As a Nurse, breastfeeding "zealot", and "pregnant
woman"  I can really identify with the posts about
the Stay at Home Mom battle...

I am hoping to nurse my baby until my baby decides
s/he doesn't want to anymore.  Very hard for my
mother to understand.  I have been tossing around
the idea of staying home and taking in other kids
to sit for to have a little extra income for the
next few years, something my dh seems to be happy
with.

Already family members ask when I will be giving
the baby a bottle,and I have said "no bottles" (I
think I might go from breast to sippy-cup).  This
is upsetting to my mother who said she cannot get
close to the baby if she cannot bottlefeed it.
Arghhhhh!  My dh finally got over this attitude
himself when I explained ALL the other things he
could do beside stick a bottle of breastmilk in
the child's mouth. Going to be quite the battle
with my family, Thank GOd dh is finally on my
side.

I have seen many new mothers here give their baby
a bottle of ABM in the early postpartum because
"he isn't getting enough milk from me, he won't
stop crying".  Meantime, the baby is spending most
of its time in the little newborn crib by the
mom's bed or in the nursery because she doesn't
want to "spoil him".  <sigh>  I guess I am going
to be one of those "weirdo earth mothers" who
spends time with her baby, breastfeeds and uses
cloth diapers.

WHat will the neighbors think!!

Sorry for the rant, it has been building up for
months now...

Dee Dee Whalen, BN RN
Goose Bay, Labrador (Canada's northeastern coast)
Buried in snow, with more to come.... can barely
see out the windows these days!