To Shop or Not to Shop?

Alright. I am a creature of habit. My best habit of all... SHOPPING. Since we are getting our debt down, I am currently only in the market for window shopping, but shopping none the less. I am obsessed. I get nervous if I only have an hour. Let's just be honest here, I get nervous if I only have three hours. So going to the mall is a must while on maternity leave.

When Kolbe was born, I went to the mall 1 week post-partum with him in the Bjorn and Rocky in his stroller. Success!

But, now I have four little munchee-chees and I am a bit nervous. Not only for the actual excursion but for the preparation. You see, when you look young and have many children, people look at you and think, "OMG, she needs to STOP having babies" or "Poor, little girl. All those kids". When in reality, I am stoked to have my pretty young thangs in tote! I also must make them look beautiful and matched and primped to the nines because those same people are the ones who see Rocky's long and luxurious locks and say, "Wow, she doesn't even comb her kids hair". Why, yes ma'am, I do comb my boy's hair, it is just so beautiful and I am not such a woman as Delilah.

When Matthew and I went on our first outing with all four kiddos, I was in sweats and felt all eyes on us. Maybe that was just my insecurity but I felt as if people were judging me. I immediately came home and cut Kolbe's outlandishly, curly locks to make him look more "presentable".

I guess I just have to get over it but it definitely seems as if our society values the cover rather than the book. I care too much about what people think and I know that. I just wish people realized that my kids are well behaved, have manners, and will one day be your kids' bosses... THANK YOU VERY MUCH! hee hee hee ;)

My wonderful friend Shelly gave me the courage to try going by myself with all the chili beans! So, here goes nothing. I will letcha know how it goes.

Dual Nursing

Alrighty, this post is a long time coming (almost three weeks to be more exact). I decided that I would nurse the twins as long as was manageable. Nursing Rocky was awful. I frequently pumped pink milk (TMI) and I would cry when Matthew would bring him to me to feed. Needless to say, this did not encourage a strong mother-son bond between he and I. If it weren't for "breastfeeding bullies", I might have had a stronger bond with Rock a lot earlier. Not to say that I didn't love him, but it was hard when I was in pain whenever he nursed. He was a puker. He would throw up after every feeding.

I decided to give it another go with Kolbe. This time, he latched perfectly. But, after two weeks, he started projectile vomiting. I tried getting rid of dairy and soy but nothing worked. I continued to nurse for 6 months (along with some supplementing during school-teachers cannot pump and come home at a decent hour to their families). This time was a dream come true. I loved nursing him and cried when I stopped.

 

Now comes the twins. I nursed them individually for the first week to make sure that their latch was correct and to get them used to nursing. Then I started tandem nursing. I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it came to me. They latched better because they had to work a little harder for it. I also found that they usually burped right during feeding! This was an amazing discovery since I HATE burping but for my pukers it is quite necessary and even the difference between a clean feed and a messy, need-a-new-shirt feed. The only weird thing is that Molly needs less than Zoe. It makes sense because of how active Zoe is compared to Molly but it still surprised me. I wish I could post a video but I find it quite inappropriate considering my occupation (I can just see it... "Mrs. Reynolds, I saw your boobs online"... No, thank you!). But if anyone is curious or interested, come visit around 3, 6, 9, or 12... It is something of a miracle. After all, we are given two... Lol. I have always produced massive amounts of milk. I think God was preparing me. This fact, thanks to my good Nurse friend from college, might be the reason I have pukers. I may be giving them too much! We shall see!

 

Wish me good luck and keep those prayers coming. Matthew starts twilight shift soon so he can be with me at night and I start back to work in a month. Matthew is still working third shift and it helps my mindset when I know I am in charge of everything. I organize things so feedings go smoothly. I am hoping Matthew and I do not kill each other when he switches. Co-parenting is a lot harder. When I am by myself, I get a lot more done and I know I HAVE to do everything. Sharing responsibilities is just not an option. We still won't see each other (I will get home from school at 4 and he will go immediately out the door to work until 11), but I will have my hubby by my side at night and in the morning to help with getting the kids situated with breakfast, diaper changes, and brushing teeth.

 

I love my bigger family. I love that I have given my children the gift of built-in best friends and shoulders to cry on. I am blessed beyond measure... just don't ask me to hang out for two or three years! ;)