Anita's blog

Are you a caffeinated mom?

Members send in stories all the time about their local adventures in breastfeeding. There are ones worthy of cheers (eg, stories of employers who are pumping-break friendly) and ones deserving jeers (eg, getting kicked off a plane and out of restaurants for breastfeeding).

When ABC did their story on maternal profiling, I was really glad about it. Not, of course, about maternal profiling, but the fact that a mainstream media outlet was picking up on this issue.

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I was driving the other day and suddenly thought how luxurious it felt to focus on one task. All I had to do was drive safely! In fact, it’s the law that I pay attention to the road at all times. What a cakewalk!

At my baby shower, a friend gave me a onesie that says "I love you Mommy!" She explained, "Your baby won't be able to say it yet, but you'll need to hear it!"

... lose two part time jobs. Panic, take a few deep breaths. And write my Congressperson!

MP Dunleavy on MSN writes about women and money. I was toodling around that website and found this short article on childcare costs and how to offset them.

Doctors agree that breastmilk is best for infants, but their own licensing board isn't following doctor's orders. Sophie Currier recently learned that when it comes to supporting breastfeeding, many of our leaders--whether they are in the medical establishment (as in Sophie's case), business sector, or elsewhere--still don't "walk the talk." You see, Sophie was denied breast pumping breaks during her nine hour medical licensing exam. She's not alone. Even in this day and age when the medical evidence is clear that breastfeeding is best for infants, women are regularly denied the time and location to pump.

When we became parents, I discovered and adopted a few very helpful perspectives:

1. Change is constant. There's always something new to learn or adjust to. True, I'll never again be a novice at changing a poopy diaper in a public place or figuring out the top ten uses for My Brest Friend. But as this baby grows, she changes, and my parenting techniques have to change with her. What worked yesterday to soothe, entertain or distract her might not work today. Remembering this keeps me on my toes instead of feeling constantly inadequate!

Being a stay at home mom or dad (SAHM or SAHD) means different things to different people. It took me the full forty weeks of pregnancy to think and journal about what it meant for me.

My husband I decided together that I would stay with Minkie (the nickname for our daughter!). I wasn't sure how long I'd want with my baby before having to return to a job I wasn't sure I wanted. (It was a good job with great co-workers but I was ready for a change.) I knew I wanted to give the whole bonding thing as much time as possible. And I knew I have my whole life to work, but a limited time for me to interact with the baby while she was still a baby. Finally, my husband and I decided we're happy living very simply and renting a one bedroom apartment in order to live on one income. So, there it was- staying at home it would be.