How are the tandem mama's doing?

[APmom2Libby]

Just wondering if we can have a tandem nursing mama's check in?

It has been much harder than I expected. Mainly because dd1, bless her heart, has just always been, and continues to be, a MAJOR boob junkie.

My main concern as of late is dd1 "stealing" all the milk. She nurses a LOT and I hear her GULPING it down. I know how skilled she is, so I'm sure she is getting a TON. I have been trying to limit her more, but it seems like it's either let her nurse or deal with major temper tantrums. Today, "ring around the rosie" distracted her for one request to nurse, but that was one of MANY.

I am spending tons of time with dd2 in the carrier and sitting with dd1 doing activities while dd2 sleeps or nurses, but it is KILLING my back and dd2 can only take me sitting with her in a carrier for so long...most times anyway.

Other than that, I am feeling VERY drained from the constant nursing (dd2 also seems to be hitting her 6 week growth spurt a few days early), and feeling VERY touched out. I feel like I spend most of my day nursing and today, I wanted to give my boobs to dh and leave the house for just 10 minutes! LOL!

I have been really trying to read more exerpts from Adventures In Tandem Nursing, but with having/nursing 2, seems I never get a chance (hmmm, unless I could tear myself away from the very little computer time I have....)

How is everyone else doing????

[Shanana]

s Meaghan

nak

I am technically tandeming I guess, but dd1 usually only nurses every few days. Which is absolutely perfect as far as I'm concerned!

I'm block nursing Sophie, so I just offer dd1 whichever side I'm not nursing Sophie on at the moment.

It's funny nursing someone who is so articulate. Around maybe 7 or 8 mos, dd1 became a major side-switcher, wanting to switch sides every 30 sec or so and flipping out if I didn't comply. Well, now I know why! She nurses for a few seconds, then complains that there's no milk and wants to switch . I decline and explain that she has to keep sucking. After several rounds of this I will finally have a letdown. Then she drinks that, complains that there's no milk again and wants to switch sides! She is so impatient!

[NatureMama3]

my older nurseling hates the taste and has barely nursed since the milk came in! I'll be heartbroken if he weans now due to this.

I know it sounds stupid... he's 5 1/2 and all.. but still....

[joyfilledmomma]

Meaghan~

I am right there with you. I was really driving me crazy to nurse dd#1 during my last trimester and I was hoping that would change, but it hasn't...now she wants to nurse even more. Her suck just feels so strong (and honestly sometimes annoying) compared to dd#2. I can hear her gulping milk too and would be worried, but dd #2 was 9 oz heavier than her birthweight at her 1 week appointment, so I figured she was gaining ok. We have dd#2's 1 month appointment tomorrow, so I'll be interested to see her weight.

Dd#1 was ok for the first two weeks, but I really think that's because daddy was home and helped to distract her with other things. The past two weeks have been tough because she wants to nurse everytime baby boo nurses and I just can't deal with that and she's getting less patient. The past two days she's been trying to push dd#2 away from me and saying "my turn." I do get time alone with her and make a point of nursing just her in the morning when she wakes up like we always have since she was tiny.

I don't want her to wean...just nurse less. Well, hugs momma...here's hoping that it will get easier for both of us.

***On a happy note my local La Leche group is having a meeting 1x a month dedicated to tandem nursing mommas. Maybe there is something like this in your area? I've never been involved with La Leche before, but this definitely has me super excited!

[rachelsmama]

dd has increased her interest in nursing slightly, but it's still only an average of once a day, and only for a minute or less each time, so I'm very happy since I get the super comforting power of nursing my daughter, but she's not driving me nuts about it.

[APmom2Libby]

Originally Posted by joyfilledmomma

Meaghan~

I am right there with you. I was really driving me crazy to nurse dd#1 during my last trimester and I was hoping that would change, but it hasn't...now she wants to nurse even more. Her suck just feels so strong (and honestly sometimes annoying) compared to dd#2. I can hear her gulping milk too and would be worried, but dd #2 was 9 oz heavier than her birthweight at her 1 week appointment, so I figured she was gaining ok. We have dd#2's 1 month appointment tomorrow, so I'll be interested to see her weight.

Dd#1 was ok for the first two weeks, but I really think that's because daddy was home and helped to distract her with other things. The past two weeks have been tough because she wants to nurse everytime baby boo nurses and I just can't deal with that and she's getting less patient. The past two days she's been trying to push dd#2 away from me and saying "my turn." I do get time alone with her and make a point of nursing just her in the morning when she wakes up like we always have since she was tiny.

I don't want her to wean...just nurse less. Well, hugs momma...here's hoping that it will get easier for both of us.

***On a happy note my local La Leche group is having a meeting 1x a month dedicated to tandem nursing mommas. Maybe there is something like this in your area? I've never been involved with La Leche before, but this definitely has me super excited!

Joyfilledmama----OMG---it's so good to hear I'm not the only one!!!!!!!! Not that I would wish this on anyone, but it's good to know I'm n ot alone in my feelings.

I, too, feel the same way about dd1's suck. It is SOOOOO strong!!!!!And, I hate being annoyed at her just wanting what she has always had free access to, yk?

Anyway, dd2 is gaining beautifully, glad to hear yours is too. Thank goodness for that. My main concern about dd1 nursing a TON is that it is just so taxing on my body to keep up with the demand for milk (and spending most of my day nursing....ugh!) A friend of mine was telling me yesterday that newborn milk is super sweet and not as caloric, so the nursing toddlers not only LOVE the milk, but they don't fill up on it, so they can drink TONS! Made PERFECT sense to me.

So funny, dd1 also talks about her "turn" when dd2 is nursing. She really is obsessed with it! LOL.

On a good note, I am happy she is still nursing. I can only imagine how hard the transition from being the only child would be if we didn't have that special time together. She has also been very helpful in making sure dd2 gets plenty of hindmilk!

oh, gotta run, dd2 is waking!

[alegna]

Still early on the tandem train, but we're here. dd is THRILLED with the return of milk. Oh so very thrilled. She wants to nurse ALL the time, but mostly will be distracted when it's just not a good time. She loves to nurse WITH ds which is still a total PITA.

-Angela

[1babysmom]

We're doing well over here...DD1 (28 months) isn't having any issues sharing or anything, but she's just begging for milk CONSTANTLY, which is getting difficult (because then she whines non-stop if I ask her to quit nursing after however long she'll lay there for!). DD2 is nursing fantastically- she had an amazingly perfect latch from the minute she was born. I haven't had ANY pain nursing this time around...I actually wonder if that had to do with the pain I had during the last few weeks of the pregnancy when my older DD would nurse...it felt just like that "newborn" latch pain but I just didn't have the newborn yet. LOL

[thismama]

we're doing well! I hear you on the 'stealing milk,' OP! i now have a rule where babe nurses first, then older DD. if babe hasn't nursed for awhile and i'm putting them both on at once, i put the babe on the boob that is the better producer. My older one balked at first, but dude that's the rules, I reminded her babe can't eat 'real food' and she can. She is also jealous that I nurse babe in public in places I dont nurse her (like on the bus) so that can be hard.

Otherwise things are well. There was a slight feeling of competitiveness for the milk but now we have a running thing about 'the nursing team,' and the 'littlest member' and the 'biggest member.' I call them 'littlest' and 'biggest' and do this big commentary in an auctioneer-type voice sometimes when they are nursing about 'now the mama is latching on the littlest member of the nursing team, biggest is waiting in the wings for her turn to latch on. and now littlest is on and biggest jumps on too. now everyone is nursing away. oops wait, it looks like littlest is falling asleep... yes she is falling asleep and now she has fallen off the side [our word for breast]. oh geez now she is crying to get back on, meanwhile biggest is nursing away. oh wait biggest is laughing, let's hope she can hang on and doesn't fall off too...' and blahblahblah... my bigger daughter thinks this is HILARIOUS and begs for it but I can only make up so many things to say about them nursing.

[Shanana]

thismama, I think it's hilarious too!!!

[APmom2Libby]

OMG..this mama...HILARIOUS! Love it!!!!!!

[NatureMama3]

great idea thismama

I find tandeming that way too. one's on and the other falls off, etc. *sigh*

[thismama]

Yeah I think it's kinda funny too... at least at first! My DD loves it.

Okay here's a question... does anyone else feel weird nursing their older child now? Mine is 4.5 so probably older than most, but it used to feel so natural nursing her and now I kind of feel... like it's wrong. Weird, or something, yk? She used to seem like kind of an overgrown baby to me, and now suddenly her head is so big, her body is so long, she walks and talks and reads and does math and it just feels freaking odd to be nursing her. I looked down at her the other day and the thought that popped into my head was "omg get off my tit!"

I'm not planning to *do* anything about that feeling, because I think it would be unfair and seriously bad timing to initiate weaning now, it's my attitude that has done a 180, nothing about her or nursing, etc. And it's not like I'm hating nursing her, I'm just finding it mildly unpleasant, nothing I can't cope with. But the feeling is definitely there.

Anyone else experiencing that?

[NatureMama3]

I've had some of those moments, yep. Mine is 5 1/2 so I know what you mean about being older than most tandemers probably.

I was warned by a friend to expect that, though, so I'm trying to put happy thoughts in.

[APmom2Libby]

Thismama---mine is only almost 3, but I have had the same moments with her. I just carried her from the village carnival in the Babyhawk because she was tired and she felt HUMONGEOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!