Today we’d like to introduce you to Shayla and Isaiah Bryant.
Shayla and Isaiah, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
In July of 2016, my husband and I gave birth to our first child. It was all natural, unmedicated, and at home. This sounds so cliché’, but hands down, giving birth to life–a whole human being was AMAZING! So amazing, to where I had the opportunity to have a Lotus Birth (the practice of leaving the umbilical cord uncut after childbirth so that the baby is left attached to the placenta until the cord naturally separates at the umbilicus which usually occurs within 3-10 days after birth). Words cannot explain the feelings a woman feels as she is in that very moment of giving birth to someone you’ve only met in the spirit realm and now, about to meet in the physical– it’s genuinely a God Experience! The name Malawi’s House has no connection to the country of Malawi; however, it is connected to our first child’s name, Maya Malawi. My vision behind Malawi’s House was to create a safe space for women and families to connect through their own birth experiences and incorporate childbirth education and maternal awareness workshops for the community. With that vision still in mind, I began working on a project that would encourage expectant families to birth their children naturally and at home.
While pregnant with Maya, I was also enrolled in school, pursuing a master’s degree in School Counseling at Capella University. To prevent any unnecessary stress, I withdrew from school to focus more on my pregnancy. Three months into postpartum I felt ready to enroll back into school and finish on a slow pace. In 2017, we were expecting our second child. Instead of withdrawing from school again, I decided to stay in the program and complete it without any exceptions. Plus, I was closer to the completion of the program this time, so I was determined nothing would stand in my way. In June of 2018, I completed the Masters of School Counseling program and decided to attend the graduation ceremony after giving birth. In August of 2018 my husband and I gave birth to our second child–again, naturally, unmedicated, and…at home, but this time we experienced a water birth. I agree 100% when they say each child and each birth is indeed totally different. This time around, I felt more prepared and knew what to expect. We were intentional on how we wanted this birth experience to be for the second time. I felt more in control and in tune with my body, space, and energy. We named her, Sanai Nairobi.
Now that I am a mother not only once but twice, motherhood started to kick-in. My husband and I would have mini discussions on the route we wanted to take when it came to our children’s education. We finally concluded that education starts at home, and as parents we help set the foundation for our families to use the tools and skills learned from home. We decided early on that we were going to homeschool our children. Although I am a certified K-12 School Counselor, I never worked as a School Counselor in a public or private school setting, which is something I wanted at first, but I also wanted to be home with my children. I remember being in virtual class sessions with my professor and cohorts, and I mentioned services for the Homeschool community. That memory came back to me later on in October of 2018 and that’s when I created Your Neighborhood Homeschool Counselor (YNHC).
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Starting a business from scratch comes with its challenges, especially when you are also balancing being a wife, stay-at-home mother, and personal self-care. Everything dealing with Malawi’s House, Nairobi’s Butter Whipped Crème, and Your Neighborhood Homeschool Counselor that is financially related is coming from out of pocket. We have decided not to take out a business loan, which is a big decision to make, but also a heavy obligation for us in the early stages of our businesses. We have attempted to apply for many small business grants, but have yet been selected. We understand that we are in the grassroots stages of business and it’s going to take some time to get to the next level. When you know you have something that’s golden, then you understand the purpose and willing to practice patience, as things will eventually start to align. Another challenge, is having the time to physically market, network and connect with people. Yes, social media outlets are great digital marketing tools, but nothing beats real-life human interaction in real-time.
Please tell us about your business.
The idea of starting Malawi’s House came during a postpartum treatment with my midwife. I had a plan to start a small family-owned Birth Supply business where midwives could purchase home birth kits and supplies needed to care for mother and baby, and at the same time, including essentials for Doulas to support mothers and their babies during the postpartum phase. I wanted to do something unique and that would stand out from other birth supply companies, so I designed birth kit boxes with our unique logo and beautiful colors that pop! While essentials are on the inside of the customized box, an encouraging message is on the outside that says, “Birth Life Fearlessly”. This message can be translated in many ways depending on one’s perspective. Still, I wanted mothers to be encouraged to go into their home or hospital birth wearing a cape of fearlessness as they embark on this wonderful journey called motherhood.
Uniquely, we created a sister business under Malawi’s House that promotes healthy skincare specifically for mothers and babies for postpartum care—they can also be used for all skin types; for men and women. We noticed Sanai having eczema-like symptoms on her arm, legs, and behind her knees. This was unusual for us because we had not experienced this with Maya. Eventually, we figured it out and came up with a solution to our problem, and that was to create a body butter that would heal her skin. We of course named it after her, Nairobi’s Butter Whipped Crème. We make an original scent, and three scents infused with essentials oils (Lavender, Eucalyptus, and Lavender & Lemongrass) and two with fragrances (Cucumber Melon and Peach Papaya). All of our Shea Butters are handmade with love and are fairly traded.
Malawi’s House Mission: To increase awareness of maternal health, prevent infant mortality, equip midwives with birth supplies to safely guide babies to earth side, and to safely support mothers to birth life fearlessly.
Malawi’s House Vision: To help women and families of Afrikan descent confidently rediscover traditional birthing by hosting resourceful educational and informational events & workshops.
Your Neighborhood Homeschool Counselor (YNHC) specifically provides unique school counseling services to all homeschool families with children in grades 8-12–even for families in the deschooling process and free-thinking unschooled families as well. I provide group and individual counseling (in-person or virtual), support with academics, career/college planning, life skills (hard and soft), personal, social/emotional development, share resources with parents and educators, and connect with other school counseling professionals and educators. I ensure to follow still the American Counseling Association (ACA) Code of Ethics and the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Ethical Standards when working with clients. I felt extremely comfortable taking this route because I’ve had over ten years of experience working for youth and families in the mental health field with different agencies in the states of Virginia and Georgia.
We are most proud of our businesses starting to progress after a few years of brainstorming and planning. The feedback from our supporters has also been fantastic, which makes this journey even more enjoyable. What sets us apart from others? Well, we are uniquely us and we don’t see others as competitors, but collaborators. We believe with this type of mindset, everybody wins. We have a black-owned home birth kit & supplies business, we make Whipped Shea Body Butters infused with essential oils or fragrances, and provide homeschool counseling services, who wouldn’t want to collaborate?
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
At the age of eight, my friend and I would go door-to-door to see if our neighbors in the community needed any yard work or light housecleaning done. Nowadays, when you think of an eight-year old roaming the block without an adult is kind of scary–times have changed. As I reflect, I have always had that entrepreneurial spirit within me.
Pricing:
- Whipped Body Butters (Original Scent) $10
- Whipped Body Butters infused with (Essential Oils) $13.50 each
- Whipped Body Butters infused with (Fragrance Oils) $15 each
- Individual Student Counseling Services $50 an hour
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.ynhomeschoolcounselor.com
- Phone: 6785367343
- Email: MalawisHouse@gmail.com
or YourNHC@gmail.com - Instagram: @MalawisHouse or @Homeschool_Counselor
- Facebook: @YNHomeschoolCounselor
Image Credit:
Naiyah D. Scaife, Your Neighborhood Homeschool Counselor, Malawi’s House
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