Women's Own

2012-01-07T22:12:00.001-08:00

International Women's Day

Inspired by Clara Zetkin, Leader of the Women's Office for the Social Democratic Party in Germany, International Women's Day (IWD) began on March 19th, 1911 to celebrate and honor women's historical achievements all across the world. The first event marked with meetings and rallies was considered a huge success in the countries of, Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. Over one million women and men attended with the hopes of gaining women's rights to work, vote, be trained, to hold public office and end discrimination. The event was moved to March 8th in 1913. Today, thousands of events span the globe on International Women's Day.

International Women's Day is also known as United Nations Day for Women's Rights and International Peace. In many countries the day is marked by people giving small gifts to the special women in their lives including, wives, girlfriends, teachers, friends, family members and coworkers.

It is such an honor that in many countries it is custom for closing government, schools, and businesses. It is considered a public holiday in many countries. Some of them are:

Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, China ( women only), Cuba, Georgia, Guinea-Bissau, Eritrea, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Madagascar ( women only), Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Nepal (women only), Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Zambia

In some countries, such as Bosnia, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Croatia, Herzegovina, Romania, and Serbia, IWD is not a public holiday, but is widely observed nonetheless.

In honor of the day in Italy, men give yellow mimosas to women. Yellow mimosas and chocolates are also the most common gifts given to women in Albania and Russia.

Every year IWD has a different theme. The IWD 2012 Theme is, CONNECTING GIRLS, INSPIRING FUTURES

The International Women's Day logo is purple and white and features the symbol of Venus, also considered the symbol of being female.

Mark your calendars for March 8th to honor and empower women, including all the special women in your life, on this and every International Women’s Day!

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art174656.asp

2012-01-07T22:11:00.000-08:00

Responses to Opponents of Public Breastfeeding

Everyone these days seems to have an opinion about public breastfeeding. Celebrities are pictured in magazines with latched-on nurslings. Every month there seems to be another nurse-in, sometimes now called a breastfeeding flash mob, reinforcing the right to nurse in public at another company either with poor policy or an employee who harassed a nursing mother regardless of policy. In most states, the right to breastfeed while in public is protected by law. And yet, there seems to be no shortage of people still deriding mothers for having the nerve to feed their babies on the go.

There are many reasons given by those who oppose public breastfeeding. Some are due to lack of knowledge or understanding. Some are simply absurd and immature. Here are my responses to some of the common complaints about Nursing in Public, both for those who need to hear them, and to assist those who need to address them.

- Breastfeeding is not “gross.” Remember when you first learned about sex as a child and thought that was gross? Chances are you got over it. Grow up.
- Breastfeeding in public is not comparable to urinating in public. Breastfeeding is comparable to eating in public. None of the functions for which we use our below-the-belt private parts require public use. The same is not true of breasts. Breasts exist for the purpose of feeding babies. Babies eat frequently. Sometimes they need to eat when the family is in public.
- Breastfeeding in most public places, in most states, is lawful. You may or may not like that law. I don’t like a lot of laws and legal behaviors, but I don’t get to harass those behaving lawfully, and neither do you.
- If you are not comfortable seeing a mother breastfeed her baby, don’t look. If you can’t help looking, move. In no circumstances is it appropriate to ask a mother to stop breastfeeding or to cover up or to ask anyone else to do so. It *is* appropriate to quietly ask for assistance if you can not easily move on your own, for example, in a restaurant or an airplane. Using “I-statements” is most appropriate – i.e. “I am not comfortable sitting where I can see that mother breastfeed, can you help me move to another table/seat.” Most employees at such places are trained to assist you.
- For those who think it is simple for a mother to simply feed formula while out, or pump breast milk to a bottle, it isn’t. Formula is less healthy than breast milk. Those who say this is untrue are mistaken or are lying. Formula feeding also disrupts a mother’s production of milk. If mother’s feed formula as a substitute for breast milk, even at an occasional feeding, the mother’s body will make less milk in response. Using bottles also confuses some babies because the physical act of attaching to a bottle is very different than attaching to a breast and can endanger breastfeeding. Pumping is not easy for all mothers and is time consuming and sometimes expensive. Pumping is intended for when a mother has to be away from her baby, not for when they are together.
- Most babies do not eat well under a cover or blanket. Some mothers of newborns prefer a blanket because the babies do not yet latch easily and the breast is exposed more than the mother finds comfortable. The small size of the baby also covers less of the breast. Some mothers do not have these concerns. Mothers of small babies also sometimes use covers to keep their baby is more protected from germs or cold when they have to be out. Starting at about 3-4 months, babies are more curious about their surroundings, will not tolerate nursing under a cover, and are perfectly capable of pulling them off. They are also excellent at latching and usually expose little or no skin in the process. Their experience of eating under a blanket would be very similar to your experience of eating under a blanket. As you can imagine, this is not practical. Nursing covers are to help make mothers feel comfortable enough to breastfeed based on her needs, not the needs of others. An expectation of “covering up” is not an appropriate solution to the question of nursing in public.
- Mothers, especially those with older children, can not often simply relocate to somewhere more private to nurse. Bathrooms are not a sanitary or appropriate place to feed or to take other children. Restaurant tables and shopping carts are not easily abandoned. Mothers who are comfortable nursing simply don’t feel the need to look for private spaces, and shouldn’t have to. No one can *make* someone feel uncomfortable. One *chooses* to let something make them uncomfortable or not. The responsibility for the interaction is on the watcher. This is always true, even if the act is societally inappropriate. When the act is also not legal, only then is the doer expected to alter their behavior.
- Breastfeeding is not unsanitary. In fact, breast milk is a highly healthful substance and if you got any on you (which is highly unlikely) you would likely only benefit from the healing properties of the milk, known to help many skin maladies and bodily infections.

These are responses to only some of the most common concerns about public breastfeeding. What others have you heard? What responses have you found effective.
Share your experiences in the BellaOnline Breastfeeding forum .

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art174665.asp

2012-01-07T22:09:00.000-08:00

Building a Functional Body

In our last article, we talked about the changing numbers associate with women's clothing sizes. The lesson there was not to allow a number to colour your image of yourself especially since size numbers vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and vary widely over time.

In the next group of articles, we'll focus on the positive foci of Body Image -- those things upon which we should base our Body Image rather than the arbitrary numbers and sizes that we usually use as measurements for our self-worth.

The reason many of us have poor Body Images is that we judge our bodies on their looks, not their functionality. The secret isn't to change our bodies but to change our minds. For example, do your fingers work well? Can you type emails to your friends? Can you write thank you notes to your family? Can you knit or sew? Can you hold vegetables to chop them up for stew? Can you throw a ball for the dog or scratch him behind the ears? With all these things your fingers can do, does it really matter if they're stubby and your nails aren't manicured? Would you prefer to have gorgeous fingers that don't work at all? Probably not. The messages we've received all our lives train us to judge our body parts on looks. But as you see by asking yourself probing questions, you really do prefer that your body part are functional. Don't you?

Let's pursue this further. What do you think of your arms? Can you do your household chores with them? Can you play your favourite sport with them? Can you hug your spouse and your children and your parents with them? See? It's much better to think about body parts in term of functionality than looks.

Here's a good one: does your nose work? Do you breathe easily? Do you sleep without snoring? Do you have sinus pressure or suffer from congestion? This is a big one for me personally. I've been told I have a "cute" nose. But my nose doesn't work! I would be much happier if I had a big nose that worked than a "cute" nose that causes me pain.

If you can train yourself to ask these questions whenever you feel down about one of your features, you will be well on your way to developing a positive Body Image.

http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art9496.asp

2012-01-07T22:07:00.001-08:00

OSTRICH - A Little Book About Life´s Ups and Downs
OSTRICH - A Little Book About Life´s Ups and Downs is a self-help manual of sorts to help women find their balance and their way through life´s many mazes because Life Is What Life Is - Nothing More and Nothing Less... A unique book for women in a rhyming saucy, seussy entertaining style with a New Age attitude. It´s eclectically styled, wisdom gone wild for a woman´s inner child. By Kate Woods

Love and Be Loved

2011-06-29T09:54:00.000-07:00

The word 'beloved' is used for a woman who is loved by a man. When you break this word, it becomes 'be loved.' By sheer conjecture, it can be assumed that a woman becomes beloved only after she loves a man. That's why the word 'love' is put before the word 'beloved' in the title of this page. Another conjecture is that women are more emotional, sentimental, and caring than the men. So, a woman is more likely to fall in love before the man falls in love with her.

Only God knows the truth or the women themselves; men are too naive to figure out the truth about the women.

If you don't agree, post your views under the icon Comments on the home page of this blog. I would love to hear from you. I spent half a century in trying to understand women, but I am still too naive.

Gift Ideas: Birthday Gifts , Wedding Gifts & Ideas for All ...

2010-09-10T03:18:00.000-07:00

Gift Ideas: Birthday Gifts , Wedding Gifts & Ideas for All ...

Links to Bridal Dresses

2008-11-11T05:26:00.000-08:00

Designs and styles for YOU to choose

http://bridalcollectionspakistan.blogspot.com
http://www.women-links.com/
http://www.bargello.com/
http://www.pakistanfashion.net/
http://www.linkedwords.com/
http://www.fashionspakistan.net/
http://www.youtube.com/
http://www.libasgallery.com/
http://www.indusfashions.com/
http://www.indiculture.com/

Food, Drink, Fun

2008-02-07T10:44:00.000-08:00

http://chow.com/
Combining food, drink and fun, CHOW Widgets deliver delicious resources for those who live to eat. Choose from recipes, stories, videos and message boards.

2008-01-05T06:35:00.000-08:00

Better Ideal Weight Body Calculations
Better Ideal Weight - body calculations, Four methods compared.
www.halls.md/ideal-weight/body.htm

Calculate your BMI - Standard BMI CalculatorNational Institute of Health (NIH) page uses height and weight (english or metric) to determine amount of body fat.www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi

Cosmetics: Makeup and Cosmetics by Mary Kay
US Headquarters. Markets health and beauty products.
Offers an independent representative opportunity.
http://www.marykay.com/

100 Smartest Diet Tips Ever - AOL BodyRead 100 smart diet tips to jump start your weight loss at AOL Diet and Fitness. Use these diet tips and become a smarter dieter.
www.body.aol.com/diet/basics/smart-diet-tips

EatingWell.com RecipesGet fast healthy-in-a-hurry recipes that are easy & delicious. Daily. Plus best menus for every occasion.http://www.eatingwell.com/

Top Ten Exercise Tips - ExerciseTop ten tips for exercise and fitness from your About.com Exercise Guide.www.exercise.about.com/library/bltoptentips.htm

Makeup Tips, Skin Care, Beauty Advice, How to Apply Make up

Your Ultimate Guide to professional Makeup Tips, Beauty and Skin Care and Cosmetics ... Makeup Care Guide - Beauty Tips, Makeup Tips, How to Apply Makeup, ...

http://www.makeup-care.info/

MedlinePlus: Women's HealthNational Institute of Health site with up to date information on women's health issues, covering everything from domestic violence to ovarian cancer.
www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/womenshealth.html

Women's Health, Fitness, Weight Loss, Beauty and More
Women's Health is your source for health, fitness tips, weight loss advice, beauty, nutrition, and much more.http://www.womenshealthmag.com/

Weight Loss Matters Tip Sheets - American Diabetes Association
Weight Loss Matters tip sheet from the American Diabetes Association. ...
This tip sheet gives ideas and tips for making "small steps" towards a healthier ...
www.diabetes.org/weightloss-and-exercise/weightloss/monthly-tip-sheets.jsp