The MOM Foundation presents the first annual MOM Calender

Photo by  Wagon wheel Photography

by Glenni Lorick, IBCLC

I am so excited to announce that The MOM Foundation is putting together a calendar filled with beautiful pictures of North Alabama mothers nursing their babies. Thirteen North Alabama photographers are providing an incredible assortment of lovely breastfeeding photos. These tasteful photos show mothers in a variety of settings from a cotton field to a woodland setting to a comfy nursing chair. Some are taken from a distance to show the surroundings, while others are close-up pictures highlighting the beautiful expressions of the nurslings.

This calendar makes the perfect gift for any breastfeeding mother. It will look wonderful hanging in a physician's office, a WIC office, or any business that works with mothers and babies. It is the perfect gift to encourage an expectant mom who is looking forward to breastfeeding her child.

Your Support is Vital

All proceeds from the calendar will benefit The MOM Foundation. This North Alabama 501c3 organization is dedicated to supporting low-income and teen mothers in natural parenting practices. We offer Sliding-Fee Scale professional breastfeeding support services. We never ask for any proof of income; we just want to make certain that any mother who needs breastfeeding help gets it as quickly as possible without money being an obstacle. We also sponsor the Bosom Buddies project at A Nurturing Moment which provides gently used nursing bras to low-income and teen moms  If we don't have a donated bra to fit a mother, we will provide her one from store stock. Those mothers who are receiving WIC are also eligible to rent a hospital-grade Symphony breastpump at half the regualar price.

Photo by Earthy Moon Photos

In addition to supporting a wide variety of breastfeeding initiatives, The MOM Foundation also sponsors The North Alabama Cloth Diaper Bank which provides diaper grants to low-income families. Many families struggle to buy diapers, so we make sure they have enough diapers to adequately diaper their babies.

All of these efforts are completely dependent upon donations from our amazing mama community. Your donations of bras, diapers, time and money have enabled us to continue offering all the services we offer. We hope that this calendar project will provide much-needed funds to be able to continue providing for as many mothers as possible, and also to expand the services we are able to provide.

Who Is Involved?

We are so excited about the response we have received from local photographers. The following photographers have agreed to be part of this project:  Jamie Clauss of Count it Joy Photography, Amanda Argo of DoodleButt Photography, Sarah Buchanan of Sarah Buchanan Photography, Jessica Molepske of Wild Child Photogrpahy , Ashley White of A. White Photography & Creations, Wendella Graham of Pitter-Patter Photography, Melanie Kolowaski of Melanie Kolowski Photography, Adrianne Moon of Adrienne Moon Photography, Mary Ellen Pollard of Lighthouse Photography, Corey Anna Straits of Earthymoon Photos, Krystal Ness of The Paper Jay, Jennifer Myers of Jennifer Myers Photography, Mallory Clemmons of Oliver Fair Designs and Photography, and Brekke Johnson of Wagon Wheel Photo. When I mentioned this idea late Saturday night, I was overwhelmed by the response from so many talented photographers!

Photo by Adrienne Moon Photography

Get Your Calendar Now

Calendars will arrive the week of Christmas, just in time to be the perfect Christmas gift!  Each calendar will have a page of coupons worth well over $100. You can reserve your calendar NOW with a minimum gift of just $15 to The MOM Foundation. You can send your gift via PayPal to anm@knology.net or simply click the button below. Be sure to include your phone number. Or you can come into the store and make your donation in person.  If you don't live close enough to pick up your calendar at A Nurturing Moment in Huntsville, please include  your address. Shipping cost is $5 for 1-2 calendars, $7 for 3-5 calendars, and $10 for 6 or more calendars. Be sure to include shipping with your gift, please. Our goal is to raise $7000 by the end of the year, and we are on our way. Our Huntsville Mommy Milk Meet-up group has over 1300 members. Even if half our members donate, we will surpass our goal!

Win a Calendar!

We are going to give away a calendar to one lucky winner. Enter today!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 

Win a Labor Photo Session from Doodlebutt Designs

by Glenni Lorick, IBCLC

How would you like a free labor and delivery photography session? Or maybe a lovely session with you nursing your baby? A Nurturing Moment and Doodlebutt Designs are giving away one session for every 10 Best Chairs sold between now and December 31.

When you purchase any chair on the floor or order a chair and finance it (we offer financing for up to a year with no interest with approved credit), you receive one entry. If you order a chair and pay for it in full at the time of purchase, you receive two entries, and if the chair you purchase costs more than $700, you receive one extra entry. Depending on how many chairs are sold during this period we might be giving away 2 or 3 sessions!

Our Small Business Saturday Sale is our biggest sale of the year, and for one day only, you can save 20% on any chair on the floor OR any chair you order. All the chairs on the floor are already discounted, and for this one day, you can save even more! While the contest will continue through December 31, there will not be another day when we offer discounts like this!

Laser Frenectomy Is Now Available in Madison County

By Glenni Lorick, IBCLC

Dr. Kennon Curtis has just taken over the Madison Pediatric Dental practice of Dr. Brian Beitel. That is REALLY exciting news for the lactation community because Dr. Curtis understands the importance of revising tongue ties and upper lip ties early to help optimize breastfeeding. He has gained experience in his father's practice in Columbus, MS, in this area, and is now bringing his expertise here to North Alabama!

Dr. Curtis has grown up around pediatric dentistry; it is obvious when you meet him that he is passionate about what he does. His dad has been involved at every level of pediatric dentistry and was actually president of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry in 2004. The younger Dr. Curtis has had the privilege of shadowing pediatric dentists in 8 states and 3 countries. He says "Of all these pediatric dentists I've met, I've never met one who says, 'I wish I had done something else.' I can't say that about any other profession." He was part of a large pediatric practice in Southaven, Mississippi,  prior to moving to Columbus to help with his Dad's practice while the elder Dr. Curtis recovered from a surgical procedure. Dr. Beitel has been a long-time friend of the Curtis family, so when he approached the younger Dr. Curtis about taking over his Madison practice, it seemed like a great opportunity.

Very much a family man, Dr. Curtis and his wife Candi have two daughters who are 7 and 3 years old. They are really looking forward to being part of the community in Madison as they build a life here. I was particularly excited to learn that their daughter will be starting at Westminster Christian Academy in January, since we have had such a wonderful experience there with our own children.

Dr. Curtis began to learn about the importance of frenectomy procedures to help babies breastfeed better while he was working with his father. Several years ago the older Dr. Curtis had been introduced to this concept at a dental conference. After researching it, he incorporated it into his practice. The younger Dr. Curtis, whose two daughters breastfed, realized that it was an important service to offer mothers and babies. He wasn't sure how much of a demand there would be for it here; however, I think it's safe to say that he is quickly realizing that our lactation community will keep him busy!

I learned about Dr. Curtis yesterday after Annie Neidert saw him for a procedure on her baby, Jonah. You can actually see the difference in the way his upper lip looks before and after the procedure! Annie was very pleased with their visit to Dr. Curtis. " Dr. Curtis encouraged me to be there for the procedure. I held Jonah's head and stroked his hair and talked to him. It was over in 5 minutes. Then we nursed right after. Jonah has been getting bottles and was frustrated at the breast, so we gave a bottle. We have some work ahead of us establishing breastfeeding. He will have to learn how to latch with his newly released tongue." By this afternoon, Annie noticed that instead of falling asleep during a feed, he was staying awake and finishing it completely.

I have since already referred two more patients to Dr. Curtis. Like a true professional, he has made of point of consulting with the pediatrician of the 5 day old baby girl I referred to him last night. I look forward to seeing him build relationships with other medical professionals in this community and continue to help educate all who care for infants about the importance of tongue-tie  and upper-lip-tie revision for effective breastfeeding.

Dr. Curtis cares for infants, children, adolescents, teenagers and special needs individuals. His office is located at
7771 Hwy 72 West, Ste. B in Madison. You can find in on the web at pediatricdentistryofmadison.com . They are also on Facebook.  To schedule an appointment with Dr. Curtis call 256-325-6595.

GroVia One Holds Almost a Pound of Pee!

Dry O.N.E. weighed .70

by Glenni Lorick, IBCLC
The other day Beth from Moo Moo Caboose came to a breastfeeding support group to talk to the moms about cloth diapering. She had a GroVia O.N.E. diaper on her little boy that he had been wearing for quite a while since she had gotten him up when he was still mostly asleep to put him in the car seat. By the time she went to change him, the diaper was very full, but not leaking at all. We couldn't believe how heavy it felt, so we decided to weigh it.

Full O.N.E. held almost a pound of pee

Imagine our shock when it weighed 1 lb. 6 oz. That was amazing since a dry O.N.E. weighed just .7 oz. This amazing diaper held almost a pound of pee! It is truly one of the best nighttime solutions that we have seen. Even that baby who wets through everything is likely to wake up dry in a O.N.E. that hasn't leaked through to jammies or sheets. With a price point of just $22.95, we feel like this is one of the best diaper deals around!

Another thing we absolutely love about the O.N.E. is that it is the cushiest, softest diaper we've ever felt. Nearly all the absorbency is a result of the most amazing organic cotton imaginable. This amazing diaper also gives you the option of converting from snap closure to aplix closure and back.

If you are looking for a reasonably priced amazing nighttime diaper, the GroVia O.N.E. is everything you need!

It's Time for ALL Working Moms to Have Legal Protection for Pumping

Salaried health care workers deserve the same rights as hourly workers!

by Glenni Lorick, IBCLC

If you work as an hourly employee in a store, restaurant or business with more than 50 employees, your employer is legally required to provide you a place to express or pump your breastmilk (a bathroom isn't acceptable) and whatever break time you need to do so. This fact sheet explains the details of the law as it is currently written. However, if you are a teacher, a physician or any other kind of salaried employee, the law doesn't provide you any protection at all.

Some employers like HEMSI  work
 hard to accomodate mamas. 

Last year I wrote a blog about this topic and mentioned the Supporting Working Mothers Act of 2013 which was sponsored by Senator Jeff Merkley from Oregon. Unfortunately our lawmakers didn't care enough about mothers and babies to act on this legislation, and they allowed it the bill to die.

Nevertheless, the United States Breastfeeding Committe (USBC) is mounting a campaign to once again find a sponsor for the Supporting Working Mothers Act so that it can be introduced in the upcoming session of congress. You may not be a very politically active person, but please take just a moment to get involved in this very important issue. It isn't a Democrat or a Republican issue. No, it is a MOTHER'S RIGHTS issue. It is a BABY'S RIGHTS issue. Every mother and baby should have the right to sustain their breastfeeding relationship after mother returns to work. Sadly many do not have that option because employers fail to understand the many incredible benefits for everyone involved including the employer!

This school counselor has
been able to pump as needed. 

Benefits for Mom and Baby

The numerous benefits for moms and babies have been well documented. Babies who receive their mothers' milk receive antibodies to anything that mom is exposed to. They also have reduced incidence of all the following:

Upper respiratory infections
Ear infections
Gastrointestinal infections
Juvenile diabetes
Childhood leukemia

Mothers who breastfeed receive tremendous health benefits as well.

Increased chance of healthy loss of extra pregnancy weight
Reduced risk of premenopausal breast cancer
Reduced risk of postpartum depression
Reduced risk of osteoporosis and ovarian cancer later in life

Benefits for Employers

Every working mother should
have this right!

Many employers do not realize that when they empower their workforce to breastfeed according to the AAP recommendation they will also benefit the bottom line of their company in a variety of ways:

• Increased retention of employees following maternity leave
• Reduced incidence of absenteeism due to working mothers having to care for sick babies
• Greater job satisfaction reported leading to long-term employee retention
• Reduced costs for employer-funded insurance plans because the medical costs during the first year of life are drastically reduced. 

The first step you can take is to click on this link which will take you to the USBC campaign. Scroll down to the bottom where you can enter your zip code to send an email to the representative for your congressional district.

Next repost this information to everyone you know