Could anyone share their positive experiences with extended

Hi Libbylu,

For great info on the advantages of nursing past a year, here is a great link: http://www.kellymom.com/bf/bfextended/ebf-benefits.html

I love that one because it shows how many nutrients a toddler is getting by nursing. A lot of people say there is "no nutritional value" in breastmilk after a year, but there is still quite a bit. I also like the benefit of them being less likely to get illnesses. My 27 month old has only had maybe 2-3 mild viruses (with really low fevers; she only felt a little down for a day or less each time) and one stomach bug with puking - which her dad and I both got (he brought it home to us after being on an airplane - it was not an appreciated present;). It has really benefited her immune system. Also, many toddlers are picky eaters, and nursing ensures that they are still getting adequate nutrition without having to rely on the pediasure and that sort of thing.

And here's another one on what you can expect when nursing a toddler: http://www.kellymom.com/bf/bfextended/toddlernursing.html

I think the difference between nursing a baby and nursing a toddler is that if you want/need to, you can put some limits on it. For instance, if your toddler wants to nurse as you're loading groceries into the car and you have a 15 minute drive home, you can say, "We can nurse when we get home... we don't want our cold groceries to melt in the hot car." They can begin to understand and accept these kinds of things.

I think most weaning in the US is at least somewhat parent-led, simply due to the way we live our modern lives. I guess it's more appropriate to say "culturally-led." We cannot nurse toddlers while driving - and while riding in the car with another person driving, it is not safe to do it when they are forward-facing seats and you'd have to be out of your seatbelt to nurse them. So, these kinds of things may not be intentional steps toward mother-led weaning, but they can still slowly lead to weaning (eventually!) nonetheless. I have not had a child wean yet, but my 2 year old is now only nursing 2, occasionally 3, times a day, and only for about 5 minutes or so at a time. I am 12 weeks pregnant, so maybe that has caused her to nurse less lately... and so I don't know what will happen now. I'd like to do a more child-led weaning, but we'll have to see what happens with the pregnancy. I am curious if anyone else has nursed through a pregnancy - what was your experience? Did your child wean if the milk dried up or not? Interested to hear anyone else's situation...