Your words matter.
If you’ve got something to say and would like to contribute to The Doula’s Kitchen Blog, then I’d really love to hear from you. Sharing information, building communities and raising our voices to be heard is a very beautiful and necessary thing.
Snippets of childhood, part 1.
When I was a small girl, I used to make up imaginary children and register them with an imaginary doctor. There were always about 10 (mostly because I had so many names I liked) and I was always a mother who let these children roam around large fields, climbing trees and have picnics under enormous oak trees.
Affirmations. Why they are so powerful?
We’re all winging it.
Just incase you’d forgotten, we’re all winging it really.
Birth Bug-Bear; Birth IS you. (It doesn’t happen TO you.)
Big birth bug-bear.
“So, because my body has never birthed a baby before, I’m just going to let the journey unfold and allow for events to happen as they will.” *said I.
(Oh no, oh no, oh no, no, no...)
How do I get into the NOW moment?
How do we go from busy, busy, busy (relatable because I am a Busy Lizzie) to the conscious, Now moment?
With practice.
Are you expecting a baby this year?
Are you expecting a baby this year?
Are you hoping to finally be able to meet other parents-to-be in a safe space after such a long time in a virtual world?
Are you looking for antenatal, birth preparation, classes with the support of a doula, fear release coach and hypnobirthing teacher?
Using the incredible space at The Huddle - South West Bumps & Beyond C.I.C you can begin your parenting journey in a place that will support you and your family the whole way through those early years.
With Woman; International Day of the Midwife (IDM).
With Woman.
These two women, from Lincoln County Hospital, supported my first step into motherhood in 2008.
I am about 4 hours post emergency abdominal birth and the midwife on the right sat by my bedside reading a book during those first hours; gently passing me my baby for feeding and copious amounts of skin to skin moments.
Arms full of rhubarb.
Rhubarb polenta cake.
A @nigelslater recipe.
*I totally love the ways he talks and writes about food. It’s magical.
Five Things I do Every Day.
Here are five things I do every day;
As soon as my alarm goes off in the morning I spend five minutes in conscious gratitude. I am thankful and present, and I breathe deeply in The Now Moment.
Simple Suppers; the Doula Way.
Simple Suppers; the Doula Way.
“Good Morning” from The Doula’s Kitchen table.
The Doula’s Kitchen concept is more than food, and a whole lot more than a cup of mindful tea - it’s about connection and community.
✨How prepared are we for pregnancy really?✨
I’m 24 years old here, with my wonderful friend @preternatural.sophie , feeling oh, so, sick.I’m about 12 weeks pregnant with my eldest son.I’d been a nanny; I’d been 9 when my brother was born; I loved babies; I really wanted to be a mother.But it didn’t feel enough.
The Fourth Trimester.
I always went with four months; it’s a ‘period of time that takes you from your baby’s birth, to three months’.
I went with four, because that was the time their little heads peeped - bobbing and inquisitive - above the parapet that was the sling that held them close.
Just as they had transitioned from womb to world, now they were transitioning from wrap to world, unfolding gently into the bright lights of the life around them.
✨What is the price of a positive birth experience?✨
*Interestingly, I didn’t place a value on my first experience of birth, or my baby’s experience, until I’d done it.
💥‘Hypnobirthing worth is based on the value you place on your experience.’💥
Some things to think about;
✨Actively preparing for birth in a positive way can lessen the need for intervention.
Client Reviews
Definitely don’t take MY word for it.
I love the little whispers between friends - the discussions that turn into “oh you should really meet (🙋🏻♀️🙋🏾🙋🏼♀️🙋🏽♂️) I’ve worked with them and they’ve helped me to…”.
Because it’s about the FEELING you get when you’re with someone that matters.
Labour Line Beads
Labour line - or birthing line - beads.
It’s easy to forget that things have a beginning and an end - and for some, the visual interpretation of labour and birth can be a wonderful tool to support how we perceive time; and how some of us appreciate the sense of marking off moments in time as we reach a goal.
Birth Partners
“An empowered birth is one that is supported by at least one birth partner whose main focus is to promote, validate, and honour our emotional, spiritual and physical transition into motherhood during labour.” - Labor Like A Goddess
Pregnancy in a Pandemic
Pregnancy, Birth and Parenting in a Pandemic.
A wonderful chat with Sarah from @finallyamummy about pregnancy, birth and parenthood in a pandemic.
‘Village’ support, doulas, hypnobirthing and advocating for yourself.
The Doula’s Kitchen + Baby Wearing Southwest
Why keeping your baby close has so many benefits...
What do you need to know?
What should my baby wear?
What should I wear?!
Where do I position their legs?
When should I wear my baby?
Some random facts about me…
🙋🏻♀️Hello, hello and welcome!
I am joined in a rare photo with my eldest son, Arthur. He’s almost 13 and almost (almost) as tall as me.
Good grief.
Anyway, here are some random facts about me: