These four mums did amazing things on maternity leave like starting a business and planning their own wedding
We hear what feats these four amazing women accomplished, from tying the knot to starting their own business
THE Duchess of Cambridge will not be having many mummy dates while on maternity leave – she has taken on more royal duties just four days into her time off.
Kate has become the first royal patron of London's Victoria and Albert Museum, despite the fact she is due to give birth to her third child this month.
But she is not the only mum to keep herself busy with more than just her newborn.
Claire Dunwell meets four women who all did something amazing during their maternity leave – from setting up a business to tying the knot.
'I planned a wedding'
FORMER housekeeper Kelly Badger, 37, and Jason, 46, a maintenance worker, only found time to organise their wedding when she was on maternity leave with son Fletcher.
The couple, who live in Worcester with their three kids, Niamh, eight, Samuel, two, and 15-month-old Fletcher, got married in November.
Kelly says: "We’d always wanted to get married on the tenth anniversary of our relationship, which was last November.
"We booked the venue in 2015, but never found time to organise the day.
"When I was pregnant with Samuel who was born in December 2015 I thought we’d have to postpone it.
";I worked six days a week as a housekeeper until two months before my due date, so I didn’t have time to think about it.
"When Samuel was four months I found out I was expecting again, which came as a shock.
"It meant my first maternity leave rolled into the second and I was more convinced than ever the wedding wouldn’t go ahead.
"When I suffered a massive bleed having Fletcher in December 2016 and almost didn’t pull through, it changed everything.
"I was determined to marry Jason no matter what. If we didn’t do it now, we never would.
"It was chaos. Jason looked after Niamh and Samuel, while I took Fletcher along to my dress fittings.
"I spent hours ordering suits and shoes and I stayed up late making decorations.
"We still made time for play dates for Samuel as we didn’t want him to miss out.
"It was hard work but when the day arrived, I had no regrets. Niamh was a bridesmaid and Samuel a pageboy. Having the children at the wedding made it extra special.
"I hope to return to work when they are older but, for now, I’m a stay-at-home mum."
'I lost 9st and shed seven dress sizes'
AFTER gaining SEVEN stone during her pregnancy with her third child, Louise Nicholls spent her maternity leave losing it all – plus two more.
Louise, 38, who lives in Birmingham with husband John, 36, an insurance manager, and their children Harvey, 11, Howard, eight, and Naomi, two, shed seven dress sizes.
The barista says: "I worked in a cafe when I became pregnant with Naomi and I couldn’t resist the bacon sandwiches, cream cakes, sausage rolls and chocolate brownies.
"Running around after young children meant I didn’t think about eating healthily.
"I gained 7st during my last pregnancy and, on my due date, I weighed 21st and was a size 26. It was my heaviest. I lived in leggings and men’s T-shirts.
"The boys couldn’t even put their arms around me for a hug. That was the wake-up call.
"I didn’t want to be the overweight mum at the school gates, because I was worried the kids would be teased.
"Naomi was four months old when I started the Cambridge Weight Plan.
"I swapped bacon sandwiches for scrambled egg, ate chicken salads for lunch and had bars or shakes in the evening.
"I lost 1st 7lb in the first month.
"If I met other mums for coffee with Naomi, I’d take a bar with me, so I didn’t feel tempted by cakes.
"By Naomi’s first birthday, I’d gone from a size 26 to a size 12 which was amazing.
"Now I’m a size 14 and weigh 13st, which is right for me as I am 5ft 10in.
"I love the gym and do weights twice a week.
"When Naomi sees photos of me before, she says it isn’t mummy.
"In March this year, I went back to work part-time but I won’t slip back into bad habits. I’ve come too far
"I’m a yummy mummy and I’m proud."
'I set up a support group'
WHEN Kelly Ruston’s son Quinn was born profoundly deaf in July 2015, she set up a support group for other mums in similar experiences.
Kelly, 37, who lives in Sutton Coldfield, West Mids, with husband, Steve, 40, a maintenance manager, daughter Evelyn, six, and two-year-old Quinn, went back to work in October 2016.
The PR and marketing manager says: "I’d done everything right during my pregnancy, but I still blamed myself when we found out Quinn was born with genetic hearing loss.
"Steve and I had passed down the gene – the odds were a million to one.
"We had endless hospital appointments and Quinn was six weeks old when he was given hearing aids. He was so small, they covered his ears.
"It was an extremely difficult time but when he was two months old, my health visitor put me in touch with a mum whose newborn had severe hearing loss, and we became friends.
"As I’d already been through the hospital tests with Quinn, I tried to help her. I was at the end of the phone if she wanted to chat.
"Nobody knows how traumatic it is to see your baby sedated before an MRI scan.
"I wanted to offer my support to others, so I reached out on social media and through word of mouth and soon there were eight of us whose children had hearing loss who met up regularly.
"I contacted a speech therapist and asked her to deliver a programme to teach us the basics on how to help bring the children on.
"It lasted six weeks, and the results have been amazing. Quinn chatters non-stop.
"He’s been fitted with cochlear implants, which means he can now hear a whisper but, before, he couldn’t hear a jumbo jet.
"He can count to 20 and talks in sentences. Watching the children in the support group develop is fantastic.
"Some of the mums still chat every day and, although I’m back working part-time, we meet up.
"I’ve been able to reassure other mums they are not alone.
"I couldn’t think of a better way to spend my maternity leave."
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'I launched a new business'
GEMMA GUISE, 34, launched Mammafit, workout classes for mums who can take their kids, while on maternity leave with son Jack, who is two.
Fitness instructor Gemma, who lives in Cranbrook, Kent with husband Dominic, 34, an insurance business owner, says: "When pregnant with Jack I was working 24/7 and naively thought I’d be able to carry on.
"I was managing my own PR firm and on evenings and weekends I was a personal trainer at a gym.
"Three weeks after he was born I took him to work in a sling.
"Our days began at 5am and often didn’t end until 7pm.
"When Jack was three months, I knew something had to give.
"I started having panic attacks, worried I wouldn’t get enough sleep for work the next day.
"I handed the business over. I went from wearing nice clothes and high heels to wearing jumpers and leggings.
"I struggled to adapt and turned to exercise to make me feel good.
"Jack came with me in the buggy on runs.
"When other mums said they wanted to exercise but weren’t able to fit it in around the kids, I came up with Mammafit.
"I trained in pre and post-natal workouts and invited local mums to exercise with me in the garden.
";The babies were happy in their prams or crawling around. If I stopped the class to feed Jack or change him, the mums understood.
"As the classes grew in popularity, I moved to a hall and a gym. Now, I run six sessions a week.
"I’m having another baby in September, and hope to grow the business."