by Heidi Green
April 22, 2008

Nervous? Me? Yes. I have flown before, but never with my children. I wondered how Ben (almost 5) would handle the time spent waiting at the airport. I wondered how Katie (almost 3) would do with the security lines. And I wondered if 7-month-old Sam and I would face any uncomfortable moments while breastfeeding. After all, it wasn’t so long ago that Emily Gillette was removed from a plane for refusing to don a blanket while breastfeeding her child. In the close quarters of airport or airplane seating, would this be an issue for us?

I was also concerned about what we could expect to encounter at our vacation destination: Disney World. It was just last year that Cheryl Cruz was harassed by employees of Disney’s Orlando neighbor, the Universal Studios theme park, for breastfeeding her child there. Would this be a problem during any of our four Disney park days?

I read that each of Disney’s parks has a Baby Care Center for use by mothers who need to change or feed their babies. The centers are sponsored by Nestlé, a leading infant formula producer—bottles and formula are sold at the centers, and comfortable seating is provided for breastfeeding mothers and babies. Since the parks set such space aside, I wondered if the staff would expect and encourage its use during breastfeeding. I hoped not! The point of our family vacation was to have fun together. It would make no sense for me to traipse across the sizable park to the care center each time Sam needed to be fed.

The care center is a nice idea, and I am glad it is available for those mothers who desire it. But I had no more inclination to visit the facility when Sam needed a feeding than I did when he needed a clean diaper. All I needed was a place to sit down. I felt confident in my ability to breastfeed unobtrusively throughout the park. There was no need for any fuss. And I hoped there wouldn’t be.

To begin, I wanted to breastfeed Sam during takeoff from Pittsburgh, to help his ears adjust to the changes in altitude. He fed well as the plane ascended, then came off and began to play. He was satisfied for the duration of the flight. Everything was fine.

Our first park day was at the Magic Kingdom. I had a harder time finding someplace to change a diaper than I did finding a place to feed the baby. He breastfed while we enjoyed lunch at the Plaza Restaurant, while we watched shows, on a couple of shady benches, and even during It’s a Small World. No problem!

Day two took us to the Animal Kingdom—where I had my only conversation with a staff member (Disney calls them “cast members”) about breastfeeding in public. It was mid-afternoon, and I had found a relatively shady bench to sit on while I breastfed Sam and waited for the rest of our party to return from the restroom. A cast member was walking by and offered a smile, then said “oh” and stopped in her tracks. I am embarrassed to admit that I have something of a tin ear for accents. She was from another country, and I am not sure if she asked whether I would like to go to the “restroom” or the “cast room.” (This makes a difference because I do not feel anyone should be expected to eat in a bathroom.) Since she said there was “a bench“ and “air conditioning,” I believe it must have been the former; I’d been in the restroom earlier, and it had no such amenities. In any case, I declined. She asked again, was I sure, and seemed hesitant to leave me there, but did. I’d like to give her the benefit of the doubt and think she asked out of concern for our comfort and not a misguided sense of public decency.

Day three was Hollywood Studios, site of my coolest breastfeeding in public encounter. Mrs. Incredible waved at me as I breastfed Sam. We will probably never know for sure, but maybe Violet, Dash, and Jack-Jack were breastfed, too?

Our last park day, split between Epcot and the Magic Kingdom, was completely without incident. We cut the day short and headed to the resort, where I breastfed Sam at poolside, as I had most evenings. Again, no problem.

The return flight dilly-dallied on the runway, and Sam was mostly satiated by the time the ascent began. He was curious, and his desire to look around made discretion a bit trickier. Still, I was breastfeeding on the side away from the aisle and seated next to my son, Ben. My husband, across the aisle, was the only other person in the row. So it shouldn’t have been a problem. But one of the flight attendants may have perceived it to be. I am not a mind reader, but she never looked at me again after that point. At least I wasn’t kicked off the plane, right?

All in all, I would say there was very little reason to worry. Those who may have objected to breastfeeding in public kindly kept their opinions to themselves (or, at least, out of my hearing), I am grateful to say. Breastfeeding mothers, take heart—Disney is a great place for you. You’ll find lots of places to sit while you breastfeed. In fact, you’ll probably have an easier time finding a place to breastfeed your baby, than you will a place to change a diaper. We often had to wait for a changing table.

Heidi Green has been researching and writing about women’s and children health since she moved to Pittsburgh more than 10 years ago. She is also a children’s book reviewer in her spare time. She is mom to Ben, Katie, Sam, and Max.