Breastfeeding

I made the decision very early on in my pregnancy, possibly even prior to getting pregnant, to breastfeed. It seemed (and still does) like the only option to me; in my opinion, it is by far the most natural way to feed an infant, and the benefits to both baby and mother blow formula feeding out of the water. I simply never saw formula feeding as an option unless there was some medical reason to do so. This isn't badmouthing mothers who decide to formula feed; some women have a difficult time with breastfeeding, some women don't have the time or the stamina or the desire to breastfeed. That's fine. As I said, I am not judging other mothers' choices in how to feed their children. It is a personal choice.

What I don't understand, and what this blog is about, is people who are uncomfortable with the idea of breastfeeding in general. This seems, to me, to be an entirely American problem. In most other cultures, formula feeding is the oddity. You see breastfeeding women out in public all the time in most countries in Europe and no one bats an eye. But here, I am finding it is more common than not that people are uncomfortable if I breastfeed in front of them. I have a newsflash for these people. It's a boob. It's sole purpose is not for decoration and/or to attract a mate, contrary to what American pop culture would like you to believe. It's sole purpose, the REASON that women HAVE boobs is to FEED BABIES!!!! It is a totally natural phenomenon. Look at all other mammals on the planet. They are not feeding their young formula from a bottle. You don't mind watching a puppy or kitten eating from it's mother, so why does it make you so uncomfortable when I start feeding my child in the way that nature intended?? This drives me crazy. Loosen up, people! You don't have to watch when I am feeding my child. I have eyes too. You can look at those.

In other, but related, news, we started trying to teach Audia to eat from a bottle this week. I've been pumping and freezing milk on and off for a while to build up a 'stash' so that eventually we can leave her with a babysitter for an evening and, more importantly, so that Chris can feed her when Emily and I are at the NKOTB concert next Monday :-). So far, so good! There is definitely some practice needed, but she is getting the hang of it and is even eating from the bottle when I'm in the room (some babies will never eat from a bottle if their mom's nearby), which I am hoping means I can eventually feed her from a bottle if she gets hungry in the car or if I decide to have a glass of wine. So, this is very exciting! Our little girl is growing up :-)