It’s my birthday today. I was just writing about how the whole thing has got me bummed, since one of the last smiling pictures of my dad ever taken was with my sister and I, a month before he died on my birthday in 2010.

To make matters worse, the baby hasn’t been sleeping well. Since he is also co-sleeping and breastfed on demand, this means I’ve spent the last few days pretty focused, and not on writing, (and certainly not on sleeping!) which means I haven’t been getting the breastfeeding pieces that I’ve been working on for World Breastfeeding Week posted, either. (and that I am kicking myself in the butt. Sorry, guys!) Even this writing is being done largely one-handed while he nurses. I’m doing my best.

To make matter worse, yesterday morning, our 11 month old cat Sammy was hit and killed by a car. I still haven’t told the kids, who are used to having him roam the outdoors and mercifully, haven’t asked where he is yet. I’ll get there.

But then, something awesome happened. Well, kind of.

Heather Cushman-Dowdee, (my favorite lactivist, comic artist and Goddess among Progressive Parents) wrote to me. To MEEEE!!

… and then I puked a rainbow, which is the only obvious thing you can do when someone you idolize sends you an email.(Rainbows are remarkably easier to get out of keyboards than crumbs.)

[Update 8/5: Heather has added this post on her blog about getting banned: and talks about her “new friend”. I’m pretty sure the sweet (breastfed) baby Jesus in his golden (cloth) diapers told her to write that]

I feel like Amanda Palmer in Oasis where there’s really a huge, feministy issue (abortion, in her case) at hand, but she is superhappy anyhow, because Omigosh, I got this letter!, you know? Tori Amos touched my hand taking a book from me that I bought for her daughter once. It was kinda like that, but more computerish, but I digress.

Oh right.
It was about something.
The thing that entailed the ‘kind of’.

Facebook has banned her for 24 hour for -gasp!– posting a comic of a breastfeeding mother with an exposed nipple. On a breastfeeding site. During World Breastfeeding Week. On my birthday.

Oh, HELLLLLL no.

I’ve been banned from Facebook twice myself, dammit. On a larger scale, this is an infuriating glimpse of the state of breastfeeding affairs. She’s my favorite earth mama comic goddess ever and it’s two hours from my birthday- I have full rights & resposibility to RAGE!

On a smaller, more selfish scale…. Squeeeeee!!! I feel VERY grown up and bloggerish, now. (Which are things I’m not sure that that grown ups and bloggerish people say, but whatever. I’ll get there, too.)

Please use this opportunity to learn more about World Breastfeeding Week  and check out Heather’s creative genius at thecowgoddess.com and mamaiscomic.com. If you feel so MOOVED (See what I did there?) you can make a purchase or a secure donation via PayPal on her site. She’s been work every week for years on creating awareness for better breastfeeding practices as hard as the rest of us mommy bloggers work during this particular week.

Show your support for Heather by posting a message on her Facebook wall, sharing a picture from her album or making a small donation on her site; I know as well as any- even $5 helps! We can post all the pictures she would have posted on Facebook for my birthday tomorrow and more.

Enjoy the pictures below & join in!
You know? Maybe my birthday won’t be so bad, after all.