V was excited for October to come. It's his birthday month and ActiVision will release a new batch of Skylanders the Swapforce (USA release Oct 13 and UAE release Oct 18).
It's only during his birthday that we allow him to buy an expensive toy but just one and if it's too expensive he get's to choose between having a party or just the toy (he usually choose the toy). This year was different Lolo Dino (my Uncle Dad a resident of Kansas City) asked him what he wants for birthday and Christmas without any hesitation he told his GrandPa names of Skylander characters that he wants to add in his collection and to make sure Lolo doesn't forget anything he made a list.
You are sitting in a cafe enjoying a cup of coffee when suddenly you overheard someone asking a mother to breastfeed her child somewhere else because that person thinks its inappropriate and disgusting.
What would you do?
Sian from our UAE breastfeeding group posted the following videos conducted by abcnews.com on how customers in a cafe reacted to the situation.
Breastfeeding an infant in public.
Breastfeeding a toddler in public.
I am very happy that UAE is a breastfeeding friendly country. I have breastfed Vierte when he was a toddler and now Chloe who is 11 months, in public with and without a cover and I haven't had a bad experience.
Some malls and establishments here have dedicated baby rooms where a mom can breastfeed her baby.
On the Breastfeeding Q&A UAE Facebook group, the most common question asked for new expat families is whether they can breastfeed in public.
Here's an excerpt from Sian's article on breastfeeding in public.
The great news is that both Islam and UAE society are in favor of breastfeeding (the Qur’an in fact teaches that babies have the right to breastfeed for two years), and it is common for mums and babies to breastfeed in public places wherever you are in the country. The Ministry of Health has publicly affirmed the right of a mother to feed her child wherever she is without being hassled, and the Department of Islamic Affairs confirms that this is perfectly acceptable, as long as the mother remains appropriately covered and follows normal dress etiquette if men are present -
Chloe and I just came home for our first Mama meeting at City Hospital and we also celebrated UAE's breastfeeding week with all the Mums & Bubs.
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="403"] Breastfeeding Week 2012 Celebration at The City Hospital[/caption]
It was nice to see Sameera & some Nurses who was a great help to us during our stay at City Hospital. I will be forever grateful for the care and support (especially for breastfeeding) they gave us during and after our stay.
All Mum's who managed to exclusively breastfeed their babies till 6 months was awarded a Certificate of Appreciation & The Golden Bow.
I didn't know that there is an official symbol for breastfeeding which is the Golden Bow, read more about it here.
If you're wondering whether mothers can breastfeed in public places here in UAE, the answer is YES!
"Islam promotes and protects the right of a baby to breastmilk"
I breastfeed Chloe everywhere (cafe, restaurant, grocery, & mall) with a feeding cover and sometimes just using a burp cloth or shawl. If you do want to feed your baby privately you can do so in baby rooms (but not all malls have one).
Breastfeeding can be hard to some women and a good support from your family or a group like Breastfeeding Q&A UAE on facebook really helps.
Aug 1-7 is 20th World Breastfeeding Week (WBW) with the theme "Understanding the Past - Planning the Future: Celebrating 10 years of WHO/UNICEF's Global Strategy for Infant and Young Child Feeding."
UAE on the other hand celebrates WBW in November each year as decided by the Ministry of Health. I don't have any information of any activities happening on November just yet, I will surely write about it once I get some information.
What I can share with you is the wonderful helpful and supportive group here in UAE - Breastfeeding Q&A Dubai UAE. "A non-profit Dubai base support group to help mothers to breastfeed through mother to mother support. The admin are volunteers trained in breastfeeding management and support."
If you are in the UAE and would like to know more about breastfeeding and want to have a support group away from home click on the link above. Plenty of moms will be available to answer your questions or just listen to your worries.
To end this post I'm sharing this Boob-olution video
Breastfeeding Week 2012 Celebration at The City Hospital[/caption]
