WE'VE MOVED!

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We no longer use this blog. Please visit us at our Facebook page for current events and updates!
We look forward to hearing from you!
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Find Your Tribe!

Welcome to the Northern Virginia chapter of the Holistic Moms Network. Our purpose is to generate national awareness, education, and support for holistic parenting and to provide a nurturing, open-minded, and respectful community for parents to share these ideals. There is no checklist or litmus test of "holistic enough." HMN welcomes anyone who is interested in holistic health, natural parenting and/or green living. Please take a moment to browse the posts and learn a little more about us. As always, feel free to contact co-leaders, Alexa & Laurie, at HMNofNOVA@gmail.com with any questions or for more information.
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Find out more (click each link):
*Chapter Website
*National Website
Find us on Facebook too!
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Click here to join online and become a member.
*Scholarships are available to those in financial need.*
Click here for more information on the Helping Moms in Need program.
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We are a welcoming community!
We welcome all people, both parents and non-parents, of all races, national origins, colors, creeds, religions, sexes, ages, abilities/disabilities, sexual orientations, and gender identities. We are a warm and inclusive group, and welcome you to join us wherever you are on the holistic path in an environment that does not judge. Come as you are!
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Wednesday, December 29, 2010

January 2011 Meeting - HERBAL PHARMACY!

Please join the NOVA chapter of the Holistic Moms Network for our January Meeting – January 4, 2011 from 6:30-8:30pm

Our topic is the "Herbal Pharmacy" You will learn:
- preventative strategies to keep your family well through cold and flu season
- what foods, herbs & home remedies to reach for in cases of: respiratory flu, stomach flu, colds/congestion/sinus issues
- guidelines on how to create a holistic, natural medicine cabinet for your family

Our guest speaker is Laura Davimes. She is an Herbalist, Writer and Wellness Center Educator. She has spent 22 years exploring nutrition, herbs & farming and has been practicing herbalism professionally since 1997. She has taught many classes in the Richmond and Charlottesville areas and has had several articles published in health magazines. Her website is http://www.herbanavenues.com

We hold our monthly meetings at the Fairfax Church of Christ* 3901 Rugby Road Fairfax, Virginia 22033
*Holistic Moms is not affiliated with any church/religious group. We gratefully acknowledge FXCC's donation of meeting space to our group.
Directions: http://www.fxcc.org/index.php/Parking/where-we-are.html
PARKING: Please follow the signs into the church parking lot and around the back of the building to the "member parking." (NOT in the front labeled "visitor parking.") You can only enter the building at the door that has a sign that says Office/Stepping Stones. We meet upstairs in the large meeting room. Please follow the HMN signs to the room via elevator or stairs.

Monthly meetings are open to members and first time visitors. If you have visited us previously and these topics are appealing to you, please consider becoming a member! Your membership dues help pay for the events we hold. Our member only events include journal club, playgroups, outings, and preschool coop. We have recently added a knitting group and sewing group, and are starting an "Exploring Nourishing Traditions" group in January. We are always open to your new ideas and events!

We hope to see you soon, and wish you all the best in the New Year.
Laurie and Alexa

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Consuming Kids screening December 3rd

We are excited to announce that we will be screening _Consuming Kids_ again! We are partnering with Accotink Unitarian Universalist Church for this event. They have a big screen projection system, so it will be much easier to see and hear. We'd love to have you join us if you are available. Details below.
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The Northern Virginia Chapter of Holistic Moms Network and Accotink Unitarian Universalist Church's Friday night film series Present:

Consuming Kids: The Commercialization of Childhood

Friday, December 3rd
FREE admission!
Doors open at 7 pm, film begins at 7:30 pm. A discussion follows the film.

Bring your dinner and your whole family, if you like.
Films shown on big screen with surround sound!

ACCOTINK UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CHURCH
10215 Lakehaven Court, Burke, Virginia 22015
703-503-4579
www.accotinkuuc.org

This is a non-religious service open to the public

Consuming Kids throws desperately needed light on the practices of a relentless multi-billion dollar marketing machine that now sells kids and their parents everything from junk food and violent video games to bogus educational products and the family car. Drawing on the insights of health care professionals, children's advocates, and industry insiders, the film focuses on the explosive growth of child marketing in the wake of deregulation, showing how youth marketers have used the latest advances in psychology, anthropology, and neuroscience to transform American children into one of the most powerful and profitable consumer demographics in the world. Consuming Kids pushes back against the wholesale commercialization of childhood, raising urgent questions about the ethics of children's marketing and its impact on the health and well-being of kids.
Running time: 67 minutes.
For more information: http://www.mediaed.org

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Non-Toxic Beauty! Come Learn With Us!

Come join the northern VA chapter of the Holistic Moms Network for "Non-Toxic Beauty" on Tuesday, November 2, from 6:30-8:30pm. We’ll welcome guest speaker Julie Smallfelt of the Comfort and Joy Wellness Spa in Fairfax Virginia. She will discuss selecting personal care products with effectiveness and healthy ingredients in mind. If you are confused, concerned, or curious about the product labels, ingredients, and chemicals in your makeup, hair products, and lotions this is for you! This discussion will focus on the most common personal care product ingredients and some substitutes that can be used that do not contain potentially negative ingredients. Bring two of your favorite products to compare ingredients.

Whether you are able to attend or not, here are some great resources from Julie:
- Not Just a Pretty Face, The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry, by Stacy Malkan (see www.notjustaprettyface.org has more information about the ingredients in personal care products as well

Children and other family members are welcome.

We meet at the Fairfax Church of Christ* 3901 Rugby Road Fairfax, Virginia 22033
*Holistic Moms is not affiliated with any church/religious group. We gratefully acknowledge FXCC's donation of meeting space to our group.
Directions: http://www.fxcc.org/index.php/Parking/where-we-are.htmlPARKING: Please follow the signs into the church parking lot and around the back of the building to the "member parking." (NOT in the front labeled "visitor parking.") You can only enter the building at the door that has a sign that says Office/Stepping Stones. We meet upstairs in the large meeting room. Please follow the HMN signs to the room via elevator or stairs.

Monthly meetings are open to members and first time visitors. If you have visited us previously and this topic is appealing to you, please consider becoming a member! Your membership dues help pay for the events we hold. Our member only events include journal club, playgroups, outings, and preschool coop. We have recently added a knitting group and sewing group, and are always open to new ideas and events!

We hope to see you there!
Alexa Hutchins & Laurie Cunningham
Northern Virginia Chapter Co-Leaders, Holistic Moms Network

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Come and Get 'Em!! Fair Trade, Gluten Free, Vegan, Organic Dark Chocolates!

There are so many small steps we can each take to "Green" our Halloween. Give something to your trick-or-treaters that shows you care about what kids eat and our planet - buy some delicious, organic, fair-trade dark chocolates!

HMN of NOVA is selling Dark Chocolate "Minis" from Equal Exchange, a company who:
*empowers farmers and consumers
*supports small farmer co-ops
*uses sustainable farming methods
*provides high-quality organics
For more information on Equal Exchange, visit http://www.equalexchange.coop/

Join us in creating stronger local communities, a more just food system and a healthier planet by making responsible food purchases.

We have bags of 25 individually wrapped organic, fair trade, gluten-free, vegan, mini dark chocolate bars (.16 oz each). Buy more and save:
1 bag for $7
2 bags for $12
4 bags for $20
Cash or check payment due at the time of delivery. Proceeds will support the Northern Virginia chapter of the Holistic Moms Network.

Chocolates will be available at the October 5th meeting at Fairfax Church of Christ and then at all official HMN gatherings until they are gone. Get yours early before they run out! Any questions, please let us know!

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Acupuncture

A huge thanks to Gary Kaplan for giving an informative talk at our June meeting.
For more info visit: http://kaplanclinic.com/

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Ahhh...Relaxing!

The Mother's Day Spa pampering night was a smashing success! Laurie did an incredible amount of work for it and it showed. Everyone had a great time enjoying tasty food and drinks, enjoying sessions with wonderful practitioners, and taking home a lovely cloth tote full of great free samples. We are already planning for next year! :)
A huge thank you to all the practitioners who participated in the event!



For a few more pics, click HERE.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Coming Soon...The SPA!!!!

It's almost here...one more week until the 2nd Annual Mother's Day Spa!

We have a line up of wonderful local practitioners to provide mini sessions of massage, Reiki, Feldenkreis, EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique), yoga, facials, makeovers...the list goes on! We will have local herbal teas, a wonderful informational area about non-toxic nail treatments, and samples of local and natural products. What better way to give back to a group of beautiful women who deserve to be cared for as they care for others every day?

Tuesday, May 4th from 6:30-8:30 pm, join us to relax and rejuvenate! We will be at our regular location - please see that information to the right. This evening will be babes in arms only. Please use this opportunity to truly relax and have a partner, spouse or friend care for you children while you enjoy your time with us.

This event is FREE for members. A five dollar tax deductible donation is suggested for non-members. Please sign up now through the local Yahoo group for treatments if you are a member. Non-members will be able to sign up for treatments at 6:15pm on the evening of the spa. We look forward to seeing you there!

Thursday, April 8, 2010

TWO years of HMN of NOVA

I can't believe it has really been 2 years since we started this chapter, but here we are! We have made so many wonderful friends and formed such a supportive community. Thanks to all who have been a part of it so far! As always, keep suggestions and ideas coming as this is YOUR chapter. We had a lovely time celebrating this milestone with many old and new friends.

The grandparent contingent

Great food from Nood Food Cafe

Some of the daddies

Leaders and 2nd babies (our first babies were 6 months when we opened the chapter!)

Friday, April 2, 2010

Two years--already?!

Two years of HMN – Where Are We Going?
Come on and join us in planning our next adventures!
Bring your family, ideas, creativity, energy, and help us plan the
future of our chapter.

Celebrate two years with the NoVA Holistic Moms Network on Tuesday April 6th.
Come join us from 6:30-8:30pm to learn and share.

Friday, March 5, 2010

Waldorf Education

Thank you to Alice Trembour of Potomac Crescent Waldorf School for a wonderful presentation about Waldorf education. She answered many of the questions we all had about the philosophy. Thank you also for the generous donation of a Waldorf song book that was won by a lucky member in our drawing.

For more information about Waldorf: http://whywaldorfworks.org/
For more information about Potomac Crescent: http://www.potomaccrescentschool.org/

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Think Spring Seed Swap!

Well, our February meeting was cancelled due to the snow, and we have rescheduled our talk on acupuncture for June. When the blizzard began and it just continued to snow, and snow, and snow some more, we all felt like spring would never come! Finally, two weeks later with ice and snow still covering almost everything, we gathered for a seed swap.

The vast array of seeds was amazing! We laid them out on the floor on small plates and everyone took what they wanted or needed. We could have planted a dozen gardens with tremendous variety. Although we were prepared with labels, pens, and bags, collecting the seeds was still a little arduous for each individual. Next time, we'll be more organized with envelopes rather than zip bags and we'll set up a table so we don't have toddlers driving trucks over the seeds or trying them as snacks :).
There are many different gardeners among us and sharing our ideas and knowledge was more fun as sharing the seeds. We barely made it through the introductions - everyone had something to ask and tell, and I think we were all so pleased for some adult interaction after being snowed in! A good time was had by all.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Community

Someone shared this with all of us HMN leaders and I thought it was very fitting for our HMN chapter:

"We are all longing to go home to some place we have never been - a place half-remembered and half-envisioned we can only catch glimpses of from time to time.
Community.
Somewhere, there are people to whom we can speak with passion without having the words catch in our throats. Somewhere a circle of hands will open to receive us, eyes will light up as we enter, voices will celebrate with us whenever we come into our own power. Community means strength that joins our strength to do the work that needs to be done. Arms to hold us when we falter. A circle of healing. A circle of friends. Someplace where we can be free."
- Starhawk

Friday, January 22, 2010

Thank you, Boiron!

Boiron homeopathic company has come out with some new children's cold and flu remedies. They have shared some with many mommy bloggers so that we can all share our experiences.
Check them out if you are interested!

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Wireless Safety

We had a great presentation from Christine Hoch of Moms for Safe Wireless. Thanks for all the great information!