Level of "Crunch"

I plan on being a pretty "crunchy" mom. (If you are unfamiliar with this term, it basically means "natural".) Some of that comes from the way I was raised. My mom stayed at home with us all of our lives and I've always wanted to do that. We were homeschooled all 12 years (and if you just asked yourself "What about kindegarten?" you're obviously not a homeschooler. It doesn't count, that's just life. Why pay for curriculum to teach a kid colors and shapes that they've known since 3 years old??) For me, crunchy also means my children will be vaccine free. I am so grateful that God blessed me with a husband who, unbeknownst to me, is as opposed to vaccinating as I am. When I was a kid, my sisters and I all had a round of booster shots that left myself and my older sister bed bound for weeks. A lot of other kids in the area who received vaccinations from that same batch had even worse reactions. By the grace of God, Kate and I recovered without any physical damage to our bodies, but since then my parents refused all vaccinations for us and Gary and I intend to refuse all vaccinations for our sweet baby too.

Thanks to my dear friend Rachel, crunchy for me also means I will be rear-facing our daughter in her car seat to the maximum weight limit (Probably 35 or 40 pounds, about 2.5 years old at minimum). It has been proven over and over again that children are LOADS safer when rear-faced in a collision. This is because their heads are either in or very close to the car's center of gravity. The impact on their bodies is much "gentler" and they are a good deal less likely to sustain permenant injury. But! That is another topic for another post, which I will eventually get to!

Another crunchy thing I'm doing is using a midwife instead of an obstetrician. If you've watched "The Business of Being Born" you are probably aware that most obstetricians never see a live birth until they have their M.D. and are the attending physician at one! If you've never seen that documentary, you may be shocked to know that obstetricians receive zero in delivering babies while they are in school, even though American's think that birth is as OB's #1 job. That is one of the reasons I chose a midwife, they have received a masters degree in nursing and then gone on to study labor and delivery as a profession in order to receive their CNM license. They know a great deal about a woman's body and what causes her to labor well and are more open to "long" labors than an obstetrician. It is unlikely that your midwife will start off pushing pitocin and an epidural. Now, if your labor has gone on for days, YES, she will probably recommend it in order to give you relief, but, that is what interventions are for! They are for women who's bodies need a little help, but it is important to realize that that is not most women, which is what a midwife does

Gary and I have looked into hiring a doula as well. "Doula" is a term I had never heard until I got pregnant. Basically, having a doula is like having a mom who has helped dozens of babies come into the world. She just encourages you, tells you what things mean, calms you down, and helps you interpret the signs your body is giving. It sounds like an AWESOME idea to me, especially since my mother is 700 miles away! We met with a doula today and talked with her for about 45 minutes and she was so cool! She said she would help me come up with a birth plan and give me direction in choosing a labor technique which is really nice too. Unfortunately, the going rate for a doula is about $600 for a birth, a reasonable price, but not an option for every budget. (Especially the dirt-poor budget!) We're planning on doing a water birth and most doulas rent birthing pools to their clients for lower-than-going-rate. This doula's was still about $150, which is, to be honest, what you can buy one for. So, since that discount isn't substantial, I think we'll be skipping the doula aspect for this birth.

The closer I'm getting to delivery (16 weeks!!) the more nervous I am! It's about time for us to tour the hospital, write a birth plan, pick out a full name!!!!, and now, find a birthing pool. It's come upon me so quickly! I'm thankful that I'm in school this semester because the weeks go by so quickly! It's coming close to the time to meet our sweet baby :) But first, we get to meet my sisters baby, Zoe Amanda! Hurry up, Zoe!!!