Closed For Business

It is with great sadness that I must announce the boob shop is officially closed. After I went back to work (and flipped our body schedules by exactly 12 hours) it seemed I was never able to get back on track with my supply and had to start supplementing right away. Baby N immediately displayed a preference for the fast drip of the bottle over the natural nipple and so began my battle to keep breastfeeding. It was really disheartening for me. We both shed a lot of tears out of sheer frustration (well, maybe his were more from hunger). But now that we are just shy of the 6 month mark, he has absolutely no interest in nursing anymore. It makes me feel very sad that I wasn't really able to share this special bond with him as much as I did with the other three. At least I can say that I gave it my best when I throw in the towel.

Enough with the sad stuff. I am back to insomniac sleepless nights thanks to all the other stressors currently competing for my attention, and I just don't have the energy to keep being sad about this one. Life keeps moving so quickly. T&V are already here, 4th of July has come and gone, and J already went to her first week ever of overnight camp (!!). Oh, and A got the crap beat out of him during UFC tennis practice.*

For 4th of July we decided to stay in. We did the National Mall the last time we were here, and I just did not have the will to do it again, especially with the baby. So instead we set off our own fireworks show in the backyard. C and her friend** brought sparklers and a flag, then we all played Monopoly. Well, in reality Husband tricked the kids into trading him their best properties and he mopped the floor with everyone.

The following week we dropped off J at horse camp about 30 miles away. It was her first time away from home, so I wasn't too surprised to get a call on Wed from her. Apparently a lot of the other girls were regular riders at this place, so their parents were local and would stop by during the day to watch their lessons. "You know, Mama," she said, "You could stop by if you want. It would be okay." Broke my heart! So we took an extended lunch break on Thursday to make the trip out to see her. She was so happy, she even hugged A.***

Then T&V arrived to complete the summer craziness. We celebrated T's 14th birthday. Hard to believe we have two high schoolers now!

*Okay so he tripped and kneed in the face, but it looks like he was in an MMA fight.
**Just a friend. Her boyfriend is in Brazil with his family until August. 
***To which he responded, "Ew! Get off me!"