The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton and Prince William, welcomed their new baby girl, Her Royal Highness, Princess of Cambridge to the world on Saturday.
It was an express visit to the maternity ward for Kate, as she delivered her baby within three hours of arrival and was checked out within twelve hours.
What has most mothers buzzing is how amazing Kate Middleton looked upon exiting the hospital with her newborn baby within hours after giving birth. Kate walked out of the hospital and posed for pictures with her newborn cradled in her arms and Prince William by her side, as hundreds of fans and paparazzi snapped photos and took videos.
Middleton wore U.K. designer Jenny Packham’s $4,000 lemon-yellow buttercup silk shift dress to introduce the new Princess. She had her hair professionally styled and an expert makeup application. Additionally (this was the most shocking to me), she had her poor feet stuffed into heels, as she carefully attempted to navigate the hospital steps while holding her baby, Prince William at the ready in case she lost her footing.
Talk about cruel and unusual punishment! Any of you ladies recall the post-partum edema that strikes within 24 hours of giving birth, rendering your lower ankles and feet into tightly stuffed sausages in skin casings for the next few days? No, it was just me? Ok.
Moms took to twitter after photos of Kate appeared at her hospital departure –
“Lucy tweeted: ‘How bloody great does Kate look! I definitely didn’t look like that a few hours after giving birth.’”
“Hannah Griffiths said: ‘I’m so insanely jealous of how good Kate looks just hours after giving birth. I looked a right royal mess for weeks after!! #RoyalBabyGirl’”
“Mary Burke said: ‘Kate is gorgeous in yellow. Jealous she looks that good tho. I couldn’t even walk after my train wreck birth.’”
“Rebecca Ryan said: ‘Kate Middleton looks gorgeous-I didnt look that good 10 WEEKS after giving birth! Can’t wait for the name. #RoyalBaby’”
Some people had different reactions to Kate’s appearance, not impressed that a woman with a team of staff to get her post-baby perfect was able to pull off a cover girl exit so soon after giving birth. Other people felt sorry that Kate had to be trotted out like a show pony for public consumption at such a delicate time. Still other didn’t feel one bit sorry that Kate had to be put back together again and shoved in front of cameras so soon, since this was the life she signed up for, and it comes with a lot of perks!
Like other mothers, seeing Kate with her beautiful new baby and all gussied up for the crowd reminded me of my own post-partum soirees.
Aside from the Royal Family, and maybe the likes of other celebrities, I’m not familiar with any other group that props up a new mother, squeezes her into any gown that will fit, plops a wig (or extensions, as the case may be) on her head, and hoists her in front a crowd to show off her new baby, other than in Judaism.
Now to be fair, mothers of Jewish boys have eight days to get ready for the big baby reveal (at the bris), and if it’s a girl they can wait until a time of their own choosing within the first year to have a baby kiddush in their new daughter’s honor. However, as a mother of four boys (and only one girl), I’ve been propped, plopped, and hoisted on that many occasions, and the experience hasn’t always been pleasant. Boys also have additional parties, including the shalom zachar which takes place on the first Friday night after birth (sometimes the mothers and babies are still in the hospital when this takes place, and sometimes the party happens at another person’s home to give the new mother and baby some space – it all depends on how recent the birth was to Friday night). Also, for a first born son, a pidyon haben (redeeming of the first born son) takes place thirty days after he is born.
All of these events, particularly the bris as this is the main event that attracts a larger crowd, puts pressure on the new mother to be “Kate Middleton” camera ready shortly after going through nine months of pregnancy and culminating in the most grueling physical challenge she will likely ever experience. How easy the pregnancy and birth was will usually determine the amount of angst the new mother feels at being put on display eight days after giving birth.
None of this is to say that a new mother isn’t ecstatic about her new baby boy, it’s merely a commentary on having to appear in public so soon after you’ve been ripped apart and sewn back together (for some us, anyway), that causes distress.
There is a wide variety of reactions and focus on appearance depending upon the woman and depending upon her circumstances. For instance, there was a wide discrepancy in how I felt about appearing in public after the birth of my oldest son and after the birth of my youngest son. First of all, there was a nine year age difference for me – and I think that played a role. I certainly bounced back more quickly after my first child, than I did with my last.
For example, I had a healthy pregnancy with my first baby and was active up until delivery. As such, I was able to find something to wear to the bris from my pre-pregnancy wardrobe, which made me feel good about myself.
With my last pregnancy, I suffered from preeclampsia, and was unhealthy during and after my pregnancy. I gained over 70 pounds, and much to my surprise, those pounds didn’t magically melt away upon delivery. As such, nothing in my pre-pregnancy closet fit me eight days after delivery (or eighty days after delivery, for that matter), and I had to succumb to a post-partum mother’s worst fashion fate – wearing maternity clothes to the bris!
Additionally, from a logistical standpoint, although I had to get up very early for the bris with my first son, I had no one else to get ready except for me and the baby. With my last baby boy, I had to get myself ready plus five kids, which not only posed a challenge for my healing body, but also limited the amount of time I could spend on my own train wreck appearance. It’s a wonder Jewish moms don’t come to the bris in a bathrobe and snood!
Anyway, when I read that people don’t feel sorry that Kate and her baby were paraded to the public because this was what she signed up for when she married Prince William, I still felt sorry for her anyway. She married Prince William because she loves him. Yes, this bit of pomp and circumstance comes with the position of being Duchess of Cambridge, but it’s not like she had much choice in the matter (although it could have been much worse, as it was once customary for the Home Secretary, as a senior member of the Cabinet, to attend royal births to ensure the new arrival was a genuine descendant of the monarch and had not an imposter smuggled in).
So too, a bris is the official entry of a Jewish boy into the Jewish people. He gets his Jewish name and it is a time of great joy and pride for both parents. In both of my own described cases, I was happy and thankful to have my beautiful and healthy babies, but whether or not I felt up to attending the celebrations wasn’t a consideration. In the first case, I was healthy, excited, and looking forward to the bris (if not a bit nervous that everything should go well with the procedure). However, in the second instance, I was tired, feeling unwell, and self-conscious about my weight and appearance. None of that mattered, because in both cases, I had the obligation to be front and center. There was no choice.
Kate Middleton has no choice over whether or not her life cycle events will be public fodder. She has no choice but to hire a team of people who will put her together so that she can soldier forward for the cameras. Kate looked absolutely radiant and beautiful, but I think the best place for a new mom and her baby is at home and in pajamas for the first few weeks of the baby’s life. Hopefully, now that she is home from the hospital, she can leave off the makeup, put her hair in a bun, and just enjoy bonding with her new baby away from the public eye.
