Have a tip you want to share in a carnival post on your blog? Email me your submission by April 13, 2009, for consideration for the carnival on April 20, 2009. As a reminder, here are the guidelines that will increase the chances a post will be selected for inclusion in the carnival:

– A well-written, grammatically correct post
– Thoughtful commentary directly on point for the carnival subject
– Overall quality of the rest of your blog and whether the general subject matter is something of interest to our readers (breastfeeding, parenting)

If your post is selected for inclusion, you will be asked on the day of the carnival to edit your post to link back to each of the other participants in the carnival.

Image by Svilen Mushkatov

Post from: Breastfeeding 1-2-3

Post from: Breastfeeding 1-2-3

Materials:

• 1 yard of fabric.

• D rings. They are the rings that you can adjust your strap with. They are in the shape of a D, hence the name, and come in silver or gold. I got the 1 1/4 inch size, but you could go a little bigger.

• Corset Boning. It comes in white or black and it comes in different strengths (or stiffness). I chose the stiffest one they had and bought 1/2 yard. It is ~1/4 inches wide.

• Of course you need thread. The whole project cost me $8.00 to make two, the fabric was on sale and I had the thread.

1. First, I cut the fabric 26×38 inches. The finished product is 24×36 inches (that is the size of the original Hooter Hiders) so cut it a bit bigger so you can sew the hem around. This size is perfect because the longer side wraps around your sides under your arms and covers anything that might be sticking out.

2. I cut the strips for the neck straps. The longer one I cut 31 inches long (this seems just a little long to me as I have a lot of excess when I make it the right length for breastfeeding) by ~3 inches wide. The shorter strip which will hold the D rings I cut 10 inches long by 3 inches wide. Here are pictures of the straps below:

Long strap

Short strap

3. To sew these, I just sewed down the middle turning the fabric under (you can see on the long strap my stitch down the middle). I sewed the long strap to a point by just folding the corners down and stitching over. I sewed the short strap the same way and just put the D rings on the end and sewed the fabric over. The raw ends of both straps will be sewn into the hem so you don’t have to worry about finishing them.

4. Now set the straps aside and sew a hem around 3 sides of the large piece of fabric (leaving the top, or one long side, unsewn). I just folded the edge under and sewed around, no pinning needed because I just held it as I went.

5. Next I sewed in about 10 inches on one side of the top where I will put the straps and boning. I then put one strap with the raw end folded under the hem and sewed over it.

6. Next you want to put your boning in between where your straps will be. All you need to do is place the boning under the hem and stitch the hem just like the other side. Make sure you put the boning in so the curve is going to face the right way (It will have a definite bend/curve to it). The distance between my straps is about 13-14 inches.

7. Next, sew your other strap on and then finish stitching until the end. I did make another stitch on my straps above the original stitch (see in picture of short strap above) to give is reinforcement.

View from back

View from front

Boning in neck

8. Now you can add a little pocket to the bottom corner on the backside. I didn’t do that yet on this one, but what works really well is to take a baby washcloth (I bought some on clearance) and sew it on three sides. That way, you could put breast pads in there and use it to wipe your little one’s mouth or your breasts if you need to.

The finished product

Heather insists she is not an expert seamstress, and this project took her just 30-45 minutes! Thank you so much Heather for sharing this project!

For other do-it-yourself breastfeeding and baby gift projects, see:

~ Knitted Nursing Tank Top
~ Pullover Crew Neck Baby Bib
~ Baby Bib with Neck Ties
~ Ring Sling
~ Nursing Necklace
~ Nursing Pads
~ Baby Booties
~ Cloth Diapers
~ Nursing Pillow, Nursing Shirt, Nursing Bra and Pumping Bra, Cloth Diapers, and More

Post from: Breastfeeding 1-2-3

Post from: Breastfeeding 1-2-3

NJW of Associated Content — uses a CD as a circle pattern to make reusable nursing pads out of flannel

Frugal Families — suggests four layers of flannel rather than two

Frugal Baby Tips — uses old cotton t-shirts

mistymq on eHow — uses fleece and t-shirt cotton or flannel, and adds a waterproof fabric layer (PUL, drapery lining or plastic diaper cover-ups)

For more “do-it-yourself” projects for breastfeeding-related items, see the “how-to” category.

Post from: Breastfeeding 1-2-3

Fundraising Opportunities

La Leche League offers a list of fundraising ideas. In my area, five La Leche League groups worked together to plan a WBW walk, bike ride, and potluck lunch for a Saturday in August. One person volunteered to coordinate all the activities, one person took charge of the finances for the day, and several people volunteered for individual tasks and contributions. In addition to collecting pledges and filing the WBW paperwork for one group, I was in charge of contacting the police and city park officials to notify them of our gathering and walk. Because we planned to walk on the sidewalk and not on the street, we didn’t need a permit.

The day incorporated several fundraising opportunities:
~ pledges for the walk
~ pledges for the bike ride
~ a silent auction for donated goods
~ ticket sales for drawings to win donated baskets with various themes (goodies from a local bakery, clothing from a particular manufacturer, etc. — some of the items were donated by members of the LLL groups, some were donated by local businesses)
~ ticket sales for a 50-50 drawing (half the ticket sale money went to the winner, half went into the fundraising pot)
~ a masseuse offered 10-minute massages for a small fee and donated some of the money

Awareness Opportunities

~ the walk: people were asked to bring homemade signs in addition to the LLL banners
~ the bike ride
~ the potluck gathering in the park
~ local press: members of the planning committee contacted the local media in advance, so the event got positive press in both the local newspaper and on the 6 o’clock television news!

Other Activities

~ musicians: one of the members tapped her relatives to be the entertainment for the event!
~ free car seat inspections by a police officer

The silent auction and ticket sales for the baskets and 50-50 drawings brought in $550 on the day of the event. The individual LLL groups collected their own pledges, and the group to which I belong raised a total of $140 in pledges. While more money might have been raised had the five groups each held separate WBW events, there was a lot to be said for collaborating. The turnout of over 100 people made an impressive show for the walk and the local media. Holding one community event also helped build fellowship and camaraderie.

In summary, if you are going to be planning a breastfeeding fundraising and awareness event, tap the resources of your group. Is someone a small business owner (willing to make a donation or offer a service?), a musician, a public figure? Does someone have contacts with the media? Special talent for designing t-shirts or taking pictures for the event? Each person has something special to bring to the event, be it time, talent, goods, or all three!

What are your ideas for fundraising and breastfeeding awareness? What has worked for your local breastfeeding advocacy group?

Post from: Breastfeeding 1-2-3

Dr. Morton is Director of Breastfeeding Medicine at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital (LPCH) and a Clinical Professor at Stanford University School of Medicine. Along with other breastfeeding resources, she offers the seven-minute 33-second video in free streaming video format at LPCH’s Newborn Nursery site, or copies may be purchased through the email address mentioned on that page. Note that it takes a fast internet connection and a little patience to see the entire video. When the video froze occasionally, I needed to manually advance and rewind through those sections to see the entire thing. It’s worth it though!

Post from: Breastfeeding 1-2-3

If you’re handy with a sewing machine another option is to sew your own cloth diapers. Here are some resources for free patterns and templates:

www.thediaperhyena.com
www.diaperjungle.com
www.diapersewing.com
www.sleepingbaby.net/jan (scroll down to diaper projects)

If you want to buy a pattern, check out this compilation of reviews of cloth diaper patterns.

Post from: Breastfeeding 1-2-3

VideoJug: How To Massage Your Baby For Health And Happiness

Have you tried infant massage? Did it help your baby?

If you enjoyed this video, check out the video category for more!

Post from: Breastfeeding 1-2-3

Overall I found the recommendations to be right on. I particularly liked the discussion of how to help your older child feel included, and how colostrum changes into mature milk and mature milk consists of foremilk and hindmilk (see my article on “Amazing Ever-Changing Breast Milk” for more on those concepts). I’m glad the video stresses that a feeding can take up to an hour, although I didn’t like the statement that a woman should nurse for at least 15 minutes on each side in order to make sure the baby gets enough hindmilk. Don’t misinterpret that statement to mean that you should break the latch and switch sides at precisely 15 minutes. As my 4.5-year-old knows, your baby will tell you when he’s finished on one side.

I also didn’t like the statements about how breastfeeding isn’t for everyone and you shouldn’t be surprised if you have trouble with it. If you have trouble with it, get help! Seek support just as the video goes on to recommend.

VideoJug: Successful breastfeeding: a beginner’s guide to getting started

For more information see Tips for Getting Breastfeeding off to a Good Start and an article on how to get support and help for breastfeeding from family, friends and professionals.

For more free breastfeeding videos, click here.

Post from: Breastfeeding 1-2-3