Welcome to After Forty Mom!

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If you are pregnant after forty, hoping to be or had a baby in your forties you’ve arrived at a special place just for you!

This site came to be after the birth of my daughter when I was 42. During my pregnancy I had a difficult time connecting with younger moms and locating research and resources to support having a baby a little later in life. My goal with After Forty Mom is to provide just that; the latest research, nutrition, lifestyle and parenting ideas along with some blog posts on everyday life as an older mom.

Please join in this collective journey by sharing your ideas and experiences at this special time which is, in my humble opinion, the best time to have a baby.

After Forty Mom Talks to In Season Mom

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This week I talked with Cynthia of In Season Mom and shared a look at my experiences being pregnant after forty years of age. Are you over forty and pregnant? I’d love to hear from you and share your concerns, joyful moments and experiences. We can learn so much from others who share our experiences in life. (Left: My daughter and I at the park) Continue reading →

Mother and Child are Linked at the Cellular Level

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I read a post this week,shared by my wonderful Doula and Friend Billie Harrigan, that I simply had to re-share. Written by such a talented and interesting woman, Laura Grace Weldon. Rather than add my After Forty Mom spin to this great piece I’ll just share it.

Its simply amazing. Continue reading →

Perimenopause and the After Forty Mom

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I recently read an article on coping with perimenopause when you have young children and I thought it would be a great share for my After Forty Mom followers.

I had my daughter at 43 and my mom said she started to experience perimenopause in her mid fifties (genetically this can be a rough gauge for me I’m told). This means my daughter will be a tween herself when I experience hot flashes. Based on her current personality which includes her dad’s strong will, I lovingly say there could be some heated days ahead (no pun intended). Continue reading →

Cooling and Healthy Berry Green Tea Slushy (while chasing your toddler about)

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My British upbringing has always made tea a big part of my life but when I decided to get pregnant in my forties (and give up coffee) I began to broaden my tastes to include herbal teas on a daily basis. I will warn that if you are pregnant or hoping to be you should check with your care provider to ensure you are ok to drink certain herbal teas. Some have benefits and some should be strictly avoided during this time.

As I’ve talked about in previous posts, herbals teas can be an easy way to get very valuable vitamins and minerals. For example, starting at 12 weeks of pregnancy, Nettle tea is a very nutritive beverage for both mom and baby. Nettles are high in important vitamins and minerals such as A, K and C as well as calcium, iron and potassium. Nettle tea is also a natural diuretic, so is very helpful for the water retention that some moms experience later in their pregnancy.

If you are looking to drink herbal tea in a way that beats the summer heat, here is a really thirst quenching and healthy recipe: Continue reading →

Pregnancy Rates Rise for Women Over 40

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New government research has just been released from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) covering pregnancy trends from 1999 to 2008. Below find a link to the full PDF report along with an article from the NY Times highlighting the stats for women over forty.

No surprise that the group of Mom’s having babies after the age of forty is on the rise. The next question…..what do we need to be doing to support the needs of this group of women? Continue reading →

Psychology Today Discusses Having a Baby After Forty

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Dr. Susan Newman weighs in on the advantages and disadvantages of having a baby later in life in this article from Psychology Today.

Definitely worth a read if you are pregnant or hoping to be after forty years of age. Some interesting new research and a re-mention of existing research that I always love to hear; The New England Centenarian Study found that women who gave birth after age 40 were four times more likely to live to age 100 or beyond. How do like that data point!! I better double up my retirement savings contributions if I’m going to be around that long!

One point that I often see but will whole-heartedly disagree with is that new mom’s over forty are more exhausted that their younger counter parts and have a harder time keeping up with a toddler. As my readers know, I had two boys my 20′s (now 17 and 19) and I can assure you that I was every bit as exhausted with them as I am when our toddler keeps us up at night. The difference is I have more patience now and have gained so much wisdom and understanding. These things all make getting up so much easier. So, don’t let this put you off from having a baby at the time that is best for you!

The Ideal Age to Have a Baby

How important are age and energy in parenting?
Published on June 19, 2012 by Susan Newman, Ph.D. in Singletons

 

“She’s an older mother!” The obstetrician bellowed to the attending staff and everyone else in earshot as I was rolled in the operating room to deliver my son.

“Do you have to announce that to the entire hospital?” I cringed.

Even as more women wait until their mid-thirties and early forties to become parents, most physicians consider them to be of “advanced maternal age” and high risk simply because they’re older. In one way, the extra attention paid to each advanced maternal aged patient is reassuring. Continue reading →

Nursing a Toddler with a Crew of Six

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Nobody is ever turned away :)

Today I wanted to share a funny little routine we have in our house in the mornings. You see we have always had to look for ways to embrace early mornings as our daughter, now 18 months, has always been an early riser. Yes, we’ve tried many, many tricks but just concluded that she loves to get an early start and so we’ve adjusted our bedtime to suit and seem to wake feeling not too badly for parents over the age of forty.

Once we hear her wake and let her chat for a few minutes her Daddy goes in and gets her out of her crib. That’s his way of bonding with her and its such a precious thing to get that first smile of the new day. A quick change and a second for mom to peel her eyes open and grab a drink of water and in arrives my beautiful little daughter in Dad’s arms with the biggest smile you can imagine (on both their faces!). Continue reading →

Research Says Meditation, It’s Not Just for Adults

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As some of my followers may know I am currently back at school getting my certification to become a meditation instructor (more on that “After Forty Mom” journey as we go). But on a related note, I recently attended an amazing seminar on meditation and relaxation for kids, referred to as “Mindfulness”. It really opened my eyes to the importance of considering the amount of stress our kids today are under, never mind the stress we are feeling.

“So many of us spend our time rushing around and doing; taking little or no time for just being”, says Sheena Bounsanga of Mindful-Kids,”This kind of existence has created not just busy adults, but overbooked, overloaded and anxious kids”.

I am certainly not placing blame on myself or others but I honestly find that when my days are busy I tend to think about my state of mind and forget that young kids like my 18 month old daughter, who can’t generally articulate when stress is building, can feel the very same build-up of anxiety in their day. Although we may perceive their problems as quite simple, to them they are just as big as our adult-sized ones and can affect not only their behavior but their state of mind. Continue reading →

A Great Little Find for Busy After 40 Moms, Chef MD

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Yesterday I was struggling to find something new for dinner that would suit the range of tastes and dietary needs of my family. I have a triathlete husband who eats no carbs after noon but is starving by 5pm, a toddler who can’t yet eat too many “raw” veggies even though I love to eat raw, and a teen who will eat anything as long as it has meat and cheese in it. I should point out too that we’re trying to isolate a food allergy in my toddler so she is currently off dairy, eggs, corn and gluten. Sigh….

So After Forty Mom went to the Internet looking for inspiration and stumbled on a website that I thought was chocked full of easy and healthy recipes that come with short videos to make life easy for even the most kitchen-challenged among us. Continue reading →