My Breast Friend's Goodbye

Whilst trying desperately to settle back into routine (arriving home from a 2 week hiatus in Chicago), and grasping at any remnants of a schedule - my daughter decides it is time to self-wean. She went completely "cold turkey" on me! One minute she was reaching her little hands down my shirt, a few hours later before bed she pushed me away and said "no!" very clearly. Concluding that it was a case of baby's-off-schedule, I put her to bed figuring she'd go for it in the morning... no such luck. It is 4 days later, and I've been pumping (worrying she may suddenly decide to return once she is back in routine), without so much as an ounce of interest on her end. She'll happily down a bottle of my pumped milk (just as happily as she takes a cup of whole milk or soy milk), but when I offer her my breast she looks at me as if I am offering her my toe to suckle! She's getting so frustrated at my persistence to get her to nurse, she even went so far as solidifying a new word in her vocabulary - "No Way"!

And so this morning I sterilized that trusty Avent hand Pump, packed it up and stored it away along with the rest of my days-gone-by baby things. I have to be honest, I'm super emotional about saying goodbye to my suckling babe days... I so cherished the cuddly moments each day, and craved the downtime I got through nursing anytime anywhere. I'm sad to leave those times behind, but apparently she's ready to move on to bigger and better. And so we're off to a new stage, a new era... : )