Welcome to the third Carnival of Breastfeeding! This month's theme is New Year's Resolutions for the Breastfeeding Mother.
Four other bloggers have written on this theme: Jen, at The Lactivist writes about her three new year's resolutions, Sinead at Breastfeeding Mums contributes "New Year's Resolutions: It's Time for a Change!", Angela at Breastfeeding 1-2-3 writes about exercise for new and breastfeeding mothers, and Andi at Mama Knows Breast resolves to get organized this year.
Also this month I'm happy to bring you two guest bloggers, the mothers behind Natural Mom's Talk Radio, who has written about her parenting goals, and Momma's Little Angel, who has written about her resolutions for The Second Year.
For my part, I've designed a special pledge - the 2007 Motherwear Pledge - for you to take to support breastfeeding in 2007. Don't worry - it'll be painless, and you'll be entered to win a $100 gift certificate.
This month's Motherwear survey, which you'll find here, asks you to pledge to do your choice of 3 things to support breastfeeding in 2007. Completing the survey enters you in a drawing for a $100 gift certificate. I'm providing links below to help you knock out several right now. Periodically I'll post a poll to keep track of our progress.
Here they are. Remember, the survey will ask you to pledge to do at least three of these ten things. More is great, too! You can share your progress in a poll here.
1) Say something supportive to a woman you see nursing in public. I get a little shy about things like this, but I'm committed to doing it this year. You can say "I'm really happy to see you nursing here," or "Thanks for nursing in public," or even "I think you're a great mom for nursing here." Any other suggestions? Write them in the comments section.
2) Thank someone who is/was an important source of support to you during breastfeeding. This could be your husband or partner, a friend, a nurse, your mom, a lactation consultant, a doctor, or even your older children.
3) Check that your pediatrician is using the new WHO growth charts for breastfed babies. The charts are available here. Why are these charts important? See #4 of this post to learn more.
4) Help a woman who is having breastfeeding difficulty. You can do this by helping her solve a breastfeeding problem yourself, referring her to a source of expert help, or listening to her concerns. Links to lactation consultants, phone and email hotlines, and La Leche League meetings are on the sidebar to this blog.
5) Make a donation of any size to an organization that promotes breastfeeding. Some suggestions are The International Breastmilk Project (see their Run for Africa fundraiser), domestic donor milk banks, La Leche League, UNICEF, your state local or state breastfeeding coalition. I figure that making your Motherwear purchase through the Help Moms and Babies Worldwide program also counts. Have another suggestion? Post it in the comments section.
6) Print out the new International Symbol for Breastfeeding - available here - and post it somewhere public. If you can, talk with the management of a store, office, or other public place to see if they will adopt the symbol in policy.
7) Talk to at least one pregnant woman, or a woman who has not had children yet, about the benefits of breastfeeding. This will be easy for me because I teach prenatal classes. For you, think about friends and family members with whom you can share your experience.
8) Learn what the laws in your state say about breastfeeding in public, pumping at work, and breastfeeding and jury duty. Knock this one out right now by clicking here!
9) If you have breastfed, take about 1% of the money you saved by not buying formula (about $15 per child), and buy or do something for yourself to celebrate your success. I'm all over this one.
10) Sign an e-petition or send an email to your representatives on an issue related to breastfeeding or maternal/child health. Get this one done now by clicking here to sign an e-petition asking the TSA to change its rules for bringing breastmilk on board airplanes, or check the Promom.org's 3 Minute Activist site for more opportunities to show your support. Keep reading this blog for more alerts during the year.
