We vegans are well used to the (usually well meaning) advice from family and so-called ‘experts’ on the subject of veganism. However, throw vegan pregnancy into the mix, and suddenly it becomes about moral choices. Veganism is ok it seems when it’s our own choice, but can be questioned when we’re dealing with an unborn child.
Whilst pregnancy is a magical and special time for an expectant Mum, it can often by marred with confusion and anxiety as women try to monitor the movements from their baby. Changes relating to the baby’s movements and patterns can highlight problems that may require urgent medical intervention. When women notice changes to the pattern, they are encouraged to seek advice from their medical team. The long-term aim of the bracelet is for it to help reduce still birth rates by encouraging women to monitor changes and to also seek help sooner.
Your children starting school is one of the biggest milestones you’ll face. For me it was certainly the most emotive, my babies were really growing up. It was the start of a new chapter, the boys being more independent from us, off to make new friends and learn so many new things. For families with twins, starting school means there may be some extra things to consider.
Yesterday I missed something, an event in Ethan’s school life that I should have been there for. He received two certificates at premier assembly and I wasn’t there to see him standing up in front of everyone. I didn’t see his face, searching for me in the crowd and smiling and me smiling back so proud. I know there’ll be others and he’ll soon forget it but it really upset me. I was over emotional after a long week where I hadn’t felt well and was ready for a break, but there was something else behind that guilt. It was a guilt that has been there for six and a half years.
Wordpress tells me that this is my 100th blog post so I wanted to make it a special one. One of the topics I haven’t written about yet is breastfeeding. This is because it’s a highly emotive subject, certainly for me and many others, and it’s one of those topics that everyone has an opinion about. I’m saving my breastfeeding journey for later but today I’m writing a post that I hope will be useful to both expectant and new parents and that will also be an interesting read for others.
For a long long time I struggled with the fact that I had a caesarean birth, I felt my body had failed, that a woman’s body is made for giving birth naturally and that I couldn’t. I blamed myself for not having enough knowledge around the decisions I made during labour and not knowing how to help myself to progress. I don’t know exactly when it happened but around the time I got my new job in summer last year I had a revelation of acceptance.
With Valentines Day out of the way the next date for the diary in the UK is Mother’s Day on March 11th. Whether you’re looking for something to buy for your other half from your children or you’re someone hoping to find something new for your Mum, I’ve got ten great ideas for you.
With Mother’s Day coming up in less than two weeks time, have you decided what to buy yet? Or is it that you are a mum who will be treated to your own choice of gift. I approached Lily Rose London to ask if they would work with me on a Mother’s Day giveaway and was so pleased when they offered to donate one of their gorgeous bumble bee necklaces. My Mum bought me one for Christmas and I absolutely love it.
Are you constantly tired? Excited and exhausted at the same time? Avoiding the mirror like the plague? Craving both cupcakes and your old jeans back? Every mum goes through a different emotional rollercoaster, but for the most part of the journey, the focus is on the little bundle of joy that you bring to this world. That, however, doesn’t mean that mums don’t need to go through a period of adaptation, in order to bond with the baby, embrace their changed physical appearance and find their inner femme fatale again.
I go to the desk and am told that no one can help me tonight as they have staff off sick, so I go back to my room. I start to panic as I struggle to get my head around feeding both babies by myself. I feel so alone with such a huge responsibility, overwhelmed and struggling to come to terms with what has happened over the last few days.