Saturday, September 24, 2011

Hobo Mama Giveaway: 2 Sets of Children's Homebirth Books $24 ARV {10.24; Worldwide} CLOSED

This is a joint giveaway with Code Name: Mama, Hobo Mama, and Natural Parents Network. You may enter at one site only. Please find the section marked "Win it!" for the mandatory entry and optional bonus entries.

This is a combined giveaway of two beautiful homebirth books for children: Mama, Talk About When Max Was Born (ARV $16) and We're Having a Homebirth!! (ARV $8). Two lucky readers will receive a copy of both books, making this giveaway's total value $48!

From our reviewer, Lauren at Hobo Mama:

We're Having a Homebirth!! by Kelly MochelWhen Kelly Mochel found out I was planning a homebirth for our second baby this past May, she wrote and asked if Mikko, our then-three-year-old, might like to read a children's book she wrote and illustrated: We're Having a Homebirth!! I was not only happy to read it but eager to review it.

I had done an extensive scouting out of what our library and bookstores had to offer in the way of preparing siblings for birth. Through that inquiry, I had discovered: There's not much out there about homebirth! Even the most attachment-friendly of birthing books tend to suggest that Mommy will go away to a birthing center.

So it was lovely to have a book aimed at children that accurately and simply describes what it's like to have a midwife-attended homebirth, and how an older sibling might be involved in that process.
We're Having a Homebirth!! starts off with a little introduction to the pregnancy and midwifery care by a modern-looking woman named Jenny. (I point that out only to demonstrate that, truthfully, midwives don't wear prairie skirts and smell like patchouli … except the ones who do). The narrator is an adorable sprite with black pigtails who is very excited about getting a new little brother or sister.

We're Having a Homebirth!! by Kelly Mochel


We are quickly bopped into the birth story proper, with Jenny's encouraging coaching and Daddy and the big sister's support. After a natural labor, Mommy pushes out a baby boy and then the placenta. The last spread shows Mommy breastfeeding and a celebratory birthday party for the new baby brother.

We're Having a Homebirth!! by Kelly MochelAt only 13 pages long, the story is short and sweet, but plenty adequate for the purposes of telling the whole birth story. It's also a very appropriate length for the toddler and preschool crowd who make up the likely audience.

Mikko and I both appreciated the detail it manages to go into in those few pages. He pointed out the umbilical cord, I describe what labor looks and sounds like, and seeing the baby nurse always inspires him to have his own snack. The illustrations are explicit without being disturbing (to me, at least!). I love the touches of mentioning that the mother "stops to move her hips like a bellydancer" during labor and "makes lots of great noises" while pushing " … kind of like an elephant!!!" Yes to both of those from Alrik's birth!

We're Having a Homebirth!! by Kelly MochelWhile it's clear that this book is a labor of love from a mama who's passionate about birth, the homespun qualities of the book just make it all the more charming. The writing is clear and helpful, and the illustrations have a pleasing video-game quirkiness to them. (For what it's worth, I love having my Sims choose home births.)

One thing I really love about this volume is the price: only $6.50 + $1.50 shipping for Canada and the U.S., $9.50 total elsewhere. You can even buy multi-packs if you want to hand them out as gifts or to midwife/doula clients. I appreciate that Kelly kept the price affordable so that pretty much anyone can buy it.

So if your family is anticipating a homebirth addition and an older sibling is wondering what to expect, I highly recommend having this book on your shelves!


From our reviewer, Dionna at Code Name: Mama:

Mama, Talk About When Max Was Born is a sweet story that will help you prepare young children for an upcoming birth in your family. The story opens with a little girl asking her mama to tell her the story of the younger brother's birth. The mama narrates the story beginning with the day they found out they were expecting, continuing on through midwife appointments and visits from the doula, preparing for their homebirth, and ultimately having a peaceful home waterbirth.

The older sister is involved in every aspect of pregnancy and birth preparations. She is shown participating in midwife appointments (holding a stethoscope, helping the midwife measure mama's belly), assisting with the tasks needed to ready the house for baby (folding cloth diapers), and there is a lovely picture of the sister cuddling her own baby (and perhaps even "nursing" it) while mama labors in the birth pool nearby. The father is also engaged in almost every scene - helping with laundry, setting up the birth pool, and comforting the mama during labor.

Every scene of the birth story is gentle and peaceful. It is obvious at the prenatal appointments that the family desires a low-intervention birth - the midwives are not shown using a doppler or other often standard tools. The waterbirth scene includes the mama holding the newborn baby with the umbilical cord still attached. The midwives and doula are present, but the focus is on the mama and baby.

In this birth story, the sister is not present for the actual birth. The mama says, "You wanted to play with Nana for awhile. We promised to call you as soon as the baby was born so that you could meet him right away." We are actually planning on having Kieran here with us when we have our homebirth, but we will also have someone on call in case Kieran is uncomfortable during labor or I need more preschooler-free peace and quiet.
At the close of the story, the sister arrives home to greet Max, and there are several beautiful pictures that show mama breastfeeding and the family snuggling.

Kieran has thoroughly enjoyed this book. He has been so excited to get ready for his own new sibling, and this was a very age-appropriate glimpse into another big sibling's life. Kieran has asked me several times to read this book, and he especially loves the last several pages that show the family together after Max is born.

Mama, Talk About When Max Was Born was written by Toni Olson and illustrated by S. Marie Carlson. I would recommend this book to any parent preparing a young child for the birth of a sibling - particularly if the birth will take place at home or at a home-like birth center.

It would also be a great book to gift an older sibling with who has recently gained a new little brother or sister - it would be helpful for the child to process his or her own experiences.


BUY IT!

You can purchase your own copy of Mama, Talk About When Max Was Born at TalkAboutMax.com. Hardcover copies are $15.99 plus $4.00 shipping and handling. You can use the contact form on the order page to inquire about bulk or wholesale pricing.

You can purchase your own copy of We're Having a Homebirth!! at HomebirthChildrensBook.com. A single copy is $6.50 + $1.50 shipping for Canada and the U.S., $9.50 total elsewhere. Discounted multi-packs start at $32.50 for U.S./Canada for 5 books, or $60 for 10 books.

WIN IT!

For your own chance to win one of two copies of both Mama, Talk About When Max Was Born and We're Having a Homebirth!!, enter by leaving a comment and using our new Rafflecopter system below.

Two winners will receive one copy of each book. (Four books will be given away in total.) Contest is open WORLDWIDE.

MANDATORY ENTRY: Tell us why you are interested in winning copies of these books! You must enter your name and email address in the Rafflecopter entry system for your entry to count, after leaving a comment on this blog post.

Leave a valid email address so we can contact you if you win. Email addresses in Rafflecopter are not made publicly visible. Please leave the same valid email address in your mandatory comment so we can verify entries. If on Blogger, you can enter it like this to foil spambots: mail {at} naturalparentsnetwork {dot} com

This is a joint giveaway with Hobo Mama, Code Name: Mama, and Natural Parents Network. You may enter at one site only, and we'll be recording IP addresses to ensure that there are no duplicate entries. That said, please do visit and enjoy all three sites!

BONUS ENTRIES:
See the Rafflecopter entry system for bonus entries to increase your chance of winning after completing the mandatory entry. All bonus entries are entered directly into Rafflecopter. Just click "Click for instructions" for guidance and then "I did this" — any comments or extra information such as URLs can be entered into the "Extra Info" box. Give it a try or visit the Rafflecopter tutorial, and email or leave a comment if you have any questions!




Contest closes October 24, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time.

Disclosure: Our reviewers received a sample product for review purposes.
Amazon links are affiliate links.
We try to seek out only products we think you would find
relevant and useful to your life as a natural parent.
If we don't like a product, we won't be recommending it to you.
See my full disclosure policy here.
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Information About Our Reviewers:

Dionna is a lawyer turned work at home mama of her amazing son, Kieran, and she is due with baby number two in late November 2011. You can normally find Dionna over at Code Name: Mama where she shares information, resources, and her thoughts on natural parenting and life with a toddler/preschooler.

Lauren of Hobo Mama & FamilyLauren works and writes at home with her husband and their preschool son, Mikko, and newborn son, Alrik. At Hobo Mama, Lauren blogs about natural and attachment parenting, breastfeeding, babywearing, cloth diapering, green living, and more. Lauren offers reviews and giveaways of natural parenting products at Hobo Mama Reviews and gives a behind-the scenes look at blogging and writingn at LaurenWayne.com. Lauren co-hosts the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting and is the cofounder of Natural Parents Network.

3 comments:

mamapoekie said...

I'd love to win these because we're having a homebirth in three months!
mamapoekie@yahoo.com

Anonymous said...

Very interested in homebirth!

Kelly said...

I so want my next birth to be a home birth, and I would love to share these with my daughter in anticipation of her eventual brother/sister. Would also be great just to have to help normalize birth for kids...