Kimalee Ramsden

Tell us a bit about yourself?

I'm Kimalee, I love to hang with friends and surround myself with positive people.

I am a mum to 3 boys that absorb a lot of my time in a good way. My house is never clean, I constantly whinge at how messy their rooms are and the shit they leave around the house and they are constantly eating. I get super annoyed when I hear the words 'what can I eat' or 'what's for dinner?'

I am also wifey to my amazing husband who is my rock.

What were you doing before babies?

Traveling around the world, saving for our first home and just enjoying life. No big responsibilities. Woke up when I wanted, left the house when I wanted to and not having to attend to anyone but myself. Our share home was the place to be back in the day, parties every other weekend and the joy of eating what you want without the issue of weight gain. Ahhh the life!

How did you come to be a mum?

It was something I always wanted one day but life had to be in order, you know, engaged, house, dog, wedding and then babies.

What has your feeding journey been like?

My first son: Being a first time mum, I didn't know what I was doing and just did what felt right. Baby would cry, I would feed. He became a demand feeder and I had no freedom. I felt a bit trapped, I felt he had to come with me everywhere I went. He refused the bottle, I did pump and dumps but was a waste in the end. I fed him til 1 years old My second and third sons were a breeze. My sister in law introduced the book 'Save our sleep' by Tizzy Hall and it was my saving grace. My two boys were text book. They had routine and it was amazing!! Second son, I fed until 10 months when he started biting me so that ended breastfeeding quick and my third my supply dried up at 6-7 months. It was sad as I wanted to go until he was 1 yrs old as he was going to be my last child, but as life has it, nothing goes the way you want it to.

What has sleep been like in your house?

First child - I was sleep deprived, would wake at silly times during the night and no sleep during the day as I didn't want to sleep during the day. I'm lucky now because my kids know not to wake me before 7am.

The hardest bits…

No support for my first pregnancy. I had this false reality that I would have family and friends around to support me when needed and took me a long time to realise that you have to do this on your own. I also got post-natal depression, a very dark place in my life that I never wanted to see again. Also, weight gain after my first child. That whole thing of, you can eat what you want as you are eating for two, hahaha, nope that's not true in my case. It took ages to get rid of it and then wanting to try for the next baby proved very hard.

The best bits…

Holding that child in your arms for the very first time after that final push and knowing you have created a life is the best thing and will always be (and very close behind, seeing Whitney Houston live). Then also, watching all the milestones and to this day being able to interact with them.

How do you make time for you?

I go to the gym 20% whinging about the workout and 80% of the time chatting with my mates at the gym. I also make time to get my hair done, go out for dinners with friends and always time for shopping (not often purchasing).

What’s next for you and your family?

High school next year for my eldest son! Watching them growing to their next chapters in life - pre puberty, them wanting to hang out with friends more and me having to learn to let go (a bit)...

A piece of advice for our readers?

Listen to your motherly instincts. Everyone has an opinion but you make your own decisions. Make sure you remember to have date night with your partner - yes your child is the most important human to you but you started this journey with the two of you and a lot of the time they get forgotten about. Lastly, when you take photos of your child/ren try and get yourself in the pics too. I look back at my photos and I seem to be the one taking the photos all the time. It doesn't matter what you look like, to that child you are the most important person in the world and you don't want to regret it later like me.