The Little Man is two weeks old today. The past two weeks have been very difficult: sleepless nights, a toddler trying to grab my attention while I’m taking care of her little brother, loads of year-end work and the challenge of breastfeeding.

When we had The Princess, I was only able to breastfeed her for four days. Due to lack of knowledge about breastfeeding, I gave in to the thought that I had low milk supply; hence, I was starving my little girl. Apparently, our little ones can only store a little milk per feeding, which is why they feed so often. If I knew this before, I would have continued breastfeeding her. With our second child, I decided to give breastfeeding a second try. Although very challenging at first, I have to say that it really is a wonderful bonding experience with my child.

Here are some things I learned from my second try at breastfeeding (from my experience, it can be different for other moms):

• The first week is the most challenging. I experienced breast engorgement and had sore nipples at the end of the week. And since both The Little Man and I were still learning the proper latch, breastfeeding was rather painful (I had milk blisters). I was actually crying most of the time and was at the point of giving up.
• A really good breast pump can be your savior. Daddy A bought me an Avent Single Electric Pump when I started complaining about milk blisters on my left nipple. I let The Little Man breastfeed on my right breast while I pumped milk from my left breast. This allowed the blisters enough time to heal. Now they’re gone and I am able to breastfeed from both breasts without pain!
• Newborns feed frequently. There are days that The Little Man would feed every hour for thirty (sometimes more) minutes at a time! It was frustrating, especially at night, but I am always told by other breastfeeding moms that it will pass. Well, hopefully it will.
• It is very important to have support. I get support from other breastfeeding moms and, of course, Daddy A. A good support system will be of good help on days when you want to just give up and buy a can of formula. And believe me, I get a lot of those days!