Celebrating Mothers, Not Just Babies: A New Way to Gather Before Birth

Celebrating Mothers, Not Just Babies: A New Way to Gather Before Birth

Baby showers celebrate the baby—but who celebrates the mother?

In this episode of Raising Hustle, we explore how pregnancy and postpartum support often fades after the party, and why mothers need more than gifts—they need care, presence, and community.

This is a gentle reframing of how we gather around expectant moms, including a look at mother-centered alternatives like nesting parties and practical support that lasts beyond birth.

Because welcoming a baby should also mean holding the mother. 💛

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Welcome to Raising Hustle, the unfiltered podcast for the moms who are building empires with babies on their hips and grits in their hearts. I'm your host, Mariel Fry, bookkeeper by trade, hustler by nature, and mama by choice. Around here we're raising kids, raising hell, and raising the bar. If you're tired of choosing between nap time and next level dreams, this is your space. Let's redefine what it means to have it all on our own damn terms. Hey mamas, welcome back to Raising Hustle. I'm so excited to talk about today's episode because we are all about celebrating mothers, not just babies, before the birth. Because there's a moment in pregnancy where the focus suddenly shifts away from you, your body, your emotions, your identity, and it lands almost entirely on the baby. Baby showers are beautiful, joyful, and well-intended, but they often celebrate the arrival while overlooking this massive transition. This isn't about canceling baby showers or criticizing any type of tradition. It's about expanding the conversation to include what mothers actually need before birth and after guest leave. Because I'm not going to say this is an anti-baby episode or a guilt episode. This is just simply reframing. Because what I want you to take away from today's episode is a new lens from gathering, celebrating, and supporting women through pregnancy and postpartum, where they're expecting now, have already given birth, or want to show up better for the mothers in their lives. Number one, baby showers and what they ultimately get. Because let's be real, this is a monumental change in your life. It's exciting, it's beautiful. People want to just be so joyful around you and just really looking forward for you to bring this bundle of joy into the world. And the people who want to celebrate you are close friends and family. Sure, other people will celebrate you, maybe referral partners, if you're an entrepreneur or other people in your community, but people close, close to you are so excited, especially moms becoming grandmothers or sisters or brothers becoming aunts and uncles. Those are people who are even more excited. And because this is a major milestone in your life, this is arguably one of the biggest changes. I'm not saying marriage isn't a big change. I'm not saying buying a home isn't a big change. I'm not saying starting a business isn't a big change. I'm not saying buying a business isn't a big change. These are all massive changes and milestones. But bringing a child into the world is something for me personally was probably one of the biggest milestones I've ever had in my life. Because you need the time to set aside for the mom. Sure, everyone's going to celebrate this baby, but we need to celebrate this mother carrying this child and growing a human. It is truly like a marathon every day. It's exhausting. It's beautiful, but it's exhausting. And I do believe having baby showers are joyful and beautiful. And there's so much stuff you need, which we'll get into. But celebrating a woman and having that as a baby shower is something to be truly enjoyed. I just did kind of a local baby shower. I don't live near family, so I didn't wasn't really going to do anything. But I'm very grateful I had some neighbors who really wanted to celebrate me and just keep it simple. It was very appreciated and it was very kind and just really grateful people even wanted to be there. So that was kind of my gist. But everybody has their own story. Some people don't do baby showers. Some people, for religious reasons, don't have them. But I do think celebrating that, there's nothing wrong with that. There is something really amazing about celebrating a woman going through this major transition. Number two, where baby showers fall short, though, you do need baby stuff. And there's plenty of mommy bloggers and influencers out there who are going to name you everything under the sun of stuff you are probably going to need because chances are they get an affiliate and they make up some kind of money on that commission, which is fine. I'm here to support women. I'm here to click any link to help, right? And I'm not saying you can't focus on baby stuff. You need the baby carrier, you need the car seat, you need the stroller, the high chair, the bibs, the burp cloths, the clothes, the diapers, the wipes, the toys. Like I can go on and on and on. But we're forgetting something really important, which is support. We're really, really forgetting that support. I think so many of us culturally and societally, we talk about like conceiving the baby and then getting pregnant with a baby, but we're not really talking about the postpartum and the reality. And postpartum for me was really not even just right after the baby. It was like minimally four to six months after. That's when postpartum hit me the hardest. Because what I've learned, and I talk to a lot of moms about this, there are people in your life before a child who like support you, love you, and like want the best for you. But like then you have a baby, and where did those people go? Like, where did that support go? No one's checking in on you, no one's asking how you're doing. Nobody seems to care. And it's not because they don't care. Maybe they don't know how to care. Or if they don't have kids, they're never going to understand. Because it's hard. And I think even having a baby shower, sure, maybe like a mom paid for it, or a mother-in-law, or a best friend, or a sister, whoever everybody threw in some money. But for also soon-to-be moms showing up to a baby shower, a lot of times the mother is expected to host, to thank, to open, to organize, to send invitations, right? To send thank you cards. It's a lot of work. It's part of the reason I didn't want a baby shower. I just didn't want to deal with any of that. Look, I'm fortunate because I moved far away. People wanted a registry and people were open to buying stuff on a registry. That was really thoughtful, was not expecting that at all. And even after my son was born, I got so many gifts getting shipped. It was really crazy. And it was really nice and it was really sweet. And it was this like amazing feeling. But truthfully, like we need, we need the help. And that's where we're going to go to number three, the postpartum gap, no one talks about. Because again, I mentioned earlier, I don't really understand why support peaks so much before a baby, but not after. I don't really understand why we focus so much on the before, but nobody wants to be there when shit really hits the fan. And that's really, honestly, like postpartum, I tell a lot of women like that is your most vulnerable time, and you know who's real and who's not. You know who's going to be there and who's not. And I can count maybe on one hand, real people that are there in my life. And it's really unfortunate culturally and societally in America. We're probably one of the only countries who are have this expectation of doing it alone. And we're not like supposed to ask for help, but we need help. And it's we, we, it's it's this very uncomfortable feeling. I don't know why it feels this way. Why just should it feel uncomfortable? It should not feel uncomfortable, it should not feel shitty. But here we are feeling this way. And we're supposed to be silent and we're supposed to not say much. And we're not, we're supposed to like bounce back, and we're supposed to like be ourselves after a baby. And like, that like doesn't exist. And I'm so glad conversations are coming up about this more and more. Postpartum, and like your whole life changes, especially as a woman. Not discrediting men on this, but men don't go through these massive hormone shifts and they don't go from this massive hormone up of the baby to like once the baby comes, your hormones dramatically drop. And it's hard. It's hard, right? And something that I can't stand, right? And being silent, I'm not like a silent person, hence why I'm doing this podcast. The thing I hate the most is lip service. I hate when people say, Let me know if you need anything. That's a really nice gesture, but like let's have actionable items. Like we talk about this in business too, where maybe it doesn't get the bills paid, maybe doesn't get a contract signed. I hate maybe. I hate when people say, Well, I really want to come down and be there. Okay, well, let's plan dates, let's schedule logistics, like like let's figure this out. If you really want to be here, then let's make an effort, like make an effort to be here. And if you don't want to be here, it's fine. I believe in yes or no and black or white, not gray. It's nice when people say that they want to help and be there. And there's some people, right, who say that and mean that. I'm definitely one of those people. When I say I'm gonna be there for you, like I will figure out a way to be there for you, the best to my ability. And I'm not perfect in this, but I will certainly try. But I think when people say it and they're trying to be nice, that doesn't work for me. I've had people in my life, close people who I thought were close, say that stuff. And I just don't have the respect. Wish them well, not in my circle. And so for mamas, what I some of the best advice I can give to you is don't accept maybe, especially postpartum. Maybe it doesn't help you get out of bed, maybe doesn't help your bleeding vagina, maybe it doesn't help you get in the shower, maybe it doesn't help you with food on the table. You need someone there to help you, especially those first few months. They were so hard. And you wonder whether babies they sleep. Like, no, it is constant. It is 24-7. I did not personally like the baby phase. It was not my favorite. I think they're cute, I think they're adorable, but I'm not like a baby person. I'm not such a kid person. I love my babies and I love close friends' babies, but I am not a baby person. And the truth is, I you need the help. And my husband, I thought about this where I said, My mom's gonna stay here for a while. He's like, that's crazy. Da-da-da-da-da. And then when she was here for three weeks and was leaving, he's like, Wait, she's leaving. Like, oh my gosh, what are we gonna do? And we were fine. But those early, early stages, like you really need the help. And even avid kid older, like you still need the help. But letting me know you need something and lip service and maybe doesn't cut it for me and it shouldn't cut cut it for you, mamas, because it's just not gonna help you. You need real, tangible, yes, I can help on this day, on this time. That is the expectation, and that should be minimally the expectation when you're getting help. Number four, what mothers actually need during pregnancy and postpartum. I could probably write like a novel on this, but I'm gonna keep it short. So we need look, we need people just listening in there for us. I think advice is nice. Opinions can be nice, but if I'm not asking for your opinion or your advice, I don't want it. And I actually spoke to a friend about this, and I didn't mean it in a disrespectful way, but she was trying to give an opinion and I said frankly, like, I don't want your opinion. She goes, Well, you might want like need to hear it. And I thought, like, no, I don't. For me, if I want your opinion, I will gladly ask. But otherwise, like, I'm not asking your opinion, I'm not asking for your advice. I appreciate you trying to help. I just need sometimes people to listen. And mamas, that's really all we want. I think when we're so lonely in motherhood and we don't really have that many people to talk to, it's super, super lonely. And we're not trying to ask for your advice. We just want someone to listen to us and maybe understand where we're coming from. So I just first and foremost believe in that. But then let's talk about like practical help and real help. Like I've told you, tangible help, help that is a yes or no, but really a yes. What we're looking for, like what I'm really looking for in postpartum, especially, is meals. And we'll get into nesting parties when you're pregnant and ready to have a baby. Errands, like constantly running errands, or right, I do Amazon. I'm guilty for it, but I think we all are. Childcare, hiring babysitter, hiring nanny, whatever that looks like, or having a parent, right, or grandparent, and just protecting your energy and your peace and your rest. I do that sometimes. There's just days I wake up and I'm like, I don't want to do anything today. Like, I don't, I don't want to do more dishes. I don't want to clean. I don't want to cook. I don't want to do any of that shit. It's hard. And sometimes it's nice to just have a cleaner come. Or maybe your mom wants to help clean or do laundry. Like whatever that is, like take advantage. Don't be afraid of that because that's the help we really do need in our life. We don't need, I don't need another piece of clothing for my baby. It's thoughtful, it's sweet. Sometimes I do need clothing. But generally speaking, I need help. I need real help. I need someone watching my child. I need someone helping me clean. I need someone helping me cook. Like that is the help that matters most. Because also I want to be seen as me, not as like some vessel or some human that created a baby. I want to still be seen as me at the end of the day. And when it comes to like the support and being seen as me, I want people to see me for who I am. And I want people to see that, look, I'm not perfect. I do my best. I try really hard to do everything I can to be the best version of myself. But there are some just days where I really just need help. I need support. And support doesn't mean like one day. Support is nice one day, but it's like continual. Like I continually have a babysitter every week. I continually have cleaners every two weeks come. Like that is help I need. I need consistent help. And mamas, you need the consistent help too. Cause we need it. We need help. And we shouldn't be afraid or shamed or guilty or ridden to ask for help. And so I just encourage you, especially to really new, vulnerable mamas listening to this, like, please don't be afraid to ask for help, whatever that looks like, in whatever capacity you can afford or get, get the help. Any help. Doesn't matter. A help is help. And if someone's willing to say yes and schedule and plan, you're absolutely winning. Number five, introducing nesting parties and mother-centered gatherings. So, what is a nesting party, right? So obviously we know baby showers. They are showers and parties, whether they're at a home or at a catering venue or back of a restaurant or whatever, where people come together, usually a lot of women, celebrate you and get dressed up, have food, play maybe a game or two, open presents, the whole nine. But what is a nesting party? Like, what is that? Are we nesting? Are we just resting? No, no. Nesting parties are typically a bunch of friends or maybe mom, aunt, cousin, sister, whoever coming to your house and helping prep your house, like ready for the baby. Organizing clothes, organizing diapers, getting everything situated, making meals, like real tangible things that will set you up for success. It's not a party. We're not like getting boozed up. Fine, maybe you can have a glass of wine or two if you're not pregnant, but it's not some rager. It's not some party. It's truly getting shit together before a baby comes. Because what we're doing in this beautiful environment of nesting is we're focusing on the mother. We're making sure that she's calm and ready to bring this baby home. And her supports are being her supports being met, right? Bottom line. And that's why just a few examples of this is look, the biggest one is freezer meals. I think there's so many different Pinterest accounts and TikToks and Instagram reels and all the things to find recipes that you can make for a mom, right? To have like making like 20 breakfast burritos or making sheet pan, like baked z D. I don't know what this looks like for you, but I did this for a friend of mine, very dear friend, shout out to Moxie Meade. And one of the things I told her, I said, Haley, we are going to have like a meal prep party. Me, her, and this other girl, shout out to Mommy Minute. We ended up, the three of us, she had so my friend Haley, she's so organized. She did Chat GPT, did a bunch of recipes. She got them all organized. She got it printed out with ingredients. And she went food shopping, got the ingredients home, organized all the ingredients, and we were able to make muffins. We made wraps, we made burritos, we made sheet pan meals, we made smoothies, everything. And she, her, I remember her husband. I saw her probably like a month, month and a half after she had the baby, sleep deprived, exhausted. And he goes, the best thing anyone ever did was to come over and make those meals for us and to have food. And I said, Yeah. I said, having meals is important. You have to eat. And that's something that's so overlooked. And look, not everybody would love that. But for many moms, like you don't want to cook the first month. You are just trying to survive. So anything that you can put in the oven, put in the microwave, just grab in your hand, definitely the way to go. And that also includes like organizing spaces if needed, postpartum planning. Like there's so many things. I would say the biggest one is definitely the meals. It's something I love to help with if a mom wants the help, because I know like you have to eat. You have to eat. Like it's crazy when you don't eat. Like you're so, like, you're already sleep deprived, so you're tired and you hate everyone. But then add not eating, you are hangry and tired. You are a miserable person. I was a miserable person if I didn't have both. And I just want women to feel so supported in these, because these gatherings are supposed to make you feel happy and excited and just preparing. Like one of the gifts I got for Haley was for mommy minute. I paid for her to have her come over and to help do whatever she needed, whether it was organizing her home, meal prepping food, whatever that looked like for her, she really needed that. And to give that gift to someone, like even if it's a gift of like the cleaners coming to your house once, it's just such a thoughtful way to think about the kind of real help you need postpartum that nobody's gifting. And it's not because they don't know. It's just they don't know. Maybe they're not sure if they give that. It's not in the registry, right? So they feel uncomfortable to give that kind of gift. I always think money is a safe bet side note. If you never know what to give somebody, money's always a game changer. Cash is king, love cash. Anyone will say yes to cash or gift cards if you don't know what to get someone. But specifically nesting parties and gathering parties centered around the mother, it is just the best thing in the world. And I'm like I said, I'm so grateful I did that for Haley and I was able to help her and be there for her because I knew going through it myself, like how nice it is to just have meals you can throw in the oven, have meals you can just quick kind of pop in the microwave or whatever. You just need to eat. And so I'm grateful that I'm able to help wonderful people like her. And if you're listening to this and you're trying to think of ways to help a new mom, prep food. Like prepping food, get it in the freezer, get a separate deep freezer or a standing freezer and just cook food and put it in there so a mom doesn't have to think about cooking for a while is one of the greatest gifts you can get her. I promise she won't regret it. Number six, how a nesting gathering should look. I talked about this briefly before, but this isn't a baby shower where it's games and it's laughter and it's loud and it's dressy. First of all, it's just usually no pressure. They're much smaller, it's more intimate. You're really like going there to be productive. It's not like a game, it's not opening gifts, it's not a performance. It's really just allowing a mother to be vulnerable if she wants, cry if she wants to. On your birthday, cry if you want to. Same with this, cry if you want to. It's really just allowing people who genuinely want to help you. And look, not everybody's into that. Like more people would rather just give a gift and call it a day because it's time, money, value. But the real people in your life who want to be there for you, they will be there for you. And they will help you take the time to cook a meal for you and have conversations and just support. Because I think the biggest thing we should be asking all of our friends, who, especially early baby, it's like, how can we support you? And not every mom wants that support. Every mom could want something very different. Some moms would just truly want to be left alone with their baby. Some moms want all the help they can get. And then there's moms that are in between. So, what does support look like for you, mamas? If you are going to do a nesting party, what are you, what would you want? Would you want people to cook meals? Do you want people to help you organize? Like, what is the intention? And I think that is the biggest thing you have to think about when it comes to help. Again, that's what I love about a nesting party. It's just more intimate. I love that women can come together and like help you make amazing meals and just have things prepped and ready to go. It's wonderful. And it's nice to just have real people in your life who want to support you, who want to be by your side and just want the best for you, no matter what. Number seven. So you like the idea of a nesting party and you like the idea of baby shower. So for mothers who want both, should you have both? Can you have both? 100%. I think you should have both. I think it's wonderful to have a baby shower. And I think it's wonderful to have a nesting party. Like, why choose? I think you should always have both. And you shouldn't feel guilty for that either. Because at the end of the day, you're gonna, especially first baby, let me tell you something. You are gonna need both deep down. You're gonna need stuff for the baby, and you're gonna need to feed yourself, right? And you're gonna want to help organize and plan and all of it. You shouldn't have to choose, right? And you shouldn't have to feel guilty about it. I think both are very wanted and desired. And so don't feel bad about that. Don't like feel like you need permission, like you have to pick one or the other. No. If you feel aligned for both, that's one thing. But don't feel like you need to ask permission if you can have one party or not the other party. Both parties are wonderful, both are great. Whether you go traditional, non traditional, it doesn't matter. You can have a crazy wild baby shower, you can have a really small, intimate baby shower, you can have a bigger nesting party or a smaller nesting party. Like there's no rules or regulations around this. You have to do what's best for you, mamas, because at the End of the day, you are the one that gets to decide and dictate a lot of this. You are the one that can have both or one or neither. Like I said, I think both are great. Personally, I think the baby shower is awesome to get the stuff that you need, especially bigger ticket items, like I said, like crib or stroller or accessories for the stroller or car seat, burp cloths, maybe bottles, some diapers, things of that nature. But the nesting party is great too, because then you'll have food and meals and things to eat ready to go. And you don't have to feel guilty about like trying to cook when you're dealing with a baby who's nonstop. Like literally, it's nonstop and it's constant. So don't feel guilty for wanting both. Both are important, both are valuable, both are amazing. And if you don't want both, that's fine. If you want either one, that's fine. But allow yourself grace to decide if you want anything and to not feel guilty if you want both, because both are just so important and so valid. So I just very much encourage you on that. Number eight, for friends and family, how to show up differently. So again, I kind of spoke about this earlier. Clothes are nice as gifts. And side note, if you are gonna get clothes, especially like the little little ones, get anything that zips. We're not dealing with buttons these days. It's just a pain in the butt. Anything with a zipper, or even better, a magnet, those are the best baby clothes. If you're gonna get anything, but there's so much more you can offer a mom, right? And those needs. Like even like a DoorDash gift card to not cook or a home cooked meal. I think that was one of the best things I loved. I had a bunch of friends bring me like casserole dishes, soups, just meals to eat, like fresh home cooked meals, like the first month. And that was a freaking godsend. And I'm starting to give back to that because I didn't know. I didn't know. And I was so grateful that I was able to do that for a couple of people. I was able to make like a big tray of big ziti, and it's like, here you go, like have some food. It just felt really good to give back in that sense. And we just need like, like, honestly, even paying for a cleaner, like, how nice is that for someone to clean your house? I hate cleaning. So that for me is like always a great gift. But I would say the biggest thing too is when we're thinking about helping someone, it's nice to help during pregnancy. I'm not saying that, but postpartum is like the most vulnerable time in a woman's life, like I mentioned earlier. And just being there for her and showing up, like I had one of my dearest friends come over and she wanted to bring a meal. And she asked me, she goes, Okay, I can make one of these five things. What do you want? And I said, like a chicken parm or whatever. So she came over and she looked at us, my husband and I, and she goes, Oh my God, you guys look exhausted. I was like, We are so tired. And she brought over food and we ate like we've never had a meal in our life. And she held the baby for a few hours just so I can like shower and like be a human. And that I will never forget, Mamas. I will never forget how grateful I was to this person. And I will never, ever forget that. She is an amazing human being, the kindest woman with the best soul. And I'm so grateful for people like that. And so I really respected how she went about her ask, right, to help me. Like she's gonna bring a meal over. What do you want to pick? And I picked one. And she said, I'm gonna come over this day and this time. And she came and she respected my boundaries, she respected me. And she just like held the baby and just like let us, Jonathan and I, like just like eat in peace and like relax. And it was just so nice. Like that is what you want, mamas. You want like good people in your life who can be there for you and show up with a meal or show up just like letting you cry and vent. Doesn't mean you like don't love your baby. It just means it's a hard, it's the hardest transition I've ever gone through. And so to have like family or friends come over, or like even let's say a sister to a sister, like a sister wants to watch your child and babysit so you and your partner can go out on a date. Like that is such a nice thing to offer because it's free. You don't have to pay for babysitting. Cause for my husband and I, typically we have to pay a babysitter if we want to go out for a meal. And that's really hard. Usually we tag team where it's like I go out or he goes out, either one. So I think for family and friends, we just really need to be there and ask what a mom needs. What do you need? What support are you looking for? Even if it's just a hug or just like giving them company, like I said earlier, it is such it's so lonely to be a mom. And I've mentioned this in other podcasts, probably. So maybe not earlier this episode, but another podcast. It's very lonely to be a mom. And honestly, we just want to like talk to someone and just have someone come to the house and hang out with us. And that's really nice. It's really nice to have company. I don't realize, I don't think I realized how lonely I was until after I had my son. And it doesn't mean I don't love my son. It doesn't mean I don't do things with him, but it's very lonely. I don't have that many mom friends, and everybody has different schedules and naps and whatever. And so even just showing up and just being there and spending time with them means more to them than you'll ever know. So I just want you to keep that in mind. And last but not least, redefining celebration and motherhood. So I celebrate very privately. I don't really post pictures of my child. I don't post when I'm pregnant. I don't post the baby on social. I don't post his face. I'm very private in that sense with my life. It doesn't mean I don't celebrate him. It doesn't mean I don't love him. But I choose to be meaningful privately. You can be loud if you want. I'm not telling you you can't be. You could be anything you freaking want in this life. But celebration doesn't have to mean that you have to post it all over social media. It doesn't mean you need to let it the entire world know. You could celebrate in your own ways too. Because let's be real, at the end of the day, when we're celebrating a baby, supporting a mom is celebrating the baby. She's the one that carried the baby. She's the one that birthed the baby. She's the one that did all the work, right? And so that's how we really celebrate a mom. And I'm not saying, again, with these gatherings, they're good, bad, or indifferent, but these gatherings are amazing, like doing a baby shower or nesting party. They're both wonderful and they're both, I think, well needed. But all of this celebrating is nice, but it's different postpartum because you can celebrate someone and then kind of taper off and disappear. It happens a lot. And it's really unfortunate. I hear this a lot from women where they thought they had all these friends and then you had a baby, and your life shifts and changes, and people don't ask you to hang out, people don't call you, people don't text you, people don't want to be around you. And not that they don't want to, but they're busy or they have other things going on, or they just think you're busy and you can't go out because you have this baby and whatever, and it's hard. And I encourage you to keep the relationships you want and shed the ones you don't to celebrate that within yourself, the boundaries that you create. And that's really hard to do, but I promise you it will just come out naturally. It usually does. But the one thing I'll say too is creating cultural shifts one family at a time. I think defining a gathering and what feels right for you changes the way we think about how we celebrate moms. Baby showers are obviously a thing. They are spread across like wildflower, thanks to social media and everybody and their mother's doing it. But I think if we did this for nesting parties too, I think it also really hits home to helping moms and supporting a mom more than ever in this journey. Because we need both, I think, but we need to celebrate both. Mothers need to be celebrated during this process more than ever. And I'm not saying that in like a crazy way, but look, a baby's always going to be like, oh my God, how's the baby? How's the baby? But like, can I tell you how many people have really asked me how I'm doing? Very, very rare, very, very little. And it's not in a bad way. It's just that's how we are conditioned in society. And I appreciate more and more people asking how I'm doing. It means a lot, but it's it's different. And we need to continue to celebrate moms. We need to push mothers to be the best versions of themselves and to be proud of them and to be excited for them. And so any mamas listening to this, I'm freaking proud of you for creating human and pushing them out of your body or getting them out of your body. Either way, you're still growing them in your body. We need to celebrate moms a hell of a lot more. Not saying babies aren't miracles and we shouldn't celebrate them, but we need to honor the mother too and hold on to them because they're holding on to everything else. They, some like myself, you need to be held on to too. And so there's nothing wrong with that. Because going back to this, babies deserve celebration. So I know I mentioned that before, but it's true. They do deserve celebration. But mothers deserve like this holding before and after birth and long after gifts are unwrapped. Because when we gather around a mom and not just babies, we create stronger families, healthier postpartum experiences, and more supported women. So a few things to think of when it comes to mind of just gentle call to actions. If you're pregnant, consider what kind of support would truly nourish you. Is it just a baby shower? Is it just a nesting party? Is it both? Is it none? Is it one or the other? What does that look like for you? What kind of support are you really looking for? And if you really love a pregnant woman in your life, ask how you can support her after birth, after. After, after, after. Not saying you can't support before with a gift. But after birth, chances are she just might want you to hold a baby so she could take a shower. She might want you to hold a baby just so she can do some dishes and make a meal. Ask what kind of support she needs. Some women want all the support and some women want none. But don't be afraid to ever ask for that, especially after the birth. And if you've already given birth, right, you're listening to this episode postpartum. It's never too late to receive any care or any help. There's postpartum doulas out there. Ask a mom friend or ask a friend. Ask for help and don't be afraid to ask for help. We need to stop feeling like we can do everything. Like ask for help and don't be afraid of it. Because celebration isn't just about welcoming life, it's about sustaining the one who brings it into the world, which is you, mamas. Thanks so much for listening. This is just the beginning. Subscribe now to Raising Hustle and get ready for raw stories, real talk, and unapologetic ambition. We're showing up messy, loud, and all in. Because success doesn't wait for quiet. Let's raise our voices, our businesses, and our babies together.