Philadelphia area's newest birdies....

The Philadelphia area really has a stunning assortment of birds. My husband pulled me outside randomly yesterday to just listen to the beautiful sounds. Well, today, I was looking out my office window and see a red robin fly into the tree. I watch to see what she is doing, and sure enough I see 3 little tiny beaks poking up from a branch where a nest is hiding. The momma is feeding her little babies! I had no idea there was even a nest there, just a few feet away from me all this time! They sure do hide well. I've been watching momma bird alternate all day long from feeding, to warming them, to gathering more food. I just love watching their little beaks poke up when mom first arrives back over to the nest. I look forward to my new little one coming so soon now. I'm sure all the new mom's can relate to feeding and comforting their newest little ones as well.

This video isn't of the little ones I found, my view is actually much prettier, but my view is so well camouflaged that I really can't get a good shot of them. 

Bryn Mawr Hospital Maternity Family Fair 2013

What a lovely day yesterday at the Bryn Mawr Hospital Maternity Family Fair! 

• A beautiful fashion show with some great moms to be, children born at BMH and labor and delivery nurses. 
• An awesome meet and greet with Drs. Jocelyn Craparo and Catherine Bernardini from Bryn Mawr Women's Health Associates. 
• Art's and Craft's for children run by one of the awesome labor and delivery nurses. 
• Mickey Kent, IBCLC ran a table for BMH educating families on all the breastfeeding resources available.

• Babies R Us was there with a ton of awesome give-aways! 
• And of course Main Line Doulas was there talking to mom's about the amazing benefits of birth and postpartum doulas. It was wonderful to meet so many wonderful pregnant moms!

Great job on a wonderful event!

Bryn Mawr Hospital Mom and Baby Community Day!

Mom & Baby Community Day with Fashion Show 
sponsored by the Bryn Mawr Hospital Obstetrical Unity Council
May 4th from 10am-2pm
Bryn Mawr Hospital, Warden Lobby
130 South Bryn Mawr Avenue
Lower Merion,PA 19010
USA

 Featuring:
• Fashion Show featuring obstetric nurses, patients,
and children from Bryn Mawr Hospital
• Car Seat Checks performed by the Montgomery
County Health Department. Call 610.278.5119 to
reserve your time slot. Space is limited.
• Information on pregnancy wellness and nutrition,
newborn care, breastfeeding and more.
• Learn more about Nemours duPont Pediatrics
• Tours of Labor and Delivery/Maternity and FCMN.
• Meet and greet doctors from obstetrics, anesthesia,
NICU, and some nurses.
• Arts and crafts for the kids.
• Meet a representative from Babies R Us with FREE
gift bags and registration information.
• Raffles for a pack n’ play, car seat, homemade
quilt, a thirty-one bag, embroidered onesies, gift
cards from local businesses.
with Fashion Show


Refreshments and so much more!


To register for this event, please call
1.866.CALL.MLH
or visit mainlinehealth.org/events

"Can I Afford It?" Suze Orman on Doulas

Financial analyst Suze Orman hosts a show called Can I Afford it? On this show, people call in asking if various things they want to buy are things they can afford or if they would be good financial decisions.

Today a caller named Bethany asks if she can afford a birth doula.

Suze's response: "You cannot afford to NOT get a doula, it is a NEED not a want."

Watch the clip here:
http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000162344

Changes in our Bodies During Pregnancy

A friend on facebook just posted a video titled 2 People Describe The Same Person To a Forensic Artist and this is What Happened

This is a beautiful reminder of seeing the beauty in our bodies. Pregnancy is time when our body's are making dramatic changes almost daily as our babies grow inside us, stretching not only our uterus and abdomen, but also changing our skin, changing our taste buds, sense of smell, the size of our feet and so much more. This can be a time of excitement as we watch our bodies change or it can be a time of fear as we worry that we are too small or too big, gaining too much weight or not enough. Many of us criticize ourselves constantly.

It's the only time in a women's life that near strangers feel it's acceptable to comment on our size, "Wow you are getting huge!!!" "Are you sure you aren't having twins??"  Or maybe you are hearing, "oh you are already six months along, you look tiny." You could be wondering if you will ever look pregnant the way you had imagined and you worry. Any of these comments can  make us question our body and our baby and our ability to carry our child. 

It can be hard to look past our own insecurities but let's try. Our belief about our body is important. If you are celebrating you pregnant body, than I celebrate with you, celebrate your ability to see the truth about your body as beautiful and powerful as you grow this precious baby. If you are struggling through this process and maybe feeling insecurities about the way your body is changing, that's okay too. Maybe take this post as reminder to make a conscious choice to change our thought process surrounding the changes are body's are going through.

One conscious choice you can make to help celebrate your beautiful changing body is a belly casting session. A belly cast is a 3 dimensional mold of a pregnant moms belly. The belly cast is made to be a piece of art for your home, as well as a memento of your beautiful pregnant body. A piece of art to help you celebrate the incredible changes your body has gone through during the short period of time as you carry and grow your precious baby inside you. You can do a series of 2 or 3 so you can document the growth of your belly, or you can wait to get one done towards the end to capture the true fullness before baby comes out.

Don't pass up this invitation to celebrate your body. Click here for more information to book your belly casting session: http://www.mainlinedoulas.com/p/belly-cast.html

King of Prussia Babies R Us Comfort Measures Class

Did you know of any particularly helpful comfort measures for childbirth before having your baby? I love teaching Comfort Measure for Childbirth where you can learn tons of neat little tips and tricks to stay comfortable during your baby's birth... come check out the class tomorrow night at the King of Prussia Babies R Us...

https://www.facebook.com/events/147361898770720/

Prenatal Acupuncture in Bryn Mawr!

I'm loading you all up on the wonderful resources the Main Line has to offer pregnant ladies this week: Marlene Burke is a licensed acupuncturist right at the Bryn Mawr Wellness office on Haverford Road specializing in fertility treatment as well as issues related to pregnancy. I "met" Marlene a while back via our mutual friend and chiropractor Cara Hillwig on facebook and it was so great to meet for "real" tonight.

 Marlene taught an informative class on acupressure for childbirth. We learned of a number of acupressure spots to both encourage labor as well as ease pain and help comfort and relax mom during birth. My favorite one was the point in the fleshy part of the shoulder, that feels so good. Our clients are certainly going to greatly benefit from the knowledge gained tonight. Thank you Marlene for teaching this class!!

Check out her facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marlene-Burk-Acupuncture/174548215916283