Strocel.com Podcast

One of the most awkward parts of parenting, for me, has been talking to my kids about the birds and the bees. Over more than eight years of parenting, I’ve had ample opportunity to do it. I’ve always done my best to share accurate information, in simple terms, without doing too much editorializing. But I’m mostly just making it up as I go along, and I’m not always sure I’m doing that well at it. This is why, when I had the chance to interview Vancouver blogger Marnie Goldenberg I jumped at it. On her blog, sexplainer, she makes it her mission to help parents raise sexually intelligent kids. I had a lot of questions for Marnie, and she gave me a lot to think about during our conversation. We talked about her background, and how her passion for sexual education developed. We talked about the challenges parents face when talking to their kids about sexuality. We addressed some of the concerns that many of us face about how our increased connectivity through smart phones and social media impacts our kids, as well as issues around easy access to pornography. Marnie also shared her tips to help everyone raise savvy, smart kids, who make good choices for themselves. If you have questions about talking to your kids about sex and sexuality, you’ll want to listen to this podcast. And really, who among us doesn’t? I think every parent feels out of their depth sometimes, whether we’re sharing lessons with our kids about sexuality or table manners. I don’t know about you, but I can always use a few more tools in my parenting toolbox, and Marnie shares many of them during our podcast. My podcast with Marnie clocks in at just over 40 minutes, and I promise it will be 40 minutes well-spent. So choose a time when your kids aren’t around (unless you’re in a place where you want to answer any questions that come up), relax, and let the sexplainer work her magic. If you enjoyed my conversation with Marnie, subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute of my future broadcasts. Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

We all know the drill: Eat whole foods, mostly vegetables. Don’t eat too much sugar. Don’t eat too much fat. Don’t eat too much salt. Don’t eat things that come in packages. Don’t eat things with ingredients you can’t pronounce. There are lots of rules about what we should and shouldn’t eat, and most of us are at least somewhat familiar with them. Following them, however, is a different story. It turns out that junk food is so popular for a reason, and the reason is that it’s easy and it tastes good. So, when I had the chance to record a podcast with Andrea Donsky, founder of NaturallySavvy.com and author of Label Lessons and Unjunk your Junk Food, I was in. Andrea is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist, but she’s also a mom of three. Through her books and website she endeavours to help us navigate the aisles of the grocery store, making healthier choices. She’s pragmatic and non-judgmental as she does so, focusing on what ingredients we should seek to avoid, and how we can decipher ingredient lists and nutrition labels. Rather than lecturing us to eat more kale, she helps us to choose a better granola bar for when we need a fast snack on the go. During our podcast I asked Andrea just what a Registered Holistic Nutritionist is, anyway. We talked about what ingredients are red flags, and why. We discussed how to appropriately set limits on junk food with kids. We discussed organic food and genetically modified organisms, or GMOs. We talked about where to shop, how to shop, and why you have to vigilant when you’re choosing what to buy. If you could use some practical, judgment-free help choosing food for your family, or you’d like to hear what seven ingredients you should be on the lookout for, you’ll want to listen to my podcast with Andrea Donsky: If you enjoyed my conversation with Andrea, subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute of my future broadcasts. Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

We all know the drill: Eat whole foods, mostly vegetables. Don’t eat too much sugar. Don’t eat too much fat. Don’t eat too much salt. Don’t eat things that come in packages. Don’t eat things with ingredients you can’t pronounce. There are lots of rules about what we should and shouldn’t eat, and most of us are at least somewhat familiar with them. Following them, however, is a different story. It turns out that junk food is so popular for a reason, and the reason is that it’s easy and it tastes good. So, when I had the chance to record a podcast with Andrea Donsky, founder of NaturallySavvy.com and author of Label Lessons and Unjunk your Junk Food, I was in. Andrea is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist, but she’s also a mom of three. Through her books and website she endeavours to help us navigate the aisles of the grocery store, making healthier choices. She’s pragmatic and non-judgmental as she does so, focusing on what ingredients we should seek to avoid, and how we can decipher ingredient lists and nutrition labels. Rather than lecturing us to eat more kale, she helps us to choose a better granola bar for when we need a fast snack on the go. During our podcast I asked Andrea just what a Registered Holistic Nutritionist is, anyway. We talked about what ingredients are red flags, and why. We discussed how to appropriately set limits on junk food with kids. We discussed organic food and genetically modified organisms, or GMOs. We talked about where to shop, how to shop, and why you have to vigilant when you’re choosing what to buy. If you could use some practical, judgment-free help choosing food for your family, or you’d like to hear what seven ingredients you should be on the lookout for, you’ll want to listen to my podcast with Andrea Donsky: If you enjoyed my conversation with Andrea, subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute of my future broadcasts. Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

I love tea, as anyone who’s seen my annual tea stash challenge knows. I especially love buying tea. There’s something about a new tea that is so full of promise, I just can’t resist it. Because of that, it should come as no surprise that when Soko Tea House opened in my neighbourhood late last year, I was immediately smitten. As I was considering what to do on my podcast for Mother’s Day, talking about tea seemed like the perfect fit. So, I got in touch with Julie Veres, Soko’s co-owner, and luckily she agreed to connect for a chat. Julie’s love for tea is so great that she’s actually spent years studying it, even going to school to become a tea sommelier. She’s currently exploring the Japanese tea ceremony in intricate detail. All of this sort of begs the question: just how much is there to know about tea? The answer is a whole lot, as Julie explains in our podcast. Tea may seem like a simple beverage, but like wine, there are many nuances and variations to explore. And like wine, there’s also a lot to learn about pairing tea with food. In fact, Julie runs workshops at her tea shop most Sunday mornings, exploring topics like making matcha, preparing iced teas, the health benefits of certain teas and pairing tea with different foods. After all, tea is the most popular beverage in the world after water, and people prepare it in countless different ways. If you’re a tea-lover, you’d like some tips on preparing and storing tea, or you’re planning a Mother’s Day Tea and need ideas, you’ll want to listen to my podcast with Julie Veres from Soko Tea House: If you enjoyed my conversation with Julie, subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute of any future broadcasts. Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

I love tea, as anyone who’s seen my annual tea stash challenge knows. I especially love buying tea. There’s something about a new tea that is so full of promise, I just can’t resist it. Because of that, it should come as no surprise that when Soko Tea House opened in my neighbourhood late last year, I was immediately smitten. As I was considering what to do on my podcast for Mother’s Day, talking about tea seemed like the perfect fit. So, I got in touch with Julie Veres, Soko’s co-owner, and luckily she agreed to connect for a chat. Julie’s love for tea is so great that she’s actually spent years studying it, even going to school to become a tea sommelier. She’s currently exploring the Japanese tea ceremony in intricate detail. All of this sort of begs the question: just how much is there to know about tea? The answer is a whole lot, as Julie explains in our podcast. Tea may seem like a simple beverage, but like wine, there are many nuances and variations to explore. And like wine, there’s also a lot to learn about pairing tea with food. In fact, Julie runs workshops at her tea shop most Sunday mornings, exploring topics like making matcha, preparing iced teas, the health benefits of certain teas and pairing tea with different foods. After all, tea is the most popular beverage in the world after water, and people prepare it in countless different ways. If you’re a tea-lover, you’d like some tips on preparing and storing tea, or you’re planning a Mother’s Day Tea and need ideas, you’ll want to listen to my podcast with Julie Veres from Soko Tea House: If you enjoyed my conversation with Julie, subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute of any future broadcasts. Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

This edition of the Strocel.com podcast first ran on January 6, 2012. It’s full of good stuff, so I’m pleased to be sharing it with you again. I first came across Deanna Duke on her blog, Crunchy Chicken. Her tagline is, “Putting the mental in environmental,” and I was hooked. Some time later, I joined the Green Moms Carnival, which she also belongs to, and I was even more hooked. Deanna is funny, frank and passionate. When she recently published her first book, The Non-Toxic Avenger, I requested a review copy, and I wasn’t disappointed. The Non-Toxic Avenger chronicles Deanna’s quest to reduce the toxic load in her own body. She did blood and urine tests to determine the level of toxins she was carrying around, then did nearly everything she could to eliminate her exposure to toxins for about four months. Finally, at the end of it all she repeated the testing to see what effect, if any, she’d actually had. You’d think a book about toxins and de-toxifying would be either dry, or terrifying, or both, but Deanna managed to avoid both fates. Don’t get me wrong – the number of toxins we’re exposed to in our daily lives really is alarming, and reading The Non-Toxic Avenger prompted me to go on a one-woman anti-PVC crusade in my own home. If you want a beach read, this isn’t it. But if you want an informative, readable, funny book that will help you to make some tangible changes of your own, I would absolutely recommend it. This is the first book I have actually finished in months, which tells you that I really enjoyed it. I had the chance to catch up with Deanna for a chat. We talked about her attempts to remove toxins, and what did and didn’t work. I asked her about the testing she underwent to determine the toxin levels in her body, including what that cost and what challenges she faced in getting it done. I also asked what she’s continued now that the project was over, and what she hasn’t. And I asked my biggest question of all: how did everyone else (including her husband and children) react when she swore off all non-organic food and started examining every object in her home for potential toxicity. It was great talking to Deanna, and you can really get a sense of her chatty, approachable style from our interview. Listen to it here: Subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes to stay up-to-date with the podcasts. Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

When I was creating the Crafting my Life online class, I wanted to interview someone about embracing your inner artist. I got in touch with my friend Amanda, who you may know better as PoMo Mama. Amanda is an in-real-life friend – we escaped for a weekend away together last year. She’s also a mother, writer, student, suburbanite and artist. Plus, she’s just generally awesome. Amanda and I on the ferry Amanda has actually been featured on this podcast before, in my discussion on family size. I love speaking with her, because she’s straightforward and no-nonsense. If you imagine someone who embraces a second career in the arts as prone to wearing flouncy skirts and making woo-woo pronouncements, you’re not imagining Amanda. In my mind, she’s setting a great example of someone who pursues her own interests in, around and in spite of her family, on her own terms. If you’d like to get in touch with your creative side; if you wonder what it’s like to have your artwork no display; if you wonder how you can make that work as a mother, you’ll want to listen to my conversation with Amanda. You’ll find both inspiration and practical help. I’m pleased to be sharing it with you now as a podcast: I’m still working out what I’ll be running next week on the Strocel.com podcast. I have a couple of great interviews in the works, but I’m not ready to make any promises. However, what I can tell you is that it will be worth listening to. Subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute! Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

I’ve become a little more choosy, recently, when it comes to inviting guests to be on my podcast. I’m 80 episodes in, now, and I suspect that I’m feeling a little more confident than I was two years ago when I started. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve enjoyed each and every interview I’ve done, and I’ve learned something by doing each one. However, in the beginning I was so thrilled that anyone would speak to me that I jumped on every opportunity without asking too many questions. Now I’m getting more pitches, and I’m taking more time to consider each one. When I recently got the opportunity to interview Jennifer Forest, the author of the new book Work Women Want, I knew that was one worth jumping for. Jennifer’s book is a guide to women who want more family-friendly work arrangements. If you’ve ever thought you’d like to work from home, work part-time, or work in a different field so that you can have better work-life balance and spend more time with your kids, Jennifer wrote this book for you. She’s not promising that if you read her book you’ll become a millionaire overnight, and she’s also not promising that it will be easy. Rather, she is sharing practical tips from real moms who have been there, done that, and found ways to make living incomes from home, or on reduced work schedules. During our podcast Jennifer shares her own story, and discusses what inspired her to write the book. She shares tips for starting a business, talks about negotiating a part-time schedule, and covers some of the nitty-gritty details you’ll encounter if you decide to start a business while you have small children. If you’d like to shift the way you work, you’ll want to take the time to listen to the podcast: I’m still deciding what I’ll be sharing next week on the podcast, but I can promise you that you’ll want to tune in. Subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute! Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

Today I’m re-sharing my interview with the fabulous Katherine Stone, talking about postpartum depression and reproductive mental illness. This is an important one, and it’s definitely worth a listen – or, for that matter, a re-listen. Seven years ago right now I had a two-and-a-half week old baby, and I was depressed. I cried for long periods of time, often for no specific reason. I was convinced that I was a terrible mother, and that I had made a terrible mistake. I did all of the things that I was supposed to do for my baby, but I really wasn’t myself, and I didn’t feel the way that I had expected to feel. To complicate matters, I didn’t really see my own depression for what it was. The people around me did – and I thank my lucky stars for that – but I wasn’t really able to acknowledge what was going on. It’s taking all of my personal strength to not delete that paragraph, by the way. The shame surrounding depression is strong, and I think that when we’re talking about postpartum depression it only ups the ante. When you have a new baby, life is supposed to be blissful. You’re supposed to be overwhelmed with love, and just spend your days gazing at your new little bundle of joy in wonder. Only, it’s not like that for everyone. And it doesn’t make us bad mothers, it makes us human beings who are suffering from a disease that is categorically not our fault. In my case, my depression was reasonably short-lived. By the time my baby was a couple of months old – and sleeping longer stretches at night – I was through the worst of it. I didn’t suffer in isolation for months, as some women do. My healthcare providers didn’t dismiss me, and no one suggested to me that I was in any way to blame, even if I sometimes felt that way myself. In many ways, I got off easy. All the same, I carry the weight of that time with me every day, and it colours my memory of my first child’s arrival in a profound way. I know that I am hardly alone, and I strongly believe that we need to fight the stigma of mental illness related to pregnancy and childbirth. So I decided to speak with Katherine Stone, Founder and Editor of Postpartum Progress, the most-widely read blog on postpartum depression and reproductive mental illness. I heard Katherine speak at BlogHer, and I knew that she was passionate and committed to creating positive change. That passion came through during our conversation. She’s working hard to help mothers find the help they need, and to break down societal and cultural barriers to accessing that help. I find her inspiring, and I’m so glad that she’s created the resource that she has for mothers. I wish I had known about it myself as a new mom. Listen to what Katherine had to say about postpartum depression and other reproductive mental illnesses: I’m still deciding what I’ll be sharing next week on the podcast, but I can promise you that you’ll want to tune in. Subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute! Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

People send me books for review on a semi-regular basis. I wouldn’t say that I get loads, but I certainly get more than I did before I was a blogger. It’s one of the perks of the gig. I don’t make anywhere near the same money I did when I was an engineer, but I get books. You never really know what you’re going to get with a book, which is why we’re all advised not to judge them by their cover. I like most of the books I receive, but periodically one knocks my socks off. This was the case with Nurturing the Soul of Your Family, written by today’s podcast guest, Renee Trudeau. Renee is a mother, life balance coach and speaker, and her new book has really knocked my socks off. It contains 10 ways to reconnect and find greater peace in family life, and I’ve found lots of food for thought inside its covers. I think that every parent can tell you that family life can be hectic. I’ve found my busy-ness has only increased as my kids have gotten older. Now that they’re eight and four and a half, they have their own lives, with school and extracurricular activities and birthday party invitations. If I’m not careful, I get swept along with them, playing chauffeur and shuttling them from place to place. If you can relate to feeling stretched thin, over-scheduled, or just plain frazzled, you’ll want to listen to today’s podcast. During our conversation, Renee covered ideas like self-care, learning to cut yourself some slack, the overuse of technology, and finding your tribe. These are big concepts, and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed, or as if you don’t have time to consider them. However, she makes a very good case for how taking time to consider how you use your energy can actually free up time, instead of using more of it. If you can use more peace and connection in your life (and really, who couldn’t?), then I encourage you to take the time to listen to my podcast with Renee, and then see if you can get your hands on a copy of her book. I think there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy it as much as I have. I’m still deciding what I’ll be sharing next week on the podcast, but I can promise you that you’ll want to tune in. Subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute! Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

When I was creating the Crafting my Life online class, I knew I wanted to interview someone about living an unconventional lifestyle. I immediately thought of Alison, who also goes by Bluebird Mama. Luckily, she agreed to be interviewed. At the time, she was living in a duplex in a small town on Vancouver Island, after spending years living in a converted bus in East Vancouver. She shared some of her story in a guest post here on Strocel.com. Since recording the podcast her family has moved back into the bus in a rural area, and built an extension for it. The reason I wanted to speak with Alison is that I admire her willingness to step outside the box and do what works for her. By contrast, my own lifestyle is very conventional. I live with my husband and two children in a three bedroom house in the suburbs. I sometimes fantasize about throwing it all in and creating a different sort of life, but the truth is that I’m not likely to do it. In part, this is because I’m actually pretty happy right where I am, all things considered. But in part, this is because I’m a rule-follower par excellence, which means I sometimes let my fear of what other people will think get the better of me. During our conversation, Alison talked about not letting fear run her life. She discussed her history, and how that contributes to her decisions to live ‘a life less ordinary’. And she talked about how she finds support in her decisions. If you’ve ever considered embracing a less conventional life, you’ll want to take the time to listen to the podcast: I’m still working out what I’ll be running next week on the Strocel.com podcast. I have a couple of great interviews in the works, but I’m not ready to make any promises. However, what I can tell you is that it will be worth listening to. Subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute! Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

Every week, at the end of my podcast post, I ask you to share your podcast ideas with me. I know that many of you either know a lot about a topic, or are interested in learning more about something. While I can’t make any promises, I can say that if you suggest something I will seriously consider it and do my best to find someone to interview if it’s a great idea that you can’t speak about yourself. I’m happy to say that I got my first suggestion recently when Jennifer Rowe of Fat and not Afraid suggested that I speak with her about body acceptance. I’m pleased to be sharing our conversation with you in today’s podcast. It seems like you can’t walk three feet these days without hearing about the obesity epidemic. I’ve seen advertisements for boot camp and other fitness classes for children, targeted at improving fitness rather than having fun or learning something. I’ve been accused online of putting my son at risk for a lifetime of obesity for pushing him in the stroller when he was three years old and wasn’t able to walk to my daughter’s school at any kind of reasonable pace. We’re all getting bigger, and we’re afraid of what that means for our health – and our kids’ health. What if, instead of focusing on what’s wrong with our bodies, we believed that we were all beautiful as we were? That’s the question that Jennifer is posing in today’s podcast. Her assertion is that the real health issue isn’t how big or small you are. Rather, the health issues centre around sedentary lifestyle and lack of access to healthy foods. There are socioeconomic factors at play, here, since we know, for instance, that minorities are at greater risk for diseases like diabetes. If it’s cheaper and easier to buy processed foods rather than vegetables, we should address that situation, rather than pointing the finger at people with a higher body mass index. Jennifer and I talked about the negative consequences of fat-shaming and our obsession with body size. As the mother of a daughter, I find these consequences sobering. They include things like eating disorders (on the rise, along with obesity), and very young girls going on diets. I don’t want my daughter spending her time worrying about her weight, and whether or not it’s “acceptable”. I don’t like that she will likely face public scrutiny over her size, when my son most likely will not – at least not in the same way. If you would like to hear an alternative perspective on how to approach the obesity epidemic, or you need ideas for how to instill a positive body image in your kids, I encourage you to listen to this podcast. It will give you some serious food for thought: Next week on the Strocel.com podcast I’ll be sharing an interview with my friend Alison, a.k.a. BluebirdMama. I interviewed her for the Crafting my Life Online Course, talking about tackling our personal dragons. Since our interview, she moved back into a converted school bus with her three children, with an attached building, and has set out to live a more intentional life. If you could use some inspiration when it comes to following your own heart rather than following the crowed, you’ll want to tune in. Subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute! Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

I’m heading to Salt Spring Island here in British Columbia for the weekend. It’s my first time, and so I decided to re-air my interview with the lovely zen mama and Salt Spring resident Tara MacLean. Happy listening! The now-defunct website SweetMama.ca once named me its “Best Teacher of Zen Motherhood”. I should have gotten a screen cap so that I could prove this, but since it’s now gone you’ll have to take my word for it. Since I often feel less-than-zen, I found this both flattering and a little bit surprising. But today on the Strocel.com podcast I’m thrilled to share an interview with one seriously zen mama, Tara MacLean Grand. Tara is most famous as a singer/songwriter. She’s worked as a solo artist and as part of the group “Shaye”. She’s also been part of a Canadian reality TV show. She’s toured internationally, appeared on Conan, and signed with some major record labels. And then she had babies, and she switched gears. In speaking with Tara, I discovered someone who really embraces life, and jumps in to new experiences. In addition to being a singer/songwriter she’s a doula, the prenatal consultant to her husband’s company Moksha Yoga, and an ordained minister. As someone who tends towards being overcautious, I find the way that Tara follows her passions to be inspiring. Former podcast guest Christine Pilkington agrees, which is why Tara MacLean will be a video presenter at the Leading Moms event in Vancouver next week. If you’re in the area, you may want to check it out. During our conversation Tara and I talked about music, motherhood, yoga, suffering, childbirth and the meaning of life. Tara leaps from profound truths to humour, and I think maybe that really is what makes her a model zen mama. She knows what matters, and she also knows not to take it all too seriously. We could all use a little bit more of that, I think. Whether you’re a musician, a mom, or you could just use a little inspiration, I encourage you to listen to the podcast: Next week I’ll be sharing a podcast on body acceptance with Jennifer Rowe, who blogs at Fat and Not Afraid. I’m really looking forward to it. If you’ve ever struggled with your own self-image, you’ll want to tune in. Subscribe to my podcast in iTunes and you won’t miss a minute! Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

When I was creating the Crafting my Life online class, I knew I wanted to interview someone I considered to be a role model. My first choice was Teresa Pitman. She’s not what you would call super-famous, but I think she’s all that and a bag of chips. She’s a writer, the former chair of La Leche League Canada, and a co-author of the latest edition of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding. And I think that when I grow up I’d like to be a whole lot like her. Today, I’m pleased to be sharing a podcast with Teresa. While Teresa has worked extensively to support breastfeeding mothers, that isn’t what our conversation was about. Rather, it’s about what it means to have a role model, and be a role model. We talked about her journey as a writer – her proudest accomplishments, and the people who inspired her (or didn’t). She shared what it was like to work as a freelancer as a single mom of four children. Whether or not you’ve ever been a breastfeeding mother, you can take something away from this podcast. Looking to the people who inspire you can be a very powerful thing as you set out to create a meaningful life for yourself. No matter what path you’re walking, there’s almost certainly someone else who has walked it before you. Often, those people are only too willing to share some of the things they’ve learned along the way. After all, it feels good to help someone else, and it feels good to know that someone looks up to you. I’m glad I took the time to make the connection with Teresa, and I hope you enjoy listening to the podcast as much as I enjoyed recording it. I’m still working out what I’ll be running next week on the Strocel.com podcast. I have a couple of great interviews in the works, but I’m not ready to make any promises. However, what I can tell you is that it will be worth listening to. Subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute! Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

When I first came across the Mothers of Change website, I felt as if I had found my people. Mothers of Change is a grassroots advocacy group, advocating for quality maternity care for Canadian mothers. It recently occurred to me that I had never interviewed them for my podcast, and I decided to remedy that immediately. Luckily, founding board member Melissa Vose agreed to chat with me, and I’m excited to share our conversation in today’s podcast. We hear a lot about the state of birth in the US. Even here in Canada, most of us are far more conversant with what childbirth looks like in American hospitals, thanks to shows like TLC’s A Baby Story. There are far more books, movies, and TV shows portraying, documenting and exploring birth from the American perspective. While birth is birth regardless of the country in which it happens, different medical systems and standards of care definitely impact the experience and course of labour. This is why I was especially pleased to come across Mothers of Change in the first place. It’s also why I was eager to discuss childbirth in Canada on today’s podcast. During the podcast, Melissa and I talked about how the American and Canadian approaches to birth differ. We discussed some of the pressing issues facing birthing women in Canada today. And we talked about what expecting mothers can do to stack the odds in their favour when it comes to having the birth they want. Whether you’re pregnant, you’re a birth junkie like me, or you’re interested in how a grassroots group is working to birth better maternity care, you’ll want to listen to today’s podcast: Next week on the Strocel.com podcast I’ll be sharing an interview with Teresa Pitman. She’s the former chair of La Leche League Canada, and a co-author of the latest edition of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding. She’s also been widely published in other books, magazines and so on. I consider her something of a role model, and I interviewed her for the Crafting my Life Online Course. Whether you’re interested in breastfeeding, or you’d just like a little bit of inspiration as we talk about role models, you’ll want to tune in. Subscribe to the Strocel.com podcast in iTunes, and you won’t miss a minute! Also, if you have a podcast idea, please share it with me. I’d love to hear your suggestions!