Support Us

Hello Dear Community-

We are reaching out for your support in our recent commitment to have a home birth.

On a deep level I have always had faith in the naturalness of birth, and more importantly in my power to birth how and where I feel most comfortable.  But for most of this pregnancy despite this inner desire to bring our baby into the world in a safe, supportive and intimate setting with my partner, I've only been able to see financial and social barriers.  So, instead of finding ways to move towards that which I most want, I've been trying to make the best of, or come to terms with what seemed like my only option. 

As my pregnancy has advanced, something has recently shifted in me.  As this little girl gets closer to entering the outside world, I'm now able to own what my real hopes and desires are for this birth.  I see that how we honor and participate in this Right of Passage impacts who we will be as parents.  We don't want to make choices for fear that we won't get what we want or that people won't understand our choices or might be uncomfortable.  Instead we want to move towards that which feels right in our hearts and that we think is most important and then have the grace to accept whatever actually happens.

So now that we trust in my body, trust in our intuition and trust in our resourcefulness, it is time to ask for what we need!  We've already received some financial support, my friend and step-sister Tara Brooke is gifting us her knowledge and support by offering to be our Doula and we have found a wonderful midwife, Sheila Vanderveer, that we really connect with, that feels very supportive and that we trust has the ability to safely guide us through this birth process- even if that means the hospital becomes the appropriate place to be.  She has graciously discounted her fees and given us a little extra time to come up with our funds, but we're gonna have to really pool all of our resources to make it happen!  We need to come up with $3,000 by my due date (Nov 24)!

We are asking for donations of any size or small no-interest loans with a promise that we'll pay you back within a year.  We will also have a jewelry and craft fundraiser on November 13th (details to come), just in time for your holiday shopping!  If you know any artists, jewelers or crafters in the San Francisco area that might be interested in selling their wares and donating a small portion of their sales to our cause, please have them email me at magichomebirth-at-gmail-dot-com.

OR

 

This entire pregnancy has been a great big challenging process of love, personal growth and discovery.  Since we've come to the decision of home birth, we have learned to trust in ourselves, we've deepened our faith in one another and we're becoming the parents we want to be.

Getting clear about this and then finding the motivation to take action has been so empowering.  It is already changing how we are in the world.  So boldly we are sharing our beliefs and desires with our community and asking that we be supported as thoughtful, caring and capable parents.

Love,
Lenaya & Brian

Capturing Our Home Birth

Just wanted to share a special thanks to Diane Rieger for her generous offer to shoot our home birth!  I think it'll be a wonderful gift, both to our family and also to the home birth community at large, to have beautiful professional visual memories of this momentous occasion.  The more we can change what our image of giving birth looks like the more we can normalize the natural and beautiful act of laboring and birthing.

Thank you Diane!

http://www.dianecaraphotography.com

Support Natural Resources a wonderful SF resource

Please see the below from the owner of Natural Resources:

Keep natural resources in your community!

Natural Resources has been serving parents of all walks of life, from pregnancy through early parenting, for almost 25 years. We've shared many joys with our customers, first smiles, first laughs, first steps, first words. We've had women stop in while in early labor so we can embrace their excitement of what is to come. We get to congratulate partners and grandparents coming in shortly after birth with lists of "Oops, we realize we also need...." Often a mother's first trip out with her baby is to Natural Resources where she knows she will be welcomed and supported while she nurses in a comfortable glider. Over the years, we've been part of so many heartwarming and memorable experiences.

Natural Resources has been feeling the effects of our challenging economic times with the last couple months proving especially difficult. All efforts to revitalize Natural Resources, whether by selling the business, finding a partner, or just simply by bringing in funding, have been unsuccessful. At this point, instead of closing our doors, we are turning to all of you to help keep us going.

If you or anyone you know has benefited from our organization, please consider helping us. If everyone on our email list donates just $10 we will reach our goal.

Your contributions will be the foundation for Natural Resources to continue to support families for many years to come. As a thank you for your contribution we are offering special perks to our supporters.

Please visit www.indiegogo.com/naturalresources

to learn more about our fundrasing efforts and to contribute to our campaign.

With hope and gratitude,
Cara Vidano and the Natural Resources Family

Pre-Sale Raffle Tickets

Pre-Sale Tickets Available Now!  Prizes drawn following Nov. 20th Craft Sale Event. You don't need to be present to win! (but we'd still love to see your face at the event!) # of tickets 1 Raffle Ticket $3.00 USD 3 Raffle Tickets $5.00 USD 5 Raffle Tickets $10.00 USD 10 Raffle Tickets $20.00 USD

RAFFLE with over $1000 in prizes...

Raffle Prizes generously brought to you by...

Ajira Darch-Sharp - Photographer
~Mini Photo Session~510-213-8715
Ajira Darch Photographer

Kristin Hoppe - Food Therapy
~Nutrition Consultation Session~
4200 18th St., Ste 204
San Francisco, CA 94114
(415) 407-7339
www.foodtherapysf.com/

Dr. Aidean Kinsella, DC - Verve Chiropractic
~New Patient Package~ 
3380 20th St, Ste 102
San Francisco, CA 94110
415.643.3070
www.vervechiro.com

Kiran Gaind - Ray of Light Coaching
~New Parent Life Coash Session~
(415) 377-6791
www.rayoflightcoaching.com

Sheehan Chiropractic
~ Exam and an adjustment~
915 Irving St.
San Francisco, CA 94122
415-681-1031
http://www.laurasheehan.com/


Massage Mission - Chimene Rosales
~Pre-natal Massage~
415-370-4722
www.massagemission.com


Daniela Freda, L.Ac.

 Specializing in Women's Health and Healthy Pregnancy
~Healthy Pregnancy Consultation Appointment ($120 value)~
543 Castro Street
San Francisco, CA 94114
(415) 335-0238
http://danielafreda.com/


Ursula Xanthe Young
~Art Print~
http://ursulayoung.com/


Jen Johnson
~Necklace~
http://www.etsy.com/shop/mamasmagicstudio


Magic Curry Kart
Catering Services in 2012
Cater up to 30 guests / 2 hours - serving 2 items / Serving within SF
http://www.magiccurrykart.com

We made our goal!

Wow, I can't believe it, we made our goal!!!  Thank you sooooooooooooooo much for your generous support.  It has been a most awesome and inspiring experience to be loved and supported by our community.  I can't tell you enough what a great learning it has been going through this process and asking for help.

Even though we've made our goal, we're still going to try and raise more funds, because there are other hidden costs that we hadn't thought about and getting our final ducks in a row for the arrival of our little one is showing us what things we still need to prepare.

So, I still plan on hosting a jewelry/craft event on November 20th from 12:30p-3:30p at 518 Valencia St, SF 94110.  If you live in the neighborhood, please come by and do some holiday shopping while supporting us in our greatest adventure.  If you know anyone who might like to pick up some jewelry or crafty gifts for their mom, sister or favorite doula, send them our way!  We'll be raffling some great services, so keep an eye out :)

Lots of love to you all,
Lenaya & Brian

Grandma had a home birth

So I have to confess that I was a little reluctant to share my decision to have a home birth with everyone.  I was select when I firth put the word out.  I began with the home birth, doula and midwife communities.  I sort of needed to have affirmation.  And boy were we affirmed and encouraged, so we leaked it out to close friends and people a part of our day to day communities.  As word spread, I realized I would and should share our decision with everyone.  This is what it is to truly own our decision.  So I crafted a carefully worded email to send to old friends and family that I hadn't heard the news yet. 

Why was I so reluctant to share the word more broadly?  Well, because I realize not everyone has been exposed to the idea of home birth as a safe and normal place to birth a baby.  Many people have a strong fear of being anywhere else but a hospital come birth time.  And I totally get that, and for those people, I would imagine that the hospital would be the best place for them.  But I'm the one birthing this baby.  Hospitals are not places that make me feel safe.  Doctor's are not people who make me feel safe.  Doctors and hospitals are totally necessary and I'm incredibly grateful for their availability and expertise when I'm in an actual emergency or have gotten truly sick and need some serious medicine.  But for the natural processes that our bodies were meant to do, I'd rather have a friend, a partner, an experienced guide or even a spiritual leader hold my hand and support me through this natural, but admittedly "big deal" process.

Anyhoo, I was afraid I would start getting the phone calls, "what are you doing?," "are you crazy?," "are you sure it's safe?," and so on and so on.  Even though I had done my research and felt confident in my decision, I wasn't sure I would be able to ease all of the worries.  In my email I made it clear that we were close to the hospital and ready to go there in the event that a medical condition warranted it or if I came to a place where I opted for it.  Also, I assured them that our midwife was well equip with monitoring devices, emergency medication and the knowledge and experience to transfer us to a hospital if necessary.

At first I didn't hear any response.  This just made me more nervous.  Where they gathering and planning an intervention?  Would this be a reason to just stop talking to me?  But a day or two later I got an email from my dad.  Home birth is actually not a foreign concept to him.  He was born and raised in the Philippines and, duh, many births take place at home!  He said it was still common there especially in small towns like where he lived, because there aren't hospitals nearby.  I had never really thought about that.  I've been to the Philippines, so I should of thought of that.  So maybe it wouldn't actually be that difficult for my dad's side of the family to think about.

Well, the result of that email I sent out was nothing but support and I'm so touched and humbled by that.  It's a reminder to trust in people.  Whether everyone understands my decision or not they have supported me.  I am so blessed to have such amazing support!

After my dad got me thinking about what birth in the Philippines was like for them.  I didn't know the birth stories of my dad or any of his siblings.  A couple nights later after receiving donations from family that I had not expected nor solicited from, I had a dream I was at a gathering with my dad's side of the family.  I'm not sure what we were doing, but we were all hanging out in a room sitting in a circle.  I saw my Lola (who passed many years ago) sitting there.  She was a younger version of herself and wearing a formal dress suit and a hat.  I sat at her feet and she leaned over to me and said, "you know, it's going to be OK, I had a home birth with a midwife too."  I don't remember anything else from the dream, but I held on to that.  I was close to my Lola and it was so sweet that she came to me in a dream to tell me her story.

A few days later I was talking to my dad on the phone and his eldest sister, Alma, was there.  He told me that she was planning on donating to me and to look for a check in the mail.  So I asked to talk with her so I could thank her for her support.  As we were talking and I had already forgotten to ask about their births, she mentions that she was born at home.  Actually the 3 eldest sibling had been born at home!  There is something so special in knowing that.  I guess it's just a reminder how connected I am to a natural birth history.  We all area really, hospital births are relatively new in our human history.

Belly Photo Shoot

Brian and I realized that our little baby is going to show up ANY day now, so if we want some belly shots we better try for them.  Outfitted with actual film and a 35mm camera, plus our iPhones, we did our own little photo shoot. The film still needs to be developed, but here is what the iPhone caught...

Part 1 was taken on Treasure Island a couple of weeks earlier.
Part 2 was taken in Heritage Park, La Honda, CA @ 36 weeks pregnant






Later my friend Spencer took some prego shots of me over by Chrissy Fields

Circle of Life

I wanted to share this insight I felt when I was watching the movie 50/50 the other day. The movie was pretty lovely and Seth Rogan is hilarious, but I'll spare you my critical analysis of the entire movie, I'll just say it's worth checking out. I think being pregnant I feel more connected to the fact that birth and death have an intimate relationship. They are the passages in and out of this world. Without spoiling the movie I'll just tell you it's about a young man diagnosed with cancer and his odds for survival are 50%, hence the title. Well, one of the things I realized watching the hospital scenes is how sensitive and intimate it is to be faced with mortality and the medical world is very ill equip to deal with the emotional and spiritual aspects of death and illness. I've heard that there is a special kind of "midwife" that assists in the death process. That makes so much sense to me! I think there needs to be a midwife and/or doula for death. It is too important of a transition in our life to be unassisted in that way! It is our final moment on this plane, just as sacred as our first moments.

We are overwhelmed by your love and support!

We just received a $1000 cashier check with no return address and signed from your fans. We are in complete awe! Tears of joy are being shed. Truly we're not sure how to even absorb such an amazing gift. We want to send out our heart felt love and appreciation to ALL of you who are making this possible. To those of you supporting us through kind words, actions, and money! Seriously, it feels like nothing short of a miracle. I must tell you that the inspiration I have received from this journey is life altering. I am touched and will not be the same. I have a feeling that after I get to spend some serious quality time with this little girl, I'm going to have to start a home birth fund! I want to keep giving and sharing support the way we have received. Phew, I need to let this sink in.

Thank you! Thank you!

$1000 Cashiers Check "From Friends Who Love You"

I must admit it has taken me awhile to get onboard with the home birth process. Part due to my ignorance about the process and partially due to my fear that we couldn't afford it. When it became clear to me how important it was to Lenaya, I agreed despite my misgivings. As I began to learn more about the process of birth and the often disempowering way women are treated at the hospital my eyes opened to the possibility of a different birth experience in our own home. I realized that this was really one of my first real actions as a parent and it made me begin to think about how I want my daughter to come into this world. From what I've learned the most important factor in this process is that mother and baby feel safe and supported through this process. Despite this new understanding I still felt that our financial reality did not allow for this to be a real possibility. I felt full of fear about this financial burden and had little faith that we could make it happen. My amazing partner, Lenaya, was in a completely different space; she was full of faith and belief that we should not limit ourselves by what we can see. I was skeptical and dubious as she setup the blog, starting planning, a fundraiser and put the call our to our communities. I was still struggling with some shame and stories about how we would be seen as irresponsible parents not being able to take care of ourselves. Combined with a string of disappointments with the Magic Curry Kart and starting the dreadful process of job hunting, I found myself feeling a bit hopeless in the face of such an exciting and amazing process. I had lots of judgement towards myself and I think expected to be judged by others. To my bewilderment I have been met with unbelievable kindness, generosity and support from family, friends and complete strangers. This morning we received a $1000 cashiers check from our "fans" with a memo: "From Friends Who Love You". Despite trying to act like a tough guy from a small cowboy town in Northern Arizona this struck me to the core and I can't stop the hot tears from running down my face. I think I felt that we somehow didn't deserve help but I'm learning that the opposite is true, we all deserve and need help somewhere along the road. Thank you to all who have supported us through this process in so many ways. It feels so sweet how loved we are and how loved our baby girl will be.

Business of Being Born

Believe it or not we're just watching this for the first time and we highly recommend you watch it too if you haven't yet.







Watch online:
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/business-being-born/

Looking for Art

I'd like to use images to create magnets and jewelry for my home birth Jewelry and Craft fair.  Doesn't feel right to steal images off the internet, so I thought I'd put a shout out and see if you'd like to share.  I won't use your images beyond the use of this event without your permission.  If you have made birth art and have photos, jpeg or other digital images that I could use, please email to me at magichomebirth-at-gmail-dot-com.  Thanks!

Needing to Rest

I'm in the home stretch of this pregnancy and so much is telling me it's time to take care of myself, to focus on getting our baby and I ready for labor.  But life doesn't always want to coordinate.  Of course, I suppose some of that it has to do with learning to let go.

Brian and I have been running a small food business that he started a couple of years ago.  It's still pretty new and we've learned almost everything about it from on the job training!  It's sustained us for the last year though, so I guess it's been going well enough.  It is has constantly been evolving and I guess growing, which has been great, but with this huge transition in our life, I think we're both craving more predictability and a bigger sense of security.  Is that out there for us?

In an effort to make some extra money, and with hopes that it would give Brian a little breathing room so he could slow down and cozy up with us at home for a couple weeks after the birth, we decided to take on a sudden opportunity to vend at a few large festivals.  The expectation for bigger than usual financial outcomes coaxed us into taking the plunge on a pretty big expansion of the business.  We had to invest in material infrastructure and we had to figure out how to plan, staff and execute the largest events we've ever been a part of!  All this while I entered my third trimester and suddenly felt my body ask me to slow down!  Wow, what a challenge.  A great learning!  Filled with some serious accomplishments and some serious disappointments.

As the three festival challenge comes to an end, I'm left feeling exhausted and disappointed that we didn't find the financial relief we were looking for.  More than that, I feel the weight of it all on my partners shoulders and I feel sorry, a little lame and completely useless.  I know I have to just let go and focus on my most important job now which is the well being of the mommy vessel and the precious cargo inside, but Brian is my partner in many more ways than one and I find myself worried about how he's being supported.  I know we just have to trust and actually I do.  I trust things will continue to work out for us.  I trust that we're skilled enough, resourceful enough, and connected enough to adapt to our changing life.  I just want to share my faith with him, so that he doesn't have to carry all the worry, so that he can be present to the joyous miracle we are in the midst of.

I guess what I need to trust in, is Brian.  That he can manage his own feelings around all of these changes;  That he can find perspective in our tenuous business developments;  That he will reach out for the support he needs and that he can also receive the blessings that abound.

Heart Swell

Dear Community-

I don't even know what to say!  Thank You!  We have already raised $620 since I posted this and I have 3 people who have come forward in interest of helping with the jewelry and craft event!  I am so touched and overwhelmed.  I realize that this is so much more than us just having a home birth and it's even bigger than us being the parents we want to be.  This is us being supported!  This is our community growing and becoming ever more a part of our lives.  This is such beauty that I hardly know what to say.  It makes me want to paint a picture of the swelling I feel in my heart, for I could never find the words to fully express these emotions!  Thank you!

This weekend has actually been a bit stressful and checking in on our website response just turned my frown upside down!  I've been thinking about all the thoughts swirling in my head and I would like to try and keep up with some of them... a few are worth sharing.  Please check-in, because I plan to post daily, or as near to daily as I can!  More on that this evening :).

Love,
Lenaya

Nourish Us

Greetings Friends and Family,

As you know, my family will be inviting our new baby girl into the world (due 11/24/11). We are very excited for our new addition and are doing what we can now to prepare us for the birth and what to expect as our lives change forever. 

We've found MamaKai and have registered to receive healing meals delivered to our door around our "birth"day. MamaKai will give us the freedom to bond with our new baby, relieving us from the stress of "what to eat" for our nutritional and breast feeding needs, and ensuring that we bounce back quickly.

Thank you for being in my community and for aiding me in the great miracle of parenthood! Every dollar counts and I sincerely appreciate your help in providing us with comforting and nourishing foods. 

Click HERE to show your support and MamaKai will do the rest! 

What other new mommies say about MamaKai:

The nourishing, nutrient-rich food prepared with love by Angie enabled me to enjoy a healthy, complication-free pregnancy. I was amazed by how quickly my body healed after child birth and postpartum. I continue to feel healthy and vibrant both physically and mentally. Also, Angie makes it so easy to eat well; by stocking my refrigerator with healthy food all I have to do is reheat it for a delicious meal in a matter of minutes. A healthy baby starts with a healthy mother and I am thrilled to have a baby who is calm and happy and sleeps well through the night! - V.P.K. – Berkeley -