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On the wall to her right hang three framed black-and-white photos of a mother nursing her tiny premature infant. A sign on the door in her daughter Katie's second-grade print reads, "I love you my beloved bill poser ...Love Katie Alex Ethan Caroline." "Poser," a misspelling of "passer," is a reference to Marinelli's role in shepherding a state breastfeeding law through the legislature last year.
The rest of her office décor is given over entirely to her family. Snapshots of her husband, Mark Bamberger, and four children fill the bulletin board over her desk and framed pictures line the back of every horizontal surface. "People think these are my patients," she says, grinning. "I figure if I have to spend 12 hours at a shot in this office or in this building, I might as well be able to see my kids." Some days, like this one, that 12 hours extends to 14 or 16, and she and Bamberger, a research scientist at Pfizer, are reduced to communicating by voice mail and email.
In the six hours since Marinelli arrived this morning, she has answered a slew of phone messages, emails and letters, firmed up arrangements for the state's annual Physician's Conference on Breastfeeding Medicine, made her first rounds of the neonatal intensive care unit and worked one on one with two mothers who are having trouble getting their babies to breast. Now, after downing a quick can of soup at her desk, she is gearing up for the heart of her day - another six hours on the unit. After that, she'll attend a dinner meeting of the American Academy of Pediatrics' state breastfeeding committee - which she chairs - where she will linger past midnight, talking about her favorite subject.
Marinelli, a neonatologist who has earned a reputation as the hospital's "breastfeeding guru," is passionate about her mission, and it seems to give her boundless energy.
Nearly 6 feet tall, Marinelli, 42, is at once all business and all warmth - her physician's precision and maternal instinct blending into a powerful force that wants to tackle every problem and help every person. Her short brown hair is layered gently away from her face, and the long sleeves of her soft, teal dress are pushed up past the elbows, ready for work. Her pager and ID tag are clipped to her hip pocket, and a pair of gold reading glasses hangs from a slim black cord around her neck. Her speech, like her face, is animated. She has a habit, when amused, of sticking out her tongue and biting it. She does everything fast - talk, walk, type, write. "It's the only way I get everything in," she says.
For decades, the only really audible voice for breastfeeding in the United States was La Leche League, an international grassroots organization often marginalized as militant by the mainstream. Now, the message is trumpeting forth from all sorts of podiums, thanks to new scientific research that reveals the far-reaching and complex benefits of breastfeeding, and the rise of women like Marinelli into positions of power.
The bill she helped draft and push through the Connecticut legislature last summer is a prime example. It protects women's right to use break time on the job to breastfeed or express breast milk and requires employers to make reasonable efforts to provide a private space other than a toilet stall for that purpose. In 1997, the state passed a separate bill guaranteeing women the right to nurse their babies without harassment in any public or private place they are authorized to be, after a Milford mother was threatened with arrest while breastfeeding in her car.
Similar legislation has popped up all over the country. More than half of all states have passed at least one law protecting breastfeeding women, and two separate bills are sitting in committee in the U.S. House and Senate that would give breastfeeding mothers protection under the Civil Rights Act. The House bill also provides tax incentives to employers who support breastfeeding.
The movement seems to be taking off. This summer more than 1,000 women set a world record with a mass breastfeeding in Berkeley, Calif. And in the past year, "nurse-ins" have been held in New York, Maryland, California and elsewhere to protest incidents of harassment or discrimination.
A growing body of evidence testifies to the unique benefits of breastfeeding, for both mother and child. "It has become increasingly apparent that infant formula can never duplicate human milk," notes an article on the Food and Drug Administration website, quoting a scientific study. "Human milk contains living cells, hormones, active enzymes, immunoglobulins and compounds with unique structures that cannot be replicated." Breastfeeding lowers the risk of respiratory illness, infection, diarrhea, allergies and obesity. The distinctive sucking pattern it requires is especially suited to oral development. And chemical changes in nursing mothers have been shown to bring on feelings of relaxation and love, help return the womb to its pre-pregnancy state and lower the lifetime risk of uterine and breast cancer. In fact, a new British study has found a direct correlation between the number of months a woman breastfeeds and the drop in her risk of breast cancer. While infant formula - generally built on a base of cow's milk, whey, or soy and vegetable oils - has become increasingly sophisticated in response to new research, it will always be "second best," as the FDA site puts it.
The benefits of breastfeeding translate to reduced health-care costs for both mother and baby, and federal agencies - from the Department of Health and Human Services to the Centers for Disease Control - have now joined the chorus advocating exclusive breastfeeding through the first six months of life and continued breastfeeding through at least the first year. Backed by the strength of those recommendations and similar ones from the World Health Organization, UNICEF and the American Academy of Pediatrics, breastfeeding advocates in the U.S. are finally making significant progress.
"It's a very exciting time to be involved in breastfeeding because things are moving forward and there are people who are interested, so you can make an impact now," says Marinelli. But, "we still have a very long way to go."
Though 64 percent of mothers nationwide initiate breastfeeding, by six months after birth, the rate has fallen to 29 percent, and by one year, to 16 percent. The rates are much lower among African American women and mothers receiving assistance through the federal Women, Infants and Children program, which offers free formula vouchers as part of its food package.
Those statistics have special meaning in a city like Hartford, with the highest rate of births to single mothers in the nation - 78 percent in 1998, according to Child Trends and Kid Counts. A fifth of all city births in 2000 were to teens, with more girls giving birth here than graduating from high school, according to Breaking the Cycle, the city's teen pregnancy prevention campaign. These are exactly the women and babies who have the most to gain, physically, emotionally and financially, from breastfeeding and are the least likely to pursue it.
Marinelli, like others in the breastfeeding community, understands that creating change means tackling the issue on many levels: changing medical practices to encourage breastfeeding; educating families, employers and the public about its benefits as well as the needs of breastfeeding mothers and babies; passing legislation that protects the rights of breastfeeding women; shifting the focus of the culture away from formula feeding; and, most important, providing every mother with the day-to-day support she needs to breastfeed successfully.
It's a huge undertaking, and it begins, like so many things, on an intimate, human level.
Debra Kronschnabel is among the lucky ones on Marinelli's ward. Her twins, Erich and Klarissa, were born full-term in the Hartford Hospital maternity unit upstairs and have been nursing since birth. As a pharmacist, Kronschnabel is well versed in the medical benefits of breastfeeding, and as a third-time breastfeeding mother, she's got plenty of experience. But she has never nursed two babies at once, and she has never dealt with the kind of challenge Erich presents. The Kronschnabel babies were sent down to the NICU at Connecticut Children's Medical Center after Erich's blood sugar dropped. He was stabilized with an intravenous line and supplemental feedings of formula and sugar water, and has recovered enough to have all but the sugar water discontinued. The goal now is to get him nursing frequently and thoroughly enough that, like his sister, he can once again be breastfed exclusively. Marinelli already spent some time this morning successfully working with Kronschnabel and Erich, and now she's back for round two.
"I've been surprised how much support I've needed," says Kronschnabel, who lives in Canton. "I think I've had four sessions with lactation consultants - extended sessions - and this is an experienced mother. ... There was a time when I thought, `Is this all worth it? Maybe it would be better if he didn't breastfeed.' I think the difference between sticking it out and giving it up is having [the staff] here for support."
A few generations ago, women like Kronschnabel would have been helped by mothers, aunts, sisters or friends experienced in breastfeeding. But the advent of formula feeding in the last century - fueled by the regimentation of postpartum care, the entry of women into the workforce and intensive marketing by manufacturers - has interrupted the age-old flow of wisdom and left most women without a natural network of breastfeeding support. Kronshnabel's mother, Sandy Figueroa, who is with her at the hospital today, says she was discouraged by medical staff from breastfeeding her own children. She did manage to nurse one of the four for a few months. "When it works, it is just wonderful, and so much easier," she says. But she has little expertise to offer her daughter today.
Fair-skinned and freckled, with shoulder-length, blond hair, Kronschnabel, 35, settles into a large, upholstered nursing chair, unbuttons her denim shirt, unhooks the front of her nursing bra, and brings Erich to her breast. She is skeptical of the effort. In the couple of hours since their last nursing session, Erich was circumcised, and he is so exhausted from crying that Kronschnabel knows even the scent of his mother and the feel of her nipple against his mouth are unlikely to rouse him.
But Marinelli has a lot of tricks in her bag. Leaning over the chair facing Kronschnabel, she tickles Erich's feet and sides, and loosens his clothing in an effort to disturb him. Then she lifts him away from the swaddling comfort of his mother's body. Finally, she passes him back to the attending nurse, Laura Miele, who removes the IV needle still taped to the back of his right hand. As Miele peels the tight adhesive, Erich finally begins to cry. His mouth open wide in a scream, he is passed back to his mom and latches on immediately. The nipple in his mouth is all the comfort he was looking for, however, and soon he drifts back to sleep.
Marinelli directs Kronschnabel to squeeze out some milk by gently compressing her breast with her thumb and fingers, but even the taste of a meal has no effect on Erich. Normally, such a sleepy baby would be left alone until he is ready to nurse, but Marinelli can't afford to do that with Erich, who must keep up his food intake. So she switches to plan B. She sends Figueroa to the other side of the room to fetch Klarissa, with the hope that her suckling will create the milk letdown needed to get Erich going. Again, Kronschnabel is doubtful. Klarissa nursed until she was full just an hour ago.
Marinelli proceeds anyway, helping Kronschnabel position Klarissa at her right breast, with Erich on the left and soon both are exhibiting the long, drawing sucks and swallows that indicate real eating. Kronschnabel is amazed. "I didn't think we were going to get him to go."
Three months later, both babies are thriving and Kronschnabel is still exclusively nursing. "You worry, am I doing the right thing or am I not," she says. "Had I not had a professional there backing me and helping me figure out how to work it, and also acting as an advocate with the staff there, I don't think I would have been able to do it."
When Marinelli arrived at CCMC in 1989, only one in five babies on the unit received any breast milk at all. Now, the rate is close to 70 percent, due mainly to her efforts. On the NICU, even more than in the general population, breast milk is liquid gold, and Marinelli believes providing it is central to her medical mission. Research has shown that just as the composition of breast milk changes as a baby ages, so milk produced by mothers whose babies are born prematurely is markedly different from term milk. It is higher in protein, calories and minerals - all nutrients these fragile infants need in greater amounts. Unlike formula, breast milk and its precurser, colostrum, a yellowish fluid produced by mothers in the first few days after birth, provide antibodies that protect against infection. In fact, there is evidence that mothers visiting the NICU pick up on their skin germs unique to the hospital environment, produce antibodies against them, then pass those antibodies back to their babies through the breast milk. And, especially important for premature infants, breast milk is exceptionally easy for most babies to digest.
The natural rhythms of breastfeeding run counter to the culture of an intensive care unit, however. "NICU's are, by the nature of the beast, very precise places, very scheduled places in terms of what needs to occur with the babies," notes Marinelli, "and that doesn't fit with breastfeeding, which is one of the reasons, I think, that it's been so hard to accept breastfeeding in a lot of NICUs, because you can't feed a baby every three hours and give them an exact number of cc's a feeding when you put a baby to breast." Marinelli's team educates everyone from doctors and nurses to secretaries and cleaning staff - many of whom have never breastfed - as to why accommodating it is worth it.
Ellen Robinson, an obstetrician and gynecologist, sits on the American Academy of Pediatrics' state breastfeeding committee with Marinelli and was closely involved in Hartford Hospital's push to become certified as a Baby Friendly Hospital under UNICEF's breastfeeding promotion program. She believes that in addition to not understanding the process of breastfeeding, parents who formula fed - including health-care providers - wrestle with their own guilt. "My personal opinion is that one of the reasons why this is hard for people is that if you didn't breastfeed your own kids ... there has to be some sort of glitch in your head that says, `If I'm telling everybody this is the right thing to do, then I did something wrong,'" observes Robinson.
Many of the preemies on Marinelli's ward spend weeks taking their mother's milk through a tube in the nose until their swallowing and breathing reflexes are developed enough to suck on a nipple. Traditionally, the next step has been to feed them through bottles while their mothers work on getting them to breast. But some babies who get used to the fast flow of artificial nipples may have trouble with the more elaborate sucking pattern breastfeeding requires. So Marinelli has been trying for several years to introduce finger feeding - in which the milk is delivered to babies through a thin tube taped to the parent's or nurse's finger - and cup feeding, in which the baby sips from a tiny medicine cup. It has been an uphill battle. Though the past and current NICU nurse managers have been "incredibly supportive," Marinelli says, many nurses were concerned there was no data assuring the safety of cup feeding. Not one to give up easily, she did the next logical thing: She conducted her own randomized, controlled study at CCMC. Her research, which has since been published, revealed cup feeding to be as safe or safer than bottle feeding because of its controlled flow.
Marinelli and her colleagues on the lactation support team - nurses Sally Leed and Mary Lussier, who is also a lactation consultant - have made many other changes that support breastfeeding. The CCMC unit now allows parents to visit 24 hours a day and provides space for overnight stays with the baby, along with hospital-grade breast pumps and a huge, commercial freezer for storing expressed milk. Each NICU mother receives a cooler pack in which to carry that milk back and forth from home and a 24-page book that takes her step by step through the process of breastfeeding a preemie. A lactation consultant is always on duty, and the lactation team offers a weekly "milk club" at which mothers can discuss breastfeeding issues. Marinelli has even arranged, in a few rare cases, for infants on the unit to receive donor breast milk from a milk bank, paid for by the family's medical insurance.
Such changes are in line with the guidelines established under UNICEF's international Baby Friendly Hospital initiative. So far, Hartford Hospital is the only institution in the state awarded this status, though Middlesex Hospital in Middletown and Windham Community Memorial Hospital in Willimantic have both begun working toward the designation.
Marinelli's passion for breastfeeding began with her own experience. Traditionally, medical schools have dealt very little with breastfeeding, and even her subsequent pediatric training in the early 1980s barely grazed the subject. It wasn't until she began to get interested in neonatology as a resident at Children's Hospital National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., that the concept of breast milk as an ideal food was introduced. There, a mentor emphasized its value to premature babies. Marinelli was working 36-hour shifts as a fellow at Children's and her husband was still completing his postdoctoral studies in biochemistry when their first child, Alex, was born. Despite the grueling schedule and a slim six weeks' maternity leave, Marinelli decided to breastfeed. She's still not sure why.
"I didn't have a breastfeeding role model. ... But somehow, I knew that this was the right thing to do." And then, Marinelli says, she fell in love with her baby and fell in love with breastfeeding him.
"By the time I went back to work, I had already decided that I didn't care what it took, I was going to pump milk - plenty of it - and my kids were never going to get formula. And so I would go in with my cooler and pump huge amounts of milk. I found time to when no one else seemed to think there was time to be able to pump," she recalls.
"So I was experiencing it as a mother and learning about it scientifically as a physician ... and it really bothered me that nobody knew" how tremendously valuable it is.
Two years later, she arrived at CCMC, and a year later her son Ethan was born. She breastfed him exclusively for almost two years, as she did Alex and, later, daughters Katie and Caroline, despite her demanding work schedule. With each child, and with each year in the NICU, she became increasingly passionate about her mission.
"I think although in medicine it's probably not always the best thing to take your own personal experience into the way that you practice, because I thought breastfeeding was so wonderful with my own children, I want these other mothers to be able to have that chance, too," says Marinelli. That connection is even more important in the NICU, she notes, where the technology can be overwhelming and so little is under the parents' control. Breastfeeding is the one thing they - and they alone - can do for their babies.
"No matter how many times I do it, I get shivers up my back when I get a little, tiny preemie to breast, and the mother's face lights up," says Marinelli. "I think about all the millions of years of evolution - that we got to where we are because we were fed our mothers' milk."
Carla Holzer is waiting for Marinelli in the center of the NICU, perched on a stool between the bassinets that house her twin daughters. Her only children, Sydney and Savannah, were born seven weeks ago, and Holzer, of Glastonbury, has been expressing breast milk for them ever since. Recently, the more frail of the two developed an acute sensitivity to cow's-milk protein. Holzer has religiously followed the prescribed dairy-, whey- and peanut-free diet for two weeks now, but Savannah is still having trouble tolerating her mother's milk. The doctor on duty this past weekend switched her to a prescription hypoallergenic formula, and though the other twin, Sydney, is thriving, Marinelli knows Holzer has been thinking hard about whether she wants to continue breastfeeding.
A petite, energetic woman with straight brown hair pulled up in a high ponytail, Holzer, 33, is dressed today in gray capris and a pale blue sweater set. A slender silver chain around her neck bears two tiny female figures. Her manner is eager and anxious, as though she is both dreading and longing for this conversation. Marinelli pulls up a chair.
"You know what, Doctor, I've tried," Holzer begins quickly. "I'm very emotional, and I've just decided it's not working for me - and a lot of reasons why, not just the dairy thing, but just I'm feeling torn because I feel like I'm giving too much of myself to her" - she motions toward Sydney, asleep to her left - "and not enough to her" - she sweeps her hand to the right, toward Savannah. "Maybe it's different because I have twins," she rushes on. "I don't know. I don't know. It's very emotional. I never realized it would be this hard to make a decision. ... It might be different if Savannah was the one I could breastfeed, because she's so much smaller and she's having a harder time. I would feel like, yup, I gotta do it. With [Sydney], I just don't feel like, `I gotta do it.'"
"We talked all along about this being something that has to be right for you," Marinelli reassures her. "You've done a great job."
"It doesn't feel like it, though, sometimes," says Holzer. "That's the hardest thing about it. For days now I've been so torn up about it. You know, you do, you feel like a loser. I feel like I'm not a good mom."
"Nope," says Marinelli. "You have worked really hard for these girls. ... You're important in this; I've told you that before. It's the way the family's gonna work. And if you do it because you feel like you have to, and you're feeling all these emotions, that's not good for you.
"Is your husband OK with this?" Marinelli asks.
"Yeah," says Holzer. "I think he's a little disappointed. That was part of it, because I feel like I'm letting him down; I'm letting the whole family down. ...
"It's obviously my choice, but it doesn't make it any easier," Holzer says later, after Marinelli has gone.
Marinelli says, "I have to respect where she is. Any mother who tries [to breastfeed] deserves my respect, and any mother who makes a conscious decision and doesn't want to deserves my respect as well."
She says Holzer's emotional response is typical. "Any mother when she stops breastfeeding has that," she says. "We describe it as being guilt, but I think it's more mourning a loss of a very special relationship, and for our moms it may be even more intense, because for most of the hospitalization, it's the part that they can do, and when they say, `I can't' or `I don't want to do this any more,' it's very tough for them."
Holzer's husband, Frank, says the depth of the breastfeeding bond was clear the first time Carla got her babies to latch on. "To see her face light up ... I got a little emotional," he recalls.
But ultimately, he says, his wife "had put herself on a maternal pedestal that was very difficult for anyone to maintain."
Whether or how much to encourage women who are ambivalent about breastfeeding is a sensitive subject for advocates, who are often accused of pressuring overwhelmed new mothers. But Marinelli sees a big difference between pressure and education. Every parent, she believes, has the right to make decisions based on accurate information. Offering that information at the right time - in a way that effectively counters the misconceptions that pervade our formula-feeding culture - is the trick. Equally critical is providing moral support. Feeding difficulties can strike at the very core of a parent's sense of competence - her ability to nurture her child - and become the focus of all of a mother's feelings of inadequacy and stress.
One challenge in boosting confidence is that many of the health-care professionals mothers turn to with breastfeeding problems aren't very knowledgeable themselves. Stratford pediatrician Christina Smillie began to specialize in lactation by accident, after she breastfed her own child and found her colleagues constantly referring cases to her. She decided to devote her practice exclusively to the subject after The Wall Street Journal ran a front-page piece in 1994 about a breastfeeding baby who was brain-damaged by dehydration. The piece "made it sound as though breastfeeding was really dangerous and a baby could just inexplicably starve," Smillie remembers. It was clear to her from the details provided, however, that the mother had repeatedly received incorrect advice from her pediatrician's office. "That just really got me that this terrible thing was happening. ... I realized myself and my own colleagues were part of the problem."
Smillie says the psychological support she offers patients is right up there with the medical advice. As Americans, "we don't believe that our breasts work," she says. They have become such a pervasive sex symbol that "we didn't grow up even thinking what their purpose is." She has observed that women raised in breastfeeding cultures outside the U.S. will matter-of-factly work through significant difficulties on their own before seeking her help, while women who have grown up here may be overwhelmed by even minor challenges.
Even mothers who make it through the physical barriers may give up breastfeeding because of the social and emotional ones. Donna Chapman conducted focus groups with Hartford-area mothers when the Hispanic Health Council launched its breastfeeding marketing campaign two years ago. She found the main reasons women chose not to breastfeed or stopped breastfeeding early were embarrassment about nursing in public and a perceived lack of support from others. Some of those feelings are well founded, as Dina Tantimonaco can attest. Her encounter with a Milford police officer in 1996 sparked the state's first breastfeeding legislation.
Tantimonaco was 30 and venturing out for the first time with her first baby, 3-week-old Brianna, when she was approached by a police officer while discreetly nursing her daughter in the front seat of her Ford Blazer, the only vehicle in a secluded parking lot. "I notice you're breastfeeding your daughter, and you're not allowed to do that in public," she remembers him saying. "You need to move your car, and you need to go home and do that."
"I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I was in shock," Tantimonaco recalls. "So I can't stay here for five minutes and feed her and then go home?" she asked. "Not in my parking lot," was the answer. "He said to me, `What is the worst thing that's going to happen to your daughter if you stop breastfeeding her right now?' And I said, `Well, she'll probably frantically cry the whole way home.' And he said, `Then you should just go home, and if you continue to fight this with me ... if you don't get out of my parking lot and stop doing that, I'll have no choice but to arrest you for indecent exposure.' I was not indecent at all. ... My breast was completely covered."
She and Brianna went home, both in tears, and the next day she visited the police station to complain. "They didn't care, or they didn't know what to do about it," she says. So she called her local paper to file a small letter to the editor, and to her surprise the story ended up instead making headlines across the state. "I was just a regular mom who had a bad experience," Tantimonaco says. But because she chose to speak up, "it sparked a national debate because there was no law at the time in our state for the right to breastfeed. What they said was he was actually within his rights as an officer to kick me off the premises. ... It just made me very saddened and confused and angry that they had the authority to do that to a woman who just wanted to nurse her baby."
She contacted her state representative, James Amann, a Democrat. "I asked him ... `What can I do so that I never have to worry about this again?'" Tantimonaco remembers. Her question sparked a yearlong fight to pass Connecticut's first breastfeeding legislation, assuring mothers the right to nurse their babies in public or private. Along the way, Tantimonaco heard countless stories from other women who had been similarly harassed. She also was introduced to a broad community of breastfeeding advocates she had never known existed. Among them was Smillie, in whose office she ultimately worked for four years.
That job nurtured Tantimonaco's breastfeeding relationship in another way, by allowing her to bring Brianna, and then son Joey, to work with her. It's a luxury few working mothers enjoy. Many women face workplaces where breastfeeding is unfamiliar and misunderstood and where requests for even small accommodations are met with resistance or ridicule. Often, mothers end up weaning their infants early in order to avoid the issue entirely, or because of their own misconceptions about the time and effort involved. In truth, all a mother needs to continue breastfeeding while away from her child is a breast pump with which to express milk and a private place in which to use it once or twice a day - along with the confidence to pursue her needs.
In 2000 the state breastfeeding committee teamed up with academy of pediatrics lobbyists, Amann and, through Marinelli, lobbyists from Connecticut Children's Medical Center to introduce a second bill that would address the difficulties nursing mothers face in the workplace. Erica Correa of New Britain was among those who testified at the statehouse.
When Correa returned to work four months after giving birth to her first son, David, her needs were simple. "I worked from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.," she says. "The only problem I had was I needed to pump once in the afternoon." She quickly discovered, however, that not only was there no private space within the company where she worked as a sales analyst (all the offices had interior windows), but even with 150 employees, her supervisors had never before encountered someone asking for a place to express milk.
"I ended up speaking to all kinds of different managers and finally got clearance to put trade show posters in the windows of one of the offices," Correa recalls. "But because of some traditional hierarchy things, there was only one office I could use, and I was sharing it with other people. So every day there was this discussion as to what Erica's going to do and when she's going to pump, and it was very uncomfortable because my breastfeeding - and, basically, my breasts, which I thought was kind of a sensitive subject - was the topic of office conversation almost every day."
Correa quit her job to take a comparable one with a smaller company that was much more family friendly. "They didn't have a lot of space, but they tried to accommodate any breastfeeding mothers," she says. "And there was a human resources manager who knew what pumping meant." She is still happily employed at the new company, Reflexite in New Britain, and is now on maternity leave with her second child.
Lobbying for the breastfeeding in the workplace act meant having those same sorts of conversations with legislators, many of whom had no idea what expressing milk entails. "People were asking questions like, `Well, why do you have to do it twice?'" says state Rep. Christopher Donovan, a Meriden Democrat, an early champion of the bill and the father of breastfed children. The answer? "Because the breasts fill up with milk again." The incredulous response: "They do?!" Marinelli says they were frequently asked why mothers couldn't just pump in the bathroom - the most unsanitary space in any building. "We'd say, `Would you eat your lunch in a bathroom stall?' and they'd give you this disgusted look. `Well, would you express milk for your baby in a bathroom stall?'"
In the end, after a lot of last-minute lobbying, the bill passed both the House and Senate unanimously and took effect last October. Though it lacks penalties for noncompliance, it is a good beginning, giving nursing mothers the right to express breast milk or breastfeed during breaks without discrimination and requiring employers to provide a private space.
Many companies already have discovered that supporting breastfeeding workers makes good business sense.
Aetna and CIGNA, for example, both offer their employees benefits that include private rooms equipped with professional-grade breast pumps, generous break time, flexible work schedules and lactation consultation. In 2001, Aetna calculated that its investment returned three times the savings in reduced absenteeism and lower health-care costs for breastfeeding mothers and babies. CIGNA's program has been honored by the nonprofit Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition and received the C. Everett Koop National Health Award in 2000.
A commitment to employees does not always translate to a commitment to customers, however. Of the nine health plans Smillie's office accepts, so far only one, ConnectiCare, covers visits with a lactation consultant. Even mothers of preemies, for whom breast milk is especially important, frequently find themselves having to fight for coverage of quality breast pumps and lactation support.
Over the past year, Marinelli and more than a hundred professional and lay people interested in breastfeeding have formed the Connecticut Breastfeeding Coalition. It is a novel, and at times uneasy, collaboration among advocates of many different orientations. While they struggle to chip away at the obstacles to breastfeeding, many remain systemic.
The U.S. lags behind other industrialized and developing countries in maternity leave, for example, which can be critical in establishing a solid breastfeeding relationship. And 20 years after the fact, the U.S. remains one of only seven nations in the world that have not taken a single step toward approving the World Health Organization's International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes, sharing company with the likes of Somalia and Moldova. The code, already partially or entirely in force in much of Europe and South America, forbids the advertising of infant formula directly to the public, bans the distribution of free samples and coupons, and requires warning labels on every package. Not only is formula still marketed directly to consumers in the U.S., but often it is done with the direct help of hospitals and health care providers, who pass on free samples and informational packets to patients.
Margaret McLeran learned firsthand just how important these handouts are to formula manufacturers when Hartford Hospital moved to ban them at the start of its efforts to become Baby Friendly. "I got quite a lot of pressure from the Mead-Johnson representatives," says the pediatrician who chaired the hospital's lactation committee. "They went and polled the community pediatricians and then came back with that evidence." McLeran says she and her team had top-level support from hospital administrators, however, and ultimately got formula advertising and samples banned within the hospital. The hospital also decided to distance itself from formula companies, which were building a customer base at birth through the hospitals, and began paying full price for the product used by its patients.
It's a different story for the U.S. government, however, which continues to receive billions of dollars worth of discounted formula every year from manufacturers to distribute to low-income mothers through the Women, Infants and Children program. It's clearly a critical outlet for formula companies, which reward the federal government annually with rebates totaling as much as two-thirds the value of the formula involved.
WIC was launched in 1974, when breastfeeding rates were low nationwide, notes Susan Jackman, WIC nutrition coordinator for Connecticut. "The reality was that babies were drinking formula," she observes, so it was included in the food package. With frequent office visits required, and half the nation's children served by the program, WIC is in a prime position to reach out to pregnant women. Federal regulations now require that every WIC mother be informed about breastfeeding's advantages and encouraged to breastfeed, and a number of Connecticut regions offer special counselors and breastfeeding support groups. Yet WIC breastfeeding rates continue to fall well below national and state averages at every stage.
It's a Thursday evening, and Marinelli is sitting around the kitchen table of her South Glastonbury home with her family. Her first day off this week featured a host of errands and a meeting of Katie's Brownie troop, which she co-leads. Now, it's after 8:30 on a school night, and Katie, 8, and Caroline, 5, should be heading to bed. But there's a visitor present, and Marinelli just can't stop talking about her favorite subject.
As the conversation progresses, her voice becomes more animated. Ethan, 12, is listening intently, puzzling out the issues and peppering her with thoughtful questions. Of all the children, Marinelli says, he is the most passionate about breastfeeding. He once asked her, with great concern, "Mom, what if when I grow up, the woman I fall in love with doesn't want to breastfeed?" She assured him they would talk to her together. (Smillie says she had a similar experience with her own son, now 17, who reported asking his first girlfriend whether she planned to breastfeed.)
Marinelli is launching into a description of her next project - setting up an outpatient breastfeeding clinic for mothers whose babies have been in the NICU - when her husband, Mark Bamberger, lays his hands gently on her shoulders. "Kathie," he suggests softly, "maybe you should just, like ..."
"Leave her alone?" Marinelli asks, smiling at her guest.
"Well, I mean, I can tell you're into this breastfeeding avenger [thing]," he offers.
"I'm almost done," she promises. "I'm not the avenger! This is the next phase in my plan at work. There's no secret about it."
In truth, Marinelli says, Bamberger has been her greatest supporter - from her first breastfeeding experience through her new activism - never complaining about the demands her schedule places on him and the rest of the family. "I couldn't do what I do if I had a different husband," she says. "I think about how much hard work he does so I can do these things. He never says no." When she got a call this spring from a co-worker who was having difficulty breastfeeding her new baby, for example, it was Bamberger who encouraged her to make her first house call, even though they were just sitting down to dinner. "I said, `If I don't go, I think she's going to quit,'" Marinelli recalls. "And he said, `Go. You need to go.' And I went, and she's breastfeeding!"
It was a response born of experience. Marinelli once placed just such a call to a nurse on her unit while struggling to breastfeed her youngest, Caroline. "Because I was the mother and not the lactation consultant, I couldn't recognize what the issues were," she remembers. "I called her and said, `I don't know what's going on here, but if someone doesn't help me, I'm quitting,' and she said, `YOU?! You breastfeed forever!'" The nurse came right away, and Marinelli went on to breastfeed for close to two years.
Bamberger has done his share of advocacy, as well, encouraging his pregnant co-workers to breastfeed, offering them Marinelli's phone number for support and gathering information about Pfizer's employee lactation programs to be presented to the state legislature.
Though Marinelli's many commitments generally don't add to the family's bottom line, Bamberger believes in them wholeheartedly. "That's her passion. That's her mission in life," he says. "I respect that and admire that ... That's what's important - you do something you love."
Charlotte Meryman is a writer in Williamsburg, Mass., and edits a newsletter for breastfeeding mothers. She wrote "The Jimmy File," a Northeast cover story in 2001.


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Israel News - Stay Informed, Pray Informed
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon took the ride to his final resting place in the southern Negev region on Monday following a pair of memorial ceremonies in Jerusalem and Latrun.
The morning started at the Knesset in Jerusalem, where Israeli officials were joined by more than a dozen foreign dignitaries, including US Vice President Biden, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Czech Prime Minister Jiri Rusnok, Russian parliamentary head Sergey Naryshkin, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Spanish Home Affairs Minister Jorge Fernandez Diaz and Canadian Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander.
Biden and Blair joined Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres in eulogizing Sharon.
A massive convoy then made its way to Latrun, where a then-20-year-old Sharon took part and was seriously wounded in a bloody battle against Arab forces during Israel's War of Independence.
Arriving at Sharon's Sycamore Ranch in the Negev, a group of senior IDF generals lowered the former leader's coffin into the ground next to his late wife Lily.
With the Sycamore Ranch situated so close to the Gaza Strip, security officials had feared Palestinian terrorists would try to attack the funeral with rockets. Indeed, earlier in the day two rockets were fired from Gaza, but failed to reach southern Israel.
Standing at the graveside, IDF Chief of Staff Gen. Benny Gantz told Sharon, revered by many as one of history's greatest Jewish warriors, that the Israeli army continues to "march to the sound of your footsteps."
Sharon's tearful son, Gilad, mourned a father who had "become a national legend."
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subset: commoncrawl


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Rifle Paper Co.
Rifle Paper Co.
Rifle Paper Co. is a stationery and lifestyle brand based in Winter Park, Florida founded and owned by husband and wife team, Anna and Nathan Bond.
Here at The Paper Parlour we stock a vast range of this fabulous brand. We have Rifle Paper Co. Cards, Journals, Notepads, Market Pads, Pocket Notebooks, Planners, Pencils & Postcards. We love everything about Rifle Paper Co; their beautiful and fun illustrations and attention to detail make their stationery the best!
As well as delivery all over the UK we also offer International delivery. Our friends in France, Germany, Spain and Italy to name but a few can purchase their favourite Rifle Paper Co. items right here.
Rifle Paper Co. 2019-2020 Planners & Calendars
Rifle Paper Co. Planners and Calendars are a major highlight every year for us stationery geeks. Their planners and calendars come in a variety of shapes and sizes but each one comes in a different design that will make your eyes explode with joy! These planners start every August and run through to December the following year.
Rifle Paper Co. Journals, Notebooks & Address Books
Rifle Paper Co. Journals, Notebooks & Address Books showcase the stupendous creative talents of Anna bond and her team. If mouthwateringly good colour combinations and blooms aplenty are your thing you are sure to fall head over heels for these beauties.
Rifle Paper Co. Recipe Boxes & Recipe Cards
Rifle Paper Co. have a rather fabulous range of Recipe Boxes and recipe cards. They are the perfect gift for anyone who loves cooking and baking!
Rifle Paper Co. Stationery
Rifle Paper Co. strongly believe life's personal stories and moments are best told through the gift of a handwritten card or note, and hope that their beautiful goods inspire you to share these moments with others. They have created stunning Social Stationery Writing Sets and Writing Pads with match Envelopes. The quality is exceptional and the art work is top notch as always.
Rifle Paper Co. Candles
Rifle Paper Co. have designed six custom-blended scents! Anna found inspiration in her "dream destinations" around the world that capture each location's spirit, from the Adirondack mountains and the souks of Marrakech to the Amalfi coast's refreshing sea breeze. The keepsake ceramic vessels feature signature full-color illustrations, and each soy wax candle has 60+ hour burn time and a natural cotton wick.
Rifle Paper Co. Cards
Here at The Paper Parlour we stock a massive range of Rife Paper Co. Cards and Card Sets. You will find a card to suit every occasion wether it be for a Birthday, Wedding, or Christening to name but a few. Rifle Paper Co. cards have the bestest and sweetest illustrations that are sure to make the recipient feel all warm and fuzzy inside.


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Blood sugar 3 mg/dl (0.17mmol/l) - is that good or bad?
We help you interpret your blood sugar values. You have tested your blood sugar and the result was 3 mg/dl. Let's have a look at the blood sugar gauge:
Low Blood Sugar (Hypoglycemia)
A lot of factors do have influence on the ideal blood sugar level. While your blood sugar might be too low or too hight for a normal blood sugar, factors like exercising or eating do have impact on the ideal blood sugar level
Test another value?
|Blood Sugar:
Do you want a more detailed report? Please select accordingly:
My blood sugar was tested...
General information about Low Blood Sugar (Hypoglycemia)
Low blood sugar, clinical name hypoglycemia, is a condition in which blood sugar levels in the body fall too low. Generally, a blood sugar level between 80 and 110 milligrams per deciliter is considered to be in normal range. When this level falls below 80, individuals may develop symptoms of low blood sugar. This condition often occurs in people with diabetes, when they try to control high glucose levels and the level falls too low. However, low blood sugar can occur from other causes, such as going for long periods without eating, from certain medications and from specific medical conditions.
Symptoms of Low Blood Sugar
The disturbance in normal blood sugar levels can cause a variety of symptoms, which may be different in each individual. Common symptoms include:
· Extreme hunger
· Nausea
· Sweating
· Shakiness, weakness or nervousness
· Headache
· Rapid heartbeat
· Confusion or concentration problems
Recognizing Low Blood Sugar
Individuals who have been diagnosed with diabetes learn to monitor their blood sugar levels closely. When blood sugar drops below normal levels, they learn to recognize the signs, such as dizziness or nausea. Diabetics often have a glucometer to determine if low blood sugar is the cause. Test strips can also determine if blood sugar levels have dropped too low. They can then take measures to raise their blood sugar to a normal range.
Raising Low Blood Sugar
To quickly raise low blood sugar to a normal level, medical professionals advise consuming one of the following:
· ½ cup orange juice
· ½ cup apple juice
· 1 cup fat-free milk
· 1 small apple
· 3 tablespoons of raisins
· 15 grapes
· 6 large jelly beans
· 1 tablespoon of honey, jam or jelly
· 3 to 4 glucose tablets
If you are diabetic and have frequent bouts of low blood sugar, talk to your physician about changing your medication. If you are not diabetic, adjust your schedule to ensure that you eat on time and see your doctor for a thorough physical to rule out any illness that may be causing the problem.
Marcel Gantert
Latest posts by Marcel Gantert (see all)
- What You Should Know About Fruit and Diabetes - 03/13/2017
- Glucagon Injections - 05/03/2016


text: Video Conferencing Reset: The Consumerization of Video Conferencing Oct 7, 2013 SDRNews.com | Andy McCaskey Several weeks ago, I was part of a Tech Day at Lifesize, A Division of Logitech in Austin, TX – along with a number of industry analysts and bloggers. The event was designed to educate specialsts with their own perspectives on video, enterprise level IT management, unified communications, medical, and education. For a day and a half, we were briefed by marketing and tech teams from Lifesize - with a full factory tour and opportunity to talk with specialists and management at a number of levels. One of the participants with a unique perspective is Jon Arnold, of Jon Arnold Associates of Toronto. In this episode of SDRNews Live, we talk about Jon's recent article at Unified Communications Strategies: Today's Videoconferencing Landscape – Connectivity vs. Collaboration.


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Hey Everyone! I'm so sorry for the delay in today's Daily Download! I hope you enjoy it!
**Link is Expired**
Hey Everyone! I'm so sorry for the delay in today's Daily Download! I hope you enjoy it!
Good morning everyone! Happy St. Patty's Day to you! Are you wearing green today? I am!
This week we're talking to the one and only, our fearless leader, Ginger!
She has designed for us our March Daily Download. Are you caught up yet? Don't forget to miss a day! So far I can tell you it's absolutely fantastic!
I asked Ginger what her inspiration was for this kit.
My inspiration was the men in my family I have a family full of manly men, they get dirty, build projects, ride off-road, and I needed something to scrap thoese memories.
What is the one thing you can't not have while designing?
I must have my Bamboo tablet! I do not know how people do anything in photoshop with a mouse!! And a clean desk. If my desk is a big mess I can not be creative at all, the papers, and clutter distract me. I can turn my back on the rest of the house, lol, but my desk has to be clean.
What inspired you to start designing in the first place?
I started designing to make freebies. I loved collecting freebies and wanted to learn how to make all the goodies I was getting! I kinda came to a screeching halt once I opened up GS. It takes almost all of my computer time, my design time is very limited now.
But, let me just say that we are all so thankful for the community you have built! It's like you plucked up all the lovely people and put them in one place.
What is your go-to scrap subject?
My kiddos of course, oh and my pets are pretty darn cute too. I have two kids, a 14 year old daughter and an 11 year old son. We have a tiny little fur ball Cooper, he is a 4 lb mini Maltese, and two cats Sugar, and Chino (short for cappuccino).
Could you tell us something we might not know about you?
Hmm, shall I go all serious…. or shall I tell you something fun….. How about one of each?
For the serious one, I have a full and nasty list of healthy problems. My main enemy is a blood clotting disorder, it caused me to have a stroke in my 20's, followed by MANY small strokes the following years. It is a daily battle, and honest to God I don't know what I would have done without my digi community! I could not drive for over a year, and my digi community was my support system and my creative outlet.
And the fun thing you don't know about me, I want to be a makeup artist. I have a total obsession with makeup and nails! I paint my nails in fun crazy ways about every 4 days. There is an old thread at GS with a few photos of my nails, I need to post some more soon.
What is something new to you that you've accomplished recently? A challenge or goal you've completed?
Well, inspired by Jill's monthly Mystery Challenge in Feb, I learned to Zentangle! It is a kind of doodling. I'm totally hooked!! Here is my first ever Zentangle-
If you could travel anywhere, where would you go?
For me, what I would REALLY love to do is, get a RV and take a long road trip with my kids! It's more about the journey than the destination for me. My mom had a great quote she says' "Not all who wander are lost." I love that!
I can tell you that that is also a dream of mine! Someday I would love to just pack up and drive wherever the road takes us. Great quote!
We have all experienced, in some way or another, this beautiful weather going about the country. Spring is finally here! What is your favorite Springtime activity?
My favorite springtime activity, sitting outside in a comfy chair and breathing in the clean country air.
What was the last book you read, and would you recommend it?
It was The Hunger Games 😉 And YES I recommend it! I'm now on the 3rd book in the series. Love it!
What is the one song you have on repeat right now (because, you know everyone has that ONE song)?
Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift, and We Are Young by FUN
Just yesterday, I'm pretty sure I listened to We Are Young half a dozen times, if not more, myself! Awesome song!
And before we go, look to your left, first thing you see… GO!
My dining room table, with Pizza boxes from dinner on it (we have pizza and watch Survivor every Wednesday).
Thank you Ginger, for taking time to answer my few questions, and letting us get to know you just that much more. We all appreciate everything you do for us and totally pink-puffy-heart you! 😀
I hope everyone has a safe and rambunctiously great St. Patty's Day!
Full and detailed Privacy Statement can be found here: Privacy Statement


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Gila Tools Laser-Welded Asphalt Diamond Blade is designed for maximum performance and long life. The narrow U-Slot gullet design allows for quick and efficient debris removal to provide faster cutting action. This diamond asphalt saw blade features tough wear-resistant bonds and drop segments provide under-cut protection for use with abrasive materials.
Features: Gila Diamond Products Warranty pertaining to all Diamond Cutting Tools and Carbide Blades
All Gila Diamond Products are engineered and manufactured to the highest of standards. Your satisfaction is a dominant consideration. All Gila Diamond Products are warranted to be free from defects in material and/or workmanship, provided that the tools are properly maintained and there is no evidence of abuse or misuse.
Gila Diamond Products Warranty pertaining to all Diamond Cutting Tools and Carbide Blades
- In the event of failure or malfunction, return the product, properly packaged and postage prepaid, to Gila Diamond Products. You may also contact Gila Diamond Products at (888) 850-0889 for instructions on returns and technical advice.
- Gila Diamond Products assumes no liability for defects or damage caused by abuse or misuse of any product or unauthorized service of any product. The product must have been used for its recommended purpose and not modified by sharpening or other changes. Normal wear and tear is not covered under Gila Diamond Products warranties.
For proper size, seg width, seg height and arbor, view product table
- Arbor Size: 1"-20mm, 20mm
- Blade Diameter: 12"-24"
- Material Cut: Asphalt and Green Concrete
- Weld Type: Laser Welded
Works with the following Manufacturer Models:
Husqvarna: FS309, K3000wet, FS520, FS513, FS413, FS400
Diamond Products: CC1310E3XL-20, CC1507E3-20, CC1875E1XL-P, CC1810E3XL-P, CC1875E1XL-S, CC1810E3XL-S, CC2515E-14, CC2515E-20, CC3520E-14, CC3520E-20, CC1918H-13EE
MK Diamond: MK-5009T, MK-5010S, MK-5010T , MK-5009G, MK-5010G, MK-5013G, MK-3020B, MK-2013HE, MK-2013HSP, MK-1610B Premium, MK-1610B Premium, MK-5009T,
Edco: SK-14-9H, SK-14-11H, SK-14-13H, SS-20-20H, SS-20-13H, SS-20-10B, SB-14-9H, SB-14-11H, SB-14-13H,
Norton Saint Gobain: C3120SD, C3520SS, C2016SS, C2020SS, C2024SS, C1316SM, C1320SM, C1316SS, C1320SS, C2020ES, C1320P, C1318P,
CS Unitec: CSH 125, CSH 150, CSR 150
Wacker Nesonu: BFS914, BFS914A, BFS1318AB
Multiquip: SP118, SP213H20A, SP2S13H20A, SP2S20H20A,


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Mar-K Quality Parts
Oaklahoma Sewn & GrownA long, long time ago in the mid-twentieth century when what we all now consider classic trucks were brand-new there wasn't much of a need for replacement bed parts. If a person had the misfortune to be involved in an accident and needed the parts necessary to piece together a satisfactory resemblance of his original bed all it took was a trip to his local dealer's parts counter and he was all set. Then as time moved on and the dealer's supply of new replacement panels disappeared from the shelves it soon became about as hard as finding hen's teeth to locate enough parts and pieces to cherry out a pickup's bed close enough to have it match the quality of the cab. For the guys that were lucky enough to find a truck with a cherry bed, but wanted to tidy up the bed floor where the ravages of time were taking their toll on what was usually white, or yellow pine boards with a coat of black enamel splashed on there wasn't a whole lot a guy could do other than slap a big sheet of plywood down and call it a day.
This was how things were until 1977 when a small wood and steel fabricating shop sprung from a two-car garage in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and became what now is known as Mar-K Quality Parts. Since then the folks at Mar-K have gone way beyond producing just top-notch yellow pine, and red oak bed wood kits with a choice of bed strips in aluminum, steel, or stainless steel, the selection has grown to nearly complete just about any Ford or Chevrolet bed a person might need. To give an idea of how many different parts Mar-K Quality Parts stock for Ford and Chevrolet the company has now moved on to create an inventory of sheetmetal and wood parts needed to restore or customize a Dodge bed. We figured since Classic Life is about the lifestyle of folks who make a living creating all of the super cool goodies that we all crave for our classic trucks we'd give you guys a peek at the people who make it all possible.


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I'm delighted to report that the kind people at My Heritage.com have chosen this blog as one of their top 100 genealogy sites of 2010. My Heritage "wanted to identify and give recognition to websites which offered high-quality content, were innovative in topic or design, and which were frequently updated with new content". They were also putting some emphasis on "finding hidden gems in the community".
The full list of award-winning websites can be seen here.
The day-to-day activities of the Cruwys/Cruse one-name study with occasional diversions into other topics of interest such as DNA testing and personal genomics
Thursday, 13 May 2010
Award from My Heritage
Posted by Debbie Kennett at 12:34 pm Labels: Media coverage
2 comments:
- Dr. Bill (William L.) Smith said...
Congratulations on MyHeritage.com Top 100 Recognition!
Visiting all 100 takes some time. Thanks for what you do!
Bill ;-)
Author of "Back to the Homeplace"
and "13 Ways to Tell Your Ancestor Stories"
- 13 May 2010 at 22:58
- Bill West said...
Congratulations, Debbie!
- 14 May 2010 at 02:48
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


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About Zinfandel
California's own grape variety. Red Zinfandel (not to be confused with "white" Zinfandel) can produce full-bodied wines packed with ripe berry fruit and smooth tannins. Flavors of blackberries and spicy pepper.More About Zinfandel
Member RatingsHave you tried it?Rate This Wine
17 recipes match for this wine.
Broccoli Sweet Onion And Pecan Salad A flavorful salad that matches with both white and red wines - particularly Sauvignon Blanc, Zinfandel and Shiraz - this recipe makes 6 servings as a side dish,about 3 as a main dish. Get The RecipeTuscan Style Roasted Game Hens If you're looking for a change from turkey, ham this holiday season, try this easy-to-prepare dish that matches well with both white and red wines. It serves 6... Get The RecipeTomato Pesto Pasta A wonderful match with Cabernet Sauvignon, this recipe helps bring out the fruitful quality of the wine. It also matches nicely with other red wines, and serves 4. Get The RecipePulled Pork Sandwich What to do with that leftover pork tenderloin? Turn it into a delicious sandwich, and pour a glass of... Get The RecipeSummer Berry Cobbler Desserts can be tricky to match with wine, but when berries are involved, the quest becomes easier. Try this recipe, which makes 6 to 8 servings, with a fruitful Zinfandel,almost any slightly sweet wine... Get The Recipe
Beef Rib Eye With Sweet Onion Topping This dish pairs beautifully with Syrah a.k.a. Shiraz, as well as Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, and red blends. This recipe makes 4 servings Get The RecipeGrilled Figs With Gorgonzola Summer may be waning, but the grilling season continues. Petite Sirah, Zinfandela bold red blend would match nicely with this dish, which makes a wonderful starter course. This recipe makes enough to fill a party pass-around platter... Get The RecipeMarinated London Broil This dish, the centerpiece of a sit-down dinner, matches beautifully with Zinfandel and other fruity red wines. Get The RecipePork Tenderloin With Tart Cherry Port And Caraway Sauce This delicious recipe from Sonoma County's J. Fritz Winery matches beautifully with almost any red wine. It makes 4 to 6 servings. Get The RecipeSausage Jambalaya This recipe makes a great meal, especially on a cold day. Try it with Syrah, Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon. And if you'd like to save a few fat grams, substitute turkey sausage for the beef. This recipe makes 8 servings. Get The Recipe
Chestnut Cake You don't have to wait until Christmas to enjoy chestnuts. Try this recipe with Zinfandel Primitivo for a special dessert. It makes 10 to 12 servings, depending on who's wielding the knife. CHESTNUT CAKE Ingredients... Get The RecipePan Fried Lamb Chops This recipe, which makes 4 servings, features flavors that can be enjoyed with virtually any red wine. Turn it into a complete meal with a side dish jasmine rice. Get The RecipeCabernet Sauvignon Ice Cream Our friends at Alexander Valley Vineyards came up with this wonderful recipe a few years ago. We've tried it with Cabernet Sauvignon as the recipe calls for, as well as Merlot, Primitivo, Cabernet Franc and Zinfandel... and every time, it turns out delicious! It's best made with an ice cream maker, and if you have such a machine, it's extremely easy to assemble. Enjoy! Get The RecipeRadicchio Risotto Try this dish with a big red wine such as Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon. It makes 4 servings. Get The RecipeSmoked Salmon Penne Pasta In a world of anything-goes-food-and-wine pairing, we're on the lookout for recipes that match well with red OR white wines. This is one such recipe, and it makes two servings... Get The Recipe
Boeuf Bourgogne This family-sized recipe hails from the Burgundy region of France. It matches beautifully with California Petite Sirah, and Zinfandel. Get The RecipeVeal Lasagne This recipe, which makes 4 servings, matches beautifully with Zinfandel - red, that is. Get The Recipe


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Known as the pope of the people and a seeker of peace, Pope Francis touched the hearts of both Palestinians and Israelis in his three-day visit to the Holy Land, which included personal interactions with Palestinian, Syrian and Iraqi refugees and disabled children in Jordan, refugee children and Palestinian families in Bethlehem and Holocaust survivors in Israel.
The expressed purpose of the pope's visit was religious in nature. His meeting with Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew commemorated the historic visit 50 years ago of Pope Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras. But Pope Francis' trip was full of symbolic gestures, such as stopping for a moment of silent prayer at a section of the separation wall dividing Bethlehem and Jerusalem on his way to the only papal Mass held in Israel/Palestine. Through a similar prayer at a stop at a memorial to terror victims in Israel at the request of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the pontiff indicated in his way that he was well aware of the struggles both peoples are facing.
The meeting between Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew was meant to support unity among the local Christians. Franciscan Custos Father Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the head of the Franciscans in the Holy Land, noted the significance of the meeting of the two religious leaders in shared prayer at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, something that had not been possible 50 years ago. Then, the meeting took place on the Mount of Olives and not at the heart of Christian Jerusalem.
Pope Francis also lived up to his reputation of spontaneity with his unprecedented invitation to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli President Shimon Peres to come to the Vatican for a joint prayer meeting. Though purely symbolic in nature — especially since the Israeli presidency serves only as a figure head — the pope's venture into the stagnated political arena is very strong. According to media reports, the meeting is scheduled to take place in early June before Peres finishes his term as president in July.
The third pope to visit the region in the recent past — in 2000, Pope St. John Paul II was the first to come to the Holy Land since Pope Paul VI, followed by a pilgrimage of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in 2009 — Pope Francis' warm reputation preceded him, and he was greeted with wide approval.
In Jordan and Bethlehem, where the pope held open Masses for local Christians, he was met with joy and enthusiasm and rode through Bethlehem in his open popemobile. This was in stark contrast to Jerusalem, where local Christians protested the fact that, due to the stringent security measures imposed by Israeli security, which essentially sterilely cleared areas where the pope and his dark SUV passed with his convoy, they were prevented from greeting Pope Francis as he drove through empty streets.
Israeli police were on high alert for the duration of the visit, with some 9,000 officers posted throughout the city following anti-Christian vandalism and provocation just days before the pope's visit, mostly surrounding the issue of the Cenacle on Mount Zion, where the pope was scheduled to celebrate Mass with the Ordinaries of the Holy Land on May 26. They also put several Jewish extremists under house arrest for the duration of the pope's visit. Police helicopters flew over the city throughout the day.
In the days before the pope's visit, Jewish extremists had begun making claims that the Vatican wanted sovereignty over the Upper Room, which is on top of the Jewish and Muslim holy site believed to be King David's Tomb.
Space was limited at the papal Mass in Bethlehem, which was festooned with Palestinian and Vatican flags for the pope's arrival, but the spirit was great and cheers rose from the crowd as the pope's helicopter flew overhead on its way from Jordan to the helipad in Bethlehem on May 25.
The faithful again cheered when it was announced that the pope had stepped onto Palestinian soil. In another symbolic gesture, the pope had chosen to enter into Bethlehem directly from Jordan, in a move some felt was an assertion of his recognition of Palestinian sovereignty.
Local Christians spoke of the pope's humility and closeness to the people and said his presence strengthened them. Like many others who came to the Bethlehem Mass, Samer Odeh, 45, of Ramallah, said he did not mind having to wake up early and wait for several hours at Nativity Square for the 11 a.m. Mass. He traveled for 1 1/2 hours with his wife and two daughters. Others came from the Galilee in northern Israel for the Mass, and some were a bit disappointed that Pope Francis had not conceded to celebrate Mass in Nazareth as his two predecessors had done.
"It is wonderful that he is here," Odeh said. "We are few Christians, and it gives me strength to see him and to hear his call for peace. We hope he can do something for us."
While some Jewish Israelis grumbled at the adjustments made for the pope's visit to Jerusalem, such as the disruption of morning prayers at the Western Wall, most understood the importance of such a visit despite the inconveniences and traffic jams.
Waiting for the light rail train after the traffic had opened up again near the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial, Guy Abramovsky, 24, said that as a Jew, he viewed the pope's visit as important for Israel.
"It shows that he has some connection and is trying to strengthen those connections to Judaism. It is important that everyone have their own beliefs but that we understand each other," he said. "So we have traffic jams for a day, but we can deal with it."
In accordance with recent Israeli protocol for visiting heads of state, the pope laid a wreath at the tomb of Theodor Herzl, the father of Zionism, earning him more accolades from Israelis.
The pope traveled to the Holy Land with Rabbi Abraham Skorka and Muslim leader Omar Abboud, longtime friends from his native Argentina. After the pope visited the Western Wall, placing, in the Jewish custom, a note in the wall — reportedly with the Lord's Prayer written in his native Spanish — the three men embraced.
Throughout his remarks to Israelis and Palestinians, and to the religious and political leaders, the pope continued to call on them not to abuse God through violence and to work toward peace. At Dehiyshe Refugee Camp, he told refugee children not to let the past determine their future and to continue to strive for what they wanted.
"Violence is not defeated by violence," he told them. "Violence is defeated by peace."
At Yad Vashem on May 26 in a prayerful call, Pope Francis reflected emotionally on the depths to which man had fallen during the Holocaust, and as he greeted six Holocaust survivors at the remembrance ceremony, he kissed their hands. Survivors said his words and actions were "the right thing to do" and had "comforted" their hearts.
"The Father knew the risk of freedom; he knew that his children could be lost ... yet perhaps not even the Father could imagine so great a fall, so profound an abyss! Here, before the boundless tragedy of the Holocaust, that cry — 'Where are you?' — echoes like a faint voice in an unfathomable abyss," the pope said. "Here we are, Lord, shamed by what man, created in your own image and likeness, was capable of doing. Remember us in your mercy."
Palestinian families who met with Pope Francis on May 25 for a private lunch to speak about specific difficulties facing Palestinians remarked on his simplicity.
"He is a pope who knows how to listen. He is incredibly humble," said Elias Abumohor, whose lands near Bethlehem face the risk of being confiscated by the Israelis.
Dedicating his final hours in the Holy Land to the local religious, the pope met with them at the Church of All Nations at the foot of the Mount of Olives and at the Cenacle on Mount Zion, and emphasized the importance of their presence in the Holy Land, urging them to remain steadfast in their faith. In his last gesture of peace, he planted an olive tree sapling cut from one of the eight ancient olive trees in the Garden of Gethsemane, following in the footsteps of Pope Paul VI.
And then he was gone, leaving in the same humble way he had arrived, with little fanfare, taking the plane from Tel Aviv back to the Vatican. According to reports, the pope had been very involved in the planning of the details of his visit, so he clearly knew the significance of even of these small gestures — assuring even with his arrival and departure that he recognized both Palestinian and Israeli right to self-determination, peace and security.
Judith Sudilovsky writes from Jerusalem.
Copyright © 1996-2019 Our Sunday Visitor, Inc.


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To Our Customers:
As you are aware, on March 1, 2013 a series of automatic federal spending cuts, known as sequestration, are set to begin. As a valued customer, we wanted you to be aware this is an issue we are closely monitoring, as its possible mandatory spending cuts — should they begin on March 1 — could have an impact on the physical delivery and cash settlement mechanisms of certain CME livestock and dairy products. In addition, the budget cuts could result in the disruption of USDA reports that are used in the daily calculation of the CME Feeder Cattle Index and CME Lean Hog Index and the monthly calculations used to determine settlement prices for CME Dairy futures products.
As the CME Live Cattle contract utilizes USDA grading/inspection in the delivery process, a furlough of USDA staff may require the Exchange to modify in accordance with Exchange rules the current operational process around delivery/settlement of these products. In addition, CME Group's cash-settled livestock and dairy products could also be impacted in the event the data used to compile these indexes is unavailable. Finally, CME Group's spot call dairy markets could be impacted in the event USDA grading/inspection staff is unavailable effective on March 1, 2013.
The list of CME livestock and dairy contracts that may be impacted, include:
- Live Cattle futures Feb 2013 contract
- Lean Hog futures and options, April 2013 and subsequent contracts
- Feeder Cattle Futures, March 2013 and subsequent contracts
- Milk (Class III and IV), Butter, Cheese, Non-Fat Dry Milk, and Whey March 2013 and subsequent contracts
- Spot Call (Butter, Cheese and Non-Fat Dry Milk), March 1 and subsequent trading days
We continue to closely monitor the potential for sequestration and the effect on our contracts and will keep you apprised of any potential changes to the delivery mechanism or settlement procedures for CME livestock and dairy contracts. Current procedures for the physical delivery of CME livestock and dairy futures can be found in our CME Rulebook - http://www.cmegroup.com/rulebook/CME/.
All customer inquiries should be directed to Tom Clark at 312.930.4595. Media inquiries should be directed to Chris Grams at 312.930.3435.


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Reviewed by Andrea P. (age 8)
I like this book because it has a lot of excitement. Katie also turns into the band teacher. I like the part when Katie and Suzane get in a fight because there is a lot of yelling. I like the characters because they have cute eyes and big heads.
I say that girls should read this book if they are in 3rd grade because it is about a girl that is going into 4th grade. Third graders could learn how Katie went to 4th grade and when it happens to them they will be prepared.


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ASU Baseball All-Decade Team: Brooks Conrad
Jan. 28, 2010
TEMPE, Ariz. -
Arizona State Sun Devil Baseball will be naming an All-Decade Team for the 2000's. The 25-man roster is made up of players who played at least two seasons at Arizona State and who played in the past decade.
Brooks Conrad, INFIELD, 1999-2001
A scrappy, hard-nosed middle infielder, Brooks Conrad put together three consistent seasons at Arizona State. In 162 career games, Conrad hit .313, totaling 168 hits with 35 doubles. He also drove in 130 runs and stole 34 bases, helping lead ASU to a share of the 2000 Pac-10 title. A two-time First Team All-Pac-10 performer, Conrad was a eighth round pick of the Houston Astros in the 2001 Major League Baseball Draft. He made his Major League debut in 2008 with the Oakland Athletics.
From 2000 to 2009, Arizona State baseball won 433 games, 157 Pac-10 games, appeared in the NCAA Tournament in each year and reached the College World Series three times. The Sun Devils won four Pac-10 titles, including the last three, finished in the Top 5 in the nation three times and saw 47 players earn First Team All-Pac-10 honors. Over the past 10 years, ASU has had six Pac-10 Players of the Year, two Pac-10 Pitchers of the Year, two Pac-10 Newcomers of the Year, a Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year, three Academic All-Americans, 33 All-Americans and a National Player of the Year. Since 2000, 78 Sun Devils have been selected in the MLB Draft.
Petey Paramore, Catcher, 2006-2008
Tuffy Gosewisch, Catcher, 2002-2005
Jeff Larish, Infield/Outfield, 2002-2005
Eric Sogard, Infield, 2005-2007
Dustin Pedroia, Infield, 2002-2004
Brett Wallace, Infield, 2006-2008
Dennis Wyrick, Infield/Catcher, 2000-2003
Jeremy West, Infield/Designated Hitter, 2001-2003
Andrew Romine, Infield, 2005-2007
Steve Garrabrants, Infield, 2001-2003
Brooks Conrad, Infield, 1999-2001
ASU Baseball All-Decade Team: Jon SwitzerFeb 4 '10
ASU Baseball All-Decade Team: Brett BordesFeb 4 '10
TODAY | 2:00pm PTLive
Airing on:
- Pac-12 Network
- Pac-12 Bay Area
- Pac-12 Mountain
Basketball Pregame ShowWed 2/20 | 6:30pm PTLive
Wed 2/20 | 7:00pm PTLive
Airing on:
- Pac-12 Network
- Pac-12 Mountain
- Pac-12 Washington


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About Us:
Born in late 2005, and now trading with 34 high street stores, Footasylum is one of today's new and exciting retailers. The Footasylum team have a passion for fashion, and a shared ethos that the products we sell are about a lifestyle choice, and not just functionality. With this in mind, we aim to move beyond the traditional experience of the high street, to offer a more quirky and unique retail experience.
About the role:
You will be involved in a successful hard working team with a goal of providing the highest level of customer service. Sales Assistants are responsible for engaging and assisting customers with all queries from sizes of items, online orders to general fashion advice. In addition to serving customers, it is a requirement to assist with deliveries, stock replenishment, serving on tills, stock takes, general housekeeping of both front and back of house etc.
You will continuously work to develop personal skills and capability through on-going training.
About you:
The successful candidate must have a passion for sneakers and our company ethos, and will be able to contribute to the success of our culture. Ideally you will have previous experience in a footwear / fashion retail environment, strong self-motivation and impeccable customer service.
In addition, you will be efficient and highly organised with the ability to use your own initiative to bring fresh ideas to the store.
And the Benefits:
There's no shortage of benefits! Including 28 days' holiday, generous staff discount and fantastic career progression for the right candidate.
How to apply:
If you're interested in this position, are confident, outgoing, superb with people and can deliver the finest customer service, please apply to email@example.com with your CV & a covering letter.


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Welcome to the CRG Discussion Forum!Forum registration problems: Make sure you enter your email correctly and you check your spam box first. *Then* email KurtS2@gmail for help.Classified ads are not allowed on the forum.
Gary, my 69 is still running hooker headers, but I just looked at my exhaust manifolds for the 70 Z project. I cut off what was left of the original exhaust. My heat riser has the weight to the outside, parallel with the frame rail. Being 57, I can't post pictures. I can email them to you.Buddy
One '68 327 I had, had the weight parallel to pass frame rail with counterweight to the front.I would think the valve would be universal fit as it would match manifold ID.A '64 Impala 327-300HP, ram horn manifold had the weight to the rear of manifold.
Gary, something happened to my camera. All pics are coming up blank! It looks like johns z's, but the weight is to the outside parallel to the frame rails


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Curonian Spit National Park is in [western] Lithuania.
The Curionian Spit is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Scientists say that the waves of the Baltic Sea formed the Curonian Spit more than 5000 years ago. The origins of the Nerija (Spit) name relate to Kuršiai—a western Baltic tribe who lived on the current Latvian and northern Lithuanian seacoast, and in the south stretched to the areas of Klaipėda. Urbanisation of the Curonian Spit began in the 13th century, when the crusaders or Teutonic Order occupied this territory and built several castles of the Order. The most important of them was Rasytė (Rossitten, currently Ribachiy). At the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th centuries, Kuršininkai settled the Curonian Spit. The Kuršininkai were fishermen who used boats of a special structure, named kurėnai. Affected by the specific nature of the Curonian Spit and nearly separated from the continent, local residents were constructing original buildings covered with reed. Only in the settlements of the Curonian Spit can you see the specific carved decorations and weathercocks on the buildings. These weathercocks are evidence of the main activity of the old residents of Neringa—fishing. In the 15th century the entire Curonian Spit was covered by dense forest. The old residents considered trees to be sacred, and did not touch them. Later people began to cut trees with no pity. When the forests were destroyed, nothing prevented the sand from moving in the wind, so it slid along the peninsula towards the Curonian Lagoon. Huge dunes have buried many fishermen villages in their way. Scientists consider that there are as many as fourteen villages buried under the sand in the Curonian Spit. Later, it became clear that the pine roots are the best way to prevent the moving sand. Two centuries ago, they started planting the Curonian Spit dunes again and this process still continues. The seacoast dunes fortification and planting work in the Curonian Spit is the biggest project of its kind in the world. Even though the majority of ancient residents were involved in fishing, from the beginning of the 19 century they began breeding animals as well. Juodkrantė was the first settlement among the current Neringa settlements to offer the tourist services, and from the middle of the 19th century also engaged in amber excavation and processing. Rapid growth of Juodkrantė began. In 1881, the Juodkrantė resort committee was established, which was rearranged into the Resort Society in the beginning of the 20th century. In the beginning of the 20th century, new types of buildings, summerhouses and hotels, appeared in Juodkrantė. Fishermen homestead buildings were rearranged and reequipped by adapting them for visitors. In 1904, a large recreation complex was built in the resort with healing water and mud procedures. During the years of independent Lithuania (1923-1939), the resort was famous for various healing and mineral waters, attractions of resort infrastructure, and tranquillity of the dune forest. Meanwhile, Nida was famous as a Mecca of artists. In 1900, the headquarters of the German artist colony was established in the hotel of H. Blodė. This society existed until 1945. The hotel of H. Blodė was one of the most famous German hotels. In 1930, a famous German writer, laureate of Nobel Prize T. Mann built his house in Nida. Even though the Soviet period affected the urban face of Nerija, today this is the only place in Lithuania with the preserved, nearly untouched, ancient settlements of the former fishermen villages. They are like live museums of Kuršiai with an ethnical architectural heritage and old resort traditions.
Flora and fauna
Curonian Spit is attributed to the coastal climate zone highly affected by the Baltic Sea. It boasts the highest number of sunny days in Lithuania. Prevailing winds are west and southwest winds. Due to the proximity to the sea, autumns and winters here are milder than in the eastern areas of Lithuania. Air in winter is very humid, and in spring the humidity decreases. The warmest month of the year is August.
Get in
Neringa's geographic position is unique. It is the most western part of Lithuania, bordered by the Baltic Sea from the west, and by the Curonian Lagoon from the east. In the southern part of Neringa there is a state border with Russian Federation, Kaliningrad area, and therefore this peninsula can be easy accessed from the northern part of Neringa by ferry (Smiltynė-Klaipėda). If you don't have a vehicle, Neringa can be conveniently accessed in several ways: By bus: buses leave from Vilnius and Kaunas every day; buses leave from Klaipėda's Smiltynė ferry according to the schedule (the old ferry (1st), Žvejų g. 8, Klaipėda). By car: Kaunas – Nida 263 km, Vilnius – Nida 361. The Lagoon is crossed in the new (2nd) ferry (Nemuno is g. 8, Klaipėda). A local fee is charged for entrance permission by vehicle to the state-protected territories of the Curonian Spit National Park. This fee is administrated by the Neringa municipality.
Get around
Stone Sculpture Park in the embankment of Juodkrantė,Liudvikas Rėza monument, Raganų hill in Juodkrantė, Juodkrantė Church of Evangelic Lutherans, sightseeing grounds on Avinas hill at Juodkrantė,cognitive trail in Nagliai natural reserve, Žirgai lighthouse,Preila ethnographic cemetery, monument to G. D. Kuvertas at Nida,Nida Church of Evangelic Lutherans,Nida ethnographic cemetery, Nida Roman Catholic Church,lighthouse on the Urbas Hill in Nida,monumental stone for the commemoration of Nida gliding school,and Parnidis dune with sun clock and cormorants. Museums/galleries: Neringa history museum, Fisherman's ethnographic homestead, Herman Blodė museum, Thomas Mann's memorial museum, V. and K. Mizgiriai amber gallery museum, Vėtrungių gallery, Miniature museum, Liudvikas Rėza culture centre, National Park nature museum, Lithuania Sea museum-aquarium, and dolphinarium.
more information about accommodation in oficial Neringa tourism web site http://www.visitneringa.com
Nidos Kempingas. Address: Taikos g. 45a, Nida, Lithuania; E-mail: [1]; Web: http://www.kempingas.lt/en/
Stay safe
Get out


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JC Penney Searches for New CEO, and More
What's News: JC Penney shares spike on reports of efforts to replace CEO Mike Ullman. A new study links high glucose levels to an increased risk of dementia. Three winning tickets will share a $448 million Powerball jackpot. Joanne Po reports. Photo: Getty
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
... J C Penney shares like the report said yet another CEO shuffle ... this is what's news I'm WS J live I'm Joann Co ... CNBC says the activist shareholder Bill Ackman is looking to dispose ... of J C Penney CEO Mike Ullman ... the struggling retailer stock hit a twelve year low Wednesday ... as performance remains weak ... the company has been unable to regain investor confidence following a brief tenure of Ron Johnson who was forced out in April ... Mr. Ackman is reportedly looking to step up the search for another successor ... and bring back former CEO and retell legend ... Allen Questrom as chairman ... of the health front of major new study links higher glucose levels to an increasing risk ... of developing dementia ... researchers say this is just the new lake to try to prevent all timers disease by keeping blood sugar ... at a healthy level ... all signers is the most common form of dementia ... the study adds evidence that exercise in controlling blood pressure ... like sugar and cholesterol are unviable weights delay or prevent dementia ... and relating to kiss will share a four hundred and forty eight million dollars Powerball jackpot ... one of the tickets was sold in Minnesota the other two were sold in New Jersey ... the winning ticket snacks and all six of the lucky numbers ... by twenty five ... thirty fifty eight fifty nine and Powerball ... thirty two ... looking keep us anomaly this is about this tepid and what's his aunt WS J last I'm Joann Co ...


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Blood drive in Valley City
United Blood Services needs your blood.
Here are 2 opportunities to donate!!!
#1 May 1, 2012
Please don't make us send the mascot to you.
VCSU "BLEED CARDINAL" Blood Drive
Do you bleed Cardinal? Then show your Pride. Save a life. Maybe even win a VCSU T-shirt.
VCSU Athletic Department Blood Drive
Tuesday, May 1st from 9:30am – 3:30pm
VCSU Student Center Skoal Room
Sign up at : www.bloodhero.com
or call: Coach Horner at 701-845-7423
#2 May 7, 2012
Find the Hero in you
Valley City Eagles
Monday, May 7th
Please call Vern or Marilyn Hedland to make an appointment


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Enhance your wardrobe with gorgeous women's clothing from New York & Company. From stunning dresses, tops, skirts, pants, jackets and jeans—to gorgeous accessories that include jewelry, bags, shoes and more—you'll create a look that's uniquely you and uniquely beautiful. You'll love all of the NY&C designs, not to mention exclusive collections from:
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You can shop by category or the collections above to find the right look. You can also shop by size. We have every hard-to-find size under the sun, including petite, plus and extended, available in sizes 00 to 20, XXS-XXL. Need tall sizes? We have women's clothing designed especially to fit women over 5'8" tall.
You'll find all of the sought-after styles you want. See all of our stunning skirts, pants, tops, dresses and jackets at New York & Company, as well as our collection of beautiful accessories to finish your look, including jewelry, shoes, and handbags, to name a few. Browse online or in-store today.


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SleepPhones Headphones
Safe, comfortable headphones for bedtime
- Soft headband hides earphones for music
- Relax with your favorite calming tunes or white noise
- Drown out that idiot in your bed who snores
Sometimes, it feels as though the universe is conspiring against us when it comes to getting quality shut-eye. Know what we mean? You finally get snuggled up in your bed, ready to crash, when the baby next door decides to get colicky. You move to the living room to crash on the sofa, but it sounds as though your other neighbor's girlfriend is home from college. How about the basement? Surely it will be quiet there, right? Not with that constant dripping sound - where is that coming from anyway? You go back to your bed and pop in your earbuds, but no matter how you position your head, pain is shooting through your skull. Before you go for the prescription drugs and the vodka, let us help.
Sleep Phones are the comfortable headphones you can wear while you sleep. They are nestled inside a soft and cozy headband that you can wear around your head or over your eyes like a sleep mask. Choose from Wired, which plugs into an audio jack just like your headphones, or Bluetooth, which pairs with any Bluetooth-enabled device that has your music on it. Soon you'll be drifting away in blissful slumber. Or jamming to your tunes. Both of which are better than staying awake listening to your neighbors or your snoring significant other.
Product Specifications
- Soft fleece headband hugs speakers to your ears
- Fits most humans - 21 1/2" - 23 3/8" around (around head, just above the ears)
- Speaker position adjustable
- Impedance: 32 Ohms
- Frequency: 20 - 20 kHz
- Power: 300/500 mW
- 1/8" (3.5mm) stereo plug
- Materials: Polartec 88% recycled plastic polyester, 12% spandex
- Removable speakers and machine-washable headband
- Battery life: 5-7 hours Charging time: 2 hours
- Wired: 48" cord
- Bluetooth wireless range: 15-30 ft.
- Bluetooth features built-in volume control, play/pause
- Function as a private alarm clock if you can set your device to play music at a specific time
- Sewn and assembled in the USA


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Rachel has been a qualified massage therapist and lifestyle consultant for the past 7 years. Rachel is a regular contributor to several health, beauty and fitness blogs including StephRiceFitness.com and has her own digital management business.
Rachel is able to take her knowledge of the human body and her passion for health; nutrition and skin care products and blend them together to produce articles that engage and inform.
Having suffered with eczema and problem skin for most of her life and finally discovering ways to heal, improve and remove her skin issues; Rachel is in the perfect position to share her knowledge and help you to overcome your skin problems too.
Find Rachel Sanderson on http://www.raesocialmedia.com, Twitter and Facebook