“Change of Heart”
I used to be one of those people who would get grossed out at the site of mother breastfeeding her toddler. Now that I’m a mom, I take it back. Princess is 18 months and I can’t believe we’ve made it this far! She still loves the boob and has no desire to give it up any time soon. She’s so hooked, I think I may have to send her to booby rehab.
The original plan was to breastfeed for a year. Even though nursing was a bit challenging in the beginning, I was able to keep up. Nursing and pumping came easy after a while. I never had to substitute with formula. I felt like I conquered the world! Princess dined solely on my milk for the first 6 months. At that point I began adding solids to her diet. By 9 months she was pretty much eating 3 meals a day. I thought she’d eventually wean herself because she loved food so much! Boy was I wrong!
When she turned 12 months, Princess was still attached to the boob. In fact, she still wakes up for her nightly fix. There’s no set schedule for our sessions. But, she randomly undresses me and reaches in for the kill. So here’s the kicker…the other day she asked, “booby?” I used to feel that if a kid can ask for breast milk, then it’s time to call it quits. However, now I have a completely different take on the whole thing.
I won’t lie and say breastfeeding is easy breezy. There have been times when I’ve had to calm her cries by whipping out a boob in a random public place. It’s been 18 months and we’re still nursing strong, and through it all I’ve learned so much. The most valuable lesson here is to never say never. So the next time you see a mom nursing a toddler, don’t react the way I did before.
Oh, as for boob rehab…not a chance! I’ll be nursing until whenever.
Weather Anchor Mama
