One of our favourite things to do at The Babes Project is to use tools to interact with and educate women throughout their pregnancy. And one of the best tools we have are our nappy bags. These are bags filled with all she needs for hospital. We also have a new mums basket to celebrate when bub is born. We'd love to invite you to help us equip her for birth and baby by packing a bag or basket.

"People definitely judge me – after I left school, people from school were calling me up, shouting at me as I walked down the street, bullying me. I just laugh at them – they don’t know me, and know how different my life is now." 

- Babes graduate and teen mama Lily (pictured)

Scan any mainstream media stories about young mothers, and the evidence piles up fast - there's a huge stigma attached to being a teenage mum.

While just a quarter of the mamas we work with at Babes are teenaged, it seems there's a public obsession with teen parents.

Too often, news coverage shouts criticism at these brave young people, rather than give them a voice.  

When Seven News visited our Frankston centre earlier this month, they heard the stories of two of our young mamas - including 19-year-old Raechal, who said the hardest part of her journey had been the criticism and judgement she'd faced.                      

Worse that that, last year our survey of TBP participants found nearly 50 per cent faced social isolation - a feeling that isn't helped by slurs in the media, or on the streets.   

Here at Babes, we're determined to change the conversation about the capability of young mamas - and ALL mamas - and you can help us.  

LIFT THEM UP: Mum-of-two TJ is determined her children will have the stability and safety she missed out on as a child. 

It's overwhelming, we know. 

A record 43,400 children in out-of-home care across Australia. For one in three cases, the parents were addicted to ice.  

In Victoria alone, police responded to more than 72,000 family violence incidents in 2015/16. In the same period, more than 107,000 child protection reports were filed with the state's Department of Human Services. 

Behind the stats - broken lives, traumatised children, young people with the worst possible start to their lives.

When the damage and disadvantage are so devastating, it can be hard to see a way to even attempt to drive change.

But Babes graduate TJ is an inspiring example of how support - when and where it's needed most - can transform lives every day. 

(Photography by Miranda Mayle)

 A lot can happen in 12 months – just ask any new mother!

And everyone at Babes marks the first thrilling year of our Frankston crisis pregnancy centre, 33 new and expecting mothers are especially celebrating the milestone.

That’s the number of local women who have been supported at the warm and welcoming space since it opened in Frankston, and who are still developing parenting skills and knowledge through its free perinatal care program.

Admit it - did you feel that little buzz of excitement last week?

You know, when the Australian Bureau of Statistics released its 2016 Census data!

Okay, maybe stats aren't everyone's cup of tea - but here at Babes, numbers are like gold.

The Census data confirms what we already know - and tells us even more - about the shape of the communities we serve.

It helps us decide how we can better ensure our services are best fit for Melbourne's east and south east, and maybe even what other areas could be crying out for crisis pregnancy support and perinatal care.  

For instance, did you know that Frankston has one of Australia's highest proportions of single-parent households?

Is it just us, or does this winter feel particularly cold and miserable?

(And not just the weather - although the mornings have been pretty grim!)

From downcast faces in the street, to the vicious national debate, and in news from around the world - suddenly, so much of it seems horribly depressing. 

Whether it's the terrible London fire, or terrorism, or just folks who can't get along, social problems can feel completely overwhelming. 

But at The Babes Project, we're working hard to help happy happen - and it's amazing the difference a bit of good news can make. 

This time of year, it seems that everyone joins in the incredulous chorus - how is it June already? Where is the year going? And why is it going so fast?!

Here at Babes, we know the feeling! And that's despite the fact we're always counting the weeks - counting down to a new mama delivering her little one, or counting up as little ones get rapidly bigger!

So much can be achieved in just 52 short weeks - and at this time of year especially, The Babes Project has some incredible opportunities for you to make your 2017 a year that really counts. 

As I sat down at my desk this morning in The Babes Project admin hub, a copy of Rewriting Motherhood was waiting for me. To start with, it’s a beautiful book. The gold foil heading and stunning cover photography made me instantly pick it up. I opened it up and started reading. I was hooked. I read the first three stories before I pulled myself away.

Rewriting Motherhood is an amazing reminder of why we do what we do... and why we need to keep doing what we do... and we can’t do it without you.

A year ago we started collecting women's stories, by going into their homes and hearing them talk about their pregnancy and motherhood experience. And last week those stories were released to the world. The Babes Project's Rewriting Motherhood book was launched in Queen's Hall of Parliament House on Wednesday 10th May and it was amazing!

When you read the word advocacy, what comes to mind? Images of lawyers defending civil rights cases, teachers demanding extra resources for students, aid agencies pleading for funds to support the hungry? Advocacy can be all of those things but in fact it can be so much more simple.

According to the Perseus online Latin dictionary from Tufts University, the word advocacy comes from Latin meaning “one called to aid; a supporter”¹. Many other sites list the meaning as “to be called to stand beside”.