I’m just going to say what every new mum is thinking right now: oh. my. gosh., babies feed a lot!

From their second or third day of life on earth, your baby is demanding feeds as often as eight to 12 times a day, which can take anywhere from 10 to 45 minutes per session. 

And don’t get us started on cluster feeding. Typically occurring in the evenings and from as early as four to six weeks of age, baby goes on a feeding rampage in which they demand sustenance over prolonged periods of time with short breaks in between - and this could go on for hours! 

Good news is cluster feeds start reducing from around 12 weeks on and is often attributed to growth spurts or major developmental milestones.

Feeding is such a major part of new mumhood that one Insta-mum decided to calculate the hours she spent feed her bub in the first year.

Jenny Tamas, known as @gypsynspice on Instagram, says: “So, I did the math— I’ve been breastfeeding Lilly for 1 year which means (conservatively) I have fed her from my body 5,475 times, which means (conservatively) I have spent 1,825 hours holding her to my breast.”

We probably don’t have the energy to check her math, so we’ll take her word for it - the hours you spend on feeding alone equates to a month and a half (or potentially more) if you were to put all your sessions back to back.

You’re in it for the long haul, mama! But that’s okay because we love our bubs and fed is best, right? But what are you going to do with all those hours?

Why not make it about you just as much as you make it about bub. Take those long hours and do the most entertaining and easiest thing you can think of - catch up on your binge-worthy streaming shows, of course!

Our way of giving back to mums currently reading this (probably passing the time while feeding) is to give you a list of must-watch shows you can stream while your little one is preoccupied. After all, don’t they say that time flies when you’re having fun? 

I have taken the liberty of bingeing (#sacrifice) all these shows and movies myself to bring you our top-six picks:

1 Working Moms

Streaming now on Netflix

This show has got to have the headlining spot in my list. It’s a frank and unapologetically honest portrayal of the ups and downs of motherhood, following four new mums who are about to return to work after maternity leave. From dealing with work/life balance, unexpected buns in the oven to post-natal depression, and the struggles of women losing their confidence and identity after birth, Working Moms literally has something for everyone - whether you’re a working or stay-at-home mum, a step mum or a fur mum - plus, be prepared to wet yourself a little at the hilarious and often blunt humour that comes with the situations Kate, Anne, Jenny and Frankie find themselves in. Each ep is around 20 minutes, so about your average feeding time. Best of all, season three is just about to drop on August 29! Get watching, girl.

2 Good Girls

Streaming now on Netflix

If your bub feeds for the full 40 minutes, then this show is for you. Good Girls is the hilarious and drama-filled tale of three friends - sisters Beth and Annie, and friend Ruby - who all find themselves in desperate situations one way or another. To rise above their hardships, Beth gets caught up in the only crime that’s hiding in plain sight in her white-collar suburb - money laundering. Dragging the other girls into her schemes, the trio take the town’s underbelly by storm, bringing their own flavour and ethics to the job, and showing that a little girl power can go a long way. Get ready for the hi-jinx! You won’t want it to stop.

3 Younger

Streaming now on Stan

This is another shorty but an oh-so-goody. Do you ever worry about what having a family means for your career? So did the heroine of Younger, Liza Miller, who after her daughter goes to college and her divorce is finalised, she finds herself re-entering the workforce at 40 with an obsolete skill set and nowhere to turn. Desperate for cash and blessed with naturally good (and young!) looks, Liza poses as a 26-year-old to score herself a job in publishing. Cue drama, young love and a whole lot of fun, awkward moments. Totally binge-worthy and there are six seasons to keep you feeding.

4 Otherhood

Streaming now on Netflix

If you find yourself mid-cluster and you need something longer to keep you going, this is a touching movie of three mums and their journey from being known as ‘mum’ to whatever comes after grown-up children. It’s a coming of ‘older age’, as the three friends take a journey into the city to check-up on their kids’ lives, but end up finding themselves in the process. Yes, it has its funny moments to boot, but it also has moments that’ll make you want to call your own mum just to say hi. This is a more meaningful one for you to sink your teeth into.

5 A Bad Moms Christmas

Streaming now on Netflix

Okay, so it’s not Christmas yet, but this movie is the sequel to the hilarious original, Bad Moms. It’s got all your favourite cast members, and they are all back to tear up the place in their hilarious and ridiculous ways. But this time, their mums are coming to town - for the holidays! How do the Bad Moms deal with their bad moms? This movie is 100 per cent a guilty pleasure, as there is very little substance other than hilarious slap-stick stunts - except for right at the end when it gets a little more meaningful - but it still puts a smile on your face and kept me entertained. You know those times when you just want some trash TV? Well this is for one of those times. Keep it in the bank for when you want to let your mum hair down.

6 Suits

 Streaming now on Netflix

This is basically an institution! Suits was one of the reasons most Australian’s got Netflix in the first place - and I recently found out why. It’s Ah-Maz-Ing. Add in a little procedural drama, a little Boston Legal hilarity and some pretty intense clandestine love stories, and you got Suits. Set in a New York law firm, Harvey Spectre, one of the partners at Pearson Hardman, hires a whiz-kid associate Mike Ross to be his legal wingman. Little does the firm know that Mike’s only qualifications are his quick mind and his photographic memory. Yet, the two take on the legal world like early noughties counterparts Alan Shore and Denny Crane - basically, they’re a force to be reckoned with. Plus, add in a little Meghan Markle - who doesn’t want to see her in her pre-Prince Harry and the royal family days? ‘Cause you ain’t going to see her anymore since she quit acting to be a princess! This is a perfect show if you want to take a break from being a mum for a bit, while your baby does their thing. These eps are also 40 minutes, so take a load off and don’t rush your bub.

With these shows, I hope you get to sit back, relax and get some you-time in while still bonding with your feeding bub. 

What are some of your favourite shows you’ve found during feeding sessions? Tell us on here or our socials so other mums can join in!

On the go with bub but still want something nice to listen to? Check out our Spotify playlist of popular rock songs made into lullabies - perfect for bub to have some downtime while you get on with business.

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