Carnival--Of Babes and Boobs Archives

The Winner of the Medela Freestyle Pump

June 23, 2008

AND A FURTHER UPDATE: To see a comment from Hope, the pump winner, read below. She lives in Malaysia! There are pumping moms around the world!

Hi Andi! Thank you for giving me the chance to participate and win the Medela Freestyle. I was and still am really excited upon hearing the good news. It's great to know people at Mamaknowsbreast and Medela care about women and their needs as they venture into motherhood. As a reader from Malaysia, I believe your quest in spreading knowledge on the importance of breastfeeding is truly inspiring! I'm sure you've touched the hearts of women all around the world. Keep up the great work! Thank you and God bless! :)

UPDATED: Thank you to everyone who left a comment for a chance to win a Medela Freestyle Pump. I loved reading what you had to say! There really is no shortage to pumping stories! And now...drum roll... the winner is Hope. Congratulations! Here's her comment:

I'm due this coming October and I've been reading up on how to provide the best for my baby. My mom exclusively breastfed my brothers and sisters and I, and I'd love to do the same for my baby. The only difference is that my mom didn't have to go to work, whereas I do. So, I've been reading up on breast pumps and I've found that Medela is the best in the market! But it's quite pricey and I don't know if I can afford it. That's why I was ecstatic when I found this contest. It's like a blessing in disguise. A lot of great information and the chance to win a Medela Freestyle Breastpump. It's the most practical solution because it's lightweight and compact, yet has everything I would need to include breast pumping in my daily schedule. I've also been reading on bpa-free bottles and to know Medela has taken this into account just gives me more confidence in the name itself. I really hope to win so that I can always provide the best for my baby. PS: During our last checkup, we found out our baby's a boy! :)
Posted by: Hope | June 29, 2008 08:55 PM

BACK TO THE ORIGINAL POST:

Ok, all you pumping mamas...here it is. The latest and greatest pump from our friends at Medela. The Freestyle is Medela's first hands-free, double-electric pump. Just attach it to your bra and get back to your emailing and phone calls. It's really small, light-weight and best of all, the Medela bottles are BPA free.

Medela is giving away this pump. So if you'd like a chance to win, leave a comment answering this question: What is your best pumping story? And if you haven't had a baby yet, why do you need this pump? (The deadline to enter is July 1, 2008).

This post is part of our monthly breastfeeding carnival. To read the other entries about pumping, go here:

* The Motherwear Breastfeeding blog has tips for introducing a bottle to a breastfed baby.
* Raising Baby Bee writes about pumping at work.
* Breastfeeding Mums has some pumping tips.
* Breastfeeding 1-2-3 writes about exclusively pumping for a baby with a cleft palate.
* Hobo Mama writes about donating milk for an adopted baby.
* Adventures of a Breastfeeding Mother shares her pumping tips.
* Mike and Toni's writes about how a pumping experience turned into a business idea-- hands free pumping supports.

Father's Day Blogging Carnival

May 30, 2007

Here we are again, planning our next blog carnival. Since Father's Day is right around the corner, The Booby Brigade has decided to devote the carnival to Dads. So calling all bloggers, moms and dads, send us your submissions.

Here are our guidelines:

Submissions are due, by email, on June 5th.
Entries should be on the very general topic of "Dads"...or as The Bear says, "Da Da."
Entries do not have to be about breastfeeding. But they should be well-written-- grammar counts!
If you're accepted (we vote), you have to link to the other carnival contributors.
The Carnival will be on June 12th.

As for me, I'm going to have my husband write my post. Hey Dada...

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Breastfeeding Advice-- Join The March Breast Feeding Carnival

February 21, 2007

What's the worst piece of breast feeding advice you've ever heard? What's the best?

Tell me your stories. And, if you run a blog of your own, consider submitting an entry for our next Carnival. Remember, this is the joint post that The Booby Brigade does on a breastfeeding theme. So calling all bloggers, think about the best and worst breastfeeding advice you've ever encountered and send us your submissions.

The Rules of the Game:

Submissions are due, by email, on February 26th.
Entries should be on the topic "Good Advice/Bad Advice."
Entries should be well-written-- grammar counts!
If you're accepted (we vote), you have to link to the other members of the Booby Brigade as part of your post: Breastfeeding123, The Lactivist, The Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog and The BreastfeedingMums Blog.
The Carnival will be on March 12th.

Now...I'm going to take my own advice...and crawl into bed. Hmmm...unless there's something compelling on our TIVO.

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Breastfeeding Bloggers' Carnival-- Baby Love

February 12, 2007

In honor of Valentines Day, the breastfeeding bloggers and I have devoted February's Carnival to the theme "Baby Love."

Here's what we have to say:

Angela of Breastfeeding 123 has tips for welcoming a new baby into the family.
Sinead of Breastfeeding Mums writes about falling in love with her husband as a teenager, and then with each of her three babies.
Jennifer of The Lactivist talks about the crazy things baby love make you do.
Tanya of The Motherwear Blog talks about how breastfeeding helped her deal with the psychological trauma of a difficult birth.
As for me, I have a review of the new book "Babyproofing Your Marriage." Click here to read my review.

We also have some guest bloggers:
Karen at Cairo Mama writes about falling in love with her newborn.
Melissa at Booby Juice writes about the happiest day (make that days) of her life.
Colleen at My Baby and More writes about maternal longings.

Now, go forth and eat some chocolate. Happy Valentine's Day everyone.

Breast Feeding Bloggers' Carnival For February

January 10, 2007

Here we are again, planning our next blog carnival. Since you'll aready find Valentine's Day candy in the stores, The Booby Brigade has picked the theme "Baby Love" for February. So calling all bloggers, think about what that phrase means to you and send us your submissions.

Here are our guidelines:

Submissions are due, by email, on January 26th.
Entries should be on the topic "Baby Love."
Entries do not have to be about breastfeeding. But they should be well-written-- grammar counts!
If you're accepted (we vote), you have to link to the other members of the Booby Brigade as part of your post: Breastfeeding123, The Lactivist, The Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog and The BreastfeedingMums Blog.
The Carnival will be on February 12th.

As for me, I'm going to go feed my chocolate craving with a bag of Hershey's Kisses wrapped in silver and red foil.

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New Year's Resolutions-- Breast Feeding Bloggers' Carnival

January 01, 2007

Greetings 2007! Did you make any resolutions for the New Year? My fellow breast feeding bloggers came up with some of their own. Tanya of The Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog writes about ways we can all support breastfeeding moms. Jennifer of The Lactivist has three plans: drinking more water, volunteering and not over-extending herself with too many committments. Sinead of BreastfeedingMums Blog wants to make some big changes around her house, including planning more family time. And Angela of Breastfeeding123 takes on what may be one of the most popular resolutions...getting some exercise. As for our guest bloggers... Natural Mom's Talk Radio wants to improve the tone of her voice, and Momma's Angel has big plans for her daughter's second year.

So what do I have in mind? I'm resolving to get organized. Yes, it will likely prove futile. But at least I can give it a try. Here's my post, first put up a couple of days ago....

Home, Sweet, Home. Sometimes, it's messy. Somtimes it's clean.

If, for instance, you showed up unannounced at 4:00 p.m., here's what you would find in our apartment. A pile of laundry, cleaned, but unfolded. A hurricane of toys in The Bortski's bedroom. A tangle of strollers, coats and shoes in the hallway. A "fort" constructed out of blankets, draped over the sofa and coffee table. A semi-circle of pillows around The Bear and his toys, just in case he topples over while playing. A fine layer of crumbs in the kitchen.

On the other hand, if you stopped by about four hours later, you would find the toys stuffed into bins. The living room returned to a semblance of sophistication. The dishwasher and washing machine humming in harmony. Shoes in the shoe rack. Newspapers and magazines neatly stacked. Strollers all in a row.

It's an ongoing battle, this fight against the natural chaos of daily life. It's kind of like trying to prevent the incoming tide from destroying a sandcastle. I know it's futile. And yet, I persist.

I find disorganization distracting. Clutter makes me cranky. Before I sit down to write, I have to spend at least 15 minutes loading and unloading the dishwasher, washing the high chair tray and clearing the path to my desk.
Each day I face-off against rogue sneakers, two overflowing Diaper Dekors, and a migrating Aeron chair.

So I find myself at odds with the "anti- anticlutter" movement described recently in The New York Times article, Saying Yes To Mess.

An anti-anticlutter movement is afoot, one that says yes to mess and urges you to embrace your disorder. Studies are piling up that show that messy desks are the vivid signatures of people with creative, limber minds (who reap higher salaries than those with neat “office landscapes”) and that messy closet owners are probably better parents and nicer and cooler than their tidier counterparts. It’s a movement that confirms what you have known, deep down, all along: really neat people are not avatars of the good life; they are humorless and inflexible prigs, and have way too much time on their hands.

For the record, I'm not one of those "really neat people," and that's why my New Year's resolution is to get organized and de-clutter. And it appears I'm not alone. Getting organized is a pretty common New Year's resolution. In fact, according to The New York Times article, The National Association of Professional Organizers says January is Get Organized Month.

Here's my plan. Not only will I continue to beat back the daily mess in our apartment, I'm actually going to take care of the other messes, the ones you can't see. The ones I never let anyone see because I can hide them behind a door, under a bed or in a drawer.

Here are my top ten missions:
1. Organize my sock drawer. Throw out pre-pregnancy bras that don't fit.

2. Clean my purse. Throw out old lipsticks, ancient receipts, empty Purell bottle and crumpled nursing pads.

3. Donate unused kids' toys and clothes to Baby Buggy.

4. Organize the stack of research papers for my book, "Mama Knows Breast" (Quirk Books 2007). Prevent future pile-up of papers by following the OHIO principle-- "only handle it once."

5. Put stack of photographs in an album.

6. Edit together two years worth of family videos. Step one, buy new computer. Step two, learn video editing software.

7. Organize kitchen junk drawer. In other words, move the matches and batteries so The Bortski can't reach them.

8. Collect stray change and take it to the Coinstar at the supermarket. Donate said change. Bring The Bortski so he can see how the machine works.

9. Figure out a way to curb the sprawl of keys, cell phones, iPod and Blackberry.

10. Do SOMETHING, in fact, DO ANYTHING, about the coat closet.

Now, in the interest of full disclosure, I have to admit that my husband pitches in. He's great with trash, recycling, folding laundry and putting things on the top shelf of a closet. I also have a cleaning lady who does the real dirty work once a week.

So why am I setting my sights higher than keeping after the daily mess? Perhaps because I pine for the perfection you find in magazines like Real Simple. I yearn for a Zen like calm even when I open closet doors. I don't want to have to literally shut out the mess.

But is this really possible? In all honesty, I'm terrible at keeping resolutions. I always seem to be able to stick to my plan for a month or two. But then, things start to slide. Stuff happens to get in the way. There's a deadline for work. Someone gets sick. I "mess up" and we're back to square one.

So perhaps, the so called "anti-anticlutter" people don't have this so wrong after all. What's so bad about a little mess? I'm busy! Maybe I'll get my sock drawer organized once, but I'd rather "play trains" than match mismatched socks. Maybe I'll clean my purse tonight, but I'll always be too rushed to do anything more than shove a receipt in my bag and push the stroller out of the store before the screaming escalates. Maybe I'll file my papers this month, but I'd rather sit on the sofa with my husband than take care of this each night.

In fact, if I let some of the daily mess slide, I'd be free work on some other resolutions. I could go to bed at 10:30. Exercise at least three times a week. Start my next book. Have a weekly "date night" with my husband and read more books to The Bortski and Bear.

You know, maybe I should have a new mantra for 2007. "Mess, Sweet, Mess."

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Join Our Breast Feeding Carnival

December 10, 2006

It's that time of month again...no, not that time...when The Booby Brigade is starting to think about our blogging carnival. Remember, once a month, four other bloggers and I are banding together to bring you our thoughts on a given topic or idea. For January, we're writing our New Year's Resolutions. And once again, we're calling on other bloggers to join in.

We now have a couple of carnivals under our belt. In Home for The Holidays, I wrote a parody of the poem "'Twas The Night Before Christmas." And in Gifts For the Breastfeeding Mother, I wrote and ode to my DVR. So now that we're getting the hang of this, we've got a few guidelines:

Submissions are due, by email, on December 23rd.
Entries should be on the topic "My Parenting Resolutions for 2007."
Entries do not have to be about breastfeeding. But they should be well-written-- grammar counts!
If you're accepted (we vote), you have to link to the other members of the Booby Brigade as part of your post: Breastfeeding123, The Lactivist, The Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog and The BreastfeedingMums Blog.
The Carnival will be on January 1st.

And by the way, I still haven't had "that time of the month" yet since I'm breastfeeding. Add that to the list of reasons to breast feed!

TO KEEP ABREAST (pun intended) OF THE LATEST POSTS ON "MAMA KNOWS BREAST," SUBSCRIBE TO THE EMAIL LIST.

Gifts for The Breastfeeding Mother

December 03, 2006

Welcome to the second Breastfeeding Carnival. For those of you just tuning in, once a month four other bloggers and I join together to post on a specific theme. Last month, in time for Thanksgiving, we did Home for the Holidays. This time, we bring you Gifts for the Breastfeeding Mother.

Jennifer at The Lactivist has a list of some goodies we all may want.
Angela at Breastfeeding123 has tips for buying cost-effective gifts.
Tanya at The Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog has a lactation consultant's take on all of this.
Sinead at BreastfeedingMums Blog has her personal wish list; at the top is a full night's sleep!
We also have some thoughts from two visiting bloggers: I Don't Know and Momma's Angel.
As for yours truly, I've composed an ode to my digital video recorder. So read on...

I Want My DVR

I want my, I want my, I want my D-V-R...
That is my anthem for the breast feeding mom. For the holidays, there is nothing a breast feeding mom (or any new mom, for that matter) needs more than a Digital Video Recorder. Yes, that's right, I'm advocating melting your brain while you breast feed. Breast feeding is your license to sit down, kick back, and watch some television in the middle of the day. And with a DVR, you can watch whatever you want, whenever you want.

Dire Straits must have been on to something way back in 1989 when they wrote "Money For Nothing"-- a/k/a-- "I Want My MTV." And if the band was around today, I'm certain the lyrics would have been "I Want My D-V-R." If you weren't old enough to watch MTV back then, here's the video from YouTube.

Before our kids were born, I never would have watched TV at 3:00 in the afternoon. First of all, I would have been at work. And if it was the weekend, I would have been doing something more "productive." The guilt would have been too great. But as a mom, I've realized breast feeding is as productive as it gets. Plus, you can't really send emails or cook dinner while breast feeding (at least most of us can't) so you might as well relax.

I first discovered the beauty of the DVR when I was pregnant and on bed rest for two months with The Bortski (our now 2 year old). I had resisted the notion of TIVO for months, arguing that it was a waste of money. But then, my husband went ahead and got it anyway. Once it was installed, I begrudgingly admitted that it was pretty cool.

I quickly developed a Sex And The City-Miranda-like obsession with the TIVO. Remember how upset she got when her cleaning lady accidentally deleted her favorite program? Ironically enough, during that pregnancy I watched, thanks to TIVO, every single episode of Sex and The City. I was also really into Arliss, the tale of an uptight sports agent.

Once The Bortski was born, I fell under the spell of Monk, the obsessive compulsive detective with an uncanny ability to solve crimes. And Monk-like, I realized the true benefit of the DVR-- I could religiously watch the show without missing a single episode or scene. I could breast feed while watching 20 minutes of the program. Stop. Change a diaper. Go for a walk. Do some work. And when I came back the next day, for another feeding, the show was right there, ready to pick up where I had left off.

As an aside, I have to admit that TIVO and I did have some rough days. For a while, I didn't have the patience to figure out how to program shows. To top it off, our universal remote sometimes gave me fits. Remember, when I was a kid we had to manually change the channel; there were about 6 channels to choose from, and some stations even went to bars and tone at night. So, a note to gift-givers-- please, answer your cell phone in the middle of the day when Mama calls asking you how to turn on the TV.

Now, back the the regularly scheduled program...

When we moved from Boston to New York, and I was pregnant once again with The Bear (our 8 month old), we had to live in a temporary apartment. Our stuff was in storage and we were without our TIVO. Oh, did I suffer withdrawal. If I missed an episode of LOST, it was lost and gone forever. If I had to pee (which we all know was quite often) I couldn't pause the show. I had to go fast. But if I didn't have to pee, I actually had to watch the commercials. I kept pressing the remote, hoping I could pause or fast forward the program. The reflex was that ingrained.

Lo and behold, when we finally moved into a permanent apartment, and I was still pregnant, we suffered another TV calamity. The TIVO was broken. Somewhere along the way it had gone on strike. Fortunately, we were able to replace the TIVO with a DVR that was built into our cable box. Back in business.

Since the fall television season started, I've got my new list of favorites: How I Met Your Mother (my husband thinks I'm a mix of Lily and Robin); Desperate Housewives (unrealistic, but who cares); 30 Rock (love Alec Baldwin as the meddling boss); Studio 60 (hope the network holds onto this one); Six Degrees (hope the network brings it back soon) and Walking the Bible (an author's journey to locate key places in the Bible). Boy do I watch a lot of TV! Sorry mom.

All of this brings me to another television item which is a great gift for the breast feeding mom-- a premium cable channel. If you pay for HBO, you can watch some of the most creative shows on television. I've been hooked, at various times, on Big Love (fascinating characters), Entourage (the guys' Sex and the City), Curb Your Enthusiasm (how can she be married to that guy?) and The Comeback (almost too painful to watch). Plus, if you get HBO, you'll also have HBO on Demand which gives you a whole bunch of movies to watch at your leisure.... No, they are not paying me to write this.

Today, The Bear has been less than pleased with my television watching habits. I used to be able to put the TV on mute, and read the captions without distracting him from his meals. But now, when I breast feed, the flashing lights catch his attention and he pops off the boob and cranes his head to see what's going on. I think my days with the DVR are numbered.

But even if that's the case, the DVR is already serving another purpose. It's the perfect babysitter at 6:00 am when The Bortski wants to watch Dora, again and again and again.

Come to think of it, where is that remote?! "Bortski?!?!?!?"

Join the Breast Feeding Bloggers' Carnival

November 27, 2006

Last month, four other moms and I who blog about breast feeding-- for the sake of brevity, let's call us "the booby bloggers"-- got together to do a carnival, or joint post. As you may recall, we all wrote posts on the theme "Home For the Holidays."

Next week, we are bringing you our monthly installment once again. This time the theme is "Gifts for the Breast Feeding Mom." And we're going to try something new-- opening the carnival to other bloggers. We are accepting submissions and will pick five other bloggers to join in. So if you're a mommy blogger, send me a submission by Friday. And daddy bloggers, we'd love to hear from you too. After all, you and your babes share a common fixation!

A Breast Feeding Poem

November 13, 2006

You can smell the holidays right around the corner. Christmas commercials. Decorations in stores. Chocolate, food and more chocolate...

Well here are my thoughts for the holiday season-- a poem to make you smile. It's a parody of "A Visit from St. Nicholas," otherwise known as "The Night Before Christmas." This poem will be featured tomorrow on the very first Breast Feeding Blogger's Carnival.

And now, without further ado, I bring you...

‘TWAS THE BREASTFEEDER’S NIGHTTIME
By Andi Silverman, www.mamaknowsbreast.com

‘Twas a holiday eve and the babe was asleep,
Swaddled tight in his crib he made not a peep.
My boobs were depleted from feeding all day.
“Please don’t wake. Sleep all night,” to the babe I did pray.

But his lips, how they moved, as he lay in his bed.
Visions of milky breasts danced in his head.
Dad in his boxers and I in my sweats,
Could we get some shuteye? Go ahead, place your bets.

The moon on the breast of my t-shirt did glow,
Gave a luster to leaking spots set to grow.
My nursing pads were soaked, they fell out of place.
My bra had unsnapped. How I missed sexy lace.

For months I’d been feeding our babe everywhere.
Coffee shop, park bench, museum, movie chair.
All my modesty gone, nothing shy anymore.
If the kiddo was crying, I knew how to score.

And now with the holidays, things often got dire.
While out buying gifts, I sometimes drew ire.
I breastfed in clothing stores. Changing rooms rock.
I breastfed in bookstores. To the stacks I did flock.

When from the babe’s room there arose such a clatter.
We sprang from our bed to see what was the matter.
Away to his room we flew with a flash,
Threw open the door, in the dark I did crash.

What a klutz I can be, ‘twas those bags made me fall.
Sacks for our trip, all arranged in the hall.
We were going to Grandma’s, a five hour drive.
Holiday time—Will I make it alive?

One big huge duffle held all the babe’s stuff.
Diapers, wipes, onesies. Did I bring enough?
Now don’t forget burp cloths, crib sheets and toys.
Books and Bjorn, we’ll exhibit such poise.

On breast pump, on bottles, on stroller and boppy.
On car seat, on cradle, on blanket and binky.
Fill the back of the car, fill the trunk with our haul.
And we’ll drive away, drive away, drive away all.

Now don’t forget stopping to feed long the way.
Gas stations, McDonalds and rest stops, oy vey.
Of course there’ll be lots of those diapers to do.
Get out the Purell, you’ll be covered in poo.

When we finally arrive, now what will await?
Lots of food and embraces, it’ll be really great.
No, no one will not fight. I will not shed a tear.
Ok, a white lie— but rejoice in who’s here.

And what about wine or a champagne or two?
Will it make my milk bad? Old wives tale or true?
And will anyone say, “Can he now take a bottle?”
“How long will you breastfeed?” How these questions can throttle.

Now back to that “clatter,” the babe and that noise.
We had rushed right on in, leaping over the toys.
When what to our wondering eyes did appear,
Our babe still asleep, oh how sweet, oh how dear.

His cheeks, how they glistened, his hair soft and furry.
And I smiled when I saw him, despite all my worry.
How delicious, his belly, moving in and then out.
How precious, his lips in a sweet little pout.

He had not woken up! He did not need to eat.
He had had quite enough, his day quite complete.
And so back to our bed we did quietly crawl.
Happy Holidays to one, happy sleeping to all.

Home For the Holidays

November 07, 2006

Last month I wrote about the new friends I've made through this blog-- 4 other women who are also blogging about breastfeeding. There's Jennifer of The Lactivist, Tanya of Motherwear, Angela of Breastfeeding123 and Sinead of Breastfeedingmums. Well this crew has decided to band together once a month and bring you a "carnival of blogs." Basically, we'll all be writing about one particular topic, and linking to each other. This will give you the perspectives of a bunch of different booby bloggers. On my site, I'm going to call this monthly carnival, "Of Babes and Boobs."

Next week will be the first installment of "Of Babes and Boobs." The topic is "Home For the Holidays." So the five of us have our homework cut out for us. We're trying to come up with tips, stories, advice and inspiration for your holiday season as a breastfeeding mom.

My assignment isn't due until next week, so for now, I turn to you dear readers. Do you have any stories or ideas for me? Send your letters to "Dear Mama, All I want for Christmas (or Chanukah, or whatever holiday you celebrate) is _______________." I'll be here, working on my list.