+9)=60]

I have nursed for 60 months... That's 5 years... 45 months straight (that's almost 4 years).

I'm not sure what this says. I'm still working on the interpretation. It hasn't been hard or that much of a sacrifice. I was good at it and didn't have any real problems. The girls were good with only nursing 1 time a day after age 2. I nursed Nat exclusively until 4.5 months and I tried to only nurse K and T exclusively until 6 months, but they both didn't like baby food AT ALL. Both nursed exclusively until they about 9 months old. I nursed through T's pregnancy. My doctor didn't want me to, but I knew I could do it. I read the book Tandem Nursing. I ate a lot of food and drank a LOT of water! Until T was ~10 months old, I was making a lot of milk.

I have read a great deal about breastfeeding. I think it's an amazing thing to do for a baby. Before I even knew if I wanted children, I was pretty fascinated by our ability to make milk, so I'm really not that suprised I like nursing so much. I don't judge a mom if she can't breastfeed. It's a matter of choice. I chose to do it. Also, on a personal note, I wasn't breastfed, so I know a baby can turn out well (heh!) without nursing, but I have enjoyed giving my girls the benefits of breast milk. Recently, we have learned breast milk contains stem cells. The wonders never cease.