Tuesday, August 23, 2005

No Nursing In the Toddler Room?

The Lone Star Baby has pretty much given up nursing upon arrival at daycare...she nurses before we get out of bed and before we leave home in the morning and she wants her yogurt and her cup when we get to daycare...that's her routine. In the two months or so between when she turned a year old and when she moved up to the toddler room, I had also gradually cut back on going to nurse her at mid-day in the nursery. The daycare is very far from my work so it has always been hard to get there, but I also knew that it would be less convenient to do so when she moved up to the toddler room since they have quite a few scheduled activities and the children eat and nap together at the same time. So, really, I have never expected to do too much nursing in the toddler room anyway. On some days, however, I have very late meetings and such, and a late afternoon nursing before the Lone Star Baby spends the whole evening with Daddy is in order. Monday was the first of those occasions since the big move. I casually mentioned to the teacher when I dropped the Lone Star Baby off in the morning that I had a late meeting that day, so I would probably come and nurse the Lone Star Baby after their naptime before I had to go. We chatted a little more about various things and I left as usual.

When I returned that afternoon, there had apparently been Discussion.

The teacher told me politely that since their room was "open" (it has a door, the top part of which is left open, that opens out onto the same hallway as most of the rooms, while the nursery is in a separate hallway and has a completely closed door), I could go nurse in the chapel across the hall, where there were chairs and stuff. The Lone Star Baby and I went to nurse in the chapel. I was not at all mad at the teacher, as I doubted it came from her, but I really was sort of mad, as nursing is nothing that needs to be hidden and is something that I have a right to do anywhere. It didn't really even make sense...who were they hiding us from? Almost all the children in the toddler room began in the nursery and saw us nursing there as did their parents. All of the staff at the daycare are in and out of the nursery on a regular basis and they saw us nursing...what was different? Nothing, really, except that they simply did not expect nursing at the Lone Star Baby's age, I guess. No one else besides her had nursed in the nursery either, though, so that hardly seemed relevant.

I did not make a fuss. The toddler room teacher is a fantastic teacher and has to engage in way too much emotional work with way too many little people during the course of the day as it is. I appreciate her and do not want to rock her boat unnecessarily. The Lone Star Baby was perfectly happy to nurse in the chapel, so I let it go. I felt marginalized, though. I didn't like it.

6 comments:

Saints and Spinners said...

I am incredulous that this would be an issue in the toddler room of all areas. Of course, I am incredulous that it is an issue at all. But it is. Did you hear about Ken Schram's major gaffe in Seattle?

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/jamieson/230375_robert28.html

Saints and Spinners said...

Oh, and here is the op-ed piece referenced in the previously posted op-ed piece!

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/jamieson/227970_robert10x.html

I nursed my daughter for 11 months (she self-weaned after that), and never had any issues regardling public nursing other than worrying about squirting someone in the eye. (This was a real risk!) There was a guy who said, "Oh, I guess I'd better leave now," which irked me, but in general, my experience was pretty congenial. I write this not to say, "Oh, it's better over here!" but to give other states hope that this can become more of the norm. There are still bozos like Schram and Walters, but there will always be bozos like Schram and Walters, no matter how enlightened we all become.

Lone Star Ma said...

Yes, I saw the horrid Schram piece. Even in the face of his disgusting ignorance and intolerance, I was pleased to see the anchor on his very own show immediately call him an idiot - yay. The columist in your second post is awfully cool, too!

I have mainly had positive experiences when nursing in public (although I should admit that I give off a very intimidating vibe somehow so fewer people than usual would mess with me), but far too many women are harassed about it everywhere. So many women have such a struggle with nursing and that will not get better as long as women never see other women nursing and never see it as just a normal thing. Can you tell I feel strongly about this?

gojirama said...

Oh, that would piss me off. This was a subject in the nursery when HRH was a nursing toddler, and luckily the ruling was "Nurse wherever you want".

the mystic said...

I nursed two babies for 21 months each and found that the older they got, the more squeamish other people got. That's likely what is happening to you. It's annoying, but I probably would have done what you did and just let it go.

Veloute said...

Oooo, that would make me rather angry, too. Not at the teacher, as you said. But this shouldn't even be an issue. It's just breastfeeding! Sigh.