Diaper Bags - What to Carry AND an Awesome Giveaway!

To celebrate reaching 2,000 "Likes" on my Facebook page, The Natural Baby Company - Austin, TX is sponsoring a giveaway of an award-winning, eco-friendly Lassig diaper bag, valued at $154!  Check it out here - it's super cool - made from recycled materials and full of pockets and extra goodies like a changing pad.  You can enter to win below the suggestions for what you might want to carry in your diaper bag!

At MommyCon with Whitney, the sweet & lovely owner of TNBC.

A note about the giveaway: This blog and my Facebook page are, I think, equal parts local and global.  So don't let the name fool you - feel free to read and like from outside of Austin!  And after all, there's that whole "Think Global, Act Local" notion.  That said, the contest involves FB-liking local-to-me breastfeeding coalitions CTBC and TXBC, a diaper charity, and of course, The Natural Baby Co.  Even if you're not local, I'm sure you'll still see great stuff in your news feed as a result.  And you may be inspired to seek out similar organizations in your area - wouldn't that be cool?

On Diaper Bags

I'm no BabyGuyNYC, but I was a Girl Scout, so I know a little something about having an over-prepared, bulging-at-the-seams diaper bag. Now in the event of a Zombie Apocalypse, the only truly vital baby gear for me is boobs. But if we're just talking playdates and grocery shopping, you may want to have a bunch of crap for their... well, crap.

There are a few ways to go with diaper bags.  You've heard how moms sometimes handle a dropped pacifier with multiple kids, right?  Sanitize with the first, blow them off with the second, just hand it right back to the third?

Well, if you have just one child, you may opt to have one very large, very well-stocked diaper bag that will do double duty as your purse, because it will be with you always.

If you are on your second child, you might stuff a diaper and travel wipes case into your purse, and pop the purse into your big old diaper bag, so that the diaper bag can stay in the car and you can just grab your purse to run into places.

With the third kid?  Let's just say, hopefully there will be a few loose diapers floating around in the car if you've already used the one from your purse the next time Baby has a blow-out!

True confession, though - the first time I took my oldest down the street to see his pediatrician, the nurse, needing to weigh him without a diaper, asked me if I had a diaper for him.  I did not!  We lived just six minutes away, and it hadn't occurred to me that we'd need a diaper while we were so close to home for just a short while!

Actually, my wonderful first diaper bag that I'd left home that day finally crapped out (pun intended - sorry, couldn't help it!) when Bellybean, my third son, was wee little.  It was an extensively-researched, carefully-selected backpack.  The backpack part stunk when I was wearing a kid on my back, but otherwise it was perfectly awesome - full of many pockets so I could organize every little thing.

Its replacement, my new-to-me/consignment-sale-find, has a changing pad that does not detach from the bag.  If you don't win the Lassig bag and you're reading this still needing to buy a bag - do NOT get one with an attached pad.  These are stupid.  One messy change and the whole bag needs to go in the washing machine.  And if your oldest son cracks his head open doing a back flip into the pool while you're cleaning up a blow-out - well, then you're really screwed, cause you'll be rushing to the emergency room with that thing, terrified that you're going to get poo germs in your kid's head wound.  But I digress.  Or flash back. Whatever.

Anyway - here's a Girl-Scoutified list of what to pack in your (first kid's) diaper bag.  Grab some popcorn and settle in - it's very thorough.

Krisdee's Diaper Bag Crap Checklist

• Bib - If you use one.  Is it lazy that I never did?
• Blanket - There are blankets for swaddling that have Velcro to help you get it right - they're awesome. I have blankets that are just thin cotton fabric with a hem, which are perfect in Texas.
• Bottles/Formula/Expressed Milk - If you're bottle feeding, be sure to keep all of the accoutrements ready to go.  If you're carrying EBM, you'll want some ice packs and a cooler, or an insulated pocket on your diaper bag.
• Burp Cloth - Especially if you have a very spitty baby.
• Business Cards - If you don't have any, consider printing some "Mommy Cards" to give to moms you meet while out and about.  Start building your mama tribe!
• Camera - Hooray for cell phones!  When my 8.5-year-old was born, I don't think my phone took pictures.  Now if there's a Kodak Moment (does that phrase date me?), we've got our smart phones at the ready.  But, let's face it, even when you Instagram it up, many cell pics just suck.  It's nice to sometimes have a real camera along.
• Car Seat Locking Clip - We don't usually use ours, but we have when we've traveled.
• Change of Clothes - Or maybe two.  Including socks, which we sometimes leave the house without, but then want later when the air conditioning makes a place too chilly for baby toes.  Don't forget a change of clothes for Baby's potty-training older sibling, too.
• Changing Pad - Eventually you may just change your kids on concrete or picnic benches, but to start, at least, you'll want a nice padded, washable (not attached to your bag) changing pad.  Two might be nice, to swap in the extra if one gets blasted and is in the laundry.
• Checklist - With Kid #1, I'd use a checklist to be sure I'd restocked my bag every now and again.  You can find my free printable list here.  Save it as a Google Doc to customize it.
• Contact/Emergency Info - Just in case, throw in an index card with your contact information, including an emergency contact or three and your pediatrician's number, and any allergy/medication information.  That way if your bag is lost or there's an emergency, there's information to help.  You might want to throw in a couple, and when you're in a large crowd you can put one in your child's shoe in case you are separated.
• Diaper Rash Cream - California Baby is really nice, and is rated a "1" on the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep® Cosmetics Database (a site I highly recommend!).  There are some that are a zero, though, too.  I should check those out...
• Diapers - Enough for 2-3 days, because you won't want to have to restock on the daily.
• Disposable Bags - If you're using disposable diapers, you can usually fold up a diaper and close it up with the tabs.  But some blow-outs require a plastic bag, because trying to get that diaper all closed up is like trying to get a tent back into a tent bag.  There are biodegradable bags for disposing of diapers, if you want to limit your ecological footprint to just the disposable diapers and not bags on top of that. I always re-used plastic grocery bags, but Austin is bag-free now.  Find a pocket on your diaper bag to zip these away when stored so they aren't played with, since they pose a suffocation risk.
• Ear Plugs - Not a necessity at all, but the disposable ones don't take up any real space, and they've come in handy before when we've left our good ear muffs at home and we've been at, say, a hockey game, or concert, or a Chinese New Year celebration (lots of firecrackers!).
• First-Aid Kit - Bandaids, mostly, but one of those little travel kits with extras might be nice.  Just be sure there aren't medicines that your little one could eventually tear into.
• Hand Sanitizer - I prefer something natural like Burt's Bees, because the Triclosan in most antibacterial gels scares me.  If you saw that episode of "House" with the pathologist who has thyroid psychosis, then you know what I'm talking about. (Thyroid psychosis is not a medical term as far as I'm aware. But it makes more sense to me than "myxedema crisis.")
• Hat - For sun or cold, depending on the season.  In winter it can be nice to have a an extra pair of mittens, too, in case it's colder than expected once you're out and about, or if you stay out late.  And in summer (so, February to October here), those baby-sized sunglasses not only help with half the job of a sunhat, they are cuuuuute - if you can keep them on Baby's head.
• Instant Cold Compress - This seemed brilliant when I saw them in the Dollar Spot at Target long ago.  Never used it.
• Jacket - Just in case it gets chilly or the coat (s)he's wearing falls victim to bodily fluids.
• Lanolin - If you have a sample size or have had discomfort, it can be nice to keep some on hand, but you may never need it.
• Nail Clippers - Because the only time you ever remember to trim your baby's nails is when you have no clippers handy.  Or is that just me?
• Nursing Cover - IF you're more comfortable nursing in public with a cover, remember to tuck this in your bag.  Just know that they are not a requirement.
• Nursing Pads - I had oversupply, so I've needed nursing pads when my babies were born, until my supply leveled out. There are cloth ones, disposable, & also silicone ones that stick to your boobs.
• Pen/Pencil & Notebook - For making grocery/to do lists in the car while waiting for an interminable nap to end, or for whatever other writing needs arise.  This habit formed for me pre-smart phone, but still - batteries die.
• Purse/Purse Stuff - Either your whole purse, or everything you'd usually carry in it - wallet, chapstick, keys, phone, etc.
• Shirt for Mom - Leaky boobs and spit up can make this a nice extra to have handy.
• Shoes - If you're like me and you often carry your toddler to the car forgetting that, now that (s)he toddles, (s)he needs shoes, throw an extra pair into the diaper bag.
• Sippy Cup - Kleen Kanteen makes my fave.  Side note - as a lazy mom, I recommend water only in sippy cups.  A rogue sippy cup with juice or milk is not a sippy cup you want to find two weeks later...
• Sling or Wrap - I like to keep a pouch sling in my diaper bag in case I forget to bring my Ergo with me.  It doesn't take up much space at all (I can even fit it in my pocket).  In Austin, you can get babywearing help (even rentals) here. Outside of Austin, look here for help.
• Snacks - Pack healthy snacks for yourself, the baby if (s)he's eating solids, and anybody else whose hanger (the anger that results when a someone is insanely hungry) may impact your day.
• Sunscreen - Because that stuff needs constant reapplications, so you can't get away with just using the bottle at home before you head out the door.  I don't want any chemical sunscreens being absorbed by my family members' skin, so although it doesn't go on as super easy and I have to try to rub it in well to avoid the ghostly pallor of a physical barrier sunscreen, my favorite is by Badger. It gets a good rating on Skin Deep®.  Recommendations are that babies under six months should not wear sunscreen, but should instead be kept out of the sun.
• Teether - Rubber teethers are pricey, but are a safe, natural material. No worrying about BPAs, or whatever they're using to replace BPAs in plastics.
• Thank You for Breastfeeding Cards - These are a must for me.  It's easier for me as an introvert who tends to feel shy, to approach a breastfeeding mom if I have a card I can hand her.  And since my own negative NIP incident, I've vowed to always say something nice to nursing mamas when I see them.
• Thermometer - I've actually bought one when out and about - first kid, of course. Then I kept that one in the bag in case I worried and wanted to check his temp while we were away from home.  Seems kinda silly now, but I did say "over-prepared."
• Tissues - 'Cause Mommy's shirt is not a Kleenex.
• Toys - Because the sweetener packets on the restaurant table are only
  
  interesting for so long.  I've packed up an extra travel wipes case with little toys, a book, crayons, and paper.  (These are played with while supervised, since some could be choking hazards for my under-three-year-old).

Water for Mom - Especially if you're nursing - and especially especially if you're nursing in Texas - have a bottle of water in your bag.  I read that while aluminum is no longer considered to be linked to Alzheimer's, it does require a plastic liner, which could contain BPAs.  And single-use plastic contains endocrine disruptors, too, in addition to not being environmentally-friendly.  I opt for stainless steel with no plastic liner - I love our Klean Kanteens.

• Wet Bag - Whether it's for cloth diapers or soiled clothes, you may want two of these.  Not the vinyl zippered kind, cause those are gross to clean.  Though I haven't actually used them, I think I'd prefer the drawstring cloth bags sold for use with cloth diapers.  Get two, so you've always got a clean one to keep in your bag.
• Wipes - I prefer a good-sized bag of them because again, if you've just got a travel case, you'll need to restock often.  If you're using cloth wipes away from home, you'll probably want a little spray bottle so you can wet them.

I almost put pacifier on my list, but then I read this on Kellymom.  I waited until six weeks to try one with my youngest, because he and my oldest seemed to want to nurse even after they were full while I had oversupply.  And they can be helpful in the car.  But looking at research, I would not suggest them as a staple to a breastfeeding mom.

So, there it is - my complete guide to essential and utterly non-essential diaper bag paraphernalia.  And now...

The Giveaway!

Note the cool green interior.  Love it!

Winner will be chosen randomly and must be 18 or older with a U.S. mailing address.  Enter below from May 26 through June 10.  Winner will be announced June 11.  If (s)he does not reply within three days, a new winner will be chosen.

Good luck, and thank you for entering and sharing this with friends!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tits and Toilets

If you're reading this, you're probably a breastfeeding supporter, so you've probably already seen the When Nurture Calls campaign by UNT students Johnathan Wenske and Kris Haro.  (Or you're a creeper and you Googled "tits" - in which case, this is not the blog for you.  Boobs are food - go away!)  Unfortunately, there's been a lot of misinformation about the campaign and little info on the bill it promotes (HB 1706).  Read my last post to find out more and go here to learn how to support the bill.

If you've followed me for long, you know HB 1706 was like my baby.  So I've had my panties in a bunch since this started, from the misinformation, to concern that legislators will take offense to the ad, and to OHMYGOD the fact that there's almost no real discussion of the bill or how to support it.

But hey, the campaign went viral and looks amazing - that means it rocks the Casbah, right?

Yes!

Except - will it move people to become involved with legislative efforts?

It's compelling, and a fantastic way of communicating that it's unacceptable to expect mothers to nurture their children in dirty restroom stalls.  It's got people talking (if not listening), and I LOVE it as a pro-NIP campaign.

People loved the Taco Bell dog, too - so much so that when my husband and I went to adopt a dog from the Austin animal shelter in 1999, it was overrun with chihuahuas.  The pop icon spurred over breeding, but even though Pepsico spent millions on the "Yo quiero Taco Bell" ads, about a year and a half into the campaign, sales were down 6%.  An ad can rock, and not accomplish the goal.

So what is the goal?

Purportedly it is to work for the passage of HB 1706 (which died a year ago but will be refiled this winter, when it will be given a new number).

My measure of success in promoting legislation is compelling people to take action supporting a bill.  Most importantly, this means contacting your legislator to express that you want him or her to vote for it or even to co-author/sponsor it.

My husband frequently quotes his partner, best-selling author Roy H. Williams, the Wizard of Ads.  One Roy-ism is that "you can't move everyone one direction."  In that regard, certainly the When Nurture Calls campaign can be labeled a success.  People don't just love it.  Some of them hate it (cause they don't wanna see breasts when women breastfeed - just when they sell cars and beer and so on).  Either way, people are moved by it enough to share and discuss it to virality.  Two weeks after its accidental debut, it's still being talked about, and now it's made it onto even more visible platforms.

But the people talking about it mostly aren't talking about legislation.

They're talking about tits and toilets.

I make it a habit to avoid reading comments.  The anonymity of the internet brings out the trolls.  People talk smack with no knowledge whatsoever of breastfeeding and its tremendous importance as a public health issue.  It's exhausting reading over and over the inane suggestions to use a bottle, or cover the baby, or blahblahblahblahblah.  These things are not always options, and they can never be requirements (even if it worked for you, breastfeeding-mom-who-thinks-her-experience-defines-that-of-everyone-around-her).  But I digress.

I have been paying attention to the comments this time because the mock campaign is supposed to promote my baby.  I mean, my bill.  I mean, Rep. Farrar's bill.

And yet - there's virtually no talk of the bill.

Just - tits and toilets.

The misinformation and lack of a call to action are largely to blame, but is it possible that the very thing that makes the campaign successful has gotten in the way of achieving the goal?

It makes perfect sense to see breastfeeding in a breastfeeding ad - but it makes not so much sense to see boobs in a legislative ad.  People are either supportive of the bold ads or incensed by them - they're moved to support the images or not - and that's where the "conversation" usually stops - on the images.

Is it possible that the Australian ad campaign - a video of a man eating in a restroom stall - would be more effective to promote, specifically, legislation?  Could we maybe talk about protecting a mother's right to feed her baby without getting stuck in debates about whether or not she should wear a cover to breastfeed in a restroom stall?


Or if we put the focus on the other person affected by attempts to interfere with or restrict breastfeeding - the baby - could we then move past the over-sexualization of breasts and move on to discussing the damage that is done when NIP incidents have almost half of mothers worried about breastfeeding in public?


This isn't the first time HB 1706 has gone vial.  Last session we worked our boobies off to get this kind of attention for our bill.  And then Rep. Riddle gave it to us.  But so. many. people. just wrote articles about it and complained about it in comments and made truly awful comments on posts about it (do NOT call a legislator a cunt, people.  Just do NOT).  But even with international attention to Riddle's comments against the bill rallying breastfeeding supporters everywhere, it died.

It seems to me that it takes anger - right-now-white-hot-rage - to motivate the masses to action.  And when enraged, people do not always behave responsibly.  Rash actions are taken, undiplomatic words are spoken.

So how do we get all the people to be motivated to write a polite email instead of flaming a troll?

One thing I'm sure of is that any efforts to pass HB 1706 should be coordinated to maximize their impact.  In my last post I wrote about how when this first caught fire, there was no call to action, because it was initially just a student project.  But advertising must include a call to action.  And if it is successful by my measure, people will take the action, in hordes.  They'll buy your tacos.

Now the students responsible for When Nature Calls have a call to action, but it is incomplete, and not coordinated with those involved with the bill.

People need to know that they can be involved in many ways, in and out of Texas, so they will be more likely to choose an action that fits their willingness to participate.

Whether its slacktivism or boots on the ground, we need people in every district across this huge state letting legislators know that we expect them to be a part of the solution.  We need people sharing lege posts on social media and visiting their legislators, and all of the levels of involvement in between.

If this is read by a wide enough audience, I fully expect to be flamed for letting my 5-year-old eat a few pieces of Pirate's Booty on the potty at Starbuck's.

But if this wasn't staged - if we lived in a culture where people thought it was acceptable to tell a child to eat his lunch in a public restroom - would we send an email?  Make a call?  Take a stand?

Is it any different when the person eating is a baby?

Calls to action to support HB 1706 in various ways beyond the comments section can be found at TXBFLeg.com, and are brought to you by the people leading the charge to pass this bill now and a year from now.

What action will you take to protect a baby's right to eat?

Were you spurred to action by the When Nurture Calls campaign?
How would you like to support HB 1706?

Leave a comment below or join me on Facebook.

When Misinformation Goes Viral - An Opportunity Flushed Down the Public Toilet?

You've probably read about this already.  Which unfortunately means that you probably don't know much of anything about it, given that social media coverage and articles have been rife with misinformation.  And since HB 1706 was/is so close to my heart, I'd like to clear up a few things, and tell you how you can support breastfeeding legislation.

Graphic design students Johnathan Wenske and Kris Haro at University of North Texas have done a bang-up job on a mock ad campaign project that calls to mind a similar concept in an Australian ad, intended to, hypothetically, promote legislation that would protect breastfeeding mothers from harassment.  Though the campaign was not meant to go public, an image was shared on social media and the whole thing has gone viral.

As the Legislative Chair of the Texas Breastfeeding Coalition, I know well the legislative piece that the ad focuses on, having worked tirelessly to support it before it died a year ago, and already hard at work to support it when it is refiled this winter.

The businesses cards I collected during the 83rd,
visiting legislators to ask for support.

As the wife of a marketing consultant and copywriter, I know something also about advertising.  But that's subject matter for another post.

HB 1706 was the name of the bill in the 83rd regular legislative session, in the winter and spring of 2013.  Authored by Representative Farrar and filed for the past several sessions (since my almost nine-year-old son was a wee baby), it has not yet made it through our legislative system, which is designed not to pass bills, but to kill them.  And so, it will be filed again this winter, when it will receive a new number, as bills do each session when refiled.  But I know and love it as HB 1706, so for lack of a new number and because "Strengthening the Right to Breastfeed" is cumbersome to use repeatedly, I'll continue to call it that for the purposes of this article.

Current Law

We already have a public breastfeeding law in Texas - Health and Safety Code 165.002, which states, "A mother is entitled to breast-feed her baby in any location in which the mother is authorized to be."

But, this law merely asserts a right, and does nothing to protect it.  A law is defined as much by what it does not say as by what it does say.  And our Texas nursing in public law does not say that it is illegal to violate the right to breastfeed.

It may be discriminatory to tell a nursing mother to leave a place of public accommodation, but nursing dyads are not a protected class (e.g., race, color, religion, etc.).  So it's not illegal to discriminate against them in Texas.

If a business owner or his/her employee tells a nursing mother to leave a place of business and the mother remains, she is trespassing.  Even though her legal right is being violated, she is the one who is, legally, in the wrong.  Crazy, huh?

If I tried to address why a mother's right to breastfeed should take precedence over those of others or to adequately address the detrimental effect of shaming a nursing mother, we'd be here all day.  So, just briefly then: because of NIP harassment, 40% of mothers list nursing in public as their top worry about breastfeeding.  And that negatively impacts breastfeeding rates, increasing risks for obesity, diabetes, cancers, and so much more, which costs lives and costs our economy.

Just to be clear - yes, strengthening the law is necessary - this is not a solution looking for a problem.

Last year we found 55 cases in Texas of mothers being harassed for nursing in public, and that's just by Googling a little and asking around through social media for a few weeks.

Since the session ended, there have been several more NIP incidents, including a very prominent one at a Victoria's Secret right here in Austin.

And of course, those are just the ones we hear about - a fraction of what mothers actually experience.

Again, the incidents that do occur have almost half of our mothers afraid to breastfeed when they're buying groceries or eating out with their families (you know - contributing to the economy).

Strengthening the Right to Breastfeed

So, enter HB 1706.  It would have strengthened the existing right-to-breastfeed law by:

• Informing business owners that it exists.  Because too often the right is violated by someone who has no idea there is a NIP law.

• Making it illegal to violate the right. 

• Giving a harassed mother recourse.  A mother whose right is violated would have the option of filing a civil suit. She could sue for up to $500 plus attorney fees.  This is not an exorbitant amount of money, so there's no realistic cause to believe that there would be an onslaught of frivolous lawsuits.  It's not likely that there would even be many lawsuits at all, given the time and money required to sue someone (which explains why there hasn't been one yet).  But it would be a message to business owners that the law is not one which it is optional to follow.  They would likely take the time to train employees, and the mere existence of the enforcement provision would decrease NIP incidents without even being used.

If all this sounds good to you, and you'd like to support breastfeeding legislation right now, you can learn how at TXBFLeg.com.  You can sign up for action alerts there, too, and as the bill progresses next year, we will let you know how you can help then.

Because your involvement is vital.

I cannot overstate that.  

Even if you don't live in Texas - 1) we need your support, 2) our laws will impact you, and 3) your laws probably need improvement, too, so it would be a good idea to be aware.

Why is your involvement crucial?  Hundreds and hundreds of bills are filed each session, and there are 140 days to pass or kill each one.  Legislators care about the ones that their own constituents care about.  We need you spreading the word, because legislators need to hear from people that they want breastfeeding legislation to pass.

And if you don't consider yourself a breastfeeding activist - if you don't see yourself as a stakeholder - consider that breastfeeding could save over 900 lives and $13 billion annually; that it reduces risks for obesity, diabetes, cancers, and more.  Breastfeeding covers a lot of causes all in one shot.  Even if it's not the one cause you hold dear - we are all stakeholders.

Misinformation and Opportunity Flushed

There was a lot of shoddy reporting about the campaign initially, not just on social media but in traditional media, where you expect journalistic integrity - rather than a lot of scooting misinformation around so it looks like a new article, but still called the bill HB 170 and still treated the campaign as real when it was just a class project, still indicated that the students really did work with La Leche League and United States Breastfeeding Committee (they did not), and still talked about the legislation as though it is currently up for a vote.

The media is starting to get things right now, but is it too late?  These things only stay in the news for so long, and the upswing has already been squandered.  Perhaps if the campaign had been given the right start as it was initially shared, we could have taken more advantage of the attention it has gotten.  There was no real call to action from the ads initially because it was not a real campaign.

The campaign as conceived directed people to buy cartons of milk to raise funds for promoting HB 1706.  I'm not being facetious when I say it's really cute.  And the students' concept included involving NIP-friendly restaurants and an app for finding them, which I'm very impressed they thought of as kids (who don't even commit to saying they consider themselves advocates), because these are actually real initiatives.

Family Friendly Business Initiative gets businesses on board with supporting employees to pump at work and patrons to breastfeed in their establishments.  FFBI has partnered with the creator of the app LatchME, a wonderful resource that is a free, user-sourced app that maps breastfeeding-friendly establishments and resources.  LatchME is available on iTunes for iPhones and iPads, and on Google Play for Android.  These are all really important pieces to supporting mothers to breastfeed, and all of these pieces feed into each other.

20-year-olds Johnathan and Kris are excited to help mothers and have made the campaign a real thing, but unless they coordinate with those of us leading the efforts for HB 1706, I fear the attention generated will not be harnessed now and in the next session.

Their campaign suggests liking their Facebook page, contacting legislators, and it collects email addresses, but there is are a lot more ways to support the bill, aimed to reach people at various levels of involvement, on TXBFLeg.com.  And a year from now, I'm not sure what they'll be doing with that mailing list or who will be posting lege updates on their Facebook page.

Perhaps if there'd been a clear call to action from advocates, hundreds or even thousands of people may have called their Representatives last week to say, "Hey, when Rep. Farrar files her breastfeeding bill next year, I want you to support it."

Last week, while recovering from my 5-year-old's big birthday party and coordinating the Austin location's Best for Babes Miracle Milk Mother's Day Stroll, I managed to contact the United States Breastfeeding Committee, one of the models from the ads, one of the student designers, and their professors.  But by the time I had sussed out the truth about the mock campaign, there was no getting ahead of it.  It was already headed to HuffPo.

Believe you me, I'm beating myself up that I haven't managed to be all over the comments on all the posts and articles, telling people to contact their legislators (even out of Texas, because the majority of states lack an enforcement provision).   But have you ever felt like once something is this big, nobody is listening anymore - like everyone just wants to hear the sound of his or her own voice?  The comments section can be a dark and grimy place to be...

I've left a few comments, at least.  I have been in contact with the students and their professor over the past week and a half, though I don't know yet where that will lead (which is why it's taken me an eternity to get this post up).  I've posted the update to our lege blog.  I really have been trying to ensure that this promotion of our bill actually manages to support the bill before this cycles out of the spotlight.

There is another cycle, in the breastfeeding community, where something is shown and is huge initially, then after it fades, someone who hadn't seen it shares it again months later and there's a whole new wave of shares.

So if this fizzles in the coming week, hopefully it'll resurface in a couple of months, and next time, hopefully the coverage will be accurate and supporters will be directed to TXBFLeg.  Because the ads are right, of course: "a baby should never be nurtured where nature calls."

You can see an interview with the students and one of the mothers featured in the ad here.

Have you been moved by these ads?  

What action have they persuaded you to take 

to support breastfeeding legislation?

Leave a comment below or join the conversation on Facebook.