Snuggle House Foundation

Movement is KEY during pregnancy and birth! Come connect with other birthing families as we grow & flow through a gentle pregnancy inspired yoga flow in the park. Enjoy a morning full of movemnt, journaling, sound bowls, & connection!

ALL GENDERS & ALL BODIES WELCOMED!

Things to bring:
- Yoga Mat
- Journal & Pen (for reflection afterwards)
- Water bottle

Can’t wait to share space with you!

Spring time is finally here in the twin cities. It’s time to get OUT and share space within the community! Y’all better come get you one of these 😉😂

Here are some community events you should think about joining this upcoming week…

Saturday, May 4th - is hosting a fundraising brunch that you you won’t want to miss. Kid’s and family friendly activites, Bodywork sessions and so much more! (Location on flyer)

Tuesday, May 7th - is co-hosting a “Doula Meet + Greet” for pregnant families to meet some of the amazing doulas in the community.

Saturday, May 11th - will be hosting their Mother’s Day Weekend “Welcome Home! The Marternity House Expereince” event. This event will feature prenatal / postpartum education, fitness classes, cooking demos, tech showcase, and so much more!

RSVP links can be found in the bio’s of each account! Be sure to follow and stay connected to these powerful changemakers in our community.

Actress Tatyana Ali (Ashley from “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”) has launched Baby Yams, a series of limited edition, handmade baby quilts designed by her. 100% of the proceeds will go to Black and Indigenous midwives and doulas 🙌🏾

📷: Tatyana Ali

"The campaign theme for International Women's Day 2024 is Inspire Inclusion.

When we inspire others to understand and value women's inclusion, we forge a better world.

And when women themselves are inspired to be included, there's a sense of belonging, relevance, and empowerment.

Collectively, let's forge a more inclusive world for women."

- International Women's Day

Prenatal yoga classes are a great way to incorporate movement and activity during pregnancy. These yoga classes are designed for pregnancy and focus on poses and movements that help build strength and flexibility, reduce stress and anxiety, and prepare the body for childbirth. Prenatal yoga classes typically include breathing exercises, gentle stretches, and relaxation techniques that help connect you to your body and baby. Additionally, attending prenatal yoga classes can provide an opportunity to connect with others who are also going through pregnancy, creating a supportive and uplifting community.

Signup Here: https://www.snugglehousefoundation.org/education-classes

Prenatal Yoga Classes are led by our lead instructor Lydia Rikkola

Lydia originally went to college for her passion in obstetrics and pediatrics but her time at Augsburg would lead her to completing a degree in Sociology with a minor in Youth Studies. After Lydia graduated she became a family advocate at the Minneapolis Crisis Nursery. Here she worked with mothers in crisis and saw firsthand the lack of societal support for families. Working within a system that only allows for band-aid solutions led Lydia to pursue something more. Lydia sought out her yoga teacher certification. Lydia desires to create a safe space for birthing people to come as they are. Yoga and meditation are for everyone and everybody at any and every life stage. Lydia is driven to close gaps in society, fight for equitable solutions, and bring more humanity back into our community.

We’re kicking off our new “Let’s Talk Series” with a discussion around SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome).

Through this discussion we hope to bring awareness, insight, and open up conversation around topics like this for families.

What things did you already know about SIDS? What new thing did you learn from this post?
Share in the comments! 👇🏽🤍

Please help us wish the founder of our organization a very special Happy Birthday 🥳🎂

Since the age of 5 Jerriah has known that birth work was her calling. We are so proud to say that at age 26, she has already done SO many great things to positively impact birth for many black and brown families!

As we continue to celebrate her, here are three ways you can join us in wishing her a Happy Birthday!

1. Donate to our nonprofit organization!
https://www.snugglehousefoundation.org/donate
Venmo:

2. Become a volunteer!
https://www.snugglehousefoundation.org/volunteer

3. Wish Jerriah a happy birthday directly by commenting and sharing this post 🤍

For more information about our organization:
www.snugglehousefoundation.org

Please help us wish the founder of our organization a very special “Happy Birthday 🥳🎂”!

Since the age of 5 Jerriah has known that birth work was her calling. We are so proud to say that at age 26, she has already done SO many great things to positively impact birth for many black and brown families!

As we continue to celebrate her, here are three ways you can join us in wishing her a “Happy Birthday!”

1. Donate to our nonprofit organization!
https://www.snugglehousefoundation.org/donate
Venmo:

2. Become a volunteer!
https://www.snugglehousefoundation.org/volunteer

3. Wish Jerriah a happy birthday directly by commenting and sharing this post 🤍

For more information about our organization:
www.snugglehousefoundation.org

The 2023 class schedule has been updated on our website and we’re excited to announce some new class offerings!! 🥳

Head over to www.snugglehousefoundation.org/education-classes to see all that we’ll be offering in our community space this year. Remember that all classes & sessions are donation based, with suggested donations amounts based on which tier you fall in.

We can’t wait to share space with all you beautiful families this year 🌱

There's so much in store for Snuggle House Foundation in 2023 🥳!

Often times nonprofit organizations rely on email marketing & social media as a way to share their community impact, we want to take it a step further! Subscribe to our YouTube channel for BTS (behind the scenes) of our impact, education series, and more! 💚

Also, consider donating to our nonprofit organization to help expand our reach. Our Fundraising Goal for 2023 is $100,000. Thanks to the kind donations we've received so far, we are 25% of the way towards our goal just 7 days in!

The impact we make is made possible with your generous donations! https://secure.givelively.org/donate/snuggle-house-foundation/2023-fundraising-goal

Website: www.snugglehousefoundation.org

Welcome To My Channel! Hi Besties, I'm Jerriah Marie! I am a doula, student midwife, as well as the founder of the nonprofit Snuggle House Foundation. On this channel you can find ...

We are looking to add more BIPOC doulas to our team! If you (or anyone you know) is interested in joining our team, please reach out via email ([email protected])

For those looking to join our doula team and not currently registered as a doula with the state of MN, I highly encourage you to still reach out!

We have resources available to get you trained and registered!
https://www.snugglehousefoundation.org/volunteer
Email: [email protected]

Thank you for your support! Group classes are posted on our website. 🤎

GROUP SESSIONS + CLASSES — The Snuggle House Foundation Class Schedule + Offerings Grow + Flow (Prenatal Yoga) Every other Wednesday at 2pm! Movement is KEY during pregnancy and birth! Come connect with other birthing families as we flow through a gentle pregnancy inspired yin flow. Mama Mix + Mingle Every Friday at 1:00pm! These sessions are meant to ho...

Join us for classes + group sessions!

These donation-based classes + group sessions are designed to meet families where they are financially. We encourage those that can donate the suggested amount to do so, as it helps us continue to provide this sacred space for the community.

We’ve adopted a community approach to wellness, because all families deserve access to affordable, accessible wellness practices! 🤎

Class Schedule: www.snugglehousefoundation.org/education-classes

Yesterday was our Community Baby Shower and it was nothing short of AMAZING! We managed to give out 85 donation bags to families within the community 😱!

85 families now have items for their little ones.
85 babies now have essential items for their arrival.

Community, we are filled with joy by this turn out! Thank you, to each and every person that came out and enjoyed themselves yesterday. A HUGE thank you to the organizations that donated items and made this event possible.

Bundles of Love Charity,
Greater Minneapolis Crisis Nursery,
Everyday Miracles,

Thank you for your support and items that were donationed! 🤎
A special thank you to the many community members that showed up and gave additional donations, your generosity is greatly appreciated!

Website:
www.snugglehousefoundation.org

To Donate:
https://secure.givelively.org/donate/snuggle-house-foundation

Our Community Baby Shower is 2 DAYS AWAY (October 23rd, 2022 from 12-4pm)! 🥳

Can you believe that this is only HALF of the donations we received for expecting families in the community 😱.

Let us know in the comments if you plan on stopping by this Sunday. We hope to see you there! 👇🏽

Website: www.snugglehousefoundation.org

Donations: https://secure.givelively.org/donate/snuggle-house-foundation

WE’VE GOT EXCITING NEWS 🎉🥳

Some major things have been happening behind the scenes for Snuggle House Foundation! Here’s what’s new…
1. We are official a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization 🥳
2. We are opening a physical location in Minneapolis (3554 Bryant Ave S)
3. We will be hosting a “Community Baby Shower” (October 23rd. 2022) as our grand opening event 👶🏽🚿

None of this would be possible without the continued support from community memebers like you, so as a thank you, we will be hosting a “Community Baby Shower”! Come out and enjoy baby shower gifts, games, refreshments, massages & more! This is a FREE event so gift donations will be on a first come first serve basis. TAG/SHARE THIS WITH A PREGNANT PERSON 🤰🏽🎁!

Not expecting a little one but want to support?!
New/gentle used baby items are welcomed and will be distributed to birthing families in need 🤍.

For monetary donations…
Venmo:
Website: www.snugglehousefoundation.org

We look forward to seeing you at our event!

I recently had the opportunity to interview with Voyage Minnesota and talk aaaall about birth work. I dove into my student midwife journey, black birth in America, and some other exciting things I have going on!

If you’re interested in reading the interview it can be found here…

Meet Jerriah Marie of The Snuggle House - Voyage Minnesota Magazine Today we’d like to introduce you to Jerriah Marie. Them and their team share their story with us below: Jerriah Marie (She/Her), She is a holistic doula, herbalist, and student midwife in the twin cities. She is also the founder of the non-profit “Snuggle House Foundation”; an organization tha...

Almost 3 weeks ago, I came here asking the community for help supporting a mother in need who was having twins. Today I want to give a HUGE thank you from both the mother and myself 🤎.

Not only did we receive some amazing donations (pictured below), we were also able to raise money for her to obtain the additional support she needed! None of which would have been possible without the support, shares, and genuine love from the community. Thank you all, a million times over!

Mom gave birth on July 20th 🥳! Baby girl and baby boy are happy, healthy, and enjoying life with mama. Your donations, shares, and support played such a huge impact in this mothers life and I wanted to ensure that each of you know that!

Thank you again community for all that you have done and continue to do! 💕

Today is so bittersweet... Leilani has official gone a FULL WEEK without breastfeeding 🥳! For some ,this may not sound like a huge accomplishment but for us it's BIG!
Leilani has been exclusively breastfed since she was born (she'll be 2 next month), and I have to admit there's been highs and lows along this journey. In the beginning I loved nursing her. It was a way to get in our intentional bonding time and I found myself connecting with her tremendously this way. However, as she got older breastfeeding started to make me feel more disconnected from her, as if she only loved me for my milk, and ultimately, I knew it was time to ween her.
Now let me be very clear, weening her was a HARD process with more lows than highs. I literally tried EVERYTHING and every method out there! Ultimately, when a 4 day vacation away from her resulted in me returning and her shouting "MEEK" (her version of milk) the moment I got back, I broke down! The months following that vacation I resented breastfeeding, feeling guilty, but above all else tired! Helplessly one evening of intense cries by her for milk, I sat her up and told her the truth "Leilani, mommy knows that you love breast milk, but mommy is so tired and doesn't want to anymore." Surprisingly, she fussed a little then looked at me and said "Ok." That was the FIRST night we slept smoothly without any night nursing!
It finally hit me, just be honest and tell her how you're feeling! Thankfully she took it with an open heart and grace. From there we were able to rebuild a new mommy daughter bond without and breastfeeding involved 😫💜.
Mamas out there, breastfeeding is HARD, time-consuming, and exhausting! If you choose to give it a shot for 1 day, 1 month, or 1 year... the fact that you gave it a shot is AMAZING! I know that my experience with breastfeeding is unique to my situation but, my hope is to let other moms out there know, if you feel done with it (regardless of how long) those feelings are VALID, and to honor them! Your bond with your little one is so much more valuable then nursing them if you grow to resent it, and no... resenting it does NOT make you a bad parent!
Hope someone finds solitude in their journey through this post, love y'all so much!

Here is my availability for the remainder of the year. Words cannot express how truly grateful I am to have served so many families so far this year! The support, referrals, and response I’ve seen from my community is truly a blessing. With that being said, I only have 3 remaining openings for 2022 🤯💕. These spots will be prioritized for black families ONLY. Though 90% of the families I serve are black, I still feel in my heart that my work is to serve, impact, & educate MY community 🖤!

If you do not see your guess date month on this post, it is because that month has been filled! Here is my end of year availability.

August - FULL
September - 1 OPENING
October - FULL
November - 1 OPENING
December - 1 OPENING

If your guess date month still has openings head over to www.jerriahmarie.com for more information about my services, and to set up a time to talk about your birth needs. If you don’t see availability for your guess date, I still recommend reaching out via email and I’d be more than happy to refer somebody from my trusted doula community!

Thank you for the endless support I’ve received 🦋🥺✊🏾!

Website: www.jerriahmarie.com
Email: [email protected]

Community 🤎, a single black mother who is currently pregnant with twins is in need of our support! We are asking for monetary donations as well as any baby items you may have that can be donated. Our goal is to raise $2,000 which will cover 2 and a half weeks of postpartum care for this mama as she heals and transitions into her new life as a mother of 3 little ones (all under the age of 2).

Baby Items Needed…
- Double (or 3 seater) Stroller *NEED MET*
- Newborn Bottles (Avant glass preferred)
- Burp Clothes, Burp Cloths *NEED MET*
- Diapers (Newborn-Size 3)
- Non-Scented Wipes
- Baby Clothes (boy & girl): 0-3m, 3-6m, 9-12m *NEED MET*
- Baby Wash (sensitive/plant based)
- Breastfeeding items: breast pump, storage bags, ni**le pads, ni**le balm, etc. *NEED MET*

Cash donations can be sent via CashApp or Venmo...
CashApp: $JerriahM
Venmo at:

Baby items can be dropped off to my office located in Minneapolis or the Daughter of Ra, Transcend Apothecary store location in maplewood mall. Please DM us to coordinate drop-off!

Please help by sharing and spreading the word! Lets show up for this amazing mama by showing her just what is possible within her community!

Thank you in advance for your support, generosity, and shares!

Did you know the most powerful tool you will use for birth is one you utilize EVERYDAY?!

The Sanskrit word "Pranayama" is one that most yogi's are familiar with. "Prana" referring to the "life or breath aspect" and "ayama" meaning "control". A direct translation of the phrase "pranayama" translates as "breath control".

As you ride the waves of labor, your breath will be the anchor that grounds you back to earth. You'll come to find that this practice will serve you outside the birth space, deep into your parenting journey (especially during the "terrific twos" and teenage years 😬 lol).

Each Thursday at 9:30am for the month of July, we will intentionally practice mindful meditation and breath work. These donation based sessions are available to ALL regardless of where you are in your parenting journey. All proceeds will go to a local nonprofit that seeks to provide education, advocacy, and access to doula, midwifery, and wellness services for black and underserved families.

If you're interested in registering, head over to the link in our bio and press the tab that says "classes".

We look forward to seeing you each Thursday!

Let's talk the second trimester 💖🤰🏽!

For most, the second trimester of pregnancy is what I'd like to call the "honeymoon pregnancy stage". You're finally regaining some of your energy, morning sickness begins to slowly subside, and you're finally able to announce your pregnancy to the world! This is also the time when your cute little belly begins to grow 🥰.

So, what are some things you could be doing during this stage to make the most of your pregnancy?!
First, this is the perfect time to begin establishing your birth team if you haven't already. Interviewing doulas and midwives/providers, is much easier in this stage (and gives you time to establish a bond with your team).

When families ask me "when is the best time to hire a doula?", my response is usually "sometime during your second trimester".

It's important to remember that as a doula, my job is to provide you with the support you need along your pregnancy and postpartum journey, not just for your birth (unless that's your preference). My personal "doula style" includes building a bond with my clients. Talking with me should feel like talking with family or close friend.

As I've constantly evolve as a birth worker, I've grown to understand that some connections are more meaningful when you allow the space and time to evolve organically over time. This does not mean hiring a doula in your 3rd trimester won't be beneficial, but as the saying goes "the early bird 🕊gets the worm 🪱"

If you're exploring the idea of adding a doula to your birth team, my suggestion would be to begin interviewing potential candidates now!