unassisted waterbirth

With the recent passing of the Vernal Equinox, life is full of sprouting seeds these days! The air is filled with pollen and pure potential. All that laid dormant throughout the Winter is now in a state of brilliant and bright unfurling. In my home, we have recently been enjoying a true Spring delicacy and wild food ~ fiddlehead ferns, lightly salted and cooked in pure raw cow butter. Absolutely delicious!

With eating seasonally, locally, and as wildly as possible, you really get to take in all the greatness that your environment has to offer. Our family has been appreciating such nourishment alongside our equally nourishing daily Chaga tea. The excitement of new life in the air has motivated us to get out into the wilderness to forage for more wild medicinals. Nothing beats getting out and playing alongside the natural elements while finding and collecting happy, vibrant, living foods. It is like working with Law of Attraction on a whole other level. Learn all you can from what foods are growing wildly in your area right now, go out and find them (it helps to “communicate” with the essence of each plant/mushroom you are trying to find), sustainably (and lovingly) harvest, and reap the benefits of sourcing your own food! No carbon footprint. No mystery as to where it came from. No funny fillers. Just pure, unadulterated and potent goodness. There is lots growing upwards towards the shining sun here in the northeast United States. I’ll be happy to share any news of our harvest from our upcoming foraging mission!

So much Springtime beauty all around, and the most beautiful blossoming flower (in my eyes) is my newborn babe. Born peacefully and powerfully at home (unassisted waterbirth) on 3/13 at 3:13 AM. He is magical in every way. As Winter came to a close, I became initiated into Motherhood within the quiet and dark early morning hours. The transition from Maiden to Mother was beautiful, primal, and deeply inspiring. Whoa, the power of a Woman! The power of our own Mother Earth!

During such an initiation, you feel your roots grow ever-deeper, your soul grow ever-higher, and the concept of who-you-think-you-are transformed into who you know yourself to be. The lovely little seedling that grew within my womb space for 9 months emerged before mine and my husband’s eyes like a beautiful beam of golden light. A light shining to remind us of how earthly experience is filled with the truly miraculous and spiritual in physical form. Going about the birthing experience unmedicated and fully conscious, I allowed myself to step into my true source of power and brought forth our babe with an innate “knowing.” If nature is left to its own devices, it knows exactly what to do. Now as the roses bud and the grasses grow greener, I am lovingly stepping into and embracing my role as Mother. I am learning so much everyday. And “unlearning” even more! It has been imperative for the ease of my initiation that I have committed to a 40 day rest period post-partum. That is common practice in other cultures around the world, but here in the western world, where “go go go” is seen as superior, the period of rest I have embarked upon is misunderstood by many. I am always ready to walk my path of authenticity even if no one else is willing to follow or understand. So with all of my heart, I am grateful for fully committing to this incubation period before rejoining the social everyday world again. And I am beyond grateful for my husband facilitating such a healing and sacred time for me and our newborn. We fully claim our power through being as gentle and nurturing to ourselves as possible. This time has shown us in a profound way that Man holds the space for a Woman to flow wildly like the moon. Man is the steady Sun. ‘Womb’an, the Moon.

As I see my newborn grow so vibrantly within each moment, I am constantly reminded of the wonderful effects that softbirth, baby-wearing, co-sleeping, breastfeeding-on-demand, and daily Reiki have on his mind, body, and spirit. Here are some of our current favorites:

Organic Moby wrap
Daily warm water baths followed by nurturing massage with aromatic oils (Living Libations is our favorite source for baby and ourselves!)
Fermented grain drinks (for increased milk production) from the Nourishing Traditions cookbook
40 day period of rest for mother and baby
Books: The Continuum Concept and After the Baby’s Birth
Classical and instrumental music
Cloth diapers – gentle on baby’s sensitive skin and on Mother Earth
Glamourmom nursing bra tank tops (thanks to my Mom for these!)
Connecting with the natural elements daily
Eye gazing