Traveling, Growing Pains, and a dose of Honesty

August 2, 2013

Excited to finally have a chance to link up with my friend Hallie who is one of my favorite reads.

1. Fashion or Fret? Debating whether or not to attend fashion week this fall.  I have a few things I am trying to cram into a quick 48 hour trip. I keep hemming and hawing over leaving a new baby  for a few days (with Gabe). Is this crazy ? You tell me. Breastfeeding would require me to pump through the trip…any experience with this? I just don’t think bringing him is wise in the busy city of NYC.

verily mag

2. #VerilyMoment. I received my first issue of Verily Magazine in the mail yesterday. I read it cover to cover….laughed, teared up, was encouraged, and challenged in good ways. Friends, you need to get yourself a copy ASAP. The girls behind this magazine are truest gems in every sense of the word.

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(image source)

3. When in doubt, ask social media. I have been struggling with finding out what has been making Max so uncomfortable. Poor baby just wants to be snuggled close to mama at all times. I am perfectly okay with this:) I do need to do simple things that require two hands sometimes however…  We realized it had to be reflux of some sort. So I turned to the great world of social media to ask what their best solutions were for reflux. (“I just want to send this cosmic question into the void…”) The answers came pouring in and now I feel as if I see a light at the end of the sleep deprivation;) If you need some good solutions yourself, just read this comment thread. So thank you cosmic void friends of social media….you come through once again.

4. The fiction world of pinterest. Sometimes due to the fact that I am usually over tired (see #3) with an overflowing inbox, I avoid reality by diving into the fiction world of pinterest, and dream about my someday fiction house with fiction closet and the fiction food I will never make in my kitchen. Okay maybe I will attempt a fraction. Just a quick look at my boards will show you the amount of time I waste as a result of late night attempts to escape anxiety. Feel free to feed my vice and send me more ideas to pin!…

sneakers

5. Sending you on to greener pasteurs. I love discovering a good new read. Here are a few blogs I have enjoyed getting lost in this week:
Penny Weight
Oh Dear Drea
Workday Weekend
Sugar and Cloth
Joy Prouty

And you? Share your recent reads! We are off to enjoy the last day of Gabe’s summer vacay.

Happy weekend!

 

 

 

 

Leave a Comment

  • You know yourself, Gabe, and Max the best, so you will make the best decision for your family about traveling with or without him!

    I (being emotionally pregnant) don’t think I could leave my newborn babe…I did pump a lot with Paul and that side of things worked fine, so I will pray for you to have guidance in making your decision! I wish I could just join you and hold Max whenever you couldn’t!

    • So true Katie thank you! I know I wouldn’t be able to leave him more than a few hours. Not a matter of is it possible, but more because I am so attached to him:)

  • The above comment said it best… You know your family and what would work best for you! With that being said, I couldn’t make the trip. I am all about making things as easy on myself and my family as possible, and for me a trip would add unnecessary stress! But everyone is different… You may need a break to relieve some stress!

    • Yes you are right! NYC with a newborn was stressful last time around and I even had help! Will most likely see if I can swing a quick weekend trip.

  • Vanessa Irons

    I don’t have babies so can’t completely empathize, but I would think the only options are 1) skip the trip. Or 2) leave the baby with your husband. I can’t imagine taking a newborn to NYC by myself, plus it’s Fashion Week! Gabe woulda manage fine 😉

  • Kris Chatfield

    I would have a hard time, myself, leaving a baby that little if I was nursing – I nursed all 4 exclusively and it just presents some challenges if you are not with them for a lengthy period of time. Is there anyone that could go with you and help you with him? If not, you CAN do it – you just need to do a couple of things. First, you need to be sure you’ve pumped enough ahead of time to leave him with breast milk bottles, AND that he’ll willingly take the bottle. When you’re away from him, you need to be sure to pump at regular intervals, similar to the intervals that he’s currently nursing. This will help keep your supply up while you’re gone. You can either “pump and dump”, or store the milk – if you have access to a refrigerator or freezer while you are in NYC. You’ll have to transport it back on the plane, so you’ll need frozen ice packs and a cooler. Your supply may drop slightly over the two days, but it will pick right back up once you’re home and nursing. Because you won’t be with him for 2 days, it could also impact fertility/NFP tracking. Just an FYI on that one!

  • Aw you are so beautiful! I love your blog and all your realism. I need to check out the thread on reflux because Andy, our first, suffered from this for his first four to five months I would say. I wanted so badly to find a solution. The only way either of us would get any sleep is if I would lay at a vertical angle on the sofa with him laying straight up on my chest. Other then that, we went through about 20+ bibs a day and truly suffered through it daily with him. Everyone gave us so much great advice that never seemed to work – it was just a matter of him developing those muscles to teach him how to swallow. I realize my experience is definitely not an encouraging one, but it made him quite the fighter, and getting to know his personality at 19 months old – he picks himself pretty easily.

    As far as pumping while on work trips, I’ve done this many times. Just stick to the schedule and using private bathrooms was constantly on my radar. Plus, whenever my coworkers would see me with my pump bag on a mission to find a private place, it almost becomes a team effort on the hunt to make it happen. For Fashion Week in Lincoln Center, they’ve got tons of bathrooms and many restaurants right in the neighborhood (PJ Clarks, Starbucks, etc.). Also, St. Pauls Catholic Church is just a few buildings down from the Lincoln Center, so perhaps they’re community center will be open during the day. I wish we still lived across the street and you could stay with me!!! Hope this helps! God bless you Anna!

    • Katy, you are so sweet to leave this helpful info!
      Luckily Max doesn’t have spitting up issues…I think he has what is called “silent reflux”…just fussy and uncomfortable. I can sympathize so much better now with mothers who have been through colic, acid reflux, etc. Takes so much strength to get through!

      And for the cool facts on NYC! I am thinking its a little to early this september but will need this info next go round when he is a little older. Thanks again! x

  • If you do decide to go, I think 48 hours of pumping is doable, as long as your body really does respond well to a pump (and you have a double-electric pump because otherwise you will have such a terrible hand cramp at the end that you won’t be able to carry your bags). I just had a quick 24-hour getaway from my 8mo twins and had to pump the whole time and was REALLY ready for them to nurse when I got back home! Just be prepared for possible plugged ducts/mastitis if you’re prone – pumps are nowhere near as efficient at milk removal than a baby 🙂

  • You can totally take that trip! Plus…you might be begging for a break by that time! I did an extended weekend trip to Vegas with ‘the girls’…baby stayed at home. I just pumped every few hours…it all worked out!!

    April

  • Thought: perhaps a (quick) weekend away for Fashion week will recharge you a bit and give you a moment to be YOU without kids and such? I know whenever I get a chance to get away I come back missing them like crazy, but ready to be a good mom and better rested. Just a thought:) P.S. If you had a travel size pump, could you duck into rest rooms and such? I know breast milk can go awhile without refrigeration.

    • 🙂 Thanks Meagan. I have done these trips before and they are really important for biz reasons but also really nice to get away once in a while. I don’t think I will be able to bring myself to leave little Max even for a day yet but when hoping there will be another opportunity in the spring for me to scoot away for a bit:)

  • you know i don’t know nothing bout birthing no babies. or leaving/not leaving them. but selfishly, i want you to go to Fashion Week…because i’ll be there!

    so there’s my two cents. (:

  • Oh, that’s a tough call. Only you and your family can really weigh the advantages vs the stress. My little one didn’t take well to the bottle, so pumping and leaving weren’t an option – we were, well, glued together! Honestly, when I can’t make up my mind, I pray for the right decision to just sort of happen 🙂 Best of luck!

  • I might be too attached and not a good reference point, but I would not leave a newborn… pumping or no pumping. I would be dying inside the whole time and worrying too much for it to be worth it. But that’s my personal emotional reaction. I just would not be able to do it.

    • Oh I am totally attached which is probably why I won’t be able to go through with it, but luckily Gabe is so good with the kids and likes having time with them by himself since they are usually so clingy to mama;)

  • If it’s something that’s truly important to you, I would say yes. Babies can always benefit from some good quality snuggle time with Daddy. My son, Finn, is 18 months and we are still nursing strong! I recently was away from him for a quick overnight for Alt Summit and expressed in the shower that evening. My supply is nowhere near that of what it was when Finny was a newborn, so I could get away with just expressing at night and first thing in the AM. On a side note, I really hate feeling like pumping is something that has to be relegated to a bathroom stall. There’s this post that’s a bit old but a lot of the info still holds true: http://mommypoppins.com/newyorkcitykids/where-to-nurse-in-nyc and Medela even made an iPhone app called iBreastfeed that a friend of mine told me there are nursing friendly lounges listed. Good luck, Anna!

  • If your husband says he can handle it, GO!!! A happy Mom is the best Mom. Missing your children from time time is a GOOD thing. It reminds you just how much you love them. 48 hours will go by in a blink of an eye. It’s important to balance work AND family. Much love!!!

  • i can’t speak to some of the baby pieces, but i do understand the fiction world of pinterest and love how you touched upon that! i am with you – i love to dive into that “i wish it was reality” but it isn’t world.
    kw ladies in navy

  • Oh I hear you all too well with much of this post. My son was really clingy and I never knew why.. but oh boy our relationship has been so close (even though he’s 2) so I’m glad I just enjoyed the snuggles– but I bet it’s more difficult with 3. 🙂

    And I’ve found my self drowned into Pinterest lately, pretending life was as lovely as the pictures I pin!

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