Incredible Delivery of a Breach Baby

by Dr. Wu at Glendale Adventist

check this video out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-mc3qsJvWA

Thanks for sharing this with us Claudia

Diapers Diapers Diapers

Hey Leah

I thought some of these links might be helpful in regards to our conversation about diapers.

I spoke to Rebecca the other day and she recommended going to this place called Belly Sprout, a store in Fullerton (I know, its a trip) because they have, in store, a huge selection of a lot of the different cloth diaper brands so you can actually see them, and ask questions and compare. I haven't been yet, but it seems MUCH easier than all the random internet research.
http://www.bellysprout.com/

ALso, there is a fairly new diaper out there that competes a little with the g diaper. It is called Gro-baby. Does not have flushable inserts, but it is pretty economical because it is one size fits all and is 100%organic cotton. They sell them online of course at http://www.thenaturalbabyco.com/ (a really good resource!) and at belly sprout. From the reviews I have seen, it seems like a really viable system.

One more thing-- in our research we came upon a really helpful website that does a lot of comparisons of diapering systems. It has mom reviews,videos and more. http://dirtydiaperlaundry.com/

Okay. Maybe I am too optimistic, but I think this whole cloth diapering thing is HUGE commitment and I know it has to work with each baby and family, but I just wanted to put some resources out there so some pregnant moms don't feel as overwhelmed as we did. I am finding, for myself, that when faced with the upheaval of motherhood and the realities of the job, some of my best intentions (no plastic toys, no this no that) kind of fly out the window because it seems so much easier to buy used things, or buy disposables or whatever. And while manageability is the key, I keep reminding myself to pick my battles and still maybe decide to try to do what we can to be environmentally gentle.

Talk to you soon
Asher

Yo Jojo!

Hi Leah,

How are you doing? How have you been feeling? How was the babymoon? We are all fine over here. Baby Jojo was born on Fathers day at 6:04am, 8 lbs 6 oz, 21 inches. It was an amazing waterbirth at home. I was in labor for 4 hours, well, 4 intense hours. You know I had been having mild contractions for over 2 1/2 weeks so when it was Jojos birthday, they hit really hard and fast. I listened to my body and everything went well. Evie and Joseph were in the birthing tub with me (Evie did great & wanted to be there & massaged me all throughout labor--her presence was endearing and empowering) and Joseph delivered Jojo and handed him to me. It was pure, raw, natural and one of the most beautiful moments of my life that I will treasure forever. The midwives were there overseeing everything but they really allowed me to be myself and were so supportive. My sister, brother and brother in law were there too. It was amazing.

Thank you for all the wonderful prenatal yoga classes. I will be back to the Mommy & Me yoga when I am ready. As for now, we are nesting and enjoying every precious moment.
Here are some photos, I hope you like them.

Love,
Ester Perez & Family

donation class this saturday at yummy yoga (for a great cause)

hello friends

i hope this finds you well. i wanted to let you all know that i am taking part in a yogathon at Yummy Yoga this Saturday to support breast cancer and one particular Yummy student (see story below). i will be teaching an all levels class at 8 AM for 55 minutes. this class will be pre/post-natal friendly. sorry, no babies allowed to this class. if you haven't taken a class at yummy before, come a little early so you can fill out the appropriate paperwork.

look forward to seeing you saturday at 8.
xoxoLeah


Yummy Yoga

Please join us for a
DONATION YOGATHON in support of breast cancer prevention!

************************CLASSES EVERY HOUR ON THE HOUR
**************************THIS SATURDAY, JUNE 13th ~

*Ten 55-minute classes taught by wonderful instructors from all across LA*Refreshments and comraderie all day*Raffle prizes for donations over $20Take as many or as few classes as you'd like - the day will be by donation only (cash or check only)
Saturday's Schedule of Donation Classes ~

8am..........LEAH MILLER
9am..........RUTHIE ZALDUONDO
10am........ALI LAVENTHOL
11am........MICHELLE RINGLER
NOON........DUCKY PUNCH
1pm..........CAROLINE CARDINO
2pm..........MARY DIGNAN
3pm..........HEATHER FUNSTON
4pm..........ASHLEY RIDEAUX
5pm..........DUCKY & ALI - team teaching!!

Please pop in throughout the day for refreshments in support of Sivan.
Any donation over $20 will be entered into a raffle for prizes, including: - YogiToes - One-hour massage from Leah Miller - Monthly Unlimited Series at Yummy Yoga - Eco-Friendly Jade Yoga Mat - Gift Certicificates to local shops ....and other fabulous prizes!!!!

Sivan's Story ~
Sivan, one of Yummy's yogis, is having a risk-reducing mastectomy at the end of June in order to prevent breast cancer. She's only 27, but doctors have recommended she have this surgery after learning of inheriting the BRCA 1 gene mutation from her mother. Sivan's Aunt Linda died of metastasized breast cancer at age 49, leaving behind two sons. Sivan's grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer around that time. As it turned out, Sivan's grandmother had passed down the gene. Sivan's Aunt is unknowingly responsible for saving the lives of the women in her family, including Sivan's mother, who underwent preventative surgery when she learned of her gene diagnosis.

Sivan and her friends are making a film to document her surgery and recovery, and to educate viewers regarding new research in hereditary cancers for both men and women. Additionally, with her film, Sivan will bravely show women that this surgery can provide them with peace of mind, beautiful cosmetic results, courage, and a sense of true empowerment. We hope you can join us in support of not only the cause, but also a fellow member of the YUMMY community!
Do yoga! Bring your friends! Support a great cause! Forward this email! Make a difference

Sailor Mae's Birth Story

I started having some mildly painful contractions on the evening of Monday, May 11th, my due date. They were about 8-9 minutes apart, and I thought that was it…that I was in labor. As the night went on, however, they started becoming a little more irregular and they stopped hurting. I went to bed thinking that I wouldn’t be able to sleep, and the next thing I knew, I woke up the next morning. So it was a false alarm. I continued to have random irregular contractions on Tuesday and Wednesday, but they weren’t painful. On Wednesday morning, I had my 40 week doctor’s appointment. My doctor told me I was about 3 centimeters dilated and 70% effaced. She said that the baby was still pretty posterior though, and she would probably come sometime in the next week.

Late the next morning, on Thursday, I wasn’t feeling great. I started having some contractions around 11:00am that were actually painful, but they were totally irregular, so I figured it was a false alarm again. I didn’t tell anyone for a while. My husband was home and my mother and sister were staying with us too. I didn’t want to get anyone excited because I wasn’t sure that it was “real labor.” I kept timing the contractions, but they were still irregular- 9 minutes apart, 18 minutes apart, 12 minutes apart, etc. But they were really painful, so I finally told everyone. Most of the pain was in my back, so I would lean over on the bed while my husband pushed cold packs onto my lower back. My contractions jumped from being totally irregular in timing to being 5-6 minutes apart. My doctor had said I could wait until they were 3-5 minutes apart for 2 hours to come to the hospital. I am Group B Strep positive, so she said I would need to have antibiotics 4 hours before I deliver. But she said that first babies don’t fly right out, so waiting was okay. But after about 20 minutes, I told my husband that I thought we should go into the hospital if they continued to be 5 minutes apart for another half hour. The contractions were so intense at this point that I couldn’t talk, walk, or do anything except lean over and breathe. We decided to head to the hospital about 20 minutes later and by this point my contractions were 3-4 minutes apart. As soon as I got to my front door, I leaned over on the couch for another contraction and my water broke. I changed my pants and got in the car for a very uncomfortable bumpy ride down Beverly Blvd. from Silver Lake to Cedars-Sinai.

In the car, the contractions were incredibly painful -especially since I was in the front seat and couldn’t lean over and have my husband press on my back. I felt like they were coming right on top of each other. My sister was in the back timing them and told me they were about 3 ½ minutes apart. It wasn’t until we got to the hospital a little after 3:00 pm that she admitted that they were really 2 minutes apart for most of the car ride. She didn’t want to freak out me or my husband! My contractions were lasting for about a minute and a half or more each. So I was only having about 20 to 30 seconds of rest in between. I don’t know how I walked to the elevator and got up to the labor and delivery floor. When we walked into the waiting room and I climbed on a chair on all fours to breathe through a contraction, the lady at the desk called for a wheelchair- and said it better be fast! Apparently I was getting some strange looks from people in the elevator and the waiting room. At this point I could barely even talk in the seconds I had between contractions.

They put me in a room to see if I could be admitted to labor and delivery. I knew I was ready. When the nurse checked me I was 8 centimeters dilated. They pushed my bed into a labor and delivery room, as I couldn’t walk a couple of steps without having another contraction! At this point, I was basically begging for an epidural with the few words I was able to whisper. I had hoped to do it naturally, but I couldn’t even open my eyes or hold up my head anymore. They put me on oxygen and I had to wait for the anesthesiologist while he finished with another patient, which seemed like an eternity! The nurses were all commenting on how intense and close together my contractions were. Finally the anesthesiologist came and gave me the epidural and said it would be about 10-15 minutes until it kicked in. Right after he finished, I was lying on my side and my body just started pushing. I couldn’t have stopped it if I tried. It was a very strange feeling! Apparently it was the first time I made any noise (besides heavy breathing). The nurse checked me right after my body stopped pushing and I was 10 centimeters dilated. So I started pushing before the epidural even kicked in. They had given me a light epidural since I was so far along already and when it did finally kick in, I felt a lot better. I could open my eyes again, and smile and talk in between contractions. I could still use my legs and feel the contractions, it just took the edge off.

The pushing part was a breeze compared to labor before it. I pushed (usually every other contraction) for about and hour and a half. When she was crowning, the doctor (Dr. Brock) told me he would have to use a vacuum to get her out because her heart rate was dropping and she wasn’t coming out quickly enough. A few minutes later, he told me to open my eyes while I was pushing and I saw my daughter’s purple face between my legs. The rest of her came out and we all felt relieved when we heard her start crying. Apparently her umbilical cord was very short and that’s what was making it difficult to push her out completely. It was 5:55pm on Thursday, May 14th when Sailor Mae Wachter was born. She weighed 8 pounds and was 21 ½ inches long. It was less than 7 hours from the time I felt my first painful contraction to when she was born- very fast, but very intense. So needless to say, I did not get the antibiotics 4 hours before I delivered because my first baby practically did fly right out! But they did some blood tests on her and she is fine. My doctor said I had an irregular labor and with my next baby, I’ll have to go to the hospital when the contractions are 10 minutes apart! Sailor is almost 4 weeks old now and we couldn’t be happier! Even though everything did not go according to plan (my birth plan didn’t even make it out of the suitcase!), it was all certainly worth it in the end.

Booker's Birth Story....sort of

Dear Leah,

It’s Saturday night May 23rd at 10:58pm. I’m sitting on my back porch with a baby monitor hoping my sweet boy sleeps for another hour (and secretly wishing he’d wake so I can hold him in my arms and kiss his little head). As I look out over Griffith Park I realize that it was just 15 weeks ago today that we shared a three-day adventure in the Cedar Sinai Labor and Delivery wing.

What an awesome and challenging three days. When I tell people I had 56 hours of labor they are shocked and horrified. But when I think back on it I remember not the hours but my hero of a husband, my Mom pacing the hallways, my girlfriends bringing flowers, doing yoga poses with you in the hallways, rhythmically breathing out vowel sounds, sneaking bites of avocado and almond butter, singing and dancing to Ben Harper, and laughing through the sleepiness. It is true what they say; “you forget the pain of labor.” Perhaps this is nature’s way to ensure that we keep procreating but I also attribute this to your patience with me as I cried and began to regret “coming into the hospital too early.”

I so wanted a birth without interventions. I read every book out there. I practiced yoga and ate a healthy diet, I hired a hypnobirth specialist, and I visualized my perfect birth at least three times a day. After accepting that a home birth was out of our financial means John and I equipped ourselves with every tool possible to have a natural birth in the hospital. Thank goodness we had prepared and thank goodness you were there to help us.

If there is one thing that a new mom discovers quickly it is that her idea of the way things should go and the way they actually end up are not necessarily the same. You cannot time a poopy diaper, a runny nose or a sudden meltdown. There is a tiny new soul that has a say in things and thank God for that. What you can do is learn how to change a diaper, suck snot and soothe a fussy baby. What an amazing lesson I was taught cramped up in the LDR with that dreaded heart rate monitor attached to my huge belly.

We all did such an amazing job in that hospital. Refusing interventions, accepting others, demanding that we be listened too. Most of all dealing with the circumstances as they arose. We had fun enduring the long days and nights together; John and I able to love on each other while you took care of us both. The moment that little 6lb 10oz bundle of goodness, Booker Martin Webb, slid out of me was truly orgasmic. It is a feeling like no other. Looking into his Father’s eyes as our son entered the world. The disappointments I had endured because my “plan” was interrupted flew out the birthing room window into the city lights of Hollywood. The Cytotec, the Pitocin, the epidural, and all those things I cursed from the beginning, no longer mattered. In the end those 56 hours were the most amazing hours of my life and I want to thank you for being there through every single minute. John and I are so grateful for you. Sometimes things don’t end up how you’d hoped they would, they turn out even better.

Moms for Seperate MMR Vaccine

Merck is no longer making the MMR vaccine seperately. Below is a link for a petition asking Merck to continue producing these vaccines seperately so that moms who want to slow down the vaccine process have that choice.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/petition/630453361/taf

As a mom, I am extremely troubled, disappointed and argry at Merck's decision to discontinue production and sales of the monovalent measles (Attenuvax) and mumps (Mumpsvax) vaccines. It seems that the logic behind such a move is based on simple profitability concerns. Even experts like Doug Campos-Outcalt, M.D., M.P.A., who serves as the AAFP's liaison to the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and is a former member of the AAFP Commission on Clinical Policies and Research, have called MMR separation "hooey". It is anything but hooey and it is not about profit to be a concerned parent who BELIEVES in vaccination but at a slower pace. I am asking Merck to revoke their decision right now, not 2011 when they will supposedly begin manufacturing the monovalents again. There has been no medical studies proving that separation causes more harm than the combined doses. There are however thousands of parents who claim harm from the combined dose. Parents make choices to protect their children and having an "all or nothing" choice is none at all.