I Am Mom Enough

Have you seen the latest issue of Time Magazine? I haven't had a chance to get a copy yet, but have read excerpts and have seen it discussed all over the web for the last couple days. Regardless of the tone of the articles or any spin that the writers may put on the issues, I find it really encouraging to see mainstream America opening up and talking about topics like breastfeeding, co-sleeping, and positive discipline, because ultimately these issues affect not just parents and children but on many levels our society as a whole.

I do find the cover photo to be a bit exaggerated.  I am sure it was purposely posed to incite controversy and drive magazine sales. I personally know lots of Attachment Parents and extended breastfeeding moms including myself. I have seen some wild gymnustics and lacrobatics performed by active toddlers intent on exploring and looking at everything while nursing. I wouldn't be shocked, but to date I have never seen a preschooler drag up a chair to stand on while nursing.  Little people can be intensely creative problem-solvers when they are trying to get what they want, so I guess this scenario, although it's not typical, isn't completely unrealistic.  If it was girlfriend of mine and her preschooler, I'd probably have a good-natured laugh. Then, I'd say let's all go sit in the living room where it's more comfortable for nursing.

Here are two moms, who are part of a local moms group I started, giving their take on the Time feature on ABC2 News in Baltimore:

I completely agree with what Jessica said about her daughter Payton nursing, "When she turned a year old, I just was like I can't take her away from this. She loves it. She relies on it. It's her comfort, puts her to sleep." I felt this same way.

When my youngest daughter turned one, she was already scheduled for surgery the following month to correct a slight birth defect of her ear. I knew we wouldn't wean before the surgery, because breastfeeding was such a comfort to her and also because breastmilk provides pain relief and promotes healing. Originally my goal was to breastfeed my baby for at least a year, and we made it YAY!!!  I thought after she recovered from her surgery, we would be done.  But then around that same time, I learned that The World Health Organization and many health organizations world-wide actually recommend breastfeeding until at least the age of two.  Before I had children, I never imagined myself nursing a toddler, but  it felt so natural to continue, and I am so happy that we did!

" . . . people have to realize this is biologically normal. It’s not socially normal. The more people see it, the more it’ll become normal in our culture. That’s what I’m hoping. I want people to see it. There seems to be a war going on between conventional parenting and attachment parenting, and that’s what I want to avoid. I want everyone to be encouraging. We’re not on opposing teams. We all need to be encouraging to each other, and I don’t think we’re doing a very good job at that." from Q&A with Breast-Feeding Mom Jamie Lynne Grumet -- A conversation with the woman on TIME's May 21 cover

I talk regularly to moms who think attachment parenting, child-led weaning and gentle, loving parenting are integral to raising happy, healthy confident kids. I think every good mother does the best she can at the time with the resources and information that she has. The more we learn and share, the better parents we become. I intentionally chose the moms in my circle of friends for their desire to be the best mothers they can, to grow and learn as both women and mothers, and for their ability to be understanding and supportive.  Motherhood can be hard at times even without feeling like you have to justify your every parenting decisions or impress everyone around you with your stellar mothering skills. Raising children is not a contest to be won. I don't need to be "#1 Mom!" I do need to be able to share openly with my fellow moms without fear of being judged as not "mom enough."

Related Posts:

• 101 Things to Do With Your Toddler (counting-on-me.blogspot.com)
• Ryan Gosling on Cloth Diapers  (mamahealthnut.blogspot.com)
• Cloth Diapering: Healthy Baby Bums  (mamahealthnut.blogspot.com)
• Make Your Own Flu Vaccine  (mamahealthnut.blogspot.com)

Make Your Own Flu Vaccine

What's in the Flu Shot? This video about the ingredients of the flu vaccine is both scary and funny.



Everyone has the right to know the truth about what's in vaccines and what the actual benefits are versus the risks. This vital information (not just the hyped-up drug company and government-back propaganda) should be public knowledge.

You can't go back in time, but going forward never let anyone inject anything into your body or the bodies of your children without doing your homework first. You cannot trust pharmaceutical companies, doctors, insurance companies, or the government to provide you with unbiased information or make the choices that are healthiest for you and your children.

Klean Kanteen

I just ordered two of these Klean Kanteen Sets for my girls to replace all of our plastic sippy cups.  I am so tired of trying to find the matching lids, straws, valves etc for all the different sippy cups we have. My girls fight over who gets what color, and I worry about toxic chemicals from the plastics leaching into their drinks or directly onto their skin.  I am hoping, once these arrive, to completely do away with all their other cups.  I know a lot of parents, who avoid plastics, give their little ones mason jars to drink from, but that would turn into a disaster at our house.  My kids can't seem to go ten feet without dropping their cups or sitting them down on something unstable like our white sofa.

I really love the Active Pink (above) and may get the adult version for myself if I like these bottles as much as I think I will.  My daughters chose the Solar Yellow and the Prevention Purple for themselves.

The sets we ordered come with both the sippy lids and the sport bottle caps, so they will grow with my girls.  Klean Kanteen has so many great colors and styles from which to choose. The ones pictured above are just a small sampling. The even do baby bottles. Plus, I really appreciated being able to purchase high quality, healthy, green products from a company that is truly devoted to doing what's best for their customers' health, their employees and suppliers, and our environment. 

FROM WWW.KLEANKANTEEN.COM HERE ARE THE OTHER FEATURES THAT HELPED ME DECIDE ON THESE PARTICULAR BOTTLES:

• Free of BPA, phthalates and other toxins
• 100% recyclable and eco-friendly
• Made of 18/8, food-grade stainless steel, no liner needed
• Doesn't retain or impart flavors
• Slim design fits most bottle/cup holders
• Rounded corners are easy to clean with no hard angles where dirt, germs or bacteria can stick
• Stainless steel threads
• Fits large ice cubes
• Includes one Avent™ spout and dome lid
• Cap & spouts are made of BPA-free polypropylene (pp#5)
• Dishwasher safe (colored bottles should be hand-washed)
• All parts can be boiled for sterilization
• Capacity: 12 fluid ounces (355 ml)
• Weight: 3.75 ounces (w/o cap)
• Size: 5” H (w/o cap) x 2.75” W
• Opening diameter: 1.75" (44 mm)

Are you using plastic sippy cups and bottles or greener, healthier alternatives? Are your kids' cups and bottles BPA and phthalate free? Are yours? Leave me a comment telling me what you're using and why.

Backwards is Best!

Riding rear-facing is safest! One of the most important jobs you have as a parent is keeping your child(ren) safe.  Automobile crashes are the number one cause of death for children under fourteen.  This makes car safety especially important. Parents often ask, "How soon can I turn my child to face forward?" The universally accepted response is to keep your child rear-facing until AT LEAST one year of age AND 20 pounds in weight.  This is the minimum. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics and other Child Passenger Safety organizations strongly recommend that you to keep your child rear-facing as long as possible, and that may mean up to 35 or 40 pounds for most convertible car seats.

• Rear-facing is safest for both adults and children, but especially for babies, who would face a greater risk of spinal cord injury in a front-facing carseat during a frontal crash.
  
• Rear-facing car seats spread frontal crash forces over the whole area of a child's back, head and neck; they also prevent the head from snapping relative to the body in a frontal crash.
  
• Rear-facing carseats may not be quite as effective in a rear end crash, but severe frontal and frontal offset crashes are far more frequent and far more severe than severe rear end crashes.
  
• Rear-facing carseats are NOT a safety risk just because a child's legs are bent at the knees or because they can touch/kick the vehicle seat.
  
• Rear-facing as long as possible is the recommendation of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and can reduce injuries and deaths.   

Sources: www.car-safety.org and www.healthychildren.org

Going for a Stroll . . .

Do you think she's on her way to the gym?

Healthy Baby Bums!

There's something so idyllic about cloth diapers hanging out to dry on a sunny day. It just seems so natural and pure. It almost makes me forget that those are the same cloth diapers that I have to squirt poop off of on a daily basis. I don't really love rinsing poop off of diapers. Then again, I don't love changing diapers at all, but since babies don't come potty trained, I guess I'm stuck doing it for now.

With a little more research, I learned that every single disposable diaper ever made is still in existence filling up our landfills and polluting our Earth. They don't biodegrade. They will still be here long after even our children's children. 

Right around this time, I got pregnant with baby number two and I realized that we would be spending double to diaper two babies. We were already spending about $70 a month on disposable diapers and wipes for one baby. The thought of spending $140 plus to diaper two babies was the kicker for me. 

I remembered the cloth diapers, pins, and plastic pants that my own mom used for my siblings, so I was pleasantly surprised to see just how far cloth diapers have come!  At first I was overwhelmed by all the cloth diapering options out there, but I was fortunate to meet a local mama and cloth diaper retailer. Christy with Gorgeous and Green helped me get started.  


Now, I'm proud to be a cloth-diapering mom!  I don't cloth diaper 100% of the time (Kudos to all those parents who do!!!), but every time I put a cloth diaper on one of my girls, I feel good knowing that it's one less disposable diaper I had to buy, one less diaper going in a landfill for eternity, and one less time that my baby was exposed to the toxins in disposable diapers.  Plus, babies look so adorable in cloth!