• Last updated 11/2/12 by Cynthia Mosher

With barbeque grills across the country barely cooled off from Father’s Day, I’m reflecting on the pre-release screening I attended last week of Janel Mirendah’s film The Other Side of the Glass — a birth film for and about fathers which has important implications for this idea of raising a generation of peacemakers. The U.S. mentality for every problem is to go to war: the war on poverty, the war on cancer, the war on drugs, the war on child abuse, the war on terror, begins with the experience of birth imprinted in our neural system. –Janel Mirenda,... read more

• Last updated 6/16/12 by Mothering Editorial

By Karen Plomp Web Exclusive You are nursing HOW many? Are you STILL nursing? Yes, I'm still nursing the baby-and my two year old, three year old, and four year old! I'm tandem nursing four siblings. It is just the way things worked out, because I had my babies close together, and I am letting them self-wean. Actually, it's not that big a deal, and not very different from tandem nursing just two. Nursing older kids isn't the same as nursing babies. They don't nurse as frequently, and they can wait a while if the location or time is not convenient for... read more

• Last updated 6/16/12 by Mothering Editorial

By Meredith BowersIssue 124 May/June 2004 I did not plan to breastfeed Isabel beyond a year, but, well, you know how it goes. She loves her “nursey,” and I love having a few calm minutes to snuggle with my otherwise frenetic toddler. The weaning of Isabel has become somewhat of a joke with close friends and family—mainly because I talk a lot about it. But I know that when Isabel stops nursing has much more to do with her timetable than with mine. Right now, she proudly tells me that babies nurse, and that she is still a baby. So I tolerate the occasional curiosity of... read more

• Last updated 6/6/12 by Keya Chatterjee

In the past few weeks much has been said and written about breastfeeding.  I totally agree with Peggy O’Mara’s take on this– that this exposure is a  sign that we are winning. From the Time Magazine cover to its SNL spoofs; from the image of women in uniform nursing their babes to Jessica Simpson’s comment that she finds it hard to watch her husband bottle feed– breastfeeding is being discussed by more people than ever.  And that can only be a good thing, because the more you shine a light on the act of breastfeeding, the smarter, healthier, more economical, and more... read more

• Last updated 11/2/12 by Melanie Mayo

Nearly 10,000 babies on 4 continents lent their bottoms for a world record-breaking event to raise awareness about reusable cloth diapers on April 21st.  Hundreds of hosts in 15 countries held events centered around cloth diapers on that Saturday. At exactly 9:30am Pacific Daylight Time, organizers gave the signal for parents to change their babies diapers.  Each site had at least two independent witnesses overseeing that Guinness World Record(TM) rules for qualifying and counting participants were followed.  Their signed statements and photographic evidence... read more

• Last updated 5/25/12 by Mothering Editorial

My Life As A Nursing Mom  By Kay Bolden Issue 119, July/August 2003 My son's first birthday loomed, and I braced myself for battle. Grandparents and aunts, in-laws and cousins, neighbors and friends-all descended upon us, all demanding to know when, when, WHEN was I finally going to stop breastfeeding this child? "He'll be spoiled," I was warned. "You know, the milk goes bad after a while." It didn't help that my son was not the sedate, quiet nurser my daughter had been. No, this child was born to lead the Olympic Breastfeeding Team to the gold. The sportscasters... read more

• Last updated 5/25/12 by Mothering Editorial

By Rebecca FountainIssue 118, May/June 2003 This evening I strolled into my local medical center with my bare breasts sauntering beside me. My son was cutting mushrooms atop an unsteady accessory to our dining suite when he slipped and fell into the arms of my partner, who was wielding a frying pan full of bolognaise. After several attempts to douse him under the shower and apply a cold pack to his welting face, our two year old showed no sign of faith in our knowledge of burn therapy. A healing maju and a brief stint of television tranquilizer later,... read more

• Last updated 5/28/12 by chaleyannscott

  Research shows extended breastfeeding has overwhelming benefits to mother and child. As an advocate of extended breastfeeding for the benefit of mothers and children, I was pretty miffed to read this article today  http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2146870/Breastfeed-year-old-Thats-just-selfish-wrong.html.  Dr Cannon’s views, of course, are nothing new but it got me thinking about how scary it is that our medical profession are so ill-informed and, therefore dangerous, when it comes to providing advice regarding extended breastfeeding. Everyone is entitled... read more

• Last updated 11/3/12 by Cynthia Mosher

It’s the everyday decisions that can be the most difficult when it comes to being an environmentally-friendly mom/climate change activist.   Here’s one that all moms face: Should I use disposable or cloth diapers?  I’m deep into research on this question and am finding some surprising things.    For starters, here’s the answer: Use neither. You’ll waste less and save money. And as I’ll explain later, you’ll even be saving forests around the world like the Amazon rain forest.  So what should I do if I don’t use cloth or disposable diapers?... read more

• Last updated 5/20/12 by Amy Paolinelli

Breastfeeding is our biological norm, and has sustained us as a species for thousands of years.  With that being the case, more often than not breastfeeding relationships develop beautifully, with little to no intervention necessary.  However, it does seem that we are experiencing problems related to breastfeeding that likely didn’t plague the generations of the past, while at the same time maintaining the assumption that breastfeeding is simple, and thus easily fixed when problems do arise. I’m an IBCLC in private practice and truly love what I do.  One of the biggest... read more