Feminine Farmgirl Giveaway!!

Feminine Farmgirl is having a giveaway of one of my favorite products, Lilla Rose hair accessories! They are great, easy on your hair and best of all they look beautiful! Go check it out and enter in the giveaway!

http://femininefarmgirl.blogspot.com/2011/12/announcing-lilla-rose-review-and.html


Hayden~

Naturally Beautiful and Frugal: The Oil Cleansing Method!

Let's go back to sophomore high school science for second ok?  You most likely learned in that year if not earlier that substances solve each other.  Water solves water and oil solves oil.  In light of that, why are we scared of oil touching our face? Most products on the market are oil free and packed full of sulfates just like hair products.  This helps only to remove oil off of your face completely making your skin over compensate for the loss thus, over producing and making your skin more oily than desirable.  This can cause problems for people with sensitive or acne prone skin.  I am fortunate to have been blessed with skin that doesn't have problems, but for those with problems, it can easily damper your mood.  Since I like everything to be as natural as possible that goes in and on my body, I did research on natural cleansing routines for the face.  I soon found the oil cleansing method! Scientifically it makes sense to me, just like my curly girl method I previously posted about.  The oil cleansing method is based on two main oils and then others essential oils are added to customize the oil blend for the individuals skin type.  Depending on your skin type, you will use a ratio of caster oil and a lighter moisturizing oil as the base for your blend. The ratios for oils as follows:

Dry Skin: 20% Caster oil to 80% lighter oil
Balanced Skin: 30% Caster oil to 70% lighter oil
Oily Skin: 40% Caster oil to 60% lighter oil

Caster oil breaks up the nasty dirt and build up that blocked into your pores.  And for those of you that have cystic acne, I'm happy to report to you that caster oil also breaks up and prevents those nasty things on your face.  Quite using harsh scrubs and soaps on your acne, it only agitate it and moves the bad oil around on your face!

Picking a lighter oil  
Most people use either Olive oil or Sunflower oil.  I use sweet almond oil since I do have sensitive skin, but problem free skin.  It's light and moisturizing. Here are some other types that are great for skin. (Stay away from coconut oil! It will solidify in your pores...bad!)

• Jojoba (all skin types, but very desirable for acne-prone skin)
• Sweet almond (all skin types, especially oily)
• Grapeseed (all skin types, especially oily)
• Avocado (dry and aging skin)
  
• Sunflower Seed (all skin types)
  
• Olive (all skin types) - make sure it's a good quality olive oil
  
• Apricot Kernel (dry, aging, and normal skin)
  
• Argan (all skin types, especially aging skin … very pricey)
• Tamanu (all skin types … very pricey)

The lighter oil serves the purpose of a moisturizer and replacer.  It replaces the bad oil that the caster oil broke up with good oil.
Adding other oils to your blend
Once you've established what lighter oil you add to your special percent of caster oil, you can then decide what other essential oils to add to your blend.

General Care:	Lavender, rose, rosemary camphor, cypress, geranium, chamomiles, rosewood, geranium essential oils and hydrosols
ACNE:	Tea tree, Manuka, Helichrysum, lavender, spike lavender, thyme linalool, rose geranium, tea tree, Petitgrain, grapefruit, sandalwood, Vetiver, mints, basil, German chamomile, atlas Cedarwood, rosewood, Palma Rosa, thyme, Cajeput, Niaouli, Yarrow Hydrosol
ASTRINGENT:	Grapefruit, yarrow, rosemary, lime distilled
BLACK HEADS:	Coriander, thymus vulgaris, peppermint, lemongrass
CHAPPED/ CRACKED SKIN:	Myrrh, patchouli, sandalwood, Vetiver, Cajeput, roman & German chamo, lavenderCalendula infused oil.
CHILBLAINS:	Black Pepper, Cinnamon leaf, clove bud, ginger, lavender.  (ie, circulatory stimulants to promote warming.)
CLEANSING:	Sweet Basil, juniper, lemon, lemongrass, Niaouli, peppermint
COMBINATION SKIN:	Geranium, Rosewood, Ylang-ylang, Rose Geranium Hydrosol, Neroli Hydrosol
DEVITALIZED SKIN:	Eucalyptus globulous, myrtle, neroli, basil juniper, lemon, lemongrass, Niaouli, peppermint, pine, orange, oregano, rosemary, spearmint, geranium, grapefruit
DRY ACNE:	Petitgrain, lavender, spike lavender, clary, rose geranium
DRY SKIN:	Carrot seed, Cedarwood, clary, jasmine, geranium, lavender, orange, Palma Rosa, rose, roman chamo, rosewood, neroli, Petitgrain, Mandarine petitgrain, Vetiver, sandalwood, ylangylang, carrot seed, lavender, rose or neroli hydrosol, Calendula infused oil
ECZEMA:	German Chamomile, Helichrysum, Lavender, Bergamot, Carrot Seed, Atlas Cedarwood, Roman Chamomile, Juniper, Myrrh, Palma Rosa, Patchouli, Sandalwood, Teatree, Yarrow, Ylangylang. Calendula infused oil, Cranberry Seed Oil.
HYDRATING:	Palma Rosa, sweet orange, Mandarine, tangerine, rose, most hydrosols, esp. Neroli
INFECTIONS:	German chamo, Manuka, eucalyptus, lavender, myrrh, roman chamo, rosemary, spikenard, tea tree, thyme linalool, calendula, Palma Rosa, Niaouli, laurel, myrtle, rosewood
INFLAMMATION:	Helichrysum, st. johns Wort infusion, carrot seed, Cistus, galbanum German & Roman chamomiles, clary, myrrh, myrtle, rosewood, angelica, yarrow, Helichrysum, Witch hazel or Chamomile Hydrosols
ITCHING:	Jasmine, heli, lavender, peppermint, roman chamo, Lavender or Witch Hazel hydrosol
LARGE PORES:	Myrtle, lemongrass, rose, Cedarwood
MATURE, AGED SKIN,  WRINKLES:	Carrot seed, elemi, Cistus, frankincense, galbanum, fennel, geranium, myrrh, patchouli, rose, Clary, rosewood, sages, cypress, fennel, lavender, neroli, Sea Buckthorn Berry Extract, Rose Hip Extract.
NORMAL SKIN:	Atlas Cedarwood, geranium, jasmine, lavender, neroli, roman chamo, rose, rosewood, ylangylang, angelica, all hydrosols
OILY SKIN:	Roman & German chamos, Cedarwood, (atlas, red, texas) geranium, Clary, lavender, Ylang-ylang, lemon, peppermint, Niaouli, Cajeput, cypress, calendula infusion, frankincense, patchouli, sandalwood, juniper, Melissa, yarrow, coriander, Petitgrain, lime distilled, grapefruit, thyme linalool, Lavandin, spike lavender, rose.
PIMPLES, blemishes:	Tea tree, Manuka, Lemon Myrtle, German Chamomile, Helichrysum italicuum, thyme linalool, Cajeput, oregano (spot only) Niaouli, rosemary
PUFFINESS:	Oregano, Spanish marjoram, cypress, peppermint, rosemary, fennel, celery, clary sage, roman chamomile
REGENERATION:	Frankincense, lavender, neroli, patchouli, rose, rosemary, sandalwood, teatree, Helichrysum, elemi, Vetiver, spikenard, caraway, Palma Rosa, Spanish sage, Clary, lavender, galbanum, myrrh, myrtle, calendula, carrot seed, Cistus, CO2 combo
REVITALIZING BASAL LAYER:	Carrot seed, Rosewood, Niaouli, tea tree, orange, calendula
ROSACEA:	German chamomile, Helichrysum italicuum, rosewood, Helichrysum hydrosol
SENSITIVE SKIN:	Roman & German chamomile, rose, Palma Rosa, Helichrysum, neroli, rosewood, carrot, angelica, jasmine, Neroli, Chamomile or Yarrow Hydrosols
SCARS:	Helichrysum (in a base of Rose Hip Seed Oil), carrot seed, lavender, petitgrain, galbanum
SKIN TONER:	Calendula infused , lemongrass, chamomiles, lavender, neroli, orange, rose, frankincense, Petitgrain, lemon, hydrosols

Make sure you know the potency of the essential oil you are adding especially when only making a little batch. For example, when using high potent oils like tea tree, lemon or peppermint oil, you only need 2-3 drops per half cup.  I use a blend of lemon grass, peppermint, rose, lavender and tea tree oil in my base of caster and sweet almond oil.  Don't be afraid to play around with different blends till you find one that you really like!


Once you have your blend all you will need is a dirty face (yes even with make up on, in my success it removes my eyeshadow primer and mascara better than any eye makeup remover!) your oil blend and a washcloth! 


Step One
Put a quarter size amount of your oil blend in the palm of your hand and apply to your face.  Massage the oil into your face for 5-10 minutes.  


Step Two
Turn on your sink faucet and allow the water to get rather hot, but not to where it will scald your skin.  Wet the washcloth in the hot water, ring it out slightly and apply to your face.  


Step Three
Let the steam from the washcloth open up your pores and soften the oil.  


Step Four
Once the washcloth is warm to room temperature, slowly remove the washcloth while wiping away the oil from your face.  


Step Five
Wet the washcloth again with warm-hot water and wipe away the remaining oil on your face. Repeat this until all the oil is off of your face.   The good oil has already been replaced into your pores so it is very important that you get all the bad oil off of your face! 


Thats it! You're skin will feel super clean and look great!


Your skin might go through a purging period where it will be a little bit more oily than your usual skin type for 1-2 weeks.  This is normal, stick with it! 




Happy Cleansing!




~ Hayden Lorraine

Curly Girl Method. How to have a good hair day every day! (Straight hair too!)

     I've promised a post on this for a long time! Many people have wanted to know my secrets of how and why my curly hair is so manageable.  Well here is it :)
     Statistically 65% of the world has curly hair. Only about 11% know it.  Here in the US we have grown up watching commercials that teach us that oil is BAD and must be destroyed, only they don't tell you that in order to destroy this horrendous oil you must torture your hair with harsh chemicals! The same chemicals that are found in...laundry detergent and dishwasher soap! They realized how this dried the hair and came up with conditioner that would fix all that, only they use silicone which naturally clogs up the pores in your scalp and it can only be removed by the harsh chemicals.  Chemicals by the name of Sulfate!  Oil is not bad!! Overly oily hair is not desirable but overly oily  hair is 1. nearly impossible for curly headed people to have and 2. only caused by drying your hair out with these harsh chemicals.  Your hair must over compensate for the lack of natural moisture in it but over producing natural oil, making it gross and oily after about 1 day of washing it.  So what and how can we fix this? Here are some simple steps!

The Curly Girl Method
1. Grab your commercialized shampoo that has sulfate and wash your hair FOR THE LAST TIME! After your shower throw it away and vow to never ever pick up another bottle as long as you live.  Plus once you see the results you won't think twice about it!


1b.  Here is where you will start every day after Day 1 of your new hair life :) Wet your hair with cold water and don't touch it.  If you have strong water pressure shield the powerful spray with your hand.  hair is more fragile when wet, which means it's more prone to breakage and will lead to frizz; a curly girls nightmare!


2. Use a lighter non silicone conditioner to cleanse your scalp.  Believe it or not the Suave naturals collection is silicone/-cone free and all natural :) Pour a generous amount into the palm of your hand and massage into your scalp with your finger tips.  Never touch your precious and fragile scalp with your fingernails! Ever!


3. Rinse again in cold water only! You may use your finger tips to massage the dirt and grime away.Hot and warm water rips your hair of it's natural oils and will leave it dry and dull.  Cold water closes the hair shaft keeping it from build up and leaves your hair more shiny and lustrous! 


4. Next you should apply a thicker moisture and protein rich condition to your hair that is also silicone/-cone free.  Garnier Fructis Fortifying Triple Nutrition conditioner happens to be silicone free and all natural :)  Love! Apply this generously to your hair and comb hair out from the bottom upwards using a wide tooth comb that doesn't have the little caps on the end of the teeth (those pull hair out :/ ) This is the only time you will ever ever ever comb your hair out.....ever! Never ever when dry!


5. If your hair tends to frizz once combed out apply more garnier to the top layer of your hair.  From here you should not touch your hair until you are out of the shower. Continue with your shower routine and let the conditioner soak into your hair


6. Do not touch your hair and rinse it LIGHTLY with as cold of water as you can handle. A generous amount of the conditioner should remain in your hair.  


7.  Scrunch hair in an upward motion softly to ring the water out


8. Scrunch a small amount of Burts Bees Grapefruit and Sugar Beet Natural conditioner into your hair.


9. Scrunch Herbal Essences Totally Twisted hair gel into your curls.  It is the only alcohol free hair gel on the market and doesn't hurt your hair one it.  Over  Christmas break I am going to experiment with making my own natural hair gel.  I do love this gel though! 


10.  Use a 100% cotton t-shirt to crunch dry your hair.  Never ever use a terry cloth towel on your curly air again! This is the main cause of frizz for curly haired people believe it or not! This alone make a huge difference in any hair type! 


     You may use a diffuser to dry your hair if you can't stand it air drying, but air drying it is best!


I know it seems like an awful lot of conditioner and I know that you think it's going to weigh your hair down and make it greasy and truthfully.... it might for about 1-3 weeks. In these weeks your hair is learning to trust you.  Learning to trust that you won't torture it again with harsh chemicals that will rid it of it's natural oil.  It is still probably going to over produce oil for at least a week maybe a week and a half.  After that it should return to it's normal and natural state and you will reap the amazing benefits of having manageable hair that will never ever have a bad hair day again!!


About every month you should clarify your hair.  Despite our best efforts, some things that we do not want in our hair find their way in.  To get rid of these things that weigh down hair and cause it to become dull here are a couple of things you can do...


Baking Soda Rinse - This is your best friend :)
Mix some baking soda with warm water and rinse throughout your hair.  Let it sit for a little bit and rinse,  then proceed with the rest of the routine.  


Brown Sugar Scrub
Mix two parts Brown sugar with 1 part of the suave coconut conditioner.
Massage your scalp to exfoliate and remove any excess dirt, grime and build up.  This does not leave your hair sticky or make you more attracted to sweet loving bugs. It rinses out completely and leaves your hair soft and wonderfully bouncy!

Lemon Aide
Mix lemon juice in with the coconut conditioner.  Massage your scalp and distribute through the rest of your hair.  This removes any chlorine and restores your hair to it's natural pH levels.

Ultra Moisturizer
Mix olive oil, jojoba oil, coconut oil, or shea butter with a few drops of any nice smelling essential oil.
Finger comb this through wet curls and wrap your hair in plastic wrap. Leave in for a few hours or over night.  Rinse and resume the rest of the routine. You can do this to your entire head or just the ends.

Glistening Spray
Mix 1T. of vegetable glycerin with 1 1/2 C. of water and a few drops of nice smelling essential oil together in a spray bottle.
Moisturizes curls and makes them shine! A little goes a long way!

Protein Boost
Beat 1 to 2 eggs together with coconut conditioner.
Pour onto hair and let it soak in a set before rinsing and resuming the rest of the routine. This will make your hair very strong and shiny! I normally do this between steps 3 and 4.

Lavender Mist - I use this every day!
Boil 1/2 of a gallon of water for 1 hour.  then add 5 drops of pure lavender essential oil.  Put in a spray bottle and use it for touch up or to smooth any fly aways or random frizzies.

If you have straight hair I would not suggest cutting the shampoo out all together.  However you should cut out sulfate shampoos.  Loreal makes a sulfate free shampoo and it is currently the only one on the commercial market! I've used it to clarify my hair when silicone has gotten into my curls.  It works great and keeps your hair from drying out and also prevents oil overproduction for straight haired people that want healthier and sulfate free hair!  For straight hair follow the same steps only replace washing your scalp with sulfate free shampoo instead of the light conditioner.  Also eliminate using the gel to scrunch and keep curls in place.  Do however use a 100% cotton shirt or microfiber towel to dry your hair.  Terry cloth is bad for any hair type!

Here are some before and after pics for proof!!

This woman thought she had straight hair! But her after results are incredible!!

 BeforeAfter 

   

Before and After.  Another person who thought she had unmanageable straight hair!

There is hope for you all with curly hair and for those of you with straight you can increase your hair health!!   Don't hair your curly hair and don't think you will have bad hair days! Learn to love your curly and embrace them!

Happy Conditioning!

~Hayden Lorraine

Monday Post :)

     I've been extremely busy and sick :( these past few weeks! But I promise that a "real" blog post will come soon! But for now here is what I have for today.  
     Last week brought some trials into my life that are ultimately for my good! My Grandmother/Great Grandmother (if you know how my family tree works you will understand, if not you will next week!)  passed away on Thursday 11/10/11. Her name was Jane Austen Gregory.  The irony in her name is found in her love for reading.  She was an avid reader and read about a book a week and kept a journal filled with all the titles she had read in her life.  She also used to fold in half the very middle page of the book for a reason I don't know.  What I didn't know about her was that she read through the bible every year in it's entirety.  If thats not inspiring I don't know what is.  So in honor of her I have decided to continue this tradition in my family myself.  
     I am also going to continue with my character quality study and memorization with the verses and definitions that correlate.  So here is my list for this week/ today!

Character Qualities


1. Truthfulness vs Deception : Earning future trust by accurately reporting future trust by accurately reporting past facts.

"Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another." Ephesians 4:25

2. Alertness vs Unawareness: Being aware of that which is taking place around me so that I can have the right responses.
"Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." Mark 14:38


3. Self Control vs Self Indulgence: Instant obedience to the initial promptings of God's spirit.
"And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit." Galatians 5:24-25

4. Wisdom vs Natural Inclination: Seeing and responding to life situations from Gods frame of reference.
"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight." Proverbs 9:10


To read today:
Ezekiel 24:1-26:21
Hebrews 11:1-16
Psalm 110:1-7
Proverbs 27:14


And....
One of my favorite hymns :)


Love Divine, All Loves Excelling by Charles Wesley



Love divine, all loves excelling,
Joy of heaven to earth come down;
Fix in us thy humble dwelling;
All thy faithful mercies crown!
Jesus, Thou art all compassion,
Pure unbounded love Thou art;
Visit us with Thy salvation;
Enter every trembling heart.


Breathe, O breathe Thy loving Spirit,
Into every troubled breast!
Let us all in Thee inherit;
Let us find that second rest.
Take away our bent to sinning;
Alpha and Omega be;
End of faith, as its Beginning,
Set our hearts at liberty.


Come, Almighty to deliver,
Let us all Thy life receive;
Suddenly return and never,
Never more Thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing,
Serve Thee as Thy hosts above,
Pray and praise Thee without ceasing,
Glory in Thy perfect love.


Finish, then, Thy new creation;
Pure and spotless let us be.
Let us see Thy great salvation
Perfectly restored in Thee;
Changed from glory into glory,
Till in heaven we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before Thee,
Lost in wonder, love, and praise.

Have a great week!

Hayden Lorraine~

A Pregnancy Post on Labor Day!

    

      The irony of this controversial subject and the day I've decided to write about it is merely coincidence.  I've been sick in bed in my beautiful townhome here on the lovely DBU campus and what do I do when I'm sick? I research things and read, naturally avoiding homework.  The extent of my research has been in many different fields that I think match up in my own twisted way; that is, the homeschooled way.  I was homeschooled from 4th  grade - 1st semester of my freshman year of high school.  Lucky for me my homeschooling took place at the most impressionable time in ones life, middle school.  Needless to say there is a 'scar' that seems to be imprinted on my forehead that reads, "I was homeschooled", in big bold letter.  (Does anyone else find it ironic that homeschooled isn't an actual word and therefore always misspelled?) I'm not knocking homeschooling or homeschoolers in anyway.  Those were the best years of my life and precisely why I am who I am today, with the help of other influences along the way.  My children will be homeschooled until highschool and then, if they choose to attend a public or private school for the last 4 years, they may.  I would rather them experience the 'real world' while under my 'umbrella' and control (I pepper posts with Bill Gothard phrases occasionally so keep your eyes peeled fellow IBLP-ers ) than once in college and, 'on their own', so to speak.  If my girls don't want to go to college, they don't have to, thats their choice.  Now back to the post. So here I was all labor day weekend reading and researching.  

My research was inspired by a late night chat with three of my roommates. Two of who were homeschooled and one outcast. Just kidding.  We were discussing the touchy subject of birth control.   A typical conversation I thought, but not so much to the outcasted public schooler.  Out of the four of us two don't believe in the use of birth control based on personal convictions, one wants to use it during the first 2 or 3 years to establish a marital relationship with her husband and the other believes in it.  We talked about multiple things after that; homeschool curriculum, the homeschool book fair (our favorite time of the year of course.), natural births vs. drugged births, bradley vs. lamaze,  home birth vs. hospital birth, herbal remedies vs man made drugs, which brought us to vaccinations.  Something I've never given much thought too.  I've had every vaccine that the FDA suggests, and in time with their chart without as much as a single complication.  The one shot I don't like and didn't agree with prior to my research was the flu shot.  Every time I get the shot I get the flu, which doesn't make much sense.  But where I stand now, in accordance with the rest of the vaccinations 'required', is a post for a later date.  This post has nothing to do with vaccines really, so I digress to our subject. 

      There are many things a woman must consider once she finds out she is pregnant.  It's much like getting engaged.  Once you are engaged you have a certain amount of time to prepare for the main event, the wedding.  Once you find out you are pregnant you have a certain amount of time to prepare yourself, your home, and your husband for the main event; the birth of your new baby.  You have only 9 months to decide some very important matters:  Home birth or hospital, drugs or natural, lamaze or some other method of birth.  You get the idea.  I believe husbands should help in the decision, after all it is his child also.  He can often be the words of logic when we women are choosing between natural or drugged births.  Which one sounds safer to you?  

     It seems that more westernized women have lost the ability to go through labor and delivery without medical intervention, but why is it that women in less advanced countries go through the process naturally without a hitch?  Are women so consumed with themselves that they seek out their own comfort rather than the health of their soon to be newborn baby.  One fellow blogger posts "Could it be that with the humanistic thrust that has dominated the West, with science determining there is no longer any need for God and His Word, that women have become convinced that their bodies are incapable of doing precisely that task God has designed them to do? " - LAF/Beautiful Womanhood  When we begin to trust in worldly philosophies alone and put them up against God and the supremacy of scripture, the results are devastating.  Scripture clearly states that we will bear children in pain.  There is nothing that says, "oh, but one day doctors will come up with a drug to numb your labor pains. Take that, and you're in the clear!"  Women can gain something from experiencing the 'pain' of labor and make the pain useful.  The pains of labor should be a reminder to women of what happens when we live life on our own terms.  It should make us more determined to raise our children 'in the nurture and admonition of the Lord' so that our children live life on God's terms.  

     So why not let nature take it's course, if you are able to.  We should be thankful that we do have advanced medicine to use as a resource in dire situations.  However it's not necessary for a healthy woman, who most likely won't have complications, to use medical intervention.  There are so many things that doctors do in routine hospital births for their own convenience and scheduling.  Think about it, doctors deliver multiple babies in a day and have many women in labor and in their care at one time.  They don't physically have the time to give the 'natural' attention necessary to each woman that she deserves.  There are many procedures that are a result of this.  

     

    Epidurals - spinal medication used to numb the woman from the waist down (convenience for the mother)

    

     Pitocin - A synthetic hormone that doctors use to speed up one of the first stages of labor.  In natural   birth, after the water breaks and contractions start there is a natural resting period that the body takes so the mother can regain some energy before she beings the delivery process.  In hospitals, doctors would then inject you, via IV, with pitocin to basically eliminate this process thus forcing your body to deliver.  This often puts much distress on mom and baby. Unfortunately, it's now just accepted as the norm.  

     

     Rupturing of the membranes - in cases where the body has not done so naturally; in order to speed up the birth process.

     

     Episiotomies - A surgical cut to expand the opening where the baby passes.  It is very common now for hospitals and doctors to cut without patient consent. This often can be avoided if you know how to prepare you body before the actual delivery date.  You've most likely heard about the Lamaze method.  It's the most well known method of giving birth.  Basically, breath control to help reduce some of the pain when giving birth.  There are other methods of birthing.  One being the Bradley method.  There are many books on this method and classes just like Lamaze. A couple titles are "Husband coached child birth" and "Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way." Bradley helps to prepare your body for a natural delivery.  

     

     Cesarean Sections or C-sections - Once you have a C-section you have to have all babies by c-section,  right? Wrong.  Another convenience for doctors.  There is such a thing as a VBAC.  You can have other children the 'natural way' after having one from a c-section.  There are plenty of doctors that are willing to oversee a VBAC and it is possible to have natural home births as well as after a cesarean.  

                      "One of the most important factors in the production of complicated labour and therefore of maternal and infantile morbidity, is the inability of obstetricians and midwives to stand by and allow the natural and uninterrupted course of labour. It may be an excess of zeal, or anxiety born of ignorance, but it is an unquestionable fact that interference is still one of the greatest dangers with which both mother and child have to contend."  - OB/GYN Grantly Dick-Read

     Ironically, theses 'options' that are now accepted in labor and delivery, are on the 'pain reduction' menu, when the very thing that causes women most of the pain the experience in hospital births is the position they put you in.  One of the most unnatural birth positions they could come up with.  It is strenuous on the back and tears more than any other.  The use of pitocin, that I mentioned above, does something I personally think is more harmful than anything they could inflict on a delivering woman.  Pitocin in an artificial chemical form of the hormone oxytocin, which is the hormone of love. "Oxytocin is the hormone of love, and to give birth without releasing this complex cocktail of love chemicals disturbs the first contact between the mother and the baby. The hormone is produced during sex and breastfeeding, as well as birth, but in the moments after birth, a woman’s oxytocin level is the highest it will ever be in her life, and this peak is vital. It is this hormone flood that enables a woman to fall in love with her newborn and forget the pain of birth." - Dick-Read  When given pitocin in the 1st stage of labor it cancels out the real hormone once the baby and mother make first skin to skin contact after birth.  Why would you want to take that away from any woman? "What we can say for sure is that when a woman gives birth with a pre-labour Caesarean section she does not release this flow of love hormones, so she is a different woman than if she had given birth naturally and the first contact between mother and baby is different." - Dick-Read

An observation made by OB/GYN Dick-Read

     "It is my custom to lift up the crying child even before the cord is cut so that the mother may see … the reality of her dreams … the first to grasp the small fingers and touch gingerly the soft skin of the infant’s cheek … Its first cry remains an indelible memory on the mind of a mother … No mother and no child should be denied that great mystical association … it lays a foundation of unity of both body and spirit upon which the whole edifice of mother love stands. Many times I have called attention to the wonderful picture of pure ecstasy that we see at a natural birth … Is it just an accident that the brilliant sunlight of motherhood breaks through and dispels for all time the clouds of her labour? No change in human emotions is more dramatic … Such an aura of beauty has filled the whole atmosphere of the room and such superhuman loveliness has swept over the features of the girl whose baby is crying in her hands … I have experienced a sense of happiness myself much more akin to reverence and awe than to the simple satisfaction of just another natural birth."

   

     I wrote in the beginning of this post how there is biblical application to the natural process of birth.  It seems that in order for mother and baby to achieve the God intended bond there is a prerequisite for the mother to be spiritually 'prepared' for what lies ahead.  There are many scriptures that speak directly about bringing a baby into the world (Is. 13:8, 21:3, 37:3, Rev. 12:2, Gen. 3:16)  and there are other scriptures that you can memorize to help you in the childbirth process to give you strength. (Matt 11:28-30, Ps. 55:22)

     Now, where does the husband fit in to all of this?  He is your calm and support.  However this reaction is unnatural for men.  Seeing the one they love in distress causes them distress and then only adds the to adrenaline in the room, which is the last thing a woman in labor needs.  A husbands adrenaline rush can cause the delivery time to lengthen considerably.  The adrenaline produced by a husband acts as a combatant to the oxytocin that is produced from the woman in labor (which we talked about earlier).  The oxytocin brings about some narcotic relief to the mother while experiencing contractions.  When the baby is born and the mother and baby share skin to skin contact the oxytocin levels reach their peak in the delivery process.  If the husband can keep his cool and coach his wife through the birthing process great, if not have an older wise woman take the job of coaching.  Personally I think the husband is more than capable of keeping his cool and coaching his wife.  

     We as christians have a responsibility to research things that are seen as 'the norm' and hold them up against our biblical standard.  Most things will need tweaking, if the idea isn't thrown out completely.  Childbirth is one of them.  We have a responsibility for the health and safety of our children or soon to be children, so be informed and make decisions for their betterment.  Research, Research, Research. 

"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward." - Psalm 127:3

Have a great week,

Hayden Lorraine~ 

     

Quote of the week 

"Honesty is very rare, and an honest girl is a girl you can build a family with, regardless of her past." 

Book of the Week 

Video of the week

This was the first thing I could think of.  I think it's a sign that I'm ready to go back to school!

Song of the week

This is inspired by The Hills marathon I have had this week so far.  

Have a great rest of the week! I'm going to continue to pack up for school and anticipate my move!

Love you all!

Hayden <3