As if busy moms needed another thing to worry about, a mother has been chastised for breastfeeding ... in front of her son's teacher. Rachel Rainbolt says she was doing what moms do -- trying to meet both her kids' needs -- when she breastfed her baby boy during a parent-teacher conference. Only the teacher and Rachel's two kids were present, so who had the hissy?
You guessed it ... the teacher.
According to Rainbolt, the educator (who is female, by the way) looked at her and said:
Do you know what a breastfeeding cover is? That's not appropriate to do here. Aren't you concerned that people will stare?
Oh come off it, lady! At least Mom bothered to show for the parent/teacher conference. How many parents don't -- and not because they don't care but because they have so much going on that they can barely find time to breathe?
Being a good mom takes a lot of work. I think everyone in this world recognizes that -- or should. I've been doing it eight years now, and I haven't figured out all the secrets. But the one thing I DO know is absolutely necessary is the ability tomulti-task.
You quiz them on their spelling words while you stir a pot on the stove. You tuck the phone between your cheek and your shoulder so you can make a pediatrician appointment while you are changing a diaper. You breastfeed your baby during your older child's parent/teacher conference.
I understand that not everyone in the child-free community gets that. It's hard to put yourself in our shoes sometimes. But if you're someone who works with parents day in and day out, you should have keyed into how it works. More than that, you should be willing to help us keep all those balls in the air -- because we're not just doing it for us and for our kids; we're doing it for you too. We're showing up at parent/teacher conferences come hell or high water ... or hungry babies.
Would you breastfeed during a parent-teacher conference? Was this teacher out of line?
Image via mnsc/Flickr