I have been following Sarah Rudell Beach's "Left Brain Buddha" site for a while now. It's perfect for me because I aspire to mindfulness but too often find my left brain running the show. Sarah's most recent post, "Dear Exhausted, Struggling Mama...," is a great read for parents of children of any age, but especially … Continue reading For new moms: letter to your future self
Category: Parenting
A fellow doula called this week to ask for some advice about a client. As she told me the story, I couldn't help but remember that I have heard this same story, or some equally sad variation of it, many times before. It goes something like this: The story A woman has a baby. It … Continue reading Letting go without giving up
I see that more than the usual number of days have passed since the last blog post. Several times over the last week I have thought about sitting down to write something, but other activities have always taken precedence. For me, the excuse is not "I was sitting on the couch feeding the baby." Many … Continue reading The new parents’ not-to-do list
Babies cry. It is a fact of life. Why? They cry because they need us and their other signals have failed to get our attention. (Yes, babies have lots of other methods of communication--just take a look at some information about infant states.) They cry because they are tired. They cry because they just don't … Continue reading Cry me a river
I know how hard it is to get out of the house. Even after 13-plus years of being a parent and honing the morning routine, I experience many days when getting myself and everyone else out the door is a stressful, last-minute rush. With a newborn, getting out of the house can be even more … Continue reading Get out of the house
There's a line in the breastfeeding video I use in my classes (Baby-Led Breastfeeding by Kittie Franz) that goes something like this: "Don't think: 'I need to get her to eat,' think : 'I need to get her to calm down.'" After about the 50th time listening to that line along with my students, I … Continue reading Your real job as a parent
Those of us who have taken marriage vows are familiar with the promise that we'll be there for our spouses no matter what--whether either one of us is sick or healthy. Mothers usually don't make such an explicit promise to our children when we become pregnant. If we did, it would be a one-way vow … Continue reading In sickness and in health: a little selfishness goes a long way
Though it was not all that many years ago (in the grand scheme of things) that I was walking zombie-like through the haze of new motherhood, the challenges of those early months seem part of a far distant past. Still, I can easily conjure up how those days felt, dictated as they were by the … Continue reading In the moment
Peninsula Birth Companions 