The LEAST discreet place you've breastfed!

[confusedfirsttimemum]

Following on from the Lorraine Kelly thread and her GMTV discussion (where she seems to think breastfeeding is only ok if it is 'discreet'), I wondered if people might be up for a discussion of the least discreet place they've fed their children.

I'll kick off: In an O2 store whilst DH signed up for an i-phone.

In fairness to the sales assistant, he did not bat an eyelid.

[TamTam29]

I love your posts.... Im a bit prudish and tend to look for the mother & baby room or a very quite table in a cafe or bench hidden from view! maybe I will be braver with DS2 after reading your stories!

When I was teaching, i had a very serious meeting with a mum, head teacher, deputy head, Chair of govenors (all male) about a child's permanent exclusion and the Mum started BF her baby in front of us- much to the horror of the others!

[StealthPolarBear]

oooh, and at work, in a church, at the solicitors and at a mortgage meeting
DS just wanted feeding as soon as I sat down I see...

[strongblackcoffee]

yes, travelling up the River Exe on a little open boat, with my bfding vest on and one enormous breast hanging out, in a boat full of elderly tourists and my slightly uncomfortable parents, not to mention 100s more along the edge of the Exeter quayside... not sure I'd be quite so brave now...

[strongblackcoffee]

oh, and also in front of a whole class of 8 year olds - I went in to do the 'new mother' type talk. Teacher was delighted, we had screaming, poo, nappy changing and breastfeeding, all in the space of about ten minutes!

[gorionine]

Watching school play,
in a plane,
sitting at a table in a coffee shop, retaurant...
Doctors waiting room
in fact anywhere I got in the last 10 years with a child in tow ...

[greensnail]

In the dentist's chair - I was already feeding in the waiting room when I got called in!

[noshouting]

A friend of mine had to feed her son on a packed train, two business men opposite her raised their newspapers to hide, just as she started feeding her baby decided to break off and grin which sent a lovely spray of milk across aforementioned papers.
The papers remained held high for the rest of the journey

[Frasersmum123]

On the Number 25 bus from Arnold in Nottingham. A grumpy olf man who was sitting across the aisle made a face and moved

[charleymouse]

Walking around Meadowhall, the shop assistant in Boots had to help me get the money out of my purse to pay for my shopping/pack it as I didn't have enough hands. As I left the store where no one had batted an eyelid a security man came up to me and suggested I might be more comfortable in the feeding room.

I have also walked around the supermarket BF, you can hold a tiny in your arms/balance them on the trolley and still push.

Most shockingly the x-ray dept at childrens hospital. DS (2.3) had fallen so took him to hospital crowded waiting room nowhere to sit, was late and did not have BF attire on so ended up on childrens chair with shirt wide open and bra hanging off as not even a feeding bra as he only feeds at bedtime now and did not foolishly expect to be so long.

I asked if there was somewhere I could go and was told no where available. Would not normallly care but very mixed bag in waiting room and had no suitable clothes on and he is not very discreet now he is older. Especially as he likes to try and tune in using the other nipple.

[Sarraburd]

Loving this! Likewise everywhere (bus, tube, generally walking around, during doctor's appts, restaurants incl the white table cloth kind, church incl funeral and wedding) but my favourites:

• while paddling in the sea with my other DCs
• while winetasting in France
• during first meeting with head for DD's new school
• at (v white male) Royal Geographical Society lecture. Elderly man next to me at the end said "You've the best natural masterpiece" and everyone v sweet about how quiet he was (he fed the entire time!)

and not at all indiscreet as private cubicles but:

• during a bikini wax and eyelash tint
• in changing cubicle of posh underwear shop Myla, DS making load slurping and gunting noises, lots of bachelors in shop buying underwear for their girlfriends...well what did they think the natural consequence of the underwear would be?!

[tkband3]

With DD1, whilst having my hair cut.

When I first started bf I was quite shy about it particularly in front of FIL and went upstairs when he first came to visit.

Then less than 2 years later I had DTs and managed to tandem feed them for their first few weeks. When he came to stay I plonked myself down on the sofa next to him and said 'budge up, I need to feed the babies' and promptly whipped out both boobs and latched each baby on. It was most definitely not a discreet process . He went into the other room!

[Sarraburd]

Oh yes, and while having my hair coloured by an extremely gay and child unfriendly hairdresser (adore him, have been going to him for 8 years know exactly what his opinion of kids is...!) He was teeth-grittingly good about it, actually.

[Blu]

While addressing an AGM of an organisation in a very illustrious space in a v illustrious Oxford college.

[FrannyandZooey]

breastfed a large toddler in the albert hall during a concert
timpanist caught sight of me and i swear he muffed his next cue

[JoesMummy09]

Whilst on the phone during a greivance hearing.

On the phone rearranging the mortgage "hang on a sec, the baby's woken up and I'm just going to pop him on the boob". The nice young man raced through all the legal and compliancy stuff after that!

In the bath when DS was crying because the water had gone up his nose (we were both in the bath)

[littlebrownmouse]

In the 1970's my mum was breastfeeding by little sister on a train on the way to our holidays (three kids, two week self catering holiday by train, niether parent could drive, journey took seven hours - Eeek!). The train was filthy and full and she had to sit on the edge of a suitcase in the guard's van. The guard came along and saw my mum and immediately led her and my sister to a lovely comfortable seat in FIRST CLASS! Very impressive for the 70s!

I've fed mine all over - church (spraying milk on the row in front and in full view of the row behind when she wouldn't latch on), school assembly (I was a teacher rather than a parent and was visiting while on mat leave), a boat on Windermere, a farm park place, a Christmas Special steam train where she pulled off and exposed me.

The most indescrete was in Ikea cafe where DD wriggled and kicked a cup of hot coffee all over DH whereupon we all leapt up and I was left bare bosomed and slightly embarrassed!

[amigababy]

While going through finances with a financial advisor (at home but still, a "stranger")

In a field in Kent while on a long walk - very discreet as there was no-one around for miles.

And loved the paragraph in Libby Purves' "How Not to be the perfect mother" where baby breaks off from feeding to beam gleefully round at anyone in the vicinity - mine used to do that, and discreet would suddenly turn to quite indiscreet.

[Wigeon]

Go us! Here's some of my list, off the top of my head:

By the men's ties in the men's section of Zara.

On the Tube.

In an independent bookshop.

Aeroplane. I'm sure many many others have too, but it's pretty impossible to be that discrete, especially with a wiggly 6 month old.

[duffpancake]

At a rugby match. In a punt. Being presented to royalty.

[bohemianbint]

in the monkey house at Chester Zoo surrounded by a coachload of school kids.

[crankytwanky]

Whilst walking around the sea-life centre.

What do you mean about car seats, bronze?
Whilst nursing? I've whipped the nipper out on the motorway when in a jam or if they're blowing chunks

[crankytwanky]

Ooh, duff, you win!

Do elaborate...

[grayal]

In the opticians while having an eye test. Optician seemed a bit surprised but didn't seem too bothered. DS was starving and it was either that or rebook the test that I was already half way through.

[DebiTheScot]

At several Harlequins rugby league matches. Not very discrete when ds2 wanted to see what was going on every time he heard a cheer or shout.

On a train. In church. Staffroom at work (was visitng with ds1 and ds2 (not at the same time, when each was a baby))