I remember when my best friend had her son. We were in our early twenties, I was still in school and had no interest in having a baby just yet. I enjoyed watching her become a mom and breastfeeding her child, although I had no intention of breastfeeding my own (these are my breasts thank you very much…oh how times change). I remember when her son was two and wanted to nurse. It didn’t matter if we were in the comfort of her home or in the food court at the mall, he would waltz up to her, lift her shirt up stating “I want boobie!” and latch himself onto her breast, much to my horror. Great gorgonzola I thought, I would never! I firmly believed that if my child could ask for the boobie, she no longer needed the boobie. Once again, how times change.

When my own daughter started talking, I was not ready to stop breastfeeding. Not only was I a breastfeeder, I LOVED breastfeeding. I just couldn’t stop, not yet. And so I became the mom who breastfed an older child.

I remember breastfeeding her when she was about 2 years old, sitting in front of city hall and having a woman run up to me exclaiming “you’re breastfeeding a toddler!” I wasn’t sure what she meant by this, was this a confrontation waiting to happen or a congratulatory statement? I said nothing until she spoke again so as not to misjudge and I’m glad I did. She went on to say how happy she was to see me breastfeeding a toddler because it was such a rare thing in our day and age and then she handed me a pamphlet to a mom’s group she belonged to that needed moms who supported and encouraged breastfeeding older children. Well, I never made it to the moms group for lack of time, but I never forgot the exchange and I am still grateful for it.

It is true, to see a woman breastfeeding an older child is a rare sight, and I too approach those moms to tell them what a lovely sight it is and thank them for moving against the norm. I found another mom who is going one step further.

Ann Sinnott, whose 15 year old daughter self-weaned at the age of six and a half, is writing a book about breastfeeding children three years and older. Sinnott’s goal is to challenge the ignorance and prejudice surrounding long-term breastfeeding and to change the negativity attached to it by showing it as a healthy, loving and normal practice.

She is looking for long-term breastfeeding mothers, past and present, and moms who are currently breastfeeding children 18 months to two years who have no intention to wean just yet or who are considering long-term breastfeeding, to complete a questionnaire. So far, questionnaires have been returned from all over the world. She is hoping that this project will be an opportunity for long-term breastfeeding mothers’ around the world to stand up for their belief and help create a positive change in the world.

If you are a long-term breastfeeder, stand up and be counted! Go to http://homepage.ntlworld.com/ann.sinnott/index.htm and scroll down to download the questionnaire. Confidentiality and anonymity is assured.

UPDATE: Ann Sinnot’s book “Breastfeeding Older Children’ is soon to be released and is available for pre-publication order on Amazon. Ann has set-up a page you can go to for more information and to read reviews and comments about the book.

Earlier this year I promised to review each nursing top I wear to give you the pros and cons of each style I try out. Since I am a fashion hound, I have quite a selection of nursing tops and am quickly developing likes and dislikes. I love to breastfeed, but I just can’t bring myself to don the “all around” style of nursing top. Am I a fashion mistake wearing a midriff bearing top over a t-shirt? I think not. I will find a nursing top I absolutely and truly love, yes I will. This first top is not quite THAT top.

I was pretty excited when I saw the Sleeveless Faux Wrap Tank at Motherhood. It was black, it was a tank top and well, its summer. I must say, this top has worked out very well. It has the nursing shelf bra inside which is rather comfortable and snug, so it has good support, in the beginning anyway, but I digress. You simply pull aside the outer wrap layer to access the nursing openings in the bra layer underneath, simple, comfortable, not terribly revealing. I’ve been wearing this one quite a bit, on its’ own, under sweaters and jackets, it’s been a great all around nursing top.

Sadly, I think that is its’ downfall. It’s such a great nursing top that I’ve been wearing it so often and as happens when you breastfeed, you leak and soak your top with breast milk so you have to wash and dry it so often that it becomes faded and not so snug. My top is now faded and not so snug. The outer cross wrap layer has stretched out and has started to sag. The outer wrap layer drops below the inner bra layer, so what you see is a band of black fabric, bare skin, and then the rest of the top…not so attractive. The only way to make that top bounce back is to dry it on hot so it shrinks a bit, but give it an hour or two and that outer wrap layer is sagging…once again, not so attractive.

This is a great, basic piece for your nursing wardrobe, and I will most likely grab another one because the one I have has now been relegated to bedtime wear. That faded sagginess will not be seen out of doors again. So I have learned a few things with this first nursing top. What have I learned? If you find a basic breastfeeding top that has the potential to become a wardrobe staple, buy more than one! Wash on gentle and line dry.