Breastfeeding - Brooklyn,WI

I let my 3 year old try once after her baby sister was born. One time was enough for her, and she never asked again. I think once they're used to cold cow's milk from a cup, wam breast milk from the breast is not very appealing.

I tandem nurse, so the only difference is that my older son never weaned, as your child did.

It is your call. I have heard that weaned kids have a hard time latching on and/or lose interest quickly.

It has been a wonderful bonding experience for my boys to nurse together. They hold hands while nurisng.

It helped tremendously with jealousy and when my 2 year old went through a brief stint of hitting baby brother, the one time I knew he wouldn't hit him was during nursing.

Good luck and I would just do what feels right to your family.

Well you could do it, but why would you want a child who has been weaned for well over TWO years to breastfeed again? Believe me, if he was 6 months old at the time of weaning him from the breast, he does not remember nursing and therefore does not associate feeding from the breast as a comfort measure. You would then be starting a habbit that many women are trying to break! Just think he will be nearly THREE when this next child is born. That is preschool age, talking in full sentence and nearly toliet trained age. I would not recommend it. I do sometimes give advice to my moms with "Preschoolers" who have not been weaned yet, to do gentle weaning, but to go back and start nursing a 3 year old, I would never recommend. Now I have issues with some of my tandum nursing moms when one is a toddler or preschooler and the other an infant, anyway. The older child sucks much more aggressive and tends to drain the breast of milk. When people nurse the toddler first; (in your case a preschooler) the older child tends to take in all of the foremilk that sets up the acid/base balance in the baby. If the older child is nursed second, they are the ones that get the hind milk that helps with infant brain development. My suggestion is find something that is a special thing for you and your almost 3 year old to do together that is really appreciated with him and save breastfeeding for the baby that is about to enter your family. It will not be a big deal to your son at all, he has no memory (was weaned at 6 months); nor will he have any desires. This is more of an issue with you than it will be for him. I think right now you remember that special time between you and him and you are having a "but he is my baby" moments. Breastfeeding is not something that will create a feeling of being left out. Just know you have already given your preschooler the best start you could have given him and now it is time to start giving him "big boy starts" and give your new baby the same special gift of breastfeeding that you gave your son. Good luck and it is mom's like you that make my job easier (knowing you will breastfeed your new little one from the start). Congratulations!!!

Never heard of it but (and this is totally my own opinion and is not a statement of fact) I would recommend reserving this precious time for you and your newborn. Siblings have to learn to share lots of things...The bonding, nutrition, time, and immunity that comes w/breastfeeding should not be one of them.

I would assume that a child weaned from the breast for 2 yrs will have no interest in picking it up. However, your son will see you spending time with the newborn and will seek your special attention in some other way.

Lots of Mom's "tandem nurse"....the milk will be the right "consistency" for the youngest baby. I doubt that your 28 month old will really want to start nursing on a daily basis but it is very possible that he may want to "investigate" at first. I agree with the other Moms who have said "don't offer but don't refuse"....let him decide.
That being said, try and always have something at hand that you and your toddler can do together as you nurse the newborn, reading a book,drawing a picture,or sitting outside on a beautiful day to talk about the birds and flowers that he sees. Just make it a great time together and he will do well.
Congratulations on your new little one and also on being such a concerned and caring Mom!!!

While you can nurse 2 children, an older and a younger, many people don't wean and do both, I don't know if letting him revert is a good idea. Only because it will encourage him trying to act like the baby for attention, since he's growing up he needs to get attention for acting like a 2yr child. It wouldn't be so simple if he stopped potty training or eating real food, and it can be a very slippery slope. Make sure to give him attention when you can and praise the things he does that are age appropriate.

I nursed all through my second pregnancy, anticipating to wean just before delivery. My daughter wanted to quit about 6 weeks before the baby was born and I was nervous about newborn nursing problems, cracked nipples etc, which was a nightmare and so I encouraged her to nurse the last few weeks to keep me in shape for the new baby. What happened was the baby was born and she took a new interest in nursing. We tandem nursed for a year and it was the best experience! It is a rare occurence and an amazing one. A great book to refer to is Nursing your toddler. It was a bonus for me, for some many reasons, and the girls are 6 and 9 now and so very close. It has a positive impact on sibling rivalry, too. My sister had breast cancer and I was happy when both wanted to nurse longer, as it is a great risk reducer. (30%/year of nursing) The closeness, the nourishment and the bonding time for all three of us was priceless.
Good luck and go with your gut. It won't fail you.

I have nursed tandem with all of them right though the pregnancies and beyond for years. It is good for them and in some ways challenging for mom, but also really nice too. They get sick less, they get along more and you know where your busy toddler is while you are nursing your little baby.

It is so sweet to be nursing two little children at once looking up at you and at eachother!

Toddlers often wean when mom becomes pregnant with another child because the milk changes to prepare for the newborn and the milk supply usually goes down.
That said, since your toddler is already weaned this isn't a concern, however he may very well ask to nurse when he sees the newborn doing it and I think that's what you're getting at in your post. Don't refuse him as that may create some unwanted jealousy on his part because he may feel you love the newborn more because you're nursing the baby and not him.
It's considered tandem nursing when you nurse both an older child and a baby simultaneously. It's not a bad thing.
It's sort of a don't offer, don't refuse idea. If he asks say yes and allow him to try. You may find he takes a couple sucks and leaves. As long as he knows you're still willing and you still love him chances are good he'll be fine.
That said, if he does want to start nursing again, I wouldn't stop him at least until you wean the little one. That way you're not creating jealousy issues.
Good luck and congrats!

You can nurse both but if he has been done nursing for a while I really doubt he will want to once the baby comes. Lots of kids get a little jealous with a newborn but they are more likely to just want to come sit on your lap or right next to you while you nurse. I BF my first until she was 1 and then had my second a month after she turned 2. I asked her once I brought the baby home from the hospital if she wanted to nurse also and she said, "No mommy nursing is for babies." So I guess you will just have to wait and see. And if you really want to start nursing both you can. Remember your milk is all supply and demand so if you are nursing both you will just make more milk.

I believe it's called tandem nursing (not sure though). But I know people do it. I agree with the other poster that if he was still nursing it would be no big deal, but regressing would probably not be advisable. I would try to find a special thing that the two of you can do while you are nursing the baby, like read a book or do flashcards or something (mine loves those like they are a game). Just something so that he doesn't feel left out of the nursing. Good luck!

You know, I thought for sure that my son would want to nurse again after watching his baby sister, but he never even asked! He was about 2y 6m when he nursed for the last time; it just hurt me too much, and he knew that. It was only 5 months later that my daughter was born, and I actually had mixed emotions about him not asking to nurse again. To be honest, I was hoping we could resume the relationship we had when he was still nursing, but he showed no interest at all. On the other hand, I was relieved that I would only have to nurse one child :) We found other ways to continue our great relationship, and he LOVES his baby sister!!!

I think you need to consider how you would feel in both instances. If you'd prefer not to tandem nurse, you'll need to find other things you & he can do together, so he doesn't feel left out. Reading and doing puzzles is a good one. Really, that can be any activity that you previously enjoyed together. You could also discourage him resuming nursing by explaining that the milk is only for the baby and point out to him that baby can't eat the ______ (insert food) that he can. Make a big deal of him being a big boy. Be prepared for him to possibly not be as attached to you as he now. There is a natural shift of dependence from Mom to other care givers (dad, grandma, neighbor) once he sees how much time Mom needs to devote to his sibling.

If you find that you don't mind nursing both a toddler and a newborn, then enjoy the experience. He may nurse once just to see what it's like, then be done. He may never ask. Having been weaned for over 2 years when the baby is born, he may just realize that nursing is for the baby. Good luck and congratulations on #2!!!!

My son asked (he was 20m when he asked and had weaned at 13m). He had forgotten how and thought it was silly. After trying once he never bothered again.

My thrid daughter was 18 months old when my son was born and I oftne worried about the same thing. I was actually still nursing her when I became pregnant with him, but she weaned herself not long after. She is 2 now, and while she has never actually latched on, she has "attempted" (for lack of a better word, I'll get to it, lol) a few times. The first time, she was just fascinated at the sight of the baby nursing and was extremely curious. Of couse, she wanted to touch, so I let her...making sure to not make a big deal out of it. Then, on another occasion, she literally lunged at my breast while I was "exposed" and I just sat there (mostly because I was in shock and not sure what to do) and she slowed down as she got closer. I just watched her, and she watched me...waiting for a reaction. She got close enough that I could feel her breath, and then she stopped. I never said anything to her, only looked at her. Another time, she came to my breast again (not the lunge though, lol) and said "drink." So I told her.."sure, you can have a drink" and she got close again, but again, didn't actually latch on. She has "grabbed" at me a few times, but nothing significant other than those few incidents. I think if I had "freaked out" and told her no, she would have pushed for it more. Now, she has swiped a bottle of breast milk off of the end table and taken a drink before. The first time she grabbed it and ran, then turned around and waited for me to yell, lol. I told her it was milk and she could have a drink. She took a drink and made a funny face and said "Milk??" and I said "yes that is Cooper's boobie milk" and she put it down.

All in all, I say if he wants to, let him. It won't hurt anything. He'll likely want to try it and then "get over it."

i havent dont it myself, but it is VERY possible; and i have heard it helps to ease some of that sibling rivalry! :)

i see nothing wrong with doing this! in fact, i would encourage you to do this; you are obviously listening to your sons needs and your instincts, and there is nothing better than that!

contact the la leche league: www.llli.org - see if there is a group that meets in your town or nearby. they will be able to offer you a ton of information about this! :)