I’m so excited to have several women sharing on the blog today about their experiences as Moms. These mamas are always giving great comments and input over on our instagram, I wanted to chat with them about something so important to me – confidence in motherhood. At Lactation Link our motto is “Creating Confident Moms”, because I believe having knowledge and options helps you tap into your mothers intuition much more confidently! I also believe strongly that ‘Mama Knows Best’, read on and you’ll know what I mean!
Whitney Fox
I’ve always wanted to be a mom, and truthfully, I always thought I would be a pretty good one. When pregnant with my first daughter and for the first couple months of her life, I poured so much of myself into research. Research about everything. I needed to know I was doing the absolute best for her. I needed to know I was starting solids at the exact right time, I needed to know she got 30 minutes of tummy time a day, or met her milestones when she was supposed to ect. That period in my life was the most stressful, confusing, pressuring time to date. I stressed every little thing I did, I was confused by all the contradicting information out there on how to mother, and I felt insane amount of pressure to measure up and to do what all this research told me I must. As time went on I slowly started to listen to myself. There isn’t a one size fits all when it comes to babies or to us as moms! We all have different things we are comfortable with, different priorities, different values, different emotions, and so on. Same goes for our baby! I learned this especially after having my second, I had to relearn all new tricks and I had to find what worked for her because what worked for my oldest, didn’t work for her. Mother’s intuition is one of the strongest things I’ve experienced in life. There is such a special bond between a mother and a baby, and once I just slowed down, really listened, and trusted myself, that’s when my confidence came. Motherhood is so much more enjoyable when you trust yourself!
♥Whitney Fox is a mom of two gorgeous little girls and shares daily snippets on her instagram @_whitneyfox.
Amanda Sanchez
Motherhood is a whirlwind, especially for us first-timers. I remember when I was pregnant I tried to keep myself calm and collected at all times, hoping it would carry over after my baby came and that I’d somehow magically be a calm, collected and confident mom. The truth is, confidence doesn’t just happen. For me, confidence as a new mom has come from the repetition of trying again and again each day. My little boy Benjamin is 4 months old now, and while breastfeeding has been going smoothly, some days he doesn’t eat as well as others. And it always makes me worry. But I just do my best, consult all my resources if I need help, and then try again tomorrow, and slowly overtime, I build confidence that I’ll know what to do if he has another day where he doesn’t eat well. The same goes for sleeping.
I’ve received a lot of motherhood advice over the past 6 months and most women have said, “Trust your instincts. Every baby is different. You’ll be surprised just how often you’ll know exactly what your baby needs.” This has helped me find confidence in the moment when I’m struggling to make the best decision for Benj. Should I put him down for a nap, or try to keep him up another hour? Should I pump and give him a bottle, or would he rather nurse? Should I bathe him now or wait until bedtime? The questions and self-doubts can seem endless. I think it’s important for us moms to stop and give ourselves credit along the way and know that we’re not alone, especially when our confidence is low. Motherhood is challenging for each of us, but the joy it brings also brings us together as women, and that’s a pretty incredible thing.
♥Amanda Sanchez is the mom of an adorable 4-month-old boy Benjamin. She is the social media manager at Adobe and also runs the blog littlemissfearless.com. She shares daily snippets on her IG @littlemissfearlessblog and her insight on fashion, feel-goods, and fitness on her blog.
Annie Staten
The best thing I’ve done to create confidence in motherhood is to trust my intuition and let it guide me to where I could learn and grow with an open heart and mind. It’s meant accepting that although I’m not the perfect mother, I’m truly meant to be my children’s mother. They are meant to be mine and together we are perfect. The more I’ve practiced listening to my intuition as a woman, wife, and mother, the more confident I’ve become in my ability to recognize what that inner voice is saying. Sometimes it’s saying “no, this doesn’t feel right for my family” or “yes! these values or decisions fit into our family dynamic.” Listening to and practicing confidence in my motherly intuition has led me to discover the tribes of women I connect with who have helped me learn, grow and realize my potential as a mother. When I implement using my motherly intuition on a consistent basis, my children benefit, my family reaps the reward of a confident (not perfect!) mom, and I feel I can manage the challenging and wonderful work of motherhood! @kthelinphotos
♥Annie Staten is a mama of four, including a set of twins! She is a fitness, birth, and breastfeeding enthusiast as well as an IdealFit Athlete. She shares a peak into her days on her IG @aejamba.
Alycia Crowley
As a first time mother, everything is new, and it can be hard finding confidence in anything your doing. Personally, I found confidence in learning as much as I could and then following through while trusting my instincts. I did this as I prepared for an unmedicated child birth, as well as breastfeeding. Each was a challenge that I came to with the tools I acquired, and then let my intuition fill in the gap. Preparation and instincts created a foundation of confidence, which turned into trust between the two of us. That trust is part of the sacred bond of mother and child. As I learned to take care of Ella the way Ella needed to be taken care of, it created a confidence that I knew her better than anyone else. I was her mother.
♥Alycia Crowley is a mom to her sweet Ella who is eleven months! She is self-described as “Canadian born, California grown, and Utah Livin”! She Shares life, style, and beauty tips on her IG @alyciagrace. She also has a blog called Crowley Party. Her latest project includes a tot apparel brand called lunabybaby.
Liz Cannon
The best thing that I have done to create confidence in motherhood is to surround myself with a village of other mothers. Some have similar aged kids, some are a few seasons ahead of me, and others are women whose kids are grown. We all have different skills, perspectives, and experiences that make us equipped for motherhood in unique ways. I love being able to sit with a friend and hear how she may be mothering in a completely opposite way but know that we can still be united by our deep love and desire to care for our children. Being in a community with other mothers has given me confidence to say without a doubt that I am the woman best suited to be the mother to my children and supplied me with endless tools to become a better mother. XO, Liz
♥Liz Cannon is mama to one little girl Elouise with another ‘Cannon baby’ on the way! She recently started blogging and is sharing lots of great ideas for dressing a baby bump. You can also catch her daily snapshots on her IG @mrsseacannon
Trisha Bell
To me, confidence comes from within. It comes from happiness and positivity. It comes from “feeling good” about your every day choices. When you throw motherhood into the mix, it takes time to find a good healthy balance. You’ll make a lot of “wrong’s”, that will eventually lead to so many “rights”.. The key is to stay positive and to learn from the mistakes you make as a parent, instead of beating yourself up over them.
I’ve been through soooo much in my 26 years of life. At a young age, I knew I wanted to have a big family. I knew I wanted to be a mother. I just didn’t know about the struggles I would have to face, to get the 2 boys I was blessed with. I lost 3 little angels before I was finally blessed with my oldest, Urijah, who is now 3 and a half years old. We wanted our babes to be close in age, so we started trying for baby number 2 when Urijah was only 11 months old. Little did I know, we would lose 4 more pregnancies, before we would finally be blessed with our little Ezrah. But that wasn’t the end of our struggles. Our sweet Ezrah had complications at birth and was born with a severe brain injury. We almost lost him. We “should” have lost him – but, the positivity that I was able to find in our time of need, pushed us through the hardest times of our lives. I get it, how in the world do you find any type of positivity from a situation like ours? Well, you search and you search DEEP, but it’s there and you will find it. You can let your struggles beat you down to the ground -or- you can choose to rise above it. To let it empower you. Let it build you. Make you stronger.
My sons are my miracles. They are my heaven on earth. Choosing to be a positive person, has made me the best “Me” I could possibly be. And when I’m the best “me”, I know my kids and family life are well taken care of. I am confident as a parent, because I am in control of the way I choose to look at life. I am in control of the way “I do motherhood.”
♥Trisha Bell is a mom to two amazing boys Urijah and Ezra, and 7 in heaven. She shares family happenings over on her blog and also daily snippets on her IG @trisha.bell. She is a huge inspiration and source of support for other Moms who have experienced infant loss.
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I hope you guys LOVED all the submissions as much as me! If you’d ever like to see a certain topic covered or apply to be a guest contributor, please email us at info@lactationlink.com. Don’t forget about our first FACEBOOK LIVE Q&A Monday, August 7th at 7PM. I’ll be there answering your questions, discussing upcoming classes/events, and answering FAQs about our breastfeeding video classes. You must like us over on Facebook to have access to the Q&A. Make sure to RSVP to be entered for our event giveaway (huge swag bag from Ergobaby!). You can also leave a question in the event page comments – I’ll answer those questions first during the broadcast.
Thanks for coming by,
Lindsey Shipley, RN, IBCLC
I’ve created a free e-mail course to help you get breastfeeding started on the right foot! Click the image below for more info.
I loved these beautifully different perspectives so much. Each gave me such peace and comfort as I enter my last trimester expecting twins! Thank you so much for the lovely article.
Sarah-Beth
http://www.growingalittlelove.com