Month 1

When the baby is in a good mood (or better, sleeping!), scope out the “safe places” at your local shopping destinations where you can feed and change your baby. This will allow you to get out of the house every day and know that you don’t have to race against the clock to get back home. I like the children’s area of any bookstore. Find a quiet corner and a tiny chair, and pull out your boob or bottle.

Whitney-and-Heather-approved safe places in the Bay Area:

• Nordstrom Women’s Lounge in SF, Walnut Creek and Palo Alto have places especially for feeding and changing. Plus lots of nice old ladies who can watch your stuff or even your baby while you use the bathroom.
• 4th street: This Little Piggy has a chair where you can nurse (for the true newbie; you may not believe us now, but in another month, you’ll be out on the street where there are tons of public nursers. Once you’re comfy, you can join the party) The ladies in Benefit will probably let you use one of the waxing beds as a changing table. They may wear a ton of makeup, but they are actually mostly moms themselves.
• Bay Street: My friend Sunny says she spent a large part of her maternity leave at California Pizza Kitchen. It is not crowded during the week and you can get a big booth where all your stuff can fit. Bay Street also has Barnes & Noble with a cafe area and a kids section.
• Upper Shattuck: Waddle and Swaddle, a baby store, has an entire room for moms to nurse, drink water or tea (complimentary) and change their babies. You can stay as long as you like. The woman who runs it is a doula and can answer lots of questions for you. Elephant Pharmacy has chairs in the reading area.

By the end of month two, you’ll probably have your own favorite places. Come back and tell us what they are.

This weekend, I’ll be gone two full days during most of Scarlett’s waking hours. I was really hoping not to pump during this time, thinking “Pumping is for people with newborns,” but Heather has made it clear that she doesn’t want me turning to her at 4 pm, in the middle of a great bloggity BlogHer discussion, saying, “If I don’t leave now, I’m going to leak, contract mastitis, and turn into a raging hormone monster.” So, I guess I’ll bring a pump.

I’m feeling a little embarassed about it though - like who has to hurry home to nurse their one-year old? Am I a sucker? Or maybe a hero?

Anyhow, let’s take a moment to give three cheers for me and my success at nursing both kids till their first birthdays and beyond. How Scarlett and I wind down this relationship is a mystery to me, (even though I’m not a rookie!). It doesn’t seem to be dwindling and the girl has no interest in drinking milk from a bottle or cup. She likes to use those things - for water - but doesn’t like the taste of milk. Stay tuned. This will surely resolve itself before kindergarten starts.

I want to encourage anyone who is reading, who’s in those first difficult weeks of nursing, or who is pregnant and assuming they’ll breastfeed, to read more. Read everything. Assume it will be difficult. Find friends who have done it. Go to a support group or a class. Other ideas from the veteran moms reading are welcome!

Note: I recently interviewed Andi Silverman, author of Mama Knows Breast for Glam.com. Read the interview here and subscribe to her website’s feed so that you can find the resources you need!

And I’ll tag this post “green”, cause really, isn’t breastfeeding about as green as it gets? No appliances required! Doesn’t waste water! Doesn’t create trash!

Best of luck to you new mamas. I’m rooting for you.

In my house, we think it is great to take pictures in the same chair each month (or each week!) to really see the baby grow before our eyes. We got in the habit of dressing Holden up and propping him in the big yellow chair. Now that he’s bigger, our challenge is not to snap the photo before he tips over, but to snap the photo before he lunges for the telephone. Ahhh, progress is a beautiful thing!

Other ideas:

1. Put your baby against a solid color sheet on your bed.
2. Snap a picture next to the same stuffed animal each month to show perspective.
3. Photograph tiny hands and feet next to your own hands and feet.