I wasn't able to see the picture, unfortunately. I guess I could go the
supermarket since I live right outside Seattle.
Judy, you are so right about the initiation rates of breastfeeding in the
Pacific NW. We have only lived here about seven months, but have already
noticed more women nursing in public than I have ever seen before (we moved
from Austin, TX which was pretty open and pro-breastfeeding).
But, I wanted to make a comment about my experiences today. Today was
different! Like Susan, my husband took me out to a pretty nice restaurant
for Mother's Day brunch with my wonderful two-year-old daughter. She only
nurses a few times a day and not in public. However, at the restaurant, she
slipped off her chair and really WHACKED her head on the tile floor. My
poor baby! After some heavy duty crying, I was able to calm her down by
nursing.
Okay, so that's normal (to us!!). Well, I also used the four-year-old boy
next to our table to distract her (it really hurt so she was still
whimpering). "Katie, look at the big boy over there. Why don't you wave
hello?" His waving to her got a shy smile out of her-mission accomplished!
The boy informed us that he was going to be a big brother soon (his mom was
about 7 months pregnant). After many duly impressed oohs and ahhs from our
table, he and his mom started to talk about the baby and how he would help.
It went kind of like this:
Mom: "Are you going to help feed the baby?"
Boy: "Yes!"
Mom: "What do you think the baby will eat?" (as she glances towards me)
Boy: "Grapes! I can feed the baby grapes!"
Mom: "Oh, no. I don't think the baby can eat grapes when she's first born.
She'll have to have milk."
Boy: "But they can be soft grapes."
Mom: "Well, for the first few months she'll have milk. Milk in a bottle.
Like you had." (This time she didn't look at me, but I felt like she really
wanted to!)
Boy: "Oh."
I had to laugh to myself. I am a pretty confident public nurser by now,
but, I couldn't help but think that the mom constructed the exchange for my
benefit to express her disapproval of my nursing my toddler in public. I
thought it was odd...maybe I misread it.
And then, behind us, there was a baby in on the floor in her car seat
holding her own bottle and sucking it down while her parents dined. Of
course, we oohed and ahhed over their pretty baby and they ooohed and ahhed
over our cute toddler in her little flowered dress. We were both moms and
loved our babies to pieces.
Last year for Mother's Day I had a picnic lunch with my family at a concert
to a benefit The Mother's Milk Bank in Austin. Babies, boobs and slings
where everywhere! This year I felt like the lone, renegade nurser!
I guess it all depends on where you have lunch.
As for the artwork in today's paper, I can only go by how you described.
I'm not sure I can imagine the logistics of bottle feeding a baby and using
a computer. It's so much easier to put an older baby on a nursing pillow
and nurse while you cruise the net! Both hands are free!
Much love to all on this gloriously warm Mother's Day in Washington State.
Susannah in Sammamish
-----Original Message-----
From: Judy Ritchie [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Sunday, May 12, 2002 5:25 PM
Subject: Seattle Times Sunday Editorial Page Artwork
Once again, in their newsprint version, the Sunday Seattle Times this
Mother's Day, used an optical art pencil-drawn illustration showing a
woman bottle feeding a baby. The artwork depicts her in front of her
computer monitor. If you wish to comment, the Pacitic NW does have one
of the highest initiation and sustained breastfeeding rates in the
country, so this depiction is bogus.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorialsopinion/
Judy Ritchie
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorialsopinion/134452824_momed1
2.html
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