LLL of Murray Begins

La Leche League of Murray held "her" first meeting today, Tuesday January 6, 2009. Despite snow and just a little advertising, we enjoyed 8 in attendance (which includes myself, Timbra, LLL of Murray Leader and Jen Hermes, leader with the Sandy group).

Our Topic Today was "Meeting 2" Baby Arrives: The Family and the Breastfed Baby.

We started the meeting with introductions & formalities with regards to to La Leche League and familiarization of the new space, followed by personal introductions of ourselves and our children/due dates. The icebreaker was to share winter wonderland survival tips. Mall walking, swim lessons, good snow gear, and organized play spaces and indoor activities to keep little ones busy were all in the mix.

We discussed "surprises" of bringing baby home, which also included the unexpected with regards to birth and what a new baby does and how often, despite "the norm" or "average" (nursing, spitting up, sleeping, etc). We shared things that were learned from child to child (specifically moms who had more than one), or what we'd like to plan for with the next (charging admission of a hot meal when people come to see the new baby) as well as realizing we just aren't going to get much done. Jen shared that one hospital she had an experience with through family, gave the new mother a notice saying "This is your full time job" showing that changing, bathing, holding, nursing, and attending to baby's needs will take up more than 8 hours of your day (or take the place of a full-time job) with little room to get all the "usual things" done.

The second part of our discussion centered around advocating for oneself with regards to birth, hospital practices and understanding various effects of interventions on the start of breastfeeding, with focus on the LLL philosophy that "Active and Alert participation by mother during the birth process helps to get breastfeeding off to a good start." This included discussions on our emotional support systems and how to sift out poor advice and misinformation and even "tactics" on helping to educate those who confront each of us with misinformation.

The first meeting of LLL of Murray was an awesome success. Our "busy tots" area seemed to work out well, even if moms did have to handle a few stairs to get to the space. And I promise next time we'll turn on the heat.

A heartfelt thanks to all who attended. And I am excited to announce that all three of our Group Jobs have been filled. Erin will be our "Secretary," Liz our "Snack Coordinator" and Laurel our "Greeter." Thanks Ladies. Library Books and more group jobs to come as our new group grows.