GOOD MORNING!

How are you? How was your week?

I seem to be playing catch-up these days. My head is always spinning. Kids’ homework, after school activities, preparing meals, getting the snow tires on (snow in November?!), searching frantically for kids’ snow boots only to realize they’re too small, going to births, exercising, running two businesses, etc. You get the picture, right?

I’ve learned to give myself some slack though. As moms we often feel we need to do everything – and perfectly. That’s a myth though. We can’t!

So, often dinner is really simple (the kids love breakfast for dinner on occasion!), the kids are doing more around the house which is amazing, we ask for help with lifts to kids’ activities, sometimes laundry doesn’t get done for awhile, and the mopping….well…

Today and every day, I’m giving you (and me!) permission to rest and not worry about all that needs to be done. And as in birth, when the ride get rough, just breathe. And call your doula!

 

Sylvia

 

Here’s what our team’s been up to this week:

 

Doula Dialogues, Episode 7: What Foods to Feed Baby First

Sylvia – I had a great talk this week with Nutritionist and Author, Katja Leccisi from How to Feed Your Kids. We spoke about when to start introducing solids, which foods to begin with, baby-led weaning, allergies and intolerances, and more! A must-see for parents of babies between 4 and 6 months.

 

What we’re listening to:

Heather: Did you make a birthing playlist? What songs did you include? Music can have such a strong effect on the way we birth!

Songs that I heard and now associate with a few beautiful births I’ve attended:

  • Over the Rainbow / What a Wonderful World by Israel Kamakawiwo’ole
  • At Last by Etta James
  • It Wasn’t Me by Shaggy (this is a funny story for another week!)

 

Sylvia: Let the Christmas music begin! I used to only start listening to Christmas music as of December 1st, but now I’m ok with it one month before.

My favourites:

  • Little Drummer Boy with Davide Bowie and Bing Crosby
  • Last Christmas by Wham
  • Silent Night by Stevie Nicks

Are you a new parent? What holiday traditions will you and your family be creating this year? When you have your own family, it’s a great time to begin new rituals that are in line with our own family values. Enjoy!

 

What we’re watching:

Jenny: With a 5 y.o. and 7 y.o. in the house, we’re watching all things Ariane Grande these days: Victorious and Sam & Kat!

 

What we’re reading:

MikaHolistic Midwifery by Anne Frye. This book is a treasure-textbook about Midwifery. As a Doula this book has brought me more understanding to the underlying tension that is felt in almost every hospital birth. Anna Frye clearly explains the difference between the holistic model of birth and the technocratic model of birth. A really good read! 

Jenny: Whatever my kids are into ends up being the thing that I’m into, by default. These days, it’s Greek Mythology. Last year, my daughter did a huge project on Goddesses of the world, where she discovered everything from Athena to Kali. We’ve spent a lot of time reading about Hindu mythology but now the kids are all about Greece. This week we made it through the story of Odysseus and are now reading the Barefoot Books version of Achilles. I reached out to Facebook for more ideas and look forward to taking Percy Jackson out of our local library soon.

 

Best Black Friday Purchases:

Mika: Nothing!

Sylvia: Boycotted it

Jenny: What’s Black Friday?!

Ayda: I was an avid black Friday shopper. We used to go down to the States every year, shop Thursday night and Friday morning, then return home. We haven’t gone for the past two years as the US$ is higher, and my eldest is in college and doesn’t have days off at Thanksgiving. This year, I got an amazing deal on an Instant Pot at Walmart – and it was very civil. No line ups and no grabbing!

 

Best Mommy Gadget:

Heather – I always say babies don’t need much stuff (and it’s true)…but when my kids were wee, I really liked the baby bathtub that someone gifted us. The best part about it was that it had a sling-like attachment that kept the baby securely and properly positioned in the water, so that I didn’t have to do all the soaping up and rinsing with one hand or worry about the baby slithering out of my other hand.

 

Yummy Pregnancy and Postpartum Recipe

Ayda: I love making Meghli pudding which is a rice pudding that promotes breastfeeding.

Mix the following:

  • 1 cup rice flour
  • ½-1 cup sugar depending how sweet you like it
  • 1 Tbsp anise powder
  • ½ tsp caraway powder
  • 1 Tbsp cinnamon

Mix with 4 cups of cold water until everything is well blended.
Put on the stove on medium heat. Add 4 more cups of warm water. Keep mixing until it starts to thicken. Don’t let it bubble or boil as it will stick to the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat and serve immediately in small ramekins as it will set quickly.

Decorate with slivered or whole almonds, shredded coconut & pistachios.

**Anise is known to increase breast milk.

 

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Well, that’s been our week! Thanks for reading!

Have a lovely Sunday,

The RTC Doulas

P.S. If you’re not up-to-date on our latest Doula Dialogue Episodes, you can watch them on our YouTube Channel!

P.S.S. All of our 2019 dates for our Power of Positive Birth prenatal classes are posted on our website! Register now for a fun and hands-on class.

YES, PLEASE!
YES, PLEASE!
YES, PLEASE!