family life

What Happened After Walmart Refused to Print Breastfeeding Photo

Nursing moms have a new reason to celebrate.

Nursing moms have a new reason to celebrate. In a surprising about-face, Walmart has gone from refusing to print a photo of mom Kayla Andre breastfeeding, to allowing her to host a nurse-in demonstration in its Alberta, Canada, store.

Earlier in May, Andre's husband headed to Walmart to print out a photo of his wife nursing their young son as a Mother's Day gift. To his chagrin, the store refused to print the breastfeeding image, saying it violated the mass chain's anti-nudity policy, the Huffington Post reports.

Andre was shocked and protested to local media that the image should have been printed, saying it's a natural occurrence — despite debates over breastfeeding in public. So she organized a "nurse-in" to be held in the store, to protest the store's decision in shaming her for breastfeeding.

Walmart quickly recognized the flaw in its action, however. It apologized and clarified the store's policy for employees so that they would know breastfeeding photos are acceptable. So Andre quickly turned her protests into praise, and re-dubbed her nurse-in as "a celebration of the fact that Walmart recognized its mistake."

Andre applauded the store for being "a reasonable company who listens to their customers," and noted the chain offered gift certificates for photo printing to nurse-in participants. "They have clarified their policy, and that is something to celebrate!" she says.

Would you protest or participate in a breastfeeding event at Walmart?

Nursing

Hard Rock Hotel Chicago Launches Nursing Mothers Amenity Program With Medela

Traveling while breastfeeding doesn't have be an impossible combination.

Traveling while breastfeeding doesn't have be an impossible combination. Though nursing while flying may be a bit tricky, mamas who must travel without their tots don't have to worry about lugging a pump with them when traveling to Chicago anymore. In what appears to be the first program of its kind, Hard Rock Hotel Chicago and Medela launched the Nursing Mothers Amenity Program yesterday. For $30, participants in the program will receive a hospital-grade Symphony breastpump and a breastfeeding Accessory Starter Set, which includes Medela's Micro Steam Bags, Quick Clean Wipes, Pump and Save Bags, and disposable bra pads when they check into the hotel. The program also provides nursing moms with in-room refrigerators, microwaves, ice packs, cooler bags for transporting the milk, and staff trained to support nursing moms with services like FedExing milk back home.

Nursing moms isn't necessarily the first thing I thought of when I heard Hard Rock Hotel — images of Michael Jackson's leather jackets and autographed guitars were the first thing that came to mind — but it may be time to switch up my thinking. The Nursing Mothers Amenity Program, which will donate the proceeds of the fee to benefit local families with children in Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago through The Jackson Chance Foundation, may be the nursing working mom's new best friend! What do you think?

Pregnancy

It's Not Just a Snip

I got my tubes tied when I was 33 years old, right after the birth of my daughter.

It's Not Just a Snip

I got my tubes tied when I was 33 years old, right after the birth of my daughter. She was my third child, and even though I wasn't entirely sure that I was "done" with the whole baby-making thing, I knew that my husband and I couldn't handle any more.

I became pregnant the first time while I was on birth control. I did not know that antibiotics and birth control didn't like each other, and I unwittingly asked them to play nicely. They didn't; the antibiotics won, and I found myself in an ER in the middle of the night, writhing from the sharp pain of a kidney infection, and thinking that surely I was hallucinating when the nurse told me that I was six weeks along.

Keep reading.

Pregnancy

Fourth Love Maternity Clothes For Pregnancy and Beyond

Discovering a great new maternity line is like finding a diamond in the rough.

Discovering a great new maternity line is like finding a diamond in the rough. Fourth(Love) Maternity was founded by a mother of two who found herself limited by the options on the maternity market while pregnant with her second son. Fourth(Love) features a collection of simple, chic, and easy-to-wear pieces that are designed to flatter your form both during and after pregnancy. We love the layer-ability of many of the line's looks, and their wear all-year-round quality. Check out some of the highlights from Fourth(Love)'s Spring collection!

Pregnancy

The Hatch-to-Hospital Box: Ga Ga or Gag?

Packing for the hospital has never been easier, thanks to HATCH Collection and Gilt.

Packing for the hospital has never been easier, thanks to HATCH Collection and Gilt. While the idea of packing a bag of necessities for an unknown experience fills many mamas with fear, HATCH is introducing a collection of high-end birthing room essentials that reflect Ariane Goldman's belief that maternity clothes should be luxurious, comfortable, and unstructured.

The HATCH-to-Hospital box is filled with a supersoft knee-length nightgown, a gray jersey robe, a pair of gray cashmere socks, and a specially designed pair of Cosabella panty briefs so mom doesn't feel like she's sacrificing style her baby. Designed to be a grab-and-run box that eliminates the need to stew over what actually goes into a hospital bag. The box currently resides on HATCH Collection's site for $248, but on beginning on May 19 (and ending on May 22), it will appear on Gilt.com for $205 to celebrate Pregnancy Awareness Month.

Luxury does come at a price, but is this pregnancy wear simply over the top? Vote in the poll and tell us below!

parenting

Signs of Postnatal Anxiety

Having a baby is the most emotionally charged time of our lives.

Having a baby is the most emotionally charged time of our lives. Within hours, minutes sometimes, we can swing from elation to despair and back again. The first days, weeks, and months after having a baby, our body (not to mention our life) goes through so many changes, it is no wonder we may experience massive highs and lows. 

So how can we tell what are normal, natural responses to an incredibly emotional time? And what are in fact warning signs of something more sinister? Postnatal depression is discussed a little more than it used to be, but the subject of postnatal anxiety is hardly ever spoken about.

Having suffered with anxiety myself, and running a 40,000-strong online community for mental health, I have come into contact with literally thousands of anxiety sufferers. So here I have put together a checklist of what are regular emotions for new parents, and what are likely warning signs you should contemplate seeking help.

Keep reading.

career

Can Your First Name Boost Your Salary?

We're happy to present this post from our partners at Yahoo!

We're happy to present this post from our partners at Yahoo! Shine:

What's in a name? Lots and lots of "Benjamins," ($100 dollar bills, that is). Unless your name happens to be Benjamin, in which case, some research suggests, you had better stick with Ben.

The Ladders, an online job-matching site, recently crunched the numbers in its database of over 6 million career professionals to determine the top names for corporate executives as well as the names of the highest earners. They found that people with first names longer than five letters lose out on about $3,600 in salary every year—and that's per letter. So, for little Alexander that means potentially missing out on more than $500,000 over the course of a 40-year career.

Want insight on how names affect other aspects of life? Read on.

Celebrity Style

Designers Create Custom Maternity Clothes For Kate Middleton

With Kate Middleton's baby bump finally showing, there comes a flurry of designers vying to dress her.

With Kate Middleton's baby bump finally showing, there comes a flurry of designers vying to dress her. And, according to WWD, they're more than willing to create custom maternity clothes for the expecting Duchess of Cambridge, too. Karl Lagerfeld, Nina Ricci, Vera Wang, and Donna Karan were among the designers to submit exclusive sketches, supplying a cool mix of daytime looks and more royally geared evening gowns, all tailored to highlight her bump.

To date, Middleton hasn't exactly been the poster child for wearing maternity clothes, having only worn one Topshop maternity outfit since her pregnancy was announced last year. Instead, she has opted to recycle her preexisting wardrobe with looks from Erdem, Mulberry, Armani, Max Mara, and Tara Jarmon — pieces that will remain wearable after the baby is born. Practicality aside, these designer sketches are undeniably fun. Click through to see them all, and tell us which design you like best in the comments below.

Pregnancy

What to Gift Your Newly Pregnant Friend

Your best friend's pregnant and you want to celebrate!

Your best friend's pregnant and you want to celebrate! While buying her a round of drinks at your favorite bar may be out of the question, there are a number of ways you can congratulate her — whether you live down the street or halfway around the world. From cheeky cards to tasty (yet nutritionally helpful) treats, check out our favorite ways to celebrate your newly pregnant friend's big news!