I do a fair amount of walking or running throughout any given week. Cardio has always (begrudgingly) been part of my workouts but I’ve never looked forward to it. It was always such a drag to run. For about the first 20-30 steps I habitually feared that my ankles are going to snap and I’ll fall flat on my face. Then, about 5 minutes in I’d realize I was totally exhausted because I sprinted instead of paced (again!) myself. And finally, when my trusty little FitBit GPS narrator cuts in and tells me “1 mile in __ minutes, __ seconds,” I realize I’m bored and ready to be done! I’d push myself to do the 2 miles because that’s what the Army requires for the cardio portion of the Army Physical Fitness Test. But anything further than 2.5 miles just sounded (and felt) like self-inflicted pain for which I had absolutely zero tolerance! 

Fast forward to this past July. July 2018. When Kari Met Kate. I met an amazing woman here in San Pedro, California and she lives just 3 houses away from me. She was the first person I met when we moved here from Virginia and she was just as wonderful and welcoming as every other person we’ve met. We spoke for no more than 10 minutes, but in those 10 minutes, she mentioned the running/walking group that meets on our corner on Saturdays…and so began my newfound excitement over cardio!

The next Saturday, after a significant amount of support from my husband, I went to meet the “group” at 7am. The “group,” however, was out of town for the summer, so it was just Kate and me. Kate thought she wanted to do a little run or maybe a fast-paced walk up this street that is pretty much straight up for a mile. Luckily, I got her talking enough that not only did we only walk, but we also took the most scenic, beautiful, and relatively hidden route in San Pedro and Rancho Palos Verdes. It was absolutely breathtaking. So breathtaking that it has become part of my morning routine at least twice per week since we’ve lived here. The unique and detailed homes of the South Shores neighborhood, the cliffs along the Palos Verdes Shores community, the ridiculous stairs along the Shoreline Park Trail, and the views throughout the Ocean Trails Reserve are all simply surreal. 

I am happy to be here in sunny Southern California and excited to call this South Bay corner of Los Angeles our home for the next three years. As an outdoorsy person and family, we will have ample opportunity for unique experiences and memories. We’ve been able to get out and about already and are starting to feel pretty comfortable here. 

I have also had the opportunity to get out and about with my doula hat on too. I’m so excited to continue my partnership with Fit4Mom franchises, especially Fit4Mom - Torrance, Fit4Mom - Long Beach, and Fit4Mom - Palos Verdes/San Pedro. I had a wonderful meeting with Shannon Shondeff, owner of Fit4Mom-Long Beach, and we are both excited to support each other and those families interested in our services. I also had an amazing tour of Beach Cities Midwifery where Sarah Lavelle (also a fellow doula!) introduced me to the team and showed me around the facility (highly, highly recommend, by the way!). As a postpartum doula, it’s not common that I need to see birth centers or birth facilities so it was really great to see the space. 

Since the South Bay is such a large and dense area, I decided that I really need to define my service radius. Given my start point, my “radius” will look more deliciously like a quarter of a pie! 

I want to start with a caveat. That’s always great, right? Alrighty. My caveat is that, if you are a service-connected family, contact me directly. I don’t care where you live. Let’s chat first and worry about where you are later. I really mean it! 

Ok, let me paint a picture of my postpartum doula service area with words…I live in San Pedro. So, naturally, as a service-based profession where I help families with newborns in their homes, the center of my radius is San Pedro, California! In general, I will say that my radius is 20 miles from San Pedro. 

So, to my North-West, I am able to support families as far North-West as Santa Monica, as far North as South Los Angeles, as far East as “The 5” (I’m catching on!) to Buena Park. I’m going to use 39 as my North-Eastern boarder then taking 39 south, my South-East boarder is Huntington Beach. Another way to say this is, I support families south of The 10 from Santa Monica to Downtown and I support families west of The 5 from Downtown Los Angeles down to Huntington Beach. Alright, my words might not have worked as well as I had hoped…here’s a picture! 

If you’re inside this piece of my service pie, let’s chat. If you’re up for it, maybe we’ll go for a walk too! I hope our paths collide and I get a chance to walk by your side as you transition to life with your new baby! 

Stay blessed, 

Kari Haravitch