How To Heal Cracked and Sore Nipples {from breastfeeding}

HEAL SORE/CRACKED NIPPLES IN DAYS rather than weeks.

If any of you have read my posts about breastfeeding Whitney, part 1 and part 2 you know that I struggled with breastfeeding her. It was terribly hard, to the point where I questioned myself daily if I could keep going. This time around everyone was encouraging me, telling me that the soreness wouldn't last near as long and that I wouldn't have near as much trouble as I did last time. With all the encouragement I was still a little doubtful and scared...depressing I know. It led me to do a little research on healing tender, sore, cracked and scabbed nipples with essential oils.

I am not kidding, this stuff is AMAZING. I didn't have to use any lanolin or nipple cream (even though I stocked up on it). After a feeding I would just rub it on my nipples let it dry for all of about 30 seconds and then go about my business. It literally took about 3-4 days to completely heal. Obviously a lot of that depends on the latch and if everything else is going well.

I am a firm believer that in order to heal your nipples they need to have time to dry out. I think one of my biggest problems last time was that I would slather myself in lanolin, put a nursing pad in my bra or tank and just endure the deep burn of my nipples. Which makes no sense to me now. When wounds are healing, they heal so much faster if they are dry.

This little nipple healer is all-natural and safe for baby. It soaks in to your skin within minutes so you don't need to rub it off before each feeding (just make sure it's dry).

When using essential oils purity matters. I know everyone says this and there are so many conflicting things but it is very important to know where your oil came from and the purity of it. You don't want to be rubbing an oil on your nipple that could have residue of pesticides or other fillers. Purity also helps to get that therapeutic benefit.

I used a glass roller-bottle that I bought on amazon to house my nipple magic.

What you need:
10 ml Glass RollerBottle
doTERRA Lavender essential oil
doTERRA Helichrysum essential oil
Fractionated Coconut Oil

All it is, is 15 drops of helichrysum, 15 drops of lavender and I filled the rest up with fractionated coconut oil.
PURE MAGIC!

If any of you ladies out there are struggling with sore nipples I really hope you give it a try. I was completely amazed and I saved myself weeks of nipple pain.

Baby Girl Newborn Pictures {hailey sue}

I would have to say that newborn pictures are a must! Last time I felt like I wasn't completely prepared for them. This time was a little bitter sweet, I was prepared as far as what I wanted her to wear but I hadn't made arrangements for a photographer yet. So it was a little last minute and the stuff I bought for her to wear the photographer said wouldn't work with the way she photographs. Had I been a little more prepared I could have done something a little different. 

There were a few photos that I loved. My advice is to get a photographer in advance and talk to them about what you're thinking. Make sure it's exactly what you want because they are only a week old one time and it goes by super fast. I think next time I might just try and do them on my own. 

Hailey Sue {one month}

Hailey is already a month old and what a blessing she is. She hasn't been in our lives for very long but it literally seems like she has been a part of our family forever. I can't imagine our lives without her now. She is a little sweetheart and I'm so excited to see watch her grow.

She gives us lots and lots of sleeping smiles.
She has the cutest little coos.
She isn't the biggest fan of bath time.
She sleeps like an angel (5-6 hours at night)
She loves her big sister.
She wiggles and grunts ALL night long.
She loves to nurse.
She sleeps better swaddled.
She hates her car seat.
She gets a little fussy every evening until bed time.
She is gorgeous.

Basically, she is amazing.

Labor With The Flu

I thought I would share my birth story because before I went into labor I tried to search "having the flu while in labor" and I came up with NOTHING helpful. Maybe if I share my birth story someone will find it a little comforting to know that they aren't the only person to go through labor while having the flu.

Monday April 6, 2015 my husband and I came down with flu. Pretty much at the exact same time. I was in one bathroom and Brandon was in the other. So my Mom came and got Whitney so we didn't have to worry about her. The next question was, I'm 38 weeks pregnant, what is this going to do to me?! I called the doctor and got exactly what I knew they would say...stay hydrated and if you feel faint go in and get fluid, also there is a chance it can put you into labor...great! So I was chugging water and a little Gatorade to stay hydrated in between my bathroom episodes. Every now and then  Brandon and I would check on each other to see how things were going and if the other was OK. Brandon unfortunately continued to get worse and worse until he finally said he needed to go in. So, I took him to the ER.

The ER was crazy busy at the time but thankfully I only had one bathroom episode while we were waiting for him to get called back. Anyway, once we got called back I started to feel really faint and uncomfortable so I asked one of the nurses about it because I knew she once worked on the OB floor. So she thought I should go up stairs and get some fluid, which made me feel better because then they could monitor the baby. Well, sure enough I was completely dehydrated, baby's heart rate was a little high, I was contracting and at a 3. They hooked me up to an IV, gave me some anti-nausea and started watching my contractions. Around midnight I begged to go home because I needed some sleep and I really wanted to get the house clean before we had a baby. I was NOT ready for her. They actually let me leave even though I was dilated to a 4-5. We came home, I took a little nap and woke up because I was sick again. As I had my head in the toilet heaving away I felt a squirt of water come out. So, we packed our stuff and headed back to the hospital.

I was still at a 4-5, but almost a 5. She couldn't tell if it was my water or not because the test wouldn't work because of too much blood. So they just monitored everything and let me get some rest. The doctor came in and said he wanted to put me on pitocin to get things going. Which I was very hesitant about because I've heard terrible things about how it makes everything much more painful and I was already in tons of achy pain from the flu. But I let them anyway, and it actually wasn't too bad. I could feel the contractions a lot more but they were still bearable. I finally got to about a 6-7 but was still slowly moving.

At about 11:30 the doctor came back in and broke my water. All hell broke loose after that. My contractions started getting unbelievably intense. So intense that I was basically screaming through them because that was the only thing that sort of helped. About 10 mins later my contractions started making me feel like I need to go poop, and they reassured me that it was just baby coming down. So they checked me and I was almost fully dilated and ready to have a baby. They called the doctor to come back in a panic and they made me hold my urge to push until he got there. Once he got there I actually got a little laugh out of myself by asking "does this mean I don't get the epidural" hahaha. Good one huh? They got everything to have a baby ready and I gave a handful of pushes and she was here...at 12:03 p.m.! That's 30 minutes after he broke my water.

Thankfully she was OK, healthy and beautiful. But our next concern was the flu. Brandon was still feeling pretty cruddy, I was basically over it because well I just pushed a baby out, the flu was the least of my worries. But basically my advice is to not stress about the baby getting the flu, but do stress about hand washing and basic hygiene.

So, if any of you ever find yourself in labor with the flu, you will find some comfort to know that once they put you on an IV your life gets much better. You still might have a few bathroom episodes but it is comforting to know you are in a hospital and they are watching the baby closely. Giving birth while you have the flu is completely doable.

Make sure to have someone come by and clean the bathrooms for you before you get home, maybe the house too. Also make sure and bring a pillow and blanket for both you and your husband to help you feel a little more comfortable at the hospital. All in all it really wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but it is something I never want to ever have to do again.

If you ever find yourself full term with the flu, make sure and keep an eye on yourself. If for any reason you feel faint or just not right, go in because you never really know how dehydrated you really are.

Hailey Sue graced us with her presence April 7, 2015 at 12:03. 7lbs, 10oz. and 20 inches long!

Whitney Anne {21 months}

My little lover bug is already 21 months old. Famous words of a Mother...where did the time go??!! After her first birthday the time has literally flown by. It's so crazy to think her second birthday is just around the corner. Why do they have to grow so fast?!

Whitney Anne,

You mean the absolute world to me. You are on my mind every second of the day. Everything you feel, I feel just as much. Your joy, pain and frustration. You are my very best friend and you will always stay that way. Here in a few months when you have a little sister my love for you won't change. It will only grow. I hope you understand that.

You are going through a tough little stage right now. You know what you want but you can't talk very well so you end up getting really frustrated. We are working on your talking, and I hope you can pick it up soon. I think it will make for less frustrating days all around.

You have such a strong personality (which we knew from day one). I'm not quite sure whose personality you have, but I have a feeling you are a lot like your Daddy. You know what you want and you are oh so persistent (like Daddy). Your sassy side, I'm really not sure who gave you that, maybe your Aunt Kathy. You look a lot like your Daddy but I think you are starting to look more like me everyday. Sometimes I look at you and see Aunt Kathy. It really depends on the day I guess.

Some of your favorite things as of late are cereal, toast, berries and cheese. You are such a picky little eater, that's quite the wide variety of foods haha. I don't know if you can sense something is about to change or what, but you have been attached to me lately, you don't want anyone other than your Mama. Of course you will always go to Nana. You LOVE those crazy cousins of yours, which I think they love you too. You do some of the silliest things, one of which is falling off the couch. You started putting your hands up, opening your mouth really wide and yelling "aaaahhh" and falling face first on the couch. Recently you have been trying to fall off the couch, thankfully your Daddy and I have been there to catch you every time because the little dare devil in you doesn't seem to care that it would be a 3 foot free fall. You love to climb, which I think you got that from me. You love to read, but lately it's been hard for you to sit still during a story.

You are my everything Whitney Anne, I don't know what I would do without you. I hope someday you understand how much I love you and that when I get on your case, it's only because I'm teaching you the unwritten rules of life.

Love Mama!

DIY All-Natural Vicks Chest Rub

Our poor baby girl got sick a few weeks ago. It was the worst cold she has ever had, I'm assuming it was probably something a little worse than just a cold because it lasted for a while and usually she's over it within 3 days. Seeing her have a hard time sleeping because of the congestion is so heartbreaking. I would have gladly suffered through it for her (pregnant even).

I've been wanting to try the Organic Breathe Easy Rub from the Honest Company but I just haven't gotten around to buying it, and once she got the cold it was too late to order online and wait for it to get here. So I decided to make my own, which I should have done from the very beginning. 

It was soooo easy, I know all the ingredients and it was pretty cheap. 

Recipe

2 Tbsp Beeswax

3 Tbsp Coconut Oil

30 drops of Breathe 

30 drops of Lavender

**you could also add in Eucalyptus and On Guard. 

1. Put the beeswax in a glass jar that you will be storing it in. 

2. Fill a pot up with water and place the glass jar with the beeswax in the water. Make sure the water it's too high so it doesn't splash in the jar. 

3. Heat the water and the jar on medium/low heat until the beeswax is melted. 

4. Once melted, add in the coconut oil.

5. Stir until combined, once it has cooled a little add the essential oils. You want to make sure to add them when it's not steaming hot because it can break down the medicinal properties. 

***You can melt the beeswax however you feel comfortable, we don't have any fancy equipment so that's how we did it. 

It's crazy how easy stuff like that is, and it's so much better than putting petroleum products on your baby that they can breathe in. 

DIY Aromatherapy Play-Dough

It's getting harder and harder to keep Whitney entertained for a full day. It seems like toys keep her busy for a tiny portion of the day and I'm always struggling to figure out with to do with the rest of the 8 hours she's awake. Whitney LOVES being in the kitchen and helping with dishes, cooking and cleaning. I'm pretty sure shes better at putting dishes away than my husband.

The other day we found this recipe for aromatherapy play-dough. I love essential oils and I love that the possibilities are endless with them. It's a super easy recipe just head on over to The Prairie Homestead and check it out. 

Here are a few of my little helper!