The gift of motherhood

The journey of motherhood begins the day you find out you’re expecting a baby. For most women this is a truly joyful time filled with excitement, anticipation and lots of retail therapy …
It’s also a time when you experience some very intense emotions as you prepare for the life-long responsibility of caring for, nurturing and forming another human life. Physically, pregnancy can be a trying time and this, combined with hormonal changes and emotional ups and downs all adds up to a nine-month period that can be a real roller coaster ride. For this reason, it’s so important you take good physical care of yourself while pregnant, although your unborn baby is very safe and protected in its dark, cozy world. Studies have shown that extreme stress can affect your baby ¬– as does your diet during pregnancy. In order to help you make the most of your pregnancy and help you enjoy every day, we’ve put together some great suggestions on how to eat well, even if you’re on a budget (page 32 of the May issue on shelves 22 April) or saving for other important baby items you’ll need; we’ve also rounded up some of the best pregnancy-safe pampering treatments to help you keep stress at bay (page 50).
Our regular exercise feature also focuses on key moves you can do to help prevent aches and pains during pregnancy (page 46).
While putting this issue together for you, I was reminded once again of how a good start – getting the right information for a happy, healthy pregnancy and birth really does set you on the right path to being the type of parent who’s resilient and able to cope with the early parenting challenges that inevitably come your way.
And as we celebrate Mother’s Day this month, we also want to encourage you to celebrate being a mom. Motherhood is the greatest privilege in the world – we are entrusted with the souls and lives of the most precious gift and we can never
take for granted the treasure we hold in our hearts and our hands. Take time this month to nurture yourself so you have the emotional and physical resources to be the parent you want to be.

We also have some great online content for you this month including recipes and a competition where you can stand a chance of winning some of the eco-friendly products used in our May décor shoot on page 118.
Annabel Karmel guides moms-to-be through pregnancy with nutritious recipes and shows busy moms how to prepare quick, healthy and wholesome breakfasts for their family.

More online articles to help you on your parenting journey:
Tips on how to manage an emergency
Tips and games for long journeys

Enjoy the journey.



motherhood, Clare Huisamen,