I was just telling my mother today that I hate leaving projects only partially finished. It gets under my skin and make me irritable and anxious and I don’t like to live those emotions every day.

I don’t think that I am anywhere near finished with this blog but I need to set it on the back burner and I don’t know when I will pick it up again. I also don’t know what it will look like when I start blogging again because childbirth has taken up every crevice of space in my brain and there is bound to be more posts on pregnancy, childbirth and newborns.

I already wrote about taking my doula workshop course back in May of this year but since then I have had a great summer gearing up my business, searching for clients, meeting with clients and I am now swamped with work, trying to keep my house in order while I’m on call to run out the door to help my next client and I need to slow down. I’m not slowing down my doula work because I love it and it feels amazing to be doing something that fills me with so much joy.

I need to slow down my blogging though because I’ve lost the joy. It feels like work and nobody like work s I am putting Jen the Mom aside for now and I’ll pick it up again when the time feels right.

For now, if you want to get in touch with me you can still leave a comment and I’ll respond or you can search for me on facebook under First Embrace Doula Services. On this doula page I am continually adding information, news articles and medical journal entries that deal with childbirth so if you’re looking for that you can find it all on facebook.

Thanks everyone for reading, commenting and being patient.

Bonjour!

Jen (the Mom)

I could spread our week long vacation into several blog posts which would make it look like I’m blogging more often but I’m not really. I have been busy trying to get more doula clients, work at the store, finish our homeschool year and then we took off for an unexpected trip. I am accepting that I am not going to be able to blog as often as I would like.

So, here’s my week at the beach in one blog post.

We weren’t aware that we would be at the beach only 24 hours before we were there. I got a phone call first thing in the morning on Wednesday inviting us to Osoyoos for a week. Less than 24 hours later we were in BC, unloading our van and running into the lake. There are fewer things more fun than an unexpected trip to the beach!

We spent the whole week picking cherries, floating in the water, eating root beer floats and going for massage. Wait, that last one was just me!

I wish I could give you a whole list of amazing things we did while in BC but the cherries, water and root beer kept us pretty busy.

We’re now home and trying to get all back to work. I’ve been meeting with potential clients, Chuck’s been working like crazy and now we’re both crashing. I should take a picture of Chuck sleeping in bed right now. What better way to spend a Saturday after a week at the beach, right?

By the way, enjoy your Independence/ Canada Day weekend everyone!

First of all a big congratulations to Angi who won the Dad Day books!

YEAH!! WAHOO!!!

I’m sorry I didn’t post the winner on Thursday like I said I would but life got hectic and Angi lives close by so I took the easy route and hand delivered the books. Not quite as exciting but hey!

This post isn’t going to be very long because my computer has decided to type s-l-o-w-l-y. I can type as fast as I want to but the letters appear very slowly. You might be asking about the resident computer guru in my house and I would reply that although I do have a resident computer guru I have been asking for his talents to be elsewhere.

Oh! You dirty minds!

Chuck is working ion a couple other projects for me and one of them is to find all the coolest applictions for my new HTC Legend! Do you know what a Legend is? It’s legendary!

Isn’t it the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen?!? So, the slow finger typing on my computer has been pretty easy to ignore while I’ve been playing with my new toy.

Speaking of toys, Chuck’s mom came over to celebrate all the kids’ birthdays and brought gifts for all of them. All of the kids got something they really wanted without getting too spoiled. Jason got a little bit of money towards a full fce helmet that he’s saving for. I’m opposed to him doing BMX tricks until he has a helmet that will protect him from having any more teeth damaged. Call me crazy!

Jocelyn got a pair of gold stud earrings since she recently got her ears pierced. Laurelyn got a set of ponies because she’s obsessed with horse and My Little Ponies. She carries ponies around with her all day. David got a tow truck to add to his collection of trucks. He reminds me all the time that there are still trucks that he doesn’t have like a bobcat, an excavator and a bulldozer. Picky kid, eh?

My two fingers are getting sore from finger typing but I finally updated my blog with the giveaway winner (YEAH ANGIE!) and there’s new pictures.

I think we’re due for some outdoor play in the sunshine so I can get some better pictures of the kids. I forgot to bring my camera when we went hiking last weekend. It was tragic really because we hiked a beautiful trail up to the Upper Falls of Johnson’s Canyon, saw a bear, went out for a scrumptious dinner and made a stop at the candy store. I can’t believe I don’t have pictures to share with you!

I’m packing my camera into my purse at this very moment.

Later gaters!

Father’s Day is coming up! I love Fathers Day because my kids get so excited to celebrate their dad. They make plans for a breakfast in bed, hand made gifts and as many hugs as their arms can give. I love seeing them so anxious to get ready for Dad Day.

I am having a Blog Giveaway in honor of Dad Day. I have two books for one lucky Dad to win. The first book is called Memento, My Life in Story by Michael McQueen.

It’s a beautiful red book filled with thoughtful questions for Dad to answer. The book was inspired by Michael McQueen’s experience of finding a journal after his father’s death. The journal was filled with advice, stories, life anecdotes. That journal sparked the idea to make Memento.

The second book that I’m giving away is called Dear Dad. It’s my favorite book because I love looking through the pictures of fathers and sons together. Some of the pictures are tender, some are funny but all of them tell a story.

Here’s an example of the pictures inside this book.

Besides the pictures there are also quotes about fatherhood and parenting that add to the charm of the book.

If you want to win these two great books to give away on Dad Day just leave a comment.

I will randomly choose a winner on Thursday. Only 2 more days to this giveaway so tell your friends!

I am not going to write here about my client, who they are or about the baby. What I want to write about is what I learned.

I learned that women are stronger than I knew.  Does strong mean that everything goes perfectly? No! We can’t control everything but we can control how we react to everything around us and a woman who pushes herself farther than anyone could have guessed and then takes it one step after that. A woman who can laugh, tell jokes, cry, and then give it her all. That’s a woman I want to be around. I thought I knew about birth but I don’t. I know so little.

All I can think about is crawling into that bed with her and asking her to tell me everything she learned, everything she knows because I am in awe.