by Melissa Willets posted in Parenting

We are all accustomed to seeing lovely, whimsical images of moms breastfeeding their babies. While it's easy to see the beauty in these photos, sometimes moms like me, who didn't or couldn't breastfeed, feel left out and even get down on ourselves as we click through these pictures.
That's why when I came across a post on Mom.me featuring photos of a mom who exclusively pumped breast milk for her baby, it truly stood out to me.

The images, captured by photographer Charity Williams, celebrate mom Jaque Hines, who shared an emotional Facebook post about her difficult journey feeding her baby, and the heartbreak it caused her.
"This is for the mom who always dreamed of nursing but couldn?t," Hines writes in the now-viral post. "This is for the mom who?s feeling like 10min connected to the pump is an eternity. This is for the mom on a first name [basis] with the lactation clinic staff. This is for the mom who feels like she can?t leave the house because by the time she pumps, showers, changes the baby, feeds the baby, and takes the dogs out; its time to pump again." The powerful post continues, "This is for the mom setting midnight and 4am alarms to pump. This is for the mom who didn?t know she had a blister on her nipple, now frantically googling if she can give her baby milk that has blood in it. This is for the mom crying in the steaming hot shower because she has a clogged duct and no amount of heat ...