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Thursday, September 23, 2010

Hmmm

I was reminded today of one of the reasons I am glad I breastfeed - a recall by formula maker Similac of almost 5 million cans of baby formula. The recall was prompted by findings of beetle and/or larvae in their Michigan plant.

The first thought that I had was of all the parents and babies affected. How would they get reimbursed? Can they return the formula to the store they bought it at? What a pain to change brands, especially if the Similac formula was a special kind.

As I told my husband via the phone of the recall, I joked with him that the recall just meant that more beetles than the allowed amount was found. I joked, more than likely because the thought of feeding an infant

Wordless Wednesday..

Monday, September 20, 2010

Airplanes, babywearing, boobies, oh my....

I just read a tweet linking a story of a Mom who was recently harassed about wearing her baby in a carrier while on a airplane.

As I read her tale, it brought back memories of a similar situation that happened to me with my oldest daughter four years ago. We were on a flight from Portland to Chicago to attend the wedding of my oldest sister. My babe was just a little thing, all of three months old at the time. I had her in a pouch sling and was focused on making her comfortable (Read:quiet) so as not to disturb the other passengers. She was very content in her sling and I was holding off on nursing her until takeoff, so as to avoid any discomfort in her tiny ears.

I was approached by one of the flight attendants, who demanded that I take my daughter out of the sling, so that "in case of an accident she would be protected" in my arms.My first thought was what?...that doesn't seem very logical. If she was out of the sling, her safety would depend on me holding her. My mind raced thinking of possible scenarios. What if I was jolted and instinctively tried to grab for something to hold?  I told the attendant that I didn't think it was safer. She then insisted that I needed to take her out anyway so that she would be facing forward. Before I had a chance to respond, she walked away to help another passenger.

I was at a loss of what to do. Should I follow my gut instinct or listen to the flight attendant? The woman sitting next to me (perfect stranger), leaned over and whispered "just ignore her, do what you think is right". So I did. I kept my babe in the pouch sling and just made a point to not look at the flight attendant. On our return flight home, I did the same thing I did on the first flight. Not a single flight attendant said anything to me in regards to my babe being in her sling.

That's where my story is different from Jen Starks. In her situation, she was harassed further by a Delta flight attendant, who called the police on Jen. Yes, I am serious. Read her story here.

For the record, this is from Delta's website in regards to their official policy on Infant & Child Seating;
"An adult (12 years or older) may hold an infant or place the infant in a FAA-approved child restraint during take-off and landing." That's it. Nothing stating what position the child must be held in or which direction the child must face.

What do you think? Was the flight attendant in the right? Should all children be forced to have their own seat and in turn, plane ticket?

Thursday, September 16, 2010

MomGyver

So today's fun included a trip to Target. Like normal, we visited the bathroom at the beginning of our trip -

It used to be one my favorite places, but not so much anymore.

When I s feeling overwhelmed when running errands with my children and then one day I realized I was trying too hard. I was simply putting too much on our plate. One or two stops for my "needs" followed by a "kid stop" is what I usually do. For example we might go to Costco to shop, get gas, and then go play/eat snack at a park. I had forgotten the crucial ingredient - addressing their needs also.

Another important step is visiting the bathroom when we enter a store. Man, it can be very taxing in your patience when you just need "one more thing" and your child pipes up with a request to go to the bathroom. Now.

I