Tag Archives: motherhood

Smartphones are for ME-TIME!

As a newbie mommy, I did not realize that me-time will be one scarce luxury. All the more if you are committed to breastfeeding, you feel like a milk machine that needs to function every 2-3 hours. In short, with the demands of child care, a mommy has very slim chance to do things she would normally do. So shopping, visiting salons, eating out or hanging out with friends are very limited or even impossible.

Thank goodness for technology and the smartphone. Internet browsing, and social media give moms the ME-TIME at the convenience of their available time when babies are sleeping or nursing. The internet enabled gadgets like the tablets, smartphone, has allowed moms to be connected with the world even if reality is they are stuck at home. It allows us to slip out of reality momentarily and like and comment on facebook posts and instagram photos. Also without having to go through a bulky laptop, I can easily research my queries about my worries, my issues, and the encouragement needed about my child care issues.

When nursing my baby for 15 to 45 mins, I find it most helpful to getaway from the boring stare-on-the-wall to reading blogs, news and checking on friends and family instead. I have found myself and another mom actively liking and commenting on facebook at 3am! Obviously we were awake because we were feeding our babies. The smart gadgets help us stay awake while we are nursing our babes… And because the smartphone is small, easy to hold with the hand, and light, it makes it the most easy gadget to have near the bed.

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Whats great is also the loads of application available for download on your smart gadget. One of the applications I enjoy the most is the bible and you can download it from http://www.youversion.com. This allows me to have quiet time despite the hectic and demanding schedule of a mom. Indeed, I consider this such a pleasure to have this smart gadgets that allows me to have ME-TIME. It really is a blessing and such a great time to be a mom with all this technology!

Separation anxiety!

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I work for an international telecom company for 12 years already. For the first time in a long time, the company decided to hold a sales kick-off for the entire sales force of the company in Macao. To some its the most exciting experience to look forward to. In all honesty, I felt kindda torn about it because for the first time I will be apart from my little one.

I am an exclusive breastfeeding mom. I plan to be one until my son decides he is ready to wean himself. The dilemma I had was how to be able to prepare to be apart from my son for one week!

Since I knew that my trip was in July, beginning April I started to save about 2-3 oz of breast milk each day. I would store in bpa free plastics and freeze it in the freezer. I would label each plastic the date I expressed it and the volume.

I also began observing my baby’s schedule. His daily waking hour, his daily eating time, his sleeping schedule, his bathing and playing time, and his milk drinking periods. What was difficult to tell was how much milk he was drinking from me at night because it is straight from the breast. So I “guess-timated” because it was pretty hard to measure.

I also began to pray to prepare my baby and myself for that particular week. I prayed that my son would be okay, and he would be able to sustain a week without me, to have enough milk, and to be accident free. Most of all I prayed for me to be okay. Mind you… I have not been away from my baby for more than 6 hours for the entire 6 months of his existence! So this was a huge deal for me.

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So before I left, I saved about 90oz of frozen milk packed in containers according to chronological order. I made a schedule for yaya Jovy to follow. I was also super grateful to my sister-in-law, Pria for staying in The province to oversee Joshua for me.

I took the night flight out to so I could stay as long as I could with my baby. I was able to breastfeed him and I left him in a happy playful mood. But that flight gave me butterflies in my tummy from all that anxiety of leaving. That night and every night away from home, I found it difficult to sleep because I was not used to sleeping by myself. Weird as it may sound but I felt something was missing so all my sleep were light and stressful.

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The sad part about that week was the fact that I could not store and bring home the milk I would express while in Macao. So it was a “pump and dump” week. I felt so sad when my breast milk was being thrown away. I guess my only consolation was thIs thought “I’ll get to eat and drink all the food and drinks I have refrained from all these months! Hello spicy food, hello coffee and tea, and hello wine!”

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I had to trust that while I am away, Joshua was in good hands, had enough milk and food, had a schedule of sleeping, eating, playing and bathing that my helpers were following. Most of all thank you Lord for technology whereby I see photos and communicate with my baby. I had to remind myself God is with us and He is the ultimate protector and provider of Joshua.

It was time to also let my hair down and have fun! It was also good for me to engage in learning and applying concepts at work. It was also an awesome experience to socialize with other team members from all over the globe.

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At the end of that long week, all I wanted to do was go home to my family. After all our sessions, I took the next flight out which happens to be at night. When I got to Manila I had a 4 hour layover and took the first flight in the morning to General Santos. It was a tiring trip but was the best decision to travel that way because I could not wait to hug and snuggle my baby and husband. It was perfect timing too because my baby was down to his last milk stash.

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I don’t think I can probably go on a trip away from my baby for a while. But it was a good learning experience for me. I learned that Separation Anxiety is not a myth. It is real!

Mommy Boo-boos

Its no surprise that mothers have their fair share of funny boo-boos in raising their children. All the more for the first time mothers! I am writing this to share these light moments of learning with minutes of stress in between!

Oh No! No Sleeping Baby!

After 9 months of not having caffeine in my diet because of pregnancy, I started to miss sipping tea. Joshua was probably 2 months old, and I was entertaining a friend at home. I offered her tea, and I drank a cup too. Nothing harmful, it was nice and relaxing feeling until I breastfed my son. Boom! I saw my little infant suddenly on an upbeat mood with jumpy behavior. My baby passed his usual sleeping time (because at that age babies should be sleeping a lot) and was wide awake. After a couple hours, he was tired and could not sleep. He started to cry and whine! It was terribly stressful for me, because nothing could soothe him. It was really the caffeine that he drank through my breast milk! It takes about 6 hours to take out the caffeine from the system of a baby. When your baby non-stop cries, it feels like forever! I learned a very valuable lesson that day and have kept myself caffeine-free!

Baby, I spice up your life!

At 6 months old, solid foods just become another exciting part of a growing baby. As an excited mom to introduce food, I started with squash. Yes I kept the squash in the equation while adding other vegetables such as carrots, sayote, string beans. I kept the squash in the diet for 1 month and a half, eaten twice a day (during lunch and dinner)… The end result, I have a healthy baby with a yellow nose, yellow fingertips and toes! Hahaha, and mind you, it does not fade that easily!

Still on solid food, our pediatrician suggested to put some beef broth on the vegetables I was feeding Joshua. It was a brilliant idea because the bland flavor of the squash can now have a better taste. So, I was diligent to ask our cook to give me soup from his Tinola. He obliged to my request and so he gathered the very last of the soup of that Tinola in a bowl. I was so excited, I placed the vegetables in the blender and added the soup. It was a perfect blend. So I began feeding my son, and he ate. But starting the third spoon, he would take the food and cry right after. I wondered what was wrong. So I gave him milk and kept feeding. He would drink milk and stop crying, and after taking a spoon of food, he would cry. The funny part was we kept feeding, and he kept eating and crying. He finished the entire bowl! Later, I made another batch with the same soup. This time, I tried it. It was only then I realized why he was crying… The food was slightly spicy because of the large chili placed in the Tinola. My son had his first spicy food! I was laughing at the same time thinking, I was a bad mommy for not checking. The only blessing is, now Joshua does not mind a bit of spice in his food.

Oh, and the other boo-boo had to do with me trying to remove the squash from the diet of Joshua. Instead, I decided to replace squash with potatoes. So I had potatoes, sayote, malunggay, string beans, broccoli in his new mix for his lunch and dinner. The problem was I was putting more potatoes in the mix. In about 3 days of that new diet, my son had the most difficult time pushing out his bowel. He was crying in pain and he was really constipated with very hard bowel. I had to soothe him with milk as he was pushing because he was in so much pain. After researching the causes of constipation, I learned that starch causes constipation. It was the potatoes! From that day forward, I took out potatoes from his diet until he is more mature to digest that kind of starch. Wow, had I known, I would have saved him from that pain.

Going Paperless

My son now is interested with so many things. He actually is so curious that almost anything he puts in his mouth. So we try to put away things that might be dirty away from him. One evening, I had him with me on our bed. He was playing with the things on the bed including my newly opened citibank bill. So I left him because he does like looking at pictures. I was busy texting when suddenly I see him chewing something. The paper ad of citibank had a rip. So I opened my sons mouth and right at the roof of his mouth I saw a large piece of that paper ad. I tried to scoop it and it was so stuck in his mouth. We were both struggling! I was trying to get the paper out, and he was trying to get my hands out of his mouth. I was in panic mode because I could not get the paper out and it was getting soaked with his saliva so it was getting more stuck at the roof of his mouth. I had to ask assistance from his nanny to hold him so I can remove the paper. I finally got the paper out but he bit a portion of the paper and chewed and swallowed it. I was screaming his name “Joshua, NOOO…” But it was gone. Totally gone. Joshua had his first paper ad. What else can I do?

Now, I am trying to get Joshua away from paper, because his first attempt was not his last.

When I think about these boo-boos, I laugh. These have become tools for me to learn how to be a better mom to my baby. No mother is perfect, but a little humor makes motherhood a lighthearted fun journey.

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Motherhood made a Healthier Me

Before pregnancy, I was one unhealthy woman. I was lazy to exercise and I let go of my healthy diet and got my body accustomed to junk food. As skinny as I was before pregnancy, my lipid profile showed that my cholesterol was out of control. I also skipped breakfast, did a lot of midnight snacking, slept late (around 12mn to 2am). Talk about major bad habits, I had them!

The only thing I was proud of was that I did not smoke (I quit this one about 10 yrs ago), and also I did not really drink alcohol except on special occasions. But on the overall I was not healthy. Then, unexpectedly, I get 2 lines on the pregnancy test. This means fixing up my life. Now that I am providing nourishment to a baby in my womb, it made me decide to drastically change my lifestyle.

Healthy Me during Pregnancy

Healthy Me during Pregnancy

The good thing was my body started to crave for breakfast and so I had that back on my diet. Also fried food made me sick, so this made me want boiled food, steamed dishes, proteins and vegetables. I had to discipline my body to avoid junk food. Though I wont lie that I had several occasions I cheated. Ok… it was with Cheetos and chocolates (mommies admit that you can relate!). But I discovered that fruits replaced these cravings.

Since I got pregnant at a much later age and having no exercise, I really felt the age of my body. I decided to do yoga for pregnant women at home. That helped support my body for the weight, but really the back aches were no longer preventable on the last trimester. In my wishful thinking, I could have been more prepared for the pregnancy. But who knew I would even be pregnant after 7 years of waiting!

There were also foods that a pregnant woman is refrained from eating… Such as raw food – fish or meat (sashimi to prosciutto) because it can cause bacteria that can make a mother sick. Also having a balanced control of patries and sugar-filled food can prevent getting gestational diabetes.

After child birth, being healthy is still required for those who plan to breastfeed. Since my son is getting all his nourishment from me, I have to ensure I eat healthy to provide what he needs. That means staying away from caffeinated drinks (because it keeps your baby awake even when he is tired), away from too much sweets (because it depletes the milk), staying away from chocolates (it can cause allergies to your baby), staying away from too spicy foods (because it causes gas and reflux to your baby), and away from a lot of preservatives (because it gets passed on to the baby).

Ever since Joshua came into our lives, he has been my motivation to stay healthy. I pray I get to maintain this even after he weans. I have never felt this good about my body and its all thanks to motherhood!

The bible has a similar account about being healthy in motherhood. The story of Samson’s mom:

There was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren and had borne no children. Then the angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, “Behold now, you are barren and have borne no children, but you shall conceive and give birth to a son. Now therefore, be careful not to drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing

Momzilla attack

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For about weeks, my schedule has been so hectic… From Elections, traveling to Manila for work,attending Nick Vujicic’s event, Sarbay Fest, and the other activities that come in between. I really sometimes don’t know how I do it… When I tell other people, it seems like they feel stressed for me.

Rest is so important for a nursing mom. When this is violated, certain personality changes happens. I must admit I do feel embarrassed to share this story. Well, this will be an example of what not to follow…

It was the last few days of elections, we had family and friends over. They were so kind to not bother me so much, but I cant help myself, because I want to entertain. During the day, I would nurse and work (so I dont get to nap). At night, when Joshua is asleep, I try to make myself available for my husband too. I make time for us to catch up because he would come home late from campaign. Then, my son’s schedule. I have to make myself available for him because he is still asking for milk around 3 am and wakes up at 5 am everyday.

The evening before election, my son woke up wide awake at around 1:30 AM. It was my time to catch sleep because I was still up around that time. Everytime I would put him to sleep, he would cry. When I lift him up, he would smile and hint he would want to play. Usually this did not bother me. But that evening, I was tired. I wanted my sleep. My son wanted to play. I kept telling Joshua, “Josh, mommy is tired, please go back to sleep.” The response I get is his playful smile. He would try to talk too by cooing and he would smile. But mommy, was not happy. I felt physically too tired to play. So I tried to rock him back to sleep. My son would complain and cry because he was unhappy to go back to sleep. Grrrr….!!!!

Suddenly, I felt upset with the situation. So I sat my little boy by his toys and I told him, “Since you don’t want to sleep, you and I are going to stay up till 5 AM. Do you understand me?” I suddenly lost it. My mind just snapped and I turned into the “mother-no-child-would-wish”. I was upset that I took out my anger on the toys and with all of what is left of my strength I took the Dinosaur toy and played all the music and shook the toy up and down, side-to-side hoping this would make Joshua dizzy. At first he enjoyed it. I kept on saying, “we are not sleeping. We are not going to sleep”!” After playing for about 20 minutes, I saw Joshua wiping his eyes. I knew he started to feel sleepy. Instead of letting him sleep, my anger took over me. I brought him to the bathroom and let him play with his squeaky fish toys. I still kept chanting, “you are not sleeping until tomorrow!” For another 20 minutes Joshua obliged to play. After a while, he started to wipe his eyes and yawn. All the more, I chanted, ” you are not sleeping, do you understand?”… Like a crazy woman I brought him to his lighted drums and insisted he plays with it. The poor little boy again tried to play but this time he was moaning and started to cry because he was tired. But still I forced him to play.

I later started to feel guilty and caught myself. What on earth am I doing? Im making my son suffer because Im too tired to care for him and so I’ll make both of us miserable. Ohhh myyy…

I saw Joshua was really tired from my Momzilla episode, he actually fell asleep after a minute of nursing. He was that tired! As I was putting Joshua down in his crib, I started to pray. I asked forgiveness from God for my unbecoming behavior. I laid my hands on my son and asked God to protect my son from any consequence of my temper.

Im just so thankful God is full of mercy and grace, and they are new every morning! My son wakes up and looks at me with his big, loving eyes without a grudge.

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I never want to see Momzilla attack ever again. I have learned my lesson! I need to discipline myself to rest. This is a season in my life to slow down. I can catch up with the world later.

I shared this story with my other mommy friends and they cracked up laughing at how I lost it. Truly, its funny now… but what a sobering event for me. I pray God to help me be less childish and be a good mommy that Joshua can love and respect…

Mommy’s Day!

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Thanks to a facebook greeting from a friend, this photo made me giggle so early this Mother’s day morning! It’s true… How do we mommies do it?

We are able to do like gazillion things in the house, work, caring for our babies and their caregivers, serving our husbands, making time for friends, etc… God’s designed women to be really, really strong, resilient, multitasking, resourceful, and just simply amazing human beings! I always looked up to the women in my life–first, my mom who delivered twins and managed to raise us on her own when she became a single mom. She’s resourceful and fun! My grandmother, who bore five children was an amazing home maker. She baked and cooked as her side line, and sewed dresses and bags for her daughters so they would catch up with the fashion trends without spending so much… She even sewed my mom’s wedding dress! How sweet is that!

Then, there are amazing moms too in my day and age! I admire my twin sister Monique. She has 4 children of her own. She is a businesswoman of a growing promo and events company, and she has a big heart for ministry with her husband. A couple years ago she took that step of faith to homeschool her kids. I look and wonder how she does it… She is so calm under pressure and so positive! I also admire my sister-in-law, Pria. She is a single mom and yet that did not become a crutch for her. She raised an admirable, responsible, handsome gentleman. I have seen her in that crazy roller coaster of motherhood, and she has done a great job! The other woman, I admire is my friend Joy. She is a mother of four and pregnant with her 5th. She is a committed wife, an intentional parent, a homeschooling mom, inspirational speaker, a blogger. Her children are not only good looking, but growing in the character of Christ. In fact her 2 older sons join them in speaking engagements and encourages the audience positively to live by faith.

There are just so many amazing supermoms out there!

The only reason moms can be super moms is not by genetic configuration. I truly believe it stems from an inner strength coming from a SUPER GOD! Only God our creator can empower women with these attributes enabling them to become super moms! For the journey of motherhood take moms to depths of love she never would imagine she can give. She would also experience anxiety on matters she never thought she would worry about, and yet will be able to overcome. Since she no longer lives for herself, daily acts of selflessness is a norm. A mom will also experience great joys and susceptible to pains that come along with parenting. All these she will be able to go thru because a Big God is giving her abundance of grace.

I thank God for sustaining me daily and giving me everything I need to be a good mommy. In the end, like all moms, we just want these — children who will be able to stand on their own, a heart instilled with good values, and for them to live prosperous, successful, and healthy lives…

To us mommies, let’s thank God for entrusting us with this gift! I greet mommies out there — Happy Mommies day! Cheers to us!

Proverbs 31:28-31NLT “Her children stand and bless her. Her husband praises her: There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all! Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the LORD will be greatly praised.”

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(Memes are taken from facebook postings)

Mommy needs Mommy friends

Aren’t you glad that in this day and age, there are just so many information about caring for our little ones? Just GOOGLE SEARCH and you will find tons of data about motherhood and caring for babies. There are also very helpful applications that you can download on your laptop or on your smart phones. You can download BABYCENTER and What to Expect When You’re Expecting. They have become very helpful tools in reminding moms about vaccinations, charting milestones, etc.

But I have to say, nothing beats having a mommy friend. Even with all the information found on the net or in books, there is nothing like an assurance from another mother that what you are going through is absolutely normal. Encouragement from family and friends who have kids are precious as gold.

I have found so much comfort when I call my sister or talk to my other mommy friends about things I get puzzled about my baby. I remember calling Monique (my sister) about breastfeeding — what to do when I get engorged, what “essentials” to buy for breastfeeding, etc. Another friend, who has been such a great source of encouragement is my friend, Lia. Since our babies are just three weeks apart, there are so much similar things we are experiencing. We sort of compare notes on different issues. I also have a group of mommy friends online that give free advise when you ask for it. Its been such as wonderful support to my motherhood.

Mommies' Support System

Mommies’ Support System

Also recently, Lia, my sister, and I, went to a Mommy Bazaar in Rockwell Tent in Manila. This was my first time to attend a Mommy Mundo event and it was a grand gathering of mompreneurs! I felt like 3 hours in that bazaar was not enough with all these great mommy products!

First on our list was buying clothes that had easy access to breastfeeding. Mommy Matters carries that line of breastfeeding clothes. There are also really trendy baby traveling bags that makes mommies look great at being a mom! I bought also one for myself from Nursing Mom.

Mommy Mundo Stuff

Mommy Mundo Stuff

Other interesting products include organic baby food, baby developmental toys, protective baby rider for grocery carts, screen covers for fans to protect your little ones from finger accidents… and lots, lots, of other stuff. It was a perfect venue for moms to gather and shop baby-friendly products made by OC (obsessive compulsive) kind of Mommies! Wishing for an event just like that in Mindanao… maybe we shall be organizing one this year. We shall keep you mommies updated.

I thank God for Mommy friends! They are angels in disguise. Without them knowing it, their advises have given me confidence and good mental health! Hahaha…

Precious Milk

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Having spoken to several moms I learned that there is a lack of advocacy on breast feeding. Here is a list of common myths versus truths on breastfeeding and breast milk:

1. “I don’t have milk”. – Yes its true some mothers are not dripping milk before the birth of their baby. Some won’t have milk until it is stimulated by their baby. Milk naturally comes out 3 to 5 days after the first latch. Let it be known that 99% of mothers have breast milk.

2. “Milk has not come in yet, my baby will die of hunger”. – The baby from the womb has enough nutrients from the placenta and is full for the next 3 days. The tummy of the baby is as small as a cashew nut and will not need a lot of milk just yet. In the next 3 days, what comes out of the breast is the COLOSTRUM. Don’t let the nurses or midwives push you to feed your baby formula or glucose water. Instead, allow your baby to latch and suck on your breast. The breast milk will flow the more the baby has contact with it.

3. “You can’t store breast milk, so I just let my milk drip on my shirt and wash it after”. Oh No! Breast milk is precious! You can manually express it in a bowl or use a breast pump to extract breast milk. If you store milk in the refrigerator it can last for 7 days. If you store it in a single door freezer it can last 2-4 weeks, double door 1-2 months, and a separate freezer chest can keep the milk up to 6 months.The expressed stored milk can be given to your baby when you are away.

4. “I don’t have enough milk so my baby is not satisfied and cries because of hunger.” – If your baby has wet or soiled diapers, and is gaining weight, then for sure you are giving enough. I had to learn this… Not all crying mean that babies are hungry. But if you offer your breast at every cry, the baby who is naturally accustomed to sucking will take your breast even if not hungry. Watch out also if your baby is fussy because of gas build up due to over feeding… or if your baby spits out milk, it may be overfeeding too.

I realized it is also psychological. If you think you do not have, then even your milk supply gets depleted. If you think that you have, you maybe surprised at the ounces that you can get when you pump.

Other tips to let milk flow includes: Imagining your baby crying or actually hearing your baby cry can influence your body to flow milk. Also I have tried wetting my feet with the faucet and the sensation of dripping water also influences a let down (this i find most interesting). Expressing using a breast pump before or after breast feeding will signal your body to produce more milk.

If you still feel inadequate then I suggest you load up on wholegrain and multigrain. I eat oatmeal every morning and that does me good. Also malunggay in soups, clam shell soup, and different juices help increase my milk. If you can’t eat malunggay you can buy malunggay capsules. I was suggested by my friend to take Natalac and it has done wonders for me…

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Most of all, don’t give up or think negatively about breast feeding. If you feel frustrated, calm down and pray. God promises sufficiency in our every need.

Red, Black, and White

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When I was younger, I loved Arts and Crafts. I liked to paint, use pastel colors, and imagine art work. But as you get older, you usually don’t work on those projects anymore, and you certainly get rusty. In fact, it kindda blinds your artistic eyes.

When I was preparing the baby room, it was my friend Amanda, who asked if I had made a crib mobile (hanging moving toys) for Joshua. I told her, “no”. It was because I was too lazy to make those hanging toys and it would again require for me to work with my hands and conceptualize what to make. Newborns are fascinated with red, black, and white colors since their eyesight are still developing. Amanda, suggested that I try making a mobile with those colors. What I did instead was buy a mobile with colors that were dominant on red, white and black. Like I said, I was too lazy make one, so I bought.

Just a week ago, another girlfriend of mine, Jill, came to see me and I showed her the baby room. She told me again that Joshua’s brain stimulation is increased if I put red, black, and white designs on the ceiling. She told me, it is easy because all I needed to do was buy cartolina paper and cut out designs and stick it on the ceiling. She was the second person who insisted I get into the red, black and white brain stimulation thingy.

This time around, I did not have an excuse… I now need to get my hands dirty and work on something artistic. So, I went to National Bookstore and bought the cartolina paper, paste, and double sided tape. When I got home I looked at the ceiling, and boy did the ceiling above his crib suddenly feel so long and wide. I felt overwhelmed with the project.

I began cutting circles, triangles, squares, rectangles. It was an exercise that was unlocking my childhood artistic eyes. Once you start, you can really get glued to it. The most difficult part was sticking the design on the ceiling. It made me wonder the geniuses of Michaelangelo and his counterparts when they were painting ceilings. I was getting disoriented a lot when I was putting the design on the ceiling.

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Finally, I stuck the design up on the ceiling. Its not perfect, alright… but it is worth the shot. The most priceless scene I enjoy is seeing my little one staring interestingly on the artwork I have made. This makes me feel like an accomplished mommy artist. That is what matters most to me now… I can now say that it is true that mothers would go out of their comfort zone and do things that are good for their babe.
The stimulating ceiling

Feeding the BEST

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I’ve heard it, you have heard it… Humans are probably the only specie that would offer their babies another specie’s milk. That is probably not true for all humans, but that line was the introduction of the Lactation Consultant during our breastfeeding class.  I asked my twin sister to accompany me to a breastfeeding class to help me prepare for my baby.  It was a real eye-opener and these are some of the truths I learned from the class about Breastfeeding:

1. It is complete.  Did you know that breast milk is a complete super food? You don’t need to supplement because it is sufficient with nutrients and vitamins that our little one needs.  It’s like manna from heaven, the perfect health food for babies.

2. It immunizes. A child that breastfeed for 6 months and drinks breast milk up to 2 years old have immunization from many diseases up to 12 years of age.  Even the COLOSTRUM which appears 3-5 days before the milk is a special super antibody provided specially for the baby. All this is produced by the body naturally.

3. It is good for the tummy. No constipation for newborns that feed on breast milk. It easily digests and is safer for the baby’s stomach. Constipation usually happens with formula.  Also your baby will not experience lactose intolerance (this refers usually to an allergy to cow’s milk).

4. It is good for bonding. A mother and child develops a stronger bond when they breastfeed. They spend more time together thus providing the child a sense of security, comfort, and love.

5. It makes mommy sexy. Two benefits go to the mommy when she breast feeds.  First, she can get her pre-pregnancy abdomen quicker. As the mom breast feeds her uterus contracts and goes back to its normal size sooner than those who don’t.  The second benefit is breastfeeding can be a natural birth control.  It delays the return of the menstrual cycle which protects the mom from getting pregnant again (but this is not a guarantee, so still be careful!)

6. It is convenient.  There are no need of bottles that crowd the baby travel bag.  There is no need to carry along water and powdered milk (that makes the bag heavy). Also no sleepless nights for daddy in trying to mix formula into the bottle.  The mom is all that is needed!

7. It saves MONEY. Do you know how much a family saves if the mother breastfeeds?  The family can save in 2 years more than P200,000.00 !  This is the part of the class where the husbands mouth drops, and looks intently at their wives to encourage them to breast feed.  Then the Lactation consultant gives the wives a come back ” This is why you can demand from your husband vacations in exchange of the savings!”  Hahahha… that is true!

I am amazed at how God provides for us.  Naturally, breast milk is the BEST milk with all the benefits that other milk cannot completely provide.  This encouraged me to also breastfeed my son by God’s grace.  Now that I know, why would I not provide my child the very BEST?

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Genesis 49:25 (NLT)

May the God of your father help you;
    may the Almighty bless you
with the blessings of the heavens above,
    and blessings of the watery depths below,
    and blessings of the breasts and womb.