Auction preview: Enwrapture Vintage Silk Skirts

If you love wrap skirts, you will love Enwrapture Vintage skirts! These double layer skirts come in a variety of gorgeous tones and can be tied in over 100 different ways! Our auction will feature two 24" length Enwrapture Vintage skirts! They retail at $50!

Bid on these and more at our Labor Day Picnic & Silent Auction at Wetherby Park in IC from 2-6 pm!

Auction Preview: Tax Prep from Carrie Houchins-Witt

Item: Gift Certificate for preparation and filing of 2010 individual federal and state tax return.

Carrie Houchins-Witt provides honest, affordable and timely tax preparation and financial planning to ordinary families.

Carrie is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER(TM) Practitioner (CFPTM) with more than six years of professional tax preparation experience and an extensive background in business and finance operations. In addition to this professional experience, Carrie's own journey with personal finance has taken her through many common financial milestones.

Carrie can help you through ordinary or extraordinary periods of your financial life. She knows what it is like to struggle financially, to save for a house, and to put away money for her children's education. She has experienced debt, and better yet, knows the feeling of freedom that comes with shedding that debt. She explains taxes and personal finances in a simple, thorough way that anyone can understand. She wants you to be in control of our own life, and wants to help you reach your goals.

Carrie is a local work-at-home mother of two young boys born with the support of a midwife (one cesarean section and one beautiful VBAC).

Please explore her website at www.houchinswitt.com to learn more about Carrie and the services she offers.

Bid on this and lots more at our annual Labor Day Silent Auction and Potluck Picnic Sept 6, 2-6 pm at Wetherby Park in Iowa City.

Auction Preview: Bamboo Birth Doula Services

Item: gift certificate for a complementary upgrade from Economy to Full Service doula package, $75 value.

If you know anything about birth services in Iowa City, you know Jun-Nicole Matsushita and her amazing doula services, Bamboo Birth. Jun-Nicole is a certified doula who empowers women to achieve their goals of low- to no-intervention hospital births and specializes in hypnobirthing techniques. Know a mom expecting? Does she want a natural birth, but is delivering with CNMs or an OB at a local hospital? She will help you with a natural birth, low intervention birth or a medicated birth with a low intervention approach.

Bamboo is a vigorous and versatile plant that symbolizes grace, endurance and compromise as it bends but does not easily break. Bamboo survives in the harshest conditions and endures nature's challenges with resilience and flexibility. Standing tall and green year-round a bamboo forest sways in the wind reminding us of the strength, yielding and adaptability necessary during the powerful process of birth.

Learn more about Jun-Nicole at her website, Bamboo Birth.

Bid on this and lots mor at our annual Labor Day Silent Auction and Potluck Picnic Sept 6, 2-6 pm at Wetherby Park in Iowa City.

Create a website to raise money for FOIM!

Hey everyone! I just used a really simple, free website service to create a page to raise money for FOIM. Since we are having a Walk for Midwives in Iowa City this October, I'm taking the opportunity to use my social networking and ask friends and family for help as we work towards our goals this year.

It's Easy.
I used the website Weebly to set up my site very quickly. It allowed me to drag and drop elements I wanted to use and upload pictures.

To create a paypal donation button, you'll first need to create a paypal account. Once that's taken care of, click "services" and then "get paid." The site will generate a donate button. On Weebly, drag and drop "custom html" and then copy and paste the button code into that box.

I used the website Ticker Factory to create the fundraising ticker. Again, drag and drop "custom html" and then c&p the code into the box.

PLEASE NOTE: Being "sponsored" is NOT a requirement to participate in this or ANY walk in October!! I'm doing this of my own accord because...


It's Smart
With email, twitter, and facebook, publicity is already taken care of. How many times have YOU had friends or family ask you to sponsor them as they walked or ran for a cause? By sharing your website using social media you're already using, you raise awareness and money without hassling people or feeling embarrassed. I personally plan to post a link to my website once or twice a week until the day of the walk, and offer different reasons to donate money. Even if I only raise $100, that's a huge help to FOIM! That covers postage for our packets to legislators, the fee for an event, or a FULL DAY OF our lobbyist working on our behalf at the capitol. All from taking 30 minutes to create a site and share it on facebook.

It's Necessary
We have very ambitious fundraising goals this year (more details TBA). This year more than ever, FOIM needs support so that we can make our biggest push to license CPMs in Iowa in 2011. I have never asked family or friends who aren't in town, or who aren't parents, to support FOIM. Now I am asking them to support me and my personal stake in this issue.

My goal is to raise $500, enough to support a full week of lobbying. You can see my fundraising page here. I will update to share with you how well it goes!

Iowa City Area Events

Chapters across the state are planning exciting events for the fall to raise money and awareness as we gear up for the 2011 session. Mark your calendars for two events in Iowa City this autumn, and pay attention for more events to come across the state!

Labor Day Silent Auction & Picnic
When: Labor Day, Sept 6 from 2 pm - 6 pm
Where: Wetherby Park on Taylor Dr. in Iowa City -- enjoy the picnic shelter, restrooms, playground, sandbox, and Iowa City's only SPLASHPAD!
What: Bring a dish to share and bid on tons of great products and services in the corridor area! Funds directly support our advocacy on the hill. Stay tuned for previews of all our amazing auction items. If you are a local business or craftsperson who'd like to donate something to our auction, please contact Jenn Bowen at jennuwine4@yahoo.com and thank you!

Walks for Midwives during National Midwifery Week
Raise awareness for midwives, homebirth, and licensure by participating in a walk in your community!
When: October 3-9
Where: Walks are being planned across the state. Iowa City's walk will be held Saturday, Oct 9th at 8 am. We will meet at College Green Park and take a route through the Farmer's Market and downtown Iowa City. Stay tuned for more dates and locations for walks across Iowa!
What: Families supporting Iowa's midwives will gather and walk through their communities to raise awareness for our cause. MORE INFO TBA SOON!

Pre-order your t-shirts!

Now is the time to order t-shirts! We have several awesome designs, for kids and adults, available for pre-order on our website. Special discounted pricing is available with paid membership!

We will be shipping t-shirts in August, so visit our online store and support Friends of Iowa Midwives today!

Midwife Advocacy articles

Please go to
http://www.joylandgraf.blogspot.com/
 Advocacy for midwives, homebirths, and families in Iowa