Belly Photos

4 weeks to go...

The mystery - 10 days to go...

What is goin on down there?

A Blessingway - December 30, 2008

With only 4 weeks left to go, it feels like our baby is practically in our arms, at least most of the time. But there is also a suspended quality about this time...as if that day will never come.

We finished our birth class which was a wonderful experience. The class was modeled after the Birthing from Within book by Pam England. We went through the class with another couple who lives close to us. It was a time of reflecting, expressing, and growing closer to each other. Both of us feel mentally, physically and spiritually prepared for the labor experience. And we are working on feeling prepared for the experience of parenting. The collection of books is growing.

We consider ourselves very fortunate to have stumbled upon a group of 8 other couples who are giving birth within a few months of each other. We all live within a two mile radius of each other (since we live in a very rural and hilly area, this is quite unusual). Many of us are recent transplants to the area as well, so it has been so wonderful to have this new-found community. We have met on a few occasions, including for a new years eve party. A few weeks ago there was a blessingway ceremony for 5 of us who would be giving birth within the next two months. It was a time of gaining strength from other women and of being grounded in community. The experience was very powerful.

Christmas was a relaxing time spent with Richard's family in Toronto. Although the drive wasn't too much fun we were glad that we went. It was so nice to be with family for the holiday. We received some beautiful gifts for the baby - thank you everyone! And we enjoyed being in the big city so we could eat delicious greek food, go to the Art Gallery of Ontario, and see a movie









On December 30th our dear friends Lori and Liz had a blessingway for us. Friends from SIT, our work colleagues, and people we have gardened with came to show support for us as we enter this new stage of life. It was a special time of sharing with other women. Thank you to everyone who blessed us with poems and beads - there is a growing string of gorgeous beads which will be keepsakes for many years. I feel very supported by such a wonderful group of women, both those who could be present and those who were there in spirit. The men joined us after a couple of hours and shared with us the artwork that they had made. Their paintings are beautiful. And then we all had a big potluck and shared good conversation. It was a deeply spiritual day that really had the feeling of building community.

A reminder about gifts...refer to our previous blog post about "gifts of action" for baby berkfield. This is our top gift request. But if you feel that you must gift something more tangible remember that we are registered at http://web.smart-shop.com/re-gifts.com/baby-registries/angela-and-richard-berkfield-p0/
Another way to find gifts that are good for people and the environment is at www.ecomall.com They have all kinds of things, but clink on the babies link to find dozens of links to online stores.

Nov 12th, 2008: Preparing for the February 7th Arrival of our Precious Child

The Celebration of Life

awaken us to the abundance of cosmic forces,

the powers of creation,

the diversity of manifestations and appearances

may we appreciate our capacity for joy and laughter,

song and dance, love and communication

healing ourselves in loving celebration,

we heal our mother earth

 

We found out in early June that we were pregnant. Although it was very planned, the news still felt like a surprise since we got pregnant right away. The first couple of months were tough, to say the least! I spent the better part of the day on the couch or kneeling over the toilet. I didn't get to enjoy my favorite summer foods like strawberries, I couldn't work in the garden anymore, and I could barely manage a 30 minute stroll. I was miserable - which made Richard miserable too, as you can imagine! But the miserableness gradually faded by early August and thankfully I have felt great since then.

Life has changed for us very quickly and we have the very distinct feeling that it will never be the same again. Our minds are now partly distracted by what we need to do to prepare for the Feb 7th arrival of our baby. First we thought about my health and the baby's health...It was an easy decision for us to choose a homebirth with a certified and licensed midwife. When we first met with Mary Lawlor, our midwife, we knew right away that she was a good fit for us. It feels so good to be able to meet with her monthly in a comfortable office, away from the bustle and confusion of the hospital. I feel that my questions are answered, and my wishes are respected.

One of the reasons that we feel very confident in choosing a midwife and homebirth over a hospital birth is due to the shocking increase of cesarean deliveries in recent years. Midwives, especially at home births, have a much lower rate of cesarean than in hospitals. Check out this website for good information on the rate of cesarean births in the US http://www.childbirthconnection.org/article.asp?ck=10554 This is also true for epidural use, and episiotomy. 

Is it a boy or a girl??? We'll let you know as soon as we find out, which should be around Feb 7th. We have decided not to do an ultrasound unless it becomes necessary. It is now common for the average woman to have 4 ultrasounds during her pregnancy, despite the lack of long-term research on the effects ultrasound might have on the fetus.  We are excited to keep one of the biggest suprises of life as a surprise!

Blessing our child with a gift

Many of you have been asking what you can gift our new baby. We are excited for you to participate in bringing this precious new life into the world through physical gifts and also through spiritual and emotional gifts. It takes a village to raise a child and you are part of our village, even if you aren't living close to us right now.

Some of the immediate physical things that we will need for our baby can be found at Twin Cities Green www.twincitiesgreen.com , a store that we have registered at. You can find our registry at... http://web.smart-shop.com/re-gifts.com/baby-registries/angela-and-richard-berkfield-p1/  If you live in the Twin Cities you can go to the store - there are a few things that can only be bought in the actual store. We are hoping to acquire as few new things as possible, and to use organic and fair trade products whenever possible. For everything else we are hoping to reuse what others pass on to us. We are able to get almost everything here in the area from families whose children are no longer infants - we already have a bassinet, bathtub, an offroad stroller, and an infant carseat. If you have anything which you are finished using and would like to pass on to us, please ask - it would be a wonderful gift to receive hand me downs from you! ..the gift that keeps on giving.

We have decided to use cloth diapers for economic, environmental, and health reasons. Check out this great article on disposable vs. cloth diapers  http://www.punkinbutt.com/diaper-dilemma-part-moms-perspective-a-11.html   Let us know if you would like to help us with some of the upfront purchases that we need to make (cloth diapers, covers, wipes, bin liners, etc).

We would like to request a very important gift from you. We ask that you give our child (and every other child) the gift of action to save this Planet Earth. With global warming, peak oil, the destructive food system, an increase in diseases through the poisoning of our planet from chemicals, extreme social injustices, and on and on, there is so much that can be done. Our children will inherit this planet, and we all need to make lifestyle changes that will make the planet a safer and more just place for our children and grandchildren. Here are some ideas...  

Social Justice: Our baby does not want to participate in an economy that encourages exploitation of others, which includes employing masses of people to work in factories and fields for below living wages while being exposed to chemicals and harsh conditions only to produce cheaper products for higher corporate profits and consumers in the developed world. One thing we can do is to stop buying things that are made in this way. In the US we have 4% of the world's population and consume 25% of the world's resources. It is time for all of us to reduce our consumption, for the benefit of the planet and all of the people who live on it. One of our favorite short films is the "story of stuff". Please take a look:  http://www.storyofstuff.com/ It's good to watch every once in a while to remind ourselves to resist the temptation to buy. There are many things that we can all do to make this world a more socially just place to live. What could you do for others as a gift for our baby?

Reducing your Carbon Footprint: there are many things you can do to reduce your carbon output. Take the quiz at this website www.carbonfootprint.com to find out what you are currently using. The site will give you tips on how to reduce your carbon. Start small and try to become more conscious of what you can do to reduce your footprint.

The Future of Food:Important questions to consider when thinking about the food we eat ...Where does my food come from? Where, how, and by whom was it grown? Who owns the land and inputs? 

Where does my food come from? If its grown far away, then it must travel far to get here, which means that oil was used. This increases the price as the price of oil increases. Not only that, it was probably picked unripe, or it was bred to be tough enough to travel long distances, or it was treated with chemical preservatives.  Most likely, it doesn't taste as delicious as something locally produced in season. If it is grown intensively, most likely chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, etc. were used, thus polluting soil, air and water for you, me and our baby. On top of that, most large scale agricultural production is owned by a few huge corporations recieving massive government subsidies and posting record profits.

Who grows my food? If you know who grows your food, then you probably have a strong connection to it. However, most likely you don't know who is growing your food, and most likely that person isn't even a farmer. Most food is being produced by farm workers, who sell their labor power to corporations. Farm workers are typically immigrants who do extremely tough and dangerous work (remember the chemicals?).  As corporations increase the amount of land under their control, more and more farmers become wage laborers with little power.

Finally, who owns the land and inputs of the food we eat?  Large companies own a lot of agricultural land.  These same corporations own the seed companies, and the fertilizer companies, and the pesticide companies. It seems as if they are consolidating control over our food production. Food prices are rising, and their profits are rising. In this globalized economy dominated by FREE TRADE, conditions of the colonial era are proliferating.  Instead of growing food to feed themselves, poor countries are growing food to sell for export and starving as they can't afford food for their own survival. Subsidized U.S. corn benefits corporations, who then undercut the market price by dumping corn in Mexico where local small-scale farmers can no longer make a living. They lose their farms and migrate to sell their labor in the U.S. illegally. Who hires them? Large corporate farms and meat factories, thus creating our "immigration problem."

Luckily there are choices to combat this tragic and potentially ruinous condition.  Grow your own food. Nothing tastes better than a homegrown tomato! If you don't have any land, look for a community garden, or work to start one. Go to the local farmers market. Meet a farmer or two. Join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).  Donate CSA shares for people who can't afford one. If you look around you will see that more and more people are choosing these non-corporate alternatives.

Check out the following resources for more info

www.farmingsolutions.org

http://www.foodsecurity.org/views_cfs_faq.html

http://www.justfood.org/issues/

Chemicals: By reducing the use of harmful chemicals in your home cleaning products, food, and more, you are helping us provide a healthy habitat for our child, other children in all of our lives, and for you.  You will also be more likely to be around longer to share moments with us and our child. Check out this website for info about harmful chemicals and for safe options. http://www.oxyboost.com/utility_pages/nontoxic.html

When you give us the gift of doing something in honor of our baby to make this world a better place, please let us know either through this blog (so that you can inspire many people) or through a letter or email. Thank you for this beautiful gift that you are giving to our child, and to so many other children.

Our address is:  SIT   PO Box 1313 C40    Brattleboro, VT 05302

email: angelaberkfield@gmail.com, berkfieldr@gmail.com

phone: 248-904-8324