Chillax, wearing Breastmates

Last year I sent this tweet to Franny from Breastmates:

And then last week she contacted me to say she had taken that on board, and designed up the "Chillax Sweatshirt". So here I am today, declaring my undying love, snuggled in my super cosy but also cool, sweatshirt!

Thank you Franny, I LOVE IT!!

I've had it for less than a week and have already worn it more times than not, as is usual when I get my hands on one of Franny's self designed range.

I was so delighted when she had told me she had designed something comfortable and casual, but stylish and in a nice light colour for the cooler months! Here in Canterbury everyone seems to wear only black in winter, its a breath of fresh air to be able to have a light coloured season appropriate top. 

Under the front layer is an opening so you can pull the top aside and breastfeed without having to lift your top up which is perfect in this weather. Also I must admit, I can't stop putting my hands inside the front layer! It's a bad habit but so. cosy.

I'm not pregnant, but i'm sure the vertical lines on this top would be really flattering to a bump underneath, and its long length will make bump wearing easy without it riding up. I like that its long enough to fully cover my childbearing hips and tum ;)

This breastfeeding journey will be nearing an end soon (some time?) and it's been an absolute pleasure to work with Breastmates for over a year now. I still wear each piece of clothing I have had the pleasure of trying, and although its been worn and worn and washed and washed, the quality and style have all stood the test of time. I continue to love Breastmates, and wear their designs week to week.

DETAILS:
Chillax Sweatshirt $59.90 designed Breastmates, available in XS - XXL

OTHER BREASTMATES REVIEWS:RaRa Dress
Nuture Feeding Top
Glory Maternity Dress
Clip on Cami

Wearing Breastmates at HAZED Launch and Giveaway!

Last week I was lucky enough to attend the launch of the first printed HAZED magazine!

Doesn't that sound so swanky?! Magazine launches and all, as a Mama! Who would have thought?

The invite told me to wear a "frock" so I wore this cute number from Breastmates! It's the RaRa dress, and is just as bright and fun as it looks! It comes in a bright blue too, but I just love this little pop of orange down the bottom on the pink version! 

When deciding what to wear I discovered that my pre-feeding dresses all have tight waists and can't be lifted up / pulled down to feed, but more than that, I discovered most of the dress straps just didn't work with my nursing bras!! I searched high and low on the internet and in malls for something feminine that had thick straps and was feeding friendly (the top flap lifts up to feed) and this was a winner!

So far I've worn this out to a mag launch, birthday date, birthday party and you'll see me in it through Christmas celebrations too! 

(and no matter what kind of day I think my body is having, it covers and forgives all! Bring on the Christmas Pav!)

It's nice to know that I still have a resemblance of a social life and I actually need nice to clothes to wear out, despite my mother badges! If you need a nice maternity / feeding dress this summer, definitely check out the range from Breastmates. (this one was designed by Franny herself, love!!)

Look! A maternity dress without a bump!

(I posted this picture on FB and Instagram, thank you for all your super kind compliments!!!)

I had such a great time at the HAZED launch, it was lovely to be out all dressed up with other put together people! 

I'm also crazy proud of Hazel for putting out such a beautiful magazine, it's first time in print after being published online for over a year!

Inside HAZED you'll see an array of interviews of NZ talent in the indie world, along with our own Sisterhood column! Huge thanks to Hazel for offering it to us and being such an avid Sisterhood supporter! 

GIVEAWAY::

*giveaway now closed* Congratulations Kimberley A!

Leave a comment here with your email address (or have it linked to your blogger profile) and let me know if you'd like to be in to win a copy of HAZED! 

[[I have one to giveaway, and will draw the winner on Friday 6th December, you'll be announced on FB and will be emailed. NZ entries only please.]]

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You can buy the RaRa Breastmates dress here, and buy a copy of HAZED here

Breastfeeding Bedside Essentials

This is my bedside, completely equipped for night time feeds, changes and life with a newborn. In those first few days I also had a stash of snacks on hand! 

Here are the essentials that I think you'll need within reach when you have a new Bebe!::

The Essentials for your bedside:

Reusable Breast Pads:: In the first leaky stage I used disposable pads, I had extreme flow, but now that things have settled down I'm using Breastmates Reusable Pads , they are soft and fluffy and just as absorbant as they say! You can fly through pads so make sure you stock up on them pre birth, or have reusables that can be easily washed on hand!

Nursing Cream:: I only needed this in the first few days when Katie was figuring out the latch thing. I used Lansinoh and a Palmers Shea Butter cream. They can be pretty pricey, but if you need them you wont regret forking out the cash. Try asking your midwife, mine actually gave me some for free.

Water:: You'll drink A LOT. That thirst is undeniable, you can't restrain it! I had a few treat bottles of flavoured water stored away. They broke the monotomy of all that boring water. You'll go through bottles and bottles so each night I always made sure I had two full bottles at my bedside for night time feedings.

Log Book:: I tracked weeks 1-4 of Katies life with a Breastmates Log Book to try and see if I could find patterns, or answer those annoying questions midwives ask like "How many wet nappies today?" "Er... let me just check my log book!" It made it especially helpful when trying to figure out if I should see an Osteo for Katie's Latch. I thought I didn't need to, but when I looked at the log book I could see in black and white her lack of feeding from my left. Brain Fuzz is real people! Log books have spaces for you to record feeds, nappy contents, moods and sleeps!

Extras you might want on hand:

Snacks: Have some snacks on hand for the first few weeks, you'll be ravenous, especially at 4am! Muesli bars were my snack of choice.

Flannels: I use flannels to catch the big milk flows in the middle of the night if I'm feeding (these days I'm only feeding once or not at all at night, so my let down is quite big right now), they're super absorbant and I just chuck them in the washing pile in the morning.

Spare nappies, wipes and bin: Make life easier and have these on hand. We also have all of Katies clothes in our room in a plastic tub on the floor. Less footwork at night the better.

Reading material: I asked my readers for book suggestions for night time reads, and got a few of them in preparation. I ended up reading my bible on my phone at night with the Olive Tree app. Now that I'm not up at all hours of the night I really miss the extra opportunities for bible reading. It was much more productive than surfing facebook or twitter for hours!

Do you have any tips of "essentials for you" that might be helpful to my readers?! Leave a comment and let us know!

Feeding Katie & Wearing Breastmates

Happy Breastfeeding Month!

There I was on my high horse, telling everyone how easy breastfeeding was. I did all I could to prepare to have a successful feeding relationship before my second baby was born. 

My last daughter, Milla, was SO easy to feed. She latched straight away and we never had any issues. I thought that would happen again.

But there we were, moments after birth, sitting in my nest of pillows waiting for Katie to latch. And she didn't. Not to my left side anyway. I didn't think too much of it and swapped her over to the other side where she spent the following hours.

The next few weeks were a struggle with the left. I didn't understand why she wouldn't latch to that particular side. I prayed and I hoped "please, just let me feed my baby". I was scared of going out of the house knowing I couldn't feed my baby without a fight admist tears from both of us. 

I ended up admitting that I was struggling a little on Twitter and booked in an osteopath appointment. As soon as I publicly admitted that I was having a little difficulty I felt a huge weight lifted off our shoulders. So many people replied saying they had initial trouble too, but babies and Mamas can both learn, they can get better. I felt so much hope instead of shame.

After that Osteo appointment Katie has been feeding perfectly. I am so so grateful. 

I am still glad I did all that preparing. The flavoured water was invaluable, the PJs perfect and I wear my breastfeeding cami's everyday. 

But then I hit that 3 week slump. The one when you're ready to leave the house, but you have absolutely nothing to wear. Everything is stretched from your big belly, old, or in my case, tracksuit material or flannelette. 

Breastmates were so kind to send me their brand new Nuture feeding top. Its another one of Franny's self designed in her Bump N Boob range and this one's for the cooler months with its long sleeves and layers. (And I helped name it! Aye Franny?)

It covers all my wobbly bits and hides my canyon of cleavage. The fabric is so lovely and soft and stretchy and drapey. Its slim where it should be (I love having my sleeves fit well!) and gathers where it should (around my chest and tummy!). 

The model on the website looks absolutely beautiful and perky, but I think my F Cup looks pretty good in it too ;)

It feels flattering for my body that struggles to find its happy place post birth, when everything's stretching and tightening and changing, this top is a perfect fit that seems to go with whatever my body is doing.

The front of it opens up at each side to feed, my midwife witnessed it in action and said it was brilliant! Er. I KNOW. Completely modest and stylish for public feeding, which I have done multiple times (Hoorah for well designed tops and feeding babies!) Just don't leak in it, the soft fabric soaks it up!

If you've seen me in the last month outside of my home, its probable that I've been wearing this top. Its my go to for public appearances! 

I am so grateful for babies who feed, friends and family who encourage and for lovely maternity wear that flatters and makes you feel good about going out!

If there's a next time, I'll be buying a few tops specifically for feeding before I have the baby, maybe it'll help avoid the 3 week slump?

Do you have any practical or mental ideas for a successful feeding relationship? Leave a comment and let me and other expecting Mamas know!

And hey! I'm on the cover of Breastmates Mag! (along with hundreds of other beautiful Mama and Daddys!) If you want to become a pin-up-girl check out the Breastmates Facebook page

READ MORE:
Nuture Top
Bump n Boob range
Preparing for Feeding & Clip on Cami Review
Glory Maternity Dress Review

Preparing for Feeding

I had a great breastfeeding relationship with Milla right from the first minutes of her life. She latched straight away and continued to feed well over the next year.

I can see now that there are a few things I can do to prepare for feeding to make it as comfortable and easy as possible for both of us. Here's a few tips if you're planning to go down that road yourself:

1) Clothing: Your whole wardrobe is going to be based on accessibility for the next few months. As baby gets older and you're feeding less you can get away with wearing some trickier clothing items, but until then layers are going to be your best friends!

I have one of these new Breastmates Clip On Cami's that I can't wait to use! Its another in the Breastmates self designed and produced line, it clips on to a maternity bra so you don't have extra straps on your shoulders, you're not stretching down your ordinary singlet tops(!!) and you dont have a million layers over your boobs.

I love Breastmates clothing, the quality is so good and long lasting and this is no different. I'm still wearing my Glory Maternity Dress from earlier in the year and still loving it. 

Breastmates clothes are made from great materials, they wash so well and they fit!! I really can't recommend them enough!

I plan to wear this cami at night allowing for easy access and support from my maternity bras. They have a huge range of other styles of feeding singlets if you're in the market for one.

2) Nightwear
Consider what you're going to wear at night. You'll want to stay warm, especially in the winter months and feeding can often leave your chest and shoulders exposed.

This time around I've gone for flannel winter PJs so I can unbutton them at the front. I should probably have thought more about my colour choice but the range available at the time was disappointingly limited!

3) Hydration!
I did not realise how much I would need to drink!! So. crazy. thirsty! I'm normally a cup drinker, but having bottles around was just so handy! I would always have one in my handbag! Don't even think about leaving the house without water.

One of the best "new Mama" gifts I was given in my first week with my first born was a couple of bottles of flavoured water. I was told at the time "water can get pretty boring when you're drinking so much" and I didn't really comprehend how true that was until it hit me!! Flavoured water quickly became my treat friend. This time I've been slowly stocking up so I can have my water-treats on hand.

4) Feeding friends
I found it so hugely important and encouraging to have breastfeeding Mama friends. First time round I had 3 close friends who all had babies within a few months of each other. Each of us breastfed and it was never ever a big deal. It was totally normal to us. I'm so thankful for that! I'm also thankful for a Mum and Nana who tell it like it is and fed each of their children (my mum had 5!). They are hugely encouraging (and honest). And a Dad who told me to get "over it" and "just feed my baby forgoodnesssake". Its so vital to have encouraging supportive people around you, whether they are feeding at the time or not.

Here's to a successful feeding relationship with my newest daughter! I can't wait to have that bond with her and be able to provide, sustain, soothe and connect with her all at once! 

READ MORE:
Breastmates Glory Maternity Dress Review
Follow Breastmates on twitter

Baby book reviews for 21 month old

A Happy Birthday

*

After the midwives and friends had left: Just me, baby and husband in our dimly lit bedroom right where I had given birth only a few hours earlier. Bliss.

A dear friend** of mine, Dee, is celebrating a birthday soon. A real life, as it happens, birthday. You know the kind, when a baby is born.

Dee is a total warrior. Since reading her blog she has inspired me in so many ways, and just talking with my husband now (whose all for it), she has recently inspired me with her views on birth; A celebration, an occasion, a joy.  What a revolutionary idea!

For my future births, husband, kids and I are going to be celebrating a happy-birth-day. A new way of looking at it. A new way of going into labour. A celebration.

Heck, its just blowing my mind thinking about all that implicates.

* I never shown images before of me breastfeeding. The sagas this week have made me extremely proud to be a breastfeeding woman. I think no matter how long you have breastfed for - one day or 10 years - you should be proud too. I also think that people can't learn to breastfeed if they don't have any information, stories or support so I should not shy away from sharing about our breastfeeding journey.

**I say "friend", more like "I read every word she writes in her blog and on twitter but she doesn't really know me at all. Creepy much?

My Expectations and Your Questions Answered

Are you getting any sleep?

I expected to get NO sleep. Seriously. I prepared myself to be like the walking dead so I have been pleasantly surprised with how much sleep I am able to get. Right now Camilla ends up going to sleep at midnight or there abouts, will sleep for 4 hours, wake up for a feed and some times a change, and then go back to sleep for another 3 hours. The trouble is just getting her to sleep pre midnight - by then I'm exhausted myself and my patience wains. Then I realise how tired I really am. It takes every last ounce of energy I have left to continue to be loving and patient.

Lately Camilla has been refusing to sleep in her basinet at night so she has been sharing the bed with us and only going to sleep while nursing. I've realised that this is just creating habits that we will need to break later on. I am really missing my own space in my bed and I wake up sore and cranky but she seems to love it. For some reason, just at night, she doesn't want to be in the basinet. Any ideas?


How Is Feeding Going?

First of all, I never expected to use the term "Just had a feed" or "put down" (when referring to sleep) but I do both of those now. Feeding has gone surprisingly well. My midwife said I should be the poster girl for breastfeeding! Woohoo!! Seriously, its mostly been Camillas awesomeness. She latched on straight away after birth and hasn't had any trouble since. I did get a minor breast infection due to a blocked duct, but I was able to clear it out myself using tried and tested midwife advice (heat the area, rest and empty the breast) and it cleared up quickly. Phew. Camilla is really spilly though which is my main hesitation when feeding in public. Sometimes she does huuuuuge projectile vomits that go every.where. Its really funny when we are at home and I can change both of our clothes, but its not funny when you're on someone elses couch etc. Camilla is packing on weight. She put on a whole pound in the last week and is gaining twice the expected amount. Despite the projectile vomits she's still getting more than enough nutrition.

I expected there to be a lot of milk and there is. There's heaps. I have no idea where it comes from! Actually, I would really like to learn. Does anyone have any good articles on milk production? It leaks at the most inconvenient times and when I go out I mostly always have a spare top with me to change into. Some days I just really need another shower because I feel like I'm covered in breast milk and vomit. I normally can't take a second shower though, that's a luxury I often can't afford!

Does breastfeeding hurt?


No. Not if it's being done right. It feels like tugging, pulling or flicking and will only hurt if the baby isn't latched on correctly or if you are damaged from previously not being latched on correctly (crackled or blistered nipples). Don't worry about it, its nothing to fear and is something you both have to figure out in those first few days.

I am really grateful that I am able to feed our daughter.

Don't you get grossed out by all the baby fluid?


There is so much fluid!! It comes from everwhere! Once while I was changing her and she had her nappy off she pooed, peed and vomited everywhere. It was hilarious... and gross. I thought I would be disgusted by changing nappies and had never changed a single one in my life. The first two were amazing and Graeme and I did them together. They stunk and I dry retched a little. Now I'm 10x faster at changing and don't even stop to think about what I'm doing. And yes, Graeme changes her whenever I ask him, a few people have asked me that.

I can understand how other people would be grossed out by her spilling on them - it is my breastmilk on their shoulder after all, but I barely think about it. Unless its curdled and has chunks in it ;)


How has your relationship with Graeme changed?

I wasn't really prepared for the change in our marriage. All of a sudden both of our attentions are on this little one and it takes an intentional effort to focus on each other. For now most of what we have to talk about is about her and for me especially, I struggle to come up with any other talking topics. Graemes a bit different though - he still goes to work, does music, hangs out with people so life hasn't really changed, its just been added to, but for me everything has been changed. Such is the role of a primary care giver I suppose. In the first week when it was just Graeme and I alone and the baby slept all day I was SO bored, we made a list of things we could do together with a baby so we can work through them. If you have any ideas let me know. Some nights it feels like I don't even see Graeme because I feel so preoccupied. I'm sure that will change soonish though.


Have I thought about immunisations yet?

I have done no research into this area yet and so far just going with how I feel (which is generally my tactic for most topics (such as "crying it out"). Immunisations make me feel a little uncomfortable at first thought. I'm kind of a nature nurture kind of girl, I think we were made a certain way and that's messing with our bios (although I'm not really hugely opinionated on it. That's just the first feeling that hits me). But then "what if". What if something happened and I could have had the power to stop it? The Meningitis outbreak in Northland for example. Tried and tested immunisations seem to be okay, but the new ones? Hmmmm....

On Adjusting To Life

Life is different now but still the same. I really have no idea how we will have a "routine" with a baby because our life is so unroutine. Most nights we have people over or we go out. We are very extraverted and social and staying at home to bath a baby and have her in bed by 8pm just isn't us. Going out right now during the day is quite tiring for me, mostly because I have to get her and myself all ready by ourselves and its usually during her sleep time - which could potentially be my sleep time (who am I kidding. I very rarely nap when she does). Some days the thought of just getting the pram out of her room is enough. Other days I jam pack everything in and can't wait to get out of the house.

At the weekend I was out shopping for nappies and I put down her capsule so I could look at the shelves. Suddenly I looked down the aisle and I realised she was 15m away. Seriously. I internally freaked. I had wandered down the aisle without realising I was leaving her behind. What if someone had tripped over her? Bashed their trolley into her capsule? Or worse, earthquake and shelf items had fallen into her? ARGH. Even just thinking about it now I feel like such a terrible Mum. What was I thinking? Well, I obviously wasn't. Suddenly I have this new person in my life and its taking some adjusting to get used to. Doh.

I still haven't cooked a dinner for us yet (if you dont count boiling pasta) - I dont really know how I'm going to. Time is just so messed up. I'll start a pot boiling and she'll want to be fed - or I'll heat a frozen dinner and she'll wake up just as we start eating. It's sooo frustrating. I am super duper thankful to the amazing ladies at C3 Church for cooking and delivering meals for 3 weeks after her birth. If you're pregnant, join a church, seriously.


Being A Good Mum


I'm sort of relying off everyones praise right now. You will have no idea how much it means to be told some one is proud of you and that you're doing a good job because you will have no idea how much you can doubt yourself and put yourself down when you are raising a little one. In the first week of her life when Graeme was home we made all of the decisions together "do you think she's hungry?" "Do you think we should turn the heater on" "Do you think thats normal?" but now Graeme doesn't see the day to day, its left up to me so when he comes home from work and I ask "why isn't she going to sleep" mostly he would have no idea. Purely because of time and attention I end up having to decide such little things and some times I don't feel qualified to make them. It means SO much to hear that I am doing well (even if the person doesn't know if I am or not) and that someone is proud of me.

Just so you know, I put Camillas top on back to front yesterday. I accidentally left her down a supermarket aisle when I wasn't within reach and one time we realised we didn't do up her capsule in the car properly. Things like that stay in my mind and I beat myself up about it, but at the end of the day its all a learning process. We've never had a baby before! Everything is new and we will learn.

I'm learning to leave my own expectations at the door along with everyone elses and maybe some day I will confidently be able make our own decisions, I know that no Mum is perfect.

**EDIT**

Where Antenatal Classes Helpful?

In the first day of Camillas life Graeme said "Hey! She's doing the mouth thing that Pam said! Maybe she wants food?" Oh yeah. Doh. My Baby needs to be fed. And she did, she did it exactly like our instructor showed us.

Also, we would have no idea how to bath her had it not been for the final class, and during labour Graeme reminded me how to breathe like Pam showed us and I remembered to keep my lips relaxed!

Thank you Antenatal!

Camillas Birth Story

Our first real life 3-Way-Cuddle

A lot of people have been asking me about Camillas birth so I thought I would write out a basic birth story for my blog, and a much more detailed one for my own personal records.

My labour was short. Probably too short for my liking if I'm going to be honest. I had been conditioned to believe that first time pregnancies take days and days of labour before anything happened. So, on Saturday night when my contractions started during a walk to the supermarket for chocolate I tried to push them aside and I kept telling Graeme and myself that labour can start and stop. We tried to watch a movie and got about half way through it when my contractions suddenly picked up.

We had a very fast home birth after a very short labour. There was no time for an exam to see how far along I was, so based off intensity I think I was probably in 'established labour' for 2.5 hours - maybe. I pushed for 30 minutes total.

Infact, it was so fast we didn't get time to fill the pool.

I went into shock a little bit when my contractions intensified. I fainted and vomited and there's a definite period that I just don't remember - Like how I ended up on our bed. In my head I was thinking that that intensity would be lasting for days and I didn't know how I could do it. Looking back I now understand that stage was my transition - going from labour into pushing. It happens to most women and they reach a point of "i can't do this" however, at the time I felt like a failure and I was really scared.

The midwife arrived in a hurry and shortly after I announced that I needed to push.

It was so instinctive. Nothing like on the movies where they instruct you when to push and how hard. My body knew what it needed to do and I was just along for the ride. I could feel everything.

I pushed. I pushed. I made a few jokes. I pushed. I will always remember the moment I turned and looked into Graeme's eyes. They were welled up with tears and so full of love.

Camilla came quickly in one big burst. Usually the head comes out and then there is a pause as the baby rotates so the shoulders can fit through. There was no pause and no changing position for us. I was told I had to get her out straight away so I did. She flew out and landed on the bed. Seriously. She flew. We went from seeing the top of her head (which was crazy!!) to having her in my arms in seconds. Graeme calls her the salmon, I call her our mermaid.

She was placed in our arms, sticky and covered in white vernix. She was as pink as a pig and our little princess. Absolutely perfect.

The next 4 hours flashed by as we enjoyed hours of skin to skin contact (a fantastic way to bond) established feeding (she latched on straight away and hasn't stopped since!) Was weighed (7 pound 6) and measured. The placenta was delivered. It probably took longer than it could have because I was exhausted. I was stitched up and paracetamol'd up.

I will always remember Graeme wrapping his arms around us and praying for us while the midwives were in our hallway. They could hear us and they waited, I so appreciated that. It was a beautiful moment.

Then, it was time for the midwives to leave and Graeme and I were tucked up in bed with our sleeping daughter between us, wrapped up in her wollen blanket. It was seriously perfect. I wouldn't have had it any other way.

Giving birth is one of the most natural and empowering things I have ever done. Somewhere deep down my body took over and did what it had to do to deliver our daughter. The midwives were there to help and offer encouragement and a few tips but when it comes down to it, its our bodies that do all of the hard work. I'm sorry if you have not been able to experience that, I mean no disrespect, but want to express how normal labour and birth is. It should not be feared, horror stories should not be the norm. I think its unfortunate that the horror stories are the most common stories to reach your ears, especially when you are pregnant. Birth is natural, empowering and totally forgiving to your body and mind. Women have been doing it for centuries.

Graeme was my main support person and he was everything I could have wanted him to be. He took a little straight talking in his stride (At different points I told him I hated his iPhone, not to touch my legs and that his soothing voice was pi**ing me off!!!!) He was my rock. We also had 2 other girl friends arranged to be support - one arrived just as I was about to start pushing but missed the birth and the other due to a whole lot of hastiness and confusion didn't arrive until after. I think I'll always regret that somewhat. My support people were invaluable to me and we couldn't have had the birth and care we did without them.

Finally, on home birth; Aside from the fact that we would not have had time to go to the hospital and had planned a home birth anyway, I wouldn't have it any other way. It was so indescribably comforting to be labouring in my own home, not have to get into the car (how on earth do people do that!!??) and to be made toast and milo afterwards by our support people. I loved falling asleep in my own bed and waking up to Graeme (definitely couldn't have done that in hospital) and all of my comforts. Almost everyone who came to visit in the following days said how much of a "love nest" it was. It was warm, dim, and we were able to stay in bed together for most of the following days while we recovered and bonded with our daughter. I will not think twice about planning a home birth for our future children.

Thanks for reading. I hope I didn't share too many details but just enough to satisfy your curiosities. I'd like to empower and encourage you too, so if you have any questions or would like to know more details please just let me know. Email me on sophieslim@moo2.co.nz :)


Extras for the Interested:

As soon as labour picked up and we couldn't fool ourselves into thinking it would stop we tried to take a baby in baby out (like here and here) photo. I had adjusted the top specifically for that purpose earlier in the week and I remember being really annoyed that there were shadows and the lighting was terrible. I was having a contraction during this photo, and a few seconds later passed out. When I "woke up" I was on the floor with our duvet and could hear Graeme on the phone to our midwife. The next thing I knew I was lying on our bed without my top and leggings off and my midwife was taking my blood pressure. Odd.

I have since decided to use the photos in this post as my 'baby in' version.

This is the first ever photo of Camilla. 

Love

World Breast Feeding Week

Congratulations! You are amidst World Breast Feeding Week in 2011! Didn't even know? Click on this link to find out whats so important about this week and why awareness needs to be proactively spread. Linky.

Obviously, I have not breastfeed yet, but in preparation I have a few things to share with you that a lot of people have asked me privately that you may or may not know.

1) My breasts were the first thing to tell me that I was pregnant. Sure, there was a missed period, an eventual 2 lines on a plastic stick - but the most convincing thing was all of a sudden I felt swollen and tender and then I realised I had a missed period. At the doctors before I took a "confirmation test" they asked if I had any symptoms of pregnancy. I mentioned my breasts and she said "yup, that'd do it. You're probably pregnant then." That instant.

2) They get big. Real big. And will probably get even bigger after the baby. And your nipples. Real big and real dark.

3) You will wear bras you never ever thought you would. I always told myself I would have some form of padding and wire in my bras. Not so. Ribs expand and wire cuts in. This means you can only wear a bra standing up straight and it hurts like heck after 5 minutes. I've spent the last 2 weeks braless until I finally bought myself a nice maternity bra this weekend. It has been heaven. And - no wire or padding. Amazing huh. I can't believe I waited this long. Make a nice bra one of your biggest priorities.

4) You'll probably leak. Okay, not everyone does initially, but don't be surprised if you do. No one told me this (Friends! Where were you?) and I got the shock of my life. Imagine my surprise. You'll leak more when you have the baby - It will probably shoot out of you. Haha. Can't wait. But in the mean time colostrum it will probably slowly seep out. Romantic huh?

So, that's about all my wisdom I have to share for World Breast Feeding Week. Maybe next year I'll have something of more value to add. To the ladies who are feeding their children - Power to ya!