Increased breast-feeding during the first months of life appears to raise a child's verbal IQ, according to a study of nearly 14,000 children that was released Monday.

Kramer said that more research was needed to determine whether the benefits were related to a component of breast milk or to the physical and social interaction between mother and child that is inherent in breast-feeding...

For a critical look at what these numbers mean, here is a story from The Wall Street Journal. The piece says:

But looked at another way, the CDC numbers show that breastfeeding is flat — and the rate of long-term acceptance of the practice is declining among those who try it. The latest available rate of breastfeeding for six-month-old infants barely cleared 30%, well short of a federal-government goal of 50% by 2010, and barely budged from a decade earlier.

Also, the breastfeeding rates are self-reported — meaning the numbers could reflect the increased desire of mothers to breastfeed, rather than increased practice. (The latest numbers agree with another CDC survey, also based on self-reporting.)

First off, Adiri is giving away two sets of bottles. Adiri bottles are 100% BPA free...and we all know that's a good thing. Plus, the unique design looks a lot more like a breast than your typical baby bottle. One reminder...if you do want to give your baby a bottle of pumped breast milk or formula, it's best to wait at least a month before introducing a bottle. This gives you a chance to establish your milk supply and your baby to get accustomed to breastfeeding.

A set of bottles has three bottles. White is slow flow for 0-3 months; blue is medium flow for 3-6 months; and orange is fast flow for 6+ months. To win one of the sets of bottles, leave a comment here answering this question: Why do you need these bottles?

Now for your pumping needs. Imagine pumping hands free! Email, type, talk on the phone or simply sit back and close your eyes. If you want to win a Hands-Free Pumping Bra from Easy Expression Bustier, answer this question: Why do you need this bra?

The contest deadline is Mother's Day, May 11. For a link to the other Mother's Day contests you can enter on my site, click here. I've got a Graco playcenter and some new parenting books.

Here are the ten winners of my book "Mama Knows Breast: A Beginner's Guide to Breastfeeding." Will the following ladies please send me their mailing addresses. Write to mamaknowsbreast@yahoo.com.

1. Lindsie:
I don't have a funny story because I had trouble breastfeeding my first due to inverted nipples. I would like to win a copy of your book because I really want to be able to breastfeed my second.

2. Katie:
The cable guy was working on the TV in another room and suddenly came into the room where I was nursing my daughter. while he was asking me a question I didn't even notice that she detached and my breast was hanging out free! Guess he got a little more of an eyeful than he was bargaining on!
(I would love to have this book for my mother who is a doula. She does a lot of breastfeeding education.)

3. Amira M.
I am not a mom but my good friend, who is a lactation consultant, was breast feeding her son in a lecture hall during a class. now, he has the habit of making lots of very "satisfied" noises while he is feeding and because of where she was sitting in the hall, his suckling was loud enough for the professor to hear! he stopped and everyone was looking around to see what was making the noise, but the baby was nicely hidden under a blanket.

4. Vicky:
I guess one of the funniest times was when I was nursing my second son. My oldest who was around 2 at the time always wanted to help out like a big brother. His baby brother was hungry and I was having one of those hormonal moments....you know the one that can make you cry in an instant because you are lacking sleep. I started boo-hooing and my oldest sat beside me and lifted his shirt and told me he would feed the baby so I could "rest." He immediately turned my tears of frustration to tears of joy.

5. Awesome Mom:
I was not able to nurse my #1 son because of his heart defect. He was too weak to nurse so I pumped 14 months for him. During his second hospital stay for a heart surgery I kept having nurses come in to check in on him because they thought my pump was my son breathing really funny.

6. Chris:
The look I got from a semi-truck driver as I pumped while driving home late from work one day!

7. Lucy:
My first baby is due in June, so I don't really have any stories just yet, but would love to be entered to win (it is a beginners book after all :)).

8. Liz
My craziest breastfeeding moment has to be when I was on a 6 hour car ride to visit family. We had stopped multiple times and the baby was just not happy to be in his seat. I kneeled on the seat next to him and hung over top of his seat and fed him while he was still strapped in! Oh the memories! :)

9. Becky
I wish I had a funny nursing story to tell. My first two attempts were pretty awful, so I don't remember anything funny, just sad. The lactation consultant said in her 25 years of doing this, "I've never seen anything like you." Great! : ) I'm determined to give it a try again this time with baby #3. Thanks for your nice comment on my blog giveaway. This has been so much fun!

10. Audra
I feel asleep feeding my baby in the recliner (don't worry I didn't drop him) and when I woke up awhile later. I found him asleap and me nursing his ear which was filling up with milk! Thanks for the great giveaway! I would love to give this to mis sis-in-law who was anti breastfeeding the first time but has had a change of heart and would like to breastfeed #2.

This is one cute book. Authors Shannon Payette Seip and Adrienne Hedger have hit the proverbial nail on the head with "If These Boobs Could Talk: A Little Humor to Pump Up The Breastfeeding Mom." With games, trivia questions, top ten lists and mock advice, they prove that breastfeeding has its light side.

My favorite part of the book is illustrations of slightly unconventional breastfeeding holds. You've got "The Yogi"-- a mom setting the microwave with one hand, writing a note with the other, doing "tree pose" while her baby hangs off her boob. Another good one is "The Wiper"-- a mom wiping the tush of one child on the toilet while her baby has a little snack. You get the idea.

To learn more, visit their website If Boobs Could Talk.

A chemical in some plastic food and drink packaging including baby bottles may be tied to early puberty and prostate and breast cancer, the U.S. government said on Tuesday.

It said: "There is some concern for neural and behavioral effects in fetuses, infants and children at current human exposures." The findings expressed concern about exposure in these populations, "based on effects in the prostate gland, mammary gland, and an earlier age for puberty in females."

The Wall Street Journal has the story, too, as well as a link to the actual report.
Here's a good article from The Washington Post on how to reduce your exposure to BPA. And here's a blog, Z Reccomends, that has an extensive review of BPA free products (as always, do your own fact-checking on any products).

So far I'm giving away ten copies of my book, Mama Knows Breast: A Beginner's Guide to Breastfeeding. Click here to enter to win.

I'm also giving away copies of two other books, Margarita Mama and The Rookie Mom's Handbook. Click here to enter to win.

Now for the third giveaway, we have an activity center, The Baby Einstein discover & play by Graco. I have to say, I LOVE this toy. When our first son was about six months old, we put him in it and he immediately "went to work." He sucked on the "star," flipped the book pages, and pressed repeatedly on the animal sounds. He was so focused, we called it "The Office." All I have to say is "Graco, thank you for inventing this. Without it, I could have never taken a shower when the kids were little."

The good folks at Graco, who have donated this center, have asked me to judge the contest. So for a chance to win, leave a comment, answering the following question:

How would this activity center make your life easier? (The deadline is May 11th).

So, in honor of all the breastfeeding challenges we've stared down and conquered, the April Breastfeeding carnival is focused on breastfeeding problems. We want to hear from you about how you overcame a challenge, and where you turned for help. If you used the internet, please share the link with us.

I know this is sort of last minute, but the deadline for submission is supposed to be tomorrow, April 15th (tax day). If the other breastfeeding bloggers and I pick your post, you'll be asked to link back to each of the other participants in the carnival on April 22nd.

Welcome to Part Two of my Mother's Day Giveaway Contest. Yes, ladies, May 11th is right around the corner. Time to start dreaming about breakfast in bed, and a silent start to your morning...

I'm now giving away away ten copies of my very own book, Mama Knows Breast: A Beginner's Guide to Breastfeeding. How can you win a copy? Leave a comment answering this question:

What is the funniest, or most outrageous, thing that has happened to you as a breastfeeding mom? (April 27th is the contest deadline. I'll pick my favorite ten responses).

Mother's Day Giveaways Update: I'm also giving away a Baby Enstein discover & play center by Graco. Click here to win.

I've also put up a post about two books you can win-- Margarita Mama and The Rookie Mom's Handbook. Click here to enter to win.

Hot off the press... I've got two new books for all you moms out there. The Rookie Mom's Handbook and Margarita Mama: Mocktails for Moms-to-Be are both from my publisher, Quirk Books. In honor of Mother's Day (May 11), I'm doing a series of contests for the next few weeks. So we'll kick things off by giving away ten copies of each book. The authors themselves will be the judges and pick the winning entries. The deadline to enter is May 11.

First off, The Rookie Mom's Handbook. Here's what the publisher says:

Bookshelves abound with activity books for babies and toddlers, but The Rookie Mom’s Handbook is the first designed exclusively for first-time mothers. Here are 250 enjoyable activities to help rookie moms maintain their individuality and boost their confidence about leaving the house, socializing, and doing things they’ve always liked to do—either with or without baby. Inspired by the popular Web site www.rookiemoms.com, the book offers bite-sized activities arranged according to the baby’s age. Some are crafty, some are adventurous, and some simply help get a meal on the table.

To win a copy, leave a comment answering the following question: What was your biggest rookie mistake as a pregnant, or newly minted mom?

Now for Margarita Mama. The publisher says...
Margarita Mama offers a pitcherful of delicious “mocktails” designed specifically for moms-to-be. Every drink is 100 percent alcohol free. And they not only taste great, they also provide a healthful treat for both mom and baby! Recipes include twists on old favorites such as Mudslides, Mojitos, Cosmopolitans, and Mimosas, plus yummy new libations like the Materni-Tini, the Raging Hormone, and the Chocolate Crave.

To win a copy, leave a comment answering this question: What was the craziest craving you had when you were pregnant and how did you satisfy it?

I grew up using a typewriter. My first computer, a Mac SE, didn't have a hard drive. There was a time when I didn't see the point of email. I still remember the sound of a dial-up internet connection. Hence my confusion the past few days. This internet thing doesn't always come naturally to me.

So I'm sometimes a little surprised that I run this blog and have even joined a new blogging network called the New York Moms Blog. (NY Moms Blog is part of a national moms blogging network, with sites devoted to Silicon Valley, Chicago, Washington, DC, New Jersey and even "50 Something" moms.

Last week, I joined some of these moms for a field trip to visit Katie Couric, the CBS Evening News Anchor. We were blogging evangelicals, and it seems we've got a new ally. On her own blog, Katie wrote:

These bloggers have found a way to stay engaged, to stay active, and, in some cases, build successful second careers in the online world. And, if and when mommy bloggers want to return to the workforce, the blogs are a natural networking tool.

It makes you wonder, how did we do this before the Internet?

Katie even posted a video of our visit on her own YouTube channel. Here it is:

By the way, in case you're wondering how I solved the problem with this blog, here's a brief history:

Step 1. Try to log onto Moveable Type, the publishing platform for this blog. Get an error message. Wonder...If I can't log on, how can I ask MT to fix the problem?

Step 2. Find an old email from MT. Write to that address and beg for help. MT tells me to contact my web host.

Step 3. Who is my web host? Send an email to an address I dig up from old, saved emails. The answer, in a nutshell, "We aren't your web host, we sold you your domain name, mamaknowsbreast.com."

Step 4. Find an Amex bill and locate a charge from some company that sounds vaguely like a web host. Send another "help me" email.

Step 5. Success! I've found the web host. My site is fixed.

So how does it all end? Tonight, as "tech support" was making his way home, I sent him an email on my fancy new Mac, complete with a built-in hard drive and WiFi connection. I wrote, "Guess what?! I fixed the problem. ALL BY MYSELF! By the way, please get milk."

You're right, Katie. How did we do this before the internet?

Vicky wrote:
Oh my...where do I begin? I have a 3 year old and one that will be two next month. Bath = Water Damage to the house!! When my two boys take a bath together it looks like a Tsunami hit. One time in particular, my husband decided to give them a bath in our garden tub...the one with the jets to create a hot tub affect. Mr. Genius decided it would be fun to add some bubble bath into the tub and turn the jets on. Well, he must have put 1/2 a bottle in there because several days later the bubbles were STILL trying to go down the drain! Our bathroom...Hmmm, I mean bathtub was 1/4 water and 3/4+ bubbles! Needless to say my boys were giggling about that the rest of the night. They thought it was the best bath they ever had and I remind Mr. Genius from time to time about his bath IQ. ;)

Jessie R. wrote:
My daughter is really picky about where she takes a bath we found out. She screams if we give her one in the bathtub but, is fine if we give her one in the sink. We don't get it but, it's cute!

Sundi wrote:
My 2-yr-old daughter hates having her hair washed in the bath. But one day, while my two kiddos were playing in the bathtub, she patiently sat there without screaming while her younger brother proceeded to "wash" her hair! It was so sweet!

Marcia wrote:
My daughter loves bathtime. She's even resorted to telling me she has to go potty just to get her into the bathroom. I set her on the potty and she hops up and says "DONE! SURE!" and proceeds to try to climb into the tub with her clothes on. I make her try to go potty before she's allowed to get a bath. I figure this will help prevent messes while she's IN the tub and hopefully train her for when we go swimming in the summer too.

Jen G. wrote:
MY favorite bath time story? It's the one about me taking one for 2 hrs uninterrupted and dear hubby giving the 2 yr old her bath later! Favorite bath time story for my little lady was when she was still little enough to give her baths in the kitchen sink! I washed her like she was my fine china! :)

Before that day, I had considered postponing my jury duty until after the baby was born. But I soon realized that didn't make sense since I was planning to work from home and breastfeed. Without a full-time sitter, jury duty would have been near impossible. I had served on a week-long trial once before, so I knew what I was in for.

Given the challenges of breastfeeding and serving jury duty, there are twelve states that actually exempt breastfeeding mothers from jury duty (California, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oregon and Virginia). Click here to learn about the laws in your state.

So it's a bit of a surprise to see what's happened to a Maryland mom. A judge sentenced her to a night in jail or a $150 fine, after she asked to postpone her jury duty. Here's the story from one of the local TV stations:

Elizabeth Jett's baby boy Henry was less than 12 weeks old when she was called for jury duty. "I think it’s a case of priorities. Taking care of your children should be your first priority. Jury duty can always come later," Jett said.

Jett asked to postpone and serve during the Summer, when Henry would be older and her mother, a full-time teacher, could take care of him and his five-year-old brother.

As for Elizabeth Jett, she has since asked for a waiver, because she can't afford the fine. The judge in the case, Barry Hughes, did not want to comment. The jury commissioner hung up on Andrea McCarren, as soon as she identified herself as a reporter.

Click on this link to watch the video from the TV station. You can read more about this story from the Baltimore Examiner.

Once we hit the sandbox years all that changed. Apple sauce and yogurt made baths a necessity. So I figured out various tricks to make things feel less precarious. My all time best move-- using a towel under their armpits to lift them out of the bath. It worked wonders.

And these days, there are definitely high points in the bath routine. The boys now ask to take a "brothers' bath." Together, they bathe their ducks and "wash" the tub walls. There are even comedic moments. The Bear (2 years old) once announced, "Mommy, a nugget." (That's his word for a little poop). And sure enough, I found a marble-sized green ball in the water.

Even so, I sometimes avoid bath time for a different reason-- pure exhaustion. With a 2 year old and a 3 year old, baths involve an incredible amount of wrangling-- into the bathroom, clothes off, into the tub, spash splash plash, out of the tub, moisturize, diaper on before there's a pee on the floor, pajamas on. It's like herding recalcitrant cattle.

But maybe I don't need to dread all of this so much. Weleda, the makers of organic personal care and medicinal products recently contacted me to tell me about their items for babies. So far, I've tried the Calendula Lotion and Calendula Cream Bath. Both have a lovely scent that reminds me of a spa. I can't tell you what the kids think of these products-- we're away and I'm not about to try anything new on them while we're not home. I did, however, test the products on my own skin, which is extremely sensitive and prone to exczema. And so far so good. (But before you try any new products on a child with rash prone skin or allergies, check with your pediatrician).

Weleda has offered to give away five sets of the lotion and cream bath. So I'm holding a little contest. Leave a comment with your favorite bath time story. I'll then pick five winners at random. The contest deadline is March 30th.

Does this ever happen to you? Do you find yourself forgetting things because you are so preoccupied with work and kids and stuff? The Today Show and USA Today say it happens to a lot of moms and they're calling it "momnesia." Today did a whole piece this morning on momnesia and the kids and I were included in the video. Click here if you want to check it out. The story ran again, in a slightly different version, on NBC Nightly News.

If you watch the piece, you'll learn about some of my other momnesia highlights...like the time I bought groceries at the supermarket, and then drove away, leaving the bags behind. I didn't realize my blunder until I got home. But hey, at least it wasn't the kids who were left behind. Small victories.