Cleavers also known as Lady’s Bedstraw, has a long history of use in folk medicine. Cleavers ability to assist in moving lymph and breaking up fibrous tissue makes it a wonderful herb to be considered when there are fibrocystic breasts with cysts or other congestion in the lymphatic system. It is mild, entirely non-toxic, easy to harvest, and is actually very valuable plant medicine. Cleavers are considered very helpful for mastitis or other swollen lymph in the breast.

There are wonderful benefits of more outside time for our kids EVERY DAY.

Here are just a few: Children breathe cleaner air. Indoor air has the off-gassing from all kinds of man-made materials, as well as all the germs and carbon dioxide from the humans.

Stress is reduced. Everyone needs to have a break from hearing, “Inside voice, no running, stop climbing, no fighting!” Improved coordination. AND MORE!

As a midwife, I’ve gotten calls from mamas about spotting for over 40 years, here is the conversation that I have with them. Women are scared, their husbands and partners are scared. People need gentle reassurance, and information on their choices, so they can make decisions that are best for them.

Heartburn is such a pain! It’s caused when hydrochloric acid (HCL), which is used by the stomach to digest food, backs up into the esophagus and irritates sensitive tissues. This creates a burning sensation in the stomach or chest, and pain behind the breastbone. It’s certainly not fun for any of the 60+ million Americans that suffer with it, but as midwives hear from our clients every day, it’s the absolute bane of pregnancy.

Pregnant mamas have two complicating factors that make them more likely to suffer from heartburn.

It’s hard to know where to even begin on the topic of help, frankly. I’ve started this blog over and over, with endless perspectives in my mind about what it means to be willing to ask for help, and to receive it. This is a big theme in my life, as like so many midwives I’m a helper by trade and personality. A great deal of my career has been spent encouraging mothers to ask for and receive support, and teaching them that it also gifts the giver. But recently the theme was up close and personal; I needed quite a lot of physical help while I healed from a ruptured disc in my back, right at the time I thought I’d be celebrating a new season of independence by stepping back from being on call after 40 years.

It’s wonderful to revisit the smooth, silky texture of our childhood jello with clean ingredients. This recipe is ridiculously quick and easy; I’ve broken out each step here for the newbies who may, like I did, feel intimated using plain gelatin for the first time. But everyone’s a jello expert the second time around!