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The Essential Breastfeeding Log
A Feedings Tracker, Baby Sleep Record and Weight-Loss Diary For Nursing Moms
By Sarah Bowen Shea and Suzanne Schlosberg
About The Essential Breastfeeding Log
So much of what happens in the first six months of your baby's life lays the foundation for years to come, from bolstering her immune system through breastfeeding to instilling healthy sleep habits. The Essential Breastfeeding Log can help your infant get off to the best possible start.
The log's flexible format makes it valuable for anyone who puts a baby to breast, whether you're exclusively nursing, breastfeeding and pumping, or breastfeeding and supplementing with formula. You'll find this diary helpful if you're:
- A first-time mom. If you're not familiar with how babies and their habits change over time, the log will help you figure out which end of your baby is up . . . rather, how to keep your baby satisfied.
- A mom with older kids. You'll see how your new baby's habits differ from those of your other kids, helping you treat each child as an individual. Also, since you're incredibly busy - with work, preschool drop-off, playdates, swim lessons, or all of the above - your diary will help you stay focused on the needs of your new baby.
- A working mom who pumps. At the office, it's easy to get distracted, but a few too many long meetings and phone calls can cause your milk supply to dry up. Keeping the log on your desk will remind you to pump on schedule in order to keep the milk flowing.
- A mom with childcare. Filling out the log can be a collaborative effort. You can hand the diary off to your daycare provider or nanny, who can then record how much pumped breastmilk or formula your baby drank, how long he napped, and so on. It's a great way to keep tabs on what happens when you aren't around and a way to succinctly communicate important information to your babysitter.
- A mom of multiples. This log is a lifesaver for women who have to keep track of feeding and sleeping schedules for two or more babies and an invaluable resource for friends and family who are lending a helping hand. Take it from two women who have been there: You may well expire from sleep deprivation (or frustration) if you don't use a log to get your babies on a schedule. At the very least, this diary will ensure that you see the light of day during your babies' first few months.
Sample Log Pages
Like breastfeeding itself, The Essential Breastfeeding Log evolves over time. This diary has four different formats, each modified for your baby's age.
Weeks 1 and 2: Your life is about breastfeeding, breastfeeding, tracking dirty diapers, and, oh yes, breastfeeding. Your baby doesn’t know day from night, so you won’t be recording his sleep habits yet.
Click to view week 1 log page (Adobe PDF).
Weeks 3 to 6: The dirty/wet diaper tallies are dropped in favor of more space to journal about your increasingly alert baby, who will soon light up your day with a smile or an adorable coo. A general Night Notes box is added as your little one starts to develop a longer sleep stretch at night.
Weeks 7 to 18: Your baby is feeding less often and sleeping longer at night, allowing you to reacquaint yourself with the world. There's more to track now, including bedtimes and wake times for baby, and exercise sessions - yes, it's time to get moving! - for you.
Click to view week 7 log page (Adobe PDF).
Weeks 19 to 26: You're back in the swing of things, and your baby has dropped another feeding or two. Your little person is changing every day, so there's more space to track the fun stuff, like when she first rolls over, claps her hands, and laughs (the heart-melter!).
Excerpt From The Introduction
Are you wondering how you could possibly manage to fill out this log when you barely have time to take a shower? Trust us: your diary will make life easier, not harder!
We're well acquainted with the chaos of caring for newborns - Sarah has twin toddlers and a 6-year-old, and Suzanne has twin 9-month-olds - and if there's one thing that got us through those topsy-turvy first months, it was keeping a log. Recording our babies' feeding and sleep times, plus a few other simple observations, enabled us to get our babies on a schedule and sleeping through the night. With our lives back in order - more or less! - we were able to take a deep breath, to schedule in exercise, to occasionally have a social life, to maintain a positive outlook and a sense of humor, even when a baby had a meltdown just as the pasta boiled over and the doorbell rang. In short, our logs saved our sanity!
Keeping a log can do the same for you, too. It takes about 3 minutes a day, in total, yet the payoff is huge. Your notations, and the strategies they lead to, can mean the difference between feeling like a zombie and being tired, sure, but essentially happy, calm, and able to fully delight in these precious first months.
Think of this log, initially, as a niftier version of the photocopied charts that hospitals dispense along with sanitary pads and painkillers.
Then, once you've made it past the first few weeks - whew! - keeping a log is more about capturing the bigger picture. With notations on paper, you'll spot trends in your baby's behavior that you might not otherwise notice.
This diary is especially useful for any mom who wants to "sleep train" her baby - in other words, teach him to soothe himself to sleep and get him on a sleep schedule. More snooze time for your baby means better brain development, a sunnier disposition, and, new studies indicate, a lower risk of weight problems down the road.
More sleep for you translates to a lower risk of postpartum depression, more tolerance when your husband forgets to buy toilet paper (again!), and, research shows, a hormonal balance that will help with weight loss.
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