The Gift of Giving Life

We are doing a give away of 2 books - 1 book for each winner.  :) 1 copy of Swaddle Me Up: Baby Wrapping and Baby Wearing for Everyone  and 1 copy of The Gift of Giving Life. Details on our Instagram Page  or at the Show Notes if you don't have Instagram. Also I am changing our podcast episode frequency, to every other week!   When I do interviews, it is very time consuming to...

This was a wonderful interview with Liz, who shared 2 birth stories. One where she felt angels singing as her baby was born. Another where the understanding of her role as the veil helped carry her through challenging parts of her birth. There are a lot of other wonderful gems in this interview. Sit back and enjoy!  TOPICS [00:01:26] "I fell in love with the book" [00:02:09] Such an incredibl...

When Phoebe was 18 months old I realized that I still had her placenta in my freezer.  I had just started to date (I was a single mom through most of my pregnancy),  and a boyfriend found the placenta box and asked, “What’s this?”  That’s when I realized it was time to do something with it. I had always planned on burying it under a tree,  but I wondered if there was some sort...

I have moms ask about making noises while pushing and thought this episode would be a great way to demonstrate different sounds as well as other ways we use our voice while birthing. TOPICS COVERED [00:00:37] Audio is better to demonstrate pushing [00:01:03] It is normal to make or not make noises while pushing [00:01:26] A Few Pushing Options [00:02:19] Breathe Baby Out [00:02:24] Grunting [00:02...

I have been feeling discouraged in my motherhood lately,  wondering if anything I am doing really matters.  I yearn to change the world in big ways,  and sometimes feel so limited by the walls of my home and the needs of my children.  Yet, as I watched Elder Eyring speak about his mother  I had a powerful realization that what I am doing as a mother  is one of the mos...

Amanda had 2 very inspirational stories to share with us on this weeks episode.   - The Power of Prayer turned a nightmare into a miracle - The timing of turning her will over to God, regarding having a 3rd baby, was indeed divine. As well as some really great advice. - Ask lots of questions - Still do your normal things! And more.   TOPICS [00:00:32] Meet Amanda [00:01:52] The Power of...

Jessica, mom of 1 year old Julia, had quite the journey getting her here to earth.     I was inspired by her faith and the experiences that helped her,  pre-conception as she suffered through a miscarriage,  then struggled to get pregnant  and then throughout her pregnancy and birth.   Listen in as we talk. Topics Covered [00:00:12] Meet Jessica [00:00:46] Jessic...

5 days after Kayla's 6th birth, she had a very scary experience and it made her plead to God to not have any more babies. God reassured her that it was OK and there was that baby girl still waiting for her. She did go on to have a safe and successful hospital birth,  Welcoming her last baby to the earth. Topics Covered [00:00:17] Kayla Introduction [00:00:59] Strange Symptoms for Kayla - Lead...

Kayla knew from when she was a teenager she would have a boy and his name would be Jacob. It took her quite a bit longer than she expected to have him! He ended up being baby number 5! In this part of the interview you will hear about her first 6 births. Ranging from 3 medicated hospital births, to a birth at home where the midwife didn’t make it in time. Topics Covered [00:00:43] Spiritual Impres...

McKenna shared her experience last week of losing her 11 month old baby girl. Today we will hear her tips for surviving and healing through grief as well as tips for those of us loving and supporting someone through grief. Topics Covered Feeling Supported Right After Loss [00:05:30] Be OK that They are Not OK [00:07:03] Transmute the sadness into a greater love [00:10:12] Reach up instead of horiz...

McKenna shares 2 beautiful birth stories. Claire was an unassisted birth which was lovely.   Sadly she died in an accident at 11 months old.  McKenna discovered she was pregnant a month after Claire died and after a pregnancy filled with grief,  she had a healing birth of Eden,  exactly a year after Claire's death. Listen to this beautiful and tender story, have kleenexes ready...

I was so happy to hear Orchid say, there is hope for my sneeze pee problems!  Orchid is a prenatal and postpartum yoga instructor and has created an online class for moms with fix any ab separation and fix any pelvic floor dysfunction. This is part 2 of my interview with her. She shares 3 don'ts for postpartum exercising. And she shares her inspiration for creating Reconnection Ab Lab. Topics...

Orchid, a prenatal and postnatal yoga instructor shares 5 steps for good mental health after the baby is born. Have I taken a shower? Have I eaten? Am I sleeping? Am I exercising? Have I called a friend? She also shares other tips for new moms to help them adjust. This is after sharing her own journey of taking a year to get pregnant with her 2nd child. Join us for this entertaining episode (Orchi...

I loved interviewing Melissa and hearing her experiences and wisdom.   As a mom of 8 and birth worker, she had amazing things to share. I especially loved her experiences with angels at her VBA3C. Topics and Time Stamps [00:00:12] Book Review [00:00:58] Meet Melissa - Mom of 8 and a Birth Worker [00:01:51] One of Our First Readers! [00:02:42] Reading The Gift of Giving Life Increased Her Spir...

 was so great to interview Maile, a mom of 8 and hear about her different births and the way The Gift of Giving Life helped her with births.   Sadly, there were a few connection issues while we were recording. I tried to edit them best I could, but you can always read the show notes if it isn't clear.   www.thegiftofgivinglife/maile-harnessed-the-power [00:00:31] Meet Maile and lear...

Meleah found herself unexpectedly pregnant with her 5th baby and it was a struggle to accept. Especially because it seemed like the Lord went silent. This is the 2nd half of my interview with Meleah, where she shares how she started seeing the Lord in her life again. How life is even sweeter with Miles in it. She shares how a part of the Gift of Giving Life, that she thought SHOULDN’T be in the bo...

It was such a pleasure to do this interview with Meleah about her unexpected pregnancy of her 5th baby. She was so honest and vulnerable as she shared her and her husbands experience and emotions as they faced this situation, during the already tulmultuous time of being in lockdown during Covid. This is part 1, where she shares her struggles and how it felt like The Lord was silent throughout the...

It was so great to be able to talk to Meggan in this interview. Meggan is a mom of 8 children. She had an amazing experience with her 4th baby, where she was prepared by God to have an unassisted birth. Also her friend who was there at the birth, had a dream before hand, where she was tutored to know exactly what to do. Take a few minutes to listen to this amazing interview. HELPFUL LINKS This wee...

After Valerie had her 3rd baby, her doctor advised her to not have any more. The Spirit reassured her it was ok to and also led her on a journey of healing. She turned to natural healing methods and after years of healing, she got a second opinion of having more babies and got the OK She went on to have 5 more babies! I loved interviewing Valerie. She was one of my Hypnobabies Student – 2 times, f...

When one of my dear friends got preganant and wanted me to be her doula,  I really wanted to be there, but her guess date was near a cruise my family had planned. She had other friends that were planning on being there too,  which ended up being a good thing, as she had a major change of plans the day before I left! Listen to hear the miracles that happened.  

I have been thinking about the Atonement of Jesus Christ lately. We talk a lot about it in church and we all sort of theoretically get that he descended below all and some way, which neither chemistry or physics can explain, took upon Himself all of our sins, suffering and pain. I’ve used the Atonement many times in my life, for repentance, but mostly for the healing from sorrows and pain. And it...

We have an Easter Slant on sympathy pains and discuss how watching with people, holding space is helpful, in all challenging situations.  I don’t know if Christ’s apostles could see Him as He prayed. The scriptures aren’t entirely clear. Perhaps they could see Him or yearned to help Him. Or perhaps they could simply feel a small portion of the heaviness and pain projecting from Him as He acco...

Robins musings as she attends Sacrament Meeting in the midst of the struggles of the First Trimester. Here is a snippet: My mind turned to the Savior.  He was tired – heavy the scriptures say.  Was he overcome with nausea as his body lurched forward taking upon Him the sins of all mankind?  I’m sure his bones ached with tiredness.  I sat humbled knowing that the cup that He beg...

I am likely not the only woman to have felt her “mind called up to serious reflection” regarding the war of words concerning pregnancy and childbirth. Each pregnancy and birth has brought feelings that were especially “deep and often poignant.” Every time I have felt a certain measure of conflict inside me between the fear-based medicine of the world and the faith-based wisdom of God. I can never...

I loved Valerie's insights she got  when she was pondering how Jesus could understand childbirth.  She was inspired to look up a Hymn and it gave her a deeper understanding of The Atonement.