Here we go again.

Another major parenting spat has grabbed the headlines, inspired by a book called The Conflict by French 'PR billionaire' author Elisabeth Badinter.

Apparently she claims that modern women are 'enslaved' by motherhood and need to be unshackled from oppressive forces such as attachment parenting, breastfeeding on demand, co-sleeping and cloth nappies. Oh yeah, and staying at home to bring up babies.

The book's only just out in English yet there are already multiple articles either cheering her on or rebutting her stance as narrow-framed and generally up her Ivory Tower.

What does Mother's Day mean to you? Waking up to half-burnt toast and handmade cards covered in crayon hearts? A special meal?

The anticipation of somebody calling you 'Mummy' for the very first time?

If this is your Mother's Day debut - whether you're hugging a bump or a baby - you might experience that inner glow, a feeling of being welcomed into a sacred circle.

An Ode to Mothers Day
(A poem for my dearly missed mum and for my much loved babies)

What came first birthing or mothers?

To celebrate one, we have to celebrate the other

My name is Uju and I'm a blog evangelist.

You won't find me on street corners preaching the gospel of Wordpress.  But you might hear me nudging other mums in conversation, 'You should get into blogging...'  You see, I'm a true believer.

I believe blogging can be not only a sanity-saver, but a game-changer for new mums especially. It's enhanced my life beyond measure. And I'm not the only one.  More than 3,500 bloggers are signed up to www.britmums.com, the UK's largest parent blogging community. Blogging has gone from a geeky, even shifty activity (power to the shift key!) to being embraced by the mainstream.

What is it about Gwyneth Paltrow that sticks in the throat?

Is it the Renaissance woman smugness: Oscar winner! Earth mama! Lifestyle guru! Domestic goddess!  The glacial, prom queen sheen?

Or are we ever so slightly jealous that at 40 with two kids she's gone from macrobiotic string bean to uber hottie with the likes of Madonna and Beyonce on speed dial?

Whatever it is, she sure can grate (why of course, she's got her own cookbook!).  Now she's managed to whip both the right wing press and lefty elements of the blogosphere into a veritable soufflé.

Uju encourages you to love your post pregnancy body!

Pregnancy is a bit of a Jedi mind trick. For a while there you're all lightsabre glow, fab hair and va va voom bosom.

Months later, things start falling apart. From stretch marks and overhang to deflated boobs and hair shedding in clumps, the after-shock of birth can be a blow to any lady's self esteem.

But chin up, it's not all bloom and doom.

With a little research and chatting with some other mums, I've come up with 9 reasons to appreciate our bodies after giving birth.

Uju Asika, founder of London blog Babes About Town, investigates ....

I love the scene in the film Parenthood when Dianne Wiest's character finds out she's going to be a nana.

'I'm too young to be a grandmother,' she cries, 'I was at Woodstock, for Christ's sake. I peed in a field!'

Woodstock was before my time, but as a Gen X mum of two, I totally get where she's coming from. Sometimes I glimpse myself in 'pramouflage' (duvet coat, saggy jeans, old maternity cardi) and I wonder, who is that (strikethrough) bag lady person? It seems like only yesterday that I was dancing on a table in a Manhattan club, while Q-Tip and Jay Z popped Cristal in the next booth.

Nowadays you're more likely to find me sitting in the children's library, surrounded by toddlers, throwing finger shapes in gang-like affinity with other mums (West Side? Nope, Incy Wincy).