Reusable Sandwich Bags by UldeYrth

What a fabulous way to teach your children to live ethically. Send them to camp this summer with a lunch box using these amazing snack and sandwich bags by UldeYrth!

Ahhhh!

Your Vegetarian Pregnancy, by Dr. Holly Roberts.
Ahhhh! It IS possible to be vegetarian and have a healthy pregnancy and baby! LOL! Of course! But how wonderful to have a book to guide you.

Enjoy!

Jillian's Drawers

Jillian's Drawers of Ithaca, NY.... (my soon to be new home).
Jillian's offers products for natural parenting. This little shop's primary focus is cloth diapers. They offer an array of options and an awesome trial program. Visit Changing Diapers, Changing Minds to explore this program.

To boot, their website is amazing and they ship EVERYWHERE!

You can also come visit the most Eco Friendly town in New York, visit the many Falls and Gorges, and stay at the Holiday Inn Ithaca Downtown. Jillian's is 2 blocks from the hotel!

Namaste!

Personal Photography

Photography that depicts the spirit of your family and the "other kids"....

http://www.stugallagher.com/

Contact: sdgallagher@gmail.com

Awareness

Three and a half years ago an important journey began in my family's life. I began my first personal encounter with cancer. Up until then, I had only hugged friends consoling their personal struggle or shed a tear watching a TV program depicting an other's struggle. But it had all been so removed. Until my mother called and said that they found two masses, one the size of a grapefruit on one ovary and the other the size of a baseball on the other.

The surgery was scheduled one week later. The doctor biopsied right on the table and performed the hysterectomy immediately after finding the tumors malignant. They also had to remove one lymph node that was also effected. Later I will learn that this little lymph node was incredibly significant.

My brave mother endured 6 months of chemotherapy and emerged victorious. No tumors visible and cancer cell counts lower than even a healthy person.

A year later, there was another tumor. This time, inoperable. And since then more and more. She is still fighting every day, but the cancer seems to be winning.

After doing some research on my own, I was amazed to find how incredibly aggressive this cancer is, and how unaware the public is.

So... let me help you understand how this down right nasty disease has effected our fellow sisters in human kind.

Each year, approximately 20,000 American women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer and about 15,000 women die of the disease. In 2008, it was estimated that 21,650 women in the United States would be diagnosed with ovarian cancer and 15,520 women would die from the disease.

The overall five-year relative survival rate for all women with ovarian cancer is 46 percent. This means that compared to women in the general population, five years from the time of diagnosis only 46 percent of women with ovarian cancer are still alive. However, the survival rate improves greatly to 93 percent if the cancer is diagnosed at an early stage before it has spread. Only 19 percent of ovarian cancer cases are diagnosed at this local stage. Approximately 75 percent of ovarian cancer cases are diagnosed at an advanced stage after the cancer has spread beyond the ovary (which is where the lymph node becomes significant). The five-year survival rate for women with ovarian cancer has not significantly increased in the past 30 years—a mere 8 percent.

So with this information, it seems that early detection is the key. The problem with that is, the cancer is quite aggressive. My mother had a normal GYN visit 6 months prior to developing her symptoms. The cancer grew very quickly.

What are the symptoms?

Bloating
Pelvic or abdominal pain
Difficulty eating or feeling full quickly
Urinary symptoms (urgency or frequency)

*Several other symptoms have been commonly reported by women with ovarian cancer. These symptoms include fatigue, indigestion, back pain, pain with intercourse, constipation and menstrual irregularities. However, these other symptoms are not as useful in identifying ovarian cancer because they are also found in equal frequency in women in the general population who do not have ovarian cancer.

It is important that you spread the word. Be an advocate on behalf of my mom, Regis. Inform the women you love. My mother pressured her medical insurance, along with the help of her doctor and Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, enough to give my sister and I (and subsequently my daughter) the gift of genetic testing. She was tested at Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan. She tested negative for the Breast Cancer/Ovarian Cancer gene.

The next time you look for a cause to dedicate your time and love to, consider a cancer that seems to be hovering under the radar and destroying women everywhere.

Purchase the "So Hum" Onesie or Toddler Tee from babybe and 15% of the sale will be donated to the Lynne Cohen Foundation.

The Ever Changing....

Nothing is permanent. Eventually this life we cherish so comes to an end and all of our worldly possessions no longer matter. My father always says, "Kid, you can't take it with you". He was never upset with me for unintentionally destroying something or if a family member obsessed over a material item or money.. he would kindly remind me by reciting this line.

Recently, I opted for a change in my career and left my employment of 11 years for a new adventure. While in the same industry, this change will move my husband and two children... oh, and did I mention that I left my job of 11 years?

There had been days leading up to my last day at my beloved job that I wondered, "Will I ever be as happy as I am here?" or "Will I enjoy the people at the new job as much as I do this one?". And here I am typing in my hotel room, 80 miles from my husband and children (sleeping away from home a couple nights a week until the move), and somehow I feel like it is all perfect.

My children are moving to a beautiful part of Upstate New York, to a town where the earth and health are top priorities. I recently learned that the daycare around the corner from the hotel I manage has a vegetarian menu. Oh! And the local yoga studio is across the street.

And, btw, the people here are just as caring and human as the people there. While I couldn't take it with me, the comfort that is, all I had to do was let go of it for a short while... and here I am again, nice and comfy.

babybe Summer 2009

The Summer Line for babybe is sooo yummy. The new designs for the summer are:

Sweet Peace, a cupcake is our symbol for each baby being a Sweet Peace of the world.

Om, this lime green design on bark fabric is eye catching and artistic. The sanskrit mantra, "Lokah Samasta Sukhino Bhavantu (May all beings be happy and at peace)" is exactly what we all want to instill in our babies.

So Hum, the sanskrit mantra that means " I am you... you are me". This can be interpreted many ways; as mamas we are literally one with our babies during our pregnancies and we are all part of the universe and infinitely connected to each other.

Love + Bliss, two elephants link their trunks to form a heart , while Love + Bliss dance behind them.

See the collection at babybe.etsy.com

INK + WIT for your Baby and Child

Everything Counts and Animal A-Z posters by INK + WIT are absolutely inspirational for mommy and daddy, educational for baby, and good for the environment to boot!

16x20, offset, 100% post consumer recycled paper, soy inks, packaged in a recycled kraft tube mailer. There is only 1 Earth indeed.

PS. Tara Hogan, owner of INK + WIT, is babybe's chief artist and partner in design.

The Shifts in Our Lives

So, I know I speak to so many when I write about shifts in our lives. We have babies, we take on new challenges, maybe we experience changes in our physical bodies (pregnancy, disease, new or chronic pain). We all move on with daily life despite these changes, because... well, life moves on.

If you're like me, you try really hard to move on and put the effects of those shifts on the back burner. You don't have time for it, right? The kids need their breakfast, your office is having a change in their computer system and the world will stop if you don't help with that, you have an ill family member that needs your ever positive disposition... time to sit and deal with your needs??? Not today.

And then something happens. Someone says or looks at you funny. Someone cuts you off on the highway. All of a sudden you are a blubbering mess or yelling at your partner for no real reason, except you don't realize it.

So, now you must deal with it.

Enter, the Chakras. A brief explanation from Wikipedia, I could not dream of explaining it better myself:

Chakra is a concept referring to wheel-like vortices's which, according to traditional Indian medicine, are believed to exist in the surface of the etheric double of man.[1] The Chakras are said to be "force centers" or whorls of energy permeating, from a point on the physical body, the layers of the subtle bodies in an ever-increasing fan-shaped formation (the fans make the shape of a love heart). Rotating vortices's of subtle matter, they are considered the focal points for the reception and transmission of energies.

Let's focus on Muladhara Chakra. The first chakra, also known as the Root Chakra, which is located at the perineum. When your respective world has "shifted", Muladhara Chakra may become unbalanced.

A couple of yoga poses that help bring Muladhara Chakra back into balance are; Uttanasana (Standing Forward Bend) and Janu Sirsansana (Head-to Knee Pose). Balancing the first chakra can bring benefits such as; a sense of calm and the enabling of the mind to be more tolerant of change and more willing to remain content in one place.

Overall, the most significant gift that I've received from from my yoga practice is the understanding that control is an illusion. The idea that you can control the outcome of a situation or control loved ones is ultimately maddening. I have to say, it's kind of nice to surrender to what is.

lokah samastah sukhino bhavantu

may all beings everywhere be happy and free from suffering... that includes YOU.

Little Yoga

My two year old dances around mimicking poses from this book. A beautiful introduction to yoga.

Next week look for babybe's latest toddler tee titled, "Sweet Peace".

Little Yoga is available on Amazon and through the publisher, http://us.macmillan.com/littleyoga

Blessings for a sweet and peaceful week. Namaste.

Organic Foods... How do I choose?

So, as a mama and householder... I know 100% organic all the time isn't always practical. And there is something to be said for providing a little challenge for your family's immune system.
I am constantly reminded in daily life of how fast our children are maturing physically. Much of that is the result of the growth hormone that is injected into the food supply. Although it hasn't been proven scientifically... it is thought that girls are getting their menstrual cycles, breasts, and adult hair sooner due to the heavy additives to our food supply. I'm also always reminded when visiting my teenage sister that hormones in the food supply can't help the violent mood swings of today's teenage girls!
So, how do you choose? Which foods have more impact on your child's body?
A good place to begin is with the foods your children and family ingest the most of. Milk is one that instantly comes to mind. Maybe peanut butter? Eggs... your kid's favorite fruit... and so on.
Here's a list of foods that are the most contaminated by pesticides. Buy these foods organic as much as possible; Peaches * Apples* Sweet bell peppers* Celery * Nectarines * Strawberries* Cherries * Lettuce* Grapes (imported)* Pears * Spinach* Potatoes .
Here's to happy and healthy children and a bit more peace of mind in the lunch box.
Namaste.

YJ NYC 2009

babybe organics will join INK + WIT for babybe's retail debut in Manhattan at Yoga Journal's Conference in May. The Spring/Summer line will be available along with the addition of babybe's first sling and baby blankets.

Felt Food Breakfast Set by Curly Clips! Pankcakes, eggs, and sausage (soy, for sure)!
This product is amazing. Amazingly creative and earth friendly.

Let your babies make you breakfast. It's yummy in so many ways.

On Curly Clip's Etsy Shop this set shares the shop with felt chocolate sugar cookies, fruit, and sandwich.

http://www.curlyclips.etsy.com/

Infant Massage

As a part of the Spring 2009 mama and baby yoga series, we've incorporated an introduction to infant massage, which I am so excited about. As a mama, just another tool for you to sooth baby and ultimately self.

I am so excited to see how the babies respond to their mother's touch. Babies are pure inspiration... their ability to be with whatever is for them at that moment. Somewhere along the line, that gets lost. Yoga is about getting back to that point. To allow what is around you with the acceptance that you have no control over any of it. Everything is... indeed perfect.

Ahhh.