Educating Children About Breastfeeding

As my family prepares for our newest addition, we have boughten books about babies and been given baby dolls for our daughter to nurture and love. Currently, she is playing an app on my phone where she gets to dress up and feed a baby. While all of these tools are great in helping a toddler learn and comprehend what life will be like with a little baby around, I couldn’t help but notice a trend running through all of these educational tools: none of them taught about breastfeeding a baby.

On Toddler Terms

My daughter is not unique in her creation of a name or term for breastfeeding and boobs. As she has grown and become more verbal, she can say boobs clearly now, but it is her first word choice for breastfeeding that continues to dominate her vocabulary. She calls breastfeeding ‘nanas’ or if she is feeling particularly impatient then she says ‘nanees’. I imagine this came from the word nursing. Friends of mine who say nursing a lot also have toddlers who request nanas. But some children get quite creative with the naming of their beloved boobs.

Spring Volume Sneak Peek!

I’m not going to share anything too juicy with you just yet but I thought maybe a little sample of a poem that I have submitted for the first ever publication of the independent zine Latch might spark some interest. Just so you can nibble and sample and see if you like the flavor. And hey, maybe you will feel inspired to drop a couple of lines whether it be poetry or fiction or a how to or even just a non-fiction narrative about your breastfeeding little one. Deadline is quickly approaching so please don’t miss out on being a part of something awesome and spreading your infinite wisdom and creativity with other breastfeeding mamas! nursingtoddlerstories@gmail.com and please send your work as an attachment not in the body of the email. 

Should I Nurse My Child When They Are Sick?

Many mothers wonder if giving their child anything to eat when they are vomiting is a good idea. So what about breastmilk? You will find that when your child is sick, regardless of if they are a baby or toddler, they will particularly want to breastfeed. Although putting anything in your system when you are vomiting every half an hour can seem to aggravate the symptoms, the benefits of breastmilk go beyond any other food or drink you can offer your child. 

Call for Submissions, Spring Volume

Our ideas generated from the constant discussion of breastfeeding a toddler: the ups, the downs, the in betweens and especially the what the heck moments. There is an obvious void where creativity and breastfeeding need to meet. We are here to fill that void and we are hopeful that the community of mothers abroad will help to build this outlet.

Spring 2013 will be the release of our first ever zine! We are calling for submissions of poetry, fiction, or non fiction articles written about breastfeeding a toddler. We are also looking for short “How to” articles around toddler related topics such as: nursing etiquette, supply issues, healthy eating for toddler and mama, tandem nursing, nursing through pregnancy, and weaning. There are many more that we would happily accept so feel free to get creative.

Articles should be no longer than 1500 words and can be emailed to nursingtoddlerstories@gmail.com by February 15th, 2013.

All submissions will be read and contributors contacted regarding final decisions for inclusion in this volume. We are currently unable to pay for work contributed and you maintain your first copyrights.

Dependent on how the zine develops, we may be putting out a call for visual art submissions in the coming weeks so stay posted. We look forward to reading your submission.

– E & J