Isabel Steward

Tell us a bit about yourself?

I’m a 22-year-old first time single mama to my preemie baby, Alina. I work as a childcare educator and I’m also the director of a dance program that I run over the weekend. I absolutely love spending my free time with my family and making memories with my cheeky little girl.

What were you doing before babies/children?

Before becoming a mama, I was a dedicated dancer travelling to NYC each year for extra training. I have also focussed lots of my time and energy into my career. The last few years have been hectic managing my work and my business at the same time.

How did you come to be a mum?

I spent most of my teenage years working with children, growing a passion for teaching, and building relationships with a variety of families through childcare and my dance studio. Becoming a mum was the greatest surprise I’ve ever gotten. My family supported me throughout my pregnancy however around 27 weeks I started to not feel well and continued getting worse. At one of my appointments, I was diagnosed with severe preeclampsia, and it was found that bub had IUGR.

What has your feeding journey been like?

Our feeding journey has been so complicated but I’m so proud of the effort that I’ve out towards making it work for both me and Alina. Throughout our 2-month NICU stay I was exclusively pumping and transporting my milk to the hospital, during our time at the hospital I was taught how to tube feed my daughter so that she was still able to take my milk, which was amazing! Upon returning home we struggled through alternate tube and breastfeeds which took us a while to get used to.

We eventually moved to exclusively breastfeeding however due to me returning to work I wasn’t able to keep my supply up and we are now exclusively formula fed and absolutely thriving. Over the last week Alina has started solids which has been a whole other adventure in its self but we are loving trying new foods together !

What has sleep been like in your house?

When we first come home it was rough for both of us – everyone always warned me about how tired I would be, but I never fully understand until I was amid sleep deviation. We’ve stayed consistent with our bedtime routine, and she’s been successfully sleeping through the night for about a few months now (12 hours of uninterrupted sleep).

I feel so blessed that we have our routine down pack and that she is an extremely good sleeper – just waiting for the dreaded sleep regressions to start hitting us.

The hardest bits…

The hardest part of motherhood has been navigating my new life as a single parent. Coming to the realisation that nothing will ever be as it used to has really hit me hard recently. I’ve given up everything to support my daughter and it’s taken a lot of adjusting but I feel I am finally getting the hang of it. Having support from family and friends has made the world of difference and it’s great to know we have a huge support system. NICU was a huge support system for myself and helped me navigate such a scary time.

Due to Alina being born 10 weeks early we have a million appointments and often have bad days where we end up back at the hospital. It has been so difficult to not compare to full term babies who surpass milestones that she hasn’t reached yet despite them being younger than her, but we keep working hard at physio and I’m so proud of how far we have come.

The best bits…

The best part of motherhood has been watching how strong and brave my daughter has become. She has overcome so many hard times, sickness and setbacks but continues to thrive and grow into an amazing little girl. It constantly blows my mind how everyday my love for her just grows and grows.

Another aspect of motherhood that I adore is building our relationship and communicating with each other. Watching her face light up when I return home melts my heart and shows me our bond is so strong.

How do you make time for yourself?

This is very difficult for me – I am such a workaholic and won’t stop until my head hits the pillow at night. Once bub is down for the night I try to relax while making myself dinner and watching a movie or show before I wrap up any extra work and head to sleep myself. As she gets older I’m hoping that I can further navigate making more time for myself while still showing enough love and time to Alina.

What’s next for you and your family?

For us we are focussing on her strength and development as we navigate through post NICU life. We have so many appointments to attend and we are trying our hardest to battle through some developmental delays now.

We are hoping within the next year to start travelling and sharing my love of dance with her. Making memories and being in the present is so important to us.

If you could talk to your pre baby/kid self, what advice would you give?

Don’t sweat the small things– because it honestly is a waste of time. Becoming a mama shows you just how much fades from the background and makes it so clear what your priorities are.