interview: BitchinStitches411

Boobie Beanie

Meet Sara, the mama behind the shop BitchinStitches411, maker of fabulous boobie beanies for infants and adults as well as other bits of crocheted fun! 


What was the inspiration behind the boobie beanie?
I was inspired to make the boobie beanie after nursing my daughter in public a few times and getting a few people who were unintentionally staring. I thought, how funny would it be to give them something to look at. Pop a boob hat on my daughters head and see who notices! I got some great responses, all positive! :)

What are your thoughts on nursing in public, and those that think mothers should be covered up (or not nurse in public at all)?
Nursing in public is a very natural thing for a mother to do. Your baby needs to eat when she is hungry! I have always covered up because I am more comfortable that way but I think women should nurse however they feel comfortable, covered or not. The media is saturated in half naked women and no one bats an eyelash. But you put a nursing mother on a bench in a store and its a big deal? I sure don't think so!

Tell us about your own breastfeeding experience.
Before my daughter was born I was determined to nurse at least a year but when she finally came we had a VERY rocky start! I had very sore and cracked nipples and I had a hard time making enough milk. After a lot of practice, Fenugreek, and tears (both mine and my daughters) we were finally successful! But, honestly, it was about 9 weeks until we really had the hang of it.

Do you have a personal nursing in public story?
I have nursed in public many times and have never really had a bad experience. No particular story stands out but i did get some chuckles and double takes with the boobie beanie on my daughter head!

Any advice for mamas that want to start their own shop or business?
Take it slow. Start small. I went from having one or two items on my Etsy site to 19 currently. I have so many more ideas for other hats i would like on the site but I am almost overwhelmed with orders now so i dont really want to add to it. I always get order out within one to three days, though!

Thanks Sara! Check out her boobie beanies, Brobee and Foofa hats, baby apparel and more at her Etsy shop: BitchinStitches411.

review & interview: achessmore design

Vintage Birthday Invite and Tags- Dear Little Dear

Baby S is about to turn one! Holy crap, where did the time go? 

And of course, as time just seems to fly by, I always hit the point where I say to myself, Crap. Um, I really need to get birthday invites out NOW. And this is her only first birthday ever and it needs to be super duper special! I don't want some crap from the dollar store written in my crappy handwriting forever enshrined in the baby book!

Luckily, I happened across AChessmore Design, a cute little online shop run by graphic designer, illustrator and work-at-home mama Amie Chessmore. 

This is the adorable invite (at left) that Amie designed to look fabulous for years to come in the baby book (of course, this is the generic version- I don't want to post our invite and have every crazy on the net knocking on our door asking for cake! But you get the idea.).

The best part: for a wait-til-the-last minute mom like me, Amie makes it easy. I picked my invitation, sent her the info that needed to be on it, and she quickly sent me a PDF file of my invite and thank you tags for the goody bags. We printed them on our own printer (they look great!), addressed them, and sent them as postcards. One-two-three-party! 


*Note- the post office has changed their definition of a postcard (seriously). A 5x7 will not qualify for postcard stamps, so if you want to pay a lesser stamp charge, use a 4x6 size (which Amie can provide!).

Amie, mother of two girls (A, almost 5, and V, almost 2), shares some of her wisdom and experience as a breastfeeding and work at home mama:

Dinosaur Birthday Invitation and
Matching Thank You Note-
Rock and Roar

Tell us about your personal breastfeeding experience:
I always knew I would nurse my babies and I never had any worries about doing so even though I heard so many stories of struggles and was given so many papers on proper latching and clinics in my area that would help. As I hoped, my babies nursed instantly and without any issues. In fact, besides the initial soreness the physical aspect of it was pretty seamless. What I didn’t anticipate was how I would mentally feel about it all.

supply issues- again!

Ugh. Here we are again. 

Those of you that follow Breastfed on Facebook already know this- I've been having some supply issues. Issues so bad that on Monday I had to drive home in the middle of work to drop milk off at home (I only work 6 hours a day!!!) and on Tuesday I had to skip my after work yoga class to go straight home. I was not happy about this- my yoga class is my one "me-time" activity of the week!

What happened? My theories:

• I had stopped eating breakfast, and was maybe eating a little less all the way around.
• Stress- my life has felt a little out of control with so many things to do lately, and these supply issues just created even more stress.
• Vacation- Last week I had three days off of work. Yay, I thought, no need to pump! That might have been a huge mistake.
• Pump problems- One of my flanges seems to have a little crack in it. Is the motor in my pump going as well?
• Baby S seems to be having a growth spurt and eating even more over the past couple of weeks. Maybe there is less pumped milk because she is eating it all before I can pump it?

supply issues

I have supply issues. 

I think when most people say this, they are referring to one thing: that they don't have enough milk. This, however, is not my issue. I'm not worried about whether Baby S is getting enough to eat. I know that if she doesn't get enough in one feeding, she'll feed again every half an hour or so until she feels satisfied (sometimes this goes on all night!).

My issue is the constant fluctuation of my pumped breast milk supply. Some days when I pump at work I get a full five ounces. Other days I am lucky to get two. Same at home- some days a bunch, other days none. It's frustrating. I never know what I'm going to get. Will I have to spend all evening pumping for the next day? Will I be able to go to bed early if I want to and not worry about having to wake up at the crack of dawn to pump? Day to day, I'm hoping, guessing, and waiting to see.

the pumping sagas

I am writing this as I pump- in my office! This is the first time in two babies that this has happened.

Our office is crazy. I share it with a co-worker. Add our assistant, our youth workers, and the million teachers and students that come in and out.. obviously not an ideal place to pump. We have a bathroom, but it is so small that I would be almost sitting on the toilet. And as we all know, pumping in the bathroom should be avoided at all costs!

But today is lovely. Our assistant is out of town, and my co-worker took a well-deserved afternoon off. I covered the windows in the door with some purple paper, locked it, turned the lights low, and here I am- sitting at my desk with my top off, pumping away!

It feels great not to infringe on someone else and take their space in order to pump, no matter how generous they may be with it. I wish that I could do this every day- but I'll still be happy doing it just this once!

pumping sagas

What I would rather be doing.

School started today, ushering in a new period of my pumping saga.

Since I share an office, pumping there is out of the question. You would think, working in a school with a ton of other women that have had babies that we would have a dedicated pumping spot. Unfortunately, since schools are overcrowded and space is at a premium, we do not.

Fortunately, I work with an administrator who is sympathetic to the issue of pumping. Last year she allowed me to use the conference room space. This year, however, the head secretary has moved into that space. What to do now?

Again, I am lucky. When I spoke to my administrator about finding a new space, she emphatically stated that under no circumstances was I to use a bathroom. She offered her own office until we found a spot. She also said that she would make it a priority to find me a spot- which she did! She actually sought me out today (!!!!) to let me know that the head secretary offered to let me continue to use the room that she moved into to pump.

the pumping sagas

Today was one of those "focus on the positive" days.

For "field trip fridays" at work we took the kids to a chlorinated, chaotic swimming pond way out in the suburbs. The temperature hit darn close to 100 degrees today, and the place was packed. Since my assistant was out today, I rode the school bus with the group, meaning that I would be forced to find a place to pump twice during the seven hours that we were there.

I figured that there had to be at least one family changing room or private bathroom that had a lock on the door and an electrical outlet. Right?

open system vs. closed system pumps

Thinking about buying a Medela pump?

If so, read this post from the blog Just West of Crunchy that outlines the problems with Medela.

I used a Medela Pump-in-Style Advanced pump with my first baby. The first one that I bought had motor problems after a month, but Medela sent me a replacement pump within two days. After that it worked great for the remainder of the time that I used it (and I was pumping nine times a day!)

Other problems: the membranes ripped after about a month, so I had to continually replace them. Most disturbing: the tubing started to grow mold in it, and there was no way to wash it out. Medela sent me one free pack of new tubing, but I found out later that they would only do this during the initial 3 month warranty.

It was only later that I read the above mentioned article and realized that the Medela pumps are "open system" pumps. Meaning:

visiting

I got to breastfeed at work today!

We were on a field trip to the pool today. Earlier this week I had emailed the director of the pool to see if there was somewhere that I could pump- hopefully a room that was private and somewhat clean, with an electrical outlet. She was super helpful and was able to find two possible places, one being the employee bathroom and the other one a really nice family changing room. She had told another female employee, who was waiting to show me the places when we arrived.

runnin'

Today looked to be one of those days.

Only 3 ounces of milk pumped in the fridge. Toddler B had a doctors appointment this morning, so I was looking forward to nursing Baby S during the appointment, then running home, eating-nursing-pumping in 15 minutes and rushing off to work, which today is a training that is about half an hour away. Runnin'!

Suprise! Partner agreed to take Toddler B to the doctors so I could nurse quietly and not rush before work.

Bigger surprise! Baby S ate, then fell into a beautiful nap. Alone. Score! Now I have lunch simmering on the stove, and a little time to myself. Got the pump going as we speak.

We can leave the runnin' for later.

pumping

Article: Some great advice on pumping from Jennifer Thorson- Doula. Did you know how the speed and suction strength knobs on your pump worked? Apparently, neither did I. According to Thorson, do this to get three let-downs per pumping session in less time:

"Get comfortable. Attach the pump and turn it on, making sure that the suction is not too strong for comfort. Set the speed relatively high. Try to relax. 


Once your milk has let-down, meaning you can see milk squirting into the pump, reduce the suction speed. Continue pumping at low speed until the amount of milk flowing into the pump decreases. This is one let-down. 

best part of the day

Lately, my favorite part of the day is when I come home from work.

I get out of the car, stressed out, slightly (or very) tired, hungry, and dreading what I might see upstairs.

Will the house look like a tornado hit it? Are the dishes piled up in the sink? Did hubby make dinner or is he waiting for me to do it? Is Baby S having a mini-meltdown?

I come upstairs, hang my keys and bag up, wash my hands and feet, change out of my work clothes, and brush my teeth. Sometimes I can do this leisurely (Toddler B is eating dinner, Baby S is amusing herself quietly) and sometimes I do this stressfully at a mad speed (Both kids are melting down).

Next comes the good part: kisses and hugs to Toddler B. Then I pick up Baby S and sit down on the couch. Those moments of cuddling and feeding make my whole day worthwhile. If she is super hungry, she latches on and feeds hungrily. If she is not so hungry, she still latches on for a bit for the comfort, then spends some time rubbing her face in my breast and smiling.

Usually she then falls asleep, cuddled into me, and I get to spend some quiet moments just being with her.

The rest of the day might be crazy, loud, and stressful, but I live for these moments when it all washes away, and it is just us, on the couch, belly to belly, together.