I've gotten several hits from searches about tattoos while nursing, and I've also had many people ask me personally if it is safe to be inked while breastfeeding, so I thought I would post some helpful links. I researched thoroughly before I decided to go ahead with it, just in case anyone reading was wondering about that. And yes, my artist knows I am breastfeeding. ;)

Ultimately it is a personal decision and I know both moms who waited until they were done nursing and also those, like me, who felt safe having it done with a nursling still at home. Hopefully this info will help anyone who still may be on the fence about it.

KellyMom: Tattoos

"There is no evidence that getting a tattoo will affect breastfeeding. There should be no harm to mom or baby from the dyes injected. If you get a tattoo, the biggest concern for anyone (not just nursing moms) is infection (hepatitis or HIV)-- so make sure the place you go has good references and is clean."

La Leche League FAQ on Tattoos and Breastfeeding

"Tattoos are created by injecting ink into the dermal (second and third) layer of the skin. Tattooists use a hand-held electric machine that is fitted with solid needles coated in the ink. The needles enter the skin hundreds of times a minute to a depth of up to a few millimeters. The ink that is used in tattoos in the United States is subject to FDA regulation as cosmetics, but none are approved for injection under the skin. However, the ink molecules are too large to pass into breastmilk.

General information about tattooing also applies to breastfeeding women. Local and systemic infections are the most prevalent risks of tattooing. Local infections can occur when the recommended aftercare regimen is not followed. Aftercare includes keeping the tattoo clean with mild soap and water, not picking at the scabs and keeping the tattoo out of the sun. Tylenol is often prescribed for the pain, if needed. Systemic infections occur when universal precautions are not followed by the tattoo artist and can include such diseases as hepatitis, tetanus and HIV.

It is very important to screen the tattooist and the shop carefully, checking with the local health department for local laws and regulations. Professional tattooists will follow universal precautions such as sterilization of the tattoo machine using an autoclave, single-use inks, ink cups, gloves and needles, bagging of equipment to avoid cross contamination, and thorough hand washing with disinfectant soap. Most tattooists will not knowingly tattoo a pregnant or breastfeeding mother. It is suggested that mothers wait at least until the child's first birthday to give their bodies a chance to recover completely from childbirth before getting a tattoo."

crying over spilled milk, originally uploaded by sam&bex.

Today I was finally strong enough to rid the freezer of 58 ounces of liquid gold. With the average freezer shelf life (not a deep freeze) for breastmilk being 2-3 months, this stuff from March and April was not even usable. Beckett refused the bottle until he was almost six months old, so my stash of milk I had pumped in the first six weeks of oversupply just sat.

But there's an attachment that only another nursing mother can understand and I could never bring myself to throw it out until now. I needed the shelf space for the next stage of food, and in essence, stage of life. Next on the list: bury the placenta.

Don't people blog on the weekends? I kept thinking something was wrong with Bloglines because all my feeds sat dormant for hours and hours and hours.

What? What's that? You all have lives on the weekend and don't sit around waiting for people to update blogs? Oh. Okay.

Not like I have room to talk. I didn't post anything yesterday, breaking my daily updating streak. If I had, all it would have said was I NOW UNDERSTAND WHY SOME SPECIES EAT THEIR YOUNG. Because sleep around here? It is crap again. Complete and total crap. We were doing so well by the middle of last week and I naively thought that the sleep demons were gone. But in the past two days, he has totally regressed. He starts crying if I even take him near the crib. And if I lay him in it? Alert the press because it is a BIG DEAL and he screams and screams and refuses to nurse.

And of course now I feel like a total failure because apparently I have traumatized my baby so much that he is terrified of his crib. Mother of the Year right here.

I am out of ideas. Sawyer was never like this. We'd put him in his crib and not hear a peep out of him til morning. He loved sleep and still does most of the time. Which of course, begs the most logical question: what did we do differently with Sawyer? Big difference: Sawyer was formula fed and Beckett is breastfed. I hate to jump right to the conclusion that being breastfed is the reason he has such horrible sleep habits, but at this point I have nothing else to go on.

This breaks my heart because I love breastfeeding, I believe it's the best thing for him, and it kills me to think that he might sleep better if he was on formula. No, I won't wean him, and never would for such a selfish reason. Because really, the person suffering most from his sleep issue is me, not him. So I'll just have to suck it up. But if a year rolls around and his sleep isn't any better? You can bet the weaning process will be starting. I'm crunchy but I'm no Mother Theresa. I do not intend to endure two or more years of a child who still nurses ten times a night. I draw the line somewhere.

When I started solids last week, my main reason for it was that I had hopes it would help him sleep better. Well, I couldn't tell you if it does or not because apparently my kid is part of a vast minority who wants nothing to do with anything that doesn't come from a boob. We've tried bananas, avocados, oatmeal and nectarines. He ate the bananas the first two times, but ever since then, all have been met with a sour face and and instant deposit down his bib.

I spent $50 on fruits and veggies and several hours preparing them and freezing them last night and this morning, and now I have doubts that he will even eat any of it. And seriously? Baking and pureeing fruit is a job. The skins of the peaches and nectarines did not "pucker and slip off" like several websites would have me believe. I had to take a knife to them and scrape the skins off little by little, with Beckett tugging at my pant leg all the while because he does not occupy himself for more than 10 minutes at a time. So I'm sad to say it, but this will probably be the last time I make his food for awhile.

Now that I feel totally inadequate as a mom having laid all that out there, I should go relax some while I can. I hear him stirring already and he's only been asleep twenty minutes. I never had the intention of using this blog as an outlet for frustrations, because I feel that negative attitudes don't really solve anything. But sometimes, a girl's gotta vent.

I guess I could at least end the post on a good note. Here's Beckett in his Halloween costume. I could tick off all the reasons it sucks and I paid way too much for it, but I don't suppose that would be very positive. So I'll just post the picture.

I got more pictures back from Amanda, who so kindly gave me permission to post them here. She got some great ones! There are tons more at Flickr. I also created a group for all breastfeeding protest pictures, past and present. If you have some to share, I would love for you to add them. Here is the group.

I sent out a revised press release with a couple pictures attached to all the media outlets last night. I sent it to about 30 different email addresses, so I'm hoping we have a chance of at least one picking it up. Although I feel stupid because I accidentally Cc'd them instead of Bcc, so they'll be able to see everyone I sent it to. Oops.

Some good blog coverage:

• Womens Health News
• International Breastfeeding Symbol
• Breastfeeding 1-2-3

Thanks to my wonderfully amazing husband, I was able to snatch the news-quality version from their website and I now have that on Youtube! It's posted in the entry below.

My pictures were also featured on Breastfeeding 1-2-3. Thanks so much for the plug, Angela! Congratulations to all the participants nationwide for making this such a huge success.

I will get back to my regularly scheduled programming of spit-up and dirty diapers soon. For now though, I'm basking in the glory of taking a step to change history today.

Well, not quite. But this is my first time ever EVER on the news so forgive me for being a little overzealous. :P

The segment was short and sweet, only about 30 seconds. It's currently the top video on their website at wthr.com. No article yet, but maybe they will still post one. We need to send out revised press releases with pictures to all the media again, and maybe we'll still get more stories in print.

Do I look nervous? I was nervous. Very nervous. The reporter pulled up and I kept saying "Oh my gosh" over and over. I probably sounded like a loon. I did bomb one question -- I started to answer and then just said "uhhhhh, that's all I have for that one!" I wish they had shown some of my other comments. But oh well, I'm happy that we even got coverage at all!

I am back! I am tired, but so, so proud. We had 23 total attendees and I was SHOCKED when a Channel 13 reporter pulled up. I did an interview and it should be on the 6 o'clock news tonight. I'll post a link when I have it. He came shortly after we got there so he didn't get a shot of the full crowd, which is kind of a bummer. But I wasn't expecting any coverage at all, so I'll take what we can get!

We had a few people stop to voice their support, and also some asking why we were there. We were able to give them our hand-outs and they seemed supportive. After the event we took a paper that we had all signed in to the manager, to thank them for being supportive of our cause. So all in all, a huge success!

Thank you so much to all of you who came out. It really meant so much to me to have you all there to back this cause!

Here are a few pictures. The rest are on my Flickr, and another mama also got some with her camera so I'm waiting on those.

I was getting increasingly nervous tonight about how things would go down tomorrow, worrying about how Applebee's respond to us and whether or not I would lose my mind and start talking in circles. So I decided to just go up there and talk to a manager tonight to get it over with. I should make it known that I absolutely LOATHE public speaking, giving speeches, and just speaking to new people in general. I avoided speech class in high school like a frog avoids a truck tire. So I was NOT looking forward to talking to this dude.

I sat in car and practiced a few times out loud, and almost put the car in gear and drove away. But I made myself get out of the car, go inside and ask for a manager. A big, burly guy, maybe early thirties, came over. I introduced myself and like I had hoped and prayed, the words just flowed out and I knew exactly what to say. I gave him our press kit and confirmed a location for us to assemble. He was very positive and seemed to support what we are doing. I was so excited when the conversation was over that I totally forgot I had wanted to order dinner.

On the way out to the car, I actually squealed. Yes, complete with a little leap into the air and some fist-pumping action.

The signs are made and everything else is ready to go. Time to get hippy-fied.

After over an hour on the phone being tossed across the Marion County circuit board and talking to five different people, I finally got in contact with the Office of Compliance and I am 99% sure we don't need a permit for tomorrow! The woman I spoke with said she didn't think so, but transferred me to her supervisor, who did not answer. I left a message so hopefully she will call me back with a definitive answer.

Still no word from the media, which is slightly a bummer. Although it does help to make me less nervous to think that I might not have to be on camera. The point of this whole thing is to spread awareness though, so media attention would be nice!

After DH gets home tonight I'll go pick up some balloons and poster board to make signs. We have secured a large banquet table so we can decorate it nicely and draw lots more attention to ourselves. Tonight I'll paint up signs with such slogans as "Babies love eatin' good in the neighborhood!" and "Bathrooms Are For Diapers, Not Dinner!" I plan to take lots of pictures and I'll post them all here when I get home.

Other than all that excitement, we've been busy around here. I took the boys across the street to the park yesterday and there was another mom there with her little boy. We chatted for close to an hour and I found out she only lives a couple blocks from us. She invited me to start walking with her in the mornings, and also to hang out with the kids, maybe go to Gymboree or the museum. I teased DH that I had gotten a hot chick's number. He was jealous.

So last night, we drove up to Castleton to get The Double Stroller so I can start going on walks (as much as I'd love to be super crunchy and sling Bex on my back, I just have to face it that I am not in shape and would be huffing and puffing after two blocks if I did that). I use capitals because it is THE stroller that I chose after days of searching online, and this store 45 miles away was the only place I could get it in stock. Because as all you moms know, the color of the stroller is of utmost importance. We needed Milan.

We picked it up and drove back home in record time, and DH took it out of the box to put it together for me right away. Because I am impatient. I danced around him like a dachshund with ADD. As he started pulling it out, tiny shards of red plastic littered the carpet. Broken. Of course.

I called the store we had bought it from and put emphasis on the fact that we drove an hour and a half round trip and couldn't really just bring it back by. They were unimpressed and informed me they were closing soon for the day and we could bring it back another day. Nice. So I'll just call Graco and request a replacement part. Luckily it was just a piece of the brake that was broken so it doesn't inhibit function too much.

I took pictures at the park yesterday. Bex was content to just sit in the stroller and be adorable as I chase Sam all over the block trying to keep him from killing himself. I laugh at the idea of what the other mom must have been thinking as I'd interrupt our conversation to race after Sam, flip flops flying, to rescue him from hurling himself into the street or off the top of the playground. I don't need a gym membership -- I have a live treadmill.

Look at those chompers!


Squinty in the sun.


My baby looks OLD. *sniff*


His mission is to make the weirdest possible face when I bug him with the camera.


Hollering "NO MOMMY!" at me when I told him to smile.


Building "volcanoes" with the mulch.


He scares the crap out of me on this thing. The only time he has ever fallen is when I reached him and caught him with about a millisecond to spare.

The years of DH accusing me of being a dirty hippy (said very lovingly of course) are coming to fruition this Saturday. I stepped up and volunteered to be the organizer for a "Nurse-Out" at our local Applebee's as part of the nationwide protest.

Gulp. I have never done anything like this, ever. I am incredibly nervous. We have contacted all the local media but have not heard back from them yet. I jump every time the phone rings, thinking it's a reporter calling for an interview. I'm so scared I would bomb it but hopefully the words will just flow when the time comes. Tomorrow I need to call the county commissioner and make sure we don't need a permit. I will also call the media outlets again and spend the day printing out signs and other handouts.

Did I mention I am nervous? SO NERVOUS. So please, if you are in the Indy area, come help support the cause! We need as many people as we can get and I think I will find strength in numbers, so the more people, the better. Here's the info I sent out to all my local groups.

WHO: Breastfeeding Supporters (not just nursing moms!)
WHERE: Outside the Applebee's restaurant at 10680 Enterprise Drive, Camby IN
WHEN: Saturday, September 8, 2007 11-1pm

This is a national event in response to the treatment of a nursing mother and baby at an Applebee's in Kentucky. Unfortunately, the manager at that location did not follow Kentucky's law, which states that "no person shall interfere with a woman breastfeeding her child". Please read the press release below for the full story.

This is not aimed at this particular Applebee's location. We are participating in this demonstration to send a message to Applebee's Corporate that we expect them (and all other places of business) to obey the law and not interfere with a mother breastfeeding her child by demanding that she cover up or asking her to move. We also want to raise public awareness of Indiana's own laws regarding breastfeeding in public.

You do not have to be a nursing mother to attend! Anyone is welcome.

Please feel free to forward this email. Spread the word to anyone you know who would like to show up and support this cause. Mothers, fathers, grandparents, friends, anyone and everyone is welcome!

If you have any questions please contact:
Alicia ( proxxygirl@gmail.com) or Amanda (itsawarinthere@yahoo.com)

PUBLIC PROTESTS APPLEBEE'S RESTAURANTS NATIONWIDE
Breastfeeding supporters will gather on Saturday, September 8, 2007 at Applebee's Restaurants across the country to protest the treatment of Brooke Ryan and her 7 month old child.

On June 14th, while Ms. Ryan was breastfeeding her baby discreetly in a corner booth during an anniversary dinner with her family, an Applebee's Manager asked her to cover her baby with a blanket. Ms. Ryan responded by citing the Kentucky law that states that "no person shall interfere with a woman breastfeeding her child". Ms. Ryan then produced a copy of the statute that she had received from the Kentucky Health Department, an organization that encourages women to keep a copy with them for situations such as the one she was experiencing. The manager, after reviewing a copy of the statute continued to insist that she had to "cover the baby with a blanket" if she wanted to breastfeed there, and that nursing her child was "indecent". The family left the restaurant before being served their meal, Ms. Ryan and baby in tears.

Shortly following the incident, Ms. Ryan retained the services of a lawyer who contacted Thomas and King, the company that owns and operates the Lexington Applebee's location. Nearly 2 months later, the company responded with a letter stating "we are considering keeping blankets in the restaurants for use by breastfeeding mothers that may not have them readily available," with the intent that mothers will be forced to put them over their babies.

Breastfeeding supporters have decided to conduct a public protest at the store location, as well as locations nationwide. It will occur on Saturday, September 8, 2007, at noon. When Senator Tom Buford, (Rep., KY), who spearheaded the passage of the Kentucky public breastfeeding law was told of the planned protest at the store in Lexington, KY, he said, "Let me know the date and I will come by and support you", and also made a suggestion of an appropriate sign for the event: "small children are not allowed to eat in this restaurant."

Even though there is a patchwork of strong and weak state laws aimed at protecting a woman's right to nurse her baby, the mistreatment Ms. Ryan encountered is far too common. Most women who nurse their babies will at some time be forced to feel the shameful sting of discrimination. Usually this burden is carried by a woman in secrecy, due to fear of further anguish to her family. Some women choose to bring their stories to the public in an effort to educate and bring about a positive change. Earlier this year, a Pennsylvania woman was threatened with arrest if she did not stop breastfeeding her child at her local mall. Last November, a mother in Vermont was kicked off of a Delta flight for not covering up while breastfeeding her child. The Delta incident resulted in over 800 participants protesting the discrimination by conducting "nurse-ins" at Delta counters in over 40 cities across the US.

"Because most public breastfeeding laws do not provide a clear remedy for women who are harassed or discriminated against," said Salem Hamilton, Executive Director of Birth Without Boundaries, International, "we are asking for breastfeeding supporters across the country to encourage their legislators to add enforcement provisions to their state's laws that would provide the protection women and babies need".

On Friday, August 31, 2007, the official corporate response as given by Mr. Alex Bressette, Applebee's corporate office's International Guest Relations Manager, is as follows: "Applebee's strives to provide a comfortable and enjoyable environment for all our guests. Our policies regarding breastfeeding are consistent with the laws of the states in which we operate."

In the spirit of the existing diversity and inclusion policy published by Applebee's Restaurants, Birth Without Boundaries, Intl. is asking the corporation to adopt and implement an official breastfeeding friendly policy.

As a breastfeeding mother, Ms. Ryan is doing the best for her child by giving him the optimum nutrition possible. According to UNICEF, if infants worldwide were fed only mother's milk for their first six months, at least 1.3 million lives a year would be saved.

The September 8, 2007 event is sponsored by Birth Without Boundaries, International; a Pennsylvania based non profit organization committed to eliminating restrictions placed on birthing mothers and their babies.

I can now add 'walking down the street' to the list of places I have breastfed in public.

DH and I took the boys on a walk while dinner was cooking, and about halfway through Bex decided he had to eat OMG RIGHT NOW! or he would spontaneously combust. We were still about ten minutes from the house, so rather than carry him screeching the whole way, up came the shirt. It would have been nice to have a sling to support his 22 pounds, but I actually did pretty awesome without one. None of the dozen or so people out in their yards even seemed to notice.

And. And! He nursed to sleep tonight. He hasn't done that in a looooong time. DH and I might actually get to bed before midnight!

ETA: I should just not mention sleep on here any more. He already woke up.

...to bite your tongue to keep from yelling at one child while you're nursing the other? Very, very hard. Because if I utter a word while Bex is eating, he'll pop off and try to get all up in my business, causing his face to be drenched in a spray of breastmilk.

So rather than giving him (and myself) a boob shower, I watched silently as Sam sat in his high chair balling up huge chunks of a burrito-sized tortilla and stuffed them into his mouth, moistened them up a bit, and spit them back out in order to finger-paint his tray in tortilla mush. Because one mess is enough to clean up at a time, thank you very much.

Oh, but you can bet I was shooting my angry eyes at him the whole time. I GAVE HIM ANGRY EYES REAL GOOD!

Now that Bex is close to being mobile and therefore a prime candidate for becoming Toy Snatcher, we have been working on sharing. Currently, Sam does not share well. He is two, after all. But! He is getting better.

This morning he was building with blocks so I added the baby into the mix to see what he would do. Bex grabbed a block right away and started marking his territory by way of drool, and Sam quickly removed it from his hands.

"Remember, we need to share! Can you pick a block to give to Bex?"

He thought for a minute, but complied. The purple blocks were apparently Off Limits, but he relinquished two yellow blocks and one green block without a fight.

"Here, have yellow. Here! Have green!"

So, mission accomplished for today. I have a friend with a 4-year-old who is an absolutely horrid sharer. After seeing him, I've become determined to keep my child from becoming That Kid. You know the kind -- everything is His, He is the center of the universe, the other children are merely minions in His world. (He even will say, "This is MY world!" Charming, right?) Which is to be expected at the age of two, but four is pushing it in my opinion. Anyway! I digress.

I sat for awhile and just watched the two of them interacting. If you think watching your child play and learn by himself is amazing, try seeing your baby admire his older brother. There is no greater entity in his eyes than his brother. His face lights up the moment he sees him, and he could watch Sam dance and play for hours. He giggles at every word he speaks and is just mesmerized. I love watching them.

Speaking of Bex, he did much better in the sleep department last night. Only woke once at 4am, nursed, and was put back into his crib awake and fell asleep on his own with no tears. Granted, this was after a dose of Motrin at 11pm following two hours of failed sleep attempts, but hey! I'll take what I can get. He's napping again already so he's making up for it.

I'm beginning to think that it bothers him when I drink straight milk. I had cereal with milk yesterday morning for the first time in several days, and the result was a fight at bedtime. I've noticed the same thing when I've had cereal in the past, so I'm seeing a pattern. I'm cutting it out for a few days again so we'll see how he does. I'll mourn the loss of one of my main food groups (cereal is appropriate for all meals, after all!) but at least he doesn't seem bothered when I have cheese or yogurt or ice cream, so I can make the sacrifice.

Oh, I forgot to mention how last night's bath was cut short by the baby deciding it would be fun to poop in the tub. I take a bath with both boys together, so you do the math. And if you're familiar with breastmilk poo, you know that it's not a solid turd. Ohhhh no. It's a swirling, slimy mess. The bath tub needed bleached anyway so I suppose he was just making sure we did it sooner rather than later. Those of you without children, take note -- your child might poop in the tub with you and you should be okay with that prospect before having kids! I'll save the tales of fishing in the washing machine for grape skin remnants and corn after a cloth diaper load for another day. Wouldn't want to completely scare anyone off just yet.