Hi everyone.  If you can stand it, here is another post on extended nursing.
 First, Liz I have appreciated all your posts, especially the legal ones.  I
was raised in a bottle- feeding family, which probably explains my allergies
and my difficulty with overweight.  My mother used to pass women who were
nursing infants in public, and say, "I can't believe she's doing that here!"

As an adult, I was determined to breastfeed.  My parents attitude about it
made it a challenge.  I joined LLL before my first child was born 8 1/2 years
ago, and we had difficulties in the beginning because I would pump bottles
for use in "public".  Often I would nurse in my car, or a bathroom or
dressing room.  My first outing with my first baby was to see the movie,
"Crossing Delancy", which to this day I have never seen in it's entirety.  I
left the theatre at least 3 or 4 times because I thought someone might see me
while I was nursing him.  At 4 1/2 months, I gave up bottles and pacifiers
because we went through a massive nipple confusion episode.  Literally, it
was me or the bottle--and I wanted it to be ME.  It worked out that way, he
found his thumb, and nursing went beautifully until he weaned on his own at
18 months (An early self-led weaning, probably due to the early pacifier
use.)  I felt melancholy about this early weaning, but also somewhat relieved
because my family was getting nervous.

My second child was totally different.  He never had a bottle or pacifier.
 He wasn't anywhere near weaning at 2, 3, or 4 years of age.  I fully
expected him to make it to 5, but to my surprise, he quit at 4 1/2!  My
family was exceptionally nervous about this extended nursing, and I become
very aware about how nervous my community is as well.  I teach at the
University of South Florida, and I am disturbed at the way my students react
to it.  My Ph.D. is in counseling, and I am very annoyed at the way my
colleagues judge extended nursing and family bed.  Families who practice
extended nursing, family bed, homeschooling, etc.;  should be careful about
the counselors they seek.  Many of them think that these couples are
manipulated by their children, and they determine that it's abnormal.  It
would help if more extended nursing moms spoke up, and if more got out of the
closet.  However, these things take time.  I do my best to educate, but we
must be careful not to turn people off!  I am truly zealous about
breastfeeding, but I am ever mindful of the "mindset"...