By Jennifer Rose Bush
Originally on Facebook
Jennifer writes:
I’m going to address a super common issue that moms face just as a PSA. You may roll your eyes but it’s a thing.
Dads, other moms, partners, family members — TAKE PICTURES OF MOM + HER BABY.
Do it from the jump.
I just realized I didn’t get a pic of me and Frank today, and I was super sad. Then I realized he was gardening with me this morning and it was a perfect photo opp not taken. I thought of a few other sweet moments I would’ve loved to have saved that are just a memory now, too. If you look through most mother’s photos — the ones of them with their kids are either expensive professional sessions that we had to beg to get done, or blurry, less than flattering selfies — and if they aren’t, they are often taken with resistance, eye rolls, and grunts.
Just take the damn picture. 📸
Do it when she’s looking or when she’s not.
Catch the special moments because she sure does and she wants some, too! We get lost behind the lens, in the background.
Pictures are so important to us. They carry us on through time. They remind us of the big deals and the little ones, too.
So tonight I snuck up to my baby’s room and took one of us as our last day under two while he was sleeping. My little baby is growing up and I’m thankful I have documented it so thoroughly, but I sure do wish I had some special photos of us together.
That’s one of my biggest pieces of advice to new parents — it’ll mean so much for years to come. 🖤
Don't Retract Pack
▼
Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Welcome Their New Prince at Home
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle welcome their son on May 6, 2019 after a beautiful homebirth. |
An elated Prince Harry announced this morning from outside their Frogmore Cottage that he and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, welcomed their baby boy into the world last night. Present was Meghan's mother and her chosen birth team. The Duchess was previously critiqued by media tabloids for establishing her birth plan and privacy guidelines for herself and her baby -- we commend her on these proactive steps!
Prince Harry continues with the wonder of a father who has just been a part of primal homebirth, "It was amazing. Absolutely incredible. I'm so proud of my wife. It's been the most amazing experience I could ever have possibly imagined. How any woman does what they do is beyond comprehension, but we're both absolutely thrilled."
Prior to the births of Prince William (1982) and Prince Harry (1984), it was tradition to cut baby boys born into the royal family (though uncommon in the rest of England and most of the world today). However, Princess Diana bucked tradition and stood up for her sons and their best interests. She kept them intact, and the assumption is that her grandsons will also remain intact, healthy, happy, and whole for a lifetime.
It was amazing! says Prince Harry of the homebirth of his son on May 6, 2019. Graphic courtesy of Earth Mama Birth, Michigan |
Princess Diana bucked royal tradition with her own sons when she kept them intact! Read more: http://www.savingsons.org/2010/05/breaking-cycle-princess-diana-says-no.html |
New Baby Visitor Guide available to print, or at Etsy |
Breaking the Cycle: Princess Diana says NO to Circumcision in the Royal Family
Princess Diana, Prince William, and Prince Harry |
The beloved Princess Diana bucked royal tradition in 1982, and again in 1984, when she chose to keep her boys intact and not circumcise Prince William and Prince Harry. In addition, she stood up to both Queen Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Charles, who intended to cut the boys, as was customary for royal lines. Despite the majority of men in the world remaining happily intact for a lifetime, including virtually all men in England, royal-born baby boys were set apart from others by being cut at birth. In order to protect her babies and keep them whole, Diana made it clear that her sons would be treated gently from the beginning, and in doing so broke the cycle that would pave the way for Prince William and Prince Harry's own future sons (Prince George, 2013, Prince Louis, 2018, and Prince Harry's son, 2019) to remain intact as well.
Roger DesMoulins notes, "It is a matter of public record that Queen Elizabeth had her three sons circumcised, following a royal family precedent set 2-3 generations before. In the 1870s and 80s, the British upper middle and upper class decided that the penis should be bald, to discourage masturbation. I bet the royals simply followed an aristocratic practice of that era. Diana, however, was a trained preschool teacher who had worked before her marriage. In the course of that job, I would assume she saw natural little boys. If you've seen natural children, you generally cannot stomach seeing those that are cut. Thus a royal custom of recent origin presumably came to an end."
Shane Brewster writes, "Diana approached circumcision like she did all aspects of her life. She looked upon it, questioned its validity, and did what she felt was right, even when it meant standing up against the traditions of the royal family. Diana broke the cycle and kept her boys whole. She was a woman who stood her ground in the face of opposition, and refused to back down. She fought for what was right and was unashamedly honest at a time, and in a place where that was unheard of -- breaking barriers and making headway in various uncharted territories. It was this character of honesty, of doing the right thing simply because it was the right thing, that we believe endeared so many people to her. In that way we believe it's appropriate to honor her memory in a way that shows the world what we've learned from 'The People's Princess' -- Be unafraid to question, even in the face of opposition. Do what is right and let those choices guide your life and the lives you touch into a better place. Question circumcision. Break the cycle."
Princess Diana was also known to be an incredibly warm and nurturing mother, standing up for what she believed best for her children. She refused to formula feed, breastfeeding her babies herself (despite being told not to do so as Princess of Wales), and spent a great deal of time bonding, playing with, and teaching her sons. She was critiqued publicly for spending so much time with her boys, taking them out on adventures to "dirty" kid-friendly places for fun, and was intricately involved in each of their daily lives.
As Princess Diana did, you too can break the cycle in your family. Even if you have circumcised children, there are thousands keeping future sons intact. |
Princess Diana and sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, out on an adventure together. |
Princess Diana bucked royal tradition at the time, and kept her two sons intact. |
Additional intact celebrities. Professional awareness raising materials at Etsy. |
Authentic Postpartum Positivity and Beauty
By The Garcia Diaries
Originally on Facebook
“Is this an advertisement for why women should get tummy tucks?”
“Why aren’t there any fit women in this photo? Not every postpartum body is fat and loose.”⠀
“Why has society made it ok to bash women who bounce back yet glorify women who can’t lose weight?”
“How about dieting?”
“Posts like this bother me. Not losing the weight is a choice.”
“I’m a mother of 4 but I’m also a smokin’ hot wife because that’s my duty. No way I’d be happy or settle to look like this.”
“Photos like this tear women apart.”
“So, you’re saying that skinny women don’t have real bodies?”
These are just a small sample of the comments we’ve received over the past few days since our original post went live.
It’s a shame that the point has been completely missed by some of the people that have taken time out of their day to comment. (The point being: the four of us have been friends online for a long time and finally met in real life, and took a last minute photo together...of our different postpartum body types...to show that all body types are beautiful.)
If you look at this photo and your first thought is, “why are there no skinny women?” you have bigger issues to deal with, my friend.
You can look literally anywhere: film, TV, Instagram, magazines, video games and see skinny women. Other body types are absolutely underrepresented in media, and it causes women with those body types to feel less than... to feel like they’re not good enough.⠀ ⠀
I want to encourage anyone who felt the need to leave any of the above comments to dig deeper, self-reflect, gain some perspective, learn. Your comment says WAY more about you than it does about us.⠀ ⠀
Be better.
-The Garcia Diaries
Originally on Facebook
“Is this an advertisement for why women should get tummy tucks?”
“Why aren’t there any fit women in this photo? Not every postpartum body is fat and loose.”⠀
“Why has society made it ok to bash women who bounce back yet glorify women who can’t lose weight?”
“How about dieting?”
“Posts like this bother me. Not losing the weight is a choice.”
“I’m a mother of 4 but I’m also a smokin’ hot wife because that’s my duty. No way I’d be happy or settle to look like this.”
“Photos like this tear women apart.”
“So, you’re saying that skinny women don’t have real bodies?”
These are just a small sample of the comments we’ve received over the past few days since our original post went live.
It’s a shame that the point has been completely missed by some of the people that have taken time out of their day to comment. (The point being: the four of us have been friends online for a long time and finally met in real life, and took a last minute photo together...of our different postpartum body types...to show that all body types are beautiful.)
If you look at this photo and your first thought is, “why are there no skinny women?” you have bigger issues to deal with, my friend.
You can look literally anywhere: film, TV, Instagram, magazines, video games and see skinny women. Other body types are absolutely underrepresented in media, and it causes women with those body types to feel less than... to feel like they’re not good enough.⠀ ⠀
I want to encourage anyone who felt the need to leave any of the above comments to dig deeper, self-reflect, gain some perspective, learn. Your comment says WAY more about you than it does about us.⠀ ⠀
Be better.
-The Garcia Diaries