Dec 8-10, 2006
The arrival of your baby will enrich your life in ways you can’t imagine: s/he will transform your marriage into a family. Raising a child and sustaining a relationship is the most important and rewarding job you will ever have. This retreat is a wonderful opportunity for expectant couples. As you await your new arrival (including adopted children), learn skills and deepen bonds that will strengthen your partnership and your parenting for a lifetime.
Transitioning to parenthood is rarely covered in birth-preparation classes, but you can prepare yourselves. Couples expecting a baby want to be good parents and provide the best for their children, but the relationship between the couple is often neglected. If you take steps toward building a strong relationship before the birth, you can tend your bond while you tend your baby.
This engaging and interactive weekend will be full of new information and fun. You will learn proven techniques to improve couple communication, interact collaboratively with your baby, and understand what your baby is “saying.” You will learn to deepen intimacy through couple massage and yoga, as well as learning simple infant massage techniques. Through exercises, dialogue, films, and more, you will learn how to involve both partners in the day-to-day care of your baby and each other, creating a caring, nurturing home for building shared meaning.
We will explore ways to keep fathers involved and we’ll look at the issue of post-partum depression. We’ll use writing and artistic expressions to explore “birthing from within.” We’ll create and decorate belly-castings of the baby’s current home (the mother’s belly) in a loving, creative, and enjoyable activity. Much of the design of this hands-on, hearts-on workshop was developed by renowned relationship experts, Drs. John and Julie Gottman. There is an additional fee of $77 per couple for the belly-casting kit and the couple’s resource kit from the Gottman Institute.
Robin Zucker, a Unitarian Universalist minister, is Director of Flowingforce, a provider of personal and spiritual growth programs. She offers pastoral counseling to individuals, couples, and groups, is a certified Gottman Educator, and trained in the Authentic Happiness Life Coaching program in positive psychology with Dr. Martin Seligman. For more information, see www.flowingforce.com. Robin will be assisted by Brenda Jones, a prenatal health and yoga specialist, massage therapist, and teacher.