Another Bravado! Designs Coupon Code

Bravado! Designs is currently offering a coupon code for all purchases on www.bravadodesigns.com. Simply enter code EOS-172 (enter at checkout) to receive 25% off your entire online purchase. The coupon expires on Monday, August 31 at 11:59PM so get those orders in quick! You can stack this coupon with the items that are already on sale, for an even bigger savings.



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Kendra & Kourtney Plan to Breastfeed

Well, look what made the cover of US Weekly! Newlywed Kendra Wilkinson (of Girls Next Door & Playboy magazine fame) and Kourtney Kardashian (Kim's big sis and fellow reality TV star) discussing breastfeeding after implants.

"I was so scared that I wasn't going to be able to nurse that when I saw stuff come out of my nipples the other day, I was like, I can breast-feed?" Wilkinson, said. "And I asked my doctor, who said, 'That's fine, but it's not milk yet!'"

Adds Kardashian (who, like Wilkinson, is also due in December), "They say usually you can [breastfeed with implants]. I want to."

Well, ladies, you're in luck because yes, you can breastfeed after implants! There may be some complications based on what your breasts were like before your augmentation or how your implants were placed. For example, many women who have implants were dissatisfied with their breasts because of insufficient glandular tissue, which can cause low milk supply. For more information, you can check out the BFAR site or the Breastfeeding Mother's Guide to Making More Milk, which I reviewed.

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Boobies Are Life-Saving Devices

In time for Breastfeeding Awareness Month, the Best for Babes foundation is back with a new ad to promote breastfeeding. The tagline, "Life-Saving Devices," is a riff on this year's World Breastfeeding Week theme, "Breastfeeding: A Vital Emergency Response. Are You Ready?"






Don't think boobs are life-saving devices? Just ask Kati Kim who kept her 7-month-old and 4-year-old daughters alive by breastfeeding them after they were stranded during a snowstorm. Or ask some of the many mothers who lost their babies after Hurricane Katrina, when clean water to make formula and sterilize bottles just wasn't available. And what about the Chinese police officer who breastfed 9 babies whose mothers were injured or died in the earthquake there last May? Those babies are alive today because of her.

Don't ignore the cure that's literally right under your nose: breastfeeding. It's what's best for babes.


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For Moms, By Mom: Simply Necessary

Have you heard of the Go! Pillow by Simply Necessary? It's a breastfeeding pillow that is meant to be used on-the-go and can be used through toddlerhood! It has a built-in nursing cover, can be used as a blanket, a head rest, a changing pad, a sunshade and more.

This product has received great reviews on Gruntlings and Mom Central. Check out the video below for a demo and interview with the mom who created the Go! Pillow, Tangela Walker-Craft.




I love supporting moms who have created their own businesses, particularly when they aim to promote and support breastfeeding. Want a Go! Pillow of your own? You can buy one here for $29.95.

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Friday 5

Happy Friday, ya'll. Although World Breastfeeding Week is long gone, the whole month of August is dedicated to nursing as it's Breastfeeding Awareness Month. This week's Firday 5 is dedicated to the women of color who are movers & shakers in the breastfeeding world.

1. Kathi Barber
Kathi is the author of The Black Woman's Guide to Breastfeeding and the founder of the African-American Breastfeeding Alliance. She is a board certified lactation consultant (IBCLC) who also blogs for Mothering in her spare time.

2. Micky Jones
Micky Jones is also an IBCLC, a Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis Instructor, a Certified Lactation Educator and a bunch of other acronyms that mean she works with and cares for moms and babies. Micky's blog, Mocha Milk, was the inspiration for Blacktating. Although she doesn't update much anymore, I can hardly be mad, as she's helping moms with pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding at 9 Months & Beyond, her business in middle Tennessee.

3. Mishawn Purnell-O'Neal
Mishawn has a Master's degree in Public Health and is the author of several books, including a breastfeeding book for kids, The Wonders of Mothers Milk. Mishawn is also the founder of Breastfeeding America, an organization created to address the gaps in information and education about breastfeeding in the black community.

4. Kiddada Ramey
Founder of the Black Mother's Breastfeeding Association, Kiddada has created a monthly breastfeeding support club for mothers in the Detroit area, presented at the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine's annual meeting and was also a keynote speaker at a recent conference in Chicago that looked at ways to reduce disparities in breastfeeding rates. In addition to her work supporting breastfeeding, Kiddada is also a teacher and reading specialist.

5. Kimberley Traylor
Kimberley Traylor has a Master's degree in Human Development, is a lactation specialist, former WIC breastfeeding peer counselor, doula and founder of theVillage, which provides breastfeeding clinics, doula services, support groups and workshops for moms in Houston, TX.


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Erykah Badu on homebirth, breastfeeding, veganism & more

Thanks to Karen at Mama Seoul for sending me the link to this great interview with Erykah Badu on Babble.com. I've blogged before about Erykah's extended nursing and how she Twittered during her home birth, but in this interview she talks in-depth about her belief in natural & attachment parenting. Erykah is open about how she chooses to raise her family, which includes a vegan diet and home schooling. My favorite quote?

Back to Mars for a minute — how did the people who were reading about her birth react on Twitter? Did you get any criticism about tweeting while birthing?

I have no idea, actually. But the Twitter community was happy to welcome her into the world. They ask about her every month. She just turned six months, and I got a lot of "happy six months." She's the first Twitter baby, and she's breastfed on Twitty milk.

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Review & Giveaway: Cushie Pushie

CLOSED
I was looking at an old picture of myself in a bikini the other day. I couldn't believe how tiny my waist was and how firm and high my boobs were. My boobs! The boobs that used to fit in a 36B that have grown and stretched and are currently at DD status. Of course I knew my breasts would get bigger after having a baby, but I never thought I'd have DDs. I couldn't imagine then how heavy and annoying big boobs can be. I am the rare woman who never wanted big breasts and was just fine with my teeny tiny bras (no underwire necessary). Now? Well, now, those same bras look like doll clothes and when I take my bra off, I'm practically unrolling my breasts and thankfully my man likes me and tries to pretend he didn't hear the thud when they hit the ground.

I'm exaggerating (slightly), but I can only imagine how my sister-friends who had big jugs to begin with feel about their breasts after pregnancy and breastfeeding. When you start with Ds or DDs, what do your boobs look like after your milk comes in? And how can a teeny tiny baby get latched on properly to those huge things? I know women whose boobs were bigger than their whole baby! I can only assume this was the inspiration for the Cushie Pushie, a support pillow for your huge new boobs.

The Cushie Pushie works by keeping your breast pushed up, making it easier to get your baby latched on and nurse hands-free. All of you big-boobed gals out there know you sometimes have to hold your boob up to keep it from suffocating your new bundle of joy.

I was actually amazed at how well it worked. At first I was a bit confused as to how to use it, but the instructions are simple: place the longest side of the pillow under your breast and the shortest side will be touching your arm. That's it! (Illustrated instructions can be found here). Your boob is now propped up and ready for nursing. You can now nurse hands-free. The Cushie Pushie also works well with a regular breastfeeding pillow, like the Boppy. Even if you don't have huge boobs, this is a great way to help position your baby on the breast, especially in the early days. At $15, you can't go wrong with this handy little pillow.

Want one of your own? Cushie Pushie is offering one of my readers a Cushie Pushie of her own. Simply tell me in a comment what pattern you'd like to win (non-organic only, please). Choose wisely, because if you win, this is the pattern you're getting! Happy breastfeeding!

Contest opened to U.S. residents only, please. Contest will run until midnight EST on Wednesday, August 26th. Winner will be selected via Random.org and notified via email & on this post. Winner will have 48 hours to respond, at which point another winner will be selected.

Congratulations to Melanie! You've won a Cushie Pushie. Please contact me with your mailing address within 48 hours or another winner will be selected.

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Guest Post: Tina on Breastfeeding in the NICU

I'm pleased to share a guest post today by Tina, a Southern California mom of a toddler and identical twin boys who are now 6 months old. Tina's post is about her experience breastfeeding while her twins were in the NICU.

I am the mother of three amazing boys. My oldest is 3.5 and my twins are just about to turn 6 months. Having breastfed my oldest son until he was 22 months, one of my major concerns when I found out I was pregnant with monoamniotic monochorionic (momo) twins was if I was going to be able to breastfeed them. Momo twins develop in the same sac without a separating membrane and are at risk for health complications due to the close proximity of their umbilical cords to the amniotic sac. Due to the high risk nature of the pregnancy, it is recommended for the health of the babies that they are delivered no later than 32 weeks. Facing an inevitable NICU stay, I studied up on how to develop and foster a breastfeeding relationship. Although it was one of my major concerns, amazingly, it is the one thing they had no problems with.

Fourteen hours after birth, I started pumping with a hospital grade breast pump. I got very little at first, but I wanted to condition my body to be prepared to feed two newborns. I pumped every 2 hours consistently. It was a pretty easy schedule to keep up in the hospital, but once I got home and was traveling back and forth it became more difficult. I occasionally pumped there, but also used the opportunity to stretch the time between my pumping sessions when necessary to 3 hours. The day I was discharged, five days after birth, my milk came in. I continued with the pumping every two hours, with the occasional 3-hour stretch. I was startled to pump 12 ounces in one sitting, so I started measuring to figure out how much I pumped in a 24-hour period. Twenty-three days after birth I pumped around 55 -60 oz a day. That's A LOT! I was very concerned about the amount because I read that you needed to pump 24 - 32 ounces for a singleton. I thought, "There is no way I can do that!" I was thrilled to learn I was doing that times two!

So, since my babies have been able to feed they have received my breast milk, whether in a bottle or directly from the breast. Now, for the latching onto the breast. I was actually very concerned about the boys receiving a bottle or pacifier. Everything I read said those are big no-nos if you want to have a successful breastfeeding relationship. The NICU was not willing to let them feed solely at the breast. I was initially very upset and then I realized I would do what it takes to get them out of the NICU and would work on feeding at the breast once they got home.
Little did I know how few problems we would encounter.

As for the actual "latch on" I wish I had suggestions. I used what I learned as a previous breastfeeding momma and doula training to position and offer the breast properly. That was really key for the boys. Then I wanted to make it as easy as possible. I initially pumped through a let-down and then offered the breast. After they appeared to get the hang of that I would do a little hand expression because they would initially get frustrated that they were working so hard and not getting much, so the expression allowed a little instant gratification.

I did have one problem that could have been a major one. I had a clogged duct that quickly turned into mastitis. I had a fever, the chills, the whole nine yards. It came on suddenly. I took a hot shower and massaged the affected breast. I continued to pump, drink water, rest, and put warm compresses on the breast. After 10 hours my fever went down dramatically so I decided to not go to the doctor and continue to rest and by 20 hours I was back to normal. The problem was I tried to stretch my pumping out to every four hours. Not such a good idea. I immediately returned back to the 2-3 hour routine. Now six months later, I continue to exclusively breastfeed. I started the boys on solids just shy of their 6 month birthday. I am so proud of my freezer full of milk that I had to share.


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Friday 5

Happy Friday, all! After a rough week plagued with plugged ducts, mastitis and a sinus infection, I'm finally back in working order and ready for the weekend! Here are some articles that provide some food for thought about breastfeeding.


-Breastfeeding in Burkina Faso: how grandparents affect breastfeeding rates.

-Improving breastfeeding rates in the black community: what we're doing and how we can improve.

-Men can breastfeed and apparently do so often in Central Africa.

-African woman throw away colostrum because it's "dirty."

-Pollutants in breast milk may be more complicated than we previously thought.



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Review: Nursing Pajamas by Annee Matthew

Head on over to Blacktating Reviews and check out my review of these capri pant nursing PJs by Annee Matthew.


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Kimora Lee Breastfeeding!

Kimora Lee & her fiance Djimon Hondsou recently released pictures of their baby boy Kenzo to the US edition of OK! Magazine. I had been begging on Twitter for Kimora to talk about breastfeeding if she had chosen to do so, but I heard not a peep in response. Then these pictures came out and all I could think was, "She HAS to be breastfeeding, those are total milk boobs!" So I Googled once again and this time found a quote on the Celebrity Baby Blog.

About how she’s been trying to lose her post-pregnancy weight this time around?

“Breastfeeding really helps, and sometimes I hit the treadmill with Djimon, but I’ve only done that four times.”

Leave it to a celebrity blog to only ask about her weight loss, but yay, she's breastfeeding! It would have been nice if she'd talked more about the wonderful bonding that comes with breastfeeding or how healthy it is for mom and baby, but I'll take it! I know a lot of people look up to Kimora and her fabulous persona so hopefully she'll be a positive influence on some young women of color and they'll decide to breastfeed.


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Guest Post: Jay on Breastfeeding in Mothercare

I'm pleased to share a guest post by Jay, a mom who lives in England with her husband and two young sons. She blogs about motherhood at Mocha Beanie Mummy and can be found on Twitter as well. Jay wrote this post after attempting to breastfeed her youngest son Isaac at Mothercare, a British retail store that specializes in products for parents and parents-to-be that is similar to Babies R Us in America.

My husband D, Isaac and I decided to brave a shopping trip to treat and enjoy ourselves. We took Isaac mainly because he was on boob juice, I didn't want to leave him with a bottle as he was only a few days old and we knew we wouldn't get much alone time with him. Needless to say, right after D and I had lunch, Isaac was ready to feed. First port of call? Uh, find somewhere to feed him. A huge shopping store in a town not far from us has a full parent and baby room, with bottle warmers, changing mats, breastfeeding areas, toilets, etc: basically everything a parent with a baby/toddler could ask for.

The town we went to (UK's second capital city, I hasten to add) has...nothing. When Noah was still nursing, I would go into public toilets to feed him, because there was nowhere else to go. These toilets were "supposedly" suitable, but usually meant cramming myself into a tiny cubicle with a toilet, sink, changing table and a fold down chair (because there wasn't enough room for a regular chair). Oh and also, a disco ball suspended from the ceiling. And they smelled. Bad.

Then they built a huge Mothercare, the biggest one I had seen for some time, where you would ASSUME there would be a parent and baby room. There was. And of course, it was out of order (the plumbing was screwed apparently). So I asked if there was somewhere I could nurse my (now screaming) baby. "Yes of course!" they said. "You can use the changing room. There's a chair and plenty of space."

"Um...ok thanks..." Not convinced, but it was better than out on the street.

I was in there maybe 15 minutes, sat on a single chair, no pillows, very dim lighting, feet perched on the wheels of the pushchair, hunched over the boy trying to get a good position. No luck, but hey, he fed. Outside I listened to a woman looking through bras and struggling because she didn't have a clue what size she was, despite supposedly being measured only a week ago.

As I was putting myself back, D came to the door and said there was a customer waiting to try on stuff. As I came out, I apologised to her and said there was nowhere else to nurse. At which point (and forgive me if I start typing in caps here, I get a little, um, IRATE with this), she accused me of being SELFISH for feeding my baby in the changing rooms when there were other people (who were nowhere to be seen, I saw only her) waiting to try on clothes. Also, that she was now very late for whatever, because I'd been HOGGING THE CHANGING ROOM, and she's a mum too so she understands, but I should GO SOMEWHERE ELSE to feed my child instead of causing problems for everyone else.

I (amazingly calmly) told her that I had ASKED PERMISSION from the staff to feed Isaac and they had advised I used that (ONE AND ONLY) changing room.

Even as I'm typing this, I'm struggling to avoid tensing up completely and throwing something quite heavy.

She continued to moan and complain. Directly at me. Not at the staff. The staff who were pretty slow to defend me. I went and complained to the staff that I had just been bollocked by a customer for their incompetence, and that they might want to think carefully about their facilities, and that as a shop devoted to parents and children, they SUCK.

I was so livid, they pee'd me off so much I can't believe it, and I'm the one left feeling crap just for trying to feed my child without disturbing/bothering other people. I've actually decided that the next time I'm out in public with Isaac and he needs feeding, I will plonk my ass in the middle of WHEREVER THE HECK I LIKE, or if I can be bothered to make the walk, in the middle of ANY nearby Mothercare and feed right in front of everyone.

The irony is, I have no issues with feeding in front of people. I'll feed wherever and whenever, that's my attitude to breastfeeding. It's the most natural thing in the world. My baby wants to eat, I will feed him. Do people go and hide in toilets/changing rooms to feed their kids solids? No. So why should it be any different for me?

So let's see. Was I right for complaining to the staff? Should I have humbly apologised and walked away, and just left it there, let it go? Should I have kicked up a huge stink, for being told off for something so natural and not getting any support for it, to make a statement? I feel like I was in some kind of no-win situation, despite being, what I thought, the innocent party.

Breastfeeding: it's not a crime. Or is it?





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Friday 5

It's Friday, August 7th and it's the last day of World Breastfeeding Week. Did you find a way to celebrate? Here are the latest breastfeeding-related stories making waves in the news.


People are up in arms over a doll that allows little girls to pretend to breastfeed.

A new sculpture features Angelina Jolie breastfeeding twins in the football hold while nude (picture available).

A couple received a $115 ticket for parking in a no-standing zone so the wife could nurse their baby. Maybe if nursing in public were more accepted, she wouldn't have felt the need to hide in the car?

Sentencing begins today for the woman charged with child neglect for allegedly breastfeeding her baby while drunk. For a more nuanced look at the case and the charges, please visit Jake Marcus' blog.

Uh oh, the IRS may be coming after breastfeeding moms!



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August Carnival of Breastfeeding: Prepared for Life

Welcome to August's Carnival of Breastfeeding! This month our posts are on the World Breastfeeding Week themes "Prepared for Life" and "Breastfeeding in Emergencies." Be sure to check out the posts from our other Carnival participants linked at the end of this one.


This is an old post that I wrote in July of 2008 when I was thinking about the implications of formula feeding during disasters.


I live in South Florida and our first hurricane of the season was brewing out there in the Atlantic, threatening Bermuda, as it gained force and became a category 3. I've lived in this area pretty much my entire life and have been very lucky to only suffer minimal damage during a hurricane. I've lived through three horrible ones: David, Andrew and Wilma. Wilma hit the closest to home and was actually one of the Top 5 most costliest hurricanes, with damages in excess of $29 billion. At our home we lost power for about a week and were forbidden to even drive for many days. All the trees in my neighborhood were annihilated. We couldn't cook, we lost all of the food in our refrigerator, the stores were all shut down, lines at the gas stations went on for miles, we took cold showers in the dark, etc etc. It was pretty awful, but we were all alive and safe and there was minimal damage to our home, so we couldn't really complain (this was two mere months after Katrina).
Back then I was young, single and carefree and didn't have any kids, so it never crossed my mind how people who rely on formula were feeding their children. Now that I have a son I do worry about hurricanes, but at least I know that regardless of what happens, I'll be able to feed my child!
What did these parents do? I'm sure some were smart enough to stock up on bottled water and formula, but they couldn't sterilize any of the bottles or nipples. What if you're already poor and can't afford to stock up? What if water is in short supply? Once ready-to-serve formula is opened, it has to be refrigerated or discarded after an hour.
When you live in a place where nature can wreck havoc at a moment's notice, disaster preparedness is a must. The risks associated with feeding babies a human milk substitute are only compounded during a disaster. Ah, breast milk: sterile, free, nutritionally perfect for all infants and readily available, even without electricity or water!

Check out the other participants in this month's Carnival.

Fusion Parenting: Breastfeedin--Prepared for LIFE!
Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog: Breastfeeding in Emergencies
Hobo Mama: Prepared for Life: Breastfeeding in local and global crises
Zen Mommy: How breastfeeding has shaped my toddler's view of breasts
Pure Mothers: Marketing away real milk
Chronicles of a Nursing Mom: Tips for consistent & long-term breastfeeding success
Cave Mother: Three moments that make me thankful I breastfeed
Breastfeeding 1-2-3: Breastfeeding as a lifesaver in emergencies


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