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What is the Big Day Out celebrating?

La Leche League of Tokyo is excited to inform you about our First Annual Big Day Out, celebrating fifty years of mother-to-mother breastfeeding support. This event will take place Sunday May 18, 2008 from 10:00am until 2:30pm at the popular and family friendly Yoyogi Park in Tokyo. A family yoga session, led by one of Furla Yoga's most experienced instructors, will begin at 10:30am. In addition, there will be a silent auction (CASH ONLY) featuring products and services from some of Tokyo's finest businesses, a magic show to delight both children and adults, and the best clowns and balloon artists Tokyo has to offer. We hope that there will be several hundred participants in the First Annual Big Day Out. All proceeds from the Big Day Out will go to support the core mission of La Leche League Tokyo: to provide valuable mother-to-mother support to all women who want to breastfeed their babies

What is La Leche League?



La Leche League International is an international, non-profit, non-sectarian organization dedicated to providing education, information, support and encouragement to women who want to breastfeed. La Leche League Leaders are volunteers who have nursed their own babies, undertaken a required training in breastfeeding management, communication and leadership skills and satisfied La Leche League International that their views and attitudes to mothering are in accordance with La Leche League policy.

The five (5) English speaking volunteer leaders of La Leche League Tokyo have over 600 contacts with mothers each year, 15% by telephone, 35% by email and 50% in person, which includes personal visits and support as well as free monthly discussion groups attended by approximately 25-40 women every month in Central and Western Tokyo. Mothers in Tokyo have credited these leaders with helping establish breastfeeding, supporting a healthy and balanced view of parenting and encouraging friendships throughout the expatriate community in Tokyo. La Leche League International's web site contains a wealth of breastfeeding information and answers to frequently asked questions.

For details of La Leche League groups in Japan please click here. Monthly meetings are held in Shibuya, Tachikawa and Yokota.

Click here to take part in our online breastfeeding survey.

Download our poster here


What is a silent auction?

A silent auction is one without vocal bidding. View the auction items at the picnic. There will be a bid sheet for each item with a notation of its starting value. Bid on an item by writing the amount you would like to bid and signing your name on the bid sheet. Go back periodically to the items to see whether you've been outbid. As the auction period continues throughout the picnic, more people sign bid sheets, and the prices increase. Write a new amount if you're willing to increase the bid, and sign your name on the bid sheet again. The winners will be announced at closing of the sale to be announced during the picnic, and payments will be collected and won items handed over.

AUCTION ITEMS so far:

Children's Fantasy theme party- one(1) voucher, good for 10 kids, including costumes, activities, music and theme perfomer. Value 70,000 yen
Discount vouchers Tokyo Clothing Imports (2) Value 2,000 yen each
Bravado Nursing bra (1) Value 5,000 yen
Inch Blue Baby shoes Size S, M & L (3) Value 5,000 yen each
Maya Wrap Baby Slings (2) Value 8,500 yen each
Keyshots Family Portrait session(1) Value 30,000 yen
Star Photography Professional Photo session (1) Value 20,000 yen
Blue Sky Lactation Consultant package Value 15,000 yen
La Leche League new mother's hamper Value 4000 yen
Entry ticket to Yummy Mummies next event Value 4500 yen
Classes and toys from Gymboree, Natural baby products hamper, Maternity clothes discount, Japanese calligraphy for framing, books and more!!

Note: AUCTION WINNERS MUST PAY IN CASH AT THE PICNIC

Resources: Having a Baby in Tokyo

Childbirth Education Center Childbirth classes run by ICEA certified instructor Brett Iimura. She has taught over 1000 couples in Tokyo since 1997.

Tokyo Pregnancy group A casual group with regular speakers on pregnancy, child birth and related topics

Prenatal and Postnatal Yoga Prenatal and Postnatal yoga classes are offered in English, Japanese, and English/Japanese bilingual at both FURLA yoga and SHIZEN Yoga.
Studio:
Furla Yoga , located in Omotesando, in the FURLA Aoyama Shop, 4F.
SHIZEN Yoga Studio located in Kichijoji.

Resources: Kids in Tokyo

Tokyo British Clinic run by British General Practitioner, Dr Gabriel Symonds, offers shared antenatal care, and also postnatal and paediatric care, well-baby and developmental assessments and routine childhood immunizations including HIB and Meningoccocal vaccines

Tokyo with Kids a goldmine of information about parenting and kids' issues in Tokyo, with public forums

Tokyo Families online version of the magazine with lots of snippets of information for living in Tokyo with children.

Resources: Clothes in Japan

Bravado bras designed for breastfeeding are available in Japan through Lindsey Sawada.

Tokyo Clothing Imports run by Paula Sugawara, has maternity wear, and babies and children's designer brands from Europe and the US, reasonably priced and available online.