About Annie Linder - Mom’s First STeps
A Place for Pregnancy, Postpartum, and New Moms. Hello, I'm Annie Linder, and I'm so glad you're here.
This site covers the topics that matter most in the early chapters of motherhood:
Breastfeeding and Pumping — From getting started with nursing to optimizing your pump settings, building a freezer stash, and pumping at work as a full-time employee. I've used Spectra pumps for over eight years across all five of my kids and share everything I know.
Baby Gear Reviews — Honest, experience-based reviews of the products that actually make life easier — breast pumps, coolers, bottle warmers, and more. I test these products in real life, not in a controlled environment.
Baby Sleep — Sleep schedules by age, sleep training guidance, and practical advice from a mom who has navigated newborn sleep five separate times.
Baby Showers and Gender Reveals — Inspiration, planning guides, and ideas for celebrating the new arrival.
Pregnancy and Postpartum — Real-world support for the physical and emotional journey of growing your family and recovering afterward.
Everything here is written from personal experience, backed by research, and filtered through the lens of a working mom who does not have time for advice that does not actually work.
So why listen to me?
I'm not a doctor or a lactation consultant. What I am is a mom who has done this five times, researched everything obsessively, and spent years helping other moms through their questions in real time.
Here is what I bring to this work:
— Five kids, ages one through nine years old. Every stage of early childhood is currently represented in my house.
— 88+ months of breastfeeding and pumping experience (and counting!) across all five pregnancies, including exclusively pumping, combination feeding, and nursing while working full time.
— Thousands of hours of hands-on product testing — if it's on this site, I've used it in the real world, not just unboxed it for a photo.
— A community of hundreds of thousands of moms across this blog, YouTube, TikTok, and Pinterest who trust this content to help them make confident decisions.
Mom's First Steps has been featured in Rent.com as a trusted resource for new and expectant mothers navigating early parenthood.
Some posts on this site contain affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you purchase through a link I provide — at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I have personally used and genuinely believe in. My opinions are always my own.
Any health or medical information shared on this site is based on my personal experience and research. It is not a substitute for advice from your doctor, midwife, or lactation consultant. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider for medical questions.
Connect
Let's Stay Connected
The best way to stay connected is to join my email list — I send weekly content covering the topics that matter most right now in your motherhood journey.
You can also find me at:
YouTube: @moms_first_steps — full-length tutorials, product reviews, and real talk about motherhood
TikTok: @mrs_annie_marie — quick tips and honest moments from daily life as a mom of five
Pinterest: @anniemlinder — curated boards for every stage of pregnancy, postpartum, and new motherhood
Have a question, a topic you'd love me to cover, or a collaboration inquiry? Reach out at annie@momsfirststeps.com — I read every email.
Introduction
I'm a mom of five, a full-time working mother, and the founder of Mom's First Steps — a resource built to help new and expectant moms navigate pregnancy, postpartum recovery, breastfeeding, pumping, baby sleep, and the beautiful chaos of early motherhood.
Whether you just found out you're pregnant, you're in the thick of newborn life, or you're trying to figure out how to keep breastfeeding after going back to work — you're in the right place.
My Story
I became a mom for the first time with very little idea of what I was actually in for. Like most first-time moms, I had read all the books and thought I was prepared. I was not prepared.
What I found — and what I hear from moms every single day — is that there is a huge gap between what the books tell you and what actually happens when you bring a baby home. The exhaustion. The uncertainty. The moment you realize you have no idea how to get your baby to sleep. The first time you try to nurse and nothing goes the way you expected.
I've now been through that experience five times. I've breastfed and pumped through five pregnancies, logging over 74 months of nursing across my kids. I've returned to full-time work after every baby, navigating the logistics of pumping at the office, managing schedules, and trying to be fully present for my family while also building something of my own.
All of that experience — the hard parts, the things that actually worked, the products I tested and the ones I returned — is what I bring to every single piece of content on this site.