Women Helping Women...

Tonight I had the opportunity to make a home visit to help a new mother with her breastfeeding newborn. In our culture women just don't help women like they used to and like they do in other countries around the world. Mother's are just sent home with their babies without support. I am a CLC and a Post-partum Doula. I was proud to use my skills and experience to go make a visit for free to a mom in her own home to help her with her breastfeeding journey. She was not able to reach anyone at the hospital she delivered at to get some lactation assistance. By word of mouth and from previous contact with me this new mother knew me and welcomed me into her home to support her. I spent two hours with her and will probably visit with her again as long as she needs till she is comfortable with her breastfeeding experience. This should be a service available to every mother. Why am I the only women I know providing this service in the community for free?

Trauma Life

 

I am diffusing these two oils today. They are meant for helping with traumatic events and helping with spiritual matters. I put several things in this picture. Of course I showed the oils  used but I chose to put them with my Goddess doll that represents me and a picture of my great grandmother and her family. The tree in the background was Annika's tree. It is a willow representing her watery weak nature. I wish I could cut it down but the tree never hurt anyone and it is soaking up water from a wet spot in the yard. The trauma I am dealing with involves all of these objects. I desperately want to deface my doll and remove the beads that represent three of my children that I no longer claim. Maybe I will just cover those beads with cloth like they died when I add Sophia's bead when she is born. The doll is beautiful like the tree. As for the picture of my great grandmother Ines I placed it in the photo because she holds meaning for me. I am a bit out of place in my family. I don't quite look like anyone in my family except Ines. I have mentioned her before especially last October when I visited her grave. I never met her. She died the year I was born. The meaning she holds for me today is in her name. I haven't 100% decided on a middle name for Sophia. I would like to honor Ines but her name just doesn't  flow for me.... hence my dilemma.

Later this day I got two messages supposedly from Annika. They were worded like they came from her father though. They were also sent at a time when she should have been in school. The main reason I let her go and live with her father was so I  would never have to deal with him and his abusive nature. To get messages from him veiled like they came from Annika is another trauma to my day. Some children leave their mothers when they are 18. Some when they are 30. She just happened to be 11. It was her choice. Who was I to stop her?

Nice Cloth Meeting with Other Moms Today...

I loved sharing cloth diaper tips with other moms today. I really wish my home was a bit bigger and cleaner to host a meeting.... Great way to learn about cloth diapers, swap, and sell diapers. I was thrilled to show a mom how to use prefolds on a tiny newborn.

Motherpeace Deck

I haven't brought out my Motherpeace cards out in a long time. I use them to meditate or just clear my mind. I am waiting for Lyn at volleyball practice so I am actually alone in a car without an errand to run or children needing my attention. I desperately wish I had a circle of women to whom I could turn to and commune with. I need to try to cultivate a group at church but I am not sure if many would be interested. I just need to find a center. What is a center without a circle....

Snails and puppy dog tails.. that is what Ben is made of....

Well the snails part anyway....

Ben is all about hunting out and collecting snail shells everywhere we go. Today at church he found a really big shell. He was so happy. As we waited for his teacher to arrive in his class we drew snails. Ben is working on more control with his coloring. I have seen children younger than his 3 and a half years able to almost write their name legibly but he has difficulty making purposeful strokes. I am not worried.  I am not pushing him too hard academically. I want him to pick up on literacy naturally at this  age. He recognizes environmental print like stop signs and store signs and he recognizes his written or typed name along with about 6 letters of the alphabet. I am good with that!!

26 weeks pregnant and weaning.... bittersweet

Elaina breast feeding last summer

Elaina breast feeding last month
 

My baby hasn't nursed in over 24 hours. I wanted to let her self wean but being 26 weeks pregnant and all that comes with that I am choosing to wean her. She is a bit upset about it. I feel guilty yet ready. It is so bittersweet. I feel so selfish for wanting  nursing break before the new baby arrives. My supply has dropped some and I was starting to get sore from Elaina wanting to nurse all day and night. I am so afraid she will get sick. She has had a few viruses but she has never been to the doctor since she was 2 weeks old to just meet the doctor. Last night or rather early this morning she pooped all over me. It leaked out of her diaper everywhere. I hope it wasn't because she had too much cows milk yesterday. I know she doesn't have to drink cows milk but it has always been a staple and a favorite food in our house. I just wish raw milk was legal and available here. I offer her non-homogenized whole cows milk with goat milk added. But yesterday I was out and she had the cheap over processed stuff. We may try some unsweetened almond milk too. She eats real well. Her nutrition shouldn't suffer. I just worry about her health. And she looks so little...... My baby.

Finally had some sun today

We got to play outside some today. It has rained almost every day for weeks. Nice to get to hang some clothes on the line and soak up some sun.

Guess what...

 

We are expecting a baby girl in November. I am about 25 and a half weeks along. We just started telling people. We were waiting because we were uncertain of the future. There were makers on our little girl that pointed to possible genetic abnormalities. We were not even sure if she would live till birth. After further testing it looks like she is typical. I don't think we will be having any more testing. The next step would have been a more in depth ultrasound and a possible amniocentesis. Right now we are just taking one day at a time. I am trying to slow my thought process down and enjoy my pregnancy. I have felt fine. No real problems. I have only gained about 7 pounds. Of course I am holding on to weight from my last pregnancies. I know that doesn't count though. We are thinking of calling our new little one Sophia. Elaina is still breastfeeding so I am sure that is keeping my weight steady. Sophia is growing normally so I am not worried. I didn't gain much till the end of my last pregnancy. I am bigger but I haven't had to wear maternity clothes yet. I will keep everyone updated.....

Sacred Mountain and Grounding essential oils..

 

 

 

I had a rough evening today and I was in the mood to use my diffuser with some essential oils. I chose Sacred Mountain and Grounding as my blends of choice. They combine several conifer tree oil scents plus angelica. I placed a sprig of juniper next to the bottle for inspiration. I use juniper for several things. Its scent and energy is powerful. I am so happy with these oils in my life. If you are interested in acquiring some for yourself at a wholesale price just contact me. As a distributor of Young Living Oils I have access to all of the oils and everything you need to add them to your family's natural way of living....

Reading time...

Evan and Eliot....

Trip to the library...

Eliot and a friend visited the library today. We played, we explored, and we picked up some books for homeschooling....

School work...

 

Eliot is getting into the groove with some home school work. She is working on kindergarten level but we aren't rushed. Even though she is older than some kindergarteners I am not rushing her. She will be 6 next month. I want her to learn through a more naturalistic way than children that attend traditional schools or who are homeschooled with a very specific curriculum. I guess she will be a guinea pig for this method. Evan was ahead of her academically at her age but she has other strengths. I want her to learn language as a whole. Most of her process of learning to read will not look like these activities. They will be more spontaneous and child and environmental led. We shall see what the school year holds....

Natural Menstrual Help

 

My 14 year old daughter will probably be embarrassed that I shared what she is going through but I will anyway. It may help others going through the same thing. She is having two periods a month and on top of that some cramping and headaches. Nothing too bad but instead of just popping pills (acetaminophen) I want her to try treating her feelings and discomforts naturally. Since we have started using Young Living Oils in our home I made her up some essential oils with a carrier oil and put them into a bottle with a roller ball top. The combination oils in the Dragon Time oil hopefully will help Lyn decrease the frequency of her periods. Her maternal great-grandmother had two periods a month which I just found out a few months go. So, this may just be my daughter's normal. But it can be a bit bothersome to have two periods a month. I am very proud of her. She is not ashamed of menstruating and does not complain about what her mother (ME) deems as celebratory but she is low key and doesn't shy away from the topic. I am confident that she is a lot more knowledgably than I was at her age. I hope these oils help her. She is also planning on adding some sage and red raspberry leaf tea to her diet to help with the cramping and to help regulate her periods.

Two Breastfeeding Support Groups in One Week

I enjoyed attending UABs new breastfeeding support group on Monday. They are working on becoming a Baby Friendly Hospital. For a first meeting it turned out well. Today, I attended a La Leche League meeting.....

It was nice to be surrounded by women who understand.

Long day equals fennel tea with a touch of "Mother's Milk" tea added....

Today I finished my finals for the two college courses I am taking and had a lot of paperwork to do. My breast milk supply seems to be dwindling according to Elaina's constant nursing. That little girl will nurse 10 to 12 times an hour if I am sitting still. We are trying to offer her more food and some cows milk but she mainly just wants mama milk...

Solution... fennel tea with some "Mother's Milk" added. Of course I added fennel to my diffuser so the scent pervaded the house. Loving my Young Living Oils....

Want some too?

Evan's scratches from camp

 

Evan had a lot of fun at camp but as usual Evan is a bit clumsy at times and  guess a little tasty. He came home with some scratches and what looked like some bug bites. I brought out some of my Young Living Oils and some coconut oil. I combined Purification and Frankincense with some coconut oil and wrapped it all with a clean cloth diaper and fastened with a Snappie...

 

Results.. Better feeling and healing nicely...

14 months old today....

Elaina is getting so big...

My sweet baby

Another sweet breastfeeding picture of Elaina. She is almost 14 months old. Poor girl has a scratch under her eye...

My Ben... and My Elaina

I have been meaning to update Ben's picture on my side bar for a long time now. The shaved head from our lice incident was just not doing it for me. It just did not look like him. He is so hard to take a picture of though. He moves fast and always seems to have his back turned to me. Same with Elaina, she won't look at the camera. I updated her picture too. She isn't looking up but I still like it. My girl playing with a stalk of fennel. Ben is wearing Evan's old school shirt but his hair is perfect. He visited my mother's home overnight and I believe she may have cut his bangs again. He said she did but he may be remembering the last time she did it. I want his hair to be long till HE wants to cut it. Cutting his bangs gives him a mullet look we are trying to avoid. This picture was taken before his visit. I'll have to go do a strand by strand comparison t check if cutting has occurred....

Ben, 3 and half years old

Elaina 13 months old

Midwives Wisdom Oracle Cards

I supported a wonderful woman create these cards. In return I received a set of the cards and a thank you card. I also received 5 large cards that I think I will display on the wall in my bedroom. Eliot was excited to explore them. I read some of the poems and writing on the cards to her. She picked her favorite which is a representation of a vulva and very beautiful. The creation of the cards were inspired by the arts of Midwifery. I collect tarot and oracle cards but these are special. They are so unique..

 

 

Can't wait to have some quiet time to explore each card and be blessed by their inspiration.

Another Herbalist home visit...

Yes, that is a hunk of homemade brown bread, a candle, a stalk of wheat, and two books. I visited a friend a few days back who just needed to talk and I brought her a few things to celebrate the first harvest and to talk about natural ways to help her through some medical problems. She was excited to discuss herbal and healing essential oil options to incorporate into her treatment. I didn't actually provide her with anything other than information but hopefully I can help her in any way I can to ease her pain...

Happy World Breastfeeding Week... (well it started yesterday)

 

The Cornstalk Madonna

 

 

Love this photo. In honor of Lammas and World Breastfeeding Week The Cornstalk Madonna is a perfect combination of abundance celebration!!!!

Happy Lammas...

 

We had a wonderful Lammas celebration today. Not all the kids were there. Evan and Lyn were still at day camp but the rest of the kids were there. One of my best friends was able to come with her 6 kids. Even without all my kids there a woman walking her dog asked if all the kids were ours... :)

 

We had all types of bread with awesome Irish pasture fed butter warmed by the sun. The fruit and herb jam was wonderful. I had two types of apples available and loved using my small apple shaped snack plates. And of course we had cookies. Each child that came to enjoy the food and abundance of the season took home a yellow candle and shaft of wheat to celebrate the occasion. My robust harvest Mother was there to bless the meeting.

 

An extra special treat today was that one of my friend's sons had his birthday today too. He picked out which color candle he wanted and had a huge cupcake all for himself....

 

 

 

 

We had planned on going swimming also but the creek was too swollen and running too high. You can see it in the background. It was a wonderful day of food, playing, and being thankful...