To boob or not to boob

I have had a long journey with breastfeeding which is finally coming to an end
I am so glad that I made it as long as I did, and I hope that Elena's health, growth and immunity benefited from it all. According to what I have read even 1.5 oz per day provides a great deal of the benefits for immunity/allergies, so at least it is something!

It truly is a large effort and I praise every mama out there who is able to breastfeed. I exclusively breastfed for the first four months before switching to pumping. Pumping truly feels like a thankless, and never ending job, but I held on until Elena was seven and a half months and I lost my office (and thus the privacy that I desired in order to pump). I had fleeting thoughts of other places I could try to make it work, but sitting/hovering in a bathroom stall just wasn't going to cut it.

And with that, I made a slow transition from multiple times pumping a day to just breastfeeding Elena in the morning and night at about eight months. Around nine and a half months I moved to just at nights. The routine was moving along well until at about ten and a half months, when Elena was armed with two bottom teeth she bit me not once, not twice, but FOUR times in one feeding session. The only thing that kept me going was our upcoming trip and knowing that I wanted the option to feed Elena on the plan if she was having any issues.

So here we are, I made it to eleven months and we are fully done breastfeeding. I have mixed emotions, part of me is happy to get my body back (after nine months of pregnancy and 11 months of pregnancy) it has been almost two years since it has truly been mine. But that is mixed with feelings of sadness in letting go of that bonding experience that only comes with breastfeeding, we will make up for it by cuddling and our quiet time before bed, but I will miss those quiet moments, just the two of us.