This may be a bit of a “duh” comment, but God is really smart. Seriously. He is. And He’s pretty imaginative too. Just look outside at nature or watch a bird glide on the wind, and you will see His artistic abilities. So what do these abilities have to do with “what works for me”? I’ll tell you in one word: Nursing.
No, I’m not talking about the nursing of the sick. I’m talking about the nursing of a child. If you stop and think about it, it’s the perfect food. Our bodies know when to make the milk. It knows how much to make. Did you know that they (BTW, who are “they” anyway?) did a study on human mother’s milk and the results came back that the milk properties, nutrients and vitamins change as the child gets older? That’s just amazing!
Nathaniel is sleeping through the night for the most part now and it only took about 2 nights for my milk supply to adjust. God knows what our children need and He designed the perfect food for them. In fact, it has been considered so perfect, that a long, long time ago, the Chines Royal Family used to hire “wet nurses” to feed the upcoming emperor. Yeah I know, that’s kind-of … um … out there, but it’s still and interesting piece of conversation.
Anyway, when you nurse, you don’t have to worry about allergy’s (although I do know that if the child is allergic to cows milk or wheat, then the mother needs to be careful about her diet too). You don’t have to be concerned about forgetting formula or water. You don’t have to wash bottles. When the child spits up, it smells much better than a child who is formula fed. I think there is also a correlation between how much a child is sick and was formula fed. And you get this incredible feeling of a good pride, knowing that your child is thriving just on your milk! There is nothing like it in the world!
So, that’s what works for me!
*Disclaimer ~ I do not nor will I ever promote or support those who believe nursing is best and who condemn and belittle those of who do not nurse. While I myself believe it is best, I know it is not always possible. Because of various factors, when Maacah was 6 weeks old my milk dried up and we had no choice but to give her formula. Some mothers bodies, for whatever reason, don’t make enough or any milk. And some mother’s choose not to. What and how you feed your child is not the deciding factor on if you are a good mother or not. I’m just stating here what works for me. I would have loved for it to have worked for Maacah. But it just wasn’t to be. And I am very, very grateful that it has worked for the other children. *