Oh poor Freya boo. She wakes up in the night, wants to nurse, points at my chest with her finger and cries out pitifully, “naaah? naahhh??” while kicking her legs and becoming ever more frustrated as I rub her back and soothe her as gently as I can. You aren’t a newborn, honey. You don’t need milk four times a night anymore. But she doesn’t calm, and it assures me that she’s not really totally ready to night wean yet. So before she launches into a full-on crying jag, I pop her onto my boob and she shuts right down, as quiet and sleepy as can be. SIGH.

Many of the other AP mothers I know haven’t been able to night wean until 18 months though, so we still have a couple months to go. Sometimes I find that I can indeed get her back to sleep with a back rub. Lately I have been trying that first, but she isn’t ready. I don’t want to turn things into a battle, especially at 4 in the morning, especially over something as important to us as nursing. I don’t believe in forced weaning. So I have to just wait until she is ready, while hopefully giving her all the tools she needs to fall asleep without her milk: Mommy’s voice, a gentle back rub, and so on. As far as total weaning, I know she probably won’t be ready for that for another year, but I don’t mind. Breastfeeding her has never bothered me. But I do know that she can get by without it at night. She just doesn’t quite know that yet.

Anyway. Today’s agenda includes taking Freya for a stroll in the jogger. Will I actually run? Doubtful. But I will walk quickly!