Here are my favorite stories from Motherwear's last contest.
Most of my experiences with nursing in public has been positive, In particular when nursing while traveling on public transit! Some workers comment on how "those" are always the quiet babies or We can see who ISN'T making all the noise in coach (When flying on a plane) & MOST go out of their way to help make me more comfortable. My FAVORITE story is one afternoon while nursing my toddler on the city bus. (yep 18 months old) 2 gentlemen got on the bus & stopped dead in their tracks & loudly commented on the UnGodly things I was doing TO my toddler in the back of the bus. (She was the only child on board, which few people had even noticed until they said something) This COULD have ended badly, but the driver handled it beautifully! His comment to them was straight, simple & very to the point! I was doing MY job so that he could do HIS job. These gentlemen however were NOT letting him do his job so they could either PAY & sit down or kindly get off the bus. It was 90 degrees, they paid of course & said not another word & I spent the rest of my trip chatting with a lovely young woman who very nicely asked me how I was not getting bitten while I was feeding my daughter. Not ALL confrontations end badly! - Anastasia
How to be a Breastfeeding Dad
-bring snacks and LOTS of drinks to mom when she is nursing
-change diapers
-do the laundry
-do the dishes
-cook meals (or call for takeout)
-read about breastfeeding
-learn how to entertain and play with your child
-tell mom she is doing a great job
-Ko, breastfeeding Dad
I hope that if this breastfeeding story is ever shared that it may
encourage somebody out there. When I was only 18, my boyfriend at the
time (husband now) were only dating for a short time and found out that
we were pregnant. Oh my goodness, the families were all in disarray
considering we were so young. Shortly after that, we found out we would
be welcoming a little baby boy into this big world. When he was laid
upon my chest right after giving birth they immediately tried taking
him away from me, assuming that because I was so young, that they were
going to give him a bottle. I looked at them in awe and asked politely
if I could have my baby back. The nurse looked at me and said, "yes I
think he would like to eat, well ok here you go" and I started to nurse
right in front of everybody. They all just began to assume that just
because I was so young that maybe I wasn’t going to nurse this child.
Well he is 7 years of age now and I nursed him for a little over a year
and loved every minute of it. I feel that through breastfeeding we grew
this bond that nobody would understand unless they were in my body, but
I think that breastfeeding is the best thing you can do for a child, it
is also the most unselfish thing you can do. Yes sure, it is time
consuming and exhausting at times, but I look back on it and wouldn't
change it for the world! I love him more than life and I treasure all
those sleepless nights! - Chelsea
During the years I spent breastfeeding my four children, some of my
friends were also breastfeeding moms. One of these women was an RN at
the local hospital. One day, there were a group of us spending the day
together and breastfeeding was often the topic of conversation. My RN
friend mentioned in passing that she needed to get some new "nursing
shoes". My non-RN friend looked up with a puzzled expression and
inquired "Nursing shoes?" Pause. Ohhhhhhh.
Then there was the time that an acquaintance asked if I put my nipples
into the dishwasher for cleaning. I let her know that they didn't come
off! - Valerie
I have always been committed and proud to nurse my children, but I am a shy private person. When at a friend's wedding, my little one was fussy, so I was in the middle of nursing him to sleep when it came to the part where I needed to stand up and say a few words in front of EVERYONE! Thank goodness for my beautiful Motherwear dress. No one could even see that I was nursing the child in my arms. Even watching the video later I could not see for sure that I was nursing. It saved the ceremony that my child was happy and quiet and I felt comfortable with all eyes on us. Thanks Motherwear! - Tiffany
Nursing 101
Step 1: Hide somewhere far away from your mother-in-law...
Step 2: Read lots of books and then forget it all and do what is most natural to you!
Step 3: Try a Boppy or Breastfriend - don't feel "uncool" if you don't
like either - but don't feel too cool if whatever you are doing is
different from your friends.
Step 4: Now that you are comfortable: make sure that baby is latched to
the ENTIRE thing (aka nipple). Don't fall for their trick of sucking on
the tip of the nipple and nibbling away without eating much of anything
only to leave you chapped, bleeding and wondering why you didn't go
straight to the bottle... get that kid to grab the areola like she
means it.
Step 5: Snuggle that little bean - enjoy this moment because they grow up too fast. - Joy
