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.

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.

What an insane week with lots of lessons and universal reminders.

1.  I had three incredible births in 48 hours and miraculously made it to all of them.  My lesson:  You are where you need to be, always.  Even when you aren't where you want to be or even logistically should be. Period. (reminder to self, stop questioning, stressing or over-thinking this!)

2.  It was a stressful week with staffing issues.  Those situations always cause me to reflect on why I'm doing what I'm doing.  Would I be happier moving on to the next phase of my life.  (Those goats and my farm are really calling me!) Is the current chaos a sign?  My lesson:  Look at ALL the signs! Not just the signs that are demanding the most attention at the moment.  Amidst the chaos of this week were a slew of births, classes, etc. AND an opportunity on the horizon for additional growth.   (reminder to self, see lesson #1)

3.  A date night and beach day with my incredible husband can change everything!  My lesson:  Keep calm and carry on! Life awaits....grant me the grace and patience to get there, cause I'm feeling pretty darn clumsy at the moment ;)

Peace.

What a wonderful week. What a wonderful life.

Another beautiful birth this week.  What a honor to be present for this sweet client, her husband and dear friend as we welcomed her very chubby baby boy into the world naturally.  All 9 lbs 9 ounces of him to be exact. Welcome to the world sweet Mason!

More plans for Bali are in motion.  I'm excited. Period. Can you tell?

We had a magical St. Patrick's Day here in the McCoy household.  My incredible son, his beautiful wife and their most delicious baby, Liam joined us.  We had fun on the "Ave" with breakfast, the park and then the boys did a little "Irish Yoga" if you get my drift, while the Jenny enjoyed a massage at the birth house and I spoiled my little lucky charm.  I can't get enough of him :)
 

After our kiddos left, Kevin and I stayed for the Delray Beach St. Patrick's Day parade.  We had fun at what one can only describe as a "drunken street fest!"  Kevin was amused when I bowed, wished peace and explained to one particularly miserable parade goer that it must suck to be them. Life is short, be happy peeps. Good grief ;)


I've got a little Michael Franti playing in the house this morning while I make lotions and creams.  I'm feeling pretty caught up on products for the Delray Affair at this point.  Gosh, what a great feeling!  Feelin' kinda reggae today and hoping for a sweet escape with my hubby later this afternoon.  Maybe some Caribbean food later??  Bamboo Fire Grill perhaps?

It's a beautiful day!!

Peace.