Wednesday, April 14, 2010

blog giveaways page Ultimate blog party

Ultimate Blog Party!

Ultimate Blog Party 2010

My party post:  I'm a SAHM with a six month old boy and I am a researcher at heart.  My blog is all about my experiences as a researcher, and my experiences as a new mom, plus lots of links to sites on nutrition, birth and more.  See my main page http://melissaneece.blogspot.com/2007/09/why-this-blog-exists.html for more information!

I am an alternative mom - I believe in attachment parenting, prointactivism, probreastfeeding, procosleeping, probabywearing, proLive Foods/Raw foods, pro natural health.  This all came about through educating myself throughout my early thirties to the present, and meeting wonderful people along the way.


From the Ultimate Blog site:

It is about friendship, growing your network, and having some good old fashioned blogging FUN!
If you are partying with us for the first time… The Ultimate Blog Party has become an exciting tradition in the “Momosphere”. It is a bloggy carnival where participating bloggers publish a “party post” introducing themselves and then party hop through the linky lists meeting other bloggers.

The blogging life is about relationships — meaningful friendships that grow out of sharing who we are and getting to know one another. And like real life friendships, online friends need a place to meet and mingle.


So if you want to grow your network, meet new friends or promote your site, get ready for the Ultimate Blog Party 2010!!!


My Prize List:

US51 – Two winners will receive a lillebaby EveryWear carrier – the carrier you can wear every way, every where. Choose from Style, Sport or Organic.
Provided by: Scandinavian Child

USC 61 – A Sleepy Wrap baby carrier in winner’s choice of color from NAP, Inc.
Provided by: Jana Grayson (Sidetrack’d)

US30 – For one winner a little extra something to use with your Nesting Pillow or on its own, The Nest Egg gives support for your head, arm, breast, or for a little extra height under baby’s head.
Provided by: Blessed Nest 

USC 22 – Cushie Pushie Breast Support Pillow for Nursing Moms- a pillow designed to help you gain the correct breast position for easier breastfeeding.
Provided by: Cushie Pushie Company

US101 – One lucky winner will get this $450 Human Touch Foot and Calf Massager that is being given away by Still Blonde after All These Years!, a blog for women over 45.

US39 -Be My Guest certificate ($250 value) for one lucky winner, (2 night stay for a family of four) at any Hilton Garden Inn.
Provided by: Hilton Garden Inn

US74 -  We will give away 2 (1 for each winner) – $30 Amazon gift cards to the winner so they can buy items of their choosing.
Provided by: Afullcup.com

US31 – A $20 Amazon gift certificate.
Provided by: Jennifer Sikora (For Such a Time as This) 

US32 – $25 Target Gift Card!
Provided by: The Frugal Novice 



US52 – A $25 GC to Amazon.com.
Provided by: The Product Review Place

US69 – The Itty-Bitty Bookworm is a literature-based preschool curriculum. One winner will receive a year of our Bo Curriculum for 3-5 year olds. One winner will receive a year of our Bailey Curriculum for 18-36 month olds.
Provided by: The Itty-Bitty Bookworm

USC 8 – $55 E-Gift Card for Amazon.com Gift code will be emailed to the winner and can be used for purchases from Amazon.com.
Provided by: Kelly’s Lucky You

USC 15 – $50 Target gift card to one winner.
Provided by: Haley Quarles of Love, Life, Family…and then some

USC 3 – A $50.00 Target Gift Card.
Provided by: Peggy Gorman

US70 – $25 Kroger Gift Certificate
Provided by: Saidah @ A Proverbs Wife

US73 – We will give away 2 (1 for each winner) – $30 Amazon gift cards to the winner so they can buy items of their choosing.
Provided by: Escalate Network

US84 – One $25 Gift Certificate to Shutterfly.com.
Provided by: Scraps of My Geek Life


US87 – 2 winners will receive a $30.00 Amazon Gift Certificate.
Provided by: Christine/LiveLaughLoveCj

US88 – $25 E-Gift card to Amazon.com!
Provided by: Faith’s Firm Foundation

 US104 – Shoot Me Now is giving away one $50 Visa Vanilla Gift Card.
Provided by: Shoot Me Now!

US112 – $50 Amazon Gift card
Provided by: Robyn ~ Our Homeschool Home

US113 – $25 Walmart Gift Certificate
Provided by: Susan Stahley
Follow here: rsmstahley
US114 – $25 Walmart Gift Certificate
Provided by: Mary’s Country Life
Follow here: missunny

USC 35 - $50.00 CASH ~ Paypal Transfer. ($50 USD or current CAD conversion rate)
Provided by: American Muslim Mom

USC 37 – One winner will receive a $50 gift card to Amazon.com on here but that’s not it! There will be many other giveaways listed on my party post that you’ll want to check out!!!
Provided by: Shasher’s Life

USC 39 – A $50 paypal cash prize for one winner.
Provided by: MomDot

USC 40 – $20 Gift Certificate to Amazon.com.
Provided by: SandwichINK

USC 44 – $20 Gift Certificate to Amazon.com.
Provided by: Tara’s View on Books

USC 52 – TOT YOGA, a DVD that teaches yoga for toddlers from 10 months to 3 years old.
Provided by: Tuesdays at Ten, Ltd.


























Here are some great giveaways from around the internet.

Enter To WIN:IPSPrizeBag2010

-In Plain Sight Canvas Travel Bag
-In Plain Sight Luggage Tag
-In Plain Sight T-Shirt
-In Plain Sight Season 1 DVD
-In Plain Sight Season 2 DVD

To Enter:

go to:
http://momstart.com/2010/03/in-plain-sight-prize-pack-giveaway/

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Facebook - God Created Breasts for Breastfeeding

....not as men's personal play toys.

The brouhaha over Facebook deleting breastfeeding photos and closing accounts is heating up.  At least it is getting people to talk about it - and perhaps reexamine their thinking and attitudes toward breastfeeding.

Here is a great article:
The Most Obscene Debate on the Internet by Leigh Shulman
http://matadorlife.com/the-most-obscene-debate-on-the-internet/

The comments after this article are also really great - I was up way too late reading them all. At the end of this blog post, I included some excerpts from those comments.




I posted this article on facebook and it actually sparked a discussion among my friends, which of course led me to some deep thinking and so here is a long treatise on how I feel about the whole issue.



Here is another great website: The NIN Project – Nursing Is Normal

http://www.kathyobrien.org/NINgallery.htm





The first part is my first reaction to the article and the group discussion. Then I had a day to think about it and thus, wrote the second part.



First Reaction: I know that I try to nurse discreetly (though large and x-large chested women have more trouble with that) in public, especially in a room where there are men that I personally know. Not because I feel embarrassed, but because I don't want them to feel embarrassed. I'm not quite sure if I should feel this way, ie, if someone has a problem they should remove themselves from the situation, not us (the whole 'put a blanket over your head if you’re offended' slogan) though of course there is a world of difference between offending someone with breastfeeding, and embarrassing your male friends. I think the women that I talk to are more upset about the people who are actually offended by breastfeeding (like when someone compares it to urinating in public, as if urinating and breastfeeding are the same thing) than the people that are just embarrassed (ie, they don't want their male friends to think about their breasts in this way). However, a lot of attitude towards breastfeeding does come from our oversexualized society. The same people that do not have a problem with bikinis and thongs on the beach tend to have major problems with breastfeeding, and that is an ingrained type of problem that I think a lot of women would like to change. I just wonder how much a problem breastfeeding in public would be if everyone just saw it naturally growing up. For 30 to 40 years in America, formula was touted as superior to breastmilk, and nobody breastfed (which is one of the reasons our obesity epidemic is so high) so we all became accostomed to feeding a baby by bottle. I was breastfeeding in front of male children the other day (one was 11) and I wondered about it if it was ok, but as I watched their reactions, it was somewhat neat, because they just continued to play and be themselves, and just acted like it was normal that the baby was being fed this way. I think all their moms breastfed them and their siblings, and so they were just accustomed to it. I think that is the "militant" breastfeeders main goal is just to get people accustomed to breastfeeding, and so that most decent people will think it is something completely normal. What I think is most sad is when I see young women think its completely gross. I definitely would like to see that type of attitude to change.



A Day Later Reaction:

One of the reason that women are upset with facebook is that facebook's policy is simply that the nipple has to be covered. So they allow pasty and tassle clad breasts and string bikinis, but do not allow breastfeeding - even closing the accounts of breastfeeding mothers. This is discrimination, and the reason why they are suing facebook.



I have also found that as a large chested woman with an active baby, it is almost impossible to "nurse discreetly", and I am not going nurse in the bathroom.



It shows how we as a society are when we think of nothing of posting ourselves in a swimsuit or even a bikini on facebook, but are offended by breastfeeding .



It doesn’t help that in America, we have to learn the art of breastfeeding – its very hard work which is why only 1/3 of American women are still breastfeeding after 3 months. Unlike other cultures, our mothers did not teach us how to breastfeed, and so many of us have latch issues at the beginning. Lactation consultants are on the rise as more women are willing to get help in order to feed their baby. As an example of how breastfeeding is portrayed in the media, on the tv show The Office the other day, a male lactation consultant was clinically showing Pam how to breastfeed. She accepted him as a clinical person who knew what he was doing. Jim her husband however had very wrong thinking and had a problem with it. Dr. Jack Newman is a very famous male doctor and lactation consultant and has written many books on the subject of breastfeeding. So there are such things as male lactation consultants.



And that’s another issue – we need to continue to educate men on the importance of breastfeeding so that they will support their wives and girlfriends in this endeavor. It is very hard to breastfeed if you don’t have your male partner’s support. So I think the campaign for more breastfeeding needs to be in two parts – one to educate women that breastfeeding is important for the health of the baby and the mother (google 101 reasons to breastfeed to find out more) and to educate men that breasts are not only for sex and that breastfeeding is normal, natural and there is nothing to be “grossed out” about. The other part of the breastfeeding campaign is to make it easier for women to work and breastfeed. For many women their workplace is not at all breastfeeding friendly. I think the more women insist upon the right to breastfeed, the better off we as a society are. It is the women who will get this change accomplished, and one way is to breastfeed in public, and the other way is to insist that breastfeeding is portrayed as normal in all entertainment mediums. Including facebook.



Back to Facebook -

It should be about the reason behind the exposure. Women in low cut tops that show cleavage are trying to look beautiful and sexy. The aim is to look attractive to others. Same goes for bikinis and halter tops and anything else that shows off breasts.. Breastfeeding mothers however are not showing off their breasts to be attractive, they are simply trying to feed their babies.



Indecent exposure is against the law. But in order for there to be indecent exposure, there must be the opposite – decent exposure. Breastfeeding is considered decent exposure which is why there are laws protecting breastfeeding in public in most states.



I think we do men a disservice when we believe that they are not capable of multi-faceted thinking. Men can see breasts as sexual, but they are also capable of seeing them in different ways. Doctors are very good at this – enjoying their wives’ breasts but seeing all others as simply part of the human body. In fact, if they don’t have that capability, their thinking processes are considered deviant. I think men who are turned on by or uncomfortable with All breast exposure have deviant thinking – they are not thinking right (and were probably not raised around normal breastfeeding). For instance, I myself would have no problem with my husband being in a room full of breastfeeding women. He is capable of thinking of women as being thinking individuals, not sexual objects. He would not be “turned on” by breastfeeding women. I think men who can only think about breasts in one way have deviant thinking and need to be more introspective and figure out why they are that way.



I guess I myself tend to be very introspective. I have greatly different attitudes and perspectives now than the way I thought in my 20’s. Experience and research have taught me a lot, but I have also learned to think things through. If something makes me feel uncomfortable, I dig to the root of the matter and figure out why it makes me feel that way. Is it ok to feel uncomfortable about that, or do I need to change my thinking and expose myself to it more until I feel more comfortable with it. For instance, I always thought it was weird to breastfeed a child past 2 ½ when they really start to talk in complete sentences. Now that I’ve been exposed to older children breastfeeding, and now that I have done the research showing the many benefits of a four or five year old breastfeeding, I now have no problem with women choosing to “full term breastfeed”. Of course, it also helps to have worked with many children ages 2-7 and so many of them have babyish qualities until about the age of 7. Researchers say that children will usually self-wean sometime between the ages of 3 and 7, and that biologically, that is what is suppose to happen – how God created it. It is humans that twisted their thinking and perverted something God has created.



Speaking of God, its interesting (and somewhat difficult) to breastfeed in church.

I’ve been to several churches lately, and it varies widely on what they have for breastfeeding mothers. There was nothing at Tate Springs Baptist, I ended up in a unused classroom, and missed half the service. At the United Methodist of Hurst, they actually have it in the bulletin that you can watch the service in the parlor (with couches). That was nice. At Crossroads of Arlington, they have a tv in the hallway by the nursery. There is a changing station and chairs in front of the tv to watch the service. However, there is also a chair surrounded by screens, that if you sit there, you can’t see the tv, which defeats the purpose. Also, for me, its highly claustrophobic. So I just sat in one of the chairs in front of the tv, and hopefully all know if they come to that hallway, that they might see breastfeeding taking place. What I would really like is if we could all feel comfortable sitting in the service, doing what God intended us to do, what He made breasts for. Since Christ was breastfed, and if we are all to emulate Christ, churches should always encourage breastfeeding mothers. Hopefully one day, breastfeeding will become so normalized that people won’t see it as sexualized at all, and nobody will feel uncomfortable and can feed their baby wherever they want to.


I guess my main thought was that I believe that children should be exposed to as much breastfeeding as possible so that they will grow up thinking that it is a normal and natural process that should be encouraged. I want my son to have a "don't mind me, its ok" type of attitude towards breastfeeding. I don't want him to grow up thinking its sexual or perverted in any way, that a woman has to go off and hide if she wants to breastfeed.



Personally, I'd rather breastfeed in the car in public if I'm by myself because then I can listen to the radio. Its boring to sit on a bench and nurse in public. However, in the Texas heat this summer, that might be another story....


As far as breast exposure goes, I think my attitude towards it was shaped very early in life by seeing so much art work in the museums across Europe during my teenage years. Breasts and breastfeeding has traditionally been portrayed as being beautiful (especially Mary/Baby Jesus portraits) in all classical art. I guess I just don't see it as sinful if a man catches sight of my breast if I'm breastfeeding. I think intent is important - ie, if I'm showing my breasts to entice a man to have sex vs. I'm showing my breast to feed my baby.


Also, breastfeeding for me is validation. I've always had these great big annoying breasts that have hurt my back and make idiotic men stare at my chest and make it hard to exercise, swim, dance, or do anything fun. I've never thought they looked very attractive, they were just there to be put up with. Breastfeeding finally gives them purpose and meaning and a revelation of "oh, that's what God created them for" type of mentality.

Here is my husband's point of view towards the attitudes of facebook and other issues.  He is a freelance writer (contact me if you want him to write for you) and a manuscript editor (contact me if you want him to edit for you).  I just love his post, and would love to see it published somewhere.  This is the type of attitude more men need to have towards breastfeeding!
 
From Kevin C. Neece:
 
It is really a sexist view that proclaims that women are intelligent and responsible and can make choices about how they respond to stimuli and that men are just drooling animals, uncontrollably dominated by their passions because they are basically too dull-witted to do otherwise. Saying that men “can’t help it” or “are wired that way” may seem like compassion and consideration for men, but in reality it is a degrading gender bias. The truth is that we should expect all adults to behave like adults regardless of their gender.



As a man, I am personally tired of hearing such views bandied about so easily as though they are not at all bigoted. It may be culturally acceptable, but it is wrong to expect men to be the lowest common denominator of our species. Adult men are expected to be and are often portrayed as no more than college frat boys with families. But college frat boys are just junior high boys with newfound freedom and legal permission. And junior high boys are just elementary school boys with sex drives. So essentially, we are telling men that their progress as a gender is so stunted that they can never truly be expected to grow out of boyhood. This is now excused because we tell them that they are genetically wired to be too stupid to grow up. When you place no expectations of civility and maturity on any human being, they will more often than not respond to those expectations by remaining in the realm of their baser instincts. If, however, people are treated as beings capable of civilized, respectful behavior, they develop as such.

Moreover, the story of human progress tell us that the basic project of being human consists of learning, changing, growing, and trying to become more than what we are. By insisting that men are incapable of advancing themselves in a conscious, focused manner, we are depriving them of their basic dignity as human beings by ignoring their potential to grow in positive, civil and mature directions.


As a man married to a breastfeeding mother, to whom I am very sexually attracted, I can say that simply having developed the mindset of the natural, feeding function of the female breasts has allowed me to consistently view my wife’s breasts as sources of food when seen in a functional context, and as sources of arousal when seen in a sexual context. There has never been any confusion between the two. I did not have to be trained or desensitized. All I had to do was learn about the purpose and beauty of breastfeeding. Were the activity of public breastfeeding more common and accepted in our culture in general, and were our expectations of men inclusive of more than unthinking Neanderthal-like sex drives, there would not be an issue regarding the response of intelligent, civilized men to public breastfeeding. A mother must be asked to do no less than put the needs of her child before other considerations. A man’s response to what he may or may not see for a brief moment is his own to deal with.



The breastfeeding conversation among Christians today tends to focus on nipples, nudity, and naughtiness. Instead, Christians should be about the business of helping to develop a view of breastfeeding as normal, natural, and necessary. Part of that process includes the promotion of breastfeeding as an acceptable, everyday experience. This may create some difficulties along the way for Christians who are now grown men, but it will also help prevent future complications for the Christian men of tomorrow. If our boys are raised in a culture that values and openly accepts the fullest, truest nature of the female breast, we can come one step closer to a world that no longer reduces breasts, and indeed women, to mere sex objects.



Familiarizing the younger generation with a broader understanding of the feeding function of breasts will help to prevent unnecessary and unwarranted sexual temptation in the future rather than creating such temptation by presuming a universally sexualized view of the breast. This is not about a few instances of men being bothered by seeing a little skin. It is about a process of cultural education and development toward a more enlightened future where sex is a natural part of life and not something that dominates our lives in a negative fashion. In this future, breastfeeding is placed in its proper context as a normal and necessary function of motherhood, no longer overshadowed by over-sexualization, nor oppressed by the tyranny of titillation. Therefore, normalizing public views of breastfeeding mothers is a move toward moral responsibility and away from the domination of sexual temptation. As such, it is important that it be carried out, not flippantly or defiantly, but with a focus on awareness, education, and acceptance.

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Sleep number giveaway on Mom Start

Really amazing blog giveaway on the Mom Start blog.  http://momstart.blogspot.com

http://momstart.com/2010/04/select-comfort-makers-of-the-sleep-number-bed-p5-mattress-giveaway/

Enter To Win:

Queen Sleep Number p5 bed set, + UPS shipping (ARV $2,059.97)
clip_image002Comes with the Wireless Remote; This is the perfect bed to relax because each side can be adjusted to the exact level of comfort, support and firmness you want at the touch of a button.
clip_image004 Comfort Layers
  • 11-inch European-style™ supersoft pillowtop features a knit that’s breathable to help you sleep comfortably.
  • A full two inches of our exclusive Intralux® comfort material responds quickly as you move.
  • Three unique zones naturally support your body’s curves.

To Enter:

Go to

http://momstart.com/2010/04/select-comfort-makers-of-the-sleep-number-bed-p5-mattress-giveaway/

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Literacy and Breastfeeding

I wrote this on my other blog post (scheduling and breastfeeding), but I liked it so much I thought it should have a page of its own. lol.

Another thought about scheduling breastfeeding - one mom told me, that yes she heard that some moms have trouble with babywise methods, but her babies did fine with them.  Its like literacy in schools.  Some kids will learn how to read no matter what curriculum you use, even if its dumb, while other children will greatly struggle with said curriculum.  Some children will learn how to read by only spending a few minutes a day on reading skills (ie. the usual elementary school setting) while other children need intensive one-on-one attention for hours a week in order to master the most basic of skills.  Are these children wrong to need this?  Are we "spoiling" them by spending time teaching them to read?  The other children get along fine with just basic classroom instruction, why can't they?  Is it all just a waste, should we let them just slip through the cracks, never knowing how to read?  Sure, just let them feed/read for a few minutes every 3 hours, they'll survive - but will they thrive?  Is that not how illiteracy multiplies - by assuming all children can learn alike, is that not how breastfeeding is sabotaged - by assuming all children can feed alike?  But what if every child had intensive one-on-one attention - the complacent ones, the ones that do just fine on a few minutes of learning every day, would they not then greatly exceed their potential?  If every baby was fed on demand, would those babies not only go beyond thriving, beyond their potential, and make us marvel at what they can truly accomplish?




- I was a Reading Specialist for several years, as well as a first grade teacher.  I plan to start tutoring again soon, please contact me if you have a child that struggles to read.

Scheduling Breastfeeding

 Here's a post I made on a website that welcomed comments from dissenting viewpoints.  Her main problem was that she is a woman who needs to have control in her life (like most American ambitious/career-oriented women) and so scheduled feedings for every 3 hours.  Some babies do ok being fed every three hours, but I have read so many anecdotes from women whose breastfeeding relationship was sabotaged by trying to schedule feedings.  After all, when you think about it, we eat when we are hungry, why can't baby?  I don't know about you, but I hate the painful feeling in the tummy when its empty, I can't imagine what a newborn baby feels about it.
What are they doing that is so important anyway?  Women keep saying that all their time is spent with the baby (hello?) and they can't get anything done.  So housework is more important than baby?  Grocery shopping more important? Television more important?  I finally got my kitchen back the way I like it at around 20 weeks of age, and I finally tackled several piles of laundry around the same time.  Baby and I went on our first grocery store trip together when he was 18 weeks old.  I always sent my husband or went when baby was sleeping before that.  Believe it or not, I am a bit of a control freak in that I want to know what is ahead, and plan for it accordingly.  I guess reading about newborns prepared my expectations in that I expected to be "tied down" to the baby for the first few months.  And I wouldn't change it for the world.  Women need to expect to give most of their attention to the baby - their life as they once knew it is over, and a new life (and in most ways, a better life) has begun. Oh, don't get me wrong, when he is available, baby often goes to daddy for a little mommy alone time, but I have always breastfed my baby when he is hungry.

Another thought about scheduling breastfeeding - one mom told me, that yes she heard that some moms have trouble with babywise methods, but her babies did fine with them.  Its like literacy in schools.  Some kids will learn how to read no matter what curriculum you use, even if its dumb, while other children will greatly struggle with said curriculum.  Some children will learn how to read by only spending a few minutes a day on reading skills (ie. the usual elementary school setting) while other children need intensive one-on-one attention for hours a week in order to master the most basic of skills.  Are these children wrong to need this?  Are we "spoiling" them by spending time teaching them to read?  The other children get along fine with just basic classroom instruction, why can't they?  Is it all just a waste, should we let them just slip through the cracks, never knowing how to read?  Sure, just let them feed/read for a few minutes every 3 hours, they'll survive - but will they thrive?  Is that not how illiteracy multiplies - by assuming all children can learn alike, is that not how breastfeeding is sabotaged - by assuming all children can feed alike?  But what if every child had intensive one-on-one attention - the complacent ones, the ones that do just fine on a few minutes of learning every day, would they not then greatly exceed their potential?  If every baby was fed on demand, would those babies not only go beyond thriving, beyond their potential, and make us marvel at what they can truly accomplish?


From my post:

Hi. Yes, from what I have discovered most moms that schedule baby feedings (every 3 hours) often have trouble with their milk supply. A lot of babies won't even put up with this because breastmilk digests completely in about an hour and a half so they are starving and they let you know it within 2 hours of the last feed. So if you must schedule, plan on every 2 hours in the beginning, but it is usually best to "feed on demand" for the first 8 weeks. I think this is nature's way of telling moms to slow down, rest a lot, and take care of their babies. Hysterectomies, cysts, and other uterus problems are on the rise because moms don't rest enough after giving birth - we also have one of the highest maternal death rates in the industrialized world - all because we don't rest enough after birth. As one midwife put it, if the big gaping wound that is our uterus could be seen on the outside, people would gasp and insist on bed rest for weeks. Because it can't be seen, moms are expected to do too much, and breastfeeding on demand really helps moms get the rest she requires, and the baby the milk he needs. Anyway, I digress, I've read countless stories like yours of how feeding a baby every 3 hours diminishes milk supply and then mom needs to supplement. However, all moms that I know that feed on demand have no supply issues (and if they do for a day, fenugreek often takes care of it) and often can breastfeed exclusively with no solid foods for 6 months to 12 months, depending on the baby's dietary needs (some families with food allergy histories need to exclusively breastfeed for a year or more with no solids or formula supplementation, this is with doctor approval and many cultures around the world naturally do this anyway).
I also know moms who breastfeed triplets exclusively - yes, this does mean she is tied down to those babies for a few months - but what is a few months of being with baby vs a lifetime of other experiences? Having a newborn and a baby is worth taking 6 months or so to devote exclusively to that baby - anybody who is TTC for 2 years or more would tell you that they would give anything and give up any experience to be able to be with a baby "on demand" for a few months of their life. I was TTC for 3 years and in the process befriended a lot of other TTC women so I know what I am talking about.  What's a movie/theater going experience or a business presentation worth in comparison to having a baby?  Not much in my mind.

I find that a lot of people's experiences depend on what type of culture they are surrounded with - those who have people who encourage moms to breastfeed, stay home and enjoy their baby and all their friends do this as well have a lot easier time breastfeeding than the moms who are surrounded by those with expectations that because she has a degree she is expected to have a career and that formula feeding is ok.

Also, a breastfed baby from the beginning does not gain the same weight as a formula fed baby - the range for breast fed babies is 4 oz to 10 oz a week (from 1 to 4 months)- either one is ok as long as they are peeing and pooping. Then from five months on it is about a pound a month. Which could mean he might gain 2 oz one week, and 8 oz another and that is ok. Most moms rely on www.kellymom.com for basic information on breastfeeding.
If you want more information on attachment parenting, babywise, or the CIO method, www.drmomma.org is a great site for research.

Also, http://www.kellymom.com/store/reviews/books-to-avoid.html shows you books to avoid that would sabotage your breastfeeding relationship (including baby whisperer and babywise). And http://www.promom.org/bf_info/stinkers.htm . Obviously following a 3 hour schedule sabotaged your own breastfeeding relationship by supplementing (I feel for you on that one!) but hopefully you can get back on track - http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/decrease-formula.html

Babywearing is also great for nursing on the go, once you get the hang of it and the baby has good head control, you can nurse while babywearing.

Here is a great article for moms going back to work - http://www.drmomma.org/2010/01/balancing-breastfeeding-when-moms-must.html
The comments after the article are great too.

Here are two great sites that lists great books on breastfeeding (most of which I have read)
http://www.drmomma.org/2009/08/books-for-breastfeeding-mother.html

http://www.kellymom.com/store/reviews/index.html

This book is new and really fantastic on helping moms increase their supply. I have lactation consultant friends who rave about it and give it to all their clients that are having milk supply issues.
The Breastfeeding Mother's Guide to Making More Milk by Diane West.

oh, and I love discovering science like this - it is truly miraculous the relationship between mother and child:

Ground breaking lactation research demonstrates that there is an intricate method of communication in the saliva of a baby that triggers mother's milk production via receptors on the areola. This communication signals all of baby's needs to mother by way of hormones and enzymes (and likely things we have not even begun to understand). How much milk your baby needs, the fat/calorie composition he requires today, what specific antibodies he needs a boost of, the immunological properties he requires most right now -- it is all transferred to you and your body's amazing milk making wisdom via your baby's suckling at your breast.

Your baby's nutrition, brain, and immune system needs change on a day by day, hour by hour basis. Therefore, it is always best to breastfeed anytime, any day, anywhere that baby expresses the desire. Nurse on demand. This is baby's only way to regulate her needs -- and she can do so quite perfectly if simply given the opportunity.

Babies nurse for 3 reasons -- hunger, thirst, and comfort. Suckling differs between these three needs and infants are skilled at nursing in just the right way to meet their particular moment's need. You may have noticed the deep, hard sucking that occurs when baby is very hungry. Or the shallow, light sucking when baby just needs a drink. Especially if you are not using an artificial nipple substitute for comfort (plastic pacifier) at home, you have likely watched in wonder at the light, butterfly flicker of your baby's tongue, or the gentle fishy-lips as baby nurses gently for comfort and security. Each style of nursing serves an important purpose for your baby.

from Dr.Momma's website:
http://www.drmomma.org/2010/01/balancing-breastfeeding-when-moms-must.html

oh, by the way, those that like the methodologies of ezzo, hogg, and ferber, often have great success with the following book, and unlike those three authors, this book has the stamp of approval of most breastfeeding sites as one that will not sabotage the breastfeeding relationship.  No Cry Sleep Solution: Gentle Ways to Help your Baby Sleep through the Night by Elizabeth Pantley, and The No-Cry Sleep Solution for Toddlers and Preschoolers by Elizabeth Pantley.
My own personal experiences:

Only now, at five months, do we have one period of time during the day where he can go for 3 hours without feeding (I marvel at the moms who schedule all their baby's feedings every 3 hours - that would not have worked for my son.).  He is now usually 1.5 to 2 hours between feedings, and he sleeps 8 or 9 hours at night.
He was a Cluster Feeder (go to www.kellymom.com for definition of cluster feeding) from the very beginning, and for the longest time could only go 45 minutes to an hour inbetween feedings during the day. He still has at least 2 x 40 minute long sleep nursing sessions during the day.  But he has always gotten good sleep at night.

My baby met all the sleep milestones according to weight - most people don't realize that it is not age that matters but weight. So as a newborn at 8 pounds, he slept 3 hours, at 10 pounds at 2 months he slept 5 hours, at 12 pounds at 4 months he slept 7 hours, and at 5 months at 14 pounds he slept 8 to 9 hours - all exclusively breastfeeding. And you could tell the 48 hours when he hit a growth spurt, it would be about 4 hours at night.  Some moms that have 10 pound babies at birth get great sleep from the very beginning - 6 to 8 hours every night, other moms that have 5 or 6 pound babies at birth only get 3 hour stretches for months and months until their baby finally gets to be 10-12 pounds (which might not be until 5-7 months).