And thank the gods for Dr. D, the breast surgeon whom even the people at the hospital would trust their breasts to, and that my mother got the talents of. His mom should be very proud.

It sounds normal to me, Perkins.

I think you meant Robin there, Ginger, though I am tickled by the thinking I am Robin part.

Oops, sorry. My monday-morning brain is busy pressing Reload.

Thanks everyone for the advice.

When I confront stuff I haven't dealt with before, my default response to to plan for every contingency so I'm as prepared as possible. It sounds like, based on what everyone has said here, that I don't have to worry too much about the "refusing a bottle" scenario. If that is unlikely to be an issue, then I can probably quit worrying about this.

I was planning on nursing or pumping in the bathroom and it seems like they don't have a problem with the pump scenario. My mom will watch the Peaberry while I'm taking the test.

Part of what has made me so mad about this was that the woman I've been dealing with (this woman has been very unhelpful and condescending from the beginning. She keeps saying "like I told you..." when she has never directly answered my questions) told me "your baby cannot come into the building" which made me angry because it's a convention center so lots of non-bar people will be there and my baby isn't a dog or some disease or something. She has just as much right to enter a buiding as the next person. Plus, I'm very reticent to ask for "special help" and given that neither the baby or my mom is going to pass me answers on NC law, I can't see why it is a real problem.

But given that everyone thinks it is unlikely to be a problem, I'm just going to have to accept that I can't plan for every possibility and have some faith that it will all work out.

Also, thanks for the encouragement.

And, in something that's not about me, Robin, I'm not old enough to know from experience, but I don't think you should worry. I think it's not uncommon to skip periods. If you aren't in pain, I would wait a while.

Oops, I did mean Robin. I should have learned by now that I'm not good at doing three things at a time. You are both foamy and intelligent, so I must have confuzzled you.

Stephanie, what every one else said. We gave Em her first bottle around 6 weeks ao I could sleep and she was fine.

As for the BarNazi, maybe she thinks you're going to write the finer points of Will and Contracts on the baby??

Perkins, did you get to roam the Haight yesterday?

pre-planned essays written on her diapers - that's my secret!

I had the same thought, Aimee, because I was trying to figure out how you could cheat with a baby. Write on her stomach? Tuck notes in her diaper?

Actually, tucking notes in her diaper would work.