Oh, the Places My Pump Will Go!

...I take it to the office, I take it to a show. I have been blessed with the ability to nurse my daughter since she was born. At about 3 months old she decided she wanted the milk from a bottle and I've been pumping every three hours ever since. My ugly Medela Pump In Style goes with me every where! It's exhausting at times but I feel good about providing my daughter breast milk during these early months of her life. Now that I'm back at work, it allows me to feel close to Addie when we are apart. At times pumping is challenging; finding an electrical outlet, storing the milk at the right temperature, cleaning the bottles, and setting aside the time to sit down and actually pump. I've run into some interesting situation looking for a spot to pump. The most interesting place my pump has gone is Capitol Hill.

A few weeks ago the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Science and Technology held a hearing titled: "Radiological Response: Assessing Laboratory Infrastructure". I work closely with national laboratory response infrastructure issues and my client testified for the record, therefore I attended the hearing. I ended up in the picture of the witness panel, my head is tiny but it's there. Anyway, the hearing took place during one of my lovely scheduled pumping sessions so I packed my pump along. Security gave me a funny look when they X-rayed my disguised pump as we entered the Rayburn House Office Building, but I just slung it over my shoulder and ignored them. The hearing plugged along with a few unscheduled breaks for the committee members to go vote. I uncomfortably watched the clock as it approached and then eventually passed the hour for me to pump. Finally, I snuck out to the women's restroom which had a seating area but no outlet!!! I stopped a female staffer in the hall and asked if there was a public space with an outlet I could use. She explained that there are plans to create nursing stations on the Hill but I was out of luck today. So I just waited until I got back to the office where I have a designated office for pumping. By far, this was my strangest pumping experience but I'm sure it won't be the oddest place my pump will go!