I can't believe my little baby is already over a year old! This has been the fastest year of my life. It was also the hardest year of my life, but I wouldn't trade it for anything.
The first few months postpartum were especially difficult, between healing from my C-section and subsequent infection, and the crazy sleep deprivation. During that time of desperation, I found myself especially vulnerable to marketing that claimed to help with sleep (while being dead-set against any form of cry-it-out sleep training). I bought the Taking Cara Babies course, which in hindsight was a bit overrated, and we bought noise machines and swaddles.
I wish we hadn't spent so much time, money, and energy trying to "fix" her sleep, and that I had just embraced her attached nature and started enjoying contact naps and bedsharing sooner.
I also wish I had known more about low milk supply, as I would've tried antenatal milk expression, and I would've used a supplemental feeding system much earlier. I am glad that we went to a lactation consultant, because she helped me so much by understanding how much I wanted to breastfeed, when all the doctors and nurses just kept telling me to supplement with formula. I was very afraid that supplementing with formula would ruin my breastfeeding journey, but it actually ended up saving it.
At one year old, my baby has three meals of food everyday, and still breastfeeds on demand and feeds to sleep for naps and during the night.
We were able to completely stop supplementing with formula as she transitioned to solid foods. I am so proud of how far we've come, and I'm hoping to continue breastfeeding her until she's at least two, but probably longer.
There is really nothing else like being new parents, and it's pretty impossible to be completely prepared. I'm glad we took all the courses and read the books and such, so we could at least feel somewhat prepared, but it is mostly just learning through experience and figuring out what works for you, since it's different for everyone. Everyone has their own challenges and experiences, because no two babies are the same. This is why it's no use comparing with other parents and babies - everyone does things their own way, and at their own pace.
We have learned so much in the last year, but we definitely still have a lot to learn about being parents.
It has been so much fun watching our baby meet new milestones, grow, and learn, but it is also sad that she isn't our tiny baby anymore.
We look forward to many things we'll get to share with her in the future, but we can certainly wait - we don't want to rush her growing up, since it happens quickly enough on its own.
I feel so much better and more confident than I did a year ago, and I will continue to enjoy my baby's snuggles and do what works best for us.
Being her Mom is by far the best job I've ever had. ❤
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