Living in California affords me with many advantages – especially being a mama, we have extra time off (in addition to FMLA) to be with our children (CFRA), we get paid part of our salary while we are out with our children (SDI, PFL) and when we do decide to go back to work there are laws protecting our rights as breastfeeding mamas (our employers are required by law to allow us time to pump and a lactation room to do it in).
Unfortunately my friends who live out of state don’t have these same rights or advantages. So there is a Breastfeeding Promotion Act to sign and send to Congress to urge our legislatures to sign this into law and help make it possible for women to continue nursing their babies even after they have returned to work. This is what the Act would do…..
• amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect breastfeeding women from being fired or discriminated against in the workplace
• provides tax incentives for businesses that establish private, lactation areas in the workplace
• provides for a performance standard for breast pumps
• allows breastfeeding equipment to be tax deductible for families
Please click on the link and sign the petition to be sent to congress to get this Act approved.
For me, breastfeeding was a given. I didn’t care where I was, who was around, etc. I just knew my children were going to be breastfed regardless of what measures I had to take ( spending every lunch, and break in a closet in my office pumping – sooooo worth it!) Unfortunately, not everyone is as accepting and some women feel embarrassed or modest about it and don’t feel comfortable nursing in public or asking their employers for a spot to pump. So if we can get this Act to become National we can open up some avenues for women who may have given up on nursing upon their return to work, or worse yet not even tried because they knew they would have to stop once they returned to work. Also I think it’s important, on a national level, for our society to move beyond the taboo and the stares when a woman nurses in public. I remember sitting at a mall in Illinois and I sat down on a bench to nurse and people actually took double takes. I was blown away. I know where I live in California it’s the norm (I think people may get looks for giving a bottle as opposed to a breast) but I definitely felt some stares and sideway glances – as if they were saying “can you believe she’s not being more discreet or can you believe she’s doing that in public”. Just a bit of a weird feeling (but of course it made me want to do it more – because it’s such a beautiful act and people should appreciate it and not fear it).
Anyways, please sign and send off to our local legislature if you support the breastfeeding mamas.
Nurse on Mama’s!!
This weekend was the annual Harmany Festival in Santa Rosa – one of my favorite festivals. We went Saturday to see Michael Franti and Spearhead and a bonus was the Sierra Leone Refugee Allstars (who were incredible and have an incredible story). The Refugee All Stars actually met in a refugee camp in Sierra Leone where they were “living” after they had to flee their homes due to the rebels. They met some of their members in other camps – the one member was an orphan, two of the members had limbs amputated by the rebels and they were given some old instruments by a Canadian aid organization. Yet through these horrific events, an absolutely incredible and uplifting group of musicians was born. The music is the kind that gets you up off your tired bum and gets you groovin’ and smiling! And it’s a good reminder of how good life is. And of course, Michael Franti is the epitome of feeling good music and getting up and groovin’ ( “How ya’ll feelin’!?”) He always has a message and is all about Peace and Love and you can feel it through his music. Two groups I highly recommend if they are in your area.
The Harmony Fest has been going on for 31 years. It is a festival about healthy living, alternative living, eco-conscious living, peaceful living and just good living in general. They have some of the most amazing speakers (Starhawk and Julia Butterfly Hill - two of my faves), classes/workshops/lectures, yoga, dance, meditation, body work, etc. You can camp the entire weekend under the redwoods. One year I am going to do that so I can attend some of the workshops and lectures and just get completely lost in “Harmony”. We just went for the day – and there is no way to cover 1/4 of the Festival, but with the kids and $ (and Milo and Mo) we just enjoyed a wonderful day of Utopia!
I’m still on a high from being there. It will take a couple days to come down from my Utopian high. I get so energized from being at an event such as this. You see all the incredible ideas for eco living, healthy living, wonderful artists and a lot of “conscious” individuals in one location – yes it’s inspiring.
Have you been inspired lately? What has gotten you inspired?
I do not know what is happening with the bugs this year but they are devouring our plants. We have a lovely little strawberry patch that has treated us well for a few years now. Of course there are always some we lose to the bugs- it’s inevitable, but this year it seems they are cleaning up our patch. Every strawberry we go to pick has something eating it on the other side. It’s very frustrating.
I have our bug patrol on it and it’s still not helping (the bug patrol are Doug and Ryder). They make “Bug Juice” and set out traps. And those traps are full. (sorry for the yucky images to come)
The “bug juice” consists of canola/veggie oil and soy sauce – it is FABULOUS! We used to do beer in a cat food or tuna can but beer evaporates too quickly AND who wants to waste beer! In our house that’s blasphemy. Plus at the cost of the beer we like to drink – WAY TOO expensive to be using to catch bugs.
Anyways – we’ve lost a couple veggie starts also to the little buggers. Our raised beds seem to be unharmed, but anything that has been planted throughout the rest of the garden is taking a beating.
(our lettuce is thriving)
Ryder is upset about the roly poly’s that are falling victim to the bug juice so we need to empty the contents of the containers without him. He LOVES his roly poly friends!
I have tried to be more Zen about the snails – if I do find them sludging around the garden, I pick them up and put them in our green waste bin. That way – once they leave our property – I have nothing to do with what happens next (even though technically I do since I put them in there) but I feel a bit more Buddhist about not harming them. But whoever falls victim to our bug juice, well, it’s survival of the fittest and I like my veggies to be slug/bug free or at least just not devoured by them – I would actually like to eat them.
To make up for the graphic images of the slugs meeting their untimely death I will end with some pics from around our yard……..
our Rudbeckia ready to open
alstromeria in bloom
this year we are trying upside down tomatoes – I’ll let you know how they work out.
our new ultra dwarf nectarine (haven’t even put it in the ground yet).
How is your garden doing? Anybody else experiencing the destruction of our little garden foes?
Since Ryder was 2 I have been wanting to make a maypole and invite other families over to dance under/around it and make flower wreaths and garland, play music, make may day baskets, drink and be merry. Well, it’s never happend. For one reason or another May 1 comes upon us and quickly leaves and nothing happens – no maypole, no dancing, no nothing. Until this year!
At school, Ryder made a mini maypole and I commented to Teacher Kathleen “oh, I’ve been wanting to make a maypole forever” and her comment was “you should talk to Teacher Joyce (Kathleen’s mom – whose a really groovy lady) she’d love to do one.” Well, that’s all I needed to hear. So we all decided to make one for the graduation.
Doug and I worked on it the night before graduation.
I had wanted to use fresh greenery and flowers but in the end it just didnt’ work out that way.
But I was thrilled with how it turned out. We did incorporate some fresh flowers (courtesy of Oak Hill Farm) and our friend Krissy.
Now we can use it year after year. ( I may have to borrow the pole from the school and have a little May Day party at our house finally!)
The kids had a bit of trouble with it – I think they wanted to do a little more tugging than dancing – but they still had fun ( I think?) and it was totally cute!
Thank you Moldovanfor always being open to my hair brain ideas/visions!
Oh, and to top it all off, they dedicated the garden to us and made a sign over it “The Calhoun Family Garden” – we’ve been memorialized! I’m humbled!
