Academic lactation of a different sort

I just graduated from a Masters degree.  I am feeling pretty smug with myself - during my study I have had two babies, handing in my dissertation a fortnight after my daughters birth.

Anyway, enough trumpet blowing.  I was lucky enough to graduate at Canterbury Cathedral.  It was a stunning setting and a gloriously sunny spring day.  The ceremony would last two hours so I had to ensure that baby was full to the brim with milk so that she could be left alone.  As a result, I was lurking around the cathedral feeding her right up to the last minute

One lady stopped to say how lovely it was to see us and another took a picture of me (Without my permission annoyingly).  Nice to have such a positive response.

It did feel like some sort of political statement feeding in my academic robes.  But then, since it is disadvantaged women who are least likely to breastfeed, maybe it wasn't really a statement at all.  But then, breastfeeding, openly, in the seat of the Anglican church, in academic attire did feel pretty cool. 

I had spent a few hours expressing milk for my absence.  However, my little bottle refuser was far from interested and spent the whole of the ceremony screaming for her mum when she ought to have been asleep in her pushchair with her Gran.  She is a clingy little milk monster at the moment.  Seems that now that she knows who I am she doesn't want me out of her sight.  Still, there's worse things than having to spend all your time with your baby.