A different kind of preparation

I wish I could help navigate all the differing opinions that are being thrown at new moms or say that it gets better, but unfortunately it is just part of having a baby. Our nugget was born 5 months ago and the opposing opinions now relate to vaccinations, solids, sleep and everything in between.

I remember when I was pregnant, just wishing someone would tell me what stroller to get, what class to take, what book to read, etc

My husband and I actually took the Mindfulness Based Childbirth Prep Class at the Osher Center and it was an incredibly beneficial class. Not really a typical childbirth prep class - but more a preparation for whatever our labor was going to look like. I can HIGHLY recommend Nancy Bardake and this class. http://www.mindfulbirthing.org/classes/MBCE_detail.html

It was one of the perfect spring days in San Francisco - and this was the day that I joined a very pregnant group of women to walk the labrynth in front of the great towers of Grace Cathedral.

In a maze, there is the potential to get lost and confused - to take the wrong turn and end up at a dead end. But with a labrymth, there is only the path - the right path, that unfolds with each step and will present itself if you trust and simply follow. This is a beautiful metaphor for birth - for the process will reveal itself and it is our duty to listen, pay attention and simply follow the path that presents itself to us.

And so we walked.

Slowly and together - mindful of our feet on the pavement, mindful of the women ahead of us and behind us, mindful of the birds, the gentle breeze, mindful of the construction workers enjoying their lunch in the warmth of the sunshine, mindful of the bursting little boys bursting with energy as they walked to their next class.

And, it was all as it should have been - a perfect snapshot of life, with it's noises, laughter, distractions and imperfections.