A Sunday Evening Rant

     While not harness related this rant is definitely Froggie related. It has to do with breastfeeding. It also has to do with dealing with "the public".
     If you keep up with my posts about Froggie you know that we had to re-learn how to breastfeed once we got the harness. You also probably read about the stares we get about the harness and the sometimes brave individuals that do more than stare. If you read the post about diapering you know we use cloth diapers, and I have mentioned in more posts than not that we love our carrier!
     Some may call me a hippie, others "crunchy" or "granola", and some will say I'm just flat out weird. I'm ok with all of that, I'm also ok with those who aren't "brave" enough to do anything but stare. One thing I don't think I would handle well is being told I can't meet my daughter's needs because someone else is uncomfortable.
     Yes I nurse Froggie in public (usually with a cover) and thankfully I've never been told I can't feed her wherever it is that she decides she's hungry. I've fed her at work, in restaurants, at the park, while walking aisles at the store, at the doctor's office, at church and on occasion in my car. In an effort to keep Froggie's attention I use a cover when feeding her if there are distractions (people or things to look at, grab for, play with, etc.) The use of a cover, in my opinion, is like hanging a sign on yourself saying "my chest is sort of exposed under here, stare at me", not to mention the older Froggie gets the less tolerant she is of the cover and tries to take it off (this could also be due to the fact that it's the middle of summer).
     I have people stare at me but it's hard to know when I'm breastfeeding in public if the funny looks are because my daughter is eating or because she's wearing something that is obviously NOT a fashion statement. I typically ignore those around and continue doing what I'm doing whether it's talking to those I'm with, eating, shopping or working. The way I see it I'm caring for my child in the best way I possibly can.
     This was not always my opinion. I did not always just "whip them out" and feed my child. When Big Brother was an infant I would pump and tote along bottles of breast milk. I was able to hand him off to be fed by another person and then go lock myself away someplace for the duration of his feeding. He was terribly distracted when I did try to breastfeed him and it was a frustrating experience; primarily because I wanted to nurse him but I was "chicken". So instead I became best friends with my pump and missed out on a lot of conversations and cuddle time with him.
     I'm not one for wasting time... So if I can just be confident in the decision I have made I can continue to eat my dinner, do my shopping or whatever it is that I'm in the middle of. I can give Froggie whatever she needs without having to excuse us and hide.
     This rant came about not because I was finally approached by someone after 5 months of feeding Froggie wherever (though I'm sure my bubble will burst eventually and someone will get brave enough to say something to me), but because of a video circulating on Facebook.

     Holli McNish is a poet who released a video of her take on the shame breastfeeding mothers experience for nursing in public. She's very talented (and british so her experiences come from the UK but I believe they are still relevant)! Her rant was pretty catchy and I listened to it twice while nursing Froggie during Big Brother's nap time.

Here's a smiley Froggie to close out your weekend