Motherhood Then & Now: A Conversation With My Mom.

Labor started at church, the hospital trip was short, and the Broncos played on the radio while she worked through contractions. For Mother’s Day, we bring on a very special guest, Linda, Tammy’s mom, to tell the story of giving birth in the 1970s and to compare it with what families face in modern pregnancy, hospital birth, and postpartum recovery.

We talk about how parents learned about pregnancy before podcasts and social media, what it meant to trust one consistent doctor through prenatal care, and how support looked when dads being in the room was still a newer idea. Linda shares what surprised her, what made her feel strong, and why she didn’t feel the same fear around birth that many parents feel today. We also dig into pain relief options then vs now, the reality of episiotomy repair, and why a doula’s steady presence can help fill gaps when care feels less personal.

Postpartum gets real: rest, sleep deprivation, feeding challenges, hormones, and the practical truth that partners can’t read minds. We share simple postpartum tips, honest laughs, and a reminder to stop trying to control everything when it isn’t medically necessary. If you’re pregnant, newly postpartum, or years into motherhood, this conversation offers perspective, warmth, and concrete ways to ask for the support you deserve. Subscribe, share this with a mom who needs it, and leave a review. What’s the one postpartum need you wish someone had handled for you?

Sadly, the Broncos lost to the Chicago Bears! 33-14.

Linda's, and every other 1970's mother's, textbook of birth. A Child Is Born.

Thanks for listening!  Always feel free to message us for more information or, if you have information you feel we should see, please send that. We LOVE to hear and learn from you!

Transcript

Welcome And Safety Disclaimer

Speaker 0:03

I'm Misty, and I'm Tammy. And we're t he Doula's on Call. Remember mamas, we're not doctors, midwives, or magical birth wizards, I wish. Just two passionate birth workers with microphones, sharing personal experiences, trusted information, the best snacks for labor, and a whole lot of heart. What you hear on this podcast is meant to educate, encourage, and connect, but it's not medical advice.

Speaker 2 0:34

Please consult your trusted healthcare provider when making decisions about your health, your birth, or anything clinical. Basically, don't sue us. We're just here to talk birth, spill some tea, and share the love.

Speaker 0:55

Ring ring, doula's on call.

Speaker 2 1:02

Welcome back to Doula's on call. Hi, Misty. Hi, Tammy. How's it going? It's going good today. I love it. It's rainy this week. I know. It's good. My grass will love it. I know. Oh no, we're dying for moisture.

Meet Linda And Her Story

Speaker 2 1:17

Um well today's episode is extra, extra special because we are celebrating Mother's Day. Yeah, by bringing on the woman who made me a mom-supporting, a birth-loving dule in the first place. My mom. Say hi, mom. I know. Hello.

Speaker 1:35

This is my mom Linda. Um we're gonna talk about birth then versus now, what motherhood actually felt like from Linda's perspective and what you kind of wish moms knew today before going into labor.

Speaker 2 1:50

And honestly, I'm a little nervous because she knows all my childhood stories.

Speaker 1 1:59

They're great.

Speaker 2 2:01

Well, they've come there. All right, well, Mama, introduce yourself.

Speaker 3 2:06

I'm Linda Austin.

Speaker 2 2:07

Yeah.

Speaker 3 2:08

And I'm a native of Colorado. My maiden name was Mountain.

Speaker 2 2:12

Oh, yes. I grew up Linda Mountain. Yes.

Speaker 3 2:14

I did not know that. That's right. I'm a graduate of Jefferson, uh, Thomas Jefferson. TJ. TJ. Went to business college and was a secretary for like 20 plus years at Girl Scouts of America.

Speaker 2:27

Oh, see, I didn't know this.

Speaker 3 2:30

This is cool. So I was busy. I went to work from Tammy was 13.

Speaker 2 2:33

This is a good trivial question. You're one of how many kids?

Speaker 3 2:37

Seven.

Speaker 2 2:38

And you have an older brother named Rocky Mountain.

Speaker 2:41

Really? Seriously?

Speaker 3 2:43

Oh wow. That's so cool. I love that it's kind of fun.

Speaker 2 2:47

He has a son named Cliff Brother. I was supposed to be named Candy.

Speaker 3 2:49

Cliff Mountain. Yeah. Did you know I was supposed to be named Candy? This is Candy, but my mother loved me enough to be a good one. Oh my gosh. Not do that. So cute. Oh my gosh.

Speaker 2:59

This is awesome. Oh, that's so cool. Well, I'd like to ask you some questions, Linda. Okay. That's okay. Um, how many babies did you have? Two. Two. Okay. Boy, girl, obviously. Tammy. Tammy has an older brother that's like two and a half years older than that. Steven. What up, Steven? Okay. So now was so he was older than Tammy. So Tammy's number two. He was born in 71. Yeah. Okay. Sure.

Speaker 1 3:27

We don't know how Tammy. We just gave her to as if she cares.

Speaker 3:32

Okay.

Speaker 2 3:33

See, it's happening. I'm just getting your status.

Pregnancy And Birth Culture In The 70s

Speaker 3:36

Um so what was the birth culture like like back in the 70s? Like when you were having babies?

Speaker 3 3:43

Like exciting.

Speaker 3:44

Yeah.

Speaker 3 3:45

It was really exciting to be become pregnant. And I I always wanted a planned pregnancy because my husband was a soldier. He went to Vietnam and I did not want to be pregnant then. Oh, interesting. But the pill had come out, which was pretty sure. So I mean, I guess women did get pregnant on it, but I did not, because he was gone. We got married, and then he went to Vietnam about five months later. He was gone a whole year. Okay. And we RR'd twice in between, but there was no way we wanted to be pregnant. You were really afraid. She was pregnant. Well he was gone. Right. I wanted to happen with him.

Speaker 4:21

Yeah.

Speaker 3 4:22

Right. I was I would want the same thing for sure.

Speaker 4:25

That would be difficult. That would be difficult.

Speaker 3 4:27

But it wasn't scary in the sense that it was something I knew all women experienced. Yeah. If they were fortunate.

Speaker 4:34

You didn't have like that fear around birth, like thinking about your birth, giving birth. No. That's okay.

Speaker 3 4:40

No, after I went through the pain. No, I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. Because my I had a very good doctor. Yeah.

Speaker 4:47

And uh it was minimal. Okay. So well you shared earlier you were telling Tammy and I about how you learned about birth. Like how the you know what was your education?

Speaker 3 5:00

My fetus, what my fetus was doing? Yeah. Yeah. What was your baby doing? Yeah.

Speaker 5:03

Like how did you learn back then? We didn't have social media, podcasts, we've got all of that. Like what was it like in the 70s?

Speaker 3 5:10

It was just that I had to follow a book. Life had put out a book about um pregnancy. Let's see if we can look at the baby. Oh no, we should have the baby and development. And it was interesting for me to see. And I loved movement. So being feeling baby move inside me, Tammy, Steven first. It was so exciting. And it was uh kind of a mystery, you know? And I enjoyed it very much. Yeah, I wasn't I didn't really have a lot of fear about it. Um my mom and my grandma, my great grandma, everybody.

Speaker 5:43

A lot of kids, lots of kids.

Speaker 3 5:44

Strong women.

Speaker 2 5:45

Lots of kids.

Speaker 3 5:46

Yeah, strong women. I have a strong faith, so I wasn't afraid. It was all kind of a new experience, but I trusted my doctor. I really loved my doctor. But who was your doctor? He was Dr. Milligan.

Speaker 5:56

Okay. And he's not practicing anymore. No, he's past now.

Speaker 3 6:00

Okay.

Speaker 6:00

Yeah.

Speaker 3 6:00

But he delivered a lot of my friends' babies. And we were all so excited. We got pregnant, we could share our pregnancies and all the things that were happening to our bodies. You know, I was, let's see, I was probably 23.

unknown 6:14

Yeah.

Speaker 3 6:14

So I'm still really young.

Speaker 2 6:15

Well, yeah, well, let's get we can we can get specific.

Speaker 6:18

Yeah, I want to add to that too. Like sure, this is exactly like what I talk to my clients about all the time is you don't forget these things. Oh, like you do not. This is why I think being a doula is so awesome because you you know, we're a piece of that journey for them, and they will always remember you. Yeah. More than likely, always remember your name. That's right. So which is what a cool role to have, you know, to have in like such a hard job. Just it it gives me chills every time I think about it.

Speaker 2 6:47

Well, and there's we talk about birth amnesia for certain things, but other things that I've done. I think other things you want.

Speaker 3 6:54

Yeah, I think the Bible says a woman forgets her pain. Oh you know, from the joy of having the baby, you forget your pain. And you do.

Speaker 4 7:01

Yeah.

Speaker 7:02

Well, and it's like you, it's like I tell people too, like if you're you know, riding on a bike, you fall, you hurt yourself. You may remember that that didn't feel too good. Yeah. But we don't remember exactly what that well, we don't remember exactly what that felt like.

Speaker 3 7:16

You want to hear something funny though? So when Tammy, when I was gonna give birth, my second time.

Speaker 2 7:21

Okay, wait, we're getting into my birth story. Yes, this is your birth story.

Speaker 3 7:25

I I remember thinking just a few days before she was born. Well, I moved a piano for one thing. I had all this surge of energy, and then I was worried about the name. Oh, what if it's a boy? Because I didn't know. See, I didn't know boy or girl.

Speaker 2 7:37

Oh, you didn't find out what you didn't know. No, I didn't find out before.

Speaker 3 7:40

Oh, okay. So uh that I was thinking all about that, and then I was thinking, I don't want to do this.

Speaker 1 7:50

And I'm like, Oh, oh, I have to, right? And it'd be so worth it.

Speaker 3 7:56

But it was it's totally they were totally different birds. Totally different.

Speaker 7:59

Yeah, well, we'll get into that for sure.

Learning About Pregnancy Without The Internet

Speaker 8:01

Did you, Linda, did you even know what a doula was back then?

Speaker 3 8:04

Like did you have no idea. That would have been like a French name for we were definitely around. Yeah, exactly. I had no idea. Okay, that's it. Never had never heard of that.

Speaker 2 8:14

And now it's so mainstream.

Speaker 3 8:15

Yeah.

Speaker 2 8:16

Yeah. Yeah. Well, let's let's dig into it. Let's talk about my birth. Um, what do you remember about going into labor with me?

Speaker 3 8:25

Oh. I was at church.

Speaker 2 8:27

Yeah.

Speaker 3 8:27

And I'd been directing the choir up till the I didn't show very much with you. Interesting. So um, but I was downstairs walking when labor started. So let's say church was over at one. I was ready to go to the hospital, okay, which was not too far away.

Speaker 4 8:45

Right.

Speaker 3 8:46

And um, I really wanted to get there. And I was glad we went home, got my bags.

Speaker 2 8:52

Daddy drove you.

Speaker 3 8:53

We went to the hospital, and I delivered within an hour and a half.

Speaker 2 8:57

Oh my gosh. What hospital? I think it was Swedish. Swedish, yeah.

Speaker 3 9:01

Stephen. Stephen was for this.

Speaker 9:03

Okay, so you said you delivered how soon? Hour and a half. Second baby. Second baby.

Speaker 3 9:10

She was enjoying it.

Speaker 9:11

Love those second babies.

Speaker 3 9:12

And I think I was enjoying wait. Yeah, did you hear Joy one more time? Let me hear it. Everything stopped there though, the joy. No, I'm just kidding. What what surprised you the most? What surprised me the most? Oh, just looking at you. See, because I didn't know you were going to be a little girl, but I was I was sure you were gonna be a little girl. And you had the longest lashes and you had the be most beautiful rosy complexion. And I was so happy.

Speaker 9:42

I was so happy.

Speaker 2 9:47

Yeah, yeah, I was very happy. Yeah, go ahead, go ahead with me. Oh no. Was there anything that felt harder than you had expected?

Speaker 3 9:57

Easier.

Speaker 2 9:57

Oh, everything was easier.

Speaker 3 10:00

Yes. And besides that, they had started the Lamaze type of class. There we go. There we go. So did you take the breathing techniques? Well, there you go. I did. I didn't do that particularly, but I remember paying attention to my breathing. Okay.

Speaker 2 10:16

More than you did with your first.

Speaker 3 10:18

And I didn't have to have uh an epidural. I only had a local.

Speaker 2 10:23

Oh, okay. Oh, okay. Like if you have a fentanyl shell they do now. And yeah, interesting. So what did they do? Yeah, I don't know what you mean by that. Yeah.

Speaker 3 10:32

It was just so he could do the epesiotomy, more or less. Oh my god. Because I had you without too much effort.

Speaker 2 10:41

Okay, so I was already born. So you didn't get pain relief before I was born. You had a local to prepare. Um to repair. Okay. Yes, yes, totally. Gotcha. Okay. Okay. Okay. Wow, that's really crazy.

Speaker 10:54

Good for you. I didn't know what it was called, the medicine.

Speaker 2 10:58

Did it without any epidural? Good for you. Wow. Was um did you feel supported?

Speaker 3 11:03

Like, did you feel like did you remember the nurses or other than my husband, your daddy, and the doctor were listening to a bronchos.

Speaker 1 11:13

Some things never change.

Speaker 3 11:15

It was on a Sunday in September. Oh my god. And I do remember thinking, and I was glad because the radio's on. I I was like this. I don't want you to talk to me. Oh yeah. I'm doing this. Yeah, I'm fine. That's funny. Go away. I just want my I just want my doctor. Yeah. Yeah. And so my poor Disney was. And the radio was on. Did they win? Oh, I have no idea.

Speaker 11:40

I was a little busy. Well, so the Broncos played on your birthday. We're gonna find out Tammy's exact birthday. I'm gonna see who they're ranked, what the score was.

Speaker 3 11:53

That'd be interesting. I haven't thought about that. It was like 1:30 in the afternoon, one, two o'clock in the afternoon, maybe. I mean, I'd gone to church that morning.

Speaker 2 12:02

That is so funny.

Speaker 3 12:03

And started labor there and then went to the hospital. So we'll have to look at your birth certificate.

Speaker 2 12:07

I will.

Speaker 12:07

Well, I have a question for you.

Speaker 3 12:09

Okay.

Speaker 12:10

Was there a moment that you felt really strong? Like encouraged in your in your labor experience or maybe a little unsure? Like, did you did you ever have that pause in your labor? No.

Speaker 3 12:25

Okay. No, I felt very strong.

Speaker 12:27

Yeah, you felt confidence that you had immediately carried on.

Speaker 3 12:31

Yes. Very much had courage. And I knew I had found out about a verse in the Bible about a woman being preserved and childbearing since 1 Timothy, I think, chapter 2. And I like that. I clung on to that. I had that assurance, but I really was pretty calm. Okay. Very much. Wanted to get it over with.

Speaker 1 12:58

She wanted a baby.

Speaker 2 13:00

I have a really important question. Okay. Was I dramatic from the beginning?

Speaker 1 13:08

You were hungry from the beginning. And I was breastfeeding, but you were so hungry.

Speaker 3 13:18

But I think I hung in there for three months, and then I was like, I really have other things to do besides feed you, nurse this baby, which I'm sorry about. I wish I would have not.

Speaker 4 13:31

But you couldn't get that you did. But you got it good.

Speaker 3 13:34

I didn't realize it would go so fast. So enjoy your babies. Really enjoy them because it does go rather quickly.

Speaker 2 13:42

I did for much longer, and I still feel like I would have done it all right.

Speaker 13:45

Oh, I know. I know I breastfed Tyler for two years. Oh, that's true. And I wish I I wish I could have gone that long with each, but unfortunately that was not my story. But yeah, I miss breastfeeding so much. It's such a closeness, yeah. Very important.

Speaker 3 14:02

I was so busy.

Speaker 2 14:03

I needed to I wish I'd done differently. Well, and I'm a second baby too. Don't you think, Missy, that makes such a big difference. Oh, absolutely. It's not without your first moms, always feel guilt with their second baby. That would be one thing I felt guilty with. I prepared so much for my first. I did it with this one. We hear that all the time from our clients.

Speaker 3 14:22

Yeah. And your daddy went deer hunting a week after you were born.

Speaker 1 14:28

And that I remember thinking I had to lose my support. I lost my support in Colorado City. I did.

Speaker 2 14:35

I was anxious about that. So you had a two-year-old and a one-week old chat.

Speaker 3 14:42

But my mother-in-law wasn't far away, and my mother was still here. You had a lot of people. I did have them. They didn't think I needed any support. Yeah. Like, I did it, you can do it.

Speaker 14:54

Well, actually, that's um interesting that you said that because I was just gonna ask, like, so what's the biggest difference that you see in birth today and from when you gave birth? And so it can kind of go back to like how they were. You said that they said they did it all. How is it different for you? Or from your perspective, how is it different today?

Speaker 3 15:16

You have far more information. Okay, yeah, which can lend to more things to worry about. Okay.

Speaker 2 15:22

Oh wow, yeah.

Speaker 3 15:23

See, I didn't I didn't eat good or about that information. Yeah. So with my first child, Steven, I had lost a lot uh blood. So that was just because um he was he was OP. Yeah, he was sunny side up, right? Is that what you call that? Yeah. So that was different. But I had a comfortable birth. I mean, it would just took a while, took longer.

Speaker 1 15:49

I had to stay in the hospital a week at that time.

Speaker 3 15:52

See, my doctor didn't let me get out of bed without doing exercises, without making sure my blood sugars were all good, and insurance covered it.

Speaker 2 16:02

Wow. So I had a period of time to rest. That was a huge difference. That's a huge difference. So, Mr. How long for a normal vaginal delivery are you in the hospital today?

Speaker 16:12

Uh, 24 to 48. That they'll pay for. Yes. 48 hours for vaginal. That's too bad. Is what they want to pay

Tammy’s Fast Labor Story

Speaker 16:19

for. That's too bad. Um, 24. And honestly, it's like the way things, and I don't know how it was back then, Linda, but like now it's almost like better to be at home in your own comfortable bed. Because it's so much so many people, like revolving door in and out.

Speaker 3 16:35

So exposure to yeah.

Speaker 16:37

So, but I don't know how it was like back then. Was it quiet? A week might be a bit more.

Speaker 3 16:41

It was quiet.

Speaker 16:42

Yeah, I know.

Speaker 3 16:43

I had family come visit, that kind of thing. And I might, I might have, I mean, maybe it was only four days, but I needed to rest. And then we went to my mother-in-law's house. I didn't go straight home.

Speaker 16:56

Oh, interesting.

Speaker 3 16:57

And I was still recovering my blood, building back up my blood and getting well and feeling well, having help with the baby.

Speaker 2 17:06

You were taking you were supportive, you were taking care of.

Speaker 3 17:08

I was very well taken care of.

Speaker 2 17:09

There was a tribe of women.

Speaker 3 17:10

Yep. I love it. Yeah. We need to do that. I'm sorry, women don't have that as much today. Because people do live, jobs take you everywhere now. We used to just all live in the same area, you know.

Speaker 2 17:20

Yeah.

unknown 17:21

Yeah.

Speaker 2 17:21

Your family was close.

Speaker 3 17:22

Yeah. So although my she wasn't with me. My mom was not with me with my mother-in-law. How interesting. Because my mom was working full-time. Yeah. Wow. Well, I'm glad that you had that good relationship with her. Me, too.

Speaker 17:36

And then she was a good support during that time. Totally. What do you think moms today overthink?

Speaker 3 17:43

Uh well, gosh, with all the information they have, like they get to choose the day they're gonna have the baby. I think that's ridiculous. I really do because the baby, unless there's complications, you should let the baby be until they decide it's time to come. And I think that's too much control. Okay. I think they want too much control. I think they need but I think life is just so busy. Most of them are working now. So I wasn't working full-time then. And I didn't for several years. I worked part-time.

Speaker 18:20

Yeah, a lot more women have those careers, because I'm sure like back in the 70s, totally very difficult. Like the culture, cultural difference. It's kind of robbing them of an experience in the motherhood.

Speaker 3 18:32

You only have a few times in life.

Speaker 2 18:34

Yeah. That's really hard. Yeah. And and you can say that. I think that perspective-wise, for my mom to say that, I think it's important to know that she also went back to work.

unknown 18:44

Yeah.

Speaker 2 18:44

Like you did, you you were home, but then you did go back to work. I did want to go back. You wanted to go back to both. I wanted to be the best of both. So it wasn't like you were just a state. So there's some moms that like we're just there's balance. I think you better be.

Speaker 3 18:58

You were a year and a half when I did go back part-time, say four hours a day. Okay. When you stayed with Aunt Lynette. Got it. Remember?

Speaker 2 19:04

Oh, yeah.

Speaker 3 19:05

Oh, you were you were very dramatic about that. Being left. She was always had separation anxiety.

Speaker 2 19:11

What's that about? Guys, that was the worst. I wouldn't even do sleepovers. Oh she loved her mama. We were very close. She loved her mama. Yes. Um I what is there something? This is a good impression. Is there something you wish you had back then that moms have now? Is it like flip it?

Speaker 3 19:29

Like ultrasound.

Speaker 2 19:31

Oh, oh wow.

Speaker 3 19:32

Oh, that would have been so funny. Beautiful. Yeah. That would have been so fun.

Speaker 19:38

Yeah. I have a funny story about ultrasound. Yeah. If I can share it too. It was probably about that same timeline. So when I was pregnant, I was 17 when I got pregnant with my first. Yeah. I had a midwife. Right. Um probably, I would bet she's probably about the same age as you. Um, anyways, she did not have ultrasound when she had her babies. Wow. And she was telling me the story, she had twins. Right. She did not know she had twins. She thought that she had one big singleton. So she told me the story that she was birthing, one baby came out, and they were like, oh, there's a second. And she's like, I knew what that meant back then. Instant C-section. Like they would take you back. Like that was it. Like if there were two, instant C-section. So she's like, I just started pushing and pushing and pushing. And then I rested her. But yeah, so she was, you know, it was just interesting because you brought up ultrasound and like the fact of not having ultrasound back then. Like she did not know she had twins. But in her situation, it actually was a benefit for her because otherwise she would add a C-section. Right. Like they wouldn't have even given her the option of having that. Yeah. But yeah. So, anyways, I just thought I'd add to that. Wow. I love it. Wow.

Speaker 2 20:57

Very, very cool. I mean I just think that if if you would have had a doula, do you think your experience would have been different? Do you feel like you needed another woman or a birth support?

Speaker 3 21:11

You know, then I didn't I didn't I was uh I was very independent and felt strong.

Speaker 2 21:20

Yeah.

Speaker 3 21:21

So I didn't feel needy like that. And and my husband was able to be with me, which was a new thing at that time.

Speaker 2 21:28

That as well as you did you see the same doctor at every appointment?

Speaker 3 21:33

I did.

Speaker 2 21:34

Yeah, that makes sense.

Speaker 21:36

With my doctor, yeah, but there was there was like a continuous consistency of care, which we lack now. We don't really moms don't really care about that. Um you know, you really don't. I mean, you can find some practices that are more um, you know, private practice, or you will see, you know, your doctor, but it's very few far and in between. Or if you have like a home birth, obviously. Like with a home birth midwife, like you have that continuous support. But for like traditional OB care now, it is real. You see so many different things. It's like you see and you never know who you're gonna get.

Speaker 2 22:10

You don't, and you can't pick who you're gonna get because of it.

Speaker 22:12

Yeah, so that makes a big difference.

Pain Relief Then And Feeling Supported

Speaker 3 22:16

But the doula would be the great fill-in for that.

Speaker 22:18

That's why so here's where I think a doula would serve you well, Linda. Linda go right ahead. I would have told, I would have told that doctor and the husband, we are not talking about this game. That's exactly right. We are not gonna talk about this game. We are gonna focus on Linda.

Speaker 2 22:37

We're gonna have fairy lights. Yes, we're gonna have this baby. You're gonna put on your crazy worship music.

Speaker 3 22:42

I think my husband was glad to have a distraction.

Speaker 2 22:45

Yeah. He was so nervous.

Speaker 3 22:48

He was whistling too, I remember. Oh buddy. Just to relax himself, I think.

Speaker 22:52

Maybe we need to have your dad on your father's dash.

Speaker 3 22:55

Because I wouldn't let him talk to me. Yes.

Speaker 2 22:57

You know, I was like, Oh my god, I'm busy here. That would be that's actually a great idea. Well, yeah, well, let's shift. Um, let's go from uh birth into motherhood. Um, mommy, what did becoming a mom teach you that surprised you?

Speaker 3 23:15

What did becoming a mom surprise you?

Speaker 2 23:17

This is a hard question too, because my mom's the oldest daughter of uh her siblings. Like she's the oldest world family. I have three two older brothers. And she kind of raised third. So you kind of were surprised, didn't you?

Speaker 3 23:29

I was very much used to taking care of children. Yeah, okay. I didn't know how to cook when I got married. Right. I did learn that quickly.

Speaker 23:36

You knew iron, you knew the um child care basic part of it. Yeah, basically.

Speaker 3 23:41

And you know, in our little house that we had at the beginning, I bathed her in the kitchen sink.

Speaker 23:46

Oh, I did that with my babies in the house.

Speaker 3 23:48

Yeah, it was a big wide sink. We loved sinking. And our little house didn't have a bathtub. Yeah, it just had a shower.

Speaker 2 23:55

So that was that was it. I was picturing a little little bit.

Speaker 3 24:00

It was fun. It was so fun. We had a little room. We had special stuff like um Baby Mate was a company that would provide, you could buy a table that was like a it wasn't just a high chair, it had a real table and the baby sat in the middle of it and had wheels that I could bring her over to where I was and and do things. So cute. And and it came with pictures like Olin Mills pictures were a big deal back then. Ola Mills, yeah. We have great pictures of you growing up and stuff. Some people have been a little envious of my albums to see now. We do everything on our own course.

Speaker 24:39

So Tammy gets it.

Speaker 3 24:40

So I don't think I was too surprised, except maybe when you wouldn't I needed my sleep. Oh. And so for her to want to be hungry all the time. I had to adjust to that. Yeah. When she but I enjoyed it very much. That was like yeah, and I and you would come when you were like one, you come to our bed with your bottle in hand, because I had gone to a bottle because she needed the nourishment. She bumped me on the head with her bottle. Oh like I need milk, but she wasn't talking yet.

Speaker 2 25:13

Oh, that's so funny.

Speaker 3 25:14

Okay, but let's talk about it. Her older brother did all the talking.

Speaker 2 25:16

What were the bottles made of back then?

Speaker 3 25:18

Oh, plastic, I'm sure. No, that was probably glass.

Speaker 2 25:22

Yeah, they were glass. Yeah. I remember Daddy's saying I hit him with a glass bottle.

Speaker 25:27

I don't remember. A lot of people are going back to the glass bottles now.

Speaker 3 25:30

They're more easier to sanit, you have to sanitize them. Right. But less plastic. Right. And they last longer. So was that the hardest?

Speaker 25:37

Do you think that was the hardest? Like the sleep.

Speaker 3 25:40

Yeah, sleep was a deal.

Speaker 25:41

Yeah.

Speaker 3 25:42

Still the hardest.

Speaker 2 25:43

Did Daddy help you or how did you get to the bottom?

Speaker 3 25:45

No.

Speaker 2 25:45

Oh my god.

Speaker 3 25:46

No, dads didn't do that. No. He would have if I if I would have asked him. But it was not expected that the dad would jump up. Although when my firstborn Stephen cried in the night the first time, we both jumped out of bed. Because it was like our first night at home, right? And we had the bassinet in our little kitchen right outside our bedroom door, right? And saying our house was little. I didn't put him in the bedroom, which was on the other side of this little 800 square foot house. So the sleep was a deal. And he had to work, you know, he had run out of business. Did he take time off for Plague when C was born?

unknown 26:28

Oh my gosh.

Speaker 3 26:29

Yeah. To take care of me. He brought me a dress at the hospital, brand new dress. Oh, so beautiful.

Speaker 2 26:34

With a zip so that I could nurse baby.

Speaker 3 26:38

He was very thoughtful.

Speaker 26:39

That's so precious. There's so many things.

Speaker 2 26:41

Yeah.

Postpartum Help Then Vs Now

Speaker 2 26:42

He was very thoughtful.

Speaker 26:43

That was her push present.

Speaker 2 26:45

Yeah, that's really.

Speaker 26:46

You know, mom push present. Do you know what this is? No.

Speaker 2 26:49

Explain a push present.

Speaker 26:51

So push present, they just it's just a gift from the dad to the mom after your birth. Yeah, it's usually like jewelry. I see a lot of like jewelry or like a name on it, like mama or something like that. I was like, so I deserve three push presents. I didn't get one.

Speaker 2 27:10

I did not either. I did not. Yeah. John's like, here's Ian. That is your present.

Speaker 3 27:17

Here's your son. That was a wonderful memory of her birth, too.

Speaker 2 27:23

Oh yeah. What was your favorite stage of motherhood?

Speaker 3 27:26

Probably eight months.

Speaker 2 27:28

Okay.

Speaker 3 27:29

What because baby's moving, but you're still not ready for delivery too quick. You know, you have a little time still, or things are normal.

Speaker 2 27:38

Oh motherhood?

Speaker 3 27:39

Oh, my favorite. Just oh gosh. I loved you guys so much. It was so fun. We just just being with them, doing fun things and um your little questions. Well, I wasn't, yeah. Yeah, you you have these little questions about bugs and and she's she would escape out the back door. I had a big backyard, but no fence yet. Oh my gosh. And she I come out in the backyard and she's in a mud puddle next to the house, completely splashing and covered in water and mud, and so happy.

Speaker 28:13

Loved it.

Speaker 3 28:14

But I I thought, oh my gosh, she could have walked out to the street. You know, so that was a worry. Keeping my eye on her. That was fun. That was that. Jimmy was a free bird. She was I loved people.

Speaker 2 28:29

See, I loved people in this scene. Oh, yeah. You still do. I still do. Um, what would you say, mama, to all these moms that are listening um in the first few days postpartum? Did we Yeah? Like right, those first days. Any words of wisdom for these mommies that just came home with their new babies? Motherhood. Preparation.

Speaker 3 28:53

You need to be prepared and you need to have meals for your husband, and you need to have things ready for the baby, have your bed ready. Have um have the mindset that you're going to need to rest for a week and not do a lot.

Speaker 2 29:10

Yeah, settle down.

Speaker 3 29:11

Yeah, settle down, get a lot of sleep, take care of your body, drink a lot. You want your milk to come in good and get your breastfeeding going smoothly and um take care of yourself. Oh it's really important. Hire a doula. And no no one else. No one else is gonna do this for you. Only you know what you need.

Speaker 2 29:34

Oh, well, whoa, that's really that's really good. What did you choose? Only you know what you need. No one else is gonna tell you what you need.

Speaker 3 29:41

They're not gonna read your mind, which is a big mistake with a husband to say, I need this. And and they love you, they'll do it.

Speaker 2 29:49

It's really funny because honestly, any if any of my clients are listening, I do this at that, yeah. They know you do too. At the second prenatal, I I sit them on the couch, you know, they're sitting on the couch, I'm kind of teaching, like talking at them. And I say, I'm gonna give you the best marriage advice for the next part. Ready? And I say, Okay, dad, look at mom. And he looks at her and I go, Okay, repeat after me. Ready? I cannot, and he said, I cannot read, read your mind. That's a good one. And they make her say it to him. That's so funny you said that.

Speaker 3 30:21

Well, because it it causes irritation in the mother on the mother. Resentment. And that's not good, that's not good vibes.

Speaker 30:29

With exhaustion as well.

Speaker 3 30:30

Yeah.

Speaker 30:31

Well, my husband, um my husband was not a great mind reader, as many aren't. But one funny story I'll share about my postpartum is I, you know, you're always in those like post postpartum, like that um the mood dump, right? You know, those emotional, emotional ups and downs and whatnot. So it was like nine o'clock at night going in to make a sandwich, because talking about feeding. You gotta eat, yeah, get that milk in and everything. Um, so I went to go make a sandwich and I was craving a roast beef sandwich. I like wanted a specific roast beef sandwich. We had no roast beef. We had ham, we had turkey, and no roast beef. Everything but I started crying. And my husband's like, Are you okay? And I'm like, We have no roast beef. She's like, Do I need to go to the store to get you roast beef? And I was like, Yes! That's so funny. Yeah, little did he know he should have read my mind and said, That roast beef is empty, let me fill it.

Speaker 2 31:37

Oh, seriously. John's out with I was so sick during both of my pregnancies, and I'll never forget just bawling. Like nothing sounded good, absolutely nothing. And uh the doctor made me write down a list on the paper. He's like, He gives anything that you could eat or that you want to eat. And honestly, all I wrote was like um strawberry milkshake. And so every time I would get like feel sick or whatever, John would just go get me milkshake. There you go.

Speaker 3 32:04

Well, and without something you'll see about postpartum is what you're going to wear. Oh, yeah, we took it. I guess it's important to you to feel good and um maybe cut back on some social activities for at least a month.

Speaker 2 32:18

Just chill out.

Speaker 3 32:20

Which I don't think I did. I think I led choir very busy. Actually, I sang a special song in church the weekend that you were born. But I I was totally, I had no bump even. I was my abdomen was strong and me. Yeah.

Speaker 2 32:36

Not everybody's that way. Well, full circle, full circle. We'll get it. Yeah, we're telling you. Um, what do you think about me being a doula?

Speaker 3 32:45

I love it.

Speaker 2 32:46

Oh, you're so sweet.

Speaker 3 32:47

I'm so happy for you. Because number one, you love to help people. Yeah. You love to share your faith. Yeah. Um, you like to make women s feel comfortable and strong, and you love, love, love babies. Tiny? And and pets. I didn't know that about T. I think it's it's a rescue for John because he knows he's okay not having any more children.

Speaker 1 33:12

But she's experiencing babies all the time.

Speaker 3 33:15

She gets to smell.

Speaker 2 33:16

Missy and I have that in common. I think we oh yeah, we've bonded.

Speaker 33:20

Well, that's I mean, do you see all the babies on that board back there? It's all babies, babies, babies.

Speaker 3 33:24

John teases you and says, Oh, is this one beautiful too?

Speaker 33:27

Yes, he does. Oh, Derek says the same thing all the time. This is baby beautiful. It looks like a baby. That's how he always says, It looks like a baby, and I'm like, no, you look beautiful. And he's like, You say that about every baby. And they are.

Speaker 3 33:41

They're so special.

Speaker 2 33:42

They are special. Well, this will be fun. Uh let's do some quick fire. Do we have time? Yeah. Yeah. I think so.

Speaker 33:50

We've got a few more minutes here. Okay, my friend. Um, all right. Get ready. So just quick fire, just the answer to the phone.

Speaker 3 33:58

You never know what I'm gonna say.

Speaker 33:59

Okay. Just kidding. Epidural or no epidural? Epidural. Okay. First thing. Okay, so epidural for first. What about second? No. Okay. Yeah. Okay. Hospital or home birth? Hospital. Okay. One word to describe motherhood.

Speaker 3 34:18

Fabulous.

Speaker 34:20

Okay. I like it. Now, this is gonna be the hard one for you. Advice in one sentence.

Speaker 3 34:28

Don't worry too much.

Speaker 2 34:30

Oh perfect. It's easy for you. I love that. Okay. Okay. Okay, now my happening for centuries. This is Tammy's quick fire question for you. Who was your easiest child and why was it me?

Speaker 3 34:45

Because you were number two.

Speaker 2 34:47

There you go. Winning already. Winning already.

Speaker 34:51

Winning. Oh my gosh. Well.

Speaker 2 34:53

That's really funny. Yeah.

Speaker 34:55

Well, to all the moms listening, and whether you're pregnant or postpartum, or even years into motherhood, like Tammy and I and Linda, um, you are doing something incredible, incredibly meaningful.

Speaker 2 35:08

And to my mommy, thank you for starting it all. I wouldn't be here. Literally. Or professor without you.

Speaker 1 35:17

Happy Mother's Day. All the mothers out there. Have a wonderful Mother's Day. Yes. Happy Mother's

Information Overload And Birth Control Today

Speaker 1 35:23

Day.