Category Archive

I’ve got a parenting question!

How to find the perfect midwife or OBGYN for your birth

You have mentioned the necessity of finding a health practitioner you trust and feel a connection with. Do you have any tips for how to go about this? Are there particular questions you recommend asking to help “screen” potential midwives and doctors? Any responses that should trigger a warning? The very first step is to […]

Family of six hikes 93-mile Wonderland Trail

This summer, Ben and Kami Crawford decided to go for a little family hike … “little” meaning 93 miles around Mount Rainier’s Wonderland Trail in Washington. They made the trek with their four kids — ages 2, 4, 6 and 8 — in a total of 12 days, going up and down 22,000 feet of […]

How much do midwives cost in the United States?

How much do midwives generally charge for their services? My husband and I both have jobs with crummy insurance (What? In the United States? Shocker), and I’m a little worried about the cost of birthing a baby in a hospital. Do midwives offer payment plans, like I’m currently making on my couch? -Eliza Midwives, especially […]

So, what do your kids call their genitals?

o there I was…about to sit down for some lunch with my father, step-mother, Ranger and The Kids. Ranger and Big J were wrestling in the living room when Big J shrieked with laughter, “Daaadddy, you hit me in my penis!”

One awesome way to support your gay son (yes, there’s a Lady Gaga costume involved)

For Halloween last year, 14-year-old Elliot’s mom made his Lady Gaga costume and helped with makeup, and then his dad (costumed as a bodyguard) accompanied him to West Hollywood so that Elliot could go dance and sing with all the other street revelers.

Introducing Therese, our resident midwifery advisor (and Ariel’s mom)

Yes, nepotism is alive and well here on Offbeat Mama! I’m not sure how many of you know this, but my mom Therese is a retired midwife, midwifery advocate, and educator.

Offbeat Mama supports each family choosing a birth plan that’s right for them, but it seems like we would be remiss if we didn’t take advantage of the fact that my mom’s got a massive wealth of knowledge about midwifery … and so I’ve asked her to write a column for us called Ask the Midwife.

My parents were awesome

I’ve completely fallen in a sweet kind of love with My Parents Were Awesome, one of those single-serving websites that does one thing and one thing only: share vintage shots of awesome parents, all submitted by their kids.