Jan 23, 2013

Slingmeet Meeting


Dear Mothers

Do you have a baby that loves being held and doesn’t like to be on the pram, cot, car seat, etc? Would you like to get some work done in the house while responding to your child needs? Do you find difficult to attend your older children while looking after your little one?
Many mothers find the use of a sling/baby carrier the perfect solution. But, have you ever wanted to use one and didn’t know how? How about a place where you can try different types before buying your own?

Would you like to learn how to make your own?

Slingmeet is a group for parents, or parent’s-to-be, to learn and share about their experience in baby slings or baby carriers.

GROUP INFORMATION

NAME: Slingmeet Tokyo

WHEN: Friday, 25th January, from 10 to 12.

WHERE: Roppongi area. If you wish to attend, please contact me at lirubianes@hotmail.com and I will send the full address.

Jan 11, 2013

Breastfeeding Workshop


Breastfeeding workshop

Iona Macnab, BA(Hons) LLB IBCLC is a Lactation Consultant, LLL Leader and former lawyer, who lived in Tokyo for 22 years before moving to Australia in 2010 for her kids’ schooling. She is well-known in the Tokyo parenting community for her skype lactation consultations  with mothers, which attracted the attention of the International Lactation Consultants Association (ILCA), who highlighted her work in a recent issue of the Journal of Human lactation. http://jhl.sagepub.com/content/28/4/446.extract  She will be presenting on her remote consulting work at the upcoming ILCA conference in 2013.

Iona will be back in Tokyo during January and will be offering her breastfeeding workshop for couples on Sunday January 20th. This workshop is usually for a group of 3 or more couples and hosted in a home. The workshop covers  everything you need to get breastfeeding off to a great start – the evidence shows that women are more likely to succeed at breastfeeding when they prepare for breastfeeding during pregnancy by taking classes, going to LLL, talking with other mothers who have successfully breastfed, reading up-to-date breastfeeding books etc. Details of the workshop are available on Iona’s website http://www.blueskytokyo.com/lactation.html  Please email Iona blue.sky@gol.com  by January 15th if you are interested in hosting and/or attending this workshop.


Iona will also be available for in-person lactation consultations in the week of January 21-28, and as always she is available most days on skype, whether she is in Tokyo or anywhere else. Iona also hosts the mother and baby playgroup Little Angels in her home. This group is usually run by volunteer mothers, and is a lovely relaxed place to meet other mothers with little babies. The group has been running for over 10 years. Iona will be running the group herself on January 18th if mothers and babies would like to come along and meet up.  To receive a map and details please email Iona.

Jan 9, 2013

Maternity and Newborn Photographer in Tokyo

Anatole Papafilippou is a Tokyo based photographer. He specializes in Maternity/Newborn/Couples/Family. Anatole is offering specials for TPG members. Please contact him for quotes.

Anatole Papafilippou
090.2912.1745
Anatole@tokyophotostudio.com
http://www.tokyophotostudio.com

What better way to capture the memories of your pregnancy and fabulous bump then with a maternity photoshoot. TPG coordinator, Chanyn Kirtman, shared her maternity photos with TPG, which were shot by Anatole. For more details and images about her shoot check out her blog HERE.










Jan 6, 2013

Le Leche League Meeting


La Leche League of Tokyo Central

La Leche League is an international, nonprofit, nonsectarian organization dedicated to providing
education, information, support, and encouragement to women who want to breastfeed. All
breastfeeding mothers and pregnant women interested in breastfeeding are welcome to come
to our free meetings or call our Leaders for breastfeeding help.

LLL Tokyo Central offers support and information through:
• Mother-to-Mother support
• Monthly meetings
• Telephone and e-mail help from accredited Leaders
• An extensive lending library with books in English on breastfeeding, nutrition,
childbirth, fertility, parenting, discipline, and other related topics.
• Sales of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding and other books.

Meeting Details

Date:
Friday 11th January, 2013.
Time:
10:00am – 12:00 am
Location:
Franciscan Chapel Center
Address:
4-2-37 Roppongi, Minato-Ku, Tokyo 106-0032
Babies and toddlers are always welcome. We meet in a very spacious hall and toys are available.

Meeting details can be also found on our facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/LLLTokyoCentral

For information about the other English speaking groups, please check:
http://www.llli.org/japan.html

Group Leader Tokyo Central

Loreto Tel: 080-2187-6323
e-mail: loreto@llljapan.org

Jan 2, 2013

New TPG Coordinators Needed ASAP

Happy 2013 Ladies!

 We hope you enjoyed your holiday season and are all feeling great. 

As the current TPG coordinators we  have found the position rewarding and have a gained a number of resources, networks and friends. Being pregnant in Japan as a foreigner can be quite intimidating, but with the Tokyo Pregnancy Group we were able to feel as if we were in our home countries and find support in many women who were going through the same thing. We have asked for new coordinators through several newsletters as well as many additional emails to the group and now we are posting to the blog in hopes someone will keep this amazing group going. Recently Payal's little angel has made an early arrival. She was blessed with a little boy and will be sharing her birth story shortly. She is now in full-time mommy mode and will no longer be coordinating the TPG. I am due in a couple short weeks as well and will no longer be able to coordinate once my baby arrives. We are asking again for new coordinators to step up and keep the legacy of the TPG going. If we do not hear from anyone, the group will no longer exist and the meetings for next year will all be canceled.

We have meetings scheduled until the end of April with informational speakers such as birthing coaches, breastfeeding consultants, Health care professionals, nutritionists and even maternity yoga teachers. I personally have gained so much insight and information from these speakers. The newsletters will also be discontinued, which are a great resource to find items for sale or free, classes provided by birthing coaches or doulas and other pregnancy resources throughout Tokyo.

The meetings are already arranged and most of the duties as a coordinator are complete and we are just looking for someone to pass the group down to. Maybe a few of you can rally together to disperse the minimal duties, such as managing the email account, accepting new members on Facebook and writing the newsletters.

We are asking for coordinators one last time. Unfortunately, if we do not hear from anyone the group will be discontinued.

We look forward to hearing from someone to keep the TPG alive!

Please contact TokyoPregnancyGroup@gmail.com, if you or anyone you know is interested in becoming the new  TPG coordinator.

Kindest Regards,

Chanyn and Payal

Nov 25, 2012

CEC Childbirth Classes



Childbirth Education Center (CEC) has been devoted to preparing women and their partners for the journey through pregnancy, birth, and early parenthood since 1997. Over 1600 couples hailing from 75 countries have enjoyed and been inspired by our interactive and dynamic teaching style which revolves around three basic tenets: family-centered care, freedom of choice, and empowerment of women. CEC's bilingual capability allows us an extensive network of maternity care providers in both Japan and abroad in order to bring you as much unbiased information as possible upon which to make your own informed decisions. Our classes put YOU at the center. 

Upcoming classes (all classes and consultations are held via Skype;           2013 "live in Tokyo" classes TBA at a later date): 

Birthing Your Baby: 
covers Japan-specific practices and options, anatomy and physiology of birth, relaxation and comfort techniques, choices regarding medical interventions, breastfeeding and the post-partum period, and more. 
         Next class:
                         Nov. 26th (Session 1 of 3), 9:00am-12:00pm
                         Nov. 30th (Session 2 of 3) 9:00am-12:00pm
                         Dec. 3rd (Session 3 of 3) 9:00am-12:00pm
                         ¥30,000
Baby Basics: offers practical baby-care tips and self-care skills for making the transition to parenthood a smooth one. 
             Next class:
                          Dec. 1st, 9:00am-12:00pm
                          ¥15,000
Choosing a Caregiver: private consultations that provide a clear and precise overview of Japanese maternity care, help you discover your true desires for birth, and guide you to specific caregivers that meet your needs in Japan.  Sessions are 1 - 2 hours long.   ¥10,000

Please contact CEC directly at 
birthinjapan@gmail.com to register. 

For those members on Facebook, the fastest and easiest way to keep up with our events, classes, last minute updates and the ever-changing landscape of Japanese maternity care is by liking our page: 

Nov 21, 2012

Slingmeet Meeting


Dear Mothers

Do you have a baby that loves being held and doesn’t like to be on the pram, cot, car seat,
etc? Would you like to get some work done in the house while responding to your child
needs? Do you find difficult to attend your older children while looking after your little one?

Many mothers find the use of a sling/baby carrier the perfect solution. But, have you ever
wanted to use one and didn’t know how? How about a place where you can try different
types before buying your own?

Would you like to learn how to make your own?

Slingmeet is a group for parents, or parent’s-to-be, to learn and share about their experience
in baby slings or baby carriers.

GROUP INFORMATION

NAME: Slingmeet Tokyo

WHEN: Thursday, 22nd November, from 10 to 12.

WHERE: If you wish to attend, please contact me at lirubianes@hotmail.com and I will send
the full address.

Nov 5, 2012

Next Le Leche League Meeting


La Leche League of Tokyo Central

La Leche League is an international, nonprofit, nonsectarian organization dedicated to providing
education, information, support, and encouragement to women who want to breastfeed. All
breastfeeding mothers and pregnant women interested in breastfeeding are welcome to come
to our free meetings or call our Leaders for breastfeeding help.

LLL Tokyo Central offers support and information through:
• Mother-to-Mother support
• Monthly meetings
• Telephone and e-mail help from accredited Leaders
• An extensive lending library with books in English on breastfeeding, nutrition,
childbirth, fertility, parenting, discipline, and other related topics.
• Sales of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding and other books.

Meeting Details

Date:
Friday 9th November, 2012.
Time:
10:00am – 12:00 am
Location:
Franciscan Chapel Center
Address:
4-2-37 Roppongi, Minato-Ku, Tokyo 106-0032
Babies and toddlers are always welcome. We meet in a very spacious hall and toys are available.

Meeting details can be also found on our facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/LLLTokyoCentral

For information about the other English speaking groups, please check:
http://www.llli.org/japan.html

Group Leader Tokyo Central

Loreto Tel: 080-2187-6323
e-mail: loreto@llljapan.org

Nov 4, 2012

Akachan Honpo Guided Tour

Kate and Tomoko from TokyoUrbanBaby, have organized a guided tour to Akachan Honpo on November 7th. RSVP asap if you want to join the tour and find great products here in Japan.

Here is a message from Kate:

"Tomoko and I were invited to speak at the Tokyo Pregnancy Group (TPG) meeting yesterday! We had a great time meeting all the expecting mums and talking about our birth experience and ideas for getting out and about in Tokyo after baby is born.
There was particularly a lot of interest about baby products and what to buy for birth and after baby is born. One of the biggest challenges with having a baby in Japan is that all the products are in Japanese! On top of that, most of the brands are different from overseas, so it can be quite overwhelming when you’re trying to prepare for the birth of your baby.
In order to help these mums and mums-to-be, we decided to do a Guided Tour to the Akachan Honpo store in Tokyo on 7th November to explain about all the products! For details see invitation below!"



Please RSVP to Kate if you would like to join! What a great opportunity to familiarize yourself with products and packaging that are not in our native language.

Interview from TokyoUrbanBaby


At the last TPG meeting, Kate and Tomoko from TokyoUrbanBaby.com, came to speak about their birthing experiences in Japan and baby products available here in Tokyo.





Kate interviewed two TPG members about their experiences being pregnant in Japan. Check out the interviews HERE!