In the last few years, I have been surprised to hear how many new moms are gifted jewelery or other luxury gifts after delivery.

If new dads think that a bouquet of flowers will cut it. They are in for a surprise. Nowadays, many husbands are expected to buy expensive presents to thank their wives for dealing with pregnancy and “pushing” through labor.

Push presents, which are usually jewelry have gained popularity in the last few years. It just took one new mother to get such a gift, her friends embraced the trend and then passed the word on to their hubbies.

The tradition of husbands giving their wives gifts to commemorate the birth of a baby has some longstanding cultural roots. In England (search), the man is expected to buy the woman an elegant ring. In India (search), a husband bestows a set of gold jewelry upon his wife — offering more elaborate baubles for boy babies than girls. And recently, some of those customs have made their way over to the U.S.

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PHOTOCREDIT:Jean Schlumberger Lynn Bracelet Tiffanys.com $17,500

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In the article, Nancy talks about about her pregnancy and the complications she experienced before and after the twins arrived.

“It was just such a roller-coaster ride, from the very beginning,” she says. “First, right after I found out it was twins, I had an ultrasound where they couldn’t find the second heartbeat anymore.” She shudders at the memory. “For over a week, I had to go around thinking that there was just one of them, and I was heartbroken. Then at another appointment, all of a sudden, they found the heartbeat again. I just ran home and e-mailed David, ‘Our twins are back.’ It was so incredible.”

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What a fun product! If you are looking for something different and special, these socks fit the bill. I received a box of Jazzy Toes Baby Socks - Variety Original Girls (0-12 months) to try out with my six-month-old daughter.

Each of the six pairs of socks is styled to resemble a different type of shoe including sneakers, cowboy boots and Mary Janes. My favourite is the pink socks with brown sandals… too cute… and hilarious!

Jazzy Toes socks are made of cotton-nylon-spandex blend that wash up well with little to no shrinkage. The 0-12 month size is generous and will continue to fit my daughter for several months (unlike a lot of 12-month socks I have bought that seem to shrink to 3-month size after the first wash!).

The elasticized ankles and non-skid soles are other great features that make Jazzy Toes socks not only a novel gift idea, but also a quality product. Each set of socks comes in its own mail-able gift box with a variety of colours and styles to choose from.

I have loved putting these special socks on my daughter. We get lots of reactions to the socks (they fool a lot of people into thinking they are shoes!) and my daughter has developed a keen interest in playing with her own “Jazzy Toes”. This is a really fun product that is definitely going on my list of great baby gift ideas.

The 21-year-old new mom, who breastfed eight-month old Ruby Megan, says shedding her baby weight quickly was only one of the many benefits of breastfeeding.

“It was really reassuring knowing that Ruby had extra protection from chest, ear and stomach infections, as well as from diabetes and allergies. On top of that, breastfeeding is free and really convenient – especially in the middle of the night.

“Experts say that young mothers are less likely to breastfeed due to a lack of understanding combined with social pressure from people who themselves may never have breastfed.

“Feeding Ruby myself has been such a positive experience and I would definitely recommend to other mums that they try it. I don’t know why so few young mums choose to breastfeed but I think there are a lot of myths out there. It’s important they hear from real mums like me and have all the information they need to make their minds up.”

I love that she has stepped up to support a really great cause. Young moms respect her in so many ways. Hopefully they will listen to all of her great points and try breast feeding when their babies arrive.

Related Articles:

• Charlotte Church Takes Ruby For A Stroll
• Charlotte Church Out For A Walk
• Charlotte Church and Gavin Henson Introduce Ruby Megan

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Laila is five months along, and shared her pregnancy has been uneventful and free of morning sickness and cravings. “I was worried about that because I like to eat, so far that hasn’t happened,” she laughed.

PHOTOCREDIT:AP Photo/Richard Drew VIA YAHOO.COM

Fiona Shaw wasn’t so lucky. At five weeks pregnant she had morning sickness so bad, she could barely keep half a biscuit down.

By 28 weeks she had plummeted from a size 14, 170lbs to a size six, 128 lbs.

When an ultrasound revealed that the baby was suffering causing her to need an emergency c-section.

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When Elis Roberts’s parents found him, he was fast asleep in his room, which was covered in masonry, plaster and dust.

The lightning blew all the light bulbs and electrical equipment in the house and neighbouring homes as storms hit Flint, north Wales.

Ms Mulreay, who also has a one-year-old baby son Deryn, said she was nodding off when she heard a noise like “a massive explosion.”

It turned out that lightning had hit the gable end of her house and exploded breeze blocks in the wall, leaving a hole high up the wall of Elis’ bedroom.

But they found him safe and well, and blissfully unaware of the drama going on around him. “He didn’t even wake up,” said his mother.

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