A Tale of Two #AventMoms | Giveaway

Last month we shared our friends’ breast and bottle feeding journey and because you loved their same-sex parenting story, we’re back with more! Sharing their story with you not only helped them but it has been remarkable how many of you reached out in support with similar tales. As you know, Baby & Life started because I was on a mission to maintain my pre-baby lifestyle and so I wanted to hear how they were settling in to their new routine and adventures. I did my best to avoid “mom-guilt” and was curious to see if it had reared its ugly head. My friend Amanda has lots to share! We’re back with another giveaway and you have a chance to win 1 of 4 Philips Avent Bottles Gift Sets!

Disclosure :  We are part of the PTPA Brand Ambassador Program with Philips Avent and have received compensation as part of our affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog, as always, are TOTALLY ours!

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When we were asked to share our story and review a product for Baby & Life, we were thrilled and honoured to participate. We have learned that everyone has a baby journey – each one is unique. And for those of us who struggle with this journey, we have learned how important it is for others to know they are not alone. It took us 3 years, 1 surgery, 3 miscarriages and 21 attempts to make our little boy. Each and every day we are thankful for our family, friends, nurses and doctors who helped make this happen. 

For anyone who knows my wife and I really well, they describe her as a “laid back and flexible woman.” In contrast when describing me…let’s just say I love lists, excel spreadsheets, organization, and planning. Basically when things don’t happen according to plan, I am sure to have already thought out a back-up tactic. 

As new Moms, we have quickly learned the importance of a regular and consistent schedule with our little boy. From nap-time to “snack-time” to play-time and back to nap-time, our routines have been critical in helping ourselves and baby boy maintain balance. Because we have been fortunate enough to be able to breast feed, this also means that my wife typically leads the charge with how this plays out every day. This is good, but guilt starts to creep in from my end on a fairly consistent basis as I feel like I should be doing more when helping in the daily activities with our son. The Philips Avent bottle system has really come to the rescue here. Now that baby boy is almost 6 months old and we have started to introduce solids, he is also becoming more and more active and his Momma is feeling more and more confident in leaving him for longer periods of time as she knows he enjoys using the Philips Avent Classic bottles. In fact, he has started to enjoy these bottles so much he can hold onto them with very little help from me!

On those afternoons or evenings when it’s just baby boy and I, having the confidence in knowing that I don’t have to call his Momma because he won’t drink from the bottle is very comforting. I firmly believe this is because the breast shaped nipple really does make it easy for him to latch on and as a result he doesn’t get “nipple confusion.” Having this security also allows her to feel relaxed and enjoy her much deserved time away. The planner in me loves it too, because it means I have to factor in the time it takes to prepare the bottle for our little boy into our routine so he and I don’t feel rushed and he doesn’t get fussy or impatient waiting for his snack. Luckily the Avent Classic bottles are simple to use, clean and assembly, which is amazing when you’ve got a hungry boy on your hands! I’ve also learned through trial and error that baby boy can be a bit fickle when he drinks his breast milk from the bottle. It has to be exactly the right temperature otherwise he won’t latch on to the nipple. The other feature I’ve noticed with the Avent Classic bottles is that baby boy doesn’t tend to get too gassy when using them. In fact, burping him is the same as if he were feeding from his Momma. This can definitely be attributed to the anti-colic nipple that vents air away from his tummy.

People often ask us if we would have done anything different throughout our journey. We both admit that the emotional roller coaster was something we were not prepared for. We also both admit we should have talked more with other people throughout our journey. 

Regardless if you are are a single parent, same-sex couple or heterosexual couple, for whatever reason society still “whispers” about fertility assistance and miscarriages. We need each other for support. We have both now met and talked with so many different people who have had similar and different experiences. We regret not knowing and seeking these people out while we were on our baby journey. 

I cannot express to you how proud, strong and determined my wife was during those 3 long years. Statistically it should not have been that challenging for us. Our advice to anyone thinking about expanding your family is – don’t wait. Do it now because you don’t know how long it will take for the magic to happen. Life throws you curve balls…and we wouldn’t change ours at all.