17 different women, 36 crazy children, 0 babies in utero
Adventures, Advice and Questions from a group of Mormon women who met in Queens, NY and have now scattered all over the place.
 

Sunday, July 23, 2006

You've breastfed WHERE?



BabyTalk Magazine's most recent cover is a baby and a booby. I was really surprised by this choice, but think it is very cool and very bold of them. The whole issue has a lot of articles and tidbits about breastfeeding, and it brought back images of me breastfeeding about the town.


I said I would never do it on the subway, but alas I have, twice. And since it wasn't very crowded, it wasn't THAT big of a deal. I just covered myself with a blanket, placed the stroller directly in front of me, and did not make eye contact. I was not given a hard time. It wasn't like the lady that was just pulling up her shirt and letting her larger child go on and off the breast repeatedly, every time, totally exposing her breast. I had a difficult time keeping my jaw closed and eyes averted for that one, like a really bad car wreck.

And here is the list of other places that I have nursed that maybe some would be shocked to hear about: On a bench at Central Park, at Jones Beach (that was so easy and convenient with my swimsuit...just pop that booby right out), on a plane (sorry Barbara Walters), (nurse-in protesting Babs pictured above), in Borders bookstore, in the chapel at church during Sacrament Meeting (after a while that mother's room just reeks of poopy diapers), at a restaurant during a busy lunch hour, and at the movies.

Zinone likes hooter hiders for her public breastfeeding, but I pretty much don't care. I have never breastfed on top of the Empire State Building like Krista, but I was asked to the prom up there...does that count? Now I sort of want to have another baby so that I can breastfeed up there....what a great idea! Anyone else want to confess to their breastfeeding adventures?

posted by Kage @ 7/23/2006 04:43:00 AM   add to kirtsy


25 Comments:

  • Being a mommy for only a few short months I don't have too many strange places that I've breast-fed... on the beach, at the mall, in an Urban Outfitters dressing room on Melrose was pretty funny. There's always pulling over on the side of the road on a long car trip and jumping in the back seat for a quick feed. I'll be tackling the airplane feeding next weekend.

    I, too, LOVE LOVE LOVE my hooter hider. It is the best gift for new moms who are going to breastfeed. It has rid me of any public breastfeeding nerves since I don't have to worry about a blanket falling off or getting pulled off by baby. LOVE IT!

    On another note, Dateline or 20/20 or one of those shows just did a piece a few weeks ago on public breastfeeding and why women are given such a hard time about it when it recommended for the first year of life. I missed it, but it looked really interesting. Did anyone see it?
    posted by Blogger Beth at 7/23/2006 04:37:00 PM  



  • I forgot about awkwardly leaning over the baby and breastfeeding while driving....I think I hate that the most.
    posted by Blogger Kage at 7/23/2006 05:47:00 PM  



  • I've breastfed in the Smithsonian, an IMAX, the New England Aquarium, a restaurant, the student cafeteria, Martin Harris' Farm, the parking lot of the Palmyra temple, and in the car at the foot of Hill Cumorah. I've breastfed in Sacrament meeting, in Relief Society, and Gospel Doctrine. I've breastfed on a plane, but never on the subway. I've breastfed on the steps of our nation's capital, and in the Museum of Fine Arts. Twice.
    posted by Blogger Heather O. at 7/23/2006 06:04:00 PM  



  • Does anyone else think the boob on that cover looks weird with the nipple all airbrushed?

    Anyway, Kage you forgot to mention nursing while sitting on the couch right next to my dh. It was seriously funny how many times that happened. I guess I should have given him a few more peep shows at home! :)

    And the image of you in the backseat dangling you boob over the baby in the carseat as we were on the way to the beach is something I can't quite forget.

    I prefer to be a little more discreet with my breastfeeding, but I really didn't have a problem with doing it in public...discreetly. Movies--loved when they were so young you could take them to the movies and nurse them to sleep. Airplanes--for sure. But I think I have always had an empty seat or my dh sitting right next to me.

    I've breastfed in the Herald Square Old Navy dressing room--the handicap ones have large seats, Central Park, and in the Sculpture Garden at the Metropolitan Museum of Art--that was really nice. And my proudest moment was breastfeeding at 40 Carrots (the restaurant located in the basement of Bloomindales) while eating lunch with my mom only 2 weeks after the baby was born. It was quite an accomplishment for a new mother.
    posted by Blogger This is Carrie at 7/23/2006 07:08:00 PM  



  • carrie...Yeah that was funny....I guess I just felt comfortable with your DH....hope he didn't mind....

    And you are right about the airbrushing....it also seems a little out of proportioned....a VERY big boob and a teeny tiny baby....but then again, ya'll know that my boob wouldn't even show up on the page ; )
    posted by Blogger Kage at 7/23/2006 07:45:00 PM  



  • I have breastfed in so many places --I can't even remember them all. The best was when I was in a RS meeting in the Hanalei Branch in Kauai (Hawaii) and was nervous as all-get-out to nurse my baby in there. Not one woman thought it was weird and some even commented that "mainlanders" are too modest when it comes to feeding their babies. :) We truly are a country that is severly uncomfortable with it because our breasts are considered sexual. Of course, I'm not advocating nursing a child until they are 7 and/or letting toddlers lift up and expose your breast (like you saw kage). My DH had enough problems with this on his mission when he was trying to teach investigators...

    I have gotten so good (yes, I am bragging here) that I no longer need a blanket if I am sitting on an armed chair or couch. I can undo the bra, move the garments under the shirt, and then SWOOP baby latches on as I move up the shirt all at the same time. I swear, it's a talent I've had to slowly develop over 3 beautiful breast-feeders. :) And I've even asked my sister to watch for nipple sitings and she said I was a pro... (sorry, more bragging --I have very little I can brag about, so I'm goin' for the gold on this one!) :)
    posted by Blogger Cheryl at 7/24/2006 07:03:00 AM  



  • Nothing too exciting - in the middle of Baja Fresh (she was a few weeks old) and I actually ATE my dinner and helped my son eat his meal all at the same time, storage closet at The Children's Place, church, in the middle of a Christmas party at a friends house, backseat of our van on the way to Utah (10 hour drive, so I did this many times), a park in San Francisco, the movies. Ah, the movies - I'm with TftCarrie on my love of movies and nursing infants. It's the best - try it!

    I think the weirest was nursing my daughter with my dad in the room. I wasn't too uncomfortable until I saw how completely uncomfortable he was. Poor dad, what a trooper!

    I need to get a hooter hider for my next one. I hadn't seen them before until I saw Zinone feeding her DS and I was facinated! What a wonderful invention!
    posted by Blogger chloe at 7/24/2006 08:25:00 AM  



  • I wonder if it was my ex-neighbor you saw on the train, Kage? Especially since we took the same subway line. She was quite the avid breastfeeder and not afraid to lift that shirt right up for her son who was well over 2 years old.

    Not that there is anything at all wrong with public breastfeeding... it was just a much more "liberal" version of it than most of us are used to.
    posted by Blogger Jen at 7/24/2006 10:45:00 AM  



  • I'm pretty boring in this category so far. I have a few trips coming up so maybe I can go for the gold! So far, I fed my babe in the employee breakroom at RC Willey when he was a few weeks old, in MANY dressing rooms (handicap rooms are the best) in restaurants and parking lots. Oh, also, on my parents couch when nobody was home, until all of my little brothers HS friends walked in our door right to me nursing. I was screaming, they were trying to figure out what I was doing, then when they did, they started to scream and ran into our living room. What the crap were they doing walking in our front door? I don't remember the last time someone knocked to come into my parents house, but ALWAYS they come in the back door. Whoops. Guess it's been a while since I have been home and realize that the front door is in use. Sorry boys!
    posted by Blogger Melissa at 7/24/2006 11:02:00 AM  



  • PS - the real reason I wanted to post: my friend has something called a Nursing Shawl. Very cute, and has the same functionality as the hooter hider, but doesn't seem like quite a contraption.
    PPS - Yeah, that cover def looks airbrushed. Is my boob supposed to look like that? And is my son supposed to be nursing sitting straight up?
    posted by Blogger Melissa at 7/24/2006 11:13:00 AM  



  • I have the same question as Melissa--why is that baby sitting up like that while nursing?

    Kage, I walked into our local Babies R Us store last week and saw you! On a poster for a breastfeeding workshop in the store. Cute shot. Very modest. Was it Olive you were feeding (it looked like maybe you weren't actually feeding, so I thought it perhaps wasn't one of yours)?
    posted by Blogger sunny at 7/24/2006 11:37:00 AM  



  • Bebe Au Lait is the brand of my nursing cover. I'm not sure what the difference is between this and Hooter Hiders (if any), but in my opinion these are well worth the money. And the fabric is really light weight so baby doesn't get hot.
    posted by Blogger Beth at 7/24/2006 01:42:00 PM  



  • I am Zinone's sister and I have started my own business making nursing covers like "hooter hider's" brand. I changed it up a bit, added my own style, and I sell them for much less! Just wanted to put a link out so all you moms can breastfeed in public while staying in style and spending less! My nursing covers are called Peekaboobaby's. My site is not all the way up, but you can contact me and I can email you fabric swatches and prices! These nursing covers are the best! And SO CUTE!!!
    posted by Blogger Jules at 7/24/2006 02:55:00 PM  



  • sunny, that was me, that was my baby, and she was nursing : )
    posted by Blogger Kage at 7/24/2006 06:25:00 PM  



  • The site is www.peekbaby.com Don't know why my link didn't work!
    posted by Blogger Jules at 7/24/2006 09:09:00 PM  



  • It's not very safe to nurse your baby while the car is moving, with the leaning over the infant seat method. First of all, when you do that, you are not properly restrained in your seat belt, second the baby's seat is not designed to hold *your* weight which could be thrown against it in a crash. Just wanted to say that.

    I've nursed... at airports, crossroads mall (my sister told me afterwards that some old ladies were glaring at me), sitting on the floor in the lobby at a city rec center, at ds1's karate lessons.... Nowhere terribly exciting unfortunately. I've nursed in RS but not in Sacrament meeting.
    posted by Blogger Vicki at 7/24/2006 09:33:00 PM  



  • vicki, terribly conscious of the unsafety of nursing in that way. Also aware of the amazing hysterical screaming of the baby that might cause the driver to cause an accident ...flip a coin, neither are the best option. Desperate baby...desperate mommy...desperate measures. I did not make a HABIT of this. But thanks for your concern.
    posted by Blogger Kage at 7/25/2006 02:32:00 AM  



  • This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
    posted by Blogger Kage at 7/25/2006 02:33:00 AM  



  • I once carried a Boppy into California Pizza Kitchen to nurse so I could actually stay for the whole dinner. Got some weird looks, never brought the Boppy out again. Nursing in public can be awkward and frustrating, but maybe you have to have tried it to be understanding of other nursing moms. Wish I'd had a Hooter Hider or something back then...
    posted by Blogger Legendary Pink Dot at 7/25/2006 09:05:00 AM  



  • not so much of places I've breatfed, but I need help on ideas on how to wean my infant/toddler. any ideas. i did see the 20/20 show and was planning on blogging about this week.
    posted by Blogger Erin at 7/25/2006 10:14:00 AM  



  • Until now I never thought I'd breastfed in odd places...Hm.
    Olive Garden, the mall, a fancy dress ball (son went with in a tiny shirt and tie),RS, at the park, at the pool, you name it. I was always fully covered, more to protect people from a view of my fat roll that one of my boob. Sometimes people wouldn't even know I was nursing, due to nursing shirts and a well worn baby sling. I was shocked at the ugly looks some people gave me, especially at the mall. But at the ball one guy came over to tell me what a beautiful thing it was to see a mother who cared so much about feeding her child and the commanders wife went through the buffet line to get me dinner so I wouldn't have to get up. My son was only 4 months old and I had no qualms about feeding him there.
    I refuse to be relegated to a bathroom because I'm using my breasts for what they are intended for. But I also don't put it out there for everybody to see because it's not my right to force my breasts on other people.
    posted by Blogger Mo at 7/25/2006 08:02:00 PM  



  • Places I've breast-fed...department stores, grocery stores, disneyland, beach, swimming pool, sacrament meeting, other church meetings, in the car(like Kage!), airport, plane, train, movies, resturants, parks, Probably almost anywhere I go (I'm quite good at walking and feeding!)
    I've found that if you practice not using a blanket but using your shirt to cover the breast it is often more discreet. I will wear a light unbuttoned blouse/shirt over my t-shirt so I'm covered in back when my t is pulled up. This works great in church. If my baby is wiggly, I lay a light cloth diaper over her head (in case of sudden breast release!)
    The breastfeeding bibs are a new thing, I'm not sure how I feel about them. Maybe people just need to get used to breastfeeding moms.

    Karen mom of 8 breast-fed kids
    posted by Anonymous Anonymous at 7/26/2006 12:54:00 PM  



  • thanks to zinone and her hooter hider recomendation, I nurse everywhere. . . laundromat, 4th of July fireworks at the east river, mets game, dressing rooms, car, church. . . I have not nursed on the subway yet, but it is not due to embarassment, but due to my horrid sense of timing and baby being asleep when riding. . . I'd nurse the baby anywhere. My thought is. . I am covered. If you are embarassed, you can look away!
    posted by Anonymous Anonymous at 7/26/2006 09:12:00 PM  



  • Check it out, in the headlines section of CNN.com this morning:

    Lactivists: Where is it OK to breastfeed?
    posted by Blogger marian at 7/28/2006 05:17:00 AM  



  • Just ran across your blog on google and just wanted to say that I also LOVE the cover and have written to BabyTalk commending them for it. I, too, have breastfed everywhere. If I'm out and my baby is hungry I FEED her. I've breastfed 3 children and not once have I done it in a bathroom.

    Be proud moms! You are ALL AWESOME!!!! You are helping our daughters who will one day be nursing their babies. We are paving the way! And if you want to really give people food for thought (love the pun) get a bumpersticker! I found some great ones at http://www.cafepress.com/mamasmilktees/445906

    I'm not affiliated w/the site but I now have an awesome sticker on my minivan. ;) I may go back and buy some more.
    posted by Anonymous Anonymous at 7/28/2006 09:29:00 AM  



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