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I saw on TV and on youtube a woman who still breastfeeds her 7 yr old child. She said she isn't going to stop until her child is ready to stop. The child has actually named her mom's boobs.

I am having a few issues with discipline at the moment and I would like some feedback from other AP mums.  I don't believe in smacking and I am trying to avoid time outs, but my son keeps pushing it until we end up in a battle of wills.  Not what I want at all!  He is very strong willed and independent and has to do things his way.  I am trying to use natural consequences as he seems to change his bheaviour if he understands why he shouldn't do something.  This is a challenge though as it means thinking on the spot and understanding how he sees things to work out what consequence is going to matter to him.  Any suggestions anyone?

I was a young mum who didn't take advice well, particularly when I had health professionals tell me her weight gain was erratic and she needed to be put onto formula to steady it! I knew that all breastfed babies had erratic weight gain and went on other things to judge if she was getting enough. The fact that she was crawling by 4.5 months, she was saying little random words by then too (mum, boo, ta) and she was bright and happy and not whingy told me she was content with what she was getting.  However, I stopped listening to ALL advice, meaning I gave my daughter water in a cup when she was 3 months old thinking that since we live in the tropics she'll need it.  It wasn't much, not even every day, but if she had just had a feed in the last 10 minutes and was looking hot and bothered I would give her some water in her new little non-spill sipper cup.  I also gave her solids early, although I can't remember how early. I just remember on her first Christmas, and I have photos of her doing this too, she started the day with a breastfeed, and at 10am she had a bowl of rice cereal mixed with breast milk, then at 12:30 she had a vegemite sandwich, and at 5pm she had a bowl of veges.  I was never one to force her into a routine as such, but when it came to solids and bath time it was usually at around the same time each day.  As for breastfeeds, well there was no point trying to set a watch by her! Some days she would go 4 hours without a feed, other days it was every hour from the time she woke in the morning to the time she went to bed at night.  She developed her own sleep routine which meant no daytime nap, which I was highly criticised for, but she fed from 6 til 6:30 and was asleep by the end of the feed most nights, then she would wake up at around 10 for a nappy change and a 10 minute feed, then she would stay asleep until 6am when she would 'help herself' to a feed then go back to sleep until 8, giving me time to get up, have a shower, and have a cup of coffee before she woke up. So when health 'experts' asked if she was in a routine yet (at 2 months!!) I would quite honestly tell them yes she was, without saying it is a routine she developed on her own accord that I am simply following!

Do you use a baby carrier? Which one or what kind?
Hubby and I both have pouches. I just bought an Ergo which is better as its less strain on one side. - the shoulder.

cloth-bums.minti.com/

I am curious to know others who may be using cloth. I had my first in cloth for 3 weeks. It felt like a lot of work as I was new to motherhood. Now through the net i have discovered modern cloth nappies i have started using cloth on my baby.

I would love to understand as a newbie to this topic how this term came about?

Part of the AP practice is becoming an authoritative parent. This means that you are not too permissive (spoiling your child) and not too strict (bossing your child around). Some people I know hear attachment parenting and take it to the extreme and think that it means they can never say no to their child.

I believe in creating a "yes" environment for my son, which means there aren't a lot of places in the house where I would have to say NO all the time. But, I still do say NO, and sometimes rather forecefully. But am I being a bad parent? I don't think so. Touching a cord is a big NO, and so is hanging on the oven handle.

We are doing our children a disservice if we are too permissive and too restrictive. It's hard sometimes to be in the middle ground, but with support we can do it (off days aside, since we all have one of those!)

For co-sleeping safety, I suggest letting the baby sleep slightly higher than mom and dad. This way if you're like me who likes to pull the covers up to my neck, there's no danger that you'd accidentally pull the covers over the baby's head. Or, another option would be to let the baby sleep above the covers. You can still hug your baby this way..and this will prevent baby from scooting way down the covers too (if you have a wiggly baby). If it's cold, then you can get a sleep sack/gro bag for your child (wearable blanket). Yet another option is to use a baby blanket for baby if you choose to have baby sleep above the covers. The baby blanket can keep baby warm.