Redcar-based Bump Buddies, which was launched on Mother’s Day this year, has joined with national charity Count the Kicks to sponsor a month of its “Celebrating Beautiful Bumps” calendar.
The calendar features an image of a pregnant lady’s bump for each month. It was launched to raise awareness of – and funds for – Count the Kicks, which teaches expecting mothers the importance of monitoring their babies’ movements.
As well as sponsoring a month, Bump Buddies was also involved in judging the photo entries for the calendar competition, along with TV women Emma Forbes and Denise Roberts at the Mamas & Papas flagship store in Regent Street. The company also provided prizes for the 12 winners.
Mamas & Papas, Maclaren, Fudgy Bear Books and Water Babies and are among the other companies sponsoring the calendar next to Bump Buddies.
Bump Buddies offers flexible antenatal classes to pregnant women in the North East. It was launched by mother-of-two Louise Turnbull who formerly worked as a Doula (birth supporter). Due to midwife-shortages, however, she received calls asking for home-visits which led her to train as an antenatal teacher before setting up the company.
Her aim is to prepare expecting parents for the next stage of their lives by using various methods such as baby simulators to give them an idea of what to expect and therefore decrease their anxiety.
Louise said: “It has been incredibly rewarding to support Count the Kicks in the creation of this beautiful calendar.
“I work with anxious pregnant ladies every day. Nobody likes to think what could go wrong, but just in case it does, charities like Count the Kicks are there to lend invaluable support. This calendar will hopefully raise awareness of the wonderful work they do.”
Count the Kicks founder Sophia Mason thought up the idea of the calendar to “celebrate” beautiful bumps and encourage positivity in pregnancy.
She said: “We are incredibly grateful for the help that Bump Buddies has given us with this calendar, and also in giving out some of our wristbands, stickers and notes to help promote our work.
“We want to empower Mums-to-be to take responsibility in their pregnancies, and I thought a calendar would be something that midwives, healthcare professionals and maternity-focused companies would all be interested in.
“Pregnancy is a very special time, but things can of course go wrong. 6,500 babies are stillborn, or die shortly after birth in the UK each year, and 60% of those deaths are known to be avoidable. We believe that awareness saves lives and hope that this calendar will encourage that awareness.”
The Count the Kicks “Celebrating Beautiful Bumps” calendar is available for pre-order from www.countthekicks.org.uk for £7.50 each, plus p&p. Orders are expected to be dispatched by the second week of October.
Bump Buddies sponsors the month of March in the calendar. For more information on the company, please visit www.bumpbuddies.co.uk
