Reading Roundup 2/25 (oxytocin, sleep habits, dairy, birth video)

Below you will find some of my favorite articles, posts and videos that I came across this week. Enjoy!

Oozing Oxytocin - This article shows that oxytocin can be sensed and smelled by the body often causing a domino effect for others (male & female) to produce oxytocin. "Singing, particularly singing with other people, causes the brain to produce unusually high levels of oxytocin." Ever get that "feeling" when you are in church service and the whole congregation is singing together. I think oxytocin might be at play here. :)

Dairy Causes Acne - This was an interesting read for me this week mainly because I love Purity chocolate milk. I've actually been trying to cut back on my obsession and this article may have just sealed the deal for me.

• AcneMilk.com - The research behind the above article.

8 Infant Sleep Facts Every Parent Should Know - This article has some good information about nightwaking. As the mom of a nonsleeper, I found it interesting that babies who don't get into deep sleep are getting more blood flow to their brain. It was even suggested that these babies may be smarter. Hmmm....

• 31 Ways to Get Your Baby to Sleep and Stay Asleep - Follow up article by Dr. Sears regarding sleep habits of babies. I think the key to both of these articles is that babies must be taught to sleep and given a proper environment to sleep. They don't automatically know how to do this on their own.

MORE Business of Being Born - This week I had the opportunity to watch the first installment of More Business of being Born named Down on the Farm. They visit legendary midwife, Ina May Gaskin, and have a lovely sit-down interview with her and tour of The Farm in Summertown, Tennessee. My first doula client will be delivering at the The Farm so I was so excited to be able to see this in advance. I'm totally star struck by Ina May too. :) The trailer for the series is below.

The following video is my new favorite birth video. It starts out a little slow but stick with it. The cinematography towards the end is so amazing as it documents a family absolutely falling in love with their newborn baby. I wish every couple had the opportunity to get to know their baby this way. Home birth is SO beautiful! Watch and you'll see why.

documentary birth film | OTPC from One Tree Photography on Vimeo.

That's it for this week. Did you read anything interesting? If so, please share a link in the comments.

Homemade Powder Laundry Detergent ($0.09 per load, Borax free)

About six months ago I started making my own laundry detergent. It's SO easy (and cheap)!!! Here is the recipe I have been using.

1 bar soap, finely grated

1 cup washing soda

1/2 cup baking soda

1/2 cup Borax (optional)

Combine all ingredients into a Ziplock bag and shake to mix. Use 1 Tablespoon per load.

I've never even tried making the liquid kind. It seemed too complicated and messy from the git-go. I'm all about easy peasy so powdered detergent seemed like the logical choice. This recipe dissolves very nicely. I never have any residue left in the tray. I have a high-efficiency washer and this recipe is HE safe.

When I started researching the ingredients I read some things about Borax that made me a little uncomfortable using it (toxic/harsh and needed to be handled carefully). I looked and looked for a Borax-free recipe and found nada. So, on a whim, I just left it out. This detergent works great so I really haven't missed it at all.

Now, as far as soap is concerned. I decided on Yardley, mainly because I feel comfortable with the ingredients. I've used all of the different scents and they all work fine. In fact, I usually switch back and forth between scents to spice things up a bit for my nose. :) Grating up the soap doesn't take long at all. I purchased a fine grater from the $Tree and it works fine. I usually do it while watching TV and it's done in less than 10 minutes. Some folks like to do a rough grate and then put it in the blender to make it finely grated. Again, too many steps for me.

Now, for the cost factor....

• Bar of Yardley soap, $0.69 (Goes on sale at Walgreens about every six weeks. I usually grab 2-3 bars and that gets me through until the next sale.)
• Baking Soda, $0.50 (Also goes on sale frequently at Walgreens. 1 box will make 4 batches)
• Arm & Hammer Washing Soda, $4.99 (You can pick this up at most any grocery store. It's also available at Ace Hardware. One box makes 7 batches)

To buy all of the ingredients at once would cost you a little more than $6, which is less than one container of store-bought detergent. When you divide it out the cost comes to about $1.50 a batch and only $0.09 per load!

Easy, cheap, plus good for you & your clothes!

Reading Roundup (active management, swaddling. coconut oil, epidurals, doulas)

Here are my favorite articles, posts, and pictures that I came across this week. Enjoy!

What is Normal? - Fantastic article on "active management" of labor and how it has changed (ahem, sped up) over the years.

Fish Can't See Water - Related article on the "medicalization" of labor and birth.

Rethinking Swaddling - Interesting article that weighs the pros and cons of swaddling. I am a fan of swaddling to help settle baby and also to help baby sleep better. However, I wholeheartedly agree that being next to mom, especially in the early days, is absolutely best for baby.

160 Uses For Coconut Oil - If there is one thing I can't live without, it's coconut oil. I seriously use it on a daily basis for SOMEthing. It's actually a running joke around here. No matter what the problem is, I'm usually going to suggest coconut oil to solve it.

Epidurals: risks and concerns for mother and baby - Fantastic article that discusses how epidurals interfere with labor hormones and the labor process. It also lists potential side effects for both mother and baby. "In a UK survey of 1,000 women, those who had used epidurals reported the highest levels of pain relief but the lowest levels of satisfaction with the birth, probably because of the high rates of intervention. "

Why Do American Women Do Nothing to Recovery from Pregnancy? - Amen! I'm the first to admit that I didn't take care of myself after I had my first child. I didn't realize I needed to do anything different. "In American culture, the postpartum recovery of the mother has never been given much attention and is largely not seen as important." And we wonder why our postpartum depression rate is so high... huh, imagine that?!

I LOVE this picture meme below. Photos like this are popping up everywhere, but this is a perfect display of what others think we do and what really happens.

Photo Credit: Holly Helps