Liberation Day!
Today is Breast Pump Liberation Day! Yesterday was the first day in 9 months that I did not pump at all while being away from Boogie all day. It was awesome. I came back to work when he was 3 months old and vowed to pump breastmilk for him until it just couldn’t be done anymore. Well that time has come.
When I first returned to work I could sit down and pump for 20 minutes and get 15 ounces and I’m not even exaggerating. It was awesome and I was so proud of myself. As time has gone on I’m just not getting nearly enough for even his one measly little 6 ounce bottle at daycare. So I give up. And I’m totally okay with that.
I pumped twice both Monday and Tuesday and walked away with 5 ounces TOTAL. That isn’t even enough for one bottle. Sheesh. That is when I decided it just isn’t worth it anymore. Boog is getting formula (and the occasional frozen milk) now for that one bottle at daycare and during the night if he needs it. That leaves us with three nursing sessions throughout the day (Morning, 11am and before bed). I’m pretty sure I can manage that for at least another month. (Oh yeah, he is 11 months, today.)
I’m lucky that I can leave work and go breastfeed him during the day and that is going to be a hard habit to break after he’s a year old and I don’t have to do it. Part of me will love having my lunch hour back I think but then I do so enjoy my Boog fix in the middle of the day. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.
The breast pump isn’t far away though. In fact it is in my car. Yesterday I brought it in the building but today it stayed in the car. I think I will probably leave at there for a while, just in case. I feel like a small, little step closer to NOT being a pack mule every morning when I leave my house. And that makes me happy!
Congratulations! It’s a great feeling when you get to stop dragging a pump around all day, isn’t it? Just wait until you get to pack it away with no intentions of seening it again until another baby comes along. It’s SO liberating!
I used to go on my lunch hour to nurse Bubba, too, and it was great. He weaned himself at 10 months, so I didn’t even have to make that decision either.
Oh, and you WILL enjoy getting your lunch hours back. But maybe just occasionally you could go see Boog?
Congratulations! I’m so jealous! It must be so nice to not feel like a milking machine.
I’m hoping to go down to 2 pumping sessions a day within the next week or so. The Pumpkin has started having another meal of solids and is down to two bottles a day. I just want to make sure it’s not just a fluke, and then I’ll cut out one of my sessions.
But to cut it out altogether? Sigh… That must feel like heaven!
I remember how that felt when I stop. It was a huge sigh of relief, but a little sadness wrapped up in that emotion as well.
Jillian
Oh how I remember the bliss at not having to pump or haul the black bag. When I was pumping anyone could tell what I was carrying and I would have random strangers in the coffee shop ask me how pumping was going.
Then there was the colleague who barged into my office (I couldn’t lock the door) and after hearing me protest claimed she didn’t mind looking at me but needed me to talk about something. “You couldn’t have used the phone?” I gasped.
[...] but his room. I stopped feeding him on my lunch break but that meant I needed to pump more. The pumping, ugh how I hated the [...]