{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual, inspired by SouleMama, capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Onederfull (full of wonder) Wednesday!

 

It is Wonderful to nurse a ONE year old... climbing here and there, twisting all around!

 

It is also wonderful to have a long skirt to cover baby's bottom, when after getting soaked in the creek, and mama taking diaper off, baby must nurse right.that.minute!

 

Oh! One year olds are ONEderful!!

 

 

 

Night Weaning (again) and the Eco-Kids Tuesday Link-Up

I have written before about night weaning Bunny. Then I wrote about un night weaning Bunny. I feel it was the best decision I could make. My poor little girl needed me and I don't at all regret going back to nursing her at night.



Her 2 year old molars FINALLY came through and she is no longer in agonizing pain. We made it through the holidays and are now beginning the night weaning process again. I am taking it slow to start with and just encouraging the idea. My hopes are that we will be ready to take it on full force by January 8th. That is when The Farmer's Almanac weaning days begin. I figured it couldn't hurt to have some lunar phases (at least I am pretty sure that is how they decide the days) on my side. Also, I am giving her the homeopathic, Calms Forte, to help her relax and sleep. So far so good. Bunny at least understands the goal. She and Nana even played it out with little plastic cows (a mama and a baby that were sleeping) and had big talk about it and she knows exactly what the plan is.  And our first night was success!   



In the mean time, we had to put Bunny in trainers at night. She was doing well staying dry at night, but once she started nursing at night again, there were just too many accidents to let her keep soaking everything. We would have put her back in cloth diapers, but they are now a bit too small for her since her new baby milk growth spurt. Not wanting to invest a large amount of money in something she would only need for a short time, we began the search for a brand of disposables I could live with. We tried a couple different ones, and ended up liking Seventh Generation Training Pants the best. There a few reasons for our choice.

1. They fit Bunny really well. She is a stalky two year old and these have nice stretchy sides that pull on easily.
2. The hold an entire night of pee. I don't want to wake Bunny up to change her if she is sleeping deeply. These have never leaked on us and she has a very large bladder.
3. I am a sucker for the whole Go Green side of it. These trainers are the "greenest" disposables that I could find.
4. Free and clear. This is kind of the same as saying green, but I also wanted to explain that Bunny is a pretty sensitive kiddo. She doesn't handle junk food or harsh chemicals well. We try to use as many natural products on her as possible. The less nasties, the better for us.
5. They don't smell like a normal disposable diaper. After years of doing daycare and changing thousands of diapers, I have noticed that they have a definite smell. Kind of a funky, bleached, chemically nastiness. These don't smell that way. Even when filled with pee. And that is a breath of fresh air.

We ordered a box of 4 pack of 17 and I am hoping they are the last ones we get. After night weaning, Bunny should hopefully go back staying mostly dry through the night... Hopefully... :)

I am hoping to incorporate some poem or verse into our bedtime routine. Something that basically says it is now night time and we can't nurse until morning. I would like any ideas if you have them.
So far, I have found this:

Now the sun has gone to bed.

The stars are shining overhead.

In their nest the birds all sleep.

Into the houses the snails will creep.

Children now, no more will roam.

It's rest time now, and we're safe in our home.

Now onto the Eco-Kids Tuesday Link-Up!  Welcome!!  We are happy to be back after taking last week off to celebrate Christmas!  We hope you and your family had a joyful celebration!   We had so many great posts shared with us at the last Eco-Kids Tuesday! I enjoyed each and every one of them.  It is getting harder and harder each week to pick just a few features!  Here are three of my favorites.

Raising Godly Daughters made some homemade Elderberry Syrup! 

Mama and I have been planning to make some, so this recipe was timely!

Explore and Express has one of sweesest, meaningful, and most simple Nativity/Advent activities I have ever seen.

Bridgit's Bell shared the sweetest Winter Gnomes!

Thanks to ALL of you for sharing such wonderful ideas!  If you were featured please feel free to grab a button for your blog.  And please keep linking up great all your Eco-Kid ideas!

Now on to the party!!!  I hope that you'll share some great family-friendly posts that are also friendly for the environment. Some ideas include:

•  Nature Activities
• Outdoor Activities
• Crafts made with re-purposed or recycled materials
• Sewing and DIY home projects
• Science Experiments
• Posts on environmental issues for kids or families
• Non-toxic living
• Homeopathic Remedies

Eco-Kids Tuesdays is co-hosted by Organic Aspirations and Like Mama~Like Daughter this means that anything you link-up shows up on both blogs!

Feel free to link up several of your posts.

There are only a few rules:

Please follow both co-hostess' blogs, and visit some of the other posts and give them some encouragement!  Please stick to posts and photos not giveaways or items for sale.

By linking up, you are agreeing that Organic Aspirations or Like Mama~Like Daughter can feature your photos next week with a link back to your site.  

Please link back to my site using this button (once I get it fixed !!) OR simply text linking within your post!

Wonderfull (Full of Wonder) Wednesday

Looking for the wonder in everyday life! 

I'd love for you to join me on this journey. 

If you find wonder along the way, please leave a link in the comments,

so others can share in your wonder!

Like Mama ~ Like Daughter

Nursing our wrapped babies during church!

Wearing our babies under our coats to keep them warm on our little walk to Nana's for playschool!

I love my little, big girl!

Everyday is wonder filled... if I just take time to see!

God is good!

I love my life!

The Birth Circle

I am so excited to write about The Birth Circle. I have been wanting be a part of something like this for a very long time. I know what an amazing resource this would have been for me when I was pregnant with Bunny, and as a first time mama. But alas, my little town, and even surrounding towns, had nothing like this to offer...

Until now!

Almost two years after WV Friends of Midwives first presented the idea,

it has finally become it a reality!

The Birth Circle of Central West Virginia

A discussion and support group for pregnant couples, parents, and grandparents.

Join us the second Saturday of every month

at the Louis Bennett Library in Weston

From 10:30 am to 12:00 pm

Come find support and fellowship!

Meet mamas!

Make new friends!

We will discuss various topics each month such as birthing options, breastfeeding, positive parenting, attachment parenting, cloth diapering, baby wearing, as well as other topics close to our hearts.

Find us on facebook or go to meetup.com.


Sharing With:
Teach Me Tuesday
Happy Family Times
Tuesday Baby Link Up
The Sunday Parenting Party

One Step Back

Bunny has been night weaned since early March. Every now and then she would still wake at night and ask to nurse, but was easily comforted by my snuggles. I would tell her the nursies were sleeping and she didn't argue it. She would just take a drink from her sippy cup of water and cuddle back to sleep. This was all going fine until the week Squirrley was born. Along with all the other new things in her little life, Bunny also started cutting her two year old molars. When she was having a a lot of teething pain she would wake at night and whine and ask to nurse. I would try to distract her by singing a lullaby or rubbing her feet or back. She would usually end up falling asleep, eventually.

After a particularly long session of her begging to nurse the other night, and me trying everything I could think of to comfort her in other ways, she started to cry. I made the decision to let her nurse. Within a couple of minutes she was fast asleep. She slept well the rest of the night. Sometimes, as a mama, you have to know when to take a step back and decide what is important. Night weaning was intended to help us both get more sleep. But not nursing was keeping her (and me) awake. So I have decided to back up a bit and resume night weaning after the molars are through. She needs to nurse at night right now. She needs that comfort. We both need to get some sleep. Hopefully teething won't last long and we can get back on track. But for now, taking a detour is the right thing for us.

I tried it last night. Bunny woke and started fussing to nurse. I let her and she was back to sleep in under a minute. I have always heard that sleep begets sleep, and it must be true because after her usual morning nurse when her papa got up, she didn't get up until after 9. I definitely feel like this is the right thing to do.

Baby Moon ~ Week Two Highlights

Making time to do little projects with Bunny...

whether it is painting, tie-dying a very stained, but loved shirt, playing in water,

or just reading a pile of books!

Staring in gratefulness at our newest little one!

Getting ready for our ten day midwife appointment.. aren't the shirts great!

Squirrely weighed in at 8-4 (4oz over birth weight)

Bunny being a little mama to my old "babies"!!

With her cool hair style!

More sweetness!

Attending a 1st birthday party for Bee

(the third of four baby girls born in 27 months between my sister and me!)

And lots and lots of nursing!

God is good! I love my life!

Linked to~

Currently

Extended Breastfeeding

I am very much enjoying nursing Bunny (who turned two on April 5th) these days. We have such a good nursing relationship. She is very polite about it and asks, "I please have nursies?" If I am right in the middle of something, and try to put her off until later, she comes back with, "Just a diddle (little) bit?" Though there are times she has to wait, I am a sucker for her smooth talk. I can usually find the time to sit down and snuggle for a few minutes. I love talking to her while she nurses. I love when she answers my questions with her mouth full of sweet milk, and then giggles because she knows what I am up to. I ask her what it tastes like. She tells me, "Milk!"

Bunny typically nurses for about 1-5 minutes depending on the situation. The other day she had nursed for a few minutes and I told her the nursies needed a break and that I had to go clean up the kitchen now. She looked deep into my eyes and with a pouty lip said, "I miss nursies all day!" I assured her she could nurse again in a little while, and she climbed off my lap and went to play happily. She is a very reasonable two year old.

Our favorite night time weaning book.

Our night time nursing adventures have come to an end. Bunny nurses to sleep, and not again until her papa's alarm goes off around 5:00am. Every now and then she wakes up and asks to, but I just tell her that the nursies are sleeping and she can have some in the morning. Then she rubs my lips (her other source of comfort) and dozes back off to sleep.

This could be our family's portrait. Love it!

It has always been my goal to nurse Bunny until she was at least two. Even though I have reached my goal, I have no plans to wean her anytime soon. I figure as long as we are both happy with our nursing relationship, there is no need to end it. 

I linked up with Mama Moments!

My Honeys

Ever since B was a little baby (my first little daycare baby ever), he has been my Honey Bee. When Bunny was born, she became my Honey Bunny. Thus making these two my honeys. They are the best of friends and it is often just the two of them at my house in the afternoons. Today was one such day.

I awoke B from his nap and he came with me to wake Bunny. We climbed into my queen sized bed and started to gently try to get her to open her eyes. She fussed and wanted to nurse, so we all layed there, three in the bed, and she nursed. This is one of my favorite things to do after nap time. After a few minutes she unlatched and lay there asleep again. I was just about to begin to rub her back and sing our good morning song, when I looked across her and realized that B had fallen asleep as well. My honeys, snuggled up together, sleeping soundly. So soundly that I was able to steal away to retrieve my camera and take what may be my favorite pictures of the two of them ever.

Trippin'

A week ago today, The Hubs, Bunny, and I were on our way to the beach. A ten hour car ride with a one year old is never something anyone enjoys, but the destination couldn't be resisted. We left at one in the morning and only made three stops the whole trip (Thank You God!).



My pouty faced sleeping baby...




Love the upside down phone!




Yummy organic cheddar bunnies...



Bunny did not sleep as much as I thought she would, but she was content to play with a few toys, snack, and listen to music most of the time. She only got fussy once, just before the North Carolina state line. We stopped at the welcome center a little after 6am to nurse and let her run around for almost an hour. Other than that, our stops were fairly quick.



Hanging in the back seat with Bunny, wearing my favorite sunglasses...





My view of Bunny's papa from the back seat...



We arrived at Ocean Isle Beach, NC before noon last Saturday and got back late last night. The return trip was about the same with one added stop and a little more fussing right before we got here. As much fun as we had on vacation, we are all glad to be home.

My beach baby...



My homebody...

 P.S. More vaca pics to come...