I am a planner. I plan for everything. From my weekly dinner menu to my annual physical, I schedule, prioritize, and plan out every last detail I can. But sometimes the unexpected happens - a family member falls severely ill or a spouse is diagnosed with cancer. That’s where paid leave comes in. Paid family and medical leave allows families to deal with the unexpected and care for family without fear of losing a paycheck. → Tell Congress: We need paid family leave for ALL working families! American workers need a national comprehensive and robust paid family and medical leave...

I am excited to be at the 8th Annual California Breastfeeding Summit on Advocacy, Breastfeeding, and Communications ! Today's conversations were engaging and thought provoking. I attempted to capture some of the conversations and will share a few snippets. Karen C. Ramstrom from the CA Department of Health spoke about the Status of Improving Hospital Breastfeeding Support Policies and Practices. I was awfully excited to see that the Vision for Breastfeeding in California 2035 included an expansion of paid leave and workplace accommodations for breastfeeding moms. We know that while 4 out of 5...

ipumpedhere.jpg Earlier this month MomsRising members and their kiddos went to Capitol Hill to drop off your signatures and stories, along with some liquid gold (chocolate) to demand better workplace pumping accommodations for breastfeeding moms. 20664469_10154649047486610_6879721043897483867_n.jpg One of the most rewarding parts of my job is the opportunity to lift up the voices of moms and families on issues that affect their everyday lives. As a doula and an advocate, the #IPumpedHere campaign has been particularly near and dear to my heart not only for my own personal struggles with...

Airplane bathrooms. Parked cars. Utility closets. In a cubicle with absolutely no privacy. These are just some of the places that breastfeeding moms have had to pump breastmilk because they didn’t have access to anything better. Let's bring mothers out of the bathroom stalls and into the pumping rooms they deserve. → Click here and add your name to our letter calling on Congress to support working moms who don’t have adequate spaces to pump and store breastmilk at work. We’re going to hand deliver your signatures and more to Congress on Monday, August 7th. ** We know that Congress will still...

Good afternoon, and thank you for allowing me to speak today. My name is Sonja Darai and I'm from Somerville, Massachusetts. I’m a member of the group MomsRising and I'm the mom of two teenage boys. I'm also a daughter, and I’m here today to tell you how paid family and medical leave helped me care for my dad when his health faltered. A few years ago, my father broke his hip and required hip replacement surgery. Because my workplace offered paid leave to it employees, I was able to take a month off from work to help him with his daily needs. This was instrumental in keeping my family afloat...

The constant stream of news out of Washington, D.C. is exhausting and I don’t know about you, but I am looking for every opportunity to put my energies where I know I can make a difference. You can make a difference, right here in Connecticut, by urging your state lawmakers to stand up for Connecticut families and support paid family and medical leave. GREAT NEWS! One hurdle was recently cleared when, S.B. 1 and H.B. 6212, An Act Establishing Paid Family and Medical Leave, were both voted out of their respective legislative committees.[1][2] This is a huge success, but we must continue to let...

Details matter! Moms know this. Dads know this. Caregivers know this. Details are the difference between a giggling toddler pouring water on a nice white carpet with glee; and that same giggling toddler pouring their grape juice on the white carpet. Ouch. Details are also the difference between your teenager asking if she can have one friend over for dinner; and that friend turning into her whole basketball team. The details also matter when we’re talking about paid family and medical leave. We need a national paid family & medical leave policy that reflects the many dimensions of our...