The end of nursing

Nursing is not something I discuss too much, as it's nothing out of the ordinary for our day-to-day routines.  Also, in our society, nursing your children much beyond the age of 1 is often frowned upon.  However, both Mudgie and Aaron nursed well beyond 12 months of age, and while I never anticipated nursing these boys for as long as I did, it was an amazing experience for all of us.

For months now, Aaron had only been nursing once a day.  Shortly after he started sleeping through the night (around 14 months old) we started dropping nursing sessions.  The first thing in the morning nursing session was the only one that was still around.  When he'd wake up in the morning, we'd bring him into bed with us, and he'd nurse and cuddle for a little bit, giving everyone a few extra minutes to wake up.  It was a very sweet way to start the day.

As Aaron approached 22 months old, I was getting ready for this to end.  While it was something we both really enjoyed, I knew he was ready for it too.  I'm so blessed to have 2 cuddly boys, so I had no worries about losing that closeness with Aaron (or Mudgie), and knew that "belly time" would still continue long after nursing ended.  So on Mother's Day, Aaron nursed for the last time.

While there was nothing particularly memorable about that morning, I had a premonition that it was our last time.  I made sure to hold his little head in my hand, and take a mental picture of what that little face looked like looking up at me.  I'm so glad that I cherished that morning because the next day, Aaron slept late.  This meant that I was already in the shower getting ready for work by the time he woke up, so he didn't come in the bed to nurse.  And then he did the same thing the next day.  And by the time he woke up before I got in the shower (on Thursday, just 4 days later), our routine had already been forgotten, and he happily went downstairs with me without a stop in the bedroom first.

I expected to be sadder about this, but it was such a mutual decision that I'm not.  I'm happy that we shared that experience for as long as we did, but I'm also happy to have my body back to myself.  After over 4 years of being either pregnant or nursing (or both!), it's a nice feeling.  And as for Aaron, as you can see, he seems to be doing just fine.