Because he had a little jaundice, barely enough to notice, the pediatrician asked us to supplement feeding him with formula to get the bilirubin out of his system earlier. But here's the problem: no matter how we feed him formula, whether using a bottle or a tube, it's less work for him to get the formula than breast milk. The reason that's so bad is that Vince is both stubborn and lazy when it comes to feeding. Once we get him on the breast and calmed down, he'll feed fine. It's just that 15-20 minutes of coaxing him while he's turning red in the face from screaming that can be a little stressful.
We've been getting a bit of help with breastfeeding. Our friend Kathryn came over on Friday to help, and we had a visit from the VNA nurse yesterday. Tomorrow we have our doula stopping by, and we have a new Mom's group meeting. Lisa did not expect breastfeeding to be easy, and so far it hasn't been.
For all of our frustration with breastfeeding, you can't help but love the little guy. There's no nicer feeling than having him snuggled in your arms, or dozing on your chest.
This afternoon we finally had some success breastfeeding. He didn't fuss that much, and the entire feeding took less than half an hour. Lisa also said that it felt like he got the hang of latching on properly.
We decided to put this cute little outfit on Vince, since it probably won't fit him in another week. Vince isn't too happy about it, because he thinks it makes him look like a girl.
Here's Vince a little later, chillin' on Dad's lap. He's still sporting the 'burns, and hopes to grow mutton chops when he gets older.
2 comments:
hang in there with the breast feeding, he will get it. He looked like he was doing pretty well for day three when I saw him. Iman was the exact same way. Red in the face and frustrated with the breast and loved the bottle, My suggestion is to pump to get your supply up and to ease your mind that he is "getting the goods" and just try to put him to breast as often as your sore nipples can bear it. It really went much better when I could try to feed her before she was starving and screaming. I will bet in two weeks you will wonder what was so hard about it because he will be a rock star. The babies B and I would love to stop by anytime you are up for it, we still have some newborn diapers for you (we must have bought 2000 of them)
i'm so glad you guys keep your blog up to date! it's great to keep up this way.
stay strong with the breast feeding. isabel (nick's mom) has mentioned her frustration that people don't talk about the difficulties of breast feeding. i'm sure that once he starts, he won't be able to get enough of your boobs. :-)
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