Photo by fern624

The American Dietetic Association, the nation's largest professional organization of nutritionists and dietitians, has come out even more strongly in favor of breastfeeding, calling it the "optimal feeding method for infants."

But its report was also quick follow that statement up, in its very diplomatic and roundabout way, with a call for a lot more support and encouragement than moms are getting right now. CafeMoms in the Breastfeeding Moms group couldn't agree more:

Arisce: "I think America is slowly moving in the right direction. I'm a little concerned though that we're going to push breastfeeding and not give women any actual support, which will create even more bad feelings toward breastfeeding."

Photo by abjbrewer

Earlier this week I wrote a post about a World Breastfeeding Week world record, designed partly to promote the idea that breastfeeding in public is perfectly natural and acceptable.

Today I came across 6 Tips for New Moms Who Want to Breastfeed in Public at The Daily Green. It had some great tips for how to breastfeed discreetly, you know, when you're just not comfortable "whipping it out" in public. That was me, Miss Self Conscious. Coulda used these tips back then!

Here are some of them, common sense for the well practiced but a good primer for the newbies among us ... click the full 6 Tips piece for the rest. And join the Breastfeeding Moms group for the ultimate advice and support.

• Retrofit some shirts or invest in nursing specific tops that allow enough entry for you to snake a hand in to open your nursing bra or tank and then offer a breast to a babe.

It's hard being a new mom (or even an experienced mom to a new baby) and sometimes we do things we know we shouldn't, despite what all the experts say. But this is a safe place to share your secrets—we won't tell.

This Week's Secret:

I'm a breastfeeding mom and have been sober for 19 months, but I've been craving beer like crazy. I won't drink, but I can't help fantasizing about it. — anonymous

Photo by BabyDio

To promote World Breastfeeding Week, 190 Canadian mothers and 191 hungry infants and toddlers gathered at Rosedale Heights School of the Arts in Toronto to participate in this year's challenge -- gathering the most breastfeeders together in one spot, according to Yahoo! Canada.

Another 182 mothers and babies in the city participated online for a total of 372 mothers and 373 babies breastfeeding at the same time.

I read on some of the Canadian message boards that Toronto hasn't been totally friendly toward mothers who nurse in public. There have been reports of moms being asked to move their feeding babies to a more private space.

It's hard being a new mom (or even an experienced mom to a new baby) and sometimes we do things we know we shouldn't, despite what all the experts say. But this is a safe place to share your secrets—we won't tell.

This Week's Secret:

I sometimes use breast milk for food I make if I'm out of store-bought milk. — anonymous

This baby story ends happily ... but it started out with CafeMoms using terms like "Absolutely ridiculous!" "What is this world coming to?" and "That is absurd!"

What happened the other day was a 4 month old baby was denied health insurance for being "too fat."

Oh, there's no question the boy is big. He's 17 pounds, putting him in the 99th percentile for weight. But, it's still not that big. When Alex's family applied to the Rocky Mountain Health Plan for insurance coverage, they denied the child based on a policy that they reject anyone who is over the 95th percentile.

We're talking a healthy, breastfed baby here! Click for a photo of Alex Lange.

Photo by Jeanmarie1975

When mommy blogger Kim Julian of St. Louis, Missouri became a stay at home mom after the birth of her second son, the loss of a second income hit hard. So she did what a lot of moms who want to continue staying home with their kids do -- she became a self-taught expert at saving money through coupons, free samples, free events and discounts.

And she created a couple of websites to share what she learned with other moms, STL Mommy in November of 2008, and My City Mommy in June of 2009. My City Mommy and the My City Mommy team offer national and local grocery and drug store coupon match ups along with free samples, free events, restaurant deals, kids eat free locations, discounts and more.  

I thought it was worth an individual chat with Kim to glean some of her personal at-home tips:

Twelve states have laws on the books that exempt breastfeeding moms from jury duty -- and most recently, Florida legislators have proposed a similar bill.

The legislators acted after a breastfeeding mom complained that she couldn't get out of serving on a jury, but was then berated by her fellow jurors when she brought her baby with her to trial.

The law would exempt moms who are nursing kids up to the age of two.

Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty

The bathroom, a construction site ... CafeMoms have pumped breastmilk in some pretty unusual places. Even in the car!

According to Celebrity Babies, Modern Family actress Julie Bowen, 39, reports a pretty embarrassing breastfeeding blunder.

Stopped and forced to make a road detour, Julie — simply wanting to get home to her family — rolled down the window and asked a nearby police officer for help, oblivious to the fact that she was still connected to her pump.

As she tells it:

CafeMom brycesmommy2009 wants to have a few drinks at a Halloween party, but here's the hitch -- she's breastfeeding. So the question came up: Should she "pump and dump," meaning pump and discard the breast milk she produces during the time she's imbibing.

A lot of moms in the Answers thread advised her to just not drink, saying this is one of the sacrifices you make when you commit to nursing an infant. But even the folks at kellymom.com, a great breastfeeding resource, offer some less drastic alternatives for moms who want to clock out for a few hours.