Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Samantha Chrzanowski. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Samantha thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

It was February of 2022, and my then boyfriend and I were almost through our first year living in our new home when I found out I was pregnant with our son. Becoming a mom was something I had always dreamt of. I remember the butterflies, the thrill, and the swirl of emotions that came with it. But almost immediately, I also felt the weight of expectations settle onto me. I struggled with what felt like a loss of control over my life and my timeline. I carried shame and guilt, even though I’ve never felt that way about anyone else in a similar situation.

Throughout my pregnancy, I felt like I was mourning. Mourning the woman I was, the life I had, and the plans I thought I’d follow. I was one of the first in my circle to have a baby, and with my family on the East Coast, I felt incredibly alone. What was supposed to be a grounding and restful maternity leave led me into an emotional spiral. I felt unprepared for the internal shift that came with preparing for birth, letting go, and accepting what was next.

After more than 50 hours of labor, I delivered my son via cesarean. Parts of the experience were traumatic and still stay with me. Two weeks later, my husband returned to work, and I found myself home with a newborn, trying to process what had just happened. It was a lot. It was lonely. And while I made it through, I kept thinking that no one should have to navigate that kind of transformation alone.

A year and a half later, my best friend Kyla became pregnant after a long journey of trying. She also lived far from family, and we had become each other’s chosen support system in Colorado. I was determined to offer her the kind of care and presence I wished I had. One day, while scrolling on social media, I came across a video of a Mother’s Blessing. There was belly henna, everyone was dressed in white, and a sound bath was playing. I felt immediately drawn to it. I knew I had to create something like that for her.

As I began researching, I learned that the Mother’s Blessing is inspired by the Navajo Blessingway, a sacred ceremony used to honor life transitions. With deep respect, I made sure I wasn’t borrowing or using elements that are meant to stay within that culture. That led me to look more broadly at how people across the world mark transitions. I kept coming back to the same truth. We are missing ritual. We are missing community. We are missing the stories and the circles that help hold people through change.

Women have gathered in circle for generations. I wanted to help bring that back. I started planning a ceremony that reflected what someone might actually need in late pregnancy: a space to be seen and heard, to name their fears, to feel joy, and to be held by their people. My only goal was for Kyla to feel poured into. She didn’t need to host or help. She just needed to show up and receive.
Through all of this, I was supported by my friend, doula, and photographer Madison Swann. She witnessed my birth, supported and documented Kyla’s, and helped me believe that this idea could grow into something real. The work I do now through Blessings and Bloom was shaped by my own experience, but it was built with the love and encouragement of the women around me.

I’m currently studying to become an IBCLC so I can support families not just in ceremony, but through the raw and tender postpartum season. I want parents to feel supported in breastfeeding, not just because of the physical and nutritional benefits, but because of the connection and bonding it helps build in those early days.

I know what it feels like to move through a major life shift without the kind of support you need. That experience is what fuels this work. Blessings and Bloom exists to offer what so many of us long for a village to be seen and supported.

Samantha, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Hi! I’m Samantha, but most people call me Sami. I’m the founder of Blessings and Bloom. I facilitate ceremonies that honor the transitions through motherhood. Right now, my offerings center around Mother’s Blessings and postpartum circles. The heart behind them is to center, honor, and hold space for women in pregnancy and postpartum. The goal is to call in her community and have them show up for the expectant mother in their life in a way that feels meaningful, grounded, and personal.

These ceremonies are really different from what we usually see.. things like baby showers or connecting with other moms for advice online. Those have their place, but what I offer is slower and more intentional. These are emotional, grounding gatherings that create space for ritual, storytelling, and the wisdom of the people in her life.

Blessings and Bloom was born out of my own story. Becoming a mom, carrying the emotional weight of pregnancy and birth, and deeply missing the kind of support and village I needed. The first ceremony I ever did was for my best friend, and something in me lit up. I realized how many of us are craving connection and ritual, especially in this season of life.

Before I stepped into this work, I spent seven years as an elementary school teacher in Montbello, and before that, I nannied for families during college and after. I also received my 200-hour yoga teacher training certification back in college. I’ve always been a caretaker. It’s just how I move through the world. I’m a mom now too, and with my husband Harper, we raise our almost-three-year-old, our dog, two cats, and a small flock of chickens in our backyard. Our home life is full and real and often messy, but it’s ours. And it really keeps me grounded in the kind of care I try to offer through my work.

Whether it’s setting up a classroom that makes kids feel safe or planning a ceremony that makes someone feel seen and celebrated, this work has always come from the same place in me. Ceremony feels like the perfect blend of everything I love.. creativity, nurturing, planning, presence. I love mixing the softness of ritual with the structure of intentional event planning. I see and tend to the small things, because that’s where the magic lives.

Each crystal I choose with intention. The flowers and colors you feel connected to. The couch pushed back just enough so your grandmother can slide through and take her place in the circle. The little things aren’t little to me. That’s where the love lives. That’s where care becomes something you can actually feel.

I’m also studying to become an IBCLC because I want to support families beyond the ceremony and into the real, raw, and tender postpartum season. I want to help parents feel confident and supported in breastfeeding their babies because there are so many beautiful benefits, from nourishment to immune support to deepening that early connection. My hope is to offer grounded, gentle guidance through those early days and create space that feels supportive and steady.

What makes Blessings and Bloom special is the way it weaves together storytelling, ritual, and thoughtful planning. No two ceremonies are the same, because no two women are the same. My hope is that every person who works with me leaves feeling truly seen, held, and poured into.

While I’m based in Colorado, I also offer ceremonies in New Jersey and the NYC area. All places that are close to my heart. I’m so grateful to my family on the East Coast for their love and support, which has helped make those offerings possible.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

A Story of Resilience

Resilience doesn’t always look like grit or fire. Sometimes it looks like waking up at 3am with cracked nipples and no one to call. It looks like crying while holding a baby, whispering to yourself, “You’re okay, you’re okay,” even when you don’t quite believe it.

I’ve always been told, “You are the strong one. The one who figures it out.” And I did. But not because I felt brave or ready. I just didn’t have another option. I kept going.

My birth didn’t go the way I planned. I was preparing for a home birth and ended up with an unplanned cesarean that left me physically exhausted and emotionally wrecked. My husband went back to work after two weeks. My family flew home. And suddenly I was alone, trying to heal, trying to breastfeed, trying to be everything for this new tiny human.

I exclusively breastfed until I returned to work, and that transition nearly broke me. We had to find child care last minute, and the person we landed with didn’t share my parenting values. My baby refused to eat while I was gone, so when we were back together, nights turned into constant feeds. My body was barely keeping up. I was tired. I was grieving. And I was doing it anyway.

That’s the thing about resilience. It’s not always loud. It’s not always obvious. It’s just the quiet decision to keep showing up. To keep loving. To keep going, even when it’s trying.

It wasn’t all hard though. Becoming a mother was bright and beautiful in so many ways. There was so much joy. But the hard parts had a way of sneaking in.. especially when the sun went down, or my husband had to stay late at work, or when I was touched out and still needed to give more.

That season shaped everything I do now. It’s why I hold ceremony. It’s why I’m becoming an IBCLC. I want other mothers to feel supported in the places I struggled. I want them to feel seen and cared for in real ways.

Blessings and Bloom grew from that experience. From the quiet, heavy nights and the small, sacred moments of clarity. We create a space where women can show up as they are, where their stories are heard, and where they don’t have to do it all alone.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

“The Question that Keeps Returning?”

Growing up as a child, when you’re asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” you say, “A doctor, a princess, a fireman, an astronaut, a teacher,” and so on.

At 18, I found myself in a similar place that a lot of young adults land in. Staring down the same question, but now with college tours, application deadlines, and real decisions needing to be made.

As a young woman who loved being around kids, who felt at ease nurturing and teaching, I naturally gravitated toward education. It felt safe, respectable, familiar. So like many others, I stepped into the role of a teacher.

What no one told 18-year-old me in 2013 was that there are an infinite number of ways to build a life. I didn’t know you could create something of your own. That you could hold ceremony, guide mothers, support families, and shape a life around care and community. Not just inside a classroom, but in homes, in circles, in quiet moments. I didn’t yet know that growing into who you really are can sometimes look like undoing everything you thought you were supposed to be.

It is July 2025. I am about to begin my eighth year in education and I am at a crossroads in work, business, and life. I have started my IBCLC mentorship with Kristi Conroy of Latch Lactation, which includes 500 hours of hands-on lactation support. I have a growing business that needs time, energy, and care. My partner has a unique work schedule. And this is likely our last year before our son starts some form of formal schooling.

I keep asking myself. Is it time to take the risk? Is it time to step into something that feels more true to who I am?

So here we are again. The question that keeps showing up. What do you want to be when you grow up?

This time, my answer is simple. I want to be a more honest version of myself. Someone who supports others on an intimate and emotional level. Someone who is valued for who they are and what they bring. A village member, not a babysitter. A guide, not just a role.

I’m not aloof to what this shift could mean. I’ve spent years building something meaningful, and I know that stepping back from the structure I’ve known comes with risk. I’ve thought deeply about the financial strain this transition might bring and have made intentional plans to continue contributing income in ways that feel sustainable during this time. We are also incredibly privileged to be surrounded by close friends who are navigating similar shifts in their own lives and careers. We are leaning on each other for support, for child care, and for reminders that we do not have to do any of this alone. This is not a decision made on a whim. It is a blend of careful planning and a quiet sense of timing that feels like alignment.

And now it is time. To choose. To trust. To take the leap.

So if you asked me now, what do you want to be when you grow up?
I would say this. Just more myself.

Blessings and Bloom is the heartwork I’ve built. It offers ceremony, lactation support, and emotional care for families moving through pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. It is the space I needed, and now get to create, for others.

So, I’ll leave you with the same question I’ve been asking myself lately.
What do you want to be when you grow up?

Contact Info:

• Website: https://blessingsandbloom.co
• Instagram: blessingsandbloom.co

Image Credits

Photos 2-7: Madison Swann
Photos 1 and 8: Samantha Chrzanowski