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With 2024 now here and making itself comfortable in everyone’s lives, it’s only natural to look back on the ups and downs that made 2023 stand out, and you can bet Blake Lively was one of the many who took to social media to do just that. And while the Gossip Girl vet certainly had plenty of highs to celebrate from the year, from her Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants reunion to the expansion of her Betty Buzz brand, but one can imagine the most important was the birth of her and Ryan Reynolds’ fourth child in February. One of Lively’s fondest memories of the year was apparently pumping breastmilk while enjoying herself at Disneyland.
Now, not every new and/or established mom can say they’ve been pumping in the midst of a Disney theme park meet-and-greet with beloved characters from acclaimed animations, but Blake Lively’s Disneyland post still hits high on the charts of relatability. Life doesn’t care if you’re spending in the day at the Happiest Place on Earth; a baby’s gotta eat, after all. Check out the actress’ Instagram post below:
While she did end up sharing another post that celebrated a round-up of other highlights from 2023 – including wearing that stunning gold sequined dress months after giving birth – her initial reflection on 2023 was all about pumping in one of the most public settings imaginable. (Though I suppose Walt Disney World would have made for a more densely packed adventure for the dedicated mom.)
To be expected, many of Lively’s fans were highly supportive of her actions, and showered praise on her for taking the time to share with her 43.8 million followers that pumping and storing breastmilk is a perfectly natural and normal thing to do, no matter what the location or situation.
- @blakelively thank you for being so relatable – locketdogs
- Thank you for pumping in public and helping to make a positive change for the next generation of pumping moms out there! I’m hoping that by the time my daughters become moms they’ll live in a society where moms feel comfortable and empowered to take care of their babies wherever they are. The more people see women breastfeeding in public, the more normal it becomes, so thank you for being a part of that ❤️ – exclusivelyexpressing
- Love seeing pumping normalized! 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 get it mama! Happy new year! – bemybreastfriend
It’s unfortunate that any kinds of stigmas are still attached to the act of pumping in public, considering it’s such a vital part of many infants’ nutritional cycle, so power to Blake Lively for giving other moms a much-deserved boost in confidence and appreciation. There is never a bad time to let a mother know that she’s doing it right.
Plenty of commenters were inspired by The Shallows‘ star’s post, and others shared just how similar their own mindsets are.
- Will totally be me packing around my pumps at Disney World in a few weeks. Gotta do what you gotta do!! – kelsikliethermes.editing
- If you haven’t pumped while waiting in line at Disneyland what are you even doing?! 😂 Mine was an hour wait at Indiana Jones. Pumped 11oz 🔥 – elisabethwykert
- Literally pumping with the same pump that you’re using right now …and now, I feel like we are boobie milk sisters 🍼👯♀️ – doriane33
Many women found a sense of comfort and relatability in knowing that they use the same pump as Blake Lively. (It’s an Elvie Stride, for those wondering.) And her half-sister Robyn Lively amusedly found comfort in drawing excited attention from Ratatouille‘s Remi and Émile, as she commented with the below:
So sweet how excited you, Remy, and Emile were to see me! 🥰😂❤️ Let’s go baaack!
In some ways, 2023 was a big year for breast-centric normalization, with Lively’s Sisterhood co-star Amber Tamblyn’s topless mammogram post inspiring many while promoting breast cancer awareness. Amidst a hectic year of public scrutiny over her romantic relationships, news anchor Amy Robach reflected on her breast cancer diagnosis of ten years prior. Hayden Panettiere, meanwhile, opened up about how getting breast reduction surgery was a boon for her confidence following childbirth and rehab.
Here’s hoping everyone can stay inspired and confident going into 2024, whether it involves public pumping while meeting Disneyland characters or not.