knowledge

Vaccine awareness is on the upswing.  Everybody wants to know- are they safe?  effective?  useful?  I have decided to start us off with a basic article dispelling 10 common myths and countering them with truth.  If you aren't open to changing your mind, read no further.  The website I took this from is one of my faves.  Expect lots from here in the future.

When you're pregnant you are probably spending some time thinking about your upcoming labor. What are your options? What are your plans? You might be thinking through all the different scenarios, and trying to decide what you might do in any given situation.You may have already spoken with your partner, and the people you have invited to your birth, trying to work out what might happen. Of course you won't know until you're in the middle of it, but that doesn't stop us from wondering.

Frugally minded mamas have probably already heard about making your own laundry detergent. Supposedly it can save you tons of money and might even be a fun activity. I have always been a little bit intimidated though. (I wonder why - how hard can it be to mess it up? And so what? If it's that cheap just throw it out and start over! But I digress...) One of my favorite personal finance/frugality websites recently made a how-to video. Something about watching the process has made it a lot less scary, and I think I might do this soon. Check it out; maybe you will be inspired to try it too.

Really, you can do it.  Remember, not too long ago, people used to make everything from scratch.  Not just bread, cookies, and ice cream...everything includes yogurt, butter, flour, vinegar (you know, the basics!).

This looks like lots of fun.  And easy.  And delicious.  Could be cheap, too, if you have a source of cream.

I wrote a letter of appreciation to the owner of one of my favorite blog websites, and he published my letter!  Very cool.  If you are not already familiar with Mises and LRC, you should check them out. 

I am a Christian, wife to Norm and mother to four: Glen (5), Tasha (3), Jamie, and baby Lorelai. It was an honor to be asked to work with Corrrine and the other ladies in the Pinkpeas family. Pinkpeas is just the right home for some of my many interests. We are a homebirthing/waterbirthing family. I am a La Leche League Leader.

Our daughter Isabela was born September 14, 2004. Isabela was born in the hospital. We had the best hospital birth experience one could pray to have and we will never do it again God willing! I like to say that we really just paid to rent the room at the hospital, they left us alone for the most part which is exactly what we wanted. For that money we could have had her at the Four Seasons!

So, here is Liliana's birth story as written by my amazing wonderful midwife Corrine, I love hearing it from your perspective! I will preface it by saying this was our first homebirth, our amazing daughter Isabela was born naturally in the hospital. My husband will say that the most powerful aspect of our homebirth as compared with our hospital birth was how empowered we were as parents.