Wanna see some LOVE?

Houston, Doula, Raw Chocolate, Truffles, Placenta, Rowan TwoSisters, Curandera, massage, weirdos, menopause, meetings, red tent Thank you to Bump to Baby Birth Photography! Scope out that big man hand of mine. Oh, and Mims and Baby Leo of course. Love all the way around. And for the record, Mims reports that my raw, vegan chocolate placenta truffles are the “BOMB.com.” Pretty sure those words aren’t used much with a placenta edible. Anyway, they are new on the menu. Yum. Also new to the menu are:

Menopause Monthlys

First Friday night of the month (so, you know, this Friday), start gathering around 7, get going about 7:20 with checking in and saying what’s up. I’ll do some education based on a topic brought to the group, and then after that how ’bout a big ole chat. Shoot me back an email if you think that sounds like something you like or need. Also feel free to bring a hand project if you are the knitting, etc. type. Like a rhinoceros’ eye, for example. There will be tea and some type of (non-placenta) snack. I’m on the wagon, so probably need to skip the adult beverages, but since we end around 9:30 there is time to get get drinks with your beezies. Our first gathering is to create momentum. After that, the monthly will be $25, which is way less than what the tampons, chocolate, salt and vinegar chips and ibuprofen used to run ya. Shoot me an email to RSVP ’cause space is limited. I was thinking 8 peeps, Mary Rabbit thinks 80. XO Loves, Rowan P.S.: I’m off staycation, so book here so you can see the new classroom! P.P.S.: #PlacentaTuesday

Oh El Paso, you always show me what’s up. Thanks to the generosirty of you super loves I went out and loved up on the Chula Doula who is in midwifery school, and while there I had amazeballs clarity.

 My massage career as I know it is over

It’s totally time for me to step up more, teach more, and get more folks touching and healing their wounds. First up? go after and complete the certifications that I have in partial completion. (I’m looking at you, Arvigo Institute) Second? Get to teaching, and so we begin, this Sunday at six. Cant be there? No problemo.  Register anyway. I’ll send you a recording, you can listen or watch whenever. We’ll be talking about how to heal your scars, 101. And not some superficial biz. Think more like getting mauled by a dog or surgical birth. Like that. And what’s to become of all the pregnant mamas who will still need excellent prenatal massage? Let me present The Amazing Rose Startin’ January, Rose will begin to see prenatal massage clients, work with postpartum mamas for belly health and overall well being, and most probably come up with some other awesome services that we haven’t dreamed up yet. How do i know she’ll be any good? 1) I’m training her with my massage protocols, 2) She has some big natural talent that we are harnessing, 3) She’s my daughter, this apple did not fall far from the tree. Wanna give her a tryout? She’s still in school, so you can get your massage in on the cheap. And boooo, but this is for non-preggers. Or whomever else needs some bodywork. Like YOU.

Rose Carle

Details:  $35 for 1 hour, or $52.50 for 1.5 hour session, no tips accepted. BOOK NOW! for September availability I will continue to see repeat clients who are either high risk, my personal doula clients or have otherwise cajoled me. It’s time, my loves, for me to get the good words out there, and expand my teaching beyond Houston, Tejas. Much Love, Rowan P.S.: Book Now P.P.S: #PlacentaTuesday P.P.P.S.: Mr.Cups is still missing. Send him some coming home vibes, please? Massage

Hey Love ~ I wanted to give you a little reminder about the 
3rd Annual Positive People Party Wed, August 13th
5-10pm
@Rowan’s House in Houston
Potlucky Hoopin’, Laughin’ and Friend Making

Bring yourself, bring your baby, bring your baby daddy/momma.

There will be cake.

Positive People Party, Rowan TwoSisters

xoxoxoox
Rowan P.S.: Hit reply for the address 

Hey Loves, Got this from a much loved and hilarious client the other day and then this and then this. HAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAH! So I just wanted to mention that IUD checks, MIA tampon retrieval, and  Broad City situations (@1:24) are outside my massage therapy scope of practice, but within my scope of my friendly curandera practice. So, if you need help fishing something out or a series of helpful texts, no problem we got this.     Why? ’cause I’m your girl #offthemenuservices   Here’s your  cute baby pic of the week, baby Alessandro. Que bello! IMG_6569

 

Did ya think of something else I could help with? Great, write it in the comments below or shoot me back an email. Either way, I love ya. xoxoox, Rowan P.S.: Book Here  P.P.S.: Placenta Tuesday 

Y’all, Mary Rabbit said this to me the other day when we were discussing menopause: “It’s like you return to yourself, who you were before the hormones took over.” Um, what? 

“It’s like you return to yourself, who you were before the hormones took over.”

  Oh, is that what’s been happening? As I slowly drift to more writing and teaching, and wanting to just create 24/7/365? Oh HELL YEAH then, It. Is. ON.

  1. Online class room should be up and jammin’ by the end of July.
  2. Class room should be up and jammin’ early August.

  What am I gonna teach in my classroom? Well, how ’bout this?

  It is ON.   And I wanna take a minute to give a shout out to a role model and scar healing mentor, Pati the Chula Doula. This woman puts the B in badassery, and is one of the most powerful grass roots social, women’s birth, and sexual health advocates  I HAVE EVER MET.  I’m going to give her a little visit at the end of July. She’s in midwifery school in El Paso, so I’m heading to my home town to show her some love/healing juju and I maaaaaayyyy just check out the school while I’m out there. Maybe. Lastly, Stephen Gaskin crossed over last week. I actually first met Ina May with my arms over my head, not wearing a shirt, as Stephen painstakingly painted clear nailpolish on my numerous chigger bites. I’ll fill you in on that story next time. menopause, placenta, urban curandera, houston, activist, birth, crone, creativity, video, share ross, doula Love to you All, let’s keep fighting the good fight. XO, Rowan P.S.: A reminder that I’m on vacation the second half of August, and I’ll be out for a week in July, so get yourself scheduled ASAP. P.P.S.: Here’s your Placenta Tuesday

Guess who’s getting her classroom together? That would be me. urban curandera, rowan twosisters, birth, doula, pregnancy, houston birth Guess who can look forward to up coming workshops? That would be you! What topics will we cover?

You know, the usual. The Lovely Lindsey has been reading Brighton Baby; and it talks about something called Quinton that I thought some of my loves navigating fertility might be interested in. I don’t have any more details than that yet, so I’ll catch you up as soon as I know more. #ButIHaveAFeeling Have any tips you’ve stumbled across and would like me to share? Leave me a comment below, and then I’ll share it out with the birth peeps.   Today’s newsletter is sponsored by this amazing child birth education class by Amanda Moore: Holistic Expectations. Because the more you know, the better prepared you are!   XOXO, Rowan P.S.:  Come see me?    

Education: It’s what’s for diner.

Um, actually lunch and breakfast, too. Like, wouldn’t you want to do everything you could to get a little bundle like this in your arms? Sharon Marguerite Simmons. Born at home September 11, 2011. 7lbs 8oz, 19.5 inches long.

This is How It Works:

The more you know, the less you have to stress about, less fumbling around in the dark (the darkness known as the labor journey). Sure, weird and unplanned stuff is gonna happen, but you could already have some education and eliminate a couple of options, leaving you to decide which of the remaining choices is the best fit. See there, an Educated Guess. And guess what? That reduces anxiety, which reduces the Sammy Hagar Factor. What kinda schooling is right for you? The answer is pretty much anything birth-related that you don’t know anything (or enough) about. Like placentas  or vagina aftercare , and of course a child birth education course is pretty much a must. A child birth education course NOT TAUGHT BY THE HOSPITAL is a good choice. I don’t think hospitals are neutral and impartial, and are just, perhaps, slightly biased. I could be wrong here, but if you absolutely are sold on the hospital education, then double up and get some learning overlap. You might even wanna considering taking a course in addition to your midwives’ education course, if you are midwifing this birth. It’s a good practice in general. What to do when the theories crash and collide? Do what feels good for you, what is the best choice for your family, and for super sure document all that goodness in a Birth Plan (more on birth plans in the next episode). So, make some tracks in getting anxiety (and Sammy) out, or at least ratcheted down some. Notice what makes you anxious, take some courses, walk into your birth journey with confidence.

Prevention makes cure. 

Trust me, I’m a Curandera. xo Rowan P.S.: Already took a class? Leave me a note in the comments below and tell me what rocked your socks, that way I can share with other peeps. P.S.S.: And now a word from our sponsor…. Dorin Jordan is a LOVE, except that she doesn’t see herself that way. Dorin teaches both The Bradley Method Child Birth Education, and also Dancing For Birth prenatal fitness. A LOVE. oh, and she’s real funny. P.S.S.: #PlacentaTuesday, right here for ya.

How’d you like to have this guy at your birth?  http://youtu.be/RvV3nn_de2k One foot on the brake, one foot on the gas;  a perfect metaphor for trying to birth with anxiety. So we gotta take the foot off the brakes. Birth Brakes = Anxiety Let’s think about this for a minute, the more gas you give, the harder you push on the brake. What happens then? Nothing. A big nothing. Not even 55.   We gotta take a foot off the brake. And just to review ya, anxiety is one of the top three reasons a baby goes “overdue.” Anxiety eats birth hormones. And it doesn’t really matter who has the jitters, ’cause that energy is in the room, in your head, in your world. So, AT ALL COSTS you gotta get that out and gone and away from you. Gone. Here is the science of it as explained by Michel Odent. “In order to give birth, women must feel secure without feeling observed, in a warm enough place.” -Michel Odent, French M.D. and water birth pioneer Doula, Urban Curandera, Labor Whispering, Anxiety, Birth Blockers, Sammy Hagar, Labor, How to go into labor, how to start labor So that’s really the first step. Reduce anxiety. Up next week are practical ways to ratchet down the anxiety and up the security. Boom. Look, a cute baby! Awwww, Cairn was born at 12:33am on August 24 weighing 9lbs, and measuring 20 1/4 in long. Planned vbac homebirth that became hospital induction vbac because Mom Christina was 41wks and 5days. And now a word from our sponsor… This week’s sponsor is Labor Enabler, a local rockstar doula by the name of Kathleen Wilson. She’s part of TLC Doula Group, and is currently taking applications for her next doula apprentice. So, tell her I said hello, k? Oh, and we had a bit of a mix-up here at UC headquarters last week which resulted in you receiving a Punk Rock Hoops newsletter (oops, sorry). But some of you liked it, so if you want to keep getting those, you can go here and sign up in that handy form on the right sidebar. XO, Rowan P.S.: This week, I’m offering the Caryn Craig special to all my peeps. 6 sessions for 5 bills. Why? I have light books ’cause I’ve been traveling. Oh, and I miss ya. P.S.2: Here is this week’s #PlacentaTuesday

I have a Plan.   A new Labor Whispering Plan.   And it’s like the fool card in the tarot deck, which actually is like a birth. Starting over, no limits, stepping off a cliff with perfect faith and trust, kinda like this. The plan is to start getting as much Labor Whispering info out there as possible, share my professional protocol and get some birth peeps trained up and out into all necks of the woods.   Sounds good, eh? So it’s free info to apply as you will and, for folks who need more help, get them matched up with a trained LaborWhisperer.   So why do women go overdue? As in, not have the magical onset of labor on or before their due date?   Here are my top three, and I ran it by the Total Labor Care Doula group, other wise known as TLC (Whoot Whoot!), and we are all pretty much on the same page.     Next week I will tell you more on what to do about them, and how to recognize when it’s actually the 4th reason: that something’s up and really needs to be addressed. So more on that next week.   Did you go overdue in a pregnancy? Any 20/20 hindsight on that? Great, leave me a comment here to share your knowledge and spread the word.   Happy Birthday Elowyn! This text just in from Mama Sarah:   “Hey Ro! Wanted to send you a pic of our little Elowyn! She came to meet us on April 29th in a very fast manner! She’s amazing and has filled my heart with more joy than I thought imaginable! Finn (who is 2.5 years old) was present for the whole thing and even held the flashlight for the midwife. Was amazing.”   This week’s newsletter is coming at ya courtesy of* SunBee Circle “where children become inspired to handle difficulties in life by tales of magic and courage.” Sounds good, eh?   XOXOXOXO, Rowan   P.S.: Here is your #PlacentaTuesday. P.P.S.:  Come see me, it’s been too long. Here’s a Happy Mother’s Day offer just for you. *wanna sponsor the newsletter? Sweet, reply for more deets.

I met somebody this past weekend while I was in NYC. Behold Maria, as in MariaWander.com. Like, she’s a closet designer for some fancy store that I can’t remember because the star factor overwhelmed me and I silently began to weep with envy when she casually mentioned it. Weep. She was all busy spinning fiber into lace weight yarn and I, embarrassingly enough, had brought my knitting some yarn, a pattern and 4 double pointed, size 5 knitting needles so I could try, yet again, to make some Baby Boobie Beanies for one-on-one labor whispering session prezzies.  It’s bad, right? So I’m all dragging my stuff out, and trying to chew through the yarn with my teeth when Maria hands me some scissors, obviously pumped that a fellow fiber artist is at the table. I try to tell her gently, “Sorry Maria, I suck,” to which she says, “You get better at knitting by knitting.” Oh, right then, so it’s ok to suck, it’s just not ok to give up. Keep trying, to improve the effort in both art, business and, of course, in birth. I could actually add parenting in here, well, most anything, really. In labor it means that each contraction is a new opportunity to turn a challenge into healing, whatever that looks like for you. In postpartum, it may mean knowing you will figure out what your bebe’ is communicating, what do do about it, and knowing that this intense period will pass, oh yes it will. My Rowan practical application of Don’t Give Up, Just Keep Knitting  in this moment looks like assessing where my Labor Whispering; Mapbook for Mamas project will go from here. I’m super clear on what I did right, on who loves me and has my back. I’m also clear on who thought this was worthy of investing in, and a special thank you to my loves who were ready to bust out a check book and write big checks with zeros behind them so that I could make the goal. Big love to all of you, my heart breaks open. With Love. What I don’t like about my Labor Whispering; Mapbook for Mamas campaign is: 1) how I come across in the video, 2) my hair, and 3) the stale energy. And that’s no fault of the director, because this would have been hideous and I could never have even stepped into the ring without her help and assistance. But it’s true, I don’t dig it. At All. This has totally slowed my roll, and I wonder if I recognized this as it was going down, or if I’m only seeing it in retrospect. So, I’m reviewing my birth story for Labor Whispering; MapBook For Mamas. Examining the painful parts, rejoicing in what went well. And loving all the folks who helped from start to finish, the clappers, the cheerers and the project doulas who walked the journey with me. And really, the love I feel? I am the lucky one. So, I love you tremendously, and let’s see where we will go with this next. XOXOXOX, Rowan

P.S.: Here is your pic from #PlacentaTuesday P.P.S: Leave a comment below if you got something to say, I’m listening.