Mother's Day Essay Contest (A little late, but wanted to share)

I have been a mother for almost 2 years now. My daughter was born on May 9th, the day before Mother's Day in 2009. She was late, all I could say was she better not be born on my anniversary, May 8th, selfish me. I recently entered another contest asking when motherhood begins. For me it was the moment I finally let go of myself and accepted everything I didn't want to accept about my beautiful little baby. A little back story, I wanted a boy, they said I was having a girl, I wanted her to come early, she came a week late, I wanted to be gushed over, the midwives dutifully took my vitals, asked if I had questions and sent me on my way. Then she was born, we had a name, I had a baby, but it wasn't real yet. I didn't feel like I really wanted her. My mom looked happier than me, but it's my baby. Then it hits me, a wave of emotions that still make me cry to this day. Years ago, after giving birth to a healthy boy and years before my time, my mom got pregnant again. She knew she was going to have a girl. She named her girl. She was already a mom from her first son, but this girl was the icing so to speak. Then, weeks later, on a toilet, on Mothers Day she miscarries. Unable to flush, unable to let go of her little girl for a good while. For years she resented Mother's Day. She would smile politely as the five of us brought her breakfast in bed, eat some and then usher us out so she could mourn her first lost, her first girl. Now, here at the hospital, my mom's oldest living daughter, has given her back joy for Mother's Day. I have joined the ranks of motherhood. I am grateful and appreciative of the gift that God has blessed my entire family with and that is the birth of my daughter. I am her mother. I was her mother the second my husbands little swimmer made it to my egg. But I didn't really accept it until I realized the victory that I had attained by carrying this beautiful baby girl for 41 weeks and presenting her to my mom. My first mothers day was less than 48 hours after giving birth. And it was the best Mother's Day ever, because this was the weekend that I became a mom and finally knew what my mom felt in her attachment to her first baby girl. And now my baby girl has forever changed Mother's Day back to a day of gratitude for my mom. Atleast I like to think so.
All that to say this, Motherhood for me really began in the realization that a woman is a woman until she accepts everything that comes with the child that she is carrying or bears. Accepting possible loss, accepting gender, accepting due date and birth date differences and accepting the nasty goopiness of fresh newborn. Motherhood, has changed me in ways that I could never have imagined years ago. I am less self centered. I am more, patient. I am independent, but happily tied down. I watch passers by more carefully than I did on my first deployment to Iraq. Motherhood has made me and continues to make me. My husband deployed 3 months after our daughter was born and I continued to work and care for her. I couldn't tell you how many times I cried. Or how many hardships we had through out that year. But every time I considered breaking down or giving up, I knew I couldn't, I was in the middle of the most important 24/7 job of my life, Motherhood.

Impromptu Review: Simple Wishes Pumping Bra

Recently I won a Simple Wishes Hands Free Pumping Bra from a facebook giveaway. I was so thrilled because I pump EVERYDAY and have been pining for a handsfree pumping bra for months! I work full time and pump a minimum of 3 times a day, if not 4-7 times. Sometimes I have 24 hour duty so I am away from my baby the whole time and need to pump every feeding. I also pump extra milk every morning just in case I ever have to leave my little man for an extended period of time. When I had to leave my daughter for 2 weeks I left a FULL deep freezers worth of milk and returned to about 20 bags...when I left there were well over 100 bags. It was crazy to see an empty freezer.
Anyway, back to this phenomenal pumping bra. When the box came I was in the middle of making dinner and was so thrilled to open it. I was tempted to pump a little bit after I put my little man to bed just to try it out :) But I refrained. Inside the box was the bra (I chose a SM/M black) with an extender panel and straps. I love this about this bra. I found that my most comfortable fit includes the extender panel. It is a 2" wide strip that zips into the front of the bra for those boobs that are a little more spaced out than others. The bra itself is essentially 3 pieces, but dont let this put you off. The back is an adjustable velcro closure to get the perfect fit. So each side can be moved on the back panel if you are a bit fuller or a bit smaller than usual. I have adjusted mine a few times to find that perfect fit. Practice makes perfect! It was so easy to use this bra. For a reference I have a Medela Freestyle Pump with the SoftFit breast shields.
 I literally took it out of the package, adjusted it to my size, zipped it up, inserted my pump cups and proceeded to fold clothes...while pumping! I was so liberated! Thank you Simple Wishes! I was so afraid that a hands free pumping bra would take as long to put on than it would to pump. Boy, was I wrong. This was so easy, I use it every time I pump now. This morning, I ate breakfast...while pumping. This afternoon, I typed...while pumping. So amazing!
One thing I did not do, after my 3rd time using my wonder bra I found that I was supposed to wash it before the first use. Whoops!
Washing it didn't affect the fit or comfortability of the bra. Also, I have found that the bra leaves small black fibers on my breastshields. This doesn't bother me because it doesn't seem to be getting on the inside and it could be because I use the Medela SoftFit breastshield. But it really is not a big deal and had I gotten a white bra I likely never would have noticed. I have included a few pictures to show how it fits and how easy it is to use.  Well, happy pumping and if you require hands free pumping, I would definitely suggest the Simple Wishes Hands Free Pumping Bra.
You can find them on Facebook and Twitter

I was trying to add a couple pictures but it doesn't seem to be working right now, so I will try again later.

Oh and P.S. I was not paid by Simple Wishes to write this, I just wanted to write about it, like I said, I won it on a Facebook giveaway contest they were having. Good products deserve good words said about them.