Written by Anna Choi, BS, IBCLC
Thank you for joining us for our third and final article in our blog series, Breastfeeding the Older Baby – What to Expect and How to Adjust. I’ve enjoyed writing these articles, as we have explored the evolving breastfeeding relationship between mama and baby, and I hope to have provided some insight for you about what this evolution might look like for you and your little one. In this final article, we will look at months 12 through 18 of your toddler’s life.
Traveling just got easier for breastfeeding and pumping moms traveling through the San Diego International Airport! Just in time for the holidays, right?
Last month, the San Diego Nursing in Public Task Force was contacted by a local breastfeeding mom, Emily Mest, who frequently travels through the San Diego International Airport for work. Here is Emily’s story, which set the wheels in motion to make breastfeeding and pumping easier for all moms traveling through the San Diego airport.
Well, our 30 days are up for our Kickstarter project and, unfortunately, our Nursing in Public Task Force website project didn't receive the funding that we had hoped for. We reached about 10% of the funding we needed and I am so incredibly appreciative of the support we received from our generous donors!
While I am sad that the Nursing in Public Task Force website project will have to be put on hold for now, I am not too discouraged to let it go completely. Over the next few months, I will be updating the resources on our local Nursing In Public Task Force webpage, speaking at the Annual California Breastfeeding Summit about our project, and hopefully finding other funding sources to pay for this valuable online resource. So, if you happen to have any ideas for other funding sources (or an amazing benefactor who'd like to pay for the website!), please email me so we can explore these options :-)
If you would like to stay current on this project, please sign up for our newsletter, as we will be updating our website with new information and resources for nursing in public.
Thanks, again! This has been an enlightening learning experience for me and I hope to have a huge announcement in the next few months that we have secured funding for this valuable and needed website!
Warmly,
Robin
We are so excited to announce that we have launched our first Kickstarter campaign today! It is called the Nursing in Public Task Force Website.
As you know, the ladies at the San Diego Breastfeeding Center are fierce advocates for protecting a woman's right to breastfeed in public. This is exactly why we created the San Diego Nursing in Public Task Force in 2013. Too many local moms had been discriminated against and shamed for breastfeeding their babies outside of their homes and we just couldn’t stand by silently anymore!
So much of what we hear about feeding our babies in public is negative - stories from women being harassed and shamed for breastfeeding in public. While we believe that it is so important to respond to these incidents and educate people on the importance of normalizing breastfeeding, we also think that one of the best ways we can empower women is to share our positive experiences as well. Below is one of many examples of wonderful responses women receive while feeding their babies in public - meet Claire!
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“Although I was born and brought up in the UK, my first experience of motherhood and subsequently breastfeeding was an all american one & in the Golden State of California. Although I had a nasty start to my mothering career (NICU, acid reflux & breastfeeding problems) I soon got into the swing of it, San Diego style. Motherhood is a serious business down in the 'Diego, but also a soft, fluffy, touchy, feely kind of business. I was part of a wonderful group of Mamas who did Stroller Strides. We were a village, a team, a sisterhood and to this day, I miss it. There was a genuine desire to help, share and offer advice, and an openness about breastfeeding was part of that. Initially I was embarrassed at whipping the girls out, but as time went on, that Bebe au Lait nursing cover got discarded and I felt comfortable feeding my first born wherever and whenever.
Written by Ashley Treadwell, IBCLC
So much of what we hear about feeding our babies in public is negative - stories from women being harassed and shamed for breastfeeding in public. While we believe that it is so important to respond to these incidents and educate people on the importance of normalizing breastfeeding, we also think that one of the best ways we can empower women is to share our positive experiences as well. Below is one of many examples of wonderful responses women receive while feeding their babies in public - meet Margaret!
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I took five and a half months off after my baby was born in November 2014. She is our first, and after twelve weeks maternity leave, paid at 55% of my regular pay, I had another twelve-ish weeks of personal leave upaid. It was worth the financial sacrifice!
Written by Ashley Treadwell, IBCLC
So much of what we hear about feeding our babies in public is negative - stories from women being harassed and shamed for breastfeeding in public. While we believe that it is so important to respond to these incidents and educate people on the importance of normalizing breastfeeding, we also think that one of the best ways we can empower women is to share our positive experiences as well. Below is one of many examples of wonderful responses women receive while feeding their babies in public - meet Briana!
The San Diego Breastfeeding Center is so excited to announce that we are the newest local sponsor of the Normalize Breastfeeding Campaign, a project who's mission is to normalize breastfeeding and address the taboo of public breastfeeding in modern society, through photography.
Last month I shared a story about how a breastfeeding mother had been involved in a nursing in public harassment incident at a local LA Fitness. During this incident, Monique Golueke was told that her only option for breastfeeding in the Oceanside LA Fitness facility was in the Kids Klub restroom. After some media coverage, a nurse-in, and several cordial email exchanges between the San Diego Nursing in Public Task Force and Jill Greuling (Vice President of Operations for LA Fitness), I am elated to report that we have come to an incredibly positive resolution!
Today, I received an email from Ms. Greuling, stating that the following memo will pop up for every LA Fitness employee in California when they log on June 5th, requiring an acknowledgement that they read and understand the information contained in the memo:
"According to California Civil Code, section 43.3, “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a mother may breastfeed her child in any location, public or private, except the private home or residence of another, where the mother and the child are otherwise authorized to be present.” To accommodate breastfeeding women in LA Fitness facilities, staff members may recommend reasonable places for her to do so, such as the foyer, the sales area or in the Kids Klub. It is not reasonable to tell a woman that the only place she can breastfeed her baby is in the Kids Klub restroom."
The San Diego Nursing in Public Task Force would like to commend Monique Golueke and Ms. Greuling for having the initiative to take tangible, practical actions that will prevent any incidences like this from happening in the future. We are thrilled we were able to collaborate with her to bring forth such a positive resolution.
Cyndi: You have to plan your work meetings around your pumping schedule.
Sherry: You walk around the house for a few minutes before realizing you never put your boob away.
April: All your shirts open in the front.
Amy: You go to run a 10k and pack your pump as part of your post-race routine.
Kelly: Every shirt you own had a stain from leaking over one or both breasts.
Amy: You workout and apologize to your friends for smelling like a mixture of sweat and milk due to random let downs.
Dana: You are happy to have limo tint on the back windows of your car because you spend so much time pumping in the back seat.
KC: Your husband wakes up to a ‘peep show’ and you’re passed out.
Christine: Your knit shirts are all stretched out because of your toddler reaching down and grabbing for self service.
Bethany: You feel your boobs all day to see which one needs to be nursed from next.
Angelique: You fear the mailman has had a free peep show, but you don’t even care.
Melissa: You question how much milk spillage is acceptable on a shirt before you change it.... and the answer is A LOT!
Ruthii: When sitting next to you becomes a splash zone.
Jennifer: You catch your toddler breastfeeding her dolly.
Jennifer: You walk out the front door and reflexively grab your chest to make sure your boobs aren’t hanging out!
Julie: When you cry over spilling an ounce of milk on the counter.
Suzanne: You use your milk as a cure everything from sunburns to eye and ear infections. Breast milk is the equivalent to Windex from the film "My Big Fat Greek Wedding."
Ashley: You’re excited for a date night because it means you don’t have to choose your clothes based on which are the easiest to take off in public.
Jacqueline: Your boobs are often lopsided.
Alethra: When hunger, tiredness, getting hurt, or any other dilemma is solved and smoothed over with whipping out the boob. Problem solved!
Brittany: You’re in public and when you hear a baby start to cry, your first thought is, “Oh, man! I hope I put on my breast pads today!”
Angela: When you bring your breast pump on your Vegas trip and plan everything around your pumping schedule. Times have changed!
