babies eat. a lot.

Nursing.

It seems to be a hot topic around the blogosphere lately, and I thought I would put it out there. It seems especially fitting now that we have The Monkey in our family, and we're back in those infant days.

Nursing is the right choice for our family. I don't work so it makes me feel slightly useful and avoids the cost of formula. It provides more nutrients and all that yummy stuff that just can't be made. Besides the logical reasons, I like snuggling with the babes. It hasn't always been an easy journey, but it was a commitment I made for the betterment of my children.

I nursed The Bear until he was almost 13 months old. I would have been okay to continue, but he was in the hospital, we were out of town without my pump, and it really seemed an appropriate quitting time for us.

In those 13 months, I fed him in public. That's what happens when you move with a 3 month old. Or when you travel to Europe with a 11 month old. Kids need to eat. I would try to plan our days to minimize the public feedings, but when he was hungry I would feed him.

Now I have 2 children. I can't keep The Bear locked in our house all day. It doesn't end well for him, me or our house. We don't spend days galavanting about, but we do play at friends' houses, go to tumble and play at the mall.

Babies eat. A lot. Quite often.

I have fed him in very public places. The mall. Restaurants. Polar Express train on the way to see Santa. U Conn basketball game. It's all good.

I am not the type to expose myself. I'm modest to begin with, and this mommy body doesn't need to be seen by anyone. Normally, I wear a nursing tank (to keep my stomach covered) and then another shirt over it that I can half pull up to feed The Monkey. Very little skin is exposed. And, I have a nursing cover over The Monkey and me. I don't cover myself because I'm ashamed of what I'm doing. It makes me (and Hubby) more comfortable and more likely to feed him in public.

Does this make you uncomfortable? Nursing in public can be very bold. But, it can also be very discreet. I was feeding The Monkey while he was in his sling, and neither Hubby or my dad knew what I was doing. (The look on my dad's face was slightly humorous when I said he was eating.) Would it bother you to be sitting next to a mom who was feeding her baby?

I won't be offended. I'm just curious how those with little ones and those without feel about it.