I’ve already written a bit about myself and my work as a lactation consultant here, so this post is going to be more about my life outside of helping babies and families (though, as you’ll see, there’s a fair amount of overlap).

BABIES, BOOBS, AND FAMILY:
a tiny autobiography by Lex Beach

I was born in Cambridge, MA in 1980.

I’ve been a baby-enthusiast for my whole entire life. Some people find babies kind of boring, and I get that, but I find them endlessly fascinating.

It’s a rare childhood photo of me that doesn’t include a baby doll, and I couldn’t believe it when my parents insisted that I’d have to charge people to let me take care of their real, actual babies once I was old enough to start baby-sitting. I probably spent a good 20 hours a week baby-sitting from ages 11-18. I learned a lot about babies and families, and also accidentally saved enough money to buy myself a car when I turned 16.

My first real babies (twin sons) were born in 2003. That means that I am now the mother of 17-year-olds. They are both taller than I am, and they can drive. It’s basically absurd.

After having the twins, my first wife and I had two additional sons together (four in total). I got to have a go with tandem-nursing kids of different ages as well as nursing a baby whom I didn’t give birth to.

My wife Meg and I got together in 2010, Queer-Brady-Bunch-Style, blending together my four sons and her two daughters into one big family.

Meg and I have always felt envious of the Bradys for the fact of Alice. (We’ve never had an Alice.)

When we first got together, our six kids were ages 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 and 7. This means, among other things, that we raised a three-year-old for three years in a row. (If you’ve ever raised a three-year-old then that last bit will mean something to you.)

After managing to survive the first 7 years of raising six children—including those three years with a three-year-old—Meg and I decided to have one more baby. Our youngest kid, Edith, was born at the very end of 2017, much to the delight of everyone.

Our oldest kids were nearly 15 years old when Edith was born, and they couldn’t believe that we’d want to “start all over again” with a new baby. They were sure that we’d lost our minds for real. And then we brought Edith home, and they both admitted that having a baby was actually the most brilliant idea ever.

In addition to raising a small herd of children, we’ve dabbled in raising various wild orphaned foundlings (ducks, cottontails, and squirrels) and have also raised two litters of puppies and dozens of kittens for the Dakin Humane Society. Sometimes I have joke-fantasized about making a career out of professional puppy-feeding. Meg doesn’t think it’s a funny joke.

Other careers I’ve more seriously considered include being an elementary school teacher. I majored in Early Childhood Education at Smith, and became a licensed teacher as part of my undergrad studies. Beginning in 2012, I spent three years teaching first grade at the Smith College Campus School before deciding that I really wanted to get back to working with babies.

I’ve also spent the last decade working as a freelance photographer, taking pictures of families, birth, and babies.

I’d love to figure out a way to incorporate my work as a photographer with my work as a lactation consultant.

Every summer Meg and I bring the kids to Cape Cod for a beach camping vacation.

When we’re not on vacation, we live in our big* old farmhouse about a mile from downtown Northampton. We bought it as an extreme fixer-upper 5 years ago. WE LIKE IT SO MUCH. Working on house projects is one of my best ways to spend a weekend, and over time I’ve learned a lot about how to build things out of pipes and cheap wood.

*correction: it used to be big, when the children were smaller. Now it’s more like almost big enough, but we still love it.

I hope all of that gave you somewhat more of a sense of who I am and where I’m coming from. I look forward to working with you!