breastfeeding

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?

Have you ever had to pump on an airplane or carry breast-pumping paraphernalia through security? While moms have the right to do both and are even supposed to be provided with privacy when they pump on an airplane, it looks like some airline and TSA personnel are unaware — or not on board.

In one recent violation of regulations, an American Airlines flight attendant monitored mom Dawnella Brahos throughout her flight to prevent her from using the breast pump she was carrying. In another, a TSA worker in Hawaii told mom Amy Strand that she couldn't bring the cooler that came with her pump through security unless she was also carrying breast milk. In order to keep the cooler, which is expensive to replace, Strand resorted to pumping in the airport bathroom, in public.

Although both American Airlines and the TSA have apologized, Christian Science Monitor reporter David Clark Scott advises breastfeeding moms who are traveling to know their rights: "Moms and Dads," he writes, "bookmark the TSA page, and carry it with you on your phone. Just in case."

Nursing older children is a very touchy subject, even among moms who breastfeed their infants. But one thing's for sure: moms who do it, either in public or in private, are passionate about it. As Circle of Moms member Cynthia A. explains, "Extended nursing is not for everyone, but those of us who have nursed for longer than six months or a year have our reasons both for ourselves and for the physical and emotional health of our children."

Truth is, you might be surprised to find out how many "closet nursers" there are in your neighborhood, church, or preschool. Here's a look at the extended breastfeeding issue from three perspectives: physical, emotional, and societal.

Keep reading to see why some moms breastfeed longer.

"I have to get my baby to take a bottle but he won’t," says mom Sarah C. in a panic. She's worried about her upcoming six-hour work shift next week. "I've tried expressing my milk, tried formula and different bottles, but he just hates it," she says of her 15-week-old son. Shakira too, would like to give herself an occasional break from breastfeeding, but her daughter won’t take a bottle, whether it’s filled with breast milk or formula. "I breastfeed my daughter every day, all day, but I would like and really need for her to take a bottle." If you, too, like Sarah and Shakira, feel like a prisoner because your baby refuses a bottle, the following six tips from other moms may help your situation.

Click to see the tricks moms have tried that worked!

You knew that breastfeeding was beneficial, but did you know that if all women breastfed their babies immediately after birth, the lives of some 830,000 infants a year could be saved? Save the Children released its Superfood for Babies study yesterday, identifying both the benefits of breastfeeding, and the four most significant barriers that prevent women across the globe from being able to nurse their newborns. Here's what you need to know: