Teething and Feeding

Baby's top teeth have popped out and are super sharp. She doesn't bite me, but her upper left tooth is rubbing on my right nipple as if it were slowly slicing it off. I have changed from cradle hold to football hold on that side and it seems to have helped. my friend suggested that I retrain her to latch differently. We'll see how that goes. :)

Foods I Avoid While I Breastfeed

I found this list (below) of foods to avoid on babyzone while breastfeeding. I don't avoid all of them, but avoiding some have helped my baby with her gas and constipation issues.

Caffeine
I try to drink after nursing so it's out of my system before next nursing

Chocolate
Same strategy as caffeine

Citrus fruits
When I eat cuties, she gets gassy, but when I drink orange juice, she seems to be ok

Broccoli/Cauliflower
I avoid broccoli, it gives her gas

Alcohol
Don't have time to drink

Spicy foods
I don't eat much spicy food, but the few times I ate it, didn't seem to bother her

Garlic
When I eat, doesn't seem to bother her

Peanuts
I haven't had peanuts since September of 2009, very afraid of food allergies for her

Wheat
When I eat, she doesn't seem to be bothered; she's been eating wheat puffs since she was 6 MO (9 MO now) and is fine

Dairy products
I can eat all dairy except for milk, makes her gassy; we tried giving her yogurt, but she
got a little rashy on the torso

Corn
I can eat, doesn't give her problems.

Shellfish
I haven't tried shellfish, afraid of allergies

Eggs
I can eat eggs, doesn't bother her; we haven't tried giving her egg yolk yet, maybe at 1 YO

Soy
I'm Asian, I eat soy, doesn't bother her; haven't tried giving her soy yet, but tofu is on the list

Fish
I can eat fish, doesn't bother her; I avoid fish with mercury, other bad stuff, etc.

Peppermint
I haven't tried, according to babyzone, it reduces milk supply

Parsley
Same as Peppermint


The babyzone website from which I got this list is here. They call out all of the reasons to avoid the items on this list.

Take Fish Oil to get Rid of Baby Eczema

We went to the doctor's on Mother's Day to have baby's cold checked out. We left with some advice about her eczema. The doctor on call suggested that I eat more fish oil to reduce eczema inflammation in baby. I had already been taking two 1000mg tablets (Kirkland brand). She recommended that I take one more thousand mg a day. I've been taking 3000mg per day and baby's skin is just PERFECT now!

Baby Beach Tent

When we went to Hawaii, Charlotte was five months old. Daniel's coworker lent this baby tent to us: KidCo PeaPod

It was great for laying Charlotte out on the beach without having her in the sun. If she were a better napper, she probably would have slept in it on the beach. But alas, she loves looking around, especially at people.

We also used it as a "crib" for her in the hotel room. The hotel was kind enough to provide a real crib, but she wasn't having it. The pod also came with a self inflating mattress pad, like the ones you take camping.

Mom's hair falling postpartum

I read somewhere that after giving birth, the thick hair that women enjoy during pregnancy starts to fall out as levels of estrogen (the hormone that lengthens the time of the growth cycle of hair) drop. I think mine just started to fall out last week. Baby was five months and one week old. I'm still breastfeeding exclusively, but she has started to eat fewer times and has gone for longer stretches of sleep at night. For me, the hair didn't come out in chunks or handfuls. I just noticed a little more in my brush and a lot more tangled in my hair ties when I pulled them out. So long thick hair...

What does let down feel like?

I described what let down feels like to my husband the other day. The closest feeling I could think of was pulling a length of dental floss through the v between two fingers plus imagining the area tingling like a blister tingles, but not so painful. It took me a month or so to really be able to feel when I was letting down, so it's not something painful.

New High Chair!!!

Charlotte is getting close to six months which means she'll be eating solids soon. We have a Fisher-Price Healthy Care Deluxe Booster Seat 
that a friend gave us, but it seemed to be too big for her right now. Yesterday, we went to Babies R Us to just check out the high chairs, but ended up taking home a green Inglesina Zuma.
It's the most high tech looking piece of furniture we have. We looked at Baby Bargains best rated chair, the Graco Contempo - B is for Bear, but decided it wasn't exactly what we were looking for. Plus it was about the same price ($119) as the Zuma ($120 - online return item).

I love scoring deals in the clearance section at Babies R Us.