Easter Loveliness

We have just wrapped up a lovely Easter weekend. Most of it was spent at Drew's parents house, eating and drinking. Just what every holiday should be made of ;)

Ellie had the cutest Easter dress and since it was too stormy to hunt for eggs outside she never had to cover it up with a winter coat!

Ahhh, spring in the Pacific Northwest. I saw a little girl on the ferry today all dressed up in a pretty Easter dress. But she was also wearing a turtle neck, leggings, gum boots and a winter hat.

Our egg hunt was held in the warmth of the indoors and Ellie loved it. She discovered the eggs were filled with candied apricots so she was very interested in finding them.

And here she is showing off her sign for bunny . . . hop hop hop

Analog . . . what??

So Drew has been working at his new job for 3 whole weeks now.

And I can't even tell you how wonderful it is.

But I'm going to try! . . .

The best part is his schedule. He works 10 hour days Mon-Thurs. Which means he has every Friday off! And 3 day weekends every week!!

By Wednesday evening it seems as though the work week is just getting going BUT tomorrow is the last day until the weekend!

And, boy, have dinner table conversations changed lately.

It used to be a mournful discussion about what sacrifices we will have to make in order for Drew to "climb the ladder" in his field to get a good job.

Will we have to move to Bellingham? Will we ever be settled?

Now, we can sit back and relax. All those questions are answered.

However, nothing compares to the happiness on Drew's face when he walks in the door each evening.

He can't wait to tell me about how he installs a ??pressure sensor?? on the Tolt River Dam today.

I smile and nod as if I know what the heck the word ??analog?? means.

But having a husband who loves his job . . . I know what THAT means!

Return to normalcy

It's been awhile since my last post and because I haven't been well enough to string a few words together into a sentence.

The 'cold of many symptoms', as I have named it, hit the Nobles last week. And everyone but Ellie and MaPop have been coughing and aching and sneezing and dripping!

We are looking forward to a return to normalcy this week.

I am SOOO glad Ellie didn't catch this nasty cold.

Here she is eating her weight in vegetable soup.

Balloon Love

Ellie has been having a great time with some balloons left over from my friends wedding.

Her tongue wound is healing and she is nursing again!

Unfortunatly, I think my milk supply has suffered and I don't think it will be long until she self-weans.

It's just one more way my baby is growing up . . .

Boo Boo

Ellie's poor little tongue seems to be healing. She hasn't even seemed that bothered by it, except for a slight increase in fussiness.

The biggest bummer is that she is refusing to nurse. I was definitely not ready to wean. I was really enjoying nursing a toddler. It's the only time she really relaxes and snuggles into my arms. I'm hoping her boo-boo will heal fast and she will want to nurse again.

As you can see, her obsession with shoes remains. And now it's the bigger the better . . . Daddy's work boats (I mean boots :) certainly fit the bill!

Signs

Since Ellie seems to be taking her dear sweet time to start talking so we have been working on sign language a lot lately.

Here are her favorites . . . all animal related, of course.

Today, was also a big day because Ellie got her first big boo-boo. She fell off the slide at the park and bit her tongue. It's a pretty good gash and we thought she might need stitches but a friend who is a pediatrician took a look and thought it would heal on it's own. Thank goodness.

The biggest problem was getting her to stick out her tongue so we could get a good look at it.

Luckily, we just have to ask her "What's the sign for doggie?"

And she sticks out her tongue and pants.

Stay Calm Mom

OK, here I go on another one of my rants . . .

Did you happen to read the article in The Atlantic this month?

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200904/case-against-breastfeeding

Or see the author on the Today show

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/#29718430

"The Case Against Breastfeeding" by Hanna Rosin.

Yes, just the title gets my blood boiling.

The kicker of this article is that the writer, with no medical background, claims that there is NO significant research-based evidence to back up the recommendations that breast milk has serious health benefits for moms and babies.

Her article skims the literature and completely ignores the 2005 statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics which supports the value of breastfeeding. The policy references over 200 articles which meet scientific standards for accuracy and was rigorously reviewed by the medical sections for breastfeeding and nutrition.

Of course, I am pro-breastfeeding . . . duh . . . I'm a lactation nurse. And I have also reviewed the research and believe there is no doubt that human milk is the perfect nutrition for human babies.

But I also know how hard it can be to breastfeed.

We don't live in a breastfeeding culture.

- Mom's often don't have the support system to help them through initial hurdles because their moms or friends didn't breastfeed

- Very few hospitals in the US abide by the World Health Organizations Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative and inappropriately give and promote formula even when it is the mothers choice to breastfeed

- We have inadequate maternity leave and paid time off for women in this country! It is extremely difficult for moms to return to work in as little as 6 weeks and continue to exclusively breastfeed for the recommended 6 months!!

We should tell the news outlets like the Atlantic and the Today show that we don't want breastfeeding to be another issue that divides women!!

We need to stop debating the benefits of breastfeeding and start supporting the changes needed in health care and the workplace so women can have the choices and options they need to design their own mode of parenting!

Check out http://www.momsrising.org/

Ellie is telling me I need to relax, take a deep breath and do some yoga with her!!