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Breast-Milk Jewelry

My breastfeeding journey was a lot of blood, sweat and tears but I wouldn’t change it for the world. I was lucky enough to be able to breastfeed my daughter until she was 18 months old and we both loved every minute of it. As soon as I went back to work I started my pumping journey when I was away and then I would store away my breast-milk in the freezer. Surprisngly, I was able to store away over 1000 ounces of milk and donated some of it to a baby that was in need of it.

I then was introduced to a breastfeeding group on Facebook and that was a huge support for me (especially since I was a working mom). From this group I found out about breast-milk jewelry and how you can preserve your milk into a stone, so of course I had to find out more about it.

Breast milk jewelry is jewelry made of breast milk and is a keepsake. Various methods are used to make the jewelry. To preserve and protect it, the piece may be covered in a clear resin or glaze. No matter the process used for preservation, there seems to be a long and tedious process involved in creating the keepsakes leading to long waits for order fulfillment. My ring took 10 weeks but it was truly worth the wait and it actually came one week before I stopped nursing, so it was very bittersweet to receive my ring. I bought my milk ring from Precious Milk Drops, she sells more than just rings. She also sells lockets, Pandora like charms, earrings, bracelets as well as custom orders.

I will truly treasure this piece forever and hope to give it to her one day!

 

Style on ladies and gents!

 

xo

Ro

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Mom Life Essentials

Being a mom not only means caring for your little one, loving them unconditionally and putting them first in your life but it also means that you can’t do it alone. I am lucky enough to have my family and close friends but on top of that I need my “essentials” to get through the “I got 3 hours of sleep,” kind of day. So below are my top 7 items I needed to survive as a first time mom.

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New moms often worry about every little thing when it comes to their baby (I am definitely one of those moms). So I ask a lot of questions and while asking those questions I found out about the app (that is also a book) The Wonder Weeks. It has more than 35 years of international scientific research that will keep you informed about the (mental) leaps and bounds of your baby. This app won prizes in several countries as the best parenting app! Think of it as a portable, at-a-glance version of the leap chart in weeks. The app is the perfect companion element to track your baby’s mental development (during the first 20 months). This has helped us on so many levels and let’s us know how long the good or bad leap is going to last and how we can help our babies through them. I paid $1.99 for this app and it was well worth it!

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Boppy. When I was first registering I had no idea what a boppy was and never thought I would really use it, but I listened to some friends and registered for it anyway. Fast forward 10 months and I can honestly say that I use it every day. Not only do I use it when I am breastfeeding but it was great when my daughter was learning how to sit and practicing her tummy time. It has also saved her from many (almost) falls when she would lay back.

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Coffee. I was never a big fan, I always liked tea or smoothies but never coffee….until I became a mom. When I would see comments scrolling through Facebook or Instagram reading “But First Coffee” I never really understood. But now? I get it! I need a caffeine fix every morning before I go to work but I have to be careful because I still breastfeed and I can only have a certain amount of caffeine a day. So my “go to” drink at Starbucks is an iced chai, coconut milk with a single shot. It is truly the little things in life that make all of the difference (and keep me awake).

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I work full-time and sometimes have to travel, all while breastfeeding/pumping full time. This nursing poncho from Milkmaid Goods is amazing and is my ultimate essential. In this picture I am pumping at Sky Harbor Airport and feel completely comfortable because I am covered (if only it eliminated the loud pumping sound too). This cover is light weight and roomy for nursing and also doubles as a cover to put over the car set when my daughter is sleeping or a high chair when we are at a restaurant.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYPR5IQh_Tw&w=560&h=315]

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Pumping, we all LOVE to HATE it but it’s what keeps the process going (if you know what I mean?!) My goal is one year of nursing so I pump when I am at work and before I go to bed….EVERY SINGLE DAY! With that being said I would keep track of how many minutes I pump for and how many ounces I get. Then about 4 months into pumping I found this free app from the Apple App Store called Pump Log. This log is amazing because it keeps track of how long I pump and how many ounces I have (freezer stash) and how many ounces I still need to hit my goal for nursing. You can also set a timer that reminds you when to pump during the day. #itspumpingtime

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Car seat handles are very odd and you can never really feel comfortable when you are carrying your little one. Being only 5″1 I look pretty funny trying to carry my daughter in her car seat until now. LugBug came out with this nifty handle that connects to your car seat handle. It takes the straining away and is uniquely shaped to make it easy to maneuver your little tike around. The person that invented this device lives here in Arizona, he was also a first time dad when he thought of this concept. The cost is $39.99 and it comes in a wide variety of colors and is easy to attach to the baby carrier.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpnIxrMAxS0&w=560&h=315]

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Mommy and Me Photos were a must for us because I noticed that when I would scroll through my pictures on my phone I had a lot of photos of her by herself or photos with her daddy (I was always taking the picture). This was fun for us and I would recommend it to any mom (especially a first time mom) because the first year goes by so fast and you want to look back and remember everything about your child at that very moment.

My mom recently brought my baby book over and I noticed that the baby book was filled with photos of me by myself and not enough photos with my mom in them. So, now it’s a birthday tradition every year during my birthday month I will get mommy and me photos with her. I will cherish these photos forever. Thank you Jenna Donato Photography!

So there we have it the 7 essentials that have helped me as a first time mom. Some of them were pretty easy to figure out (like the coffee) but I hope some of these really help you out whether you are a first time mom or are one kid number 5!

Style on ladies and gents!

xo,
Ro

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In Love.

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When I would ask mother’s what it felt like to be a mother, they could never really explain it to me because they said that it was an, “unexplainable feeling.” Now I completely understand what they meant. This past month (September) has truly been the best month of my life because we got to meet our little bundle of joy. She is complete perfection and I am the luckiest mom in the world! The love I felt the moment I met her was so strong and amazing. I instantly felt like her protector and then I realized my name was no longer just Rochelle or Ro, it had been promoted to “Mom.”

The first couple of weeks weren’t easy by any means, no new moms talk about the first month as being hard and maybe even difficult (they just say how perfect everything is and post happy pictures on social media). Mat and I were extremely lucky because we had a very healthy baby (that wanted to eat 24/7 and not sleep…EVER) but breastfeeding was a bit of a struggle in the beginning. I was lucky enough to have a close friend who’s mom was a lactation counselor (which made my life so much easier and reassured me that  I was doing everything right). I highly suggest if there are any new moms reading this that are struggling with breastfeeding find a lactation counselor or specialist. They will teach you tips and tricks to make breastfeeding easier for you and for your little one.

Also, if you are a working woman like me, you are used to being “on the go,” so being at home on maternity leave might make you a little stir crazy even though you are spending time with your little one. For me it was helpful to get out of my p.j.s in the morning and wear workout clothes (even though I am not working out). It just feels good to put something on that I wasn’t sleeping in and that I could leave the house in when I take my babe to her doctors appointments. It is also good to make a little time for yourself, even if it is just reading a magazine or taking a bubble bath for 30 minutes.

Hope these tips help my expecting momma friends out there. I also promise to start posting “fashion after baby,” once we start getting in a routine (I have a lot of great outfits for breastfeeding moms).

Style on ladies and gents!

xo
Ro

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