Check Out These Before & Afters
Do you have a DIY belly cast that needs some fixing up? Is your belly cast flimsy, rough, in need of finishing or decorating? Yes, we can repair your belly cast. And not only that but the final results will be FANTASTIC! Here are some before and after pictures of a belly cast that we recently repaired. BEFORE: AFTER: “I…
Who Will Be in the Birth Room?
A new baby brings such joy, not only to her parents, but also to a gathering of grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, neighbors, friends… the list goes on and on. And truly, as new parents, you’ll learn to rely on the support they’ll provide over your child’s life. Is there ever a time you won’t…
How Does the Belly Casting Process Work?
A belly cast is a lovely keepsake to celebrate your pregnancy. Let’s break down each step of making a belly cast. Here at Buddha Belly we are known for making exquisite, beautiful and sturdy belly casts that will last. Our casting artists put hours of time, care and love into these handmade works of art.…
Find Us at the Natural Birth & Baby Expo
This Saturday, we’re pleased to join again as a participating business at the Natural Birth & Baby Expo, held at the Corbett Prep School in Carrollwood, from 12-4pm, and hosted by the Tampa Bay Birth Network. The mission of TBBN is “to provide a community of professionals, families and individuals who support, educate and/or promote…
Doula Support Positively Affects Breastfeeding
Improved breastfeeding outcomes are not merely opinion. Research has concluded what many mothers and doulas know from personal experience. Having a doula not only improves the birth experience, it makes the transition to a new life with baby smoother. Plainly stated doula support has a positive affect on breastfeeding! One study was conducted with 724 first time mothers.…
7 Things About Writing a Birth Plan (updated 2022)
Many expectant parents ask us about a birth plan – what should go on it, what shouldn’t? For most people, a birth plan is a good idea, when used as a communication tool. By this we mean, it communicates your preferences to your care providers in a clear, succinct fashion. Birth is unpredictable and there…
16 Reasons We Recommend Tampa General Hospital for Childbirth {updated May 2021}
We have had great experiences with the medical professionals of Tampa General Hospital. We’ve been toured through the entire labor and delivery ward and NICU. We’ve been invited numerous times to speak at their childbirth classes as a guest speaker and to help in teaching comfort techniques to their students. Establishing relationships and building bridges…
Three Breastfeeding Tips
We support women no matter how they choose to feed their babies. It’s interesting to note that about 80% of women initiate breastfeeding in the US. Although breastfeeding is natures way to feed a baby, it doesn’t always come naturally to every mother and baby pair. For those who wish to succeed at breastfeeding here are…
The Problem With “Enjoy Them While They’re Little”
If you have children, you’ve surely received this bit of advice multiple times. It’s a favorite bon mot, offered usually from wiser, older, more experienced parents and grandparents. It has happened to me in a group on Facebook, a grocery store, a public building and sitting on a park bench; a well-meaning, grandmotherly-type woman observes me…
How Does a Doula Aid in Labor
We’re often asked about how a doula aids a laboring woman. How a doula supports a woman during birth depends on the individual woman, her needs and desires, additional supporters and birthing style. No birth or woman is cookie-cutter and as such what we do for each woman may be different. For instance, the new mother-to-be may…
A Failure to Plan…A Plan for Failure?
Have you ever heard this expression? Both my father and father-in-law were in the Army, so this is a saying that I have heard over and over again. And while it’s not completely true in birth, it is still very applicable. As doulas, we hear a similar sentiment a lot… “I’m just going to go…
Happy Pills, Happy Mom???
Before the baby comes, eight to 12 weeks away from work seems like an eternity, right? Most pregnant professionals spend weeks preparing their teams, transitioning duties and creating process and procedure work flows. Many plan to work until either their estimated due date or the baby is born. We dream about all we’ll do -or…