meembo

Breastfeeding is a beautiful part of having a child, and I like the idea of Americans getting more used to these kinds of natural and beautiful things of the body, instead of getting even more repressed about expressions of the body in general.

My wife never wanted to breastfeed our boys out in the open in public, but she did all the time with a blanket over her shoulder. In the midwest, I used to see more moms do it in the open, but here in the Northeast I don't see it often at all.

As for eyeing the boobage -- I make it a point to interact with women breastfeeding if they choose to stay in a social setting while breastfeeding. Doing nothing or pretending nothing unusual is hapenening tends to make everyone nervous, and what's the point in that? Obviously, staring isn't cool, but looking and even asking a polite question to someone you know is very cool. It's a two-sided situation -- a woman who chooses to stay in a social setting while breastfeeding has to determine her own level of discretion and comfort with what's she's doing. As a man, I have to assume that's she's already figured that out for herself if she whips one out (or both, sometimes, to switch-hit).

And if it makes you nervous to see a woman breastfeed, it's a great time to think about why. If your reasons are solid, then do something else. I think most people consider breastfeeding intimate but not offensive or sexual in any way.

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