Michelle, that sucks. Your son is gaining massively, are they out of their minds? Are your ILs going to be minding him when you go back to work? With your obvious grand bfing prowess, I'd say you'll manage no worries at being a pumping working mum! The proof is in the pudding, let them poo poo and you just show them you can do it. My mother was a 50's mother, back when cow's milk was given instead of bm (not formula), and there were rarely reactions (better milk, I guess) and little to no research done on anything. So that generation really doesn't understand our determination to bfeed. All that mattered back then is "sleeping through the night" and if solids or cows milk did it, then they did it. So they seem to fall back to that advice for every baby ail - "He has gas? oh, he needs solids... Can't read yet? He needs formula...whaddaya mean she's still in nappies at three months old! She needs a good dose of goat's milk..." Seems food solves all their problems (kinda explains a lot, eh).

Steph, WOW about your sleeping babe. I'd take your apple butter recipe if you were up for sharing it, and as for chili, how does Lila go after you eat it? I'm worried about eating curry (my favourite), but I wanna I wanna I wanna. re milk bank, I was so engorged I had to pump and got 60mls in five minutes so I froze it. My own little milk bank. I'm kinda excited about building up a milk bank in the freezer. I also think, for emergencies should I be unavailable for some reason, that DH should have something to feed DS. I also plan on getting him to let me sleep through a feed if I'm totally wrecked (let us pray it doesn't come to that). So yeah, milk bank. 'xcitin' stuff. FWIW, residency here is a cinch. They barely check anything really. DH had a medical and showed police records from one of the states he lived in. Where as I was all but anally probed in the States for my residency. It was a nightmare (michigan). I refused to be vaccinated which didn't help. But yeah, I think you'll be fine. Not that I'm advocating running on a loan (who, me?) but just advocating less stress on your behalf, and don't knock yourself out or miss more time with bub than you need to just for that. I think they just like to know you aren't a criminal or otherwise up to no good.

Ci had a MAJOR breakdown today. Cried harder than he ever has, almost lost his voice. Just woke up screaming, and it's not the first time. Weird, can't figure it out. Took half an hour to calm him.