Stand and Deliver

thanks, at least you don't believe in cabbages...

2012-06-03T13:09:52.919-04:00

thanks, at least you don't believe in cabbages like my own children ;) today's french mother's day!

one reason i quit going to church is because i fel...

2012-06-03T12:10:24.768-04:00

one reason i quit going to church is because i felt restricted to care/feed for my baby. this was a great article to read. thank you very much. i hope that it will change.

It was great to see you, Rixa. Thanks for being a ...

2012-06-03T04:22:04.445-04:00

It was great to see you, Rixa. Thanks for being a lovely seatmate. :)

I really liked meeting you in real life Rixa. I ha...

2012-06-02T15:13:47.845-04:00

I really liked meeting you in real life Rixa. I have been following this blog for quite some time now. The whole conference was intense indeed. I was on the organisation team and our whole team rocked. It was kind of a pressurecooker these last 5 months but the feling of achievement was great. Glad you will write more on it and hopefully we'll meet again.

wow, siciliana, quite a rant. birkenstock-wearing...

2012-06-02T12:18:29.894-04:00

wow, siciliana, quite a rant. birkenstock-wearing, hairy-pitted..??? ha. i think it'[d be best for you to wait until you have children of your own before trying to jump on the media-driven bandwagon of the "mommy wars." you clearly don't know what you are talking about if you think that moms who want t normalize breastfeeding are just trying to "make a f-ing statement." why such anger that you have to type in caps and cuss???

Why does Jill have a Norman Bates look? Ha! Now ...

2012-06-02T12:16:32.447-04:00

Why does Jill have a Norman Bates look? Ha! Now that your back please give us some conference highlights.

You met my friend farah! Thus we are now two degre...

2012-06-02T10:01:00.350-04:00

You met my friend farah! Thus we are now two degrees. It's such a cool world and awesome to be connected to other alt birthers. Glad it was great!

LOL! Like Kate,I thought these were hobby models i...

2012-06-02T00:37:21.414-04:00

LOL! Like Kate,I thought these were hobby models in some museum! How cool! What kind of camera does she have!
Been waiting for some pics!
What a ruff life you have, Rixa ;)!
Miss you!

Beth you should definitely get it checked. My son ...

2012-06-01T16:35:46.427-04:00

Beth you should definitely get it checked. My son has just had his lasered at laser life care institute Auckland and it has changed my life. He is three months and can now lift his tongue and latch better! No one diagnosed his problem as he was gaining weight and it wasn't until I asked the doctor to check that the ball started rolling. When we went to the laser specialist he asked me if anyone had checked for the fraenum tie ( under the tongue). I said no. When he lifted up his lip I couldn't believe it. It was so attached. He said in most cases of tongue tie there is fraenum attachment too and that is why when only the tongue tie is released often the breastfeeding still is not improved. When babies breastfeed they need to make fish lips and if the lip is attached it is impossible. Laser is great as it took only ten minutes and no bleeding. He fed straight away and is improving all the time. My only regret is that we didn't get it done sooner as I'm going to have to change the way he has fed for 3 months. Now I know he'll be able to poke out his tongue and lick an icecream!
Christina Auckland NZ

OMG this whole Lactivist BS is too much! I intend ...

2012-06-01T12:44:44.223-04:00

OMG this whole Lactivist BS is too much! I intend to BF my bebes, and even do extended nursing into toddlerhood, I know breast is best and will do what I need to do to give my bebes the best nutrients and the nurturing affection from mami that BFing gives. THAT BEING SAID, BFing should be about feeding your bebe, not about making some political statement or trying to shove your views down other people's throats! People "need" to see you BFing so it can become the cultural norm? Give me a break, yes there are some cultures where breasts are on display, normalized and non-sexual, but in this society that is not the case. If you don't like it, go move to Africa or South East Asia! I'm so sick of this whole "lactivist" movement of imposing, self-righteous granola women with something to prove, thinking that they are going to save the world and change society with their breasts! GIVE ME A BREAK LADY YOU ARE NOT THAT SPECIAL. Yes, feed your bebes, yes, educate your friends and family members IF they are interested, yes nurse in public, with our without a cover, but don't make it about proving a point to society! At that point it's not even about mami and bebe connecting anymore, it's not about feeding anymore, it's about trying to change people's views, which is so "udderly" stupid (yes I said it, lol).
And what is this whole tangent about the women in these ads looking like Victoria's Secret models? That her bleached hair, fake eyelashes and white teeth sexualize her image BFing? Honestly, some women look like that. Is it wrong to look your best, be beautiful, wear make up and still be a mom? FYI not all mothers are birkenstock-wearing, hairy-pitted, fat and ugly with no make up! The models in these ads do not look unrealistic for a young mami from California, I've seen plenty of young moms who look like that, and I plan on keeping myself up through and after pregnancy as well. Sorry to all the ladies that let themselves go and turned from woman into mom, but it CAN be done, I have friends who are living proof. DON'T HATE just because some women DO make themselves up to look sexy! If you can't keep yourself up that's your problem.
But I digress, my main point is whether you are sexy/beautiful or not, whether you use a cover or not, whether you BF in public or not, the BOTTOM LINE IS that BFing should be just that, about BFing, about making a special connection with your bebe and feeding, NOT ABOUT CHANGING SOCIETY OR MAKING A F-ING STATEMENT! Just feed your own damn bebe, there's no need to look down your nose at other women who BF in a different way, or even women who bottle feed. To each her own. And it's not your job or responsibility to "teach" society a lesson, stop acting like we as women/mothers have such a huge cross to bear!! GET OVER YOURSELF and just feed your own bebe!

After a horrible experience and other OBGYN office...

2012-06-01T01:07:02.587-04:00

After a horrible experience and other OBGYN offices in Columbus, I ended up at the Kingsdale OBGYN office with Dr Shepard and I have to say that she is the most caring, patient oriented doctor I have ever seen (and I saw a lot in the past few years). I feel I'm in excellent hands with her and the other doctors in the office, and I don't feel the need to have a Doula. I am fully aware of what a Doula is and why some women want one, but I personally do not want or need one and had no problems signing the form. I was glad to see this policy up front and clearly written. I wanted the birth of my daughter to be a completely intimate experience between my husband and I and left the medical details up to the hospital staff, and I had exactly the birth experience I had hoped for. I plan to follow the same route with my second.

"Letting my child to play with my vagina"...

2012-05-31T19:19:06.547-04:00

"Letting my child to play with my vagina"??? Sounds like someone's looking for some Japanese porn fetish. I have compiled a list of phrases that don't appear anywhere on Google (or didn't until I posted them). Here are some samples: http://daisybrain.wordpress.com/2010/10/18/more-google-virgins/

generally hives have to run their course. My son, ...

2012-05-31T15:39:00.170-04:00

generally hives have to run their course. My son, for instance, ha a similar reaction last week and it took a good 4 days before it calmed down. His eyelids and hands and feet even swelled. Benedryl gave him the most relief, as well as oatmeal baths. Oh and benedryl cream when it was super itchy.

You could be having an allergic reaction to virus you came in contact with. Immune systems are funny. Any fever? (even slight)...

I screamed at my midwife because she just was not ...

2012-05-31T12:16:07.709-04:00

I screamed at my midwife because she just was not following any of my plan. Got me a visit with the hospital shrink before I could leave.

Ja! Ik heb een fiets :). Holland is made to cycle ...

2012-05-31T11:13:52.128-04:00

Ja! Ik heb een fiets :). Holland is made to cycle trough, but doing groceries with a kid back and front is quite a workout, believe me. Add to that the many rainy days here and you know that Dutch ladies are though.
Amsterdam is so different from the rest of the Netherlands, such a free spirited optimistic city... I love to visit my friends there.

Nice! My Personal injury law expert likes this and I am so grateful that you have shared this. This is meaningful!

This is an opinion based on the assumption that ev...

2012-05-31T00:52:21.790-04:00

This is an opinion based on the assumption that everything that comes standard in L&D is necessary. Which is not. And if you're saying you should only birth your baby at the hospital if you're willing to spread your legs and follow all the rules for their sake, then you're right. We shouldn't be there, and that's the exact reason more and more women are choosing to birth outside of hospitals. We don't birth for your convenience.

Bette Kibble is a Licensed-certified Practicing mi...

2012-05-30T19:27:50.881-04:00

Bette Kibble is a Licensed-certified Practicing midwife doing Homebirths in the Tucson area for over 30 years.... call 520-882-8228

I've been reading a lot of birth stories today...

2012-05-30T17:48:50.056-04:00

I've been reading a lot of birth stories today and I think I was a bit harsh in my last comment. I do think you still come off as arrogant in the way you worded it, but many of the things you said are things that I think I'd like to have happen in my own births: being allowed privacy, being able to move around, not having unnecessary procedures done, keeping everything calm, etc. I hope I'm able to talk to my doctors about this and feel that they support me in this decision (I'd talk about this on the first appointments so I'd have time to find a new doctor if I needed) and that I do value and respect the years of training and hard work they've gone through to help mothers have safe, happy birth experiences. They feel a lot of pressure themselves, too. Hospitals are sued all the time for things that often aren't their fault. They have to do all sorts of things to make sure that they're safe legally, and it scares them when a patient doesn't want those things done. I hope I can have a good experience with my doctors (or whatever medical personnel there are) this way.

My husband & I live in a small mobile home in ...

2012-05-30T16:02:49.188-04:00

My husband & I live in a small mobile home in a mobile home park on the edge of a university town. The park is quite large with lots of green space, and we are close enough to hear the train as it goes by. We're only a couple miles from the university, which provides lots of cultural opportunities that small towns don't usually have. We're at the extreme edge of being able to walk to grocery stores/library, but the buses are free. What I would like: a basement, & to be able to keep chickens. We can have a raised bed garden in the park, I just haven't gotten around to putting one in, yet.

Hope you are loving the time on your own!

2012-05-30T13:34:13.344-04:00

Hope you are loving the time on your own!

If you can, renting a bike just for a few hours is...

2012-05-30T13:33:25.866-04:00

If you can, renting a bike just for a few hours is a great way to see around the city. My favourite place to hang out last time was Museumplein - so much people-watching to do and a pool for cooling summer feet. Hope you get to try some frites with fritessaus too!

We LOVED that part of Amsterdam. They were so crea...

2012-05-30T13:06:35.984-04:00

We LOVED that part of Amsterdam. They were so creative in their uses for bikes! Have fun!

We are a full-time bike family. I pull the kids in...

2012-05-30T11:47:10.924-04:00

We are a full-time bike family. I pull the kids in a burley trailer. I can't wait to see the bike pictures because I need ideas on how to add more kids if we have another baby.

BRING INGA. She misses me. But if it's just y...

2012-05-30T09:35:21.968-04:00

BRING INGA. She misses me.

But if it's just you, that's cool, too.

I'm here. See you tomorrow. :)