>I’m Thankful for Freedom of Speech UPDATED!
>If you don’t feel like arguing the pros and cons of unschooling (and somehow, the homeschooling debate got thrown in there, too), check out my post on breastfeeding at the Nashville Scene’s blog. There are some interesting comments from people who believe that breastfeeding moms are “fat, anyway” and need to stay at home, or at the very least, use a blanket when they’re nursing.
Yeah, I know it’s Thanksgiving and I should be listing all the things I’m thankful for. But I figured you could use a break from the cornucopia of turkey blather that’s clogging the Internet today.
Or maybe I’m just a pregnant, broken-footed bitterman who’s spending the day cooped up with a toddler and bad holiday television programming, and who has nought but a Chinese all-you-can-eat buffet to look forward to tonight when her husband gets home from work.
You decide.
*I’m updating EVERYTHING lately, aren’t I? Okay, so tomorrow on Dr. Phil, the topic is… Unschooling! Be sure and watch it if you’re interested in this topic. The homeschooling online community is already buzzing about the show, and not in a good way. Check out this post from one of the audience members. I had to skim, because it is lonnnng, but it’s also a very interesting behind-the-scenes look at how the Dr. Phil show is run.
>I’m sorry you’re only getting chinese food tonight. I would totally bring over some food if I wasn’t in another state!I’m not sure that the people who commented on your post on the other blog hardly even knew anyone who nursed their kids. I noticed lots of the men were not very kind.On the one hand I think it’s fine to nurse in public. I have and I know lots of people who have. On the other hand you can nurse discreetly even without a blanket.Maybe people could ask politely “do you mind if I nurse my baby here?” that would give you a warning and I know very few people who would say no.I’ve changed a poopy diaper on a plane with a complete stranger sitting next to me. They were very kind. I don’t think it should be a source of contention.
>If I weren’t a mom, I might think using a blanket was a good idea when breastfeeding, too. But having gone through the breastfeeding experience, I seriously had a hard time covering my baby’s head with a blanket. I wouldn’t have liked it if someone did that to me- so why would I do that to my child? I generally tried to rig a blanket around her head so that she’d get some fresh air -and- I wouldn’t flash anyone. Easier said than done, though!Breastfeeding is just awkward in public, no matter how you cut it, and probably, the least people could do is be kind about it. The woman who was kicked off the Delta flight said she was mortified- I would’ve been, too.
>yes, my daughter didn’t mind a blanket at all. My son, on the other hand, would have nothing to do with that. Luckily I had lots of big shirts and understanding friends (I never did go for the nursing shirts).The worst is in a restaurant that has awkward tables or something and when they’ve gotta eat, they’ve gotta eat. I only once nursed in a public bathroom; never again.
>OMG…No turkey on turkey day? What’s up with that. You could have flown into Chicago and eaten here. Happy Thanksgiving!
>A little on the bitter-side I’d say, but so was the cranberry sauce. I hope they have pie at the buffet! Happy Thanksgiving!
>I had to comment on this while passing by on my way to prep for my 5am shopping trip… I nursed both of my kids for the first 5-6 months of their lives – and I have to say I NEVER just whipped out a boob on anyone. I always used a very light blanket to cover; geez, it’s only good manners if you are in public!!! Sorry, maybe I was raised wrong… We have a member of our family who had 5 kids, and she didn’t think anything of “whipping it out” in front of anybody with all 5, and frankly it made even me extremely uncomfortable. You can be creative when it comes to nursing discreetly. If we ate out, we would choose a restaurant that wasn’t too crowded and would ask for a table towards the back of the restaurant. I even nursed at several pro baseball games but had someone shield me with the blanket until we could get situated. And most of the time nobody even noticed, because I didn’t try to bring attention to myself. I did have to exert some effort to do this though. I have found some women who nurse wear this sort of “medal of honor” attitude – nursing is great, but it’s YOUR choice, not the choice of the individuals around you and I think that should be adhered to. btw Happy Thanksgiving!!!
>Most people that have an aversion to breastfeeding in public don’t have kids.Yes, I agree that manners are required, and you can breastfeed discretely. It is awkward in public. My boy didn’t like have anything over him either. And it was a bit hard if he suddenly pulled off.Lindsay – if I was bf at a friends house or at mine with friends in the lounge I would just shout out “boob alert!” and everyone would look away until I get baby positioned on – well except for my nosey girlfriends who wanted to see how it was all done.
>Yes, I think “Boob Alert” is definitely the way to go. We should make it a law. Any time your baby gets hungry in public you are required to yell, “BOOB ALERT” and then you are free to breastfeed all you want, blanket or no blanket.
>It’s interesting. The author of that diatribe against Dr Phil (who I can’t stand) talked about the “mainstream Americans” as though we were all uneducated morons who had never heard of homeschooling. She said that we thought they were all religious nuts, and then proceeded to add her religious touches, obviously unaware that she was feeding the sterotype. I don’t think I know anyone who doesn’t know someone that has homeschooled. I homeschooled my kids for a very long year. I have 2 friends in Nashville that are both homeschoolers. One was an unschooler and her experiences as her kids moved on to junior college basically supported my feelings about unschooling. All three of her children had 2 years of remedial work to do before they could begin to earn college credits. Even SHE admits that unschooling was a huge mistake and her kids gaps were so huge that they needed to learn basic skills in writing and grammar. It’s a shame that the homeschooling movement is lead by women like that author Kristin. She’s obviously bright and well spoken, but the chip on her shoulder must weigh her down. She’s extremely disdainful of anyone that doesn’t choose homeschooling and thinks that we’re all complete idiots that don’t know squat about EBF (2.5 years for twins here…) or any AP methodology. For goodness sake, EVERYONE these days knows about AP. You have to be a complete nincompoop to not have ever heard of AP or EBF. The web forums are full of discussions about this. Ditto for homeschooling. I think if Kristin got off her high horse and met people outside her tiny group of radical homeschoolers, she might find that American is much more at ease with her parenting choices than she might think. And anyone that agrees to go on Dr Phil is a moron. Do you get that EVERY problem his guests have can be solved by the anti-drug Doctor Lawless. That man is DANGEROUS.
>there’ve been some ugly words said about women breastfeeding over here in London. In Scotland (where I’m from) it is illegal to prevent a woman from breastfeeding her baby, but they don’t have an equivalent law down here. What they do have though are Page 3 Stunners – topless teenage girls in daily newspapers!However, I breastfed my son on the tube, train, bus, in shops, restaurants and cafes and no one ever dared tell me to stop. And when the baby is born in May I’ll breastfeed that one too.
>What’s this business about no Turkey?!I’m covering my ears and pretending I didn’t hear (or read) that…
>Dr. Phil seriously disappoints. It seems like he’s too busy trying to be nice to people to tell them what he really thinks.Homeschooling done well = fabulousUnschooling = f’ed up
>Great link to the Dr. Phil audience member. Very eye-opening. Not that I didn’t already think he’s full of crap anyway…As for nursing in public. I mostly tried not to… if I could go to the car, I did, if I was visiting someone and could go off to a room alone, I did. Usually. But I won’t go to a bathroom or suffocate my baby in order to feed him. People are so outrageous sometimes.
>My thoughts on this are similar to Pageant Mom’s. I breast fed all three of my children and I cannot ever remember having an incident where anyone noticed. I was raised to be considerate of others around me and I had a conservative upbringing. During the first month I pretty much stayed home out of sheer lack of energy. After that things were back to normal life, shopping, library, travel, family visits, etc. If I were at a family members or friends house for a gathering I would politely ask the host/hostess if I could use a bedroom when it came time to feed. I can only recall using a blanket a few times and that was used to shield others around me not my baby. I never used it to cover my baby’s face. There were a few times when I left the house and I knew I would be gone during a feeding so I would use the pump before I left. I also used it to prepare bottles for times I knew I might end up in a situation where my breasting feed might not go unnoticed. For “pump milk” I used the Playtex disposable liner bottles with the “natural” nipple. I wonder why no one has mentioned the pump? They were made for us breast feeding moms.I have been boobie wipped before and it does throw you completely off guard. You do not know where to look and not make the other mother feel uncomfortable. It would be nice if you had some warning.As far as the mother being taken off the flight I think that was going too far. A baby does not take all day to nurse. They should have been thankful the mother took care of the baby instead of letting him/her scream for the rest of the flight. How about opting to drape blankets over the seats in front, behind and maybe the isle seats to make a private area so all were comfortable? Given the height of the seats anyone who would get a look would have to strain themselves ha, ha, ha!
>This sort of thing regarding nursing in public makes me livid. I wonder what would happen in these scenarios if, when harassed about the breastfeeding, the women whipped out their attorney’s card stating, “You and your company will be hearing from X on Monday. Good day.” Playing the laywer card works so well in other scenarios…. why wouldn’t it work in this one as well?
>Oh now you’ve started a breastfeeding debate? heh! Cool. I think the one thing people forget about the woman breastfeeding on the Delta flight is that her child was nearly two. I’ve seen many toddlers nursing and they are not at all easy to keep covered up.By the way, have you heard of the Hooter Hider? VERY COOL contraption that allows the mother to see the baby and air to circulate from the top.Link: http://www.bebeaulait.com/?gclid=CKqLtbes5YgCFUELGAodF35Siw
>wow. I am so sad to see that so many women are still so convinced that breasts are for selling beer and so uncomfortable with our bodies that we are ashamed to nurse in public?! Clearly, breast milk is best. Human milk for baby humans! And yet we are ashamed to feed our children what is best for them in public and we are more worried about offending others than feeding our babies what is best for them? We as mothers need to get over it and be unapologetic about breast feeding in public. The people who think we should be covering up need to just look away. No adult would want to eat their lunch under a stiffling blanket or in a public restroom (ewww, yuck!) so why should my child have to? As for the “whip out” well, when are you seeing this? I for one am a nursing mother and I nurse in public all the time… and I really don’t think anyone really knows what I’m doing… there is no need to “flash” anyone when nursing in public… and in fact the idea that nursing is akin to “flashing” likens nursing to an indecent act… which it is far from! In short, everyone needs to get over it. Breast feeding is the best for the child, and the mother, and is the most natural choice. There is nothing natural about feeding your child high fructose corn syrup (the primary ingredient in infant formula… check it out if you don’t believe me!)from a bottle made of petrochemical laden PVC.