I've been encouraged to keep writing. Look out.

I'm not sure when getting dressed each day started involving yoga pants, but that's how we roll around here. Maybe it's because they are comfortable and it's easier to play in the floor with Elle, maybe it's because I'm still not back down to a size 4 and I'm too cheap to buy new jeans. I will be a size 4 again, from my calculations, I'm 2 stomach viruses away. So, I now get up, shower, put on make-up (which I have found is an extremely important part of being a SAHM) and get dressed in yoga pants. I try to wear ballet flats with them, so at least I don't look like a complete slob, and some days I feel pretty good. I'm not sure that Stacey and Clinton from What Not to Wear would agree. But I don't leave the house dressed like this, well, I normally don't leave the house dressed like this.

Yesterday I was reading through a local family magazine. The article that caught my eye was Breastfeeding: Beyond one year old. At the end of the article, I found myself thinking "Are you kidding me??" They write that according to anthropological studies, the average age of natural, child-led weaning worldwide is 2.5, with a maximum around 5 years of age.

My first issue with this is where are they getting this information? I'm not saying it's not true, but I want the references to know that it was a credible source. Now I understand why we had to cite sources in college papers. 9 years later and the light bulb comes on.

Secondly, what countries are the ones where 3, 4 or 5 years is acceptable? I checked Wikipedia (which brings up other issues of validity) but for this, we'll say that they are accurate and correct. Guinea-Bissau West Africa has the average at 22.6 months. Other fun facts about West Africa:

• It is considered a Third World Country
  
• More than two-thirds of the population live below the poverty line.
• The WHO estimates that there are fewer than 5 physicians per 100,000 persons in the country
• Child labor is very common
• A significant minority of the population are illiterate.

I'm not trying to offend anyone in Guinea-BissauWest Africa or other countries that have extended feeding, or anything like that, all I'm saying is that maybe the authors of the article should compare apples to apples. This post is not at all conclusive, I'm just disappointed in one sidedness of the printed article. I'm not even saying that extended feeding is wrong, every family has something different that works for them, I do believe that if you are nursing a 5 year old, in America, Canada or Britain where this is consider taboo, you may as well be nursing them in the psychiatrist office, because there's a good chance they'll end up there. (Note the sarcasm)

While I'm on the topic of breast feeding, here's my opinion. It's a wonderful bonding experience between mother and child. Not between mother, child and all the other diners in McDonald's or Ruth's Chris. Plan your outings better. For the argument of it being a natural thing...the human body does many natural things which are still not acceptable to do in public.

Secondly, if it hurts, you are in fact doing it wrong, go see a professional. If someone tells you that it is supposed to hurt, they are LYING! Yes, I know both from experience. I was hurting so bad, Matt tells people that I was saying words he'd never heard me say before. I was running out of profanities and started making up my own. Formula feeding was a blessed day in our house. Elle was happy because she was full, I was happy because it didn't hurt anymore, Matt was happy that I was no longer yelling. So, I firmly believe in what ever works best for your family.