Flower Moon Families

03/13/2026

This is our big annual event! Help us raise money to continue community based birth/postpartum/lactation support and have a great time while we do it!! 💗💗💗 See you there and spread the word!

Let's gather for an evening of community care and connection ⭐💕

April 23rd is Labor of Love, our annual community celebration & fundraiser.

Haven't registered yet? Let us sweeten the deal. Register by March 20th and you'll be entered in a raffle for a $100 Mioposto gift card.

Join us in this celebration of community and invest in reproductive justice on Thursday, April 23, 2026, at S**o Park in Seattle from 5PM - 9 PM. Childcare and valet parking will be available.

Here’s what to expect:

🍹5:00PM - 6:45PM – Social time with food, drinks, and a chance to connect with Open Arms' work at activation stations
🎤6:45PM - 7:30PM – Keynote speaker -Elizabeth Montez, IBCLC
🪩7:30PM - 9:00PM - Celebration and dance party!

We hope you’ll join us for this night of joy and connection! 🔗 Register at link in bio 💖

02/19/2026

Apologies for the *very late* notice - but we have a few spots open for a very rad workshop at Open Arms Perinatal Services with an incredible educator, Bryna Hayden IBCLC, for BIPOC lactation professionals - IBCLCs or advanced level lactation providers who are managing clinical care and mammary health. Reach out to me ASAP for confirmation and details! No cost, breakfast and lunch included.

02/14/2026

So excited to be on this panel! And great news, you can attend this conference in person or virtually 🎉🎉🎉 Talking about community milk sharing is one of my favorite soap boxes 🧼🫧 🎁🤣

02/06/2026

Hey Seattle Fam, Influenza A has hit my house and I am unable to lead the Holding the Sacred in the Clinical workshop or the Community Lactation Specialist 201 cohort next week. I've rescheduled my trip for the week of February 23rd. The upside of this is that there is still time to register for one or both of these offerings! I'll make a seperate post...but I have been in a season of grief since the holidays, and having a hard time doing the things I need to do, but I am getting back on top of my life and my work. . Lots of beautiful things coming. For now - Seattle, come on through!

Holding the Sacred in the Clinical is open to all IBCLCs and lactation providers - OBs, pediatricians, midwives, particularly non-BIPOC folks who want to be accomplices in creating a world that welcomes future generations into this life in a good way. We will be exploring specific clinical strategies from a decolonial lens and focusing on ways to integrate these approaches into practice. This workshop is sliding scale and approved for L-Cerps!

Tuesday - Friday we will have a Community Lactation Specialist 201 Cohort! This is a no cost opportunity for BIPOC folks with foundational lactation education. We'll be building on the basics to build skills for folks getting ready to step into a clinical lactation role. Also....there will be a special guest!! More details soon!

Holding the Sacred in the Clinical: originally scheduled for Monday, 02/09
⭐Rescheduled for Monday, the 23rd of February⭐

Thank you all for your understanding, flexibility, and grace.💗

01/27/2026

I'm really looking forward to this and am hoping to get more folks join us 💗 in a time where families and babies are being attacked and harmed by state violence, we MUST look at how systemic forces continue to perpetuate harm, as well as what are factors of resilience and connection that create protection and change the trajectory of future generations.

It is no coincidence that we live in a country founded on removing people from their Mother land, removing children from their Mothering/Birthing body, stripping them off culture and then using that land and those bodies in exploitative ways, and then developed a health system that does the same. It creates a pipeline of violence as a norm. We will be exploring lactation as a radical act of rematriation and reparation. While I pour most my time and energy into teaching clinical skills in Indigenous framework to BIPOC folks, this workshop welcome and invites non-BIPOC accomplices specifically who are looking for ways to be more effective in using their lactation practice intentionally as a tool against oppression. Plus, we're approved for L-CERPs and you can support the awesome work we're doing at Open Arms!

Please spread the word, registration closes soon!

01/23/2026

Hey Seattle fam! Open Arms Perinatal Services is hosting a sliding scale lecture and workshop with L-CERPs!! And I'm (obviously) super biased, but I think it's gonna be super rad.

We'll get 3 juicy hours together in Seattle in a blend of lecture and workshop! We'll explore hot topics in lactation and how Indigenous practices support best clinical practices, ways to support lactation in a decolonizing way in direct service as well as within systems, and overall take our practice to a richer place, in which we are all in good relation with each other, and raising next generations that way too

And if you're intrigued but not ready to commit just yet, hop on zoom with me tomorrow to chat 💗

12/10/2025

This is CRITICAL!!! These machines market convenience, but they're notoriously unreliable and safe preparation of formula is crucial for baby's acute and long term health. I've seen mold growing in these things, incorrect volumes dispensed, and even when everything goes right... They don't heat the formula powder to a temperature that mitigates bacterial contamination. They are not worth the risk! If you're using formula powder, mixing up to 24 hours worth (using 160°F water) in a pitcher, storing in the fridge, and pouring each bottle as needed is a much better and safe option. Incorrect ratio of water to formula powder can lead to poor weight gain, water intoxication, kidney damage, and more. Please don't risk it.

11/10/2025

🌽Mandaamin (corn) and fellow odawakwe Mary Donner of have taught me so much about , and ceremony this week.
🌽Corn is one of our sacred foods, and it never ceases to humble me. This week, corn reminded me that food sovereignty doesn't mean "being responsible for everything on your own". In fact, quite the opposite. Food sovereignty is about building trust and relationships we can rely on. Foodways built on extraction and commodification will ALWAYS fail us, because they prioritize profit at the expense of humanity and relationship.
🫱🏽‍🫲🏾Even the role of corn as a sacred Anishinaabe food teaches us about humility and connection. It was originally cultivated and stewarded to a form of edible plant relative by our southern relatives in Mesoamerica and brought to us up north through trade relationships.
👶🏽 🌽Each kernel is a single o***y, every strand of silk, an umbilical cord, every ear of corn an abundant lifebringer
🫂 Mandaamin teaches us so much about relationships. The eldest sister in the field, she's the backbone of the garden, providing strength and structure for beans and squash to flourish, but also is nurtured and nourished by them. She gives and receives in reciprocity, not extractive but also not as a martyr.
💪🏽 This beautiful heritage flint corn is a labor of love. Alone, tending to corn would be too much - a burdensome chore. But bringing together our families, it became a joyful ceremony and relationship building between us, our children, the land, the corn, and generations past and yet to come.
🌽 Humility in the presence of this relative brought more richness to my life, and now I can share that. I spent much of my life feeling shame that I didn't grow up traditionally Anishinaabe. Building relationship with my community, my plant and animal and land relatives has taught me that's not my shame to carry. So now I get to delight in learning and sharing. This corn belongs to our community, and Mary and I are committed to sharing the bounty of corn as well as mandaamin's stories, her wisdom, and methods of stewardship. Stay tuned for and corn distribution

11/10/2025

🍼 This is super duper important, formula MUST be mixed in the ratio on the can, and most are 2 oz water to 1 scoop but not all. Infants should never be put on a "diet" or have their bottles watered down. They also shouldn't have their formula concentration increased without close physician supervision. Infant kidneys need a very specific balance of electrolytes and improper formula concentrations or homemade formulas can have traffic consequences. Please also note that the Keurig style formula machines are NOT reliable in using the correct ratios and I have absolutely seen babies with health or growth challenges due to these machines.

🍼 Additionally, what's not talked about on the can is that making formula with water that is 160°F/70°C is the ONLY practice that can reduce the bacteria load of cronobacter contamination, which is an inherent risk of powdered formula. You can make enough formula for 24 hours usage and store in a pitcher in the fridge rather than making each bottle one at a time. This step is most important for babies under 2 months old or immune compromised. If ready-to-feed or concentrated (liquid options) are financially feasible, these types of formula are not at risk of cronobacter (it happens in the dehydration part of the manufacturing process) so are a good option for folks who don't want to do the hot water mixing and cooling.

🍼 Formula bottles must be disposed of withing one hour of mixing with baby's saliva (from when they put the bottle in their mouth), or they can experience food borne illness from bacterial growth.

🍼 Formula is a very useful and important tool, but it's so important to use it properly and mix it correctly, or it can be dangerous and I don't think we talk about that enough.

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1BWS7D8ARP/

11/10/2025

If you know me, you know I LOVE supporting community milk sharing! And I love this informative post about peer to peer milk sharing by my pals over at Skilled Lactation Solutions, LLC . I've been ruminating a lot on food sovereignty this week, especially in regards to lactation and parenting - so perfect timing for this convo!

11/09/2025

IMPORTANT RECALL INFORMATION!!! Check your lot numbers if you're using ByHeart Infant formula.

From the article:
Federal and state health officials are investigating 13 cases in 10 states of infant botulism linked to baby formula that was being recalled, authorities said Saturday.

ByHeart Inc. agreed to begin recalling two lots of the company’s Whole Nutrition Infant Formula, the Food and Drug Administration said in a statement.

All 13 infants were hospitalized after consuming formula from two lots: 206VABP/251261P2 and 206VABP/251131P2.

The cases occurred in Arizona, California, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas and Washington.

https://apnews.com/article/infant-botulism-formula-byheart-recall-fda-cdc-91019e385a98a2fceb26a12005ea3fbb