The End of Our Breastfeeding Journey

And so it has come to an end. Our precious time together and that special bond between myself and my youngest has finished. For over two and a half years I have been breastfeeding her. She was on me only a few minutes after she came into this world and latched on like a pro. And she hasn’t let go for years!

I have gone through my ups and downs with this, there were sore breasts, blocked ducts, biting, bleeding, no sleep, a child laying on me nearly every hour of the day or night, but there were also giggles, snuggles, milk dribbles, and my favourite – the milk coma.

I have given her all my body can give and done my best to give her the best start I could, but it was time for me to have my body back.

And so, a couple weeks ago, we began to tell her that the first day of March, mommy’s boobies were going to stop working. That was going to be her last day with mommy milk. We reminded her, and then when the day came, I got my camera out, set it up on the tripod and took some pictures of just us. Together. On our last day of breastfeeding. I took them in the hallway upstairs as a symbol, because this is the floor of the house where I fed her the most. In every single room of this floor she has had a feed, the bedrooms, my office, and yes, even the bathroom! So it seemed like the right place to say goodbye.

That evening I fed her for the last time as I sang her goodnight songs and she fell asleep in my arms and on my breast for the last time.

That night was hell. I don’t think either of us slept. There were screams of frustration, tears, cuddles, attempts at tearing off my shirt, exhaustion, restless sleep and more tears. The next day she asked a few times, but I was able to distract her. That night after a few feeble protests I was able to just sing goodnight songs. That night she woke up once and asked, but accepted the offer of a cuddle and singing instead. Yesterday she asked once, accepted, and moved on. Last night she didn’t ask, she just wanted cuddles when she woke up. And this morning she poked me and laughed and walked away.

I think it is over.

And that makes me both happy and sad. She will probably be my last child, and this was my last time. She is moving on to being a big girl now, and I am not so sure I am truly ready for that.

If you would like to capture this fleeting moment in your child’s life – and yours, feel free to book a session – I include breastfeeding images in every one.