This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Walmart. All opinions are 100% mine.
As new moms we are constantly bombarded with “advice” on what’s best for our babies. Breast is best has become the most controversial new mom advice…I say controversial because, unfortunately, breast is not always “best” and by “best” I mean available….new moms who are unable to produce enough milk to sustain their young babies are left to feel guilty and inadequate…they are left in a state of feeling like they are not providing the “best” they can for their tiny bundles of joy…and I’m here to tell you that’s just not true…I know from first hand experience!
In fact, Paren’t Choice™ Infant Formula is a wonderful option for mothers that give them the ability to give their babies the nutrients they need and save money at the same time. This is the formula we used with Little Man and I’ll tell you why….here’s my nursing story:
Little Man was born via emergency C-Section at 10:01pm Monday night. After I was wheeled out of the operating room he was immediately placed on top of me and I began breast feeding him. Tuesday was a complete blur as I was so exhausted after being in labor ALL day Monday (my water broke at 4:00am, I labored all day, and by 9:30pm we were being wheeled into the operating room). On Tuesday we had lactation consultants in and out of the room several times throughout the day. Little Man was latching just fine and sleeping A LOT! So we knew that everything was fine….or so we thought. On Wednesday, Little Man was quite cranky and a very fussy baby that nursed practically ALL day long. By Thursday there was no consoling Little Man…I nursed and nursed, he latched and sucked and sucked….but still he would scream and cry and we had no idea what to do.
That night the pediatrician came in to tell us that he was concerned about Little Man– he had lost well over 15% of his initial body weight (they prefer them to only lose 7-10%). I was a hysterical mess….why was my baby losing so much weight…I mean he ate CONSTANTLY! We asked the pediatrician what we could do….why did he think this was happening. He responded that Little Man just needed to eat….when we told him that Little Man ate ALL day the doctor responded that maybe I wasn’t producing enough milk. At that moment it occured to Hubs and I….Little Man had been screaming all day because he was STARVING! I had been starving my little angel because I didn’t know that my body wasn’t producing enough milk and he was literally withering away. At that very moment we started supplementing with formula. Little Man downed that first bottle and was the happiest little baby on the ward that night.
For the next 6 months I continued to breast feed but supplemented with formula to make sure that Little Man would NEVER again go hungry. After 6 months my milk stopped completely which worked out quite well with Little Man acquiring his first teeth (and he’s a biter!). So he started drinking formula from there on out. That is the reason we have formula…it’s to make sure that our babies are getting the nutrition, vitamins, and pre-biotics that they NEED when we can’t produce enough for them. I’m proud to say that Little Man is a VERY healthy, VERY tall (97th percentile), perfect weight (50th percentile), growing little boy.
Now, we tried ALL types of formula trying to make sure we found the right brand for Little Man that wasn’t going to break the bank. I mean, the nice thing about breast feeding is that it’s free and that was our plan…but plans change and formula gets quite expensive. That’s when we decided on Parent’s Choice™ Formula. Parent’s Choice Formulas are clinically proven to be as well tolerated as the national brands. When we compared ingredients, nutrients, and vitamins…Parent’s Choice™ ranked just as well as the other leading brands but at a fraction of the cost!
One important thing that Hubs and I looked for when looking at formulas was the DHA, ARA, and Iron content. We wanted to make sure that Little Man was getting the most nutritious formula. Parent’s Choice™ formulas are comparable to Enfamil and Similac. It is a milk based formula that’s Iron-Fortified and contains calcium for strong bones, DHA and ARA for brain and eye developement, and pre-biotics to support your babies immune system. By switching from Enfamil Premium to Parent’s Choice™ Premium we wound up saving over $574 a year! Check out Walmart and see how much you could save a year!
So whether you’re feeding your baby breast or formula…know that you’re doing the BEST you can! I hope that one day we won’t make our fellow mommies feel guilty or inadequate for choosing formula or breast. Remember, before you judge or give “advice”, each circumstance is different and I’m happy that there are companies out there like Parent’s Choice™ who give us the ability to make sure that our babies don’t starve to death and are able to receive the nutrients and vitamins they need without breaking the bank!
What’s your nursing story? Please, share it below.
