Tag Archives: breastfeeding

Otitis Media & Pacifier Use: Is there a Link? The Findings & Verdict (Part 2)

IMG_9542Welcome to Part 2 of my post investigating the link between pacifier use and otitis media (OM), a middle ear infection that most commonly affects children and babies. If you want to read Part 1, which explains more of what OM is, and the pros and cons pertaining to pacifier use, click here.

If you’re a regular Little Sproutings reader and/or know myself and/or Jia personally, you’ll know that Jia’s pacifiers have been practically attached to those little pink lips since we introduced them at 3 months old. So, for 19 months to have gone by with only one illness that lasted just two and a half days, I have my doubts about pacifiers pre-disposing infants/toddlers to ear infections. Particularly without pre-existing conditions, such as having an upper respiratory infection (URI), to begin with.

As I said, I have my suspicions. Continue reading “Otitis Media & Pacifier Use: Is there a Link? The Findings & Verdict (Part 2)” »

Weaning from Breastfeeding

Blog Post 5.3.15 Weaning from BF recenteredSo, I was going to delay this topic for an unknown length of time because I wanted to write about other things – like, the nutritional changes breastmilk goes through after your baby is 12 months old, the physiological changes that toddlers undergo to indicate readiness to start potty training, etc. because I planned on nursing Jia until she was 18 months old. 

But, since I’m getting a bit anxious to get my body back to myself I figured – hey – as long as I was reading up on it, may as well write about it!  (And besides, we clocked in an entire 14.5 months of 4 nursing sessions a day.)

First Things First – What’s Recommended? Continue reading “Weaning from Breastfeeding” »

Breastfeeding While Sick

Blog Post 4.4.15 Breastfeeding Sick YellowSo I’ve been scrambling my head trying to come up with a simple topic for this week’s post that didn’t involve lots of researching, since I lost a day this week from Jeff and my wedding anniversary. (He took Monday off so we could stay overnight at National Harbor to celebrate, so I kept thinking I had an extra day) I am also trying to keep track of my ideas for posts as they pop up into my head,  but most of the time that happens when I’m driving or at the grocery store; some place where it’s not that convenient to jot down my thoughts.

So, after being sick twice in 30 days (the first was that nagging and uncomfortable sinus cold-turned bronchitis spiel I had that lasted 10 days at the end of February and then my recent bout with the stomach virus that seems to be going around practically everywhere), I wanted to highlight what I’ve learned from being a breastfeeding mom + being sick.

So here goes…  Continue reading “Breastfeeding While Sick” »

The Best Lactation Cookies You’ll Ever Eat

Blog Post 3.19.15 Best Lactation CookiesSo I was inspired to post this cookie recipe that I deemed on the Little Sproutings Facebook Page as “the best cookies I’ve ever had – even better than DoubleTree Hotel cookies!” after my friend asked for the recipe for her friend who delivered her babies 2.5 months early. I’m not even exaggerating, not even a little bit. They are THE BEST cookies I’ve ever had. They’re the kind that are a little crisp on the outside but soft and gooey on the inside. 

If you are a nursing mom, you more than likely have some intense cravings for goodies in almost all forms – burgers, croissants, huge sandwiches, and let’s be honest – cakes, brownies, cookies, chocolate… So why not make those goodies count toward your milk supply? 

Filled with milk supply-supportive brewer’s yeast, flaxseed, and rolled oats, these cookies pack a good punch of lactation power. There are other supplements you can take to increase your supply, but those (like fenugreek) aren’t evaluated by the FDA and the effects on babies – especially fragile NICU babies – are unknown. However, brewer’s yeast, flaxseed, and rolled oats are safe and I’d been given the OK in the past to donate my pumped milk while having consumed these ingredients. 

(A little on low supply: A lot of new moms think they have a low milk supply, but usually they don’t. If your baby is gaining weight appropriately and on breastmilk alone, you don’t have an issue with supply. For more on that, read KellyMom’s post here. It is not common for moms to have issues with milk supply – nature intended on moms to breastfeed.  There is a lot of propaganda and false information out there about moms having issues with supply – this is purely a money-making tactics of formula companies. Most often it is a latch or supplementation problem, where moms supplement breastfeeding with formula, which tells the body it doesn’t have to make more milk since baby isn’t taking it. 

I have never had an issue with my supply and was patient from the get-go knowing what to expect (only teaspoons amounts of colostrum to start, milk kicking in around 3-4 days postpartum), but I do like my sweets. Why not make them count? Continue reading “The Best Lactation Cookies You’ll Ever Eat” »

Nutrition in a Nutshell for Your Sprout: Infancy

Part 1 Infant Nutrition.1Sorry for the delay in posting this week, I caught a legit real cold for the first time in about 2.5 years and luckily it came on a Friday, which meant Jeff was able to let me off the hook for baby duties. However, this also meant that I wasn’t going to be able to publish a Sproutings Saturday post. The sinus pressure was way too uncomfortable (along with feeling like my head was unattached from my body) for me to write a real post and it wasn’t nearly at the point where I was comfortable publishing it. 

(Quick Jump Links)

Part 2: Nutrition in a Nutshell – Toddler and Pre-Schooler

Part 3: Nutrition in a Nutshell – Children 5 years and Older

About this Post

As a little intro, I wanted to write this post because 1) it was a topic that a couple of my readers suggested, and 2) it really makes me cringe to read all of the bad advice some moms give to other moms on the topic of infant nutrition. I feel like I can justifiably say that this is “bad advice,” because I got my Bachelor’s in Science in Dietetics (nutrition, to the rest of the population) and focused a lot of my undergraduate projects on Maternal, Infant, and Child Nutrition (heck, I even chose my Master’s focus on Maternal and Child Nutrition when I started at UCLA). I’m not saying that I remember everything I learned in college about every phase of infant and child nutrition, but it’s the basis from which I stem off and do my own investigating and writing. 

This series of posts will be divided into: Infancy, Toddler & Pre-School Age, and Child Nutrition 5 & Up because: 1) It’ll take me a substantial amount of time to cover nutrition for infancy through 5 and up – there is an overwhelming amount of information on nutrition for each group; and 2) It’ll be easier for you guys to click to whichever post is more relevant for you when you read it.  Continue reading “Nutrition in a Nutshell for Your Sprout: Infancy” »

What’s She Doing Wednesday: “Little Toddles”

WSDW 2.4.15 Little Toddles“Little Toddles.” That’s Jeff’s new nickname for Jia, along with “Boogie-Boo” because she is always dancing or boogying. 🙂 

  • Says “Up” when she goes up the stairs and when she is standing up after a diaper change on the table, mimicking the word “diaper” pretty well, too. 
  • Says “Shoes” uh oh, this could be a problem haha… Saying “Mei-Mei” is getting better. When she sees Mei Mei enter the room, she actually says her name. 
  • She excitedly digs into her toy box and can spend a while just sifting through it. 
  • Can feed her Chomp and Count Dino toy (can’t quite push the food far enough into his mouth to the point where he recognizes the food, but she understands where the Dino’s mouth is and tries to feed him)
  • Free stands for longer lengths of time while holding something, does this more frequently nowadays. If she doesn’t realize you’re not holding onto her she stands for a decent length of time. 
  • Throws tantrums and pieces of food when she gets frustrated. 
  • She’s VERY vocal, I love hearing her voice. She vocalizes all the time, especially when she reaches to try to get something, it’s like she’s talking her way through it. It’s so endearing, I love it.
  • Points meaningfully at items that she wants. For example, when she’s eating she points to her sip cup because she’s thirsty. 
  • Loves pears (this is good, because even if she loved a bunch of vegetables, meat, and all sorts of fruit when it was pureed, if you’ve been keeping up with these WSDW posts, you’ll know that it’s a gamble on what she wants now), ZUCCHINI (I chopped into small pieces, put on the stove in a pan with olive oil, sprinkled with thyme and cinnamon… it worked. And it was better-received when it had been refrigerated!), and (de-skinned) mandarin oranges but *sigh* she may be tired of deli turkey! What now?! That was my old faithful backup meal that I knew she would take. Well that was a good three week run. 
  • Her feet are ticklish! So cute watching her smile and pull back her feet when I tickle her. She’s especially ticklish in the bathtub haha! 

Continue reading “What’s She Doing Wednesday: “Little Toddles”” »

The Gift of Milk Giving

milk giftingFa La La La La!! ‘Tis the season for giving, so I thought, hey this would be an appropriate topic to cover!

I very recently ran into a new mom (Hi, Christa!) at Buy Buy Baby who isn’t able to feed her newborn breastmilk due to a protein intolerance. She expressed her disappointment that her frozen milk is going unused. So, I suggested milk banking. After voicing her interest in the topic, I mentioned Little Sproutings (of course) and the post I’d written earlier that mentioned milk banking (“Boobienomics: Nature’s Supply & Demand). One of my loyal Sprout readers also suggested the topic, so how could I not dedicate a post to something I feel so proud to have been a part of?

A quick bit about my experience: I donated almost 600 ounces of milk to The King’s Daughters Milk Bank, in Norfolk VA after we realized we couldn’t feed any of my pumped milk to Jia. If you recall, we went through a process of eliminating dairy and soy from my diet (see: My Little Soy-Free Dairy-Free Sprout) so the milk I’d pumped couldn’t be given to her. I had a freezer almost entirely filled with frozen bags of milk (and no room left for food)! The milk bank I contacted made the process quick and painless!

So for those of you who have been lucky to have a supply like I was/am, your little one is past the point of breastfeeding and you’ve got a stash, or if your baby isn’t able to drink the milk you have saved up, here’s some info about a wonderful thing you can do with your liquid gold! Continue reading “The Gift of Milk Giving” »