I've Moved...

I've moved...well my BLOG has moved.  If you currently subscribe to this blog, please join me on my new site:

http://beinglorie.wordpress.com/


I hope you will stay with me and subscribe to my new site.  I am vowing to be a better blogger for 2013.  I swear, I really do blog in my head everyday...does that sound as weird as I think it does?

Peace,
L

Hello Bali!

Saying good bye was tough.

Love you Kevin!

They say it's the journey and not the destination.  So far, I totally have to agree.  Somehow my travel partner, Miriam, and I have turned what could have been described as a tortuous trip into a long, albeit brutally entertaining adventure.  Never doubt two women who are used to working long hours with little/no sleep to find ways to entertain ourselves and others.  Sorry Colleen, no show tunes ;)

Hello Moscow!

Entertainment along the way including talking our way into the cockpit of the airplane for a horseheading photo opportunity!  Checkout facebook for that picture!



Our lovely first stop is at Maya Loka Villas in Seminyak.

Lovely private pool and outdoor living room!


Off now for an adventure.  Will blog and add photos later today...loving the sketchy internet here...yeah, I know.  It's tough!

Peace.

Almost time

In less than one week I will be traveling to Bali for the workshop of a lifetime.  Surreal. Yep, surreal.

I am usually an extremely organized trip planner and packer.  The neurotic one that makes a folder with ridiculous amounts of information on the area, lodging, etc.  And now...I'm traveling further than I've ever been and I've done...well...not much of anything.

I don't feel rattled but rather have this desire to travel light and let the trip unfold.  I do acknowledge that at some point this week I am going to have to do something with these empty suitcases that are starring at me, I'm just not sure when ;)

And unfolding this journey is.  The original tickets for the trip were purchased through Travelocity four months ago.  One word of advice, NEVER do that. EVER! In a nut shell, they lost the connection in Korea and cancelled the tickets.  That left me and my travel buddy, Miriam, without tickets two weeks before our trip!  After an initial freakout, 7 hours on the phone with customer service (I use that term loosely) at Travelocity, a call to Chase Bank to dispute the charges so I could get the money back to rebook another flight (they wanted to wait 6 weeks to refund), we are now booked through another company. 

This is where it gets interesting or at least the trip will be.  Because we booked so last minute (thanks again Travelocity!) we are now leaving one day earlier and added 8 hours to an already crazy long trip resulting in a 38 hour journey one way and will now be traveling to locations such as Moscow Russia, Frankfurt Germany and Singapore in our quest to arrive in Bali...of course at a increased rate from our original ticket.  Again, thank you Travelocity.

What's that saying...it's not the destination, it's the journey?

And you know what?  It is the journey.  I've never had this much down time in my life.  I refuse to be frustrated by it and will embrace the gift hidden in this hot little mess and savor it.  Life is what you make it and this is champagne suffering.  I'm going to flippin' Bali! Oh my gosh, I'm actually going!

Subscribe to my blog if you are interested in updates along the way.  I plan to blog my way around the globe, taking  timeouts to be in the moment, spending time with amazing teachers and absorbing the magic that is Bali.

Peace.
Lorie

It's been a while...

Yeah, it's been a while since I blogged.  I think I blog in my head sometimes, does that count?

Anyway, it's been an amazing summer so far.  Full of high points and of course a few of those moments that slap you back to reality.  Reality checks are good, not enjoyable, but purposeful.

Highlights for the summer.  A getaway to Bimini.

My son asked if I was trapped in a Cornona commercial...well, duh!

And yes, it did wash it all away....

Of course, I returned as most of us do, and hit the ground running.

Lots of AMAZING stuff going on  right now!  The business is growing and growing and ugh, the business side of business is not nearly as much fun as attending a birth.  I know, I know.   I am grateful. I am blessed. I am tired.

Speaking of AMAZING....we co-sponsored the "Big Latch On" event for breastfeeding awareness yesterday.  Wow. Just wow, the number of families that came out and participated.  It was like an Amazing Births & Beyond reunion.  My heart was full.

Stacy & I at the ABB table!

BIG crowd for the latching. So awesome!

It has recently come to my attention that the Bali trip begins in 9 weeks! Holy smoke, when the trip was planned back in January, it felt like a lifetime away.  Not anymore.  Excitement for the workshop is building and final plans are being made. Whoo hoo, this is really happening! Total immersion birthing workshop in what I'm envisioning as one of the most beautiful places on earth...yeah, maybe a tad bit giddy ;)

Miriam and I have decided to do a little fundraiser for Bumi Sehat, Robin Lim's birth center in Bali.  Of course it will be ridiculously silly and hopefully do the trick and raise some funds.  Thank you to Tricia at Click.Capture.Create. Photography for capturing the images and to writer David Stebbins for lending his creative genius to the campaign.  ALL will be revealed this week.  Silly, yes. Ridiculous, but of course. Effective, please help us make it so for SUCH a worthwhile cause.

Here's your clue....curious now?  I REALLY HOPE SO ;)

Well, I'm off to go pull myself together to teach a HypnoBirthing Class this morning.  Stacy, the usual instructor is at a birth.  This has been the flavor of the last couple of months, so many births and lots of impromptu filling in.  It's honestly a wonderful feeling to sense so much energy coursing through the little birth house.

Life is good.  It really is.

Peace.
Lorie

It happened...

The morning  of Friday, June 22, 2012 started out with a flurry of activity!  Two first-time mamas were in labor, one was a homebirth in Jupiter and the other, our potential FIRST birth center birth.  The birth teams assembled, plans were made and we were all off to our respective positions.

Midwife Miriam, Allie and I headed to Jupiter to assess that mama with the hopes that we would be back before the birth center client gave birth.  It appeared to be neck and neck all day as we were updated of the happenings at the birth house.

SO...

at 5:05pm, the first baby was born at the Palms Birth House.  Please welcome baby Laine Jean!  It was a sweet, sweet birth and I would love to say that I was present, but alas, I cannot tell a lie ;)

The faces of joy!

Exactly two hours and 5 minutes later, beautiful Ruby Christina was sweetly born in her parents bed.

The birth team, including Lucy the pup!

After settling in this sweet family, we headed back to the birth house to meet our "first family" and tie up the loose ends of the day.  It was quite a day!  Two sweet births = One terrific day!

**Giggle of the day was provided by our office girl, Angie.  She went to Midwife Miriam's car to retrieve a stamp pad for the babies foot prints and returned with a placenta.  I think her expression pretty much sums up how she felt about the discovery!

 I think she likes it??

**Lesson of the day was provided by the universe.  You are EXACTLY where you are supposed to be. Period :)


Anyway....so, it's official!  We are open for business at the birth house.  Thank you to Laine's parents who trusted us with their special delivery.  May there be MANY more babies to be born in our little house. 

Peace.

Another week

What a sweet ending to a VERY full week.  Yesterday was baby Liam's dedication ceremony in Ocala.  Kevin and I made the trek up on Saturday and got home last night.  (Allie you are still my hero...how the heck have you been making this weekly trek for over 2 years???) Liam's ceremony was sweet and well attended.  What a lucky boy to have multiple sets of grandparents and two sets of great grandparents around to love him!  (pictures soon)

After the ceremony we stopped back at my parents to pack up and grab our pups.  While there we  had a surprise visit from a special young woman that Kevin and I  had a hand in raising.  Shannon, it was so nice seeing you and the mature young woman you have become.  Let's not wait so long again!  You are beautiful and bright and it just doesn't seem that long ago that you and Bryan were silly children!


And so.....another full week starts today.

Lots of babies and bellies in classes....working with women having fertility challenges...the Birth Assistant training begins on Thursday and of course the usual unanticipated sweet chaos that is always present in a birth house.

Speaking of the birth house, our "team" shirts arrived on Friday.  These will be our official shirts to wear to births.  Thanks Miriam!

Cute!

Have a beautiful week.  That's my plan.

Peace.

Ahhhh

What a terrific week, culminating in a MUCH needed chill weekend!

First of all...

My men!

My son, Bryan, made the SWAT team for the agency he works for.  I'm so terribly proud of him....and of course a little worried too ;)

When I posted this announcement on my Facebook page, I was a little surprised to see some of the responses.  They ranged from a celebratory tone to one of concern that my son will use his position to harm people.  Uh...no!  Yikes :(

Secondly...

I had the honor of attending another AMAZING birth.  I love this couple, their passion for each other and their commitment to creating the birth they desired for their son.  They prepared for their birth with HypnoBirthing (Dad asked for HypnoBirthing classes for his birthday! I love this guy!) and chose a midwife and doula for a homebirth. 

The sisterhood of birth. 

The magical moment!

Midwife Colleen & I have a moment with baby Jynsen :)

 As I drove home, exhausted, but so happy, the smell of birth lingered on me.  I don't mean this in a "gross" way, but rather, in a very sweet way.  The intermingled scents of everyone present at the birth was clinging to my clothes and my hair.  That distinctive co-mingled scent that clings to every damp body holding the space for a mother...the smell of sweat, tears, blood, amniotic fluid...and at least for me, it reminds me of why I follow my path.  Of why this IS important.

Lastly....

I was OFF CALL for the weekend! I had an entire holiday weekend to do absolutely nothing.  And I did....do absolutely nothing.  

Except...

spend Saturday on the beach....

Float in my pool on Sunday....

and celebrate Memorial Day with friends on Monday.

Perfect, and much needed down time!

It's Tuesday and time to get back to work.  Time to get ready for the FIRST birth at the Palms Birth House.  It's so exciting!!

Peace.

Mission Accomplished!

It's all a little surreal right now.  Actually a lot.

The Palms Birth House has been recommended for license as a birth center.  (oh gosh, I'm crying again...)

The analogy of birth is and was very much relevant to this whole process. Kind of ironic, huh?!

First of all, it has taken 9 months (yes, we started LAST August!)

Secondly, the inspection process was very much like a LABOR.  A very long, challenging labor.  One where we needed support, lots of support.  The care provider/aka our one dimensional inspector was not a great fit for us.   (If this were an actual OB/Midwife, we would have ran. Ran Fast. Ran to another provider with a similar view point.)  We did the best we could with the hand we were dealt.  Kinda like an OP baby lol.  You know that if you can just work with it, be patient, it will be okay.  That fighting the process will not get you the results you are looking for.  To give you an idea of what we were dealing with..."This is an inspection, NOT a discussion..." yes, this was our inspectors mantra. (remember...this is the same inspector that failed us the first time!)

As the day went on (5 hrs) we were literally breathing and pacing...a few tears were shed...we fought the desire to escape and just forget about it....our confidence was shaken and then bolstered...and then....

We gave birth to the ONLY birth center in Palm Beach County.

And she is beautiful.

And more tears were shed. Lots of them.

Time to celebrate...and fix our makeup ;)

Thank you. Simply thank you to all of you who supported us from conception to birth.  Thank you to my amazing husband who gave up his entire summer last year to create something beautiful at "our little house"...thank you to my parents and ALL of the people who came and painted, planted and gave of their time and money to be part of our vision.  Thank you to all of you (and you know who you are) that doula'd us thru our labor via texting and facebook.  Thank you Rivkah for my favorite quote of the day during our labor..."if you can build it, you can birth it"....thank you Beatriz for the holy water...luckily no one burst into flames, including our inspector ;)

Peeks at the journey....

Painting...and painting...and painting last summer.

Thank you honey...I love your support of my dreams!

Thank you Stephanie for adorning our walls with your talent and spirit!

Zak man-ing up with a beer to go with the pink paint!

 

Thank you Michael for your talent and humor!

Construction Yoga...there's always time for yoga ;)

 We are excited about the future of this little birth house and the option now available to families in Palm Beach County.  The women of Amazing Births & Beyond and the Palms Birth House are grateful for the continued support of us both professionally and personally. Eternally grateful.

Peace and Gratitude.

We love you.  We honestly do.

Happy Mother's Day

I want to thank my mother for setting such a good example for me and wish her a special day today.  Mom, I'm sorry I can't take you to lunch and give you a hug today but I'm sure you can feel my love from afar.

Mom & I in NYC...ironically, that is exactly where I am today

I would like to thank my son, Bryan, for choosing me as his mother.  Being a mother is and will always be my greatest joy.  I love you Bryan.

Me & my boy messing around at my mother's house

I would also like to thank all of the women who made the transformation into motherhood before my very eyes, including my dear step-daughter Kim and daughter-in-law Jenny.  It has been my true honor to hold the space during that transformation.  I am touched and in awe of the power and beauty that each and every one of you bring to motherhood.  Your children are blessed and the world is a bit sweeter.

Happy First Mother's Day Jenny! (our beloved Liam)

I am spending Mother's Day this year teaching the last day of the HypnoBirthing Practitioner training to 22 amazing women.  Although I would love to be with my family today, this feels right somehow.

Last day of class!

In honor of all mothers, I love the quote below...

The hand that rocks the cradle, rules the world!

Peace and Love.

Work and Play in NYC

Once again Vivian and I are teaching the HypnoBirthing Practitioner training in New York.  Once I get here, I am reminded why I really love this particular training location.

First of all NYC is awesome, exhausting, delicious and kooky.  On our first full day here we tried, unsuccessfully I might add, to hail a cab during rush hour.  My feminine ego took a hit when the cab finally stopped for us and then darted around us to grab a business man instead of Vivian and I.  Ouch, that hurt lol.  My ego was salved last night on the sidewalk when Vivian and I were trying to figure out how to get to a particular restaurant and a sharp dressed man stopped and assisted us.  Thank you...that was nice and needed ;)

Secondly, we always seem to manifest a large group of amazing women for these particular trainings.  Our venue this time is the Open Center NYC.  I cannot say enough about this wonderful place and the staff members here.  What a mecca of holistic trainings and lectures.  Our current group consist of 22 enthusiastic women who are going to be incredible agents of change in the birthing world.  I am so inspired to see the sincere concern that these women have for current birthing practices and their burning desire to change those practices in their communities.  Wow. Simply wow.

Back at the birth house it was nice to see that it was business as usual.

Does this really need a caption??

After our training, we stumbled upon a Rebecca Minkoff sample sale and went a little crazy...or at least Vivian did lol!  I somehow contained myself to only one purchase that I LOVE!

Insane...REALLY insane mob!

After our shopping adventure, we ventured out in search of Moroccan food.  We took a shot in the dark and hit the mark! We dined at Cafe Mogador in the East Village.  The Tagines were AMAZING...spicy, sweet and very savory and the Ginger Martini was beyond explanation and had a very unexpected flavor in a yummy way. 

Of course we had to have dessert!

Moroccan Mint Tea finished the meal

It was a very full day and after dinner we took our very satisfied and weary selves back to our apartment on the Upper West Side (thank you OPEN Center for the accommodations) and called it a day. 

Tomorrow, another adventure!

Peace.

Facades

I've been spending some time recently thinking about how some people behave in public and how they behave behind their created facade.  How some people have created such a facade that they actually believe it to be their reality.   Sort of like Disney World....it's surreal and even beautiful but it's only a facade...underneath is the ugly reality of the rough, unpolished supporting structure.  (That analogy makes me think of something I read recently...."beautiful people aren't always good, but good people are always beautiful.")

The following quote hit home for me for me too...

"Close the gap between what you believe and how you act in the world! That's your assignment. Truly following the Buddha's teachings is how we behave OFF of our meditation cushions, not while we're on them, just like being a Christian is reflected in people's behavior outside of church, not while they're in it. May we ALL close the gap between what we believe and how we act in the world!"

Gosh, the world would be a much better place if we all followed that simple behavior.  I really do try to live my life authentically and I'm a work in progress for certain.  I stumble, I fall, I've already admitted that I'm clumsy.  But I try.  I really try.

I'm wondering what my lesson is when at times I feel so incredibly frustrated and actually angry at those who do not choose to live this way.  Am I supposed to be cultivating patience?  Should I ignore the behavior of those, even when innocents fall victim to their "perceived" expertise and persona and fall at my doorstep angry and confused?  When discussion of bad behavior is criticized by so many good people, but so many good people remain silent?

What IS the lesson for me?

I'm sure the universe will sort it all out for me and perhaps I'll just follow the sage advice below...

 Peace.

Monday

It's a beautiful morning.

Finally, blue skies again!

Incredible birth yesterday. (oh, and I learned an awesome new dance from big brother Paxton called the jelly fish jam!)

World meet Deklan...born on 4/22 @4:22pm! Happy Earth Day!

Finishing up a placenta encapsulation for a mama this morning.

TCM prepared and ground.  Ready for encapsulation.

Seeing what the rest of the day brings...

Peace.

Lessons

Interesting week. 
Lessons seemed to be the theme and I was on the receiving and giving end. 

This just totally cracked me up and seemed appropriate :)

Fun week.
We had a photo shoot at the birth house. Fun and chaotic all rolled into an hour.  It was so awesome seeing so many of our happy babes, kiddos and parents.  Such confirmation that all is well in my world and no matter the obstacles and frustrations, I'm doing something right.  Life is good and I am blessed. A shout out to Tricia at Click.Capture.Create. for her ability to stay focused and capture what I'm sure will be ADORABLE images under silly circumstances.  You are the best Tricia.  The best!

I'm holding Teddy & Harper

Productive week.
New things on the horizon...details to follow.  Good stuff.  Very good! Babies were born, classes were taught and the birth house is buzzing with lovely energy.  Miriam and I added some charming touches to the house this week and even more are in the works.   I just LOVE this house.

Weekend. Finally.
Taught a private childbirth class yesterday with a lovely couple, had a little chill time at the Lotus and then came home to a clean house, stocked with food and my amazing husband.  Sweet. Very sweet.  Picked up a placenta at Broward General last night...

Thanks for the curb side delivery Vivian!

Day off today...well kind of.  Another baby is trying to make a break for it...I will be delivering placenta pills later... so we shall see how things play out.  So far, easing into this Earth Day, Sunday, feels pretty sweet.

Peace.

Last week got away from me, so no time for blogging.

Catch up...

Incredible (and incredibly long) labor  ended with a beautiful baby boy making an appearance on Thursday night at home with the support of two midwives, one student midwife, one doula and a whole lot of family!  I would like to thank midwives Miriam Pearson-Martinez and Colleen Scarlett of the Palms Birth House for their professionalism and belief in this mother.  I know within my heart that other care providers would not have stayed the course and this birth might have ended quite differently.  Welcome to the world Baby Elijah!  There is so much to say about this labor and birth and quite honestly, I'm still processing it.  I will only add for now that I stand by my unpopular stance that less is more when it comes to family and friends at birth.

This mama was taking a nap at 8 cm!

Meet Baby Eli

This long birth was followed up by the Delray Affair, 3 day craft show.  Thanks to my husband and parents for loading all of the stuff and getting things together for 5:30 am set up on Friday while I was busy finishing a birth and then falling into a very brief coma.  The show was great despite some rain and a whole lot of wind.  My favorite moments were seeing the families that I have worked with including some of the babies, that are no longer babies!  Crazy, am I getting old??

Speaking of crazy....

No clue what this is about!

Front of his shirt said Lady Gaga and the back Justin Beiber.  WTH?? Oh, and I didn't get a picture of his squirrel hat!

 

 

 

 

 

The next couple of weeks are going to be busy.  Very busy.  The monsoon of births is ready to begin...those darn April showers!  Deep breath and hoping for a steady but manageable pace.  I am grateful for the doulas that work with Amazing Births and Beyond.  Deeply grateful!!

Peace.

Just Ask

Wow, all you have to do is ask.  What a concept!

Thank you to the amazing birthy women in my  life who understand, support and love me.   When we support and nurture each other we can accomplish great things...when we try to stand alone we will tire and fall.


My motto for the day:

Peace.