...and so it begins.

Brand-new Bella with Gramma

When Dave and I found out that I was pregnant (almost 2 years ago, now) we knew that we would be going the all natural route. We quickly found a midwife, and nine months later we gave birth to a beautiful baby girl at home (and in water). I jumped right into breastfeeding with a large amount of joy, but with the plan of weaning our little one as soon as she could use her big girl words to ask me. Ask me how that worked out for me.


Flash forward to the present: we have an incredibly intelligent and energetic toddler who is weeks away from her second birthday, who's favorite phrase is, "Mama, Imma booboo nurse, please?" Don't get me wrong, I have always always enjoyed nursing, but let's just say that Mama is ready for a little more independence on her part. :) So Dave and I have made the decision that the time has finally come to wean our darling little angel.

Bella and Gramma now 

Now, so you have an idea of how attached B is to my B's, the first time I told her we should wait to nurse, she proceeded to melt onto the floor and start a nice long whining session. And by whining, I mean her repeating the word "booboo" at least a thousand times in probably the most grating tone ever.

I am determined to complete our
mission while proving to myself (and others) that weaning does not have to be accomplished with tons of tears and constant "no"s, but with love and snuggles and teaching our little one how to grow more independently. So, to deal with her whining, we started excusing her to her bedroom and explaining to her that, while we understand her frustration, all whining will get her is some alone time to sort through her feelings (and let's face it, no one wants to hang out with a whiny kid). And guess what. It has worked like a charm!! Now when she starts to whine I ask her, "Baby, do you need to go think in your room?", which she responds to very quickly by changing her attitude. Most of the time. :)

The hard part for me has been finding out how to, very nicely, tell her that she cannot nurse. Occasionally the word "no" slips out, but at this point she usually doesn't catch mama's slip up. We toyed around with a few phrase ideas, and we settled on referencing her older cousins who do not nurse, and who she looks up to very much. It works some times, but we have found it much more effective when we say something like, "We know you are upset, and mama and daddy love you, but we would rather you tried some water and a snack if you are hungry." I will be honest, this did not go off without a hitch. In fact, there was plenty of hitching involved. The key, we have found, is being consistent. After a week of this, she has finally started exploring her other snack options on her own.

Who can guess what B was asking for when this picture was taken?

Bella is taking weaning like a champ. While I know that I will miss that time that we shared while she was nursing, I am ready to see my girl take the next steps in her development. Wish us luck as we continue this journey as a family! Hopefully B can celebrate her second birthday with a whole new personal understanding, while we continue to nurture her with love. :)