Photographer and mum of three Jade Read found after each child, she became more and more isolated. The old-style parenting groups had morphed and changed into online groups and no one really met in person anymore, which is why she created the Gold Coast Bump To Bub High Tea.
“Gone were the face to face events where you could share your challenges and little one’s big steps and get someone to hold your baby for a little while,” Read said. “If I needed help with anything, I asked online in a group, but no one really knew me or my family. As much as I love social media, it just doesn’t cut it when it comes to making real, personal connections.”
Read feels we now live in an age of virtual hugs and kisses and that even the friends she made after having her first child eight years, did not always stick. The days of mothers chatting at the school gates when dropping off their children, were long gone and with that a certain type of community was lost. “When you are struggling, online relationships will not get you through those really tough times when you are desperate,” she said. “Who is going to bring your soup when you are sick or come care for your kids if you had an appointment?”
And so Bump To Bub was born. Jade wanted to provide a place for local mothers and mothers-to-be to talk pregnancy related services and local businesses and spend real face-to-face time with other like-minded women. “Given so many mums now work for themselves, around raising their family, the Bump To Bub High Tea is a chance for them not only to connect with others in the community but to see they do not have to do it all by themselves,” said Read. “That there are businesses and support groups out there to help them along their journey.”
The Bump to Bub High Tea will showcase local Gold Coast businesses, services and products in an exclusive marketplace at Southport Sharks on 4 May from 9am, but it will also have a breastfeeding zone, a soft play area, pram parking and guest speaker Dr Jennifer Hacker-Pearson talking about the things she wished people had told her before having children. “This is a chance to get offline and make some real connections,” Read said. “It is also a chance to support a great charity – Support The Girls. Founder Jane Homes will be sharing what the charity does and why it is important.”
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