A woman nursing her hungry child in public should not warrant national headlines. Even Mara Martin, a Monroe, Mich. native and finalist in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model search admits that her overnight fame for tending to her 5-month-old doesn't make much sense.
When Martin took to the Sports Illustrated runway Sunday as part of the Paraiso Fashion Fair in Miami Beach, she was barefoot and bikini-clad as one might expect and her tan, on point. Hair glistening, skin glowing, smile beaming, Martin sported all the makings for a ravishing runway beauty but perhaps the most important statement of all was that of her daughter Aria joyfully attached to her right breast whilst wearing noise-canceling headphones.
"Anyone who knows me knows it has been a lifelong dream of mine," Martin said of the runway show in an Instagram post. "I can’t believe I am waking up to headlines with me and my daughter in them for doing something I do every day."
She adds, "But to be honest, the real reason I can’t believe it is a headline is that it shouldn’t be a headline!!!" Martin goes on to list a slew of inspirational stories that would be more suited for major news than her major mama moment. But Martin remains "humbled" by the experience.
"I’m so grateful to be able to share this message and hopefully normalize breastfeeding and also show others that women CAN DO IT ALL!"
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