The best thing to spend on your children is time

~ Unknown

I’m not sure who originally said this.  I found it amongst other excellent (and humorous) parenting observations on breastfeeding.com.

With the holiday season upon us, money and presents seem to have a way of taking over the spirit of things.  Another interpretation of this quote is for breastfeeding mothers specifically.  The holidays can often be a busy, hectic time and unintended early weaning can be something that a little extra time can help avoid.  This excellent post by Nurtured Child has tips and advice to keep up your milk supply and fend off well-meaning relatives!

What special activities do you do with your children during the holidays?

A baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longer, bankroll smaller, home happier, clothes shabbier, the past forgotten and the future worth living for.
~ Author Unknown

This is what I would tell my body today:

Dear Body,

I am most appreciative of you these days.  I feel as though you are not even really mine right now, but you belong to the growing baby inside me.  I trust that you will adapt and give all that you can to protect and nurture this new being.

In the meantime, Legs I will try to not resent you for the discomfort you are causing me at night.  It took me until I was 29 years old and had hiked the Inca Trail before I truly appreciated you and your strength, so I can handle a little charlie horse!

Stomach, it may take me some time but I will not let these new stretch marks tear down my self-esteem.  I love how my belly has expanded to nurture and grow my child.  Although, I admit that you and I might have to have a few conversations once this baby is out!

Boobs, you are new to me and I love you!  I have always appreciated you, but lately I see you in a whole new light.  I anticipate how you will be responsible for feeding and comforting my child.  I eagerly await to put you to good use!

Feet, you are fat and hard to reach right now.  I admit that I have never really been fond of you, but I certainly appreciate the places you have taken me and the fact that you are so wide that I have the best balance in my yoga class!

You are not perfect Body, but neither am I!  Thank you for carrying me through this life.

Love Sara
(below is a photo of me a few weeks ago at 29 weeks pregnant)

What would you say to your body today?  How has your attitude and appreciation changed since having children?

Countless women have regained trust in their bodies through nursing their children, even if they weren’t sure at first that they could do it.  It is an act of female power, and I think of it as feminism in its purest form.

~ Christine Northrup

I love the attitude that breastfeeding is empowering.  That a woman can feel such strength and trust in her body and nourish another human being, that is something to be celebrated!

Happy Monday!

I want to be so involved and pro-active in the delivery and birth process, so I am seeking out as much information as I can. This weekend, my husband and I went to childbirth preparation class at a yoga studio that I found online. Here is where the obvious statement of my first sentence hit me profoundly. This class was perfect for me! I practice yoga (not quite as regularly as I’d like…) and am a big believer in the mind-body connection it encourages. The instructor spoke about relaxation, breathing, movement and touch. Connecting these ideas to giving birth makes so much sense to me. I loved every minute it of it. To top off the experience, at the end of the workshop our instructor promptly tandem breastfed her 15 month old twins. Amazing!

I have just arrived in a new city. I am lucky to know quite a few people already, but I don’t know any pregnant or new moms. I don’t know anyone who desires the same kind of birth I do and I don’t know anyone currently breastfeeding.  To achieve my birth and breastfeeding goals, I see many a mom’s groups and la leche league meetings in my future! I need some mom friends…

Where did you find a group of supportive, like-minded women?  Did they help shape your perspective of parenting?

Every year around this time, I try to take note of what I am thankful for.  This year could go down as the greatest year of my life, so far.  I got married, hiked the Inka Trail in Peru, got a great job, moved to Montreal, and am having a baby!  Our child arrives early next year, so I am sure next year is going to be pretty darn good too:)

I feel so lucky.  I want to make sure I appreciate all the little (and big) things in my life that bring me such happiness.  Before I get too syrupy, here are a few things I am thankful for:

Video chat.  The ability to sit and talk with my sister and nieces as if we are all in the same room, amazing!

Feeling this baby inside me kicking, rolling, and stretching more and more each day.

Facebook and all the wonderful breastfeeding and parenting pages I learn from everyday.

Being able to research my birthing choices, learn about breastfeeding and share my stories and thoughts, as my job!

Friends episodes on DVD

Montréal!  I love living here and learning French and anticipating my lucky little bilingual child.

Working for a company that makes breastfeeding normal (and stylish!).

Oh, there are so many things, I couldn’t possibly list them all.  I hope you get the idea.  I am very grateful!  I wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving and holiday season.  What are you thankful for?

Cheers,
~ Sara

I’m almost 29 weeks pregnant and the whole thing has been a bit surreal until a few weeks ago.  That is when this entity growing inside me decided to choose their profession and become a tap dancer!  Even though it happens a hundred times a day, I never cease to be amazed when I feel this baby kick.

This quote really spoke to me this morning.  It called me a mother.  I am a mother.

Let’s laugh.  That is the idea and in England on a weekday afternoon in the back of a pub, you just might find a gaggle of moms with their babies doing just that.  Instead of a matinee movie, why not catch a comedy act?  As more women comedians are rising on the  scene, motherhood and parenting is becoming quite the inspiration for material.

Helen Rutter had the idea for her successful mom and baby comedy show shortly after she gave birth.  Along with making them laugh, she wanted to design a show to support and reassure new mothers “at a time when your emotions are all over the place and you can feel extremely vulnerable”.  To read the full article in the Guardian, click here.

I love the idea of meeting other new moms in your community, being welcomed to breastfeed in public and being thoroughly entertained all in one place.  What do you think?  Are there any comedy acts aimed at motherhood in your area?  Would you be interested in it?

While we try to teach our children all about life, Our children teach us what life is all about.
~Angela Schwindt

How true.  It even seems to be the case with breastfeeding.  I am reading, researching and joining groups to find out as much information as I can, but I know when my baby arrives in February that they will be teaching me what it really means!