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ENGORGED!

11/15/2020

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I intentionally wrote the title of this blog in ALL CAPS because that is just how aggressive it feels to be engorged. As I type this, my head is shaking as I think back on this PAINFUL post-labor experience. I was  3 days post labor when I woke up with my right breast as hard as a rock. It took only seconds to research and learn about this thing called "engorgement." Basically, it happens when your milk ducks get clogged (*you can insert a very long professional definition here, but you get the point lol*). Long story short, my milk ducks were full, but no milk would come out. While there are tons of ways to navigate this very painful space, for me it took 2-3 weeks of literally squeezing milk out of my breast during hot showers and purchasing a Lactation Massager...and a WHOLE LOT OF PRAYER! During this 2-3 week journey, my breast literally turned a bruised color and my nipple flattened (making it impossible to breastfeed from that side). It was painful, frustrating and aggravating, but when it was over, it was OVER! 
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Lactation Brownies for the #WIN

11/14/2020

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I am grateful to be able to breastfeed Nugget. I am also grateful to be a working Mom, wife,  CEO, First Lady, Team Pastor, Blogger and college educator. These roles make me so happy, but I can't say they help with milk production. Actually, my rigid schedule resulted in me napping through my pumping schedule half of the time OR trying to balance a zoom meeting with the loud sound of a pump. Yes, I want what's best for Nugget, but one of my friends said something that truly gave me freedom, "A Happy baby is a Fed Baby!" 

On that note, I gave myself permission to back off the pressure of breastfeeding. Only, I found that too much formula made Nugget SUPER gassy and uncomfortable. With that in mind, I knew I had to give my sweet boy more breastmilk. I tried a few different brands of lactation treats and Milky Mama by far did the trick! After about 3 days of the treat, my milk supply doubled; after a week it tripled. Now, I can't say every person has these results, but I can say that these brownies worked magic for me! 
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Best Toy (for Mom and Dad) EVER!

11/14/2020

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I breastfeed...and use formula. On most days, Nugget is fed primarily with breastmilk and 1-2 bottles of formula. I'll discuss more about this combination in a later post, but I have to let you know the life-saving "toy" George and I found to help mix our formula, the Baby Breeza Pro Advanced Formula Mixer!   Our challenge was that in the middle of the night, we were trying to mix formula in the dark...followed by 5ish minutes of trying to get it warm- bad combination. Then we found this Baby Breeza that both warms and mixes the formula in under 15 seconds. NO, it's not a typo- in just 15 seconds you can have 5+ ounces of formula, warm and ready for your baby. This is a God sent for those middle of the night feedings!

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Top Registry Items

11/14/2020

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As a first time mom, I was clueless when it came to creating my baby registry. I scrapped through what felt like dozens of registries, navigating the "perfect" bottles, textured bath cloths, sizable baby tubs and electronic gadgets. Yet, it wasn't until "Nugget" arrived that I became more clear about what was really needed. Here's my "go to" list that I'd order all over again:
  1. DockATot: This baby was/is a LIFE SAVER! It made Nugget feel just like he was still in the womb, all snuggled up! George and I waited to use until Nugget could raise his head.

2. Owlet: I legit spent the first 3 weeks of Nuggets life sleeping on the floor arms length to his crib. As a new mom, I just couldn't bare the thought of something happening to him when I turned my head. Soon, I gained my peace through prayer and the Owlet. This device wraps around his foot and send notifications to my phone if his heart rate or oxygen fall (or get too high in the case of the heart rate).

3. Zip Up Onesies: There are few things more adorable then a chunky baby in a onsie! However, in the middle of the night, those cute onesies present a hardship when you're trying to work through 1,000 snappy buttons, a dirty diaper and a screaming baby (*wooosssaaahhhh*). For us, the zip up onesies worked like a charm and made changing our sleeping baby MUCH easier.

4. Diapers, diapers and MORE diapers! We chose to go with Pampers, putting 5 boxes of "NB" size diapers on our registry. I also put 2 boxes of sizes 1-3, knowing Nugget would grow into them. Nugget doubled his weight pretty quickly, so he was only in the "NB" size for 6ish weeks. We registered at Target where you can return non-opened diaper boxes. So even if we'd ordered too many, we could have traded an un-opened box  of diapers for the next size up. PS: Pampers has an app in which you get free money for money spent on diapers #WIN. PSS- We found the best prices on diapers at Sam's Club.

5. Boppy Lounger : Nugget loves to lounge on this Boppy so much that we have two for our home and even sent an additional one to his sitter.

6. WubbaNub Pacifier: By day 4 of life, Nugget let us know that he NEEDED his pacifier (lol). However, EVERY time the pacifier fell out of his mouth, screaming pursued. To put it in context, just think of how many times a pacifier can fall out of a baby's mouth...now imagine yourself staying up all night to continuously put that pacifier back into their mouth. Yeah, it's exhausting. We ended up purchasing a WubbaNub Pacifier, which came with a small stuffed animal attached. It was perfect for helping to hold the pacifier in Nugget's mouth.

​7. Dr. Brown's Bottles- Our favorite bottles are Dr. Browns. Nugget is super gassy, but these bottles definitely help! 

8. Pack N' Play: This was one of those items we got in multiples! We use one pack and play in our living room- this is where we change Nugget and also where he hangs out when we aren't holding him during the day. We also put one in our office- the small size was perfect! 

9. Diaper Rash Cream- I can't say enough great stuff about this! Buy it and thank me later.

10. Changing Table- We chose a crib/changing table combo that worked seamlessly for us. It's super convenient and we love the sleek look!
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  • Home
  • ABOUT
  • The 21-Day Journey
  • Candid Conversations
  • Resources
    • The Grace to Grieve (Book)
    • For The First Time Mommas (Blog)
    • The First Year of Grief
    • Publisher's Roundtable
  • CONNECT
    • Contact Kiya
    • Brand Ambassador
    • Virtual Internship Program