The thought of breastfeeding may be intimidating. You may have heard from so and so that it didn’t work for her or that such and such had big problems. But positive thinking can go a long way!

YOU ARE fully equipped with all the tools needed to be one heck of a milk making machine. You are loaded up with all the most luxurious accessories. You are a fridge, microwave, bottle warmer, pacifier, musician, comforter, blankey, and pillow all rolled into one!

But if you have heard that breastfeeding comes naturally then well someone lied. Yes, naturally milk comes into your breasts but that doesn’t mean that its all natural getting it out with a baby, with birds chirping and that glowing motherly halo. Working out of the home or not, breastfeeding your baby is well…work! Especially in the beginning, but the good news is YOU ARE A FULLY LOADED MOMMA! Besides that, support from those closest to you and from someone who knows a thing or two about breastfeeding is perhaps even equally important. It also takes A LOT of patience and most of all perseverance.

But perhaps you are not convinced that you should breastfeed. If so, here is my personal and honest list of the good and the not so great that might help shed some light on what breastfeeding is really like, first the not so great:

The Boob is:

● Not as filling as formula, so in the beginning that means more frequent feedings

● Sometimes painful when you are full, engorged or have raw nipples

● Just plain annoying when baby is being finicky or not eating well

● Not as discreet as a bottle if you are shy and nursing under a “hooty hider” is like waving a flag saying “Hello! My boob is out and I’m nursing up a storm over here in case you didn’t know!”

● No fun if you aren’t around your baby and you have to pump yourself like a cow which is not as comfortable as nursing

● Leaky in the beginning (for some) and being wet all the time is really annoying

● Dry, cracked and blistered nips can happen but with good support and training for both you and baby you can overcome these temporary discomforts!

Ok that was tough BUT most of the above issues are only temporary or can be mitigated with the right tools and support. So thank goodness the boob is awesome in all these other ways:

The Boob is:

● Hard to forget and leave at home

● Always the perfect temperature

● Easily accessible

● Full anyway so you might as well let it out

● Cheap, thats why they call formula liquid gold

● Perfectly designed to match your baby’s health needs

● Natural birth control (but not fool proof, which is why I have two babies 21 months apart ;)

● A way to help you lose that baby weight, and you thought you needed to say goodbye to eating for two? Nope, you burn tons calories breastfeeding!

● Always ready, there is no such thing as running out

● Not as terrible as you have heard when it comes to teeth

● Great bonding time with your baby it’s a special closeness you can’t get any other way

Of course it is true that some women are medically not able to breastfeed, but that percentage is very low. Many women don’t because of the cons I listed above or even other extreme cons such as I will never get “my sexy back” or it’s just plain weird. Or even because they are working moms without a good place to privately pump, which is very big deal.

Breastfeeding is hard work and its easy to get the point where you feel like there is something wrong with you or your baby when really you are right on track. It just isn’t perfect all the time and that is hard to deal with when you already are dealing with all the other new stuff that comes with baby. My advice is to be patient, ask for help or find a good teacher. If you are in the Greensboro area stop by one of All About Baby Boutique’s Breastfeeding Support Meetings (check the calendar for dates and times) and get the support you need!

What were some obstacles you came up against when breastfeeding? Maybe you have tips or tricks for successful breastfeeding please share!

PS Inquiring minds may be interested in knowing what their state laws and protections are for mothers nursing in public, nursing while at work, and even exemption from jury duty while nursing. For more information on those topics in your state please visit the National Conference of State Legislators website.

- Matti

My first child was born a short three months ago – in December 2012.  I was so excited about having a baby, but I won’t deny that I had my reservations leading up to his arrival.  One thing that I was not so excited about prior to motherhood was poop.  In retrospect, I realize that I was ridiculous; nevertheless, I assure you that my phobia of poop was very real.  I had heard the horror stories of blow-outs that went all the way up the back, out the collar, and into the hair.  I was also familiar with stories about poop that does not just leak out the sides of the diaper, but leaks through the diaper.  Sick.  I had never even changed a diaper before his birth.  Let’s just say that I was quite inexperienced.

Several of my friends also had babies in 2012 and many of them decided to use cloth diapers.  All I could think was – cloth diapers?  Why?  That’s so sick.  That means poop in my washing machine.  How will anything be clean again?  Won’t the diapers be difficult to change?  Won’t they leak all the time?  Sure, my grandma used cloth, but we’ve come a long way since then.  I was not sold on the idea.  And then there was the language barrier.  I speak English and Spanish, but I was having comprehension problems.  All in two?  Pockets?  All in one?  Flip?  Excuse me… what are you saying?

Thankfully, my friends who used cloth were patient with me.  I don’t think that they had an agenda of trying to convert me to cloth, but they entertained my curiosity.  The only reason I was the least bit interested in cloth was because I knew that it could be cheaper – much cheaper – than using disposables.  At the time, I was not interested in the environment, the chemicals in diapers, or any other benefit.  I simply wanted to make sure that my wallet had more padding in it since I knew I was going to be a stay at home mom.  Fortunately, my friends let me look on with wonder and amazement every time they changed a diaper.  I got especially excited when it was a poopy diaper of a baby on solids.  I wanted to see how stinky solid poop looked in a cloth diaper and how one managed to take care of it.  Some friends used liners while others used the sprayer.  In the end, I came to the conclusion that my friends and their babies did not just survive – they thrived on cloth.  Not only was it cheaper, those cloth diapers were downright cute!

So, after much debate and going back and forth – I decided that I would try the cloth diaper thing.  I made my trip to All About Baby to get started.  Thankfully, everyone there was so helpful and I was able to get off to a great start.  Now, after many trips back to the shop, I am absolutely convinced that cloth is the only way that I will ever diaper my baby.  My husband even likes using cloth and he never complains when he changes diapers.  I have many reasons for using cloth, but I think that my number one reason is the cuteness factor.  How can you resist a baby in cloth?

Here is a 1 month old picture of my son in his Flip diaper –

Here is a 2 month old picture in a BumGenius Freetime –

- Jessica

I admit it. I made the switch to green household cleansers for selfish reasons. Don’t get me wrong, I love the Earth and all, but it wasn’t until I was pregnant with my daughter that I started to get serious about ridding our household of toxic chemicals. The first thing I did was hand off my bathroom cleaning duties to my husband so I wouldn’t be exposed to the bleach fumes up close and personal (And it worked! You heard it here first). But once our baby came home, the thought of her being in the same house as those fumes was impossible for me to embrace. Since it was July (a hot, fetid kind of July, too), and our shower is about ten feet from the bed where we all sleep, opening the window and going to Barnes and Noble for a few hours was out of the question. We needed a new tack. There are more “green” cleaning products on the market than ever these days, but not only was I suspicious because many of these products still do not disclose their ingredients, they are also expensive.

I had researched DIY cleansers in the past as a money saving tactic, but I never did it. It seemed hard. It seemed like adding a chore to a list of chores. And then there was the Vinegar Issue.

I love vinegar in salads and marinades and the like, but white distilled vinegar is a smell I’ve always hated, so the idea of cleaning my house to make it smell worse just didn’t appeal. But it was time to reconsider.

Since the bathroom was my first, immediate concern, I started there. Well, if I wanted my bathroom disinfected (and I did!), I needed vinegar. This looked promising. I peeled up my lemons and oranges, filled up the old mason jar, waited two weeks, and took it for a spin. Result? Meh. It did a good job cutting the soap scum and mineral deposits from the shower surround, and got the fixtures nice and shiny in the bathroom. It still smelled a lot more like vinegar and lot less like Florida than I liked, though, and the solution had an orange cast to it that doesn’t stain per se, but since I have white tile and countertops in there, any little spray I didn’t wipe down was visible afterward. I used the rest of it up, but kept looking.

Then a friend suggested something even easier for cleaning bathrooms, and just about as cheap: undiluted white vinegar with 10-15 drops of essential oil*. I chose lemongrass because it was the best smelling lower-priced essential oil for sale that day, and I love it! It works every bit as well as the citrus vinegar, but smells 100 times better. The lemongrass is cheery and doesn’t completely mask the vinegar smell, but unlike the citrus peels, once the vinegar smell dissipates, the lemongrass stays behind, and it is so fresh and clean smelling. I’ve since learned that lemongrass essential oil is a mood lifter with antibacterial, antifungal, and insecticidal properties. All without disrupting anybody’s endocrine system. Without irritating itty bitty baby alveoli. It’s a winner.

I’m still in the process of phasing in green cleaning supplies for every household need, but I wanted to share this one because it is safe, simple, effective, and inexpensive.

*Common sense note: I would think that any essential oil that smelled good to you would work, but of course if you are pregnant or have health conditions, read the bottles first and make sure it’s okay.

- Erin