Mothering
Mothering
Maternal Archetypes- Earth Mothers & Creative Mamas
by Donna Bruschi on May 06 2022
Over the last two years of raising Rita, my personal struggle has been to find the right balance between my nurturing and creative sides. Perhaps it is when we nurture our rainbow mother, that our inner earth mother is able to shine.
Mothering
Wean Art: The Gentle Journey of Weaning a Toddler
by Donna Bruschi on Feb 04 2022
At 25 months, our family weaned little Rita (Yes, dad played a big role too) from the breast. I knew it was our time, but yet as we moved closer to her last nursing sessions I felt uneasy. Reflecting on this, I feel it was fear of the unknown. As nursing was the one factor in our routines that had remained constant from birth to two years.
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on Nov 18 2020
I have been thinking a lot about trusting my instincts as a mother.
Sometimes that is easier said than done, especially when someone in an authority position (a doctor, a teacher, a specialist,) or someone whose approval I seek (my mother, my partner, my friend,) is telling me that something I am doing, is wrong.
It can be enormously frustrating and it recently happened to me.
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on Sep 26 2020
By Donna Bruschi
You came to me as a small fish: frantic, untiring, unceasing
Swimming upstream to the place of your birth
Your only need, to reach the headwaters.
At that moment, I knew and surrendered
And a spring deep inside me sprang.
And I held you.
You asked me to fill a pond and I did.
In time, your incessant demands pushed forth a tiny stream.
Droplets skittering over my being, your essence seeping into my dust
Each day a new gush, another groove, cut and deepened
And still you spurted forth,
Carving me in ways I didn’t expect
You dribbled and babbled and always, I held you,
New shoots sprang up in your presence, needing tender care
The spring thaw always eroded.
Unearthing pebbles, then rocks
Carrying them, bump. bump.
While you gurgled and rushed, seeking the path of least resistance.
Gaining momentum, deepening, broadening
Overrunning your banks, flooding me
Gouging me, eroding my boundaries
Always shaping and cutting your own path.
Always following the path of least resistance
In your retreat, detritus and silt to be cleaned or absorbed
An aerial reveals switchbacks and impossible twists
That make no sense
Until you are walking the banks, walking the lay of the land.
An eddy formed, a deep swirling in my unceasing efforts to hold you.
I admired how the sun cracked into a million diamonds on your skin
You fell silent, biding your time, building strength, seeking an outlet
With a thundering roar as you exploded over the edge,
A thing of unimaginable beauty
My heart stopped as you went over
That unstoppable, terrifying, endless plummet
Only to land in another eddy, and me grasping, to hold you
Yet forward you moved, dragging rocks, trees, pieces of my heart
Your power fluid, spellbinding
I was awestruck, lovestruck…watching you go in your churning
You embraced, then sidestepped boulders
One day, I held you one last time and then, you were gone
The swells of the ocean pulled you in and you swam away.
I watched for awhile, sad and happy, adding my tears to the confluence
Grateful for the spring that still nourishes my heart
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on May 28 2020
How can families who breastfeed get the most sleep every night? And protect their precious baby from harm, while doing so?Soon after beginning breastfeeding, nearly every breastfeeding parent has fallen asleep while breastfeeding, without regard to safety. The stark warnings against sleeping with your baby, fade into a haze of exhaustion. It is a dangerous way of dealing with a life and death problem, that has a fairly easy solution. Setting up a safe sleep environment for your whole family, including your baby, is easy.
Mothering
New Paltz Business Owner Collecting Baby Carriers For Refugees
by Donna Bruschi on Dec 21 2015
A New Paltz business owner is working to help mothers with small children fleeing conflict in the Middle East. Donna Bruschi, owner of New Baby New World in New Paltz, is collecting baby carriers for mothers who are Syrian refugees.
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on May 18 2014
By Jasmine Wood
“Isn’t it funny, how a bear likes honey. Buzz, Buzz, Buzz. I wonder why he does…”
This is one of my favorite lines from my daughter’s bedtime book collection! (Classic Winnie the Pooh) It is one of those story lines that always gets my mind working. It makes me think of the famous philosopher, Rumi’s quote:
“Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray.”
Intrinsically, we find ourselves drawn to those things that make us feel fulfilled, just as Pooh finds himself drawn to the honey pot time and time again!
As women, many of us find ourselves silently drawn by the call of motherhood!
Some of us are ready to heed the call: "Procreate now!" Others, take time and are slowly enveloped by our most innate desire to form a family and home. Before, I found out I was pregnant with my daughter, I knew deep down inside that I wanted to be a mother. I did not know whether I would enjoy this all encompassing role or not!
This is where Rumi’s silent pull comes from.
It comes from deep down in the core of our being, the call mutes any worries the mind might carry, and leads you mind, body and spirit down the path of motherhood. Perhaps, there are many bumps in the road, or instead it may be smooth sailing from thoughts of conception, to labor and delivery.
The many paths we follow as women to reach motherhood are important!
The importance is in the journey, and not just the destination. The path we follow will stay with us, and guide us throughout the trying times of parenting! I have these moments in mothering where I feel so ancient, as if I can tap into the energy of all my female ancestors before me. Our collective knowledge and life force can be my guide if I allow myself to stay open and fluid.
I must remind myself to be like a tree, strong and grounded, but yet flexible and able to move with the winds of change!
I find the winds of change blow strongly in motherhood; just I have mastered one stage of development, my daughter is moving full force into the next stage and it is time for me to create new strategies toward mothering her.
To say my daughter keeps me on my toes is an understatement!
Our home is not static, but a dynamic force of love and intense cycling emotions. We have strong up’s and low down’s but, we move through these rhythm’s together, listening and learning what we can, every step along the way.
Till Next Time, Be Well!
Jasmine
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on May 11 2014
I wanted to discuss us Mamas! We come in all different shapes, colors and sizes Yet our emotions all follow the flow of the same river, the timeless flow of motherhood. As women, we come equipped in our mother’s womb with all of our living, giving powers.
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on Mar 23 2014
This morning I woke up a warrioress!
When I looked in the mirror my face looked the same, my hair was falling in its typical messy, uneven way, yet something had changed…. As I looked deeper into my own two eyes I could feel the change deep down inside me, deeper than my bones.
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on Feb 17 2014
Sometimes I want to cry and freeze time.
I exclaim, “Stop growing! Just for a little while! You’re so perfect just the way you are!” What I really want is not for Rita to remain a toddler forever, but rather I want to remember with every fiber of my being what these amazing years are like.
Mothering
Holding my Baby Through the Long Feverish Night
by Donna Bruschi on Feb 10 2014
Perhaps the warm thaw of the last several days has you feeling like I do? I feel like there is an itch deep down that just needs to be scratched, the eternal itch for spring. The itch for new life, for many shades of green, the itch to spy a newly emerged crocus and to feel the caress of warm spring sunshine on your cheek!
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on Nov 03 2013
As we came to the middle of a bridge over a pond, we were surprised to see that on the other side of the pond were a mama black bear and her small cub. At first, she didn't notice us and went about her business of teaching her cub how to forage for food. Being a safe distance and separated by water, we were in a perfect position to observe this black bear family for a while.
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on Oct 25 2013
What are some better titles for what we do? I prefer "professional multi-tasker specializing in damage control" or "personal chef to a person with peculiar eating habits" even "24 hour fresh & local milk provider"
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on Sep 09 2012
Sometimes I like to think about some of my favorite things about being a mom. We know it can be a hard job, and for me, it’s important to think sometimes about the positive parts. Here are a few of the things I’ve thought about lately:
Mothering
by Donna Bruschi on Jul 26 2011
Independence Day, 2011. Today is a bittersweet day that marks the end of an era. 17 years ago, I was a week overdue with my first baby. I was feeling heavy and nauseous, and not from too many hotdogs or Pina Coladas, either. I wasn't in labor, but I was sure wishing I was. It was a Monday--just like this year.
Mothering
New Baby New Paltz Grand Opening Preparations 2011
by Donna Bruschi on Jan 20 2011
Preparing for our Grand Opening at 15 Plattekill Ave in New Paltz, NY.
