A Labor of Love

Warning … this post is all about pumping so if it is too much information for you, stop reading now.

I somehow convinced myself that pumping in the bathroom on a plane was not that bad after my last business trip … but having just had the opportunity to experience the joy of what I will call Mile High Club pumping yet again, I can pretty much say that it sucks. Lactation Consultants and doctors tell you to relax and to think of your baby to stimulate milk production while you are away from your baby and forced to pump … all I could think about was the unmistakable smell of urine and some horrible deodorizer trying to mask the smell.

When I finally got situated in the itty bitty stall and started to pump I realized that I was getting almost no suction. Crap! So, I fiddled with a couple of things before I realized that the batteries were dying. I normally plug my pump in so I don’t have to worry about the batteries, but alas, on a plane in the bathroom, there are no outlets. It took my a while to figure out it was the batteries because the constant hum present on a flight was drowning out the sound of my pump. So, I sat there thinking … “hmmm, I wonder how long it will take me to getting ANY milk this way” before I decided to go back to my seat to my carry on where I had a box of 25 AA batteries. Luckily, presto change-o we were back in business once I changed out the batteries, but that meant getting re-situated in the tiny box they call a bathroom. Fun, fun, fun!

All said and done, it probably wasn’t that bad … now if I could just get the smell of urine out of my nose!

Speaking of bathrooms, I (like many people) am not a fan of public restrooms. I do my best to avoid the bad ones and when I have to use one I am careful of what I touch, etc. Well, what I have discovered is that if I hated public restrooms before I absolutely despise them now that I have to take my 3 year old -- who will touch anything and everything twice -- to use them. The mere thought of taking him to the bathroom gives me the heeby – geebies because I hate the thought of what he might touch while he is in there, let alone the fact that he has to actually use the potty! Doug has taken to holding by his arms and legs so he is sort of “flying” over the toilet so that he will not touch anything by accident. I am still perfecting my approach (which is why I much prefer to send Andrew with Doug), but all I can say is … eww, yuck, icky, gross … I hate public restrooms!