Adventures in Breastfeeding

Let me preface this post by saying that I absolutely have to record these moments- every graphic detail- so that twenty-odd years down the line when Savannah has a child (oh, Lord!) I can relay these events to her and we can share a laugh over them like only mother and daughter are able.

Last Thursday was Brad's 28th birthday. Since we were heading to Ocala on Friday for the Gator game, I met Brad at his office so we could just jump right onto the interstate and be in Ocala for dinner time so that we could go to eat with his parents. We decided to stop at Panther Trace and see the progress on our house (we have walls! I will add the photos later) and then we got back on the interstate. We then got stuck in insane Tampa traffic and it took us over an hour to drive what usually takes about 20 minutes. Savannah fell asleep while we were sitting in traffic and then woke up after we had been driving for a while. We were already far behind schedule and everyone was getting hungry- including Savannah- but Brad and I really didn't want to stop for me to feed her. So I pulled down the window shade, unstrapped my seatbelt and precariously balanced on one knee leaning over Savannah's car seat to feed my hungry child. Luckily the sun was starting to set and there wasn't much traffic anymore because it was very difficult to cover myself very well while breastfeeding in a moving vehicle. I figured this feat alone should earn me points toward Mother of the Year. But these acrobatics served their purpose and Savannah was able to fill her little tummy enough to finish the rest of the car ride with a smile on her face, leaving me to wonder, Why on earth didn't I think of this before?!

On Saturday we headed up to Gainesville to watch the Gators play Kentucky. I am very lucky that Brad's parents have seats up in the Champions Club and that I am able to sit up there with Savannah. There is a whole concourse inside- in the air conditioning- with comfortable leather chairs and televisions throughout so I can be at the game without sitting in the heat and humidity with Savannah being spooked everytime the Gators make an offensive play. We get there when everyone is going down to their seats, fins a chair in front of a television and stay there until the end of the game. Yesterday, Brad was sitting with his cousin and friend Ace, so Ace's girlfriend Jen sat up with me in the club seats. At half time, Jen came in from the regular seats in the stadium so I asked her to sit in my chair with my diaper bag so that I could go to the bathroom. I walked down the concourse toward the family bathroom- a single stall with a changing table and a little more room than a handicapped stall. There was someone inside when I got there, so I waited patiently for an older woman (with no family) to exit the restroom. I got inside and locked the door, and decided that while I was in here, I ought to try to get Savannah to eat a little bit because there really isn't anywhere else private enough to breastfeed on the concourse. It was then that I thought of the wonderful product that Julie had told me about just that morning, called a Hooter Hider- essentially a poncho that goes around your neck and covers a wide area so that you can breastfeed discreetly in public. How it would have come in handy this evening!

But there I sat, on the toilet, with my panties around my ankles and Savannah eating when someone came and jiggled the handle on the bathroom door. I tried to call out that the restroom was occupied but it was loud out there and figured that the locked door would speak for itself. Obviously the person on the other side of the door didn't get this, however, because she started banging violently on the door and jiggling the handle relentlessly, trying to get into the bathroom. This added to the stress I was already feeling, trying to collect myself and caused me to get a bloody nose. Great. So now I am still in a very precarious situation only now I have blood trickling out of my nose, making a beeline for my nice, WHITE, sleevless Gator polo. Did I mention it was white? And I was bleeding? Needless to say, the shirt is now in ruins (though Brad's mom is going to attempt to get the blood out)

So I shove some toilet paper up my nose, wriggle back into my panties while holding Savannah like a football under one arm, cover myself up- all while this woman is still banging on the bathroom door. I fling the door open and see a woman in her mid-thirties standing there with a little girl who looked to be about 4 or 5. Our dialogue follows:

Me: "Excuse me, there is somebody in here."
Rude Lady (RL): "My daughter has to go to the bathroom. You have been in there forever."
Me: "I have a bloody nose!"
RL: "You don't need to be in the family bathroom for that!"
Me: "Look, lady, I am trying to breastfeed my six month old daughter here. Your daughter can go in the regular stalls. But you are welcome to come in here while I clean up, but I cannot leave with blood dripping out of my nose!"

So she is standing there staring at me, now not saying anything because, really, what else is a family bathroom for than breastfeeding, and changing diapers and all? Her daughter is obviously potty trained and the only difference between this stall and the other 30+ restroom stalls in the place is the size.... not to mention the other family restroom at the other end of the concourse. While she stood there, dumbfounded, I just shut the door, locked it and went about cleaning myself up. If her daughter really had to go that bad she would have taken me up on my VERY polite offer to join me in the bathroom.... but I was not about to go out in public with blood dripping out of my nose! I made such a mess, too- Savannah ended up with blood on her hands and it was an awful mess... not to mention that, when all was said and done, I had to go and buy a new shirt!

I was just absolutely flabbergasted that someone would ever stand there and bang on a bathroom door. If it was that much of an emergency, why are you wasting so much time harassing me? I was literally shaking when I finally emerged. When Brad's mom came down, I was relaying the story to her and there was a man who was sitting in the chairs beside us, who looked to be an EMT or something and when I was finished he said, "I don't mean to eavesdrop, but I have to tell this to my wife when I get home!"

I guess this is one of those experiences that will be funny, one day, so here it goes into the world of bloggers. Maybe I'll laugh, one day...

On the Road Again

Right after we moved to Bradenton the air conditioner in Brad's car broke. The entire compressor broke down which ended up making it so that his car wouldn't even turn on. For some reason the closest compressor for his car that the mechanic could locate was in New Jersey and would cost $1100 just for the part, then close to another $1000 for the installation, so we decided that Brad would just drive my car for a while. Our mechanic rerouted one of the belts to bypass the compressor so that the car was drivable, but anyone who lives in Florida knows it is not comfortable to drive in the summer without air conditioning... especially when you don't have power windows!!

My dad was able to locate a part for us so two weeks ago we had a friend install it and it ended up saving us around $1400. So now Brad is back to driving his car and Savannah and I are back on the road again. It was difficult for me, basically being stuck at the apartment all day because the car sitting outside raised the internal temperature of the car so high that I hated to put Savannah in the car unless it was absolutely necessary- basically for emergency's only. Luckily we didn't have any emergencies and we managed to sustain ourselves in the apartment, but it is a wonderful feeling to be able to go run errands if need be.

So today Savannah had her 6 month check-up. We had to reschedule because her original appointment ended up being scheduled for the week we had Brad's car fixed so Savannah and I had no way of getting to the appointment so she was two weeks behind schedule. In the last two and a half months, Savannah has been busy growing... she weighed 13 pounds, 4.5 ounces! I couldn't believe it- she has almost doubled her birth weight. She measured 24 1/2 inches long, too, our long and skinny girl did. She is still a little small for her age but is growing proportinately for herself so everything looks great. Dr Logan was so thrilled with her physical development and couldn't believe that she has already said 'ma ma' and 'da da' and her new favorite, 'ya ya'. Too bad we aren't Greek, or else she would be calling her grandma!

The past few weeks have been full of adventure for Savannah. She is thoroughly enjoying trying out new foods and has spent the last week or so scooting around on the floor quite successfully. She's still not quite figured out how to crawl but when she wants to get somewhere she can definitely make it happen. Peyton has become her best friend and the two of them are too cute together. Peyton loves to lay on Savannah's blankets on the floor with or without her and he is so good with her. She has become very interested in the tags on his collar and pulls at them and his ears and Peyton takes it all in stride. Savannah loves it when he gives her kisses- she closes her eyes, opens her mouth and sticks her tongue out. We have yet to get a picture of it but it will definitely be one for the album if we can ever time it right!

Under Construction

It didn't take as long as we had expected it to, but on September 1, Brad and I got the call that the builder had received our permit from Hillsborough County to start construction on our house! On our way back to Bradenton after the first football game we stopped to see if they had posted the permit in our yard yet. Even better, they had cleared the lot and laid the planks outlining our house! We stopped again yesterday and they have pulled all the water lines up and it looks like they are getting ready to pour the foundation in the next week or so! Brad and I are so excited to see something actually taking place on our house- now I know the next few months are going to fly by and before we know it we will be moving in!

Caleb Has Arrived!

A big congratulations to Chris, Julie and Grace Martin on the arrival of their beautiful baby boy! Caleb Dale Martin was born on September 9, 2006 at 8:29 pm weighing 8 pounds and measuring 20 3/4 inches long. He is just as sweet as can be with a head full of dark, thick hair. We love you so much, sweet boy!