What did parenting really look like in the 1970s? Spoiler: no car seats, SpaghettiOs for dinner, and yes—smoking in the delivery room.

In this episode of Call Your Mom Friends, Charity, Lauren, and Amey swap highs and lows of the week before diving deep into the fascinating, funny, and downright shocking parenting norms of the 70s.

We chat about legendary midwife Ina May Gaskin and her work at The Farm—a natural birth commune in Tennessee that changed the way America thought about childbirth. Then, we contrast it with the hospital scene of the decade, where doctors lit up cigarettes during labor.

From teething whiskey and Tang, to latchkey kids and hot metal playgrounds, we unpack how parenting looked in a very different era—and why some of those “retro vibes” still linger today.

✨ In this episode, you’ll hear about:

- The rise of Ina May Gaskin and how The Farm became iconic in the natural birth movement

- Smoke-filled hospital rooms and doctors recommending cigarettes during pregnancy

- “Teething remedies” like rubbing whiskey on baby gums (yikes)

- SpaghettiOs, Tang, and other pantry staples of the decade

- Pop culture snapshots: Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, Charlotte’s Web, Little House on the Prairie

- Unsafe toys and playgrounds that shaped a generation

- Baby names that defined the 70s (hello, Jennifer and Michael!)

If you love parenting history, birth stories, or a good “wait, WHAT?!” moment, this episode will have you laughing, cringing, and grateful for how far we’ve come.

🎧 Listen in and leave us a voicemail → Click Here

📌 Resources & Links Mentioned in the Show: Lauren's FREE Birth Class

The Farm Community

Spiritual Midwifery by Ina May Gaskin

Find us on Instagram: @call.your.mom.friends.podcast

And connect with us individually: Lauren Murdock | Faith > Fear Birth™ → @labor.lauren | laborlauren.com Amey Fields | AZ Breastfed Babies → @az.breastfedbabies | azbreastfedbabies.com

Charity Spears | Cocoon to Bloom → @cocoon_to_bloom | cocoontobloom.com