Jay -- and anyone else interested:

Practice hours for the IBLCE are any hours that you spend counseling mothers
-- one to one or in a group situation.  Phone, rental station, bf classes,
WIC, LLL (as a leader), etc.  The "best" (and therefore most of your time),
should be one to one with a mom working on bf issues.  When IBLCE talks about
"professional" and "under supervision" what they mean is that you can't count
hours where you just helped your neighbor or the ladies in your church, or
your sister-in-law as a casual, mother-to-mother help.  Working under the
ageis of a professional (WIC, LLL, hospital, another IBCLC, clinic, etc) is
what they are looking for here.

It's important to keep track of your hours and the types of experiences you
have with moms.  For example, if you can document your hours, and they exceed
the 500/year that IBLCE gives peer counselors in the WIC program, you can
take the higher number, but only if it is documented.

Hope that helps!  Mary Renard or Kathie Zettervahl, if you are lurking, you
can confirm or correct what I've said....

Jan Barger