Question for Breastfeeding Moms (About Family)

Thankfully my parents have never been more than around 15 minutes away. My mom comes over and watches/plays with the kids while I shower or get some things done. Sometimes she'll do the dishes for me while I sit with the baby on those clingy days.
My husband is also around a lot to help. I try to schedule any of my appointments so that either my husband or mother can come along and sit with the kids while I am with the doctor or something but they aren't too far away.
With my first 2 kids my in-laws were right down the road, they moved out of state before my third was born. My MIL came to my rescue now and again when I neeed another pair of hands.
My brother and SIL also live in a civil range of us and they have come to my aid when I have really needed it.
But, truthfully, my kids just go with 99% of the time. Yes, it gets interesting when I have all 3 by myself but it can be done.

Not so much. We have some family here but a 84 yr old great grandmother who is very uncomfortable around tiny babys and the other family that was close either has medical issues or works full time. If there were an event when we needed someone we had one aunt and uncle that we relied on. Otherwise we had to get a baby sitter. I actually was more comfortable with babysitters than the majority of family. My parents live 3 hrs away.

I had family around, but found it easier to just take my breaks in 2-3 hour increments while my husband was home. That way, the baby was home and with daddy, and I could get a break and get errands done.
We would go out to dinner 3-4 times a year when I had a nursling. I've nursed 4 kids, each between 1.5-2 years, no supplementing with formula. Ever.

NO and the best advice I EVER got was to put the baby in a Mother's Day Out program at our church. I only survived because of those 2 days a week!!! My husband travelled ALLOT for business and just wasn't there during the week, so I was the 24 hour a day Mom and Dad. I scheduled my doctor visits, hair appointments, lunches with friends and shopping while my son was at MDO. It was GREAT!!!!!

No. Why? I'm not sure how this is related to breastfeeding.

My parents and sisters live across the country from us, but we see them fairly often. My in-laws are within a half hour, but don't really do anything to help. In fact, quite the opposite.

We have always been able to find reliable babysitters and I truly believe in "you get what you pay for". If you find a great sitter, "overpay" them a little bit each time and they WILL clear their calendar for you!

Not really. My closest family when I had my first was an hour away. I have breastfeed 3 babies for a whole year (2 of them a little longer) without ever supplementing with formula. Basically I never left them longer than 2 hours. And for the most part never really left them at all for the first year. I just packed them around with me where ever I went. So if they ever needed to nurse it was there and ready for them :)

None. The only break I got from my daughter for the first year or more was when I went to work.

Nope. None. It is really, really difficult.

Interesting question, and I laugh a bit! I noticed that when my in-laws visited, about when each baby was about 3 weeks old, they wanted to hold the baby. Friends came over and only wanted to hold the baby. ;)

Now, family (my mom, my sister), they would come over, hold the baby for a while, then offered to unload the dishwasher or other chores around the house. They also helped out when I needed a shower.

Now, the funny part was that I was jealous of anyone else holding my baby -- I wanted to be with my baby all the time (breastfeeding melted my heart like butter). My husband worked 8-5 and I tried to reduce any middle-of-the-night interruptions to his sleep. I feel lucky that I had a few family members in town.

You have support with us if you want!

My MIL was an hour and a half away, and she was more than willing to babysit, but we hardly ever asked her. Other than that, I had no one really, except my husband of course! I would take my breaks in the evenings and on the weekends when he was home, I'd go grocery shopping or to work out or meet up with a friend for a few hours, anything that was easier without a baby in tow.

Not sure what one has to do with the other but with my first zero family. I was in a third world country with just hubby, daughter and me. Daughter went everywhere with me. Now I'm back in the states with family 10 minutes away. 2nd baby still goes everywhere with me. If he's hungry I feed him, sometimes in the middle of the mall and sometimes in the car. I'm not big on letting anyone watch my kids unless it's hubby or me including family. I can't think of any instance that I would need family to watch my kids unless it was some sort of emergency situation. The kids go to doctors appointments, DMV, hair appointments etc. whatever it may be they come with me. But I think I might be in the minority on this.

I didn't have any family close by to watch my babies, and even if I did, my kids wouldn't take a bottle. I nursed them each for a year, and I took them everywhere I went.

None at all. Our closest family member was 12 hours away by car.

I moved out of the state when I was pregnant... My uncle and his wife were the only family around, but they worked full time, plus school... so they weren't available for babysitting much... I also didn't have any friends! lol.

It was fine though... I only worked part time, and hubby worked the night shift... so between the two of us we never needed anyone's help. (It would have been nice to have date nights once in a while though...)

My mom was around and helped with both and with youngest my husbands sister watched them some. But mostly my mom.

Both my parents and my husbands parents live within 20 minutes of us, and babysit at least once a week normally when I worked (I worked PT, one to two afternoons a week until he was 10 months old). My son is older now and only nurses at bedtime and in the morning, but he would happily take a bottle of pumped milk from grandma or daddy when they were watching him.

Yes just a few but not willing to leave my baby or kids just because I need a break I will if I have to for a Dr. appt. that I know it will be a long one in that case i'll feed baby and have a pumped bottle or frozen milk to send.My MIL wah joking that she never had a chance to change my 3rd babies diapers LOL I never left her with anyone

Most of my family is here and would be willing to keep him, but I am not willing to let them. My mother is no more than 20 minutes away, and she is always available. the issue that we had/have is getting him to be okay with other people. He likes his mommy and daddy. And his nanny. I keep milk around so that others (grandmother and nanny and daddy) can give him special comfort when I'm not around.

My parents lived 20-30 minutes away. My brother and his wife lived the same distance. Lots of people offered to babysit for us. We just rarely went places without him. One christmas party I had to pump-n-dump. My SIL came to my house to care for the breastfeeding 7 month old in that instance. When my son was just a few weeks old, I had to return to work (as a teacher) to do final end-of-year paperwork. Mom watched him for those few days (just for the 8-hour workday. He didn't spend the night there or anything).

So yes, family was near, but no we didn't use them often. Just not in our personailty to drop off our kid, at any age, for a long period of time. He's now 4 yrs old and has only spent the night at my mom and dad's house once.

My SIL and niece and a friend watched DD when we needed a sitter. I worked FT when she was little so I had pumped milk for DD when we had a sitter. We didn't leave her for more than an evening, though.