An article in Time Magazine online addresses the importance of breastmilk and milk-sharing.
Move Over, Milk Banks. Facebook Ramps Up Milk Sharing As the article states, milk-sharing is nothing new. Wet nurses have been around for ages, but with medicines and disease so prevalent in our time, there's a lot of fear around milk-sharing. Milk banks are so expensive because they have to screen and pasteurize the milk to avoid giving anything but perfect and pure milk to the babies. Unfortunately, that can also kill good bacteria and antibodies in the milk that help strengthen those baby immune systems. So it really is best to get it straight "from the tap" if you can. I would absolutely milk-share, but I don't make enough to pump anymore. I think if someone came to me in desperation, I would nurse their baby. Reagan still gets plenty of milk at almost 21 months old. Being a working/nursing mom is tough, but I would take on the responsibilities of nursing another child if someone needed me. It's hard for moms to ask for help, so if a mother comes to you and makes this request, this tells you several things: she is desperate, she trusts you, she is making a last-ditch effort before resorting to something bovine or soy. I support you Emma and Eats on Feets!
Since the birth of my first lovely child, I have been addicted to photobooks at http://www.shutterfly.com . I can't help it! They keep coming out with more design ideas and choices which makes each book more fun and unique. Well, last holiday season I decided it was (finally) time for us to send out a family Christmas card, so of course I went to http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-photo-cards ! It was so easy... honestly, the hardest part is picking a design! And it's not just the Christmas cards that are so beautiful, they have a whole selection of "holiday" cards. So whether you want a card that spreads Christmas cheer or one that incorporates the holiday season, they have lots from which to choose: http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/holiday-cards .
And right now Shutterfly is offering 20% off all holiday cards http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery ! I know I'll be getting more this year. Last year we used the Elegant Damask Noir holiday card. It's a very chic and classic choice. I loved the way it turned out This year I want to try something different. I'm having trouble deciding between Sweet Stocking and Top Ten Moments. What I love most about them are the vibrant colors used as opposed to the typical red and green. They're so cheery! I love that Sweet Stocking has a child-like handmade quality and enough room for four photos (in case I have trouble choosing). Top Ten is fun because it allows you to make a list of things going on in your family over the past year... the "top ten" things! My mom always includes a letter with her Christmas cards... that's so old-school. This is the new, easy, concise way to write a letter. And really, with Facebook and Twitter, people know what we're up to all the time, but this card highlights what you consider to be the important events of the last twelve months.
Last year we took pictures Thanksgiving Day and I used those in our holiday card. I plan on making that a tradition since it worked so well. All of us wore colorful clothes and no one matched anyone else, but we still looked like a family. I guess that's good since we ARE a family! I recommend doing the same thing for your holiday pictures. I want friends and family to see us as we are, but better... not unrecognizable! So if you check out Shutterfly for the sale on the holiday cards, check out the photobooks while you're there. I can almost guarantee you'll become addicted!
Over a month since I posted last? Impossible! I've had so much to mention, but I guess it's all in my head. I don't have time to completely expunge all the thoughts and memories, but I'll share a little.
Christmas was lovely. We celebrated with the in-laws at their house on Christmas Eve and celebrated at our house Christmas morning with my parents and my sister's family. It went beautifully. We left for West Virginia the next day and it was a long drive with a potty-trained child. I'm so proud of Isabella for being a big girl and she had no trouble doin' the doo in the public restrooms. Proud moments. We borrowed my father-in-law's dvd player for her and she watched the same movies over and over. I don't want her using headphones yet because I think she's too little for that, but they would've been nice. I couldn't get the songs out of my head! Chris and I listened to the Sirius radio the whole way and it was so nice to not have to change the station because of a lost signal.
Isabella got her second snow experience, but she didn't remember her first and she probably won't remember this one either. Nevertheless, she LOVED it! She loved throwing snowballs and making tracks and getting all snowy. I wanted Reagan in the snow as little as possible, but on the last night we were there, it started snowing as we left a restaraunt after dinner. I was hurrying Reagan out to the car and when I looked at her, she was entranced. She was watching the snow fall and, as it lit on her little baby eyelashes, I too was entranced. It was a beautiful moment.
Reagan is finally crawling on all fours as of Christmas day. She will go into her army crawl every now and then, but usually it's because she's trying to drag something along the floor with her. She's been ill with a double ear infection and a sinus infection. It seems like the medicine is almost as bad as the illness. She has diarrhea, vomitting and loss of appetite. I really don't feel like the antibiotic is helping. She still has trouble sleeping and she still has the cough/sneeze/runny nose. I called the pediatrician about her vomitting, but they said it's normal and probably just her mucous. Not helpful because she doesn't vomit unless she's had her medicine. Her follow-up is next Monday and she better be healthy by then!
Isabella started gymnastics at the first of the year and apparently she's a natural. I wouldn't know because I've never been to her classes. My FIL takes her every week and he boasts about how amazing she performs. Maybe one day I'll get a glimpse of her in the gym. They're even having a "recital" sort of thing, but it's during the day as well. Oh bother. She loves wearing her sparkly leotards and that's what's truly important. The main focus should be that she loves the outfits. We're not putting her in dance... she already loves "twirly skirts" too much.
That's a good summary of home life. Work life is much more complicated. When it's not worth it anymore, I'm quitting. Whether I have another job or not, I'm quitting. It's getting close to my breaking point. I wish they'd just fire me, but there's no grounds to fire me! I'm too good at my job. What a bummer.
