poop & boob

It was a strange day for us, yesterday, but it renewed my faith in humankind. People are truely beautiful.

For starters, Zee had his first "real" poop. I never thought a bowel movement could bring such wonder, such laughter, such mess, such... smell. Oh, how I wish there were a place in the baby book for that little tidbit of information.

For about 2 days, my guy was constipated. That's quite a while for him, as he usually goes 2 - 3 times a day. (yes, still) I was starting to worry, if only because this meant a giant poo was imminent. I was right to be concerned. When he finally let loose, he was apparently very relieved and happy. So happy, in fact, that when I brought him to the changing table, and took off the diaper, he did a little, ecstatic baby dance... in his poop... and I couldn't stop it. And, well, if you can't beat em, join em. I never laughed so hard in all of my life, and when it was over, Zee was completely covered in poo. He then, promptly had his 3rd and 4th baths of the day.
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Now for the real fun.

Our travels yesterday, also brought us to Whole Foods, for a little lunch. As we were looking for a little food, Zee decided it was time to eat. NOW! Actually, he was screaming the scream of the tortured, so I carried him straight to the cafe, sat down and nursed him. It was a quiet point in the day, as most of the lunch rush had cleared out over an hour before, so Zane's yelling apparently drew a bit of attention. Not to worry though, as nursing always quiets him quickly.

I nursed him (now quietly) in the corner of the cafe, and rolled the stroller up in front of us, so as not to distract him, or draw any more attention. I think I've gotten pretty good at discreet nursing. Most of the time, people don't even seem to notice.

After about 5 minutes, I was approached by a late-50ish woman. I looked up and smiled at her. The first words out of her mouth were, "You're disgusting!" Thus began her tirade. "This cafe is for everyone, not just for you. (with a nod to my son)" "You should be ashamed of yourself!"

I stopped her and asked, "For feeding my baby? Why?" "I have a legal right to breastfeed him here." She probablly didn't even hear me.

She continued, "Noone wants to see you doing THAT!" "You're disturbing everyone here!"

Now, I can't remember what else I said, as it was really of no consequence. The cool part happened when the 2 other people in the cafe came to my defense, with a swiftness. The mature, feminist-type lady sitting next to me looked at this woman and said, "I beg your pardon, you do not speak for me. I am not disturbed, in the least!"

The young mom (also with her child) who was sitting accross from us, stood up and said, "Who the hell do you think you are? She's feeding her child! YOU should be ashamed, not her!"

The woman, clearly embarassed, gathered her belongings and sulked out. YES!!!!!!!!!

Now, you have to know that at this stage of the game, I'm not terribly affected by anyone's protests at my breastfeeding. My son is more important than any embarrasment I MAY have suffered, and frankly, I just love telling them that this is my LEGAL RIGHT! What troubles me is the effect this type of exchange might have on mothers, new to breastfeeding. Early in our BFing relationship, it was much easier to wound me, and BFing was so hard. I worry that people such as this could damage the resolve of the already fragile new mother.

I hope with all my might that she has learned never to do that again.