World Milksharing Week 2012 is almost here!

Yea!......So, because of my IGT and not producing enough breast milk for Asher I was faced with certain choices and this time around we decided to see if we couldn't find some breast milk donors! I never in a million years thought he would still be solely fed by breast milk!

I guess you could say this is my "love letter" to all these fabulous women!

As I've shared before I have had some wonderful donors, I had a whole freezer full of milk for my little guy before he was even born!!

When I realized that World Milksharing week was coming up it got me thinking about just how many moms have donated their milk to Asher and I, and each time I would come up with a number I then would remember yet another wonderful mom who had donated! And as I sat there remembering each one I thought about how I really should share our story!

We have a sweet mom who is our main "milky momma", and then we have had others donate what they can, which helps tremendously and gives me a bit of a buffer in our supply in between when I need to go bother our MM for more!

I have had 15 wonderful moms who have donated their milk for my son. Can you grasp what that means? There are 15 other moms out there who cared enough, and felt passionate enough to help my son and I, in a way I can't. It is so humbling to talk to them and to be able to thank them for each of their donations.

The first time I got milk was from a lady from a few towns over, "J", she thought she might have 150oz and so I figured it was worth the drive (which would be about 45 min). I met her in an Old Navy parking lot, we chatted about pregnancy and trying to nurse and our kids and then I headed off. When I got home I began separating the milk into large zip lock bags so that I could store them and so I started calculating how many ounces so I could write it on the bag. There wasn't 150 oz there, not even close, there was 350 oz. I seriously sat down and cried. I called Jake at work and when he answered I couldn't even speak I was sobbing. He thought something bad had happened and kept asking if I was alright, I managed to squeak out, "I'm so happy". Having that amount of milk meant that I would have enough milk for about 11 days, rather than 5!

The next time I met "T" another mom after she got off work in a parking lot by her work. She had headed back to work and was pumping to keep her supply and had some extra, and needed some room in her freezer! ( We got donations from T twice!!)

With the amounts from T and J I was ready for my man! My freezer was full and so was my heart!

After Asher came I met with "C" who ended up living right down the street!

And then through another friend I met "G" who had been a surrogate mom and had some extra milk left in her freezer from pumping for her surrogate baby!

And then it gets even awesomer, I know that's not a real word but it's true!

Two of my cousins had babies right before me, and I mean RIGHT before me! Sunday, and Monday and then I had Asher on Tuesday! The cousin who's baby was born Sunday lives in the same area I do and about once a month I get grocery bags from her full of milk. My other cousin lives in LA and knew she would be making a trip up and pumped for months before she came and brought me a bag full!

With the Human Milk for Human babies groups I had my story on my local board and I got an email from a girl who grew up in the next town over and knew my sister, she recognized my picture and wanted to know if I wanted to meet up!

Then there was the mom who grew up with my cousin (who lives near us & donates to us) and had heard we needed milk, we have gotten milk from her twice!

I posted once on my Facebook about needing more and a guy friend posted it on his Facebook wall for me ( how awesome is that! lol) and a friend of his contacted me who had milk!

It still amazes me how the connections get made!!

When it was coming close for our trip to Canada this summer I was a little nervous about how I was going to bring up enough breast milk for Asher for the whole trip and if I could keep it frozen long enough to get there! I was beginning to think I would just need to put him on formula while we were up there. Then I thought about posting on the Alberta HM4HM site, and I got an email right away from a mom! "M" and I emailed for a few months before the trip and then met at a Tim Horton's (milk and donuts anyone? lol)-she gave us about 400oz!! AND when I mentioned to my sister in law about finding milk for Asher she had two of her friends pump for us too! I had enough milk to feed him there and all the way back home!

THEN......a friend from high school was going to be vacationing in Alberta but leaving her kids with her folks who live near us while she was on vacation and was looking into finding a mom in Alberta to leave her milk with-but when she went to the site she saw me! When I got home from Alberta to an empty freezer I then was able to pick up hers from her sisters house!

I had another friend from high school who was moving back to the area and emailed me because she had extra in her freezer, I got to head back out to my hometown and visit with her and pick up a grocery bag of milk!!

Now, when I met my main milky momma or MM, I almost didn't contact her! MM doesn't have a Facebook account and made an account just to find a place for her milk, so I couldn't stalk her like I usually do to the moms I don't know personally! She and I met in a Target parking lot for the first time (man, all these parking lot drops-I'm surprised the cops don't have my name!), and then a few days later she texted me asking if I had room for more since she was full again! At that time MM had an upright freezer full, plus milk at her moms and her mother in laws! I said sure! Come to find out, we live less than 10 minutes from each other! I met her at her house and met her kids and her husband! She cuddled with Asher and I played with her daughter....which, amazingly enough is named Eden-which is what I wanted to name Asher if he had been a girl! How crazy is that!!?? Especially considering how uncommon of a name it is!

When I was in Canada my sister in law came with me to get the milk from "M" and commented about how awesome she thought it was that there was this whole network of women doing this. It is awesome, and amazing, and incredible, and selfless, and admirable, and loving, and kind, and thoughtful, and inspiring and I am incredibly humbled to have met these moms. All who had different reasons or stories for having extra milk to give to us- from-pumping because nursing wasn't working, to going back to work, to being a SAHM who just has a lot, or having been a surrogate, to being cousins who pump for us just because they can, and they know how much I wish I could do it myself.

15 moms, 15 wonderful moms, who have helped me continue to nurse my baby, and to give my baby all that I can't give him myself. So over these next few weeks as the milk sharing networks are trying to spread the word about milk sharing, I am especially remembering and feeling so thankful for the gift of milk that all these other moms selflessly gave.

Thank you , thank you from the bottom of my heart.