When my boys were 7 months old, I volunteered as a helper at the local Parents Centre 7-week antenatal class, with the childbirth educator who had taught my own antenatal class.  I volunteered twice more before finally realising that I actually wanted to be the teacher, not the helper!

Step Two:  Re-Train

 I enrolled in a Certificate of Childbirth Education through Aoraki Polytechnic, and learned all about the anatomy and physiology of pregnancy and birth, as well as responsive (“attachment”) parenting.  The papers were challenging but not too difficult, and I was really disciplined at studying for at least an hour every night of the week, so that I could have my weekends free.  There were no exams, just regular assignments that had to be submitted, along with book reviews and training workshops.  All in all, it wasn’t very taxing for me or my family – of course I do have a particularly wonderful husband who was happy to help out around the house and give me the time that I needed to study.

Step Three – Just Do It

Just over a year later I was let loose on an unsuspecting group of pregnant couples, in the very same room that I taken my antenatal class.  That was the beginning of my BJE (“Best Job Ever”). 

Childbirth Education is a part-time, evening job that allows me to spend my days being a good mum and looking after my family, and my evenings helping first-time parents work through the complicated and sometimes scary process of labour, birth, and early parenting.  I really feel that I am doing something that helps people, and I feel completely at ease in front of the classroom (despite previously having a fear of public speaking!).  I still keep in touch with many of the families – I found myself getting really attached to them!

Looking back at my professional development training over one year I realised that nearly all of my training had focussed on breastfeeding, and I found myself becoming a bit of an expert on the topic.  

I started to become a little frustrated at short length of time allocated in antenatal classes to cover breastfeeding, and coincidentally also started helping women with breastfeeding after their babies had arrived.

Step Four – Keep Looking Forward

While walking with my friend Cara in the park one day, our kids running breathlessly ahead of us, we started talking about breastfeeding education in antenatal classes and found that we shared the same frustrations.   We threw about the idea of providing some focussed breastfeeding education to pregnant woman, and supporting them after their babies were born, and got more and more excited with each step.  We talked to another friend, Chris, also a Childbirth Educator, and the three of us decided to just run a breastfeeding class and see how things went.  We asked Penny Wyatt – lactation consultant at Wellington Hospital – if she would like to join us, and (thankfully for us) she said yes!

Mama-Licious was born.  A company providing breastfeeding workshops for pregnant woman and postnatal education for mothers and babies.

We booked and advertised our first course in March 2009, and were surprised to have a full class packed with men and women eager to learn all they could about breastfeeding before the arrival of their first babies.

Step Five – Enjoy!

Just one year on, we have had over 200 pregnant women through our courses.  We now run courses at least monthly in Island Bay, Johnsonville, and the Kapiti Coast, and our courses are consistently full.  We have appeared live on the Good Morning Show (that was an experience!) and we have co-hosted a Big Latch On event for World Breastfeeding Week that recorded the second highest group of women in all of New Zealand.  Our postnatal course, Buba-Licious, runs monthly at the Southern Cross Bar & Restaurant in Abel Smith Street, where we are able to provide practical information, and reassurance to new mums.

I’d love to say we are all driving around in BMWs and living the high life, but we’re not.  Nor did we intend to be.  What we intended was to raise breastfeeding rates in Wellington, and that’s exactly what we are doing.  We are also doing a job that we love, and feeling good about the work we are doing, and getting paid for our efforts. 

If that isn’t a dream job, I don’t know what is.

Deborah Stace

Mama-Licious Ltd

www.mamalicious.co.nz

But that doesn’t mean that dads don’t have a vital role to play – in fact the support they provide for a breastfeeding mother can be as diverse as it is significant.

One of the most important roles is for dad to give moral support to mum, both when things are going well and also if they aren’t. Moral support might simply mean sitting with mum while she breastfeeds, or being a sounding board if mum needs to work through any feelings of frustration. Statistically speaking, women are likely to breastfeed longer if they have the support of a like-minded partner in the home.

Usually, when considering what dads can do once baby is born, the focus tends to be chores – cooking, cleaning, washing, ironing. While it is important to get those chores done from time to time, it’s more important that a dad gets time to spend with his baby.

Most babies grow to love their bath-time, and this is a great opportunity for dads to get uninterrupted skin to skin bonding time with their baby. A father’s strong supportive hands holding baby in the bath, swishing lovely warm water over baby’s tummy, and gazing into baby’s eyes – the bonding response dad gets when bathing is pretty close to the bonding response mum gets when feeding.

Nappy changing isn’t a chore! It’s another great opportunity to be face-to-face with your baby, talking to them, singing, or even just admiring their wonderful expressions. Without a nappy on, babies like to explore their freedom and kick their little legs around; it’s a fun time to be with baby and there are plenty of opportunities in the day (and night) to do it!

Some babies spend a lot of time snuggled into dad’s chest. It’s warm, it’s safe, and it smells of someone they love. They might even spend quite a bit of time sleeping there in the early days! Whether you’re walking an unsettled baby around the house, or settling them down to sleep, this closeness is magic for both of you.

When baby starts to smile (around 6 weeks of age) there’s nothing better on earth than going to get your baby from his/her sleep and being greeted with a big gummy grin. They are pleased to see you! You can have a few precious moments with baby until they figure out they’re hungry, then take baby to mum for a breastfeed.

If your baby likes to be held, maybe dad can pop baby into a sling while he helps out with the household chores? With a bit of luck, you will have family and friends who will help too – a meal here and there, hanging out the washing for you, picking up some groceries – but if there are still chores to do why not make the most of your time and have your baby with you while you do them? The gentle rocking of everyday movement is wonderful for settling an unsettled baby, and being in close contact with someone who loves them ensures the baby feels safe and secure.

So, take every opportunity to spend time with your baby, not solely to give mum a rest but to make sure that you take your place as an important person in their lives right from the very start.

By Deborah Stace, Mama-Licious director

This year, with all of your help, a new record for the number of women breastfeeding simultaneously around the country has been set – there are a number of venues still to confirm, but with over 1500 of you latching on it’s well ahead of last year’s record.

We had a heap of amazing prizes donated by organisations that support breastfeeding mums and their families including:
Interislander
Womama
Mandi Lynn Photography
Blue Cactus Hairdressing
Baby Star
Jo Frances Photography
Hot Milk Lingerie
Bio Oil
The Herb Farm
Ecostore
MumCho
Kiwi Parent
Whittakers Chocolate
Civic Cafe & Bar

We would also like to thank Her Worship the Mayor Kerry Prendergast for the generous use of the beautiful City Council Chambers and for the refreshments, and thanks to the Wellington Hospitals and Health Foundation for the ever popular Hospi Lions and the tea and coffee.

Soon we will link you to some of the wonderful photos of the day, taken by our brilliant photographer Mandi Lynn.

In the meantime, we leave you with the very best breast wishes!

Cara, Chris, Deborah, Penny
The Mama-Licious Team

http://jugglingmotherhood.com/2010/07/05/5-great-finds-amazing-ideas-amazing-women/

Central Library, 1^st floor

 Johnsonville Shopping Centre

 Coastlands Shopping Centre, Paraparaumu

 Kirkcaldie and Steins, children’s department.

 Te Papa Museum, 1^st and 3^rd floors

 North City Mall, Porirua

 Westfield/Queensgate Mall, Lower Hutt

Let us know if there are any other parents’ rooms around the city you think are worth mentioning!

Working with GSL who are running the Breastfeeding NZ campaign, and alongside a bunch of other wonderful breastfeeding-happy volunteers, we gave out around 1,000 free ‘Breastfeeding Naturally’ DVDs to families who attended the show. 

Check out the cool snap of Mama-Licious director Deborah Stace with breastfeeding advocate & celeb Sonia Gray, and GSL’s Amanda Van Gorp.

To view the Breastfeeding Naturally DVD, you can ask your midwife for a copy or view on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/breastfeedingnz

Enjoy!

Come and meet us on the GSL Breastfeeding stand and ask us all your breastfeeding questions.

We’ll also be presenting free seminar “From Birth to Breastfeeding” between 2pm and 2.45pm on Saturday afternoon.  Lots of great information on getting breastfeeding off to a flying start.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

But, did you also know that your beautiful breastmilk continues to provide substantial amounts of key nutrients well beyond the first year of your child’s life? Between the ages of 1 and 2 years a day’s supply of breastmilk (448ml) provides:

• 29% of energy requirements
• 43% of protein requirements
• 36% of calcium requirements
• 76% of folate requirements
• 75% of vitamin A requirements
• 94% of vitamin B12 requirements
• 60% of vitamin C requirements

Some of the evidence-based benefits of breastfeeding your child beyond their first birthday are:

• Fewer illnesses – breastmilk is packed with antibodies to provide protection against illness and disease; it is a spectacular immune system enhancer and this protection is provided as long as breastfeeding continues (concentrations of some antibodies have been shown to increase during the second year); children who are ill will often accept breastmilk when other food or drinks are refused
• Higher IQ – the correlation between breastfeeding and intelligence has shown the greatest gains for those children breastfed the longest.
• Fewer allergies – continued breastfeeding reduces exposure to potential allergens, provides anti-inflammatory properties that reduce the risk of infections (which can act as allergy triggers), and coats the gut providing a barrier to potential allergens
• Independence – yes, independence! Children who achieve independence at their own pace (eg weaning when they are ready) are more secure than children forced into independence prematurely

For mothers (let’s not forget the mothers!):

• Reduced risk of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer and endometrial cancer
• Reduced risk of rheumatoid arthritis
• Increased protection against osteoporosis
• Decreased insulin requirements in diabetic women
• Delay in the return of fertility in some women by suppressing ovulation

Breastfeeding should continue as long as mother and baby wish, and the numerous benefits of breastfeeding will continue for as long as breastmilk continues to be provided to your child.

By Deborah Stace, Mama-Licious

References: – Dewey KG, Nutrition, Growth And Complementary Feeding Of The Breastfed Infant. Pediatric Clinics of North America. 2001: 48(1): 87-104. – www.kellymom.com – Extended Breastfeeding Fact Sheet