You guys know I like to discuss anything interesting and controversial in the media, so imagine my curiosity when I ran across a story dealing with a recent cover of Time magazine featuring a mother breastfeeding.
Some of you might say, so what?
Well, this is not your normal, warm and fuzzy moment of a mother nursing a doe eyed Gerber baby; no this cover features a modern mom in skinny jeans and a tank top with her 3-year-old toddler standing on a chair in Reebok tennis shoes and camouflage pants attached to her left breast like a Garfield car window suction toy.
Jamie Grumet is the woman caught in the middle of this lactating lunacy, but she says she was prepared for the heat.
The 26 year old mom shared with Access Hollywood that, “We knew what we were getting into and [that] there would be a lot of backlash.”
She went on to share with ABC news that,"The statement that I wanted to make was this is a normal option for your child and it should not be stigmatized.” I wonder how that is working out for you, boo?
Grumet seems to be part of a growing movement called “attachment parenting.” The movement may be new but, according to William and Martha Sears, pioneers in the practice and teaching of attachment parenting, this philosophy has been practiced for years in many cultures. So why are some of us so squeamish?
What exactly is attachment parenting? It sounds like you carry your child around in a pouch like you’re some kind of modern, liberal, tofu-eating, café-latte drinking, carpooling marsupial.
Actually, Dr. William Sears, who is an associate clinical professor of pediatrics at UCI School of Medicine in Irvine, Ca., described attachment parenting as the process of creating a warm, loving bond with babies and children through physical and emotional closeness.
Ok, so far I am with you.
He goes on to say it’s about responding to the babies’ cues and fulfilling their needs.
This does not sound to groundbreaking to me. The baby cries, you feed it. You smell something, you change it. Sounds pretty much like standard practice.
But this is where it is gets a little new age. Williams goes on to explain that parents achieve the goal of attachment parenting through three main activities: breastfeeding, co-sleeping and baby wearing.
Baby wearing? I told you there was a kangaroo reference in here somewhere…lol.
Now before some of you dismiss our Time magazine mom as a mainstream phenomenon, you should read an article written by Jeneba Ghatt called “Hey, Time Magazine: I Am a Black Attachment Parent.” Apparently there are some black folks who subscribe to this philosophy.
Ghatt shares in her article that “I endured all the critical and judgmental looks and questions from friends asking, ‘You’re still breastfeeding?’ Knowing the benefits for reducing SIDS risk, ear infection, asthma, diabetes and obesity, it was a no-brainer for me, though among women in my racial group I knew I made the exception, not the norm.” Don’t you hate it when folks are all up in your business?
Now I must admit that I am old-school, so I grew up with relatives and women who routinely whipped out the girls at Sunday dinners, the laundromat, barbeques, birthday parties, family reunions and even church. So what is an appropriate age to back up off the breast?
I know many have their own opinions, but I would like to offer Professor Locs’ Top 5 signs your child may be too old to still be breastfeeding:
5. Before your bouncing boy can latch on, he first has to take out his gold grill.
4. Your child has an annoying habit of interrupting this intimate bonding process by texting.
3. You notice that on Saturday morning your child is starting to show up with a bowl of cereal to watch cartoons while feeding.
2. Your child insists on posting pics of him breastfeeding on his Facebook page.
1. Your child likes to add breast milk to his black coffee while reading the Sunday paper.
Please share your thoughts….smile.
