December is upon us!! --Good Grief, how did that happen?
It's a busy time for most families...we know, as it's the same for us, too. As a practice, we're consciously working on being aware of the stress and less-than-healthy food choices that can overwhelm us if we're not careful. On the other hand, we wish everyone joy and happiness as you celebrate this truly beautiful time of the year in special gatherings.

Well, we've always got new stuff to share from Loudoun Community Midwives. Our little gifts to you:

• A chance to Do Good! (Margie's Jingle Belle Project)
• More childbirth education in the community!
• Celebrate Anne's Accomplishments!
• Cord Blood Info!
• A Way to reduce risk of GBS!

First!~
"THE JINGLE BELLE PROJECT"
Holiday gift collection for the needy families of Loudoun County
On Feb 12, 2009 Continental flight #3407 crashed outside of
Buffalo. All 51 passengers and crew were killed.
Mary Belle Pettys ( Margie Brandquist's sister ) was a passenger on that flight. Belle as she was known by her family was one of ten children. She was a champion of the underserved and a faithful member of her beloved Catholic Church. In her honor, we are collecting holiday gifts for the less fortunate of Loudoun County. New, unwrapped gifts including toys, clothing, hats, gloves, personal care items and gift cards are welcomed. We will be donating the items to the Loudoun Christmas Coalition.
Collections will continue till Dec 9th. Help us honor Mary and all who were lost on that cold, February night.
Remember.....Every time a "belle" rings, an angel gets her wings. Gratefully,
Geoff & Margie Brandquist and the entire Pettys family
Items may dropped off at Loudoun Community Midwives Office
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Childbirth Education

Mari Stutzman-Smith, one of the great doulas out there, now offers Childbirth education classes-- if you're having trouble finding a scheduled class that works for you, she has some brief sessions that sound excellent: Mari wrote:
" just wanted to let you know that I've launched Celebrated Pregnancy... A 5-week (or one day intensive) Natural Childbirth Education Course to be taught in my home in Ashburn. The next series will start January 5th."
www.celebratedpregnancy.com

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Congrats to Anne Cockerham, PhD,CNM, our part-time midwife...."and why is she part-time, and doesn't deliver babies?" some ask. Because she is one of the best, full-time nurse-midwifery professors in the USA, that's why! We are proud to announce that Anne was voted recipient of the "2010 Student Choice Award for Teaching Excellence", by the nurse-midwifery and nurse-practitioner students of Frontier School of Midwifery and Family Nursing. This program is the largest training program in the US, and Anne teaches Gynecology and Women's Health to about 1100 students there. We are not surprised that they love her class and we are proud to be her friends at her "other", part-time job.

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Cord Blood, Stem Cells....can mean a gift of life--brining up decisions about banking at the time of birth.

For years, we have made it a routine part of our care at LCM to mention the possibility of banking cord blood to all of our pregnant patients. Since stems cells are immature, and can differentiate into almost any human tissue that the body needs, they seem to have impressive biological potential. Numerous ways to use transplants of stem cells through banked cord blood are just now emerging, and may take a major role in regenerative medicine in the future. Another benefit is that because of their immature nature, many family members of the donor baby may be a "match" for stem cell transplants when needed. Siblings seem to almost always be a match, and often parents or others. We don't know any downside to banking, other that the costs, which can be financed several ways by the main companies that offer this service. Another innovation that is available is actually harvesting a piece of the umbilical cord itself, for menechymal cells which have similar properties. Since the cord blood and tissue would otherwise be discarded in the trash and then incinerated, banking seems worth considering.
Some websites to inform you more about Cord Blood Banking are:

www.cordblood.com/education As you will see, a $10 donation will be made to the Newborn Possibilities Fund for your time to view it. Your comments in the "comment section" would be greatly valued and appreciated.
CBR website (www.cordblood.com)
www.ViaCord.com/Cord-Blood-Experts.

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Florajen and GBS

That vaginal swab at 36weeks....GBS or Group B Beta Strep.... makes some women worry. They don't want to have the Beta strep-positive diagnosis, as it brings with it greater concern for baby, especially after the bag of waters is broken. At LCM, we concur with the CDC guidelines that recommend IV antibiotics for all women who test positive for Beta Strep at the end of pregnancy. Now, there's more you can do to prevent GBS...it appears that supplementing with probiotics can impact vaginal health, possibly preventing more GBS.
Read about it at
http://www.florajen.com/vaginal.shtml

And finally -- Wendy's next trip to Haiti is January 7-15, 2011. See her blog soon for details of what's needed,and to "travel with me!" Your support means so much.
www.haitibabies.blogspot.com

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Happy, Healthy, Holidays to All!