Ethan and I are going on 9+ weeks strong of exclusively breastfeeding and it's going really well. I started pumping a couple of weeks in, just kind of whenever I wanted to, or especially when he was starting to sleep in longer stretches to relieve engorgement. I've already got a bigger stash than I had with Braden so I was really excited to try the Tommee Tippee bottles with Ethan to see if he would take a bottle!
Tommee Tippee sent me one of each of their 5 oz and an 9 oz Closer to Nature bottles. The product features are:
Nipple mimics natural feel, flex and movement of breastfeeding
Allows for easy transition between breast and bottle
Wide neck nipple for easier latch on
Anti-colic, anti-gas, advanced easi-vent™ valve
BPA free and phthalate compliant
Graduations in mls and ounces
Hygiene cap seals the nipple for travel
I waited until he turned 6 weeks exactly as I really wanted to establish good breastfeeding first. He had taken a pacifier the week before, so I was really hopeful that he would take a bottle. Jay was really busy that week and I wanted him to have a bottle during the day, so I gave it to him myself. I wasn't sure if he would take "fake" food from the person who provides him with the "goods"...but...
Ta da! Maybe it's because Big Brother was feeding him he didn't notice me that much? I highly recommend these bottles! The thing I love most about them...the nipple actually looks like a breast. A silicone breast...but a breast! The "neck" of the nipple is wide like a breast and not short and stubby like other brands. When he eats from his bottles it looks like he's actually breastfeeding with a good latch and he uses the same sucking motions and he's not just "nipple" feeding like I imagine it might be with how some other brand's nipples look.
These bottles are really easy to take apart and clean and we'll definitely not be needing to try any other brand! Ethan has moved beautifully from the breast to the bottle and back again! Mama's very happy to have some freedom whenever I need it! It's really nice for Daddy to participate in the odd feedings too!
I received these products free of charge for the purposes of this review. I was not compensated in any other way, all opinions on this blog are my own.
...and a necessity for toddler bed training! I never used a video monitor up until this point. Just for me and my family, I didn't see the point of one...really ever. When they're newborn all they do is lie there and cry, you go in. As they get older, I can see why it would be neat to have one, to see if they're actually awake or if they're just unsettled, to see if they're standing up in their cribs, etc. But I still didn't see the need to buy one. Well, God must have known that I would need one one day, and it just so happens that last year I won this awesome Tommee Tippee monitor from a blog giveaway, and I can't see getting through toddler bed training without one! And this is why:
EPIC. NAP. FAIL.
I was SO MAD when I found this. This was "nap" time on day #2. I knew he wasn't going to sleep but he wasn't being that noisy, so I didn't think much was going on. Plus, day #1 he took about 6 books off his shelf and quietly read them for the hour of quiet time. Well I wasn't prepared for the above, that a Toddler Tornado would take over my son during his supposed "nap time". I know I got tons of belly laughs from the people I shared this with. My I can just picture my brother Ben and my best friend's husband Steve with big belly laughs saying "wayta go, buddy!" And I do laugh now, I even laughed an hour later, but mommy lesson learned!
So I set up that video monitor pronto and used it for the first time for the designated nap time the next day. I gotta admit, looking into the screen I kept waiting for one of those scary ghosts to pop up and scare me.
The really cool thing about this monitor is that you can talk to your child through the baby unit. It worked really well! Laura was over that afternoon and she caught him climbing up on his change table. So I spoke to him through the monitor for the first time and said "Braden! You get down from there please!" He suddenly stopped, looked around and had this "how did she know!?" look on his face. Then he figured out that my voice was coming from the baby unit. Actually....he didn't think it was my voice at all....
He totally, 100% thinks that it's my mom when I talk through the video monitor! It's quite hilarious and we're all getting such a kick out of it! I'm really enjoying the monitor and I can calmly reassure him in the morning that "Mommy's coming soon!" so he knows it's okay. It was time to start sleep training again, this time for the toddler bed.
Daddy read him stories last night and I came in to sing a song with him. I told him that he had to go to bed by himself tonight and that I loved him. He cried not even the 30 seconds it took me to leave his room and go turn on the monitor. It took him quite awhile to even get out of his bed, he was so distracted/entertained by his new Thomas decals we put on his wall yesterday I could hear him talking to his trains. He ended up getting out of bed twice, running to the door, but all the while remaining calm and happy. I think it took between 1/2 hour and 45 minutes for him to settle and fall asleep. My boy has ALWAYS liked to be very comfortable, so I couldn't imagine him falling asleep in front of the door or or on the floor anywhere....this is how I found him:
How did I get so lucky? I was so nervous and anxious about this transition, but he has made it so easy on not only himself, but on me too. I'm so proud of him! I think with his history of sleep training, he just knew it was bed time and that he'd eventually have to fall asleep. There was no crying, kicking, screaming, he didn't fight it at all. And as my Mom says, I think the novelty of the freedom of the toddler bed will soon wear off and he'll just want to sleep there.
I know nap times will take awhile, as he was pretty inconsistent with them before the bed, as my friend Katie told me, it takes awhile for them to learn the toddler bed nap! But at night, I couldn't ask for better. He sleeps his usual 12ish hours a night, straight through, we did decide to keep his door locked, he knows he needs to stay in his room when the door is shut and there's no fussing, crying or fighting it. He just calls out for me when he's done and that is that! Thanks for all your support and kind words this week!
*Note: This was not an official review for Tommee Tippee, nor am I affiliated with them, I do love their products though!*
