Portsmouth mum reveals she breastfeeds her girl, 4, despite 'weird' admission
A Portsmouth mum has revealed she still breastfeeds her four-year-old - despite admitting she would find it "weird" if she saw another mum doing the same.
Kay Smith, 43, breastfed her oldest three children for one or two years, but decided to continue breastfeeding her youngest for longer - as she is her last child and she wants to hold on to that part of motherhood.
The mum-of-four says her toddler Bleubelle is the "healthiest child" she's ever known and puts this down to the prolonged breastfeeding.
She plans to stop nursing when her daughter goes to school - adding that the tot currently has no idea that her friends at nursery aren't breastfed too.
Kay, who works as a personal trainer, said: "I breastfed all of my children but stopped after one or two years with the older ones.
"I decided to breastfeed my youngest for longer because she's my last child and I see her as such a baby. I just didn't want to let go of the feeling of having a baby.
"I do feel a bit weird because if someone else told me they still breastfed their four-year-old, I'd think that was too old, but to me, she's just so little still.
"My husband is supportive but thinks it's embarrassing if I do it in public, and my other kids see her as a baby too, so they don't think it's strange.
"Bleubelle is by far the healthiest child I've ever known, and I think that's down to the breastfeeding.
"If the Facebook mums send a message saying there's a cold going around, she never gets it. If she does get anything, it's always gone after 24 hours.
"I don't really discuss it with friends or family, because my parents are old fashioned and frown on it, I think it's a generational thing.
"I only feed her in the morning and at night, but I wouldn't bat an eyelid if she asked for it while we're in public."
Kay - who lives with her husband, a recruiter, who is supportive of her breastfeeding - says she'll stop in September 2026, when her daughter Bleubelle starts reception.
Kat, who originally shared her story with Talk To The Press, said: "I've told myself I'll stop when she's at school, because it would feel weird to continue then.
"Sometimes I do just think though 'why do I even care? Why do I need an age to stop at?'. She has no idea it's not the norm, when I breastfeed her before bed, she calls it booby and book, and she thinks all of her friends have the same ritual.
"I thought she might have realised as she got older, but she doesn't have a clue."
Kay has breastfed all of her children - now aged, 16, 14, 11 and four - choosing to breastfeed her oldest two kids for a year, and her third child for two years.
However, she decided to take a different approach for her Bleubelle and is still breastfeeding her at four years and four months.
Kay decided to continue breastfeeding her daughter for this long, because she is her last child, and she wants to hold on to the feeling of having a baby.
She says her youngest is "by far the healthiest child" she has ever known, which she puts down to the breastfeeding.
However, she added that she has noticed that Bleubelle has a bit of lisp, which she believes may be caused by breastfeeding.
Kay keeps the fact she still breastfeeds quiet, as she knows some friends and family members would frown upon it.
Kay only breastfeeds her daughter twice a day - once in the morning and once before bed - as she attends nursery in the day time.
However, she added she wouldn't "bat an eyelid", if her daughter did ask her to breastfeed in public. "I'd happily do it in public, but she never asks for it," she said.
"I think if I saw another woman doing it in public, I wouldn't think negatively of it, but it would stick in my head that the kid was a bit old."
Kay plans to stop breastfeeding when her daughter goes to school in September, as she feels it would be "weird" to continue then.
However, she added: "She does just feel like such a baby to me though, and I've given myself cut offs throughout her life, but I've never stuck to them before.
Kay added that her daughter thinks nothing of the fact that she is still breastfed and just assumes that all of her friends are too.