What I'm Into: December 2015

Linking up with Leigh Kramer as we review the last month {and year - hello, 2016!}.

Reading:

I really should do a final Reading Challenge update and share the last quarter of the year, but I doubt that it will happen as an independent post. So let's just deal with that in our hearts and combine the updates. whatevs. 

"A Book You Chose For Its Cover" - I read The Silent Stars Go By by Dan Abnett, which is a Doctor Who adventure. Yes, I chose a book because Matt Smith's face was on the cover, but hey, that was basically the assignment! This was a light, fun read, and it was especially enjoyable because it takes place during Eleven's time with Amy and Rory - such a treat. 

"A Book Your Mom Loves" - silly Bek. Silly, silly Bek. Let's take a moment and appreciate the silliness of Bek. You guys, my mom reads a lot, but she has read this one particular book probably a dozen times. When I saw the challenge, I knew that book was the book I'd be reading. Why I waited until December to start reading a 1,400-page book, I will never know. Anyway, I'm currently reading "...And the Ladies of the Club" by Helen Hooven Santmyer. It is very enjoyable, but there's no way on God's green earth that I'll have it finished in 24 hours. 

Not related to this reading challenge, I also read:

• Room by Emma Donoghue - LOVED. Terrifyingly innocent and haunting... Don't watch any movie trailers until you read the book first. {I'm hoping that this will make the movie slightly less intense, but I doubt it}
• Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon - also loved. Don't audio-book this one; get the hard copy. There are illustrations {by the author's husband} and details that make the book. 
• Bandersnatch: An Invitation to Explore Your Unconventional Soul by Erika Morrison - this is such a good book. It's one of those soul-stretching, boundary-breaking books, and I highly recommend it. 
• Out of Sorts by Sarah Bessey - cannot recommend this one enough. To borrow her analogy of sorting through an attic, Sarah gently cradles each item and shares what she's learned from her own life and sorting. Gentle and beautiful, and I was thrilled to learn that Sarah spent some time in the Anglican Church!
• New and Selected Poems: Volume One by Mary Oliver - this is maybe probably the first book of poetry I've attempted to read as an adult, and I'm actually really enjoying it. There are a few lines of various poems that just stop me in my tracks, and I was not expecting that. 

Watching: 

• Jayna and I finished "Gilmore Girls" last night - ALL. THE. TEARS. and FEELS. Oh my word. Counting down to the Netflix revival already. Related: I'm going to start "Parenthood" very, very soon in order to get my Lauren Graham fix.
• This week I finished Season Four of "Longmire." This show sure knows how to end seasons on cliffhangers! 
• I started watching "New Girl" last night. I can't decide if it's cute and quirky or cute and annoying. 
• "Doctor Who" - Season Nine just ended. Capaldi is so brilliant.
• "Sherlock" Special airs in less than 48 hours - yipee!

Doula Adventures:

My website is live {check it out!}, I attended my second certifying birth at the beginning of this month, and this week I've been completing and mailing business licensing forms. Also, I submitted my last two BAI homework assignments, so as soon as I attend three more births and get my grades, I'm done! My goal for 2015 was to finish all the non-birth assignments, so yay me!

thanks, Meryl

Listening to:

• "Details" album by Frou Frou {Imogen Heap is part of this dynamic duo!}
• "Hello" by Adele... can't stop, won't stop
• "Satellite Kite" album by Beautiful Eulogy - discovered them because Josh Garrels does a song with them. I love the musical soundscape-esque mixed with the steady rhythm of not-quite-rap {more spoken word}.

Grateful for:

• Samara came up before Christmas, and she and Cami and I got some good reunion time together. I'm grateful for my two best friends!
• Ellen is home for Christmas break {I didn't get to see her over Thanksgiving}, and we are watching the "Harry Potter" movies together. I'm grateful for my sister and our mutual love of Hogwarts.
• My dear parents gave me a peanut ball for Christmas. This is something I asked for that is more for my business than it is for me, but I'm still thrilled. My family shook their collective head at me, but I still squealed with joy. Grateful for family who loves me at my weirdest.

That's it! December and 2015 are almost done, and I'm ready for a great year in 2016!

Doula Adventures: Website is Live!!!

Hey y'all! Sorry for the radio silence the past month. I've been busy cranking out the last few details of my website, and I'm thrilled to share it with you now! I'm definitely still tweaking it as I receive feedback {and please feel free to send me your thoughts!} but as of Sunday, it is live and public and REAL. Jeepers creepers.

So. Drumroll, please. Welcome to Uplifted Birth's live website!!!

Thanks, Fred and George {or is it George and Fred?}

Really, please let me know what you think: is the website clear, do you have unanswered questions, could I say something in a different way, etc. I look forward to your response!

What I'm Into: August 2015

This month has positively flown by! It is crazy to me that September - the beginning of Fall!!! - is upon us.

Reading:

People.... I read the Harry Potter series. All of it. All seven books. I can't even deal with how incredible these books are, how deprived my life has been up to this point, and how much I wish I could read them for the first time over and over again. Augh! Tear count is definitely in the hundreds. {Oh, and I was officially Sorted and I am Gryffindor!}

via

Embrace the Body by Tara Owens {currently reading}: This book has received great reviews from a few bloggers I admire, so I'm eager to get deeper into it. 

When We Were On Fire by Addie Zierman {currently reading}: whoa. Addie gently and beautifully captures the culture of the Evangelical Church in the 90's and 00's... It's like I'm seeing it clearly for the first time. Highly recommend this one, and you can also check out Addie's website.

Working On:

Doula website galore. SO close to hitting publish! It will probably be at the end of September - fingers crossed. And in the meantime, if you feel so moved, you can check out my Facebook page :)

Kitchen cabinets, cleaning and "frosting." Ugh. Taking forever, mainly because this last week of August has been so busy. My goal is to clean the wood of the cabinets with this cleaning goop and then paint the glass. Two doors are done but still on the floor, and I've got two doors by the fireplace waiting to be painted. I know all the chaos will be worth it when they're done, but by golly I wish they were done now. 

Celebrating:

My friend Rebecca is getting married at the end of September, and as one of her bridesmaids, I had the pleasure of helping organize and host her bachelorette party! It was really chill and fun and relaxing - how can it not be with a chill group on the beach? We also had the wedding shower and played "the shoe game," which was hysterical.

Listening to:

• Florence and the Machine's album How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful. Can't stop, won't stop.
• Hailee Steinfeld's new single "Love Myself"
• Elle King's "Ex's and Oh's"

Watching:

My sister and I are in the middle of Season 6 of "Gilmore Girls" - yes, we've just made an interesting discovery about Luke!! But that's as far as we've watched, so keep your spoilers to yourself, sweetie.

Speaking of sweetie, Season 9 of Doctor Who starts September 19th!! And River Song is going to be in the Christmas special! Happiness!!!

On the blog:

In August, I wrote a big long post on my thoughts on the Church. While there are no comments on the post itself, I've had conversations with quite a few people, and it's been good. I'm looking forward to continuing the discussion, and I welcome your thoughts and other pieces you've been reading and writing about this topic. 

Thanks to Leigh Kramer for hosting the What I'm Into link-up {that I missed via blog but am joining via Twitter}. See you next month!

Doula Adventures: It's Getting Real Up In Here

This summer has been C-R-A-Z-Y productive for my doula business. I have only 12 {update: 10!!} assignments left to complete {plus 5 births to doula}, and here are just a few of the other projects I'm working on:

• created a website {as soon as it's live, I'll let you know!}
• created a Facebook page {again, I'll tell you}
• drafted business cards {waiting on color matching}
• purchased 6 books for my Lending Library
• signed up for my very first doula workshop {it's in Feb. 2016}
• created a business email address

But wait, you wisely protest, don't you need a business name and logo in order to do 4 of those things? Right you are, dear reader! And so it is with great pleasure I share with you my business name and logo. Introducing...

Isn't it beautiful!?!? I'm freaking out right now. My dear friend Morgan nailed it when I haphazardly described my vision "something with hands," and the color was her inspiration as well. If anyone needs some mad graphic skills, let me hook you up. 

There you have it. It's getting real. I'm going to be a doula. I'm opening a doula business. This. Is. Happening. Huzzah!!

Doula Adventures: Book Review of "Choosing Naia"

This book is on BAI's list under the Special Circumstances section, and unfortunately, "special" does not equal "rare."

According to the CDC, approximately 6,000 babies born every year have Down's Syndrome. A study published in January, 2015, suggests that 30% of preborn babies diagnosed with Down's Syndrome will be aborted.

This tells me that the story of "Choosing Naia: A Family's Journey" is not uncommon, and for that reason alone, this was an important book to read.

via

This was a hard book to get into, but after the first two chapters, I was sucked in {although I don’t understand why the book began with an account of someone’s brother being disabled… it didn’t seem to properly introduce the story or come back at all to be relevant}. Greg and Tierney are so likable and understandable, and the most shocking part to me was reading that they let Zuckoff follow their lives and decisions while they were making those decisions.

As a staunchly pro-life advocate, it was difficult for me to read about the various choices made or hypothetically made by the people in this book. I see all life, regardless of mental or physical ability, as made in the image of God and therefore worth protecting, but obviously there are other people who have different views. I can see, however, what a hard situation this would be to face, and I appreciate Greg and Tierney’s honesty when it came to how they approached their decisions.

As a future doula, the most inspiring person to me was Alicia Craffey, the genetic counselor. She was to couples facing genetic conditions what I want to be for women going into labor: I’m here to offer information and support you whatever decision you make. I loved that Alicia was available at any and all hours, and I was surprised to learn that so much of her communication with the Fairchilds was over the phone. But that is what the Fairchilds needed and had available to them, and I love that they felt connected enough to Alicia that they called her frequently, and that she connected with them so often as well.

                                                            *****************
What do you think, friends? Share your thoughts!

June Sunshine

The first official day of summer is in less than two weeks, but after last Sunday's sunshine + heat wave, I think summer's already here :) So to keep things light and breezy, here are some "currently" updates.

Currently...

...reading: Searching for Sunday by Rachel Held Evans. If you're like me and think that the Church is lacking, to put it mildly, read this book. RHE articulates the questions and concerns that I didn't realize I have, and she does so gracefully and succinctly. I'm about halfway done with my library copy, and I think that I'll be purchasing my own copy very soon. More eloquent reviews can be found here and here.

...watching: Season 5 of "Gilmore Girls." My sis and I are usually able to watch one episode most nights, and oh my word, pack me up and move me to Stars Hollow.

via

...listening to: Florence and the Machine's new album "How Big How Blue How Beautiful." This. Album. I play it all day {or most of the day, for my co-workers' sakes} in the office, it's in my car, and then I turn it on as soon as I get home. It's beautiful and perfect and I can't get enough. "Queen of Peace" and "St Jude" are two of my favorite tracks {check out this beautiful music video, too!}.

...anticipating: a reunion dinner with Samara and Cami next week! Woohoo! It's been FAR too long since the three of us have been together.

...working on: smaller reading assignments for doula certification. Last night I plopped myself and some yarn on the couch and listened to every last "lecture" that is required; it felt so good to cross half a dozen assignments off my list! I celebrated by watching a couple {required} birth videos... why yes, I do know how to have a good time ;)

...craving: time outside in the sun, flip-flops, hair long enough to stay in a messy bun, and VitaminWater.

...supporting: this Kickstarter campaign with Ricki Lake and Abby Eppstein {creators of "The Business of Being Born"} to make "Sweetening the Pill: How We Got Hooked On Hormonal Birth Control." Read an interview with the filmmakers, watch the trailer, and consider supporting this project!

...grateful for: sunshine during my commute, dinner with my CareNet friend and her family, chai lattes, new friends, and the beginning of what's promising to be an amazing summer.

Doula Adventures: Book Review of "The Labor Progress Handbook"

May was so busy I didn't even think about sharing a book review until June - oops! A tad late, but here is my review of The Labor Progress Handbook by Penny Simkin and Ruth Ancheta.

For your reading pleasure...

This book is fabulous and so, so helpful. I love that Ms. Simkin and Ms. Ancheta talk from their experiences and from research. The information they present is well-informed and balanced.

I appreciate the diagrams and the timeline that this book follows; this is how labor actually progresses. other reviewers have commented that they take this book with them to labors, and I have to say that I'll be doing the same thing.

The last chapter is the most helpful for me. The various ways to turn the baby and to soothe or comfort the mother are so pertinent. I especially like the "when to use" and "when not to use" features, because how much more straight-forward can it be!

I also appreciated that the authors were upfront about ideas that need further research, practices that are commonly used but not fully supported by research, and when their suggestions may not be effective. I think that the honesty and candidness is very useful, and I would love to get an updated copy of this book {my copy was published in 2000}, if such a thing exists, just for the added benefit of more research.

The part that was challenging for me was the highly medical-oriented terminology. This handbook was obviously written for medical professionals, not the mother herself or other lay people. That was slightly frustrating, but it was also good to get into the mindset of working with medical professionals who use the terminology. I would have appreciated a definitions page in either the beginning or end, just to be considerate. But this is my only complaint. I definitely will be purchasing this book for my doula practice.

                                                                  ************

For those future doulas out there, this book is gold. It is a teeny handbook that will fit into your birth bag and benefit you greatly. I will let you know if I find a more recent version. Happy reading!

Not Alone Series: Summer

Hi friends! It's hard to believe that this is our last NAS link-up before the summer - thank you, Jen and Morgan, for all your hard work hosting our link-ups each week and for facilitating our FB group. You guys are awesome!!

Also, happy second anniversary, Not Alone Series!! Yay!!

Today's prompt is about summer plans, since it is June {!!} and we won't be linking our blogs this summer.

My summer plans consist of spending time with my family and friends, specifically the sister with whom I now live - woot! Maybe we'll even get through Gilmore Girls :)

Some short road trips are definitely in order. My dear friend Dahlia lives a couple hours east of me, and we both will be making at least a few drives to visit each other. Also, Portland is just a few hours south, and Powell's has been calling my name for a couple of months now.

I'll be housesitting for a couple of weeks in July, so that will be fun to make friends with some cats ;) Also, my favorite Aerobic Dance class is coming back to Tuesday nights, so that'll be great fun.

Oh! And this summer I plan on cracking down and cranking out a ton of doula work. It would be my dream and goal and heart's desire to get through all my certification requirements {except for the births} by the end of 2015. I'm finishing the last book today {10 pages left!} and will share another review shortly. I'm working on some doula business names and when I have them narrowed down, I'll be sure to share them with you all :)

That's my summer so far! I hope you all have grand plans, and NAS girls, see you on FB :)

I Swear I Remember How to Blog and Other Dreams

I was debating on how to jump back on the blogging train {link-up? book review? a post pretending I've been blogging regularly for the past three weeks??}, and then Natalie posted/hosted a Quick Just Because Not So Serious Takes link-up, and it was fate. This is a perfect way to give y'all some updates and share some odds and ends without being weird...although this is me, so it may still end up weird. But you knew that when you clicked this link, so I don't feel too bad.

Item 1: I spent the first week of this month in the beautiful Bluegrass State with some of my dearest friends. AJ and I got to spend lots of quality time together, some of which involved the following:

• crack popcorn - I've never made that much crack popcorn in one sitting, but I'm proud to say there was nothing left the next morning. 
• wedding video - you know you're bosom friends when you spend a Friday night watching her wedding on the small screen. So cool.
• steak nachos with beer cheese - this is becoming a tradition for me to celebrate AJ's birthday. Saul Good's steak nachos with beer cheese is basically heaven on earth. We took a picture that night, but as good as that waiter was, photography wasn't his forte. 
•  Ale-8 - I had one for breakfast every day, and I regret nothing. 
• a surprise pregnancy announcement - AJ had her youngest son announce to me that "mommy has a baby in her tummy" and I put forth a great effort and did not scream with joy and delight.

I also got to visit my good friends Carla and Victoria, as well as attend a baseball game with my friend Rae. Rachel and I got to hang out {and eat the world's most delicious cheesecake}, and I learned two new games with some friends from church. I got to hold new babies and hug old friends. 

Basically, my trip was wonderful and I'm already planning my return trip. 

Item 2: Whilst reading the book I thought was the last on my doula list, I realized that a medical book published in 1987 wasn't going to cut it. So I emailed my director and she emailed back that I should find a different book. It just came in from the library, and much to my delight, it's only about 100 pages long {as opposed to the 400 page beast I was struggling through}. So I should be finished with this little book very, very soon!

Item 3: Speaking of doula stuff, Victoria and I started a FB group for all things birthing related. We want to be able to share articles and pictures and discussions that include words like "placenta" and "dilation" without frightening away half of our FB friends. If you'd like to join, let me know and I'll send you the link. 

this little girl is us

Item 4: My roommate moved out this weekend and my sister moved in! Words cannot describe my joy. Our home is clean and cozy and beautiful, and I'm trying to convince my sis to go with a black-and-white art theme in the living room. We'll see how that goes. 

Item 5: I'm reading The Book Thief as a part of Dahlia's book club, and we're meeting to discuss and to watch the movie next weekend. I'm a bit of a late start on this book, so here's hoping I can finish it in time!

That's it - all the Just Because Not So Serious Takes I've got. Enjoy your Tuesday, friends!

Doula Adventures: Review of "Spiritual Midwifery"

Here we are at the end of April, sliding in a doula book review barely on time! This month I'm sharing my review of Ina Mae Gaskin's Spiritual Midwifery, which is one of my favorite books.

via

Ina Mae Gaskin has so much faith in women's bodies, and I love how this faith permeates everything she writes. The premise of Spiritual Midwifery is that women are made to have babies and that midwives {and birth workers} are there to listen to the mother, guide her through what her body is designed to do naturally, and that it is a spiritual experience for everyone involved.

As with all of Ina Mae's books, the first third of the book was my favorite. Birth stories! Ina Mae shared a wide variety of birthing situations, and her calmness through even the most tricky and difficult circumstances was encouraging.

What I appreciated the most, though, was the thoroughness of Ina Mae. She described with both the "to the parents" and the "to the midwives" sections how to proceed through each stage of pregnancy, labor, delivery, and postpartum. The diagrams of the mother's pelvis and the baby's skull were particularly useful in my understanding of the physicality of birth. Also, the various positions that the baby can be in before the birth are crucial to understand, and I believe Ina Mae's illustrations helped me vastly.

Spiritual Midwifery helped me discern the rhythm and flow of pregnancy care, labor, delivery, and postpartum activities. Reading both the parental and birth worker sections exemplified my future job description: encourager of the mother, guardian of the energy in the room, guide of the father/partner, and support for medical workers.

********************

I read this book back in November, and after re-reading my review, I will probably go back and read it again. I really do love Ina Mae!

Doula Adventures: Review of "The Complete Book of Pregnancy & Childbirth"

Barely making my goal of reviewing a doula book every month, but hey, it's still March!

This month I'm reviewing a book I read a couple of months ago - I did a lot of reading between December and February, so I'll be playing catch up for a while. This book was really, really good... well, I'll just let the review speak for itself.

The Complete Book of Pregnancy and Childbirth (Revised)* by Sheila Kitzinger

Ms. Kitzinger’s book is wonderful. Her thoroughness, gentleness, and organization all impressed me. She provided accurate and fair information, as well as practical steps and exercises expecting mothers could utilize right away. I especially appreciate Ms. Kitzinger detailing both the physical and emotional journey that pregnant mothers and their partners experience.

The section on physical and emotional changes during pregnancy was one of my favorites that I've read so far. Highlights include the segment on the baby’s growth throughout the 40 weeks of pregnancy, the focus on twins, and the pages dedicated to fathers. The nutrition section was also helpful, since that is something I can discuss with future clients.

The most helpful part for me was the discussion of support during birth. The images with various physical positions were so beneficial; I will be referencing these in the future! And the details regarding the emotional support were also critically important to me. I liked that Ms. Kitzinger included a segment on breathing, which is something other books seemed to skim over. 

Professionally, I want to own a copy of this book, and I will definitely recommend it to expectant mothers. It is a long read, but a wealth of information and so well worth the time. 

*affiliate link 

7 Quick Takes: Avoiding the Awkward

Linking up with Kelly at This Ain't The Lyceum for today's edition of 7 Quick Takes!

1. This week has felt both reallyreally long and reallyreally short. It felt long because this weekend is going to be exciting and waiting is hard. It felt short because there were a lot of items on my to-do list. Life is crazy sometimes, isn't it?

via

2. My friend Laurie was in town last weekend, and my sister Jayna joined us on a fun little adventure to Bellingham. It was so pretty there, and we had crepes for dinner and dessert, and then we shopped at a cute little shop. The weather was fantastic and we had a great time. 

3. That monkey is making me dizzy. Including him was a mistake. 

4. Lent has begun! I went to a neighborhood church's Ash Wednesday service, and it was really, really good. They had set up four stations, with oil, water, clay, and ash, and there were Scripture readings and thoughts to meditate on throughout the service. I'm really excited about this Lent season.

5. The only downside of the Ash Wednesday service was a bit of shock I experienced. There was an older gentleman greeting people and welcoming them into the sanctuary, and so I went over and introduced myself. His name was Carl, and he was so sweet! But then... out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of another man. In disbelief, I ducked behind Carl and peeked out to confirm my suspicion. 

My manager from LifeWay, my job as a senior in high school, stood just a few feet from Carl. And while I successfully avoided any awkward conversations {namely the, um, name issue}, I sat low in my chair as my former manager led the congregation in song not once, not twice, but three times. Oi.

6. You're right - it totally was not as awkward as it could have been, but lezbihonest - who really wants to go up to a person and say, "Remember me? You told me to not read books on the job 9 years ago at LifeWay! Happy Lent!" I think I made the right decision by hiding avoiding averting a disaster. 

7. Speaking of avoiding awkwardness, I think I did that successfully when I met with a couple different ladies and interviewed them about their pregnancies and deliveries. There's always the potential for awkwardness in situations like those, and I'm proud of myself for not inducing {pun intended} any cringes. 

via

Happy weekend, y'all!

Doula Adventures: Guest Reviewer of Ina May!

Hey friends, today I am thrilled to have Victoria guest reviewing Ina May Gaskin's book! As you may recall, Victoria and I go way back {like, to 2010 or 2011, which is practically forever ago}, and she has been one of my most enthusiastic cheerleaders on this doula journey. 
A few months ago, I asked her if she would like to do guest post a book review, since she has a yummy baby and could tell us what was really useful during her labor. Victoria agreed immediately, and when I asked her which book was the most helpful, I was thrilled that she answered "Ina May's Guide to Childbirth" because it's one of my favorites, too. So without any more ado, here's Victoria!

When Rebekah asked me to review Ina May's Guide to Childbirth, I said yes. It was an easy decision. I love Ina May, and I seriously love Rebekah. I'd let either one of them catch my baby. #gettingrealupinhere

After I did all the freakings out about being pregnant, I started to get a tinsy bit into a thing called childbirth.

And by a "tinsy bit" I mean makes-my-husband-uncomfortable and I-would-totally-eat-my-placenta into.

I can't remember exactly when I feel in deep like with Ina May. Probably from watching The Business of Being Born. So, yes, I am a bandwagon fan. Sorry not sorry. Let's just think of it as an introduction, ok?

What I enjoyed about Ina May's Guide to Childbirth is the non-medical nature of her writing. She writes from immense hands-on experience, but her writing is accessible to the everyday woman. Reading her book I felt as if she were my midwife, sitting across from me, explaining what I could expect during my labor and delivery. Her words were very soothing in that way.

Another fun feature of this book are the birth stories that comprise the first half. While pregnant, it was helpful to get a sense of the "variations of normal" that can occur during labor and delivery. However, if you're more interested in the guiding bit, it's totally okay to skip to that section. You won't miss a thing!

As I mentioned, Ina May's writing is very relatable. While medical resources describe birth in very flat terms - something like, "Your cervix will dilate to 10 cms and the baby will descend in the birth canal." - Ina May puts matters far more poetically, calling contractions "rushes," for example.

Think of this book as a primer on what to expect in childbirth. She discusses routine medical procedures around birth, and which ones a mother could safely reject. Ina May also shares in depth what to expect postpartum. {Postpartum bleeding? Yeah, had no idea about that until I was seven months in!} I found it to be a very thorough resource.

This pregnancy-face-glowing review of Ina May's Guide does come with a few warnings, though. To be fair, I am not completely sold out on the whole Ina May experience. I feel she has been known to take "no interventions" to extreme places that are not necessary, especially with today's medical technology. And I get the sense from reading her that she pushes {no pun intended} natural childbirth to the exclusion of other options. I delivered my daughter naturally, but I certainly don't think au naturale is for everyone. Rather, I advocate women being fully informed and fully empowered to make decisions about their births. Decisions that should never be fear-based, but decisions all the same. Want to schedule that C-section for June 10th? Go right ahead. Willing to wait for baby until 42 weeks? Be my guest. Expectant mothers should have access to care providers that would help weigh the pros and cons of each decision, but I fully believe a woman should be in charge of her health care.

Ina May's Guide to Childbirth gets 5 stars in my book. Her wisdom really was that helpful to me during my labor and delivery. Though do read the book knowing Ina May comes from a clear bias. If you 1) are completely freaked out by natural birth or 2) avoid barefoot hippies like kale grass, you probably won't enjoy the read. However, if you're interested in natural childbirth, or even wonder about the mechanics surrounding birth, I think you ought to give this book a try. If you do, I'd love to hear!

Thanks for asking me to review this book, Rebekah! Love following your doula adventures!

Thank you for this awesome review, Victoria! You know I'll catch your baby anytime!

Oh Hey...

...it's February! And apparently I fell off the blogging bandwagon...

via

But fear not! Even though I was not pouring my heart and soul out into the blog-o-sphere, I did actually work on quite a few little projects, like submitting 5 doula homework assignments, interviewing a new mom, and picking out a rebozo {paid for by Victoria's generous donations of book proceeds!}!

via

Yes, Doula Adventures have kicked into high gear. People have asked me "how long does it take?" and my answer is "it takes however long it takes you" and I felt embarrassed that I wasn't further on the journey. I'm the only one to blame for that, and I'm sick of slow-poking along. 

So I'm taking it up a notch {or six} and cranking stuff out left and right. Hopefully I'll have some pieces to share with you, including a special guest review before the month is out. Cheers!

Doula Adventures: Review of "Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering"

One of my 2015 goals is to share a doula book review each month, and here is January's - huzzah!

via

A few days into January, I finished reading Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering: A Doctor's Guide to Natural Childbirth and Gentle Early Parenting Choices by Dr. Sarah Buckley. 

via

When this book arrived at the library for me, I was excited. Surely this book will offer great perspectives on both the medical and natural views of childbirth, I thought to myself, and how exciting to read a bit about parenting as well. I expected to find balance and straightforward information from both sides of the discussion. 

via

This book was not what I expected. I thought that a medical doctor who chose home births would offer a balanced, well-rounded perspective of the various choices women face in childbirth; I was disappointed. For making a living in the medical field, Dr. Buckley was shockingly anti-medicine. This was not the evenhanded discussion I was expecting and hoping for.

I believe Dr. Buckley to be at the far end of the “natural birth” spectrum. The emphasis she placed on several procedures seemed a bit “holier than thou” and not at all accepting of any other choices. In fact, several times I thought her general tone was preachy and condemning, which is not what mothers and mothers-to-be need.

The part of the book that I did enjoy was the chapter on the body’s chemicals during birth and how they cycle into birthing the baby. I can appreciate how medicine interferes with the hormonal cycle, but I also believe that there are going to be instances when medical intervention is necessary. Again, this “all-natural or nothing” stance was quite shocking coming from a doctor of medicine. I was disappointed in this book.

******

I wrote the above three paragraphs to submit to BAI. I didn't want to offend the people who selected this book, but I want to be honest about my reaction, and my reaction was quite strong.

There were several times I put the book down and asked myself, "what the hell did I just read?" and "did she really just say that?" Again, I was very disappointed with something that had the potential to be great. I'm not even going to use affiliate links in this post, because I do not recommend this book.

Never fear - I've got three other book reviews up my sleeve, plus a guest reviewer coming soon. Stay tuned!

What's Shakin', Bacon?

via

Ok, this post isn't really about bacon. It's more like a "what's up" post, but hey, the bacon is dancing. No turning back now.  

Last Friday, the young adults' group I'm a part of threw a Thanksmas Party. We combined Thanksgiving and Christmas into one big yummy food, ugly sweaters, fun games, twinkle lights, and uproarious laughter-filled gathering! It was so much fun...and I didn't take one single picture. I think the only thing that was recorded was the Ugly Sweater Runway Show, and I don't even know who has that blackmail material recording. 

After the party ended {at 11:30!!}, I unwound by reading about pregnancy. Yes, this is true. I'm in the midst of two different books right now, which makes both books feel longer. In order to quiet my Type-A-ness that yells "in progress!" at me, I have finished two book reviews for BAI's assignment. Hopefully I'll remember to post those before Christmas... I know you'll be on the edge of your seat till then.

Speaking of the edge, we are almost to the end of 2014! I'm starting a post to review 2014's goals, and I'm excited to remember all that this year brought. 

Thanks for shakin' the bacon with me. Happy Week Before Christmas!

P.S. If you need something to brighten your day, or just want a good excuse to look at Lee Pace, check out this beautiful and hilarious post. You won't regret it, I promise. 

I'm Just Gonna Shake Shake Shake

{I know that I said I wanted to write more posts without prompts, but I'm not counting these as prompts; they're more like conversation initiators. I know, the hair is split super finely. Whatevs. Shaking it off.}

via

Currently...

...wondering how early is too early to begin New Year's Eve party planning.

...stressing about doula training and how on earth I'm going to finish it all. Gulp.

...just finished reading UnDivided (Unwind Dystology)* by Neal Shusterman
Re'and* by Victoria Easter Wilson {review here!}

... currently reading Motherwit: An Alabama Midwife's Story* by Onnie Lee Logan
Spiritual Midwifery* by the one and only Ina May Gaskin
A Covert Affair: When Julia and Paul Child joined the OSS...* by Jennet Conant.

... going to read Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption* by Laura Hillenbrand - really excited about this one!

...listening to Imogen Heap and Kye Kye, as per usual, and.... Christmas music! Haters, please see above gif.

...craving more fudge that my flatmate made. She put a few sprinkles in and on it, and I think that was a very wise decision.

...enjoying a good hair day. Yay, straightener that works!

...getting excited for Cami and my trip to visit Samara! We are meeting at 5:30 tonight, having Chinese food for dinner {because why the hell not!?}, and then venturing down to yonder Oregon for a weekend of laughs, hugs, Doctor Who, costumes, chocolate, Portland, and whatever other adventures we find. CANNOT WAIT!!!

...grateful for a fantastic table lamp I found at Value Village. You. Guys. This thing is amazing. You know when you look at Target and you're like, mm, okay. Then you look at Pinterest and are all like, mm, if only me + drill + glass didn't = death.
And then you go to Value Village and the heavens open and a unicorn whinnies and fairy dust speeds your sprint into the embrace of the COOLEST LAMP EVER, and it doesn't even need a makeover. True story. Pictures coming soon.

...laughing at this clip from the Graham Norton Show of Miranda Hart teaching Benedict Cumberbatch how to walk like a diva. All day, every day, please and thank you.

Hope you all have a fantastic Halloween weekend!

via

*affiliate links that will, ideally, contribute to my doula education. Thanks for your click!

Doula Adventures: It's Official!

I babysat for 10.5 hours last weekend. No, I'm not cra-... ok, I'm slightly crazy. But you know what made those 10.5 hours totally worth it? Those hours earned me the last chunk of registration money for Birth Arts International, and today I clicked "make payment and begin the next step in your doula adventures...and your life." Ok, the button didn't really say that; I'm projecting a bit. But that's the jist of what it said, or what I felt, because now it is official: I've started the process of doula certification!!!

via

via

via

Step One: read the manual. 

Step Two: create a plan and schedule for the various assignments. 

Step Three: blog about it :D I know you're dying to follow along, so please note you made it into the top three items on this {massive} to-do list. That's right, feel the love. 

I can't thank you all enough for your kind comments, encouragement, questions, and enthusiasm. I've doubted myself many times {and I'm sure I will doubt myself again}, and you all keep holding me up and helping me push on past the worries and insecurities. You all are the best!

This post is short because I have a lot of reading to do, but hey, it's official reading now :)