Gunkle stored the placenta in his freezer - the hospital triple bagged it and then put it in a small white bucket, and gave us a handout on how to bury it and store it - they must be used to people wanting to keep it cause they asked me if I wanted it before I'd even thought to ask them.

It was still frozen when we put it in the ground so no real smell, although we all did have a good look at it when it was out of the plastic. My sister even Facebooked a close-up of it, but she is a paramedic so I'm sure her friends were not too shocked!!

I have heard of people that eat it, and my doula knows a woman who cooks, dries and powders them and grinds them up and makes "vitamin" pills out of it, so you can swallow it like a tablet! I passed on that.

The burial was mostly for the sake of one of my friends who is part Maori and was very adamant that it was the right thing to do to strengthen Elliott's ties to the land. Nice that my friends care so much things are done the "right" way so I agreed.

The feeding frenzy over here is slowing down now a little so maybe it was just a growth spurt few days. But I'm a bit more rested now - not much, but enough not to be going crazy with exhaustion at least! My breastfeeding has been a huge success after initial horrid engorgment and oversupply and cracks and blisters etc etc. Bub put on 850 grams in the 14 days since leaving hospital!! INSANE amount. I have one boob that flows so fast and fills up that when I handle it after a big break between feeds milk shoots about 30 cms across the room and drenches everything, including the kid! The the other boob is much more manageable but Elliott grizzles and grunts a bit at it cause the flow is slower but that's quite the party trick to hear his noises on that side. So the boobs are now named Squirter and Grizzler Midwife says he was a little lean and needed filling out at birth since I was overdue and she thinks maybe placenta not working that great at the end. So everyone is pleased with his gain!