A Doula's Daughter
Updated: May 21, 2018
Everything we do, our children are watching. When we try and fail. When we succeed. When we react and respond, good or bad. And it is such an important lesson to teach; we all make mistakes, chose wrong things, fail…we are all human and perfection is only perfect when it is flawed.
My children get to watch me balance life as a working mom.
Sometimes that looks seamless and dinner makes it’s way to the table and everyone’s emotional cup is full. Sometimes it looks like buying school lunch for a whole week, take-out for dinner, and me missing bedtime 4 nights in a row.
But.
My job, according to my kids (and me), is the COOLEST. And better yet, I love it. My job makes me a better mom. And to see the look of pride on my kids' faces when they talk about what I do is worth every second of it.
Over the years I’ve tried and failed over and over with how my doula business should run to best support my family's needs. And here I find myself at the onset of a venture that I am feeling the most excited and confident about, out of anything I have done in the past. I have an amazing and talented business partner/mentor, a wonderful system of support from my own personal village, and nothing but hope and possibilities stretched out before me.
With that…I introduce a very first blog entry from the girl who made me a mom.
Doula Mom
My mom is a doula and she does a lot of overnights. She does work almost every day. She made her business card on Saturday, April 7th, 2018. She was so happy she started to do a happy dance. Her friend, Myrna, helped her make it. They were both over my house, with their computers, working on their business they’re starting.
They’re starting a company, called Doulas of Greater Boston. They were so excited that Myrna and my mom were in our dining room for about 2 hours.
This made me think of helping out some time. Having a doula mom is amazing, really. She gets to see people have their babies! She is not usually around the house now. She is pretty much at the house when she isn’t on call or if she is working on her business. She has been talking and working on it for a while, and she only takes short breaks. Other times, she is home and has no work. When she does have work, it gets a little crazy with three kids, one grown up, and a little bit of trouble. Sometimes my dad has work while my mom has work and our grandmother takes over with babysitting.
When my mom is at an overnight, we do a few laps around the house. She is very tired when she gets home, so we have to be very calm. We’re sometimes at school when she is at work though. She ordered some fake candles for her clients. The candles are for light and so her client stays calm. If she is home, then we are usually out somewhere or outside playing with neighbors on our jungle gym.
I sometimes wish I could go with her, but sometimes I don’t because I have neighbors that I want to play with. I've asked her a lot, I even show her my baby dolls and ask for a diaper. I've showed her how I've changed their diapers. I even change my brother's diaper (sometimes)!
I really like having a doula mom, and so should other kids.
MAR, age 8
And that right there, is it. She sees me work hard at a job I love. She sees me reach for help when I need it. She sees the times I am with her and her siblings as valuable. And she wanted so badly to be part of it. Which she is...more than she will ever know. All of this work that I am out there doing as a doula, every single bit of it, is inspired by my own children and my desire to make this world a better place for them.
#doula #birth #birthdoula #postpartum #postpartumdoula #newborn #boston #bostonbaby #pregnantinboston #bostondoula #hospitalbirth #family #northshoremassachusetts #northshore #massachusetts #motherhood #mom #daughter #daughterofadoula #threekids #mother #kids #workingmom #workingmother #babybrother