Whether it was picture or the message that lured you here, WELCOME :)
For those who know, I pride myself on being more than just a Photographer but also a loving wife, daughter, friend and now, MOM. My newest position as MOM has pushed me to being a whole new person that puts the wellness of myself and my family first and in doing so I’ve seen so many other aspects of my life flourish in ways I never thought possible.
By nourishing ourselves we can better help others. For my mama friends who breastfeed, you know exactly what I’m talking about.
“You can not pour from an empty cup.”
When you treat yourself, even to something as small as a warm bath, you replenish yourself enough to give more to others. Specifically, In my case when I’m relaxed and well fed I produce more milk for Bailey and we’re both happy. But when I’m running around, stressed and lacking substance…. not a drop. Abundance comes from abundance. So ladies, keep your glass full as much as you can. And Mamas, teach this to your children so that we don’t have a future with a scarcity mindset.
Breastfeeding has been such a gift to my new motherhood journey and World Breastfeeding Week and Black Breastfeeding Week has been such a blessing to me as a new mom. Last year around this time, when I was just starting out I learned so much and this year connecting with different lactation groups and specialists has been monumental. The sense of community and support from other women going through similar trials, tribulations, yays and fails is more important than I once realized. Listening to other women’s stories and even sharing my own with them helped me realized that not one story is the same. That each of us go through something and that we are sooo strong, magnificent and phenomenal in so many diverse ways. These are the stories women need to hear, because this journey aint easy but it’s nice to know we’re not alone.
There is a community waiting for you.
Also acknowledging that breastfeeding is not just what you see here. Breastfeeding is pumping. It’s also mixing milk with formula to make ends meet. There are so many ways that we provide for these little human around the clock and bringing awareness to that fact is important. I love that WBW and BBW help bring public awareness to breastfeeding and also help normalize the nipple as a food source instead of a sexual object.
Sorry, didn’t mean to ramble just wanted to put this message out there! Here are some sources you can go to to learn more about WBW and BBW. Enjoy!
Oh and as always, if your looking for a black female photographer, I would love to help out in any way that I can. HERE is another example of a Milk Bath Session that I’ve done with the recipe on how to make your own MILK BATH (I added tea leaves to mine).
Hyatt Regency Baltimore Lunch + Learn Conference