Career, Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Mom Humor, Parenting, Pregnancy

Moms Who Inspire: Bailey Gaddis

Featured on Expectful! Whoop whoop!

After one read of Bailey Gaddis’s About Me page on her site, Your Serene Life, I knew I wanted to interview her for Moms Who Inspire because she’s insanely inspiring and  hilarious.

During our conversation, I mentioned to Bailey that I find it hysterical that she admits in her bio that she can’t stop bragging about attending an event hosted by Michelle Obama at the White House. She laughed and went on to tell me that she was at an event that morning and bragged about it to the strangers next to her. “It’s just such a cool thing to have experienced, why not brag about it?” she said laughing.

This is Bailey Gaddis. funny, honest and high on life.

Bailey is the Author of Feng Shui Mommy (coming out May 2017), a Childbirth Preparation Educator, Hypnotherapist, Birth Doula, travel addict and writer on all of the above. Bailey decided that she wanted to help women during pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum after the birth of her first child. Using Hypno-anesthesia as a method for her labor, she was able to have a pain-free natural childbirth. This empowered her to want to help other women experience their own bliss during their motherhood journeys.

When speaking to Bailey, I asked her what the first few days were like after she gave birth. I ask this often to other moms as a way to bond over stories of sleepless nights and crying babies, but Bailey’s answer was one that opened my eyes to a different experience than my own.

She replied as if reliving the experience as she spoke, “Blissful.”

This isn’t the typical answer I receive and it’s not even close to how I describe the first few days of my motherhood path, but when she said it, my body filled with love. It was really beautiful to see a different perspective on what’s usually a difficult time.

I learned so much from Bailey in our brief conversation, and I’m so happy to share more below.

Read more on Expectful!

Childbirth, Guilt & Forgiveness, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Pregnancy, Self Love

Stunning Photo Celebrates One Mom’s Rainbow Baby, While Honoring the 6 She Lost

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Mamas who have survived the loss of a pregnancy and are newly pregnant with their rainbow baby (a child born after a stillbirth or miscarriage), have an obligation to themselves to honor their journey. These women have gone deep into the trenches of pain and had the strength to reopen their hearts to another child; they’re so deserving of worship and love, versus the guilt and regret that is often served on this path.

I’ve worked with many women who have emotionally kicked themselves when they became pregnant with their rainbow baby by thinking they didn’t deserve this new child, believing that the passing of their last child was somehow their fault, and that if they expressed even a breath of excitement for the new pregnancy, something would go wrong.

I want to wrap all these women in my heart and tell them it’s OK to be excited; it’s OK to celebrate; it’s OK to have hopes and dreams for this new life while simultaneously mourning the loss of your past child’s life.

Read more on Babble!

Career, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Video

#DayInTheLife of a Mom, Writer, Cereal Chef, Birth Professional…

 

Name: Bailey Gaddis

Home city/ country: Ojai, CA, USA

Current Occupation: (student, current job, etc.): Mom, author (Feng Shui Mommy- coming out May 2017!), childbirth educator, birth doula, hypnotherapist and volunteer maid, chef and handy-woman for my people.

Time I wake up: I set the alarm for 6am- but roll out about 6:32am.

First thing I do in the morning: Coffee. Just coffee. If I’m being “good” I’ll drink some water first.

My typical breakfast: Smoothie with bee pollen, hemp seed, cacao nibs, mysterious green powder, chia seeds, flax seeds, apple cider vinegar, half a banana, almond milk and frozen fruit. (You eventually get used to the taste.)

Here’s what my morning commute is like: 15 minutes to son’s preschool, 20-ish minutes sitting in the pre-school playground marveling at how good children are at life, then back home. A 20-second walk to the room I exercise in, then a 45-ish second walk to my home office.

Read more on Mogul!

Career, Guilt & Forgiveness, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Self Love, Uncategorized

Learn How to Handle Life Like a Badass! (Online Course)

It’s launching! Ya whoo! My newest course on Daily OM “How to Handle Life Like a Badass” launched today and it’s currently mega-super-duper affordable. Youll find its spiel below. Let me know if you have any questions.

Sending you love!

~Bailey

The Spiel

Do you dwell in the darkness, even when your life is full of light? Do you live in dread of mistakes, or perceived misfortunes? Do challenges eclipse your ability to see the forest for the trees?
Would you like to feel excited by the growth opportunities in your challenges? Would you like a metaphorical flashlight to guide you through the darkness, out into a brighter reality? Would you like to open your spirit to a knowing that the life you are meant to lead is colorful, dynamic, and blissful?

This course will help you step into that brighter world. It will adjust the shade of your challenges from murky blacks and browns to vibrant blues, greens, purples, pinks, reds, yellows, and gold. Together we will unravel the tight belief that challenges are wrong, bad, or debilitating. The exciting bumps in life are not to be feared but examined, explored, and honored. A road with rolling hills, sweeping curves, unexpected dips, and steep inclines is much more thrilling than a straight flat road leading to more of the same.

In the space of this course you will learn to awaken your inherent ability to take a skilled mind, body, and spirit to this bumpy road of life. You will not only learn to see challenges as benefits but will tap into your inner knowledge of how to pull the insights, epiphanies, and enlightenment from life’s struggles. On the other side of this learning you will find yourself freed from anticipatory fear and anxiety, waking each day with an excited curiosity for what is to come, and a knowing that you can roll through it all- expanding your beautiful soul in every moment.

Each lesson will be complimented by a Guided Meditation recording, serving to integrate the core elements of the lesson with your subconscious mind.

TOPICS COVERED

  • Solidifying Your Self Worth
  • Detangling from Anticipatory Fear and Anxiety
  • Honoring Unpredictability and Giving It Sacred Worth
  • Changing the Color of Challenges
  • Having a Dialogue with Challenges
  • Writing Out the Challenges
  • How Body Awareness Can Lead to Acceptance
  • Relearning Your Ability to Have Unconditional Fun

Now is the time to step into your renewed life, where all good is coming to you.

Find out more over here!

Airplane Travel, Parenting, Travel

Your Guide to a Luxury Family Vacation in North Lake Tahoe

If you’ve been looking for a watering hole in the sky, whose waters are swirling with unpretentious grandeur, family friendly thrills and mega-yummy food, pack up your swim suits (or snow suits) and hoof it to North Lake Tahoe.

To minimize the stress pangs birthed from figuring out the logistics of a vacation (especially when humans under the age of 21 are involved!) I’ve collected my North Tahoe faves, and those of my nearest and dearest who called North Tahoe home for over ten years, so you can slide into this haven with nary a worry in sight (just a bunch of pine trees in sight.)

Where to Stay: Ritz-Carlton, Lake Tahoe

Read more on Huffington Post!

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Pregnancy

Childbirth Preparation: A Complete Guide for Pregnant Women

It’s alive! My new (and much improved!) Childbirth Preparation Online Course was birthed on Udemy today!

I’m offering 50 badass preggos out there a mega-discount ($50 instead of $125!) Use the coupon code FENGSHUIMOMMY when you go here.

There are plenty of Preview videos, checklists, and relaxation recordings you can peruse for free before clicking the Buy button 🙂

 

Career, Childbirth, Family Entertainment, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Travel

How the Band Famous October Tours With Their Baby (Interview)

When you have a baby it can be a struggle just to put on some pants and walk to the mail box. Well, Sarah Bowman and Rene Coal Burrell of the band Famous Octoberhad the baby, put on the pants and didn’t just make it to the mailbox, they went on tour for the “One Day Baby” album they also birthed. Sarah and Rene are a living testament to the fact that creative passions, career and parenthood can harmoniously coexist as they travel through the United States sharing their music and nurturing their young family.

I was able to get a glimpse into their journey thus far, and gleaned plenty of inspiration for my own journey through motherhood.

Read the interview on Huff Post!

Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Uncategorized

Why Play Is So Important- An Interview with Genius Of Play’s Ambassador Meredith Sinclair

What do you think it would be like to have the job title Genius of Play Ambassador? Childhood dream fulfilled? May we all strive to have our work be play!

I interviewed the lucky recipient of this job title from the Genius of Play organization, Meredith Sinclair, to find out why play is so crucial for healthy minds, bodies and spirits.

Meredith shared that at Genius of Play,

“We focus on 6 key developmental skills that run deeply within play. They are improving cognitive skills, honing communication skills, increasing creativity, processing and expressing emotions, developing physical skills, and enhancing social skills.”

Read more on Huff Post!

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Uncategorized

The New Product That’s Changing the Landscape of Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding can really suck- but it doesn’t have to (well, at least not in the emotional sense.) Much of the anxiety that comes with breastfeeding is birthed from the mother’s uncertainty regarding how much milk her baby is consuming. Sure, we can keep a tally of soiled diapers, but if a baby still seems like she’s hollering for more, many new mamas panic and switch to formula- even if their body is pumping out plenty of milk.

What to do?

Enter Momsense, a new product designed to record and report how much baby is actually consuming by using a tiny sensor placed behind baby’s ear that captures the sounds of baby’s swallowing to determine how much milk is being gulped down- the information is then sent to a program in mom’s smartphone (on Airplane mode) that allows her to keep track of how much baby receives during each meal. Cool!

Read more on Huff Post!

Childbirth, Parenting, Pregnancy, Reviews and Giveaways, Uncategorized

Interview With the Creator of My New Favorite Baby Shower Gift- Stockpile

#MomConfession I dreaded the mountain of ribboned tissue paper and bags at my baby shower. I was grateful, but. So. Much. Stuff. I was already having trouble fitting the essentials into my tiny living space and didn’t know how the stuffed animals galore would be integrated.

I get it- stuff is what you get and give during a baby shower. But, what if there was another option? A great gift that would create lasting value for the baby, and wouldn’t give the mother an additional thing to find a home for? Enter Stockpile, a gift card you can purchase and load with stock from a company of your choice.

I was able to interview the mind behind Stockpile, Avi Lele, and he didn’t disappoint.

Bailey: What was your background before becoming the CEO of Stockpile?

Avi: I started out as an engineering major at MIT, got a law degree at Harvard, and practiced law for 16 years before founding Stockpile. My specialty was patent litigation, and our cases involved complicated, cutting-edge technology. But technology can be intimidating to many people, so every time we went to court, we had to find a way to make the technology accessible – easy to understand and even entertaining – so lay judges and juries had the information they needed to decide the case.

Read more on Huff Post!

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Uncategorized

Review of ‘Utilizing Ancient Birthing Wisdom’ Course

One of my Daily Om courses was reviewed! Yee haw! Here it is 🙂

Childbirth and an entry into motherhood, especially for the first time for an expecting woman, can be a nerve wracking experience both from a mental and physical standpoint. While bringing a new child into the world is truly a unique and exciting experience for both parents that brings a great amount of joy, and happiness into their lives, the experience can be draining. Having the access to the knowledge that has been proven to work with childbirths throughout hundreds of years can be invaluable to a mother and couple going through a pregnancy. Instead of searching for answers to every potential issue that may arise during the pregnancy, and being forced to be more reactive than proactive during the process, there is a great solution to mothers, of all types, that will help provide them with the opportunity to experience only the joys of childbirth and few of the downsides.

Official Website: http://dailyom.com

bailey-gaddisDailyOM’s Utilizing Ancient Birthing Wisdom course, designed by Bailey Gaddis, is truly a must have and its price is something that hardly anyone else can match in terms of the value you get for the money you pay. Bailey Gaddis, the course’s founder is a mother, educator on the subject of HypnoBirthing, she is certified as a birth Doula as well as a certified Hypnotherapist. Gaddis is also the founder of the Ojai Valley Birth collective. As a mother who experienced various challenges on her way to motherhood, Gaddis devoted her life and career to helping empower other women in the hope she can help inspire them to rise above the fear of childbirth and live feeling empowered, courageous and blissful.

Read more here!       Or purchase it here! (Pay $10, $25, or $45- your choice!)

Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Travel, Uncategorized

How to Have An Epic Family Vacation In Nicaragua

Mother nature has planted a special kiss on Nicaragua, blessing it with balmy oceans, lush vegetation, affordable food, drink and accommodations, and smiling people ready to enhance your vacation with kindness and a reminder to relax and move slow.

My family has fallen so deeply in love with Nicaragua we’ve decided to purchase a property on the Pacific coast, ensuring we have the opportunity to infuse our lives with the uplifting vibes of this vibrant country on the regular.

If you and your family plan to explore this hidden jewel of Central America, fertile with adventure and chances for enlightenment, follow these suggestions to help ensure your trip is a success.

1. Hire a Chef.

Parents spend a hearty amount of time preparing meals and cleaning up after meals- then rinsing and repeating. If you’ll be renting a house, make it a true vacation by hiring a chef to prepare your breakfasts, lunches or dinners (or all of them!) Chef services in Nicaragua are inexpensive, and you can request they do all the shopping for you! In addition, you’ll be supporting the local economy and gaining a chance to get to know someone who is likely a native of the country.

Read more on Discount My Flights! 

Childbirth, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

The Pros and Cons of Freezing Your Eggs

Confession: I’m afraid my eggs will poop out on me before I’m done having kids. But the thing is, I’m not ready to have more children just yet — I want to buy a house, write a few books, travel with only one small human, sleep … so what’s a girl to do?

Freeze my eggs?

Egg freezing is the hot (or cold?) fertility trend of procuring eggs from a woman’s uterus, freezing them, and re-implanting them when she’s ready to introduce the egg to a sperm. This practice became a viable option in 2012 when breakthroughs in freezing and thawing techniques helped prevent eggs from being ruined by ice crystals forming in the eggs.

I’ve been privileged to gain an insider’s view to this wild baby-making world by my mother, who was an IVF nurse for over 15 years and now owns an egg donor agency that is partnering with an egg freezing bank. My mama’s been my fertility Yoda as I navigate this world, helping me dig beneath the surface pros and cons I find on the Internet, giving me the scoop on what the experts find to be the real benefits and risks of sticking lady eggs in a freezer.

Read more on Babble!

Childbirth, Guilt & Forgiveness, Mind-Body-Spirit, Parenting, Pregnancy, Uncategorized

Why You Should Create a Cesarean Birth Plan- Even If You’re Planning For a Vaginal Birth

Loss of control is a primary fear many women feel when considering the possibility of a cesarean birth. “I’ll have to give up my power to the surgeon. I’ll have no say over how the birth unfolds. I’ll feel like a piece of meat on an operating table.” But it doesn’t have to be that way.

You can reclaim your right to empowerment throughout your baby’s birth by creating a cesarean birth plan — even if you’re planning for a vaginal birth.

Creating this plan doesn’t set the intention that you’ll have a cesarean birth, it sets the intention that you’ll be prepared, regardless of any unforeseen circumstances that may pop up in your birth journey.

Below are preferences you can use to create a simple one-page cesarean birth plan (that you’ll create in addition to your vaginal birth plan), which you will present to your care provider around the beginning of your third trimester. I recommend discussing each preference with your care provider to determine if they, or the facility you would be having the surgery in, would put up resistance to any of the preferences. If so, discuss why there would be resistance, and what can be done about it.

Read more on Babble!