Before Ewan became a toddler, I had heard from others that nursing a toddler is much different than a young baby, but I had no idea of the strange nursing behavior that I would encounter from my own son.
Here are some highlights:
Tweaking my nipples
I'm not sure when he started reaching his hand into my shirt to tweak the nipple he isn't nursing on, but now he does it every time he nurses. It's not too annoying when we are at home, but when we are at grandma and grandpa's house it can get a little indecent.
High Speed Switch-Back nursing
Ewan will begin nursing on one side but then switch to the other side about 60 seconds after the milk lets down. Then he will switch back for about 60 seconds. And then switch again! He will keep switching until all the milk is gone. I guess he is trying to nurse on both sides at the same time! I've found that lying in the "Down Under" or "Australian" nursing position makes this behavior easier to accommodate.
All that matters is the mouth!
When Ewan wants to nurse, he will paw at my shirt and reach his hands in. If he succeeds in exposing a nipple, then he will position his mouth over it and latch on, without any regard to what the rest of his body is doing. This can result in some really hilarious positions! He will sprawl himself across the bed on his tummy. He will even stand on the couch and crouch down to me.
He won't let go!
Sometimes, while a mother is enjoying leisurely nursing her baby, the phone rings, or someone is at the door, or the dog wants outside. It is easy to just carry a nursing newborn with you as you tend to household business, but a toddler who is almost 3 feet tall and 27 pounds is harder to carry around. It is sometimes necessary to stop nursing for a minute. Ewan doesn't like this idea. He is not old enough to fully understand the idea that I will come right back in just a minute. I will calmly say, "Just a minute. Mommy needs to go do X." But he will grab on to my arms or clothes, hug himself to me, and suck more quickly. I would get really frustrated if he wasn't so cute when he does that.
Even through all of his nursing antics, I love nursing my toddler.
