materni-tea party

For my first pregnancy I took a prenatal class to help prepare me for the big day. I looked forward to the class each week, and it was great to be around other pregnant women expecting around the same time as myself. We could share stories and watch our bellies blossom over the six week course. I didn’t necessarily know what to do when the big day finally came, but I do feel like the classes helped to get me emotionally prepared  and helped me to set up a birthing plan based on different scenarios I may be faced with. So in that sense I feel like I was more prepared than I would have been without the classes.

Now I know I had done the labor thing before, but when baby number two came along I was even more excited to take the classes. Mostly because my husband had been overseas for the last half of our first pregnancy (including the delivery), and I couldn’t wait to have him with me to experience the pregnancy together. So again I took the class and each week I would get so excited to go. It was fun to see his reaction to the videos and to actually have someone there to massage my back as we practiced the ways to help relieve pressure and tension during labor (by far the best part). It was great.

But just recently I was thinking, what am I going to do for my next pregnancy? It was so fun having a reason to meet with other women/moms who could relate to what I was feeling and who understood why I would cry over the silliest things and turn into a Pregasaurus if I hadn’t eaten. I couldn’t possibly go to the same class for the third pregnancy. That’s why I was so excited when I heard about a local store that held “Materni-tea” parties every couple weeks. What a great excuse to get away for a “happy hour” with other preggers in your area. I am definitely not pregnant at the moment, but I recently attended one of the classes for the sake of seeing what it was all about so that I could share it with all of you.

It’s a relatively small group with two women leading the discussions. They talked about different natural herbs/products that are safe to use during pregnancy, they shared advice and gave insight into local resources (i.e. doula, lactation consultant, prenatal yoga, etc). More importantly, the women in attendance had the opportunity to ask questions, share opinions, cry, laugh, encourage one another–all of the things we as women look for during our pregnancies. It wasn’t a birthing class, but they did discuss what to expect on labor day (which is basically to expect the unexpected) and more importantly, how to prepare for each scenario. All-in-all it was a pleasant, positive group of women who were able to sit down with other adults (and not crazy kiddos) and have some ME time. If you don’t have a Materni-tea group in your area, start one!

What you need:

1. Yummy, healthy snacks
2. Tea and other refreshments
3. A group of preggers
4. A slew of local “experts” who can come in to talk to the group (doula, lactation consultant, etc.) Pick one a week and make that the topic of discussion for that night.
5. A quiet, peaceful environment with comfy seating options (the one I went to had a ton of oversized doggy beds that made the perfect cushions for the women–obviously, they had never actually been used for dogs, that would be gross).

Have fun at your Materni-tea Happy Hour!!

Thank you to Gena of MommyMattersOnline.com for sharing such a wonderful idea.

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