Luna Midwifery

04/17/2026

Save the Date! Virginia Midwives Alliance. Annual meeting. 6/27/26. 10-6. Richmond. Business meeting, CEUs, peer review. More details to follow.

04/11/2026

Affirmations.

Say “I am highly favored and deeply loved.” To yourself 5 times in a row! Even if you don’t believe it. That’s the beauty of affirmations, the more we say them, the more we believe them to be true. Because what we say matters. What we think matters. Saying and believing positively about ourselves has positive impacts on our lives. And even if you don’t believe it in this moment, you really and truly are highly favored and deeply loved.

04/11/2026

Book Review: Motherwit , An Alabama Midwife’s Story. Onnie Lee Logan as told to Katherin Clark

This is Onnie Lee Logan’s autobiography. She was a Black homebirth midwife in Alabama for 53 years. She was licensed by the Alabama Board of Health. In 1984, the BoH stopped issuing midwife licenses, without any explanation. This was all part of the plan in the USA at that time to eradicate midwifery. Onnie was a wonderful midwife, loved practicing, and her patients had great outcomes. She argued that she was a good midwife, had had no problems, and wanted to continue her work. She tried to get the BoH to reinstate her license, but they never even responded to her requests. So, she decided to write her autobiography, in her own words: “So I’m lettin out one a my secrets. I don’t want to bury em. There’s so much that I don’t want to die with. Not sharin it with somebody. That’s what give me the idea to do a book because I have so much experience in here that I want to explode. I was not taught to do that. God give that to me.” page 142.

Onnie orally told her story to Katherine Clark, An English professor at the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa. Katherine Clark wrote down Onnie’s words, preserving her life’s story and work.

Onnie had a HUGE faith in God. This is what I love the most about her story. She mostly credits God with training her, and with keeping her and all of the families she helped safe.

Onnie practiced midwifery from 1931-1984.

Onnie’s paternal grandmother and mother were also midwives. Her grandmother died when she was a young child. Her mother died when she was 18, before she became a midwife. Both of these women inspired Onnie to be a midwife.

Onnie recalls many stories about her grandmother and mother’s midwife practices. They used to give women castor oil in labor to “work their bowels off real good and bring the contractions close together.” page 53.

Onnie’s brother in law was also a licensed midwife.

Onnie and her ancestors worked for both black and white families. Most midwives during the time she practiced were black. Page 59.

Continued in the comments.

04/08/2026

Thank you, Evidenced Based Birth, for addressing this concerning topic! At Luna Midwifery, we are very concerned about the use of AI causing misinformation to negatively affect our health, and also about AI’s negative environmental effects. We do not use AI for research or to write content for our clients.

EBB 394 – Team EBB’s Stance on AI in our Workplace by Rebecca Dekker | Apr 8, 2026 | Podcast Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe to our podcast and leave a review! iTunes | Spotify | YouTube Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how people search for information, including how families lear...

04/07/2026

Client Testimonial spotlighting a Midwifery Student as the lead midwife during her care.

“I’m incredibly grateful for the safety and care I’ve experienced through midwifery, and it’s such a gift to be planning my third home birth with the same kind of support. One thing that has been a fun blessing is having a student midwife take the lead in, now, all three of my births with Luna Midwifery. There’s a beautiful fluidity in how the midwives work together—each one bringing deep knowledge, attentiveness, and calm presence into the room. Because of that, I have never once felt concerned or uneasy about a student leading my care; instead, I’ve felt surrounded by a team whose combined experience and collaboration create such a strong, safe environment. Danielle has done such an amazing job of not only offering knowledge and skill but genuine care and has clearly flourished under Degra’s teaching. Im so thankful for their hand in helping bring my sweet babies into the world. They have both been a gift to me.”

Thank you, Jess, for sharing these beautiful words with us, and for trusting us to walk alongside you during some of your most vulnerable and precious life moments. We are so honored and blessed to be welcomed into your birth space and home.

04/06/2026

Happy Easter from Luna Midwifery! Blessings to your family!

04/03/2026

The Midwives of the Roanoke Birth and Perinatal Center (Luna Midwifery & Breath of Life Midwifery) invite you to our Picnic Potluck.

Saturday, May 23, 2026
11-1
Fishburn Park
2304 Brambleton Ave. Roanoke, VA
Lower Picnic Shelter

🧺This event is for all members of the birth and midwifery community.

🧺 We welcome any families who have received midwifery care in any setting and area birth workers (midwives, doulas, lactation consultants, etc.)

🧺 We also welcome families and individuals interested in midwifery care and homebirth or birth center birth.

🧺 This is a potluck lunch.

🧺 We will provide drinks.

🧺 Please bring your own plates, cups, napkins, and utensils, in order to reduce our carbon footprint.

🧺 We will have limited disposable plates and utensils for people who don’t bring their own.

🧺 If you have questions, please contact the midwives: Degra, Elissa, Crystal, and Amanda.

🧺 Please share this with any interested members of our local birth and midwifery communities.

We can’t wait to see you there!
Love,
The Roanoke Birth and Perinatal Center
Luna Midwifery
Breath of Life Midwifery

04/02/2026

The Midwives of the Roanoke Birth and Perinatal Center (Luna Midwifery and Breath of Life Midwifery) invite you to our Picnic Potluck on
Saturday, May 23, from 11-1 at Fishburn Park 2304 Brambleton Ave. Roanoke, VA. Lower Picnic Shelter

This event is for all members of the birth and midwifery community.

We welcome any families who have received midwifery care in any setting and area birth workers (midwives, doulas, lactation consultants, etc.)

We also welcome families and individuals interested in midwifery care and homebirth or birth center birth.

This is a potluck lunch.
We will provide drinks.
Please bring your own plates, cups, napkins, and utensils, in order to reduce our carbon footprint.
We will have limited disposable plates and utensils for people who don’t bring their own.

If you have questions, please contact the midwives: Degra, Elissa, Crystal, and Amanda.

Please share this with any interested members of our local birth and midwifery communities.

03/20/2026

Skills Practice: Breech Birth

Today the Luna Midwifery team met for our monthly staff meeting. We reviewed vaginal breech birth. We reviewed psychological vaginal breech birth (VBB) and manoevers that we use when an intervention is needed. We did hands on practice using Elissa’s baby doll and a cardboard pelvis that Degra and Rachel created!

Several members of our team have taken the Breech Without Borders training 1-2 times in the last several years. This training has really improved our understanding of VBB and given us valuable tools to resolve issues when babies need help to be safely born. Several members of our team have also attended VBBs in the last several years. We are so grateful for the learning opportunities and the experiences we have had.

We continue to be rooted in gratitude to the families we serve in our community. Thank you for trusting us and for inviting us into your lives and sacred spaces.

📷 Elissa Orr and Danielle Raykes

Astoria is reading material from Breech Without Borders.

03/09/2026

As midwives, we do a lot of nutritional counseling. We have found that many people do not have cooking skills, and feel intimidated about cooking. Many pregnant mamas do not meet daily recommendations for protein intake either.

So here’s a recipe for you!

This quiche is easy to make, hard to “mess up,” and each serving has 16 grams of protein.

You can make this!

You can make it for any meal! You can eat it for a snack. You can freeze it in individual portions and save it for postpartum meals. You can add any veggie or meat you like.

Everyone loves this. It’s tasty, it’s firm, it’s good hot or cold, and it’s pretty!

Degra’s Quiche Recipe
In a large bowl, mix the following ingredients. (This is the basic quiche recipe.)
10 eggs
24 ounces cottage cheese, (I use large curd whole fat)
2 1/2 cups milk (I use whole cow’s milk. I’m not sure how it would be with any plant-based milk, try that your own risk.)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 cup shredded cheese, any kind you like (I use a blend of cheddar and mozzarella)

Add any veggies you would like. I typically add:
2 medium tomatoes, diced
3 stalks fresh Kale, stalks and leaves, cut into small pieces
1 c chopped mushrooms

The raw batter should be chunky and only slightly liquidy. See pictures for reference.

Pour into a 9x13 inch Pyrex dish.

Bake 1 hour 20 minutes.

How do you know when it’s done cooking? The top should have golden brown parts and when shakes, it should only slightly juggle. You can also poke the center with a knife, and if the knife comes out clean, then it’s done.

There are endless variations and combinations of this quiche. You always start out with the Basic Quiche Recipe, and then you can vary the veggies and meats.

Here are some other ideas:
You can also add any of the following veggies:
Scallions, chopped
Any leafy green (spinach, collards, turnip greens)
Potatoes, cooked ahead of time and chopped
Garlic, chopped
Scallions, chopped

You can add meat:
Bacon, cooked and chopped
Sausage, cooked and sliced

03/07/2026

03/02/2026

Birth Affirmation!

I am soft.
I am relaxed.
I am opening.

🌖 I am soft. I meet each wave of my labor with a steady breath and a soft body. I am not tense. I am not bracing against my body’s power. I allow the strength within me to soften my cervix. I welcome each wave and let it wash over me. I know it will pass. I know labor is a temporary time, that will bring forth my baby.

🌖 I am relaxed. My whole body is relaxed. I breathe deep peace into every corner of my body. My brow is relaxed. My jaw is relaxed. My shoulders are relaxed. My hips are relaxed. My feet are firmly planted on the floor, grounded, holding my relaxed body.

🌖 I am opening. My baby is passing easily through my pelvis. My cervix is opening with each wave. My softness and relaxation and trust in my body’s inherent wisdom all work together to bring my baby forth. My body is opening. My baby is coming. I am safe. I am supported. I am held.

Read affirmations often in pregnancy. Speak them aloud. Sing them! Share them with your birth support team, so that in the hard parts of labor, they can speak these affirmations over you. Your village can remind you of these affirmations when you are working so hard, that you forget that all is well.

You can do hard things. And it’s a lot easier to do hard things when you’re prepared. And when your village is also prepared!

Blessings upon blessings on you and your family!

📷 Degra took this photo of 🌖la luna 1 March 2026. Roanoke, VA.