One of my favorite things about living and working in Lamorinda is that our three little cities really do function as one community. We cross city lines for school, sports, dinner, yoga, preschool, coffee, and approximately 400 other things in any given week. And when we’re having babies, the support we need shouldn’t feel far away either.
That’s part of why I’m so excited about what’s growing at Little Seeds Family in Lafayette.
This fall, I’m bringing Birth Literacy, my childbirth education program, into the Little Seeds classroom as a one-day birth preparation intensive. And while yes, it is technically a childbirth class, what we’re building feels much bigger than a day spent learning about contractions and practicing breathing techniques.
Preparing for birth isn’t really about memorizing the “right” way to have a baby.
After years of supporting Bay Area families as a doula and childbirth educator, I’ve learned two things about birth: the one thing that’s true of all birth, is that it is unpredictable and that the parents who feel most prepared aren’t necessarily the ones with the most detailed birth plans. They’re the ones who understand what is happening, know what questions to ask, have practiced working together, and feel equipped to make decisions when birth inevitably colors outside the lines. That is what we’ll spend our day doing.
In six very full hours, we’ll talk about how labor actually works, what your body is doing and why, comfort measures and partner support, common interventions and informed decision-making, and what it’s really like to navigate birth in a Bay Area hospital. We’ll also talk about what happens after the birth, because becoming parents does not end when someone hands you a baby.
And we’ll practice. Partners will move, touch, massage, position, ask questions, and learn how to participate rather than simply watch from the sidelines. My goal isn’t for anyone to leave knowing exactly how their birth will unfold. None of us can promise that.
My goal is for every person who joins to leave knowing they are ready for birth, no matter how it unfolds.
But there’s another reason I’m especially excited about bringing this class to Little Seeds.
I believe deeply that families benefit when pregnancy, birth, postpartum, feeding, movement, education, and community aren’t treated as separate little islands. Becoming a parent is one enormous transition. Our support should reflect that. Little Seeds has already been a gathering place for families in Lafayette, Moraga, Orinda, and beyond. There is something really exciting taking shape there now, and Birth Literacy is just one small piece of it. I’ll have much more to share about that soon.
For now, if there’s a baby coming in your family, your neighborhood, or your group chat, send the expecting parents our way.
We’ve got a lot to talk about.
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