Cassandra Alls' friends thought she was crazy when she said her baby would be wrapped in cloth diapers and be eating homemade baby food. Some thought she would quit after a few weeks of sleep deprivation.
Not so.
A year later, Alls still makes all of baby Josephine's food and tries to keep processed foods out of her family's Annapolis home. She maintains an organic herb and vegetable garden in the backyard. As for cloth diapers, she relies on a vendor, which has made her commitment easier to keep than in previous days, she said.
Alls has also purged her home of what she calls toxic cleaning solutions and uses naturally-made personal care products. The whole family - even the dog, Bailey - sees a homeopathic doctor, who espouses herbal remedies. Bailey also eats only organic food.
More recently, Alls started the first Maryland chapter of the nonprofit Holistic Moms Network, meeting and uniting a group of like-minded mothers - and at least two fathers - who share tips and ideas on clean and green living.
More than a dozen people came to the first two meetings this spring, and Alls said she has 40 people on her contact list.
"I know it's going to grow and grow," Alls said.
The organization started in New Jersey five years ago and now boasts 130 chapters nationwide. Alls learned about the Holistic Moms Network when she read about it in Mothering magazine. At the time, she lived with her husband, Bryan, in Florida and was a merchandise manager for Nordstrom.
"We were looking at starting on a more natural path," Alls said. When the retailer transferred her to Tysons Corner, Va., she decided to move to Annapolis.
It was during her pregnancy that Alls became more committed to holistic living. She began researching information and set up a Web site in April 2007 to share what she had learned: sunshineorganics.net. She discovered the Holistic Moms Network in December and started working on setting up a local chapter.
Alls sent out news releases and mailers to moms' groups and wellness centers. She held an open house May 12.
Alls said the beauty of her group is that members don't have to subscribe to every facet of holistic living, which can include rejecting immunizations for children. Josephine was taken to a pediatrician when she was born, before she was switched to a homeopathic doctor, Alls said.
At Monday's meeting, Alls asked mothers to introduce themselves, list some of their interests and then confess to one guilty, nonholistic pleasure.
