My plan was to breastfeed until my son hit a year, but that was before he bit me. It was before he would pull away from my boob making a smacking noise just so he could see what everyone was doing around me, and then proceed to pull the boob in his mouth only to pull the boob out of his mouth two seconds later to once again check his surroundings. I could also go into how frustrating it is when milk just starts squirting everywhere while he is enjoying the scenery, but that’s for another day.

Breastfeeding is interesting. The first 10 days of breastfeeding felt like Judah was trying to suck the life out of me. I wouldn’t say the feeling was intense but it was uncomfortable and new. However after I got through the first ten days it felt normal and there wasn’t any pain (even though I wouldn’t quite describe it as pain, but an irritating uncomfortability). 

Before I gave birth to Judah I have always planned on breastfeeding a full year. Well I planned/thought of a lot, but my mind has changed many times because a life on Pinterest and reality is very different. I thought I would pump way more, but I don’t pump at all. In fact, I have probably pumped a total of 5 4oz bottles and my son is 8 months! Why? You may ask. Well it is simple, I’m lazy. Because of covid I have the privilege of staying home with my son for the whole first year of his life, so we aren’t separated too much, which means I don’t necessarily need to pump.

However, pumping saves me from biting. Judah has two little teeth, which are so cute! However, one day he finished eating and instead of stopping his latch, he stared at me with the boob in his mouth and then bit down! I was so in shock and didn’t know how to make him stop biting because I couldn’t just pull him away cause he hadn’t released his teeth. I tried to scare him into releasing without scaring him too much into crying, but that was practically impossible.

We have been feeding him solids and breast milk so I’m thinking I can still make the first year if I pump, and wean him off with the solids. I enjoy breastfeeding my son because I love providing him with not just food but a comfort and safety with the warmth of being held close. However, I have no weird inclination to absolutely stick to a year if that means being miserable and I don’t believe that makes me a bad mom. I just want to go for a year cause I think it would be cool and nice for him (plus the benefits for health). 

Breastfeeding is so interesting and amazing. I love the bond it creates and I am truly grateful for the opportunity to be able to do it. 

Finally,

I plan on making a meal plan for him with the solids and schedule so that I can help wean him off and be more consistent with solid foods. I’d love to hear your breastfeeding stories and tricks you have used, solid foods you liked to feed the baby, and how you weaned your baby off and what age!