Proud mother of two, Lelanie Bothma, is homemaker, working mom, wife and yorkie lover with a passion for sharing the ups and downs of motherhood and everything in between…
Lelanie started her blog called Working Bloem Mom at the start of this year after she and her husband decided that it was time to grow their family. As she had a history with premature babies, having had to cope with a miscarriage and dealing with various medical procedures to ensure her health for future pregnancies, she decided to share her journey with other mothers to be.
Lelanie was born and bred in Bloemfontein and attended school at Sand du Plessis and Jim Fouché. After school she immediately started working as a technical receptionist and today she operates as an IT manager of a large IT company.
From the start Lelanie wanted to share all things pregnancy-related, such as the products she is currently using, daily emotions, the physical changes that come along with pregnancy, and on top of it all, sharing what it is like being a working mom. She soon realised that she was struggling to conceive, so this is why her blog covers the whole journey from beginning to end. Currently her blog focuses on the couple’s journey towards trying to conceive and her recent diagnosis with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and the products she uses. She has recently joined the Fertility Collection, which distributes the Pearl Fertility Kit in South Africa and shares her experience with her readers on these products and on how incredibly encouraging it is to know what is happening inside her body during her fertility journey, on a weekly basis.
Lelanie also finds her inspiration from the women around her. Her favourite thing to blog about at the moment, is the ovulation prediction kits and how they work. It has her so excited that she can’t wait to share more about it with her readers.
The blogger lady has made many connections with other women by sharing her journey. Lelanie has found that there are many like-minded women who share the same story, whether it is about general fertility, sub fertility or infertility issues, they all have a story to tell. They are therefore able to relate to one another, to inspire and give hope for change, not only to her but to one another. The idea is to create a safe space for women who are struggling with their fertility journey to connect and talk or read about similar topics. “I would like these women to engage, to ask questions and to know that though we are all in the same boat, we are facing different storms and to know that we are going to endure this storm together and will make it to the other side.”
As a mother, Lelanie would like her kids to know that their journeys are unique and that no dream is too big to achieve. At the same time, she would like everyone not give up on their hopes and dreams. “Have hope and be encouraged to help one another in this time of need,” she says.
Suanne Engelbrecht
