We had babies 14 months apart. Here’s how I prepared.
My babies are 14 months apart. When I was pregnant with our second daughter, Camille, I struggled a lot with how such a monumental change would affect her older sister Aurelia. After all, Aurelia was herself still a baby. I had faith that my husband and I would eventually figure out how to raise two…
My birth story with Camille
I always heard that childbirth rarely goes as planned, which was certainly the case with our first baby, Aurelia, and it turns out our second child’s birth was equally unpredictable. I’d wanted to give birth to Aurelia at home but after 24 hours of labor I was dehydrated, exhausted and not progressing, so I decided…
Reframing your parenting challenges
This week, my husband has been away on a work trip. This marks the first time he and I have been apart since February 2020, and the only time I’ve been home with our daughter for an extended period of time without him. I’m spoiled in a big way. I won’t lie; leading up to…
A bonus tip for introducing your baby to your dog
Several months ago, I shared 3 tips for introducing a new baby to your dog. They worked so well for us when our daughter was born, and I’m so thankful that we spoke to a professional dog trainer in advance. Last week, we went on a road trip to the beach, which was the first…
What’s the origin of your fear?
Yesterday, I had my 15-week prenatal appointment with my midwife. During every appointment, she goes through a checklist of questions related to my physical and emotional wellbeing. This time, when she asked about how I’m doing emotionally, I paused. I told her about the anxiety I’ve felt related to violence in our area, particularly gun…
A friendly PSA on clean beauty and pregnancy
I’ve used clean beauty and personal care products for years. Once my partner and I decided to try to get pregnant with our first child, I committed to using clean products, including cleaning and other household products, exclusively. During my current pregnancy, I’ve gone a step further by educating myself and becoming more selective about…
Pregnancy recipe: leafy green soup
Leafy greens vegetables like kale, spinach and collards are packed with vitamins and minerals (vitamins A, C, K and E along with iron, fiber, calcium and folate) that pregnant moms and babies need. This soup is one of my favorite ways to consume a ton of vegetables in one meal. It’s easy to make and…
A healing visualization: expand your heart & reduce anxiety
In January, a six-month old baby was shot and killed by stray bullets at 3 p.m. on a Monday in Atlanta, about 30 minutes from where we live. Gunfire erupted when two adults got into an altercation outside of a grocery store. The baby was riding in the car with his mom, and their car…
How to get out of your head and into your body
For the most part, we live in a society that rewards thinking, logic and analysis…living exclusively in our heads. The upside is productivity and progress, but at the risk of over analysis, anxiety, burnout, exhaustion, and worst of all, living a life full of things we were “supposed” to do, but that leaves us entirely…
Parenting choices and repeating patterns
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how we show up as parents based on what was modeled for us as children. As I look around at the people closest to me, I see example after example of either parents trying to replicate their own childhood or parents desperately trying to create the exact opposite…
Advice & resources for an evidence-based birth
When I was pregnant with our daughter, I started researching standard of care practices in prenatal care as well as labor and delivery. My research started with curiosity about ultrasounds, and from there, I really started questioning everything. Into my second pregnancy, I’m still doing research and finding new information all the time. My biggest…
Gift for mom to honor a rainbow baby
I’m not a huge fan of the term “push present,” a gift given by a loved one marking the occasion of “pushing” a baby into the world. But I love the sentiment of honoring the birth of a baby and mom’s transition into motherhood. My husband and I agreed that I would look for something…
Beautiful blessing for a baby girl
My cousin read this poem to close my mother blessing when I was pregnant with our daughter, and there wasn’t a dry eye by the time she finished. You could incorporate it into your baby shower, birth announcement, needlepoint or calligraphy artwork for your nursery, religious ceremony…the opportunities are endless. I adore it so much…
My Atlanta-based pregnancy team
Pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period are incredibly vulnerable, raw and transformative times for birthers. Now is not the time to settle with substandard care. You should feel supported, safe and free to be honest about your questions and concerns. If you aren’t happy with your provider, find a new one. And if you have…
9 baby registry MVPs
When I first pulled together the baby registry for our first child, I spent hours researching the best products and reading blogs like this one. Once our baby arrived and we had a chance to put everything to use, I realized there were gaps in the list and things that would work better for our…
My birth story with Aurelia
For Aurelia’s birth, we planned to deliver at home. I had absolutely nothing against hospital births; I simply thought that I would be more relaxed and comfortable at home. Some people find comfort around doctors and clinical settings because they feel safe there. I’m an empath and very sensitive to sounds, lights, loud voices, cold…
Morning sickness tip that worked for me this week
I recently wrote about the wonders of acupuncture for preventing morning sickness. Seriously, it’s changed my life and made the first two months of my current pregnancy so comfortable and pleasant. Compared to my last pregnancy and the horrible all-day sickness I had for the first trimester, that’s nothing short of a miracle. At an…
For partners: how to prepare for labor
For most people, labor is hard work. It also can be incredibly powerful and transformative, particularly if both the birther and her partner feel present, prepared and supported. If you’ve read any of my other posts, you know that I’m a big advocate for empowered births, and a partner’s role in enabling an empowered birth…
Pregnancy timeline for health and wellness
When I was pregnant with our first child, I created a “pregnancy by the month” note in my phone where I kept a running list of classes, books, wellness activities and other milestones so that I could consolidate all of the things I’d read from 100 different sources in one place. Looking back, it was…
Pregnancy on a budget
Everyone talks about how expensive babies are, but my partner and I found that actually we were spending more money starting with pregnancy. I’m seven weeks into my second pregnancy and have been giving a lot of thought to where we spend our money and where we can find cheaper alternatives this go round. Two…
Festive non-alcoholic drinks for NYE
If you’re pregnant, trying to get pregnant, breastfeeding or not drinking alcohol for some other reason this New Year’s, you can still enjoy a festive beverage to celebrate. Below are a few of my favorites. Ginger Turmeric Sour I love this GOOP recipe because it includes two flavors I always crave during pregnancy: citrus and…
My pregnancy nighttime routine
Nighttime sleep doesn’t always come easily, especially towards the end of pregnancy. I’d never struggled with insomnia until the end of my third trimester. So, through trial and error, I created a nighttime routine to help signal to my body that it was time to rest and to make myself as physically comfortable as possible.…
How I blended a mother blessing with a baby shower
Mother blessings, or blessing ways, are a Navaho tradition that acknowledges the transition of a woman into a mother. It’s a sacred ceremony that celebrates and blesses this rite of passage. The purpose is to support a woman emotionally and mentally for birth and beyond. I first heard about mother blessings in my postpartum doula…
The secret about morning sickness I wish someone had told me
The morning sickness I experienced with my first baby was debilitating. I woke up feeling sick and progressively felt worse throughout the day. I I couldn’t eat, keep down my prenatal vitamins or stand the smell of anything, including unlit candles. You get the picture. That was a year ago. Since then, I started seeing…
Gifts to honor a pregnancy loss
In my experience, there’s so much silence around pregnancy loss and miscarriages that most people don’t know how to support women who go through them. After my miscarriage, responses ranged from blaming me for not taking care of myself to “at least you could get pregnant so quickly!” Other people immediately changed the subject without…
Gift guide for expecting moms
It’s that time of year! Below are the best products I used during (and after) pregnancy, plus a bonus gift idea that I regret not getting while I was expecting. Happy Holidays! This pregnancy pillow helped support my growing belly and aching back and hips during my last two trimesters. And after the baby is…
The #1 tool that helped me sleep during the third trimester
It’s no secret that sleep towards the end of pregnancy can be challenging. Frequent bathroom breaks, a kickboxing baby, backaches, racing thoughts and any number of other distractions can all work against your ability to rest. For me, a pregnancy pillow helped up until a certain point. During my last month, I got out of…
The 4 best pieces of advice from my midwife
I’m a big believer in the midwifery model of care for pregnancy and childbirth and have so much to say about how empowered and genuinely cared for I felt during my own experience. During each of my monthly appointments with my midwife, I met with her face to face for an hour. She got to…
3 tips for introducing a new baby to your dog
My husband and I have a four-year old Husky named Kona who, to our knowledge, had never been around babies or small children when we adopted him. We weren’t exactly worried that he would be aggressive towards our new baby, but we also wanted to set ourselves up for success. So towards the end of…
Summer clothes that got me through the third trimester
When I got pregnant, I was determined to not buy an excessive amount of maternity wear. For starters, I was pregnant during COVID-19, so I rarely left the house. I also felt wasteful buying clothes that I would potentially only wear for a couple of months. I decided to look for clothes that weren’t designed…
9 healthy habits for pregnancy and childbirth
One of the most important decisions during pregnancy is where you plan to deliver. When I found out I was pregnant, I didn’t give much thought to it. I automatically assumed that I would give birth at the hospital where my OBGYN practiced. During the first couple of weeks of my second trimester, my husband…
5 things that helped me recover from my miscarriage
I experienced a miscarriage in July 2020. My husband and I got married earlier that year, and we were thrilled that I was pregnant. I was 10 and a half weeks along when I lost the baby. In the week that followed, I processed a lot of emotions. During that process, I created this list.…
5 suggestions for an empowered birth
When I found out I was pregnant, I did the only thing I knew to do: made an appointment with my OBGYN. I waited anxiously until I was seven weeks along so that I could go in for my ultrasound to confirm that I was pregnant. During the appointment, I asked my doctor — who…
Surprising personal care products that are no-nos during pregnancy
I’m currently 17 weeks pregnant, and over the past few months, I’ve done a ton of research about what I should and shouldn’t be doing to protect my baby. Admittedly, I’ve been pretty frustrated that the care from my doctor has focused so much on testing and risks — which might be because I’m 35…
The postpartum paradox
For most women, the first weeks after ushering new life into the world are arguably the most difficult times they will face. Physically depleted. Emotionally raw. Exhausted. Vulnerable. Scared. Yet this is when we ignore mothers the most. At least, that’s the case in Western countries. We do a marvelous job of supporting women during…
How to create a bedside self-care center for new moms
According to the Ayurvedic tradition, the first six weeks after childbirth is a critical window for both mom and baby. This postpartum window is a time for rest and support. Activities should be minimal, quiet and gentle. Surrounds should be soft, warm and cozy. The intention is to create a nurturing, pleasant environment for the…