Monday, September 10, 2007

The Dark Side of Dr. Sears and Business is Business

I promise the last post about labor (probably). I was talking about Josie's birth with a neighbor yesterday and remembered some details I left out. Those of you with children probably know about Dr. Sears, especially if you are into "attachment parenting". He has a book which we've owned for four years now call "Baby on the Way". It looked innocent enough and the book was nice to read to Parker before Dema's birth and has always been one the boys enjoyed even when I wasn't pregnant. Yet, such a sweet and simple book which innocently mentions "mommy's belly squeezes" for contractions during labor can have a dark side. Ah, what a cute way to explain labor...or not. So, during this pregnancy Parker has been on my belly since he found out I was pregnant and talking to the baby, hugging the baby, singing to the baby, counting to the baby...you get the picture...wherever the baby is (at the time my belly) he was. So he has been there for many a Braxton Hicks contraction and many a kick, listening to the heart beat with a borrowed fetal scope, measuring, etc. During the BHs he would say something about belly squeezes and that the baby was wanting to come out and I would smile at the sweetness. Then I'm actually in labor, the time he has patiently waited for and he sees me going through contractions..."real" ones now and he wants to help so he is wrapped around my middle while I'm in the hallway giving my belly a "squeeze" to help. Now friends, I don't know how you like to labor, but I don't really liked to be touched during a contraction and especially getting a big squeeze from a strong and overzealous seven year old is not my idea of fun. I fought the urge to throw my first born across the room and actually explained to him very quietly that the book was wrong and belly squeezes was not a good description afterall and that you can't believe everything you read...and oh, please don't touch mom's belly again until you see an actual baby...thanks.

I hear all the time comments about homebirth and why would I choose to birth at home and all that. There are many reasons and some day I may post about them, but one of the nice things about birthing at home when you have a home business is that you don't have to close. In between giving birth to Josie and birthing the placenta, I received a call on my cell from a customer. She was about an hour from our town and needed to buy an Ergo baby carrier for a baby shower the next day. As I stopped trying to push the placenta out and I was looking at the disgust in my husband's face (not because of the placenta, but because I was talking business with a customer at this very moment in time) I said of course an hour would be perfect, what color Ergo did she need and we take check, credit card, cash, and paypal. See you soon. When the customer showed up, Rob went downstairs to talk care of the sale and just had to tell the poor woman that I had just given birth a couple hours before. She hurried out with the Ergo and I'm pretty sure he scared her away for any repeat business. We are always open.

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