Hi, and welcome 👋 I'm Dana and this is my little home on the internet, my quiet place to think and wonder, share and discuss. It's also where I dream big and then follow those dreams, sometimes in slow motion, sometimes not.

Having my baby at home was one of those big - seemingly unattainable - dreams. I was suicidal when I found out I was pregnant, living on welfare, barely existing, wasting my days away smothering tear-stained pillows. I recklessly hid in the foggy caves of my oddly euphoric kill-me-now pleas. Death was on its way, or so I hoped.

I begged and pleaded, daring my soul every day to "just be strong", "you know you want this!", "do it, Dana!", "it's up to you!" But I couldn't.

There was no courage to die, just as there was no courage to live. A hapless form of human shape, that's all I was - a void within a void that was burnt to the core, reeking of fiery ash from a life gone bad.

I knew I couldn't handle any more, and I didn't want to handle any more, but life was like, "ooooh let's give her more anyway, she needs a tad bit more darkness before she can be the magic that she came here to be."

Rah-rah-rah, lucky me 🙄

So surprise, little lady, ”you're pregnant!"

It's wild how that happens, huh? How life throws us in the pits of many fires, waits until we're crispity crunchy, then oh-so-tenderly gathers our charred remains and rebuilds this potent magical being into one who surfs the waves of spellbound chaos through acts of defiant confidence and rebellious lyrics.

It's almost like a peace offering of sorts: "I gave you the bad, but watch... now I'll give you the best."

And it did.

❇️ Four months later, I had surgery where "I found myself swearing off doctors and hospitals and medicine and needles and people in scrubs as a whole. I swore at that moment that no one would ever insert a needle into my back again..." (pg 68)

❇️ One month after that, he met me in a dream where his "piercing, silver-blue eyes began to tenderly dig all out the shattered pieces of my broken spirit with a 24-carat, gold-plated spoon of acceptance and assurance" (pg 99), then waved to me at his ultrasound the next morning.

❇️ A few days later, I stopped seeing my doctor and continued with an unassisted pregnancy: "I was there and I was ready. Somehow, some way, I had that spark. I was now unconquerable and nothing was going stop me from fanning that flame." (pg 70) "No dream was too big – even if that dream meant that I had to go against everything I had been taught or led to believe. The world began to bow down, cowardly becoming a secure threshold under my slippery soul." (pg 72)  

❇️ And then at 44+2 weeks, at 4:58 in the morning, my Guardian Angel was born, at home, unassisted. "I slithered my naked belly mountain off the bed as well-mannered as I could and securely planted my knees on the floor, this time leaning forward onto the bed for support. Within a no-time-to-catch-my-breath-instant, you whispered, “Now, mama!”, and my body pushed without warning or stimulus." (pg 120)

"Push number four. Your shoulders came out and I will forever swear on every book that is holy that both of them came out at the same time! Within that same push, the rest of your slippery massive body slid out just as easy as ketchup finds its way to every white shirt you own; it just does, and you just did." (pg 126) 

"You were moving and your eyes were open but you hadn’t started crying yet. 'Such a long and hard road here, huh, little guy,' I thought. You were at peace, having just entered the newness and wonder of your appointed life here on earth, and I could sense it." (pg 127)

"With the leading force of your lifeblood, I carefully maneuvered around your umbilical cord so I could admire you as you angelically basked in the tender warmth of Nana’s chest. I reached over to rub your chunky cheek, looked into your squinty, newborn baby blues, and simply said, 'Welcome, little buddy, welcome.'"

"You looked at me with that same soulful stare as you did in my dream, but this time… this time… we were sitting side-by-side soaking in the same force of consecrated humanity." 

"I sat back and watched in tranquil delight as my singular Powerhouse continued to generously and plumply infuse your newly ordained Powerhouse on this side of heaven, a moment when my one, became our two, in the flesh." (pg 127)

You continued to cry sporadically but it was your peaceful presence that hovered over us. It flowed like the most intense, raging waterway, coursing in and out of every curious thought, doubt, worry or what-if that we tried to entertain, consciously or subconsciously. (pg 128)

❇️ Forty minutes after that, I delivered the placenta: "...I reluctantly dragged my exhausted self out of bed and squatted over a bowl that I put on the floor to catch the placenta.  This time, however, I had to push. My body was pushed out, contracted out, and I just wanted to shower and cuddle with my angel baby. Knowing that I couldn’t comfortably cuddle until I released the placenta, I waited for the next contraction, gently pushed, and it slid out easily in one big gloppy-goo, plopping heftily into the bowl. It was massive..." (pg 132)

"While checking you out and looking you over, we noticed a knot in your umbilical cord. It was about 8 inches from your belly button. It was still pulsating from the placenta to the knot and we could see the blood inside, but it was already completely white from the knot to your belly." (pg 131)

❇️ THIRTEEN POUNDS 🤯: "Standing next to her (Nana), I restlessly hovered over the scale as if I was in a life or death interrogation, quivering inside. I said a quick prayer and silently asked God and all of His majestic universe to reveal the truth, the real truth, and nothing but the truth, to my questioning, doubting heart. 

Breath and color escaped my body just as rapidly as you slipped out. My still-shaky legs carried my speechless form back to the bed for another much-needed pause. I desperately wanted a shower but I even more desperately needed to gather the pieces of my exploding brainbox before doing so. 

As soon as my post-birth fog lifted and my lucidity had regenerated, I looked up at Nana, she looked over at me while cleaning poop of her shirt, and we simply smiled at each other. Words were no longer needed. You really were that big, and I really did what I did. 

The vigorous and deafening hush of an inborn, extraordinary greatness settled our doubts and confirmed the truth we’ve so often considered, but never fully understood: If one can dream it, one can make it possible, and the universe will help." (pg 137)

"I was indestructible, utterly and captivatingly so." (pg 138)

❇️ An hour after he was born: "Sinking deep into the lavishly thick cushions of my couch, I held you tight while you watched, with tired baby blues, as I devoured Nana’s homemade breakfast; again, fit for the queen of all queens. Eggs, southern biscuits and sausage gravy have never tasted better." 

"We cuddled, we nursed and we slept – in cozy luxury, privacy and silence. Absolutely nothing could have been more satisfyingly beautiful at that moment. Nothing. It was exhilarating; such a high, a natural high. I felt a power and invincibility unlike anything I had ever or probably will ever experience again.  In less than two hours, here we are, and my life, our life, will never be the same."  

No doctors. No medicine. No needles or IVs. No room invasions. No visitors. No goopy eyes for you, no internal exams for me. Just peace and quiet, exactly as I dreamed." (pg 140)

❇️ And 16 years later, here we are - he's still a giant (6’6 and 260lbs) and I'm still invincible:

Babe, A Homebirth Guide For Beginners

Featuring: What my 13-pound newborn, born at home unassisted, taught me about homebirth & life. Includes: 'Babe, The Guide: Creating Your Dream Homebirth' so you can chase your dream, too.

⇾ BUY YOUR FULL COPY HERE ⇽

📕 Inside The 184-Page Book I Answer Questions Like 📕

❇️ Why I chose to have an unassisted homebirth;

❇️ Why I quit seeing my doctor at 5 months pregnant;

❇️ How I physically and mentally prepared for labor;

❇️ What supplies I had on hand: only 8 things;

❇️ Why I kept it a secret;

❇️ How my non-medically trained mom reacted when I told her that she would be the only one there;

❇️ What I did to cope during a non-medicated, all-natural labor, including my readily available drug of choice;

❇️ Why I purposefully prolonged labor, and didn’t need to;

❇️ What I did after he was born: cutting the cord, delivering and storing the placenta, cleaning up, etc.;

❇️ What unexpected “complication” I experienced: hint: knotted umbilical cord;

❇️ What afterbirth “medical” precautions I used: Vitamin K preparation, erythromycin eye ointment, etc.;

❇️ What my doctor did after he met my 13.2-pound baby boy three days after his birth;

❇️ How I got his birth certificate.

This is more than just my story, however. It’s also a step-by-step plan of action that you can put to use immediately to prepare for the type of homebirth that you dream of.

I didn’t have a guide like this; I had to wing it and create it as I went along so I have already done the hard part for you.

Now it’s your turn.

If you follow the steps outlined in this book and the accompanying 44-page guide, paying careful attention to your feelings and removing any negativity, fear or doubt, your dream homebirth will materialize right before your eyes and most often without any unnecessary doings on your end.

ALSO INCLUDES: Pictures of my massive 55+ inch belly and even more that document his first few days of life, as well as my private journal entries from before and after his birth detailing what I did (and didn’t do) during labor and after he was born.

Babe, A Homebirth Guide For Beginners

Featuring: What my 13-pound newborn, born at home unassisted, taught me about homebirth & life. Includes: 'Babe, The Guide: Creating Your Dream Homebirth' so you can chase your dream, too.

⇾ BUY YOUR FULL COPY HERE ⇽

❗BONUS HOW-TO GUIDE❗

YOUR BABY. YOUR BIRTH. YOUR CHOICE.
Creating Your Dream Homebirth

Ahhhh… the golden nugget. This is your end-all, be-all guide to creating your dream homebirth. In fact, I think it’s the only one out there in internet land like it.

In this 6-step, 44-page guide appropriately titled guide, “Your Baby. Your Birth. Your Choice. Creating Your Dream Homebirth,” we will work together to acknowledge any negative fears and associations you may have relating to childbirth and replace them with 2-1/2 pages of positive affirmations as well as simple questions that will help redirect your thought processes out of darkness and into the light – switching your focus from things that are wrong to things that are right.

After we have built a sturdier foundation to dream on, one of self-acceptance and kindness, we will move into creating your dream birth by reviewing the many options and supplies that are available and choosing the ones that make our heart pitter-patter with delight.

That’s the best part because there is no wrong answer!

When all of that is said and done, we will write out our dream birth, moment by moment, exactly as we envision it. Doing this will begin to set things into motion and your once-dreamed-about homebirth will become a purposeful and attainable goal that will stare you down daily.

The guide includes:

❇️ A detailed list of supplies you can use before and after birth;

❇️ How to take care of the umbilical cord;

❇️ What to do with the placenta;

❇️ What you can do to prevent tearing;

❇️ What remedies you can use if you tear;

❇️ How to get a birth certificate and what documents will be needed;

❇️ Vaccinations;

❇️ Followup doctor visits; and a

❇️ Suggested reading list of 14 books with titles and authors that will help guide you into your dream birth.

I know that seems like a lot, and it is, but that just means you are one step closer to having your dream homebirth.

Babe, A Homebirth Guide For Beginners

Featuring: What my 13-pound newborn, born at home unassisted, taught me about homebirth & life. Includes: 'Babe, The Guide: Creating Your Dream Homebirth' so you can chase your dream, too.

⇾ BUY YOUR FULL COPY HERE ⇽