Attack of the Green Smoothie!

It's hard to read with the schmear of green smoothie, but his shirt reads, "The Leprechauns made me do it." How apropos.

"I Juju"

It has been far too long since we have updated our blog. Such is life. I am starting to realize that for the first 32 years of my life, I really took for granted that I could basically do whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. This is no longer the case. Anyone who has tried to check their e-mail or scrub some dishes as a toddler screams bloody murder while beating you senseless with a foam baseball bat knows exactly what I mean.

Occasional beatings aside, Julian is about 17.5 months and is SUCH a blast these days. We are really loving this age. We seem to have gone through the “terrible two’s” at about 14 months and are hoping that the days of knock-down-drag-out tantrums are over. We have been implementing a discipline strategy called Conscious Discipline and have more recently added aspects of Love and Logic. We started working with him at about 12 months out of necessity and it has really begun to pay off. While lots of toddlers are getting more and more difficult to deal with, Julian is getting easier. It may be no coincidence that his behavior started to change for the better once all his teeth finally came through for good. How am I finally able to update the blog you must be wondering? Julian is taking an unusually long nap (i.e., longer than 30 minutes) after a super crummy night of "sleep".

It is also no coincidence, in my opinion, that the positive changes are very positively correlated with Julian’s ability to express himself verbally. He is a veritable jabberbox and uttered his first full sentence (“I did it!") at about 14.5 months. At about 16 months, trying to see how far I could stretch the whole talking thing, I said, “Hey Julian, I’m mama, that’s dada. Who are you?” To which he replied, “I Juju.” Hence the nickname that Brian and I affectionately call him.

As for recent obsessions, they include but are not limited to: wheels, anything with wheels (especially tractors and dump trucks), animals, tools and his tool bench, his "boom" and sweeping, puzzles, books, dinosaurs, jumping off of everything in sight (including the beds and the couches) and somehow miraculously landing on his feet, helicopters, airplanes, dancing, soccer, basketballs (his FAVORITE word), tennis balls, baseballs, Bora Bars, his instruments, wind chimes, blowing raspberries.....and the list could really go on forever now that I am putting it all into words.

Julian has always been a busy baby. For the last 4 or so months, they best way to avoid a tantrum has been to let him help. I tell people he’s like a Border Collie; he always needs a “job”. So he helps – with everything – and thoroughly enjoys it. Thanks to my mom, "nama", he now has his own kitchen, and a learning tower (HUGE help) so he can help me when I chop, cook, and make bread. Thanks to his Grandma Linda, he has a broom, mop, and dust pan set so he can help me sweep. He helps in the garden, putting clothes away, doing laundry – you name the task and he wants to help. Also, being so eager to please, he has been peeing on the potty for us when it suits him. SO without further ado, here are some videos of Julian doing what he is best at: helping, and goofing off.

Mass Exodus to Canada Averted

Today, we are so proud to be American and are finally feeling positive about what lies ahead. Guess we'll stick around for a while after all....

"Yes we can heal this nation. Yes we can repair this world."
President Barack Obama

Halloween Soccer Star

Julian in his Halloween costume at about 14.5 months. Much to our delight, he has been dribbling a soccer ball since he could walk. No pressure but YEAH!

Our Little Man

EE posted this and is a man of few words. I'll just say briefly that yes, this blog has gone woefully neglected and that a more comprehensive update is certainly in order. Things have been busy but awesome.

Here is a postworthy video of Julian, at 14 months, barking like a dog, getting psyched about a ball, and walking down the stairs by himself. He is such a "big" little boy these days:)

Walking = Sleep = Happy People

Julian Walker is officially walking! He took his first steps about a month ago but really hasn't started walking around until last week. Thankfully, this huge developmental change has also coincided with much needed SLEEP!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Julian is about 11.5 months old and has not only never slept through the night, but until last week, was getting up anywhere from 6-12 times a night. Currently he is getting his molars; definitely the top two and possibly the bottom two as well. Until he started walking recently, all things sleep related were the worst they had ever been. Eagleye and I were at the very end of our ropes with the whole sleep deprivation thing. I have been hesitant to blog about him sleeping because I didn't want to jinx our sleeping streak but it has been a whole week (knock on wood)! Granted, he still gets up 2 to 3 times a night. Even still, this is not only a VAST improvement, he also goes back to sleep immediately, which is a welcome change. I am almost starting to feel like a normal person again!

I am so proud of EE and I for sticking it out with J and his abbysmal sleep dysfunction. We are a cosleeping family and consider it an important part of our family dynamic. "Cry It Out" (CIO) is not and never will be an option. I even had someone tell me that I was a bad mom for NOT letting him CIO. Since we won't CIO, we can say that we tried almost everything (within reason) to try and help Julian sleep. You name it and we have tried it. As it turns out, it wasn't anything that we could do for him, it was something that he had to work out within himself.

Watching Julian grow has been amazing. It is hard to believe that our little baby is becoming a little boy. Since I am part-time as of today (whohoo!), I will try to get more pictures and videos posted. We don't have a blog worthy video of him walking recently. It's definitely worth waiting for the right moment since the mummy walk (hands in the air) and accompanying baby babble are pretty cute.

The countdown to our hike has begun. We have almost all of our gear and our Muir Trail Ranch resupply buckets are already on their way to the wilderness. I have been meaning to get our trailjournal started for some time now so hopefully I can tackle that this weekend. Unfortunately, we won't be able to update in real time or near real time like we did on the PCT. There isn't much cell service in the Sierras, at least there wasn't the last two times we were out there. I am really looking forward to disconnecting anyway.

We have been on some shakedown hikes but not nearly enough in my opinion. There is something about not sleeping for 11 months that takes the pep right out of your step. I think we have abandoned the super heavy Sherpani child carrier/pack in favor of a more babywearing and nursing friendly Mei Tai that a friend and fellow Vegas mama is sewing for us.

We are SO looking forward to being back out on the trail again. Back out in the wilderness where we truly belong. Hopefully, Julian will be at peace out there and this will be the beginning of a life-long love affair with long distance hiking and the glorious Sierra Nevada. The mountains beckon.......

Enjoying some green smoothie and looking irresistibly cute

Julian tests some gear for the hike

Julian and I on a shakedown hike in Red Rocks

Julian and the all too familiar stink-eye look

Funny Stuff

Some psycho is stalking and heckling our family blog. This person checks our blog literally every day and we have no idea who it is (except for an IP address) but they sent me this e-mail:

Talk about a hypocrite. You praise all things holy and democratic, yet you censor the comments that people want to post in response to your psycobabbling blogs. Don't Democrats argue that censorship is a Republican driven machine? You don't have the balls to allow people to comment on your paranoia? You really are a crazy nut. One word: Bellvue.

This is in response to the fact that I have chosen to moderate comments on our blog (thanks to this crazy blog stalker). It's not uncommon, lots of people do it , mostly because there are lots of nuts in cyberspace that will say practically anything when anonymously hiding behind their keyboard. You talk about hypocrisy and balls Mr. "ANONYMOUS" psycho blog stalker? This medium of communication really brings out the worst in some people. They spout off at the mouth and say all sorts of crummy things that they would never have the guts to say in person. I'm not censoring you idiot. I still get your irrational comments. I don't want your trash on my family blog that's all. Anyone in their right mind would do the same thing. Let me guess, you are a Republican and are offended by the sight of a woman breastfeeding in public. Oh yeah, and per your last comment, you think natural birthing is a joke. Great. Now leave us alone you loon and find some other family blog to stalk.

Edited to add: It is approximately 3:00pm on the west coast and psycho blog stalker has already checked our blog 4 times today! YIKES! This nut also sent me another super funny e-mail. I'll spare you most of it but have to include this part because it is so freaking hysterical:

Get a life. To call this a "family blog" is hilarious. Ads about being a Democrat, articles on underwater births as well as Puerto Rican breastfeeding commercials have nothing to do with your family. They have to do with you being a loser with a lot of time on your hands. Just shutup, run for office, and tell us about your family.

Ummmmm.....OK crazy stalker. So even though we are proud not to be Republican, have had a waterbirth, and proudly breastfeed our 10.5 month old, these topics have nothing to do with my family. I suppose things like Baby-Led Weaning and Elimination Communication and ludicrous behaviors like recycling make me a loser too? Come on nutjob. I hardly think that posting once a month on average indicates that I have too much time on my hands. Actually, it is quite the oppsite. Psycho stalker checked our blog today 4 times by 3pm. Ummm...who has too much time on their hands? Who needs to get a life? Its a big blogosphere out there cowardly, anonymous, psycho blog stalker. Like I said - find another blog to stalk.

Puerto Rican Breastfeeding Ad

Boy, America has a long way to go.

NB: Obviously, for the completely obtuse and since this video is an ad for breastfeeding, I am referring only to the stark differences in the way the two cultures view, advocate, and accept breastfeeding.

Let's see....women being kicked out of restaurants and off of planes because they are breastfeeding....people being offended by the sight of a woman breastfeeding her child......yup, America still has a loooooong way to go.

Once I go part time I will........

I have been starting sentences this way so frequently as of late, I thought it deserved its own post (that and I don't have time to properly update this poor, neglected blog). In recent months, I have been stretched so thinly that at times I am barely holding it together. Stuff just keeps piling up and piling on until I feel completely overwhelmed. That and consistent doses of sleep deprivation make jackalope a dull girl. I am happily going part time as of the end of July and am counting down the days. I can't even count the number of ways in which I could finish this sentence so here are just a few (not in order of importance save the first one):

Once I go part time I will......

...spend more time with my baby
...cook more healthy meals for my family.
...spend some quality time with my husband.
...update my blogs more frequently
...organize our pictures and finally post new ones (the last batch having been posted in January!).
...call my far-away friends more (or more accurately, call my friends back).
...start training for the hike.
...spend more time with my old girl Marge.
...take Julian to swim lessons.
...vacuum the freaking stairs.
...finish the raised beds in my yard.
...finally have time to put laundry away.
...organize our bedroom and make it Julian-proof.
...mail my sisters the boxes of baby clothes they lent us that have been sitting in Julian's room for the last 5ish months.
...clean out the inside of my car.
...read my magazines from the last 4 months.
...scan my Vegetarian Times so I can pass them on.
...go inside the crafty room.
...maybe have time to actually sew something inside the crafty room.
...watch a few episodes of Seinfeld.
...sit on my ass and do nothing for just a few minutes!!!

To wet your whistles until I get my act together and post new pictures (see above), here are a few pictures of Julian from our trail magic tip to Walker Pass (Julian's second namesake) in early June:

I'm NOT Voting Republican

Mr. Personality Showcase

It is hard to believe that our little guy is 9 months old already! Here are a few recent videos of Mr. Personality being his goofy self.



Julian got this blinky, car thingy as a gift and he absolutely loves it which means that Brian and I hear it in our sleep. I can't even drive down the street without hearing, "Get out of the way!" echo inside my head.



Julian has been pulling up since he was about 5.5 months old. He absolutely loves to be on his feet and gets pretty excited when he's cruising around with help. He can also let go and balance for a few seconds before sitting down. You might notice the disaster that he leaves in his wake. It doesn't take him very long to tear the house apart. Of course, it takes much, much longer to put it all back together.



J loves to play peekaboo but this is the first time that he has ever initiated a game. He is too funny!

The Business of Being Born

America has lost its way when it comes to giving birth. It is SO important that people watch this move and THINK about the message that it sends. Julian's birth was a beautiful, wonderful, self-guided journey. Brian and I did it in the warmth and comfort of our home, safely, naturally, together, and with the help of a wonderful, skilled midwife. It was spiritual and intense, yet calm. I can't imagine doing it any other way.

The bewildered, blank stares on the faces of the hospital staff trying to recall if they had ever seen a truly natural birth really says it all. Come on people, let's get back to our roots. Take control back from the machine.

Hurricane Julain Hits Las Vegas!

Well, it is official. Julian is extremely mobile. He can be wherever he wants to be, whenever he wants to get there. He officially crawled for the first time on April 13 and has been getting around well ever since. We are noticing the emerging inversely proportional relationship between frustration and mobility. He is able to keep his brain busy for more than a few minutes, buying us some much needed sanity.

This morning, I turned my back on him in the bedroom to check my e-mail and he had pulled himself up on the wall, cruised over to the bedside table, and cleared it off with one fell swoop. I looked around the bedroom and one thing became glaringly clear. Hurricane Julian has hit Las Vegas.

We went downstairs to commence the day and in the 30 seconds it took me to gather the ingredients for my daily green smoothie, he had made his way over to one of the bookcases and started tossing books one by one over his shoulder. Man we need more shelves.

The Green Smoothie Monster

Well, the sickness saga really rearranged our radar, with many tasks falling of the radar all together. Although we are consistently busy with visitors, work, projects, and life in general , it has been WAY too long since we have updated our blog! Julian is growing and changing every day. He is 7.5 months old, is pulling up and cruising, has a new tooth, and is weighing in at around 18 lbs - hardly as ultralight as we were hoping he'd be. He is becoming more communicative and mobile and always seems to have Brian and I laughing these days - such a little character. He's a baby that definitely knows what he wants! Now that he is eating some and his interest in food is evolving, he is a little less of a Boobie Monster than he was in the beginning. So, without without further ado, I present The Green Smoothie Monster. We share a Green Smoothie every day and, as you can tell from the video, he can't get enough of it! Here he is at about 6 months displaying his unconditional love for the Green Smoothie.

The Sickness Saga Continued...

After reluctantly taking Julian to the doctor for his respiratory infection, his sickness worsened. He had a sustained high fever for over 4 days and finally, on the 5th day, the fever spiked up to 105 deg F. After days of lukewarm baths and Motrin/Tylenol cycles, we decided (reluctantly again), to take him into the emergency room. Well, it short, in really sucked. I'll highlight the worst of it:

1. We waited for over an hour while Julian lay in my arms like a limp noodle. I kept a cool, wet rag on his held an rocked him. By the time they called us back (I was just about to leave), his fever was down to 102.7 deg F.

2. When I informed the seemingly indifferent doctor that Julian had been diagnosed with RSV earlier in the week he responded with an eye-roll and a very unsympathetic, "Whatever. I'll be back when the baby is not crying".

3. A really ignorant but know-it-all nurse tells me to, "Step aside mom" and then holds Julian down while the other nurse proceeds to manually and forcibly retract his foreskin.

*** Tangent #1: NEVER MANUALLY RETRACT THE FORESKIN OF AN UNCIRCUMCISED PENIS!!!

From: Care for the Intact Penis

"Much nonsense has been written about the special care required for an intact penis. Care advice can be summarised briefly:

1. Leave it alone.
(2. Leave it alone.)
(3. Leave it alone.)

(Very similar to the special care required by the ears and the eyes, really.)

Babies:
A baby's penis should be washed like any other part of his body, gently. No effort should be made to retract his foreskin and wash inside. In New Zealand, nurses were once instructed to start trying to retract the foreskin from birth and ensure that it was fully retractable by the end of a week. This doubtless caused many problems, resulting in the "need" for circumcisions. This mentality persists in many places, and it may be necessary to make sure that any new person examining the baby (including nurses, nannies and grandparents) is not a "retractor".

[The pediatrician of a friend of mine told her] the only thing she needs to take care of her son's foreskin is a ruler ... to smack anyone's hand who tries to touch it! Not bad for Peoria, Illinois.
Gabrielle RhodesDecember 26, 2007"

Also, from an article in Mothering Magazine, The Case Against Circumcision:

"Parents should be wary of anyone who tries to retract their child's foreskin, and especially wary of anyone who wants to cut it off. "

And, in case I didn't make myself perfectly clear in the previous 2 examples, the following is an excerpt from What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Circumcision:

"Parents should protect their child from doctors who try to retract his foreskin. Many doctors never learned about the normal development and care of the penis and are unaware that the foreskin should never be retracted by anyone, except its owner, and only when the penis has matured enough to make retraction free and easy."

4. It all happened so fast, they held him down, retracted his foreskin, and were about to attempt to shove a large diameter catheter into him. I screamed for them to stop. That got their attention and then I moved back into position next to Julian and told them that the foreskin should NEVER be manually retracted to which the ignorant nurse (who was still holding down a now hysterical Julian) replied with glaring condescension, "Umm honey, you HAVE to retract the foreskin or it gets stuck." I was so shocked all I could muster was, "WHAT???"

5. Ignorant but know-it-all nurse then proceeds to ask me if I plan to have him circumcised to which I reply with an angry, "NO!" What she said next nearly caused my head to explode. She cocked her head to the side and said (again in a very patronizing tone), "If you don't have him circumcised he's going to have problems for the rest of his life." My eyes nearly popped out of my head and there must have been smoke coming from my ears and nostrils because after I looked at her and shouted, "THAT'S RIDICULOUS! Take your hands off my son!", the other nurse excused her and I never saw her again. I felt a whirl of emotions well up inside me, and with 4 nearly sleepless nights under my belt, I started to feel (and probably look) a little unpredictable. Go mama bear!

***Tangent #2: Wow, so glad I had a homebirth!!! Here's a novel idea medical drones, how about treating each case and patient individually instead of treating the illness as described in some little book or pamphlet somewhere. Hmmm....5.5 month old infant, respiratory illness, persistent high fever.....catheters are very painful and probably an unnecessary stress for a baby his age. One would think that a catheter would be a really distant option for diagnosing an infection of and unknown origin - for a person of any age. Want to rule out the possibility of a UTI? How about a urine sample from OUTSIDE the bladder. And since you are going to give him antibiotics anyway, won't they take care of any uterine infection anyway? And if you don't REALLY know what to do with the foreskin or how to deal with an intact penis, how about asking the mom - chances are she knows what to do and more importantly what NOT to do. Just my $0.02.

6. After refusing the catheter, I also refused the IV since his fever was down to 101 deg F. I wanted to try to nurse him before they gave him fluids (which, aside from being really stressful for Julian, probably have lots of nasties in addition to the"fluid"). Well, they gave him one anyway. They also gave him antibiotics in the IV even though I asked them not to. Grrr...

7. I called for backup. Our awesome friend Jodi found a sitter on short notice and came over. I called Brian and told him I wanted him there pronto and offered to call his boss myself if Brian wasn't going to (not the best idea, but I wasn't thinking clearly at that point).

8. "Doctor Whatever" came back and talked about admitting Julian. Ummm...no thanks! His fever was down, he was nursing again (so sad and pathetic to watch him try but not succeed to bend his little arm with the splint thing on because of the stupid IV),. In addition, there was NO WAY I was trusting my son with those folks. They had done enough. Doctor Whatever then proceeded to tell me that a 105 deg F fever was no big deal and that I shouldn't bring him back unless he is having a seizure. Even though I was under the impression that the whole reason for bringing him in with such a high fever was to avoid a seizure, I smiled and thanked him. After a few more condescending exchanges of no real importance, I took Julian home. Dr. Whatever gave us a prescription for antibiotics, told us that Julian had an ear infection, and instructed us not to listen to our pediatrician and to discontinue the treatment he had prescribed earlier in the week. Umm...ok, thanks again Dr. Whatever!

9. We called our pediatrician and he told us not to listen to Dr. Whatever and to hold off on the antibiotics a little longer.

10. Obviously dillusioned at this point with the medical establishment, we followed our hearts and the advice of Angela Harris, master herbalist and owner of Herbally Grounded. Instead of giving him antibiotics, we gave him Infection Fighter orally every hour and put Angel Oil in his ears twice a day. Within 24 hours, his fever was completely gone, and we are assuming with it, his infection.

We will be sending some literature to the ER at Summerlin Hospital to help them educate themselves about what to do with an intact penis - especially nurse know-it-all. It is the least we can do. After informing me that Julian would have problems for the rest of his life because of his intact penis and before being excused, nurse know-it-all asked, "Awww....honey...is this your first?", as if by it is only by some stroke of ignorance or naivete that Julian is not circumsized. Much like any important decision we make concerning Julian's' health and well-being, it was a very well researched and informed choice. Here is a good resource for anyone considering circumcising their little boy: Mothers Against Circ.

I wish, in retrospect, that we had tried to treat the sickness more aggressively with herbs from the get-go, but now we know. Lesson learned!!! Just in time for Julian to be feeling 100%, Brian and I came down with his serious crud. Of course, it was WAY worse for Brian, as only a Man Cold can be. Thankfully, we are all now feeling super and Julain is thriving as ussual.

Our New ProNeb Ultra II!

We are now the proud new owners of a ProNeb Ultra II nebulizer! Unfortunately, Julian has RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) and is one pretty sick baby. A few nights ago he woke up ON FIRE and had a consistently high fever for almost 2 days which peaked at a sizzling 104.2 degrees F. We narrowly escaped a trip to the emergency room, went to the doctor, and after several hundred dollars, are on the road to recovery. Below are some pictures of Julian feeling seriously crummy with a cold rag on his head. Even at his worst, he made attempts to grab at his toys and play despite being extremely lethargic. We were even getting some cute but weak smiles. So sad:(

At Long Last!

At long last, Julian finally cut those pesky bottom teeth!!! Since sleep has been nearly non-existent this week, I have been checking for teeth every time he wakes up, which has been a lot. I just knew this was the week (even though I have been saying that for over 3 months now)! This morning, Brian took him downstairs for me around 3:30 AM so I could finally get some shut-eye and when he came back at 7am (after a very fussy few hours) there were teeth! They are barely above the surface of the gums and are razor sharp. We will be celebrating with a glass of Belgian's finest tonight - none other than Chimay Grande Reserve.

Also, for those of you that have been waiting with bated breath, we have finally updated our pictures! The most photographed baby in Nevada continues to grow and seems to be changing on a daily basis. Stay tuned for new videos!

Please excuse the seemingly haphazard use of exclamation points (Seinfeld moment)...I am just so excited about those teeth!

"The Honeymoon is Over"

So apparently, the honeymoon is over according to AskDr.Sears.com. Ummm...wait, there was a honeymoon? Where? When? How the heck did we miss that? That's right, according to Dr. Sears, Julian should have been sleeping pretty well up till now and was probably a perfect little angel: "most babies sleep fairly well between one and four months of age, but now the honeymoon is over! Beginning around four months of age, baby may start waking up much more frequently at night. " Most nights, it isn't really possible for him to wake up more often. When he is awake it sometimes takes an hour of nursing, bouncing, rocking, shushing, and more nursing to get him back to sleep. Well, I guess we have to chalk it up to Julian not really fitting into the "most babies" category. Think square peg, round hole. A few weeks ago he actually fell asleep in the car seat for 2 hours, earning him the short-lived nickname "someone else's baby". We were so perplexed and excited that we just kept driving around. Luckily we live so close to Red Rocks and there is never a paucity of beautiful sights to see.

Julian is TEETHING!!! He has been for 3 months now. Call me a dreamer, call it wishful thinking, but I really think we're making some progress. The two little bottom teeth have been bulging for quite some time but his gums are really mushy and they seem to hurt most of the day and night. Please teeth, just come in already.

We are very close to giving Julian solids. We are going to be using a feeding philosophy called Baby-Led Weaning (BLW) but that's a subject for a different post ;). When in doubt, check Wikipedia. He has been reaching for and lunging at our food for over a month now. He also mimics "chewing" while watching us eat, sits very well unassisted, opens his mouth REALLY wide hoping some of our food will magically end up in there, and has a good pincer grasp. Since he has tummy issues, we are in no hurry to introduce solids, but since we are following his lead (hence, baby-led), it may happen sooner than we wanted it to. In the beginning, most babies usually end up playing with the food more than eating it and more food ends up on the floor than in their tummies. We are pretty excited about Julian being able to share mealtime with us, explore food, and make a HUGE mess!

Julian was 5 months old on January 18th. Where has the time gone??? Most people comment that he is "big for his age" and our neighbor even calls him "Bruiser". So - decide for yourself. Here are his 5 month specs:

Weight: 16lbs, 8oz
Length: 26.5in
Head Circumfrence: 18in

According to the infant growth calculator at justmommoies.com he is 50-75% for weight, 75-90% for length, and >97% for head circumference. At least he is consistent - especially his head. It has been huge since the beginning. It is so big that at first we were amazed that he could even hold it up for any length of time. Is head circumference directly proportional to intelligence? I digress....

Anyway - Julian is animated as ever and is a veritable chatterbox. He is repeating sounds and now loves to say da da da da da da da da ....ad infinitum, varying pitch and volume with mood. He is extremely expressive, at times yelling to signal that he is "all done". Speaking of signs, he has recognized "milk" for quite some time, and now responds to "all done" as well. We have been using the "potty" sign since the beginning but the jury is still out on that one....

What else...oh yeah. Julian puked in Brian's mouth while Brian was giving him an airplane. Bulls-eye, hole in one. Wish I could have seen it. I only witnessed the aftermath, but I guess that was funny enough. Ahhh, the joys of parenthood.


BTW, that first picture is just what it looks like (Julian catching Brian and I off guard and lunging at a funnel cake at 4 months - Xmas eve). He really went for it! Yes, I ate funnel cake. Yes it tasted good. Yes, it sat in my stomach like a brick. Yes I almost saw the funnel cake again in the middle of the night. No, I will not be eating anymore funnel cake. No, funnel cake was not Julian's first food...but it almost was. Below is a picture of Julian enjoying the scenery at Mt. Charleston.

Help Save Waterbirth International (WBI)!

Those of you who know us and have been reading our blog know that Julian was born in water. Bringing Julian into this world peacefully, without drugs or unnecessary medical intervention, having him born at home, and having him born into water were all tremendously important to us. We both feel very strongly about the importance of natural childbirth, of waterbirth, and of increasing awareness about natural childbirthing methods. That is why we feel compelled to pass this information along. It was written by Barbara Harper, Director of Waterbirth International. Pass it along and help if you can!

The Gentle Birth World Congress (GBWC) was an amazing gathering of midwives, nurses, doulas, childbirth educators, interested parents and doctors. ACOG even co-sponsored the event! Professionals and parents came from all around the world. Over 4000 visitors walked through our exhibit hall, viewed the Birth Art Photography displays, and attended free public lectures and the Mother/Baby Film Festival. We arranged for Ricki Lake herself to show the film, The Business of Being Born. It was a fabulous life-changing conference. Many miracles happened there. Some attendees have written about their experiences. An email I received just last week from Dr. Maria Elvisa Casals in the Philippines stated: "Many things shared in the Congress articulated what I already 'knew' was right for my patients but was contrary to my conventional training."


Waterbirth in the Media
There is much good news about all the accomplishments, media coverage and positive press that waterbirth in general has been having. At this moment we are on the eve of the theatrical release of Ricki Lake's film, The Business of Being Born, reviewed recently in the New York Times, and the completion of Debra Pascali Bonero's groundbreaking movie, Orgasmic Birth. Just last week, ABC's "Good Morning America" featured a segment on unassisted birth at home in water. So waterbirth is currently getting extensive exposure.

Code Blue: "We Have A Critical Situation Here"
This is all happening at the same time that Waterbirth International (WBI), our not-for-profit organization, is in a very critical situation. Unanticipated costs and challenges in producing the Gentle Birth World Congress have resulted in a debt of $200,000. We are now facing the prospect of closing our doors and, thus, ending our educational and charitable work in the world. Those who know me personally recognize that only dire circumstances could bring this about. I have already mortgaged my house and maxed out both the business and personal credit cards in an attempt to cover a small part of this debt.


Our Plea Circles the Globe
There are times in our lives when we stop and wonder: What does it all mean; why do things happen the way they do? Perhaps it is a good thing that Waterbirth International is in such a precarious financial position, because it is forcing us to reach out to the broader community.

A letter I wrote on January 8^th, asking for help, went to one person who posted it online, and it is now circulating on the Internet through grass-roots organizations, midwifery and doula groups. The show of support in response to this letter has been wonderful and generous. It made me feel down to the depths of my soul how appreciated and loved I am and how much everyone wants Waterbirth International to continue. I am so very grateful for this confirmation of our importance to the community. However, I can't do this alone. I don't want to do this alone. I am humbled to have been leading the way for waterbirth for the past 24 years.

It is obvious now that many people want to join with us and take on the responsibility of co-creating a way for WBI to survive and to prosper in the years to come, so we can witness waterbirth becoming an everyday event in the lives of birthing families.


How You Can Help
I am now entrusting the destiny of Waterbirth International to all of you. We need to raise at least $200,000 in immediate funding and also to create a plan for sustainability and growth. We have created a donation page on our website, and we welcome any level of financial support. Here are some ideas:

• Include us in your prayers
  


• Talk to people about waterbirth
  


• Buy a birth pool for yourself


• Buy a birth pool and donate it to your local midwife


• Send people to our website and link it on your website or blog


• Leap Year Special 'til 2/29 - buy one DVD and get one at ½ price (selected titles) - Donate your 2^nd copy to your local library or hospital


• Show Birth Into Being or Gentle Birth Choices locally, charge a small fee, and send us a contribution


• Hold a fundraiser and donate the proceeds
  


• Make a donation of any amount


• Become a Contributing member ($35)


• Become a Professional Member ($100)


• Become a "Life Time" Member ($1000)


• Ask grandparents to make a charitable contribution in their grandchild's name


• If you are a midwife make sure your clients know to register their babies on the "I Was Born in Water" list on the website


• Put up a donation jar in your office
  


• Guide us to people with financial means

We are creating a special page on the website where we will be listing all members and contributors. And volunteers have already come forward to create a quarterly online PDF newsletter, starting next month. The letters of support keep coming in. I know that no matter what happens, I'll continue to do the work that God called me to do and to make birth easier and more fulfilling for mothers, fathers and babies. I am trusting that the birth community will join with me to save Waterbirth International.

The mission statement of Waterbirth International is: We ensure that waterbirth is an available option for all women.

What part will you play in fulfilling this mission?

For our many supporters and for having had the opportunity to serve thousands of women and their families, I am deeply grateful. I will be holding the vision of working together with you for the next 20 years.

Sincerely,



Barbara Harper, Director Waterbirth International

I officially tender my resignation....

I officially tender my resignation as the spelling and grammar nazi. It's official, my brain is nothing more that a pile of gray mush. Neural connections that were once taught and rapidly firing action potentials now sluggishly sputter messages along sagging axons. How have I come to this conclusion? Well, I was making a Christmas gift for my parents and on the cover I shamefully wrote, "Oh how are family has grown." What's worse is that I must have read it over at least 10 times before I caught the egregious error. How embarrassing. My writing also seems to have an inordinate amount of commas when I go back to edit - maybe it's just because my brain pauses more often than it used to. In addition, I have lost the ability to discriminate between correct and incorrect compound words. When in doubt, I just fuse the two words in question together and hope for the best. Thanks god for spell check these days. I am in the process of trying to write several grants and let's just say that I am very nervous.

Truth is, Julian doesn't sleep much. Never has. Before we had him, I used to say, "Whatever, no big deal. I was in grad school. I can handle it." Well, it's a different kind of no sleep. In grad school you get to sleep eventually - for as many hours as you want. There is a reason that sleep deprivation is used as a form of torture.

Long before we were parents, every time I saw someone on TV pour milk from their baby's bottle into their coffee, I always said to myself, "Yeah right, like that really happens." That was, until I poured water into my salad instead of salad dressing, before I put my dinner in the cupboard instead of the microwave, closed the cabinet door, and then stared at it as if it was cooking, and before I tried to open the door to my office with the automatic door opener from my car. I just keep pressing the button while pointing the car door opener at the doorknob, cursing the damn thing for not working properly.

And then...Julian smiles at me. He is amazing. Sleep deprivation and all, we wouldn't trade this experience for anything....is anything one word or two? Seriously.

Here are some videos for your viewing pleasure: