I Found My Feet

Talking about pregnancy cravings and aversions at Baby Yums

2012-02-29T11:24:00.002-05:00

I'm really excited to share that I have signed on as a contributing blogger for local business, Baby Yums, owned and operated by local momprenueur, Crystal Murphy.

Head over and check out my first post, "Eating for two the second time around" where I talk all about the lovely food cravings and aversions I am experiencing with this pregnancy.

Did you have any food cravings or aversions during your pregnancy? Were they different with each pregnancy?

Books E recommends this month

2012-02-28T10:15:00.001-05:00

Whenever we make a trip to the library I can't help but come home with a very heavy bag of children's books. I've been doing this since E was a baby and my love of reading has definitely rubbed off on him. Sometimes I go to the library with a plan; looking for certain books that he may be interested in at that time, or sometimes I find a book from my childhood that I must read to him and other times I just sift through the shelves looking for ones that catch my eye. In the stack of 15 books that we have borrowed for the last 3 weeks, it's funny to see the ones that keep coming back up to the couch in the evening or gliding chair at night and the ones that stay on the bookshelf, pages barely turned at all. Sometimes I can predict this, but more than usual E surprises me by becoming attached to certain books. This time I thought I'd grab a couple extra hockey books since E is so very obsessed with hockey lately. Shockingly, he hasn't had much interest in these ones at all. I thought it would be a fun monthly post to go through the books that E has enjoyed and would recommend to children his age.

Here are E's current favourites and why we both love them so much.

If You Give A Pig A Party by Laura Numeroff (via Amazon.ca)

If You Give A Pig A Party
We can't get enough of these books. We've read quite a few of Laura Numeroff's books and E has especially taken a liking to this one. I find him calling out what the next page will say in much excitement and pointing out all the little details on the pages. He is very interested in birthday parties lately, especially since we talk about the baby coming after his third birthday which usually always brings us into a discussion about his party. The fact that pig and her friends make a tent is beyond exciting for him to read too - tents are big around here lately.

The Bare Naked Book by Kathy Stinson (via Amazon.ca)

The Bare Naked Book
This was a great find. E for some reason calls himself "stinky" when he runs around naked. "Look Mommy and Daddy, I'm stinky!". It's hilarious, but not as hilarious as some of the mispronunciations he has for different body parts. I love how interactive the books is, asking the child to point to each of their body parts after each page. Being a breastfeeding lover, I especially loved the page describing nipples with a picture of a breastfeeding mom with "milky nipples". I think I'll want to take this book out again once the new baby comes as that part will make much more sense to E then.

You Can Do It, Sam by Amy Hest (via Amazon.ca)

You Can Do It, Sam
I absolutely love this book and now I will be on the look out for more of Amy Hest's books. We have literally read this book every single night for the last few weeks and I'm actually surprised that I'm not getting sick of it. I love how it encourages independence and how proud Sam is of himself and Mrs. Bear is of him. When Sam comes running back to the green truck and says, "I did it!", E just lights up with pride every time too. Truly an enjoyable book to read.

Curious George and the Dump Truck by Margaret and HA Rey (via Amazon.ca)

Curious George and the Dump Truck
Curious George books were some of my favourite growing up. I even had a stuffed monkey that I carried around that I named Curious George. When I take E to the library I'm a little selfish and have to pick up some of these books for myself too. Because E is into dump trucks these days, this was a perfect fit.

What books are your children reading these days? Any recommendations for our next trip to the library? Check back next month for more of E's recommendations!

Beyond the Bump: The Tupler Technique with Kangaroo Fitness

2012-02-20T21:16:00.001-05:00

I've started a few new and exciting programs and activities around Ottawa to support my growing bump and to prepare my body for birth and a new baby. This growing a baby stuff is hard work and there is alot of buisness that goes on behind the scenes!

I feel fortunate to have met some local business owners (many of them Mom themselves!) over the last year that offer amazing programs and I've jumped at the opportunity to try them out. First up is The Tupler Technique with Kangaroo Fitness!

I had the pleasure of meeting Susanne from Kangaroo Fitness in the Fall while attending one of her information sessions on the Tupler Technique - a research based program that can heal diastasis recti. I was very interested in what she had to offer in her Perfect Pushing and Mummy Tummy programs and with a friend who was seven months pregnant at the time, I had the perfect opportunity to tag along and learn more.

From Kangaroo Fitness' website:

Diastasis Recti during Pregnancy

Most women develop diastasis recti during pregnancy. A diastasis will have an impact on your overall core strength including your pelvic floor, on the effectiveness of your pushing, on how fast your abdominals recover from an C-section, on how your belly looks after the baby is born and on how much back pain you experience during your pregnancy.

The two halves of your recti muscle are joined together at the linea alba, a string of connective tissue. During pregnancy, as the uterus grows, that muscle lengthens and causes the two halves to separate. As the muscle separates, the connective tissue stretches sideways making it thinner and weaker. Now, instead of muscle, you have weak connective tissue supporting your lower back and your organs. No support for the lower back translates into more back pain and no support for your organs means more difficult pushing during labor.

With diastasis recti your growing uterus is held in place by a separated recti muscle and stretched out connective tissue. Pushing the baby out is very difficult to do with a separated muscle. The uterus will tilt forward as the connective tissue cannot hold it in place properly. When it tilts forward the cervix moves out of alignment with the vaginal canal creating a detour in the baby‘s passage through the birth canal.

Susanne's program really appealed to me because I believe that strengthening your body during pregnancy is extremely important to prepare for birth and to help your body recover. I have always believed as long as you are healthy, pregnancy should never be an excuse for inactivity and that preparing for birth and post-partum should be treated much like training for a marathon as well as providing the best environment for baby to develop.

When I met Susanne I had my abdominal muscles checked for diastasis recti and although I thought I still had a significant gap, Susanne assured me that my core had returned to an almost normal state after carrying E. I could notice a slight gap between my muscles that would cone out if I leaned back, showing that I still had a slight diastasis and that I hadn't completely strengthened my core back to it's pre-baby state. Little did I realize that I was actually a couple weeks pregnant at the time so I would be meeting with her again in the near future!

I am now currently working on the 6-week program and in the first three weeks of the "Elevator Exercises". When I first practiced the exercises I could feel other areas of my body trying to compensate for my weak abdominals. At 26 weeks now and with my belly stretching out and making room for baby I could feel tightness in my lower back, upper back, shoulders and legs when concentrating and breathing through the exercises. My belly button popped out much quicker this time around (a sure sign of diastasis recti) and my belly certainly cones when I crunch up.

I have finally put a full week in after having to start over a couple times. I must admit - this isn't a program for slackers! It involves concentration, breathing and body awareness and motivation! I have now got into a better routine of setting a timer and making sure I complete my exercises throughout the day. The best part is they can be done at my desk while I'm at work and during my commute in the car to and from work. No more slacking!

I am really looking forward to seeing the benefits to this program which will include:

increase core strength for pushing baby out
strengthening my pelvic floor especially since it wasn't properly strengthened after my first birth
reduced lower back pain - I had sciatic pain throughout my pregnancy with E
proper posture and uterus alignment
quicker recovery and minimizing that post-partum Mummy Tummy

I am now much more aware of my body movements especially when getting out of bed or picking up E; making sure I am supporting my core and not using any forceful forward motions. After a few days of exercises I felt some pain in my lower back but that has now diminished as my core is strengthening. Near the end of my exercises I can also feel my pelvic floor really working - just like kegels! It's amazing how these simple exercises are really giving my body a full workout.

Stay tuned for more updates as I work my bump during the next 6 weeks and beyond!

Disclosure – Susanne has offered me her services and materials in exchange for my written experience with her program. The opinions on this blog are my own.

Belly Watch! 26 weeks

2012-02-19T10:30:00.000-05:00

26 weeks with baby #2

Lessons learned from my first birth experience

2012-02-17T13:02:00.000-05:00

After finally writing out my first birth story I've decided to reflect on some of the lessons learned and how they have shaped my wishes for a home birth.

1. Get a midwife. Thoughts of switching to midwifery half way through my last pregnancy was in the back of my mind but I was too scared to make a big move. I wish I followed my gut then. This time around I did my research, made sure it was the first thing on my checklist and got a midwife immediately. I am so glad I did and will never go back now!

2. Labour at home as long as possible. I went to the hospital far too early. If I had a midwife or doula this could have been avoided. I was anxious to get the party started which just led to too many unnecessary hospital interventions that probably could have been avoided (ie. constant fetal monitoring, breaking my water, pitocin through IV to speed up the process, constant cervical checks). This time around I don't need to worry about this at all which is really exciting. Since I am planning a home birth there will be no wondering when to leave for the hospital. I can labour in the comfort of my own home and let nature take it's course without all the hoopla. The thought of this just relaxes me so much more.

3. Be aware of unnecessary interventions, especially induction. I was certainly a good patient, but I have learned a lot more about the above interventions and how they can have a negative effect on a natural birth. I am lucky that the IV was removed quickly and not needed, but having to sit on the bed and get poked in the arms up to 4 times before they properly stuck my vein was not an ideal interruption during my labour. The constant monitoring kept taking me out of my groove and was an annoying distraction.

4. Stick up for myself during labour. This is something I have already mentioned in my "What I would do differently" post over a year ago. I have learned so much more about directing my own care and not simply taking and following the nurses and doctors unnecessary orders. There were things on my birth plan that were passed by because I just kept going with the flow. This is where a doula could have come in handy for sure and a midwife would have changed a lot of this. It didn't help that Hubby was just as compliant as me.

5. Push on my own schedule. When I felt the urge to push and told the nurse, that was exactly the minute that I feel I gave up total control. From that moment on, the room became a grand central station. I've learned a lot more about the importance of listening to your body during this pushing phase. I will look to my midwife and Hubby to help me through this phase next time, but will be pushing in the position and manner that I feel most comfortable with.

6. Educate myself more about delayed cord clamping. This is something that I read about but didn't not look into further. I have now read and watched more about the benefits and this is something that I will push for my second child if circumstances allow. I can't see this being a problem at a home birth, but unfortunately it was ignored in the hospital under an OB's care.

7. Be prepared and stick up for myself when it comes to breastfeeding. Immediate skin-to-skin will be natural and not ignored this time. Not being in the hospital I can thankfully skip all the unnecessary fuss over the baby in the beginning and take our time with tests and weigh-ins, etc. I will not allow my baby to be swaddled and taken away from me unless there is an emergency.

8. Go home as soon as possible. Better yet, stay home. I never imagined I would be here, considering and deciding on a home birth. After going through many of my Mom's birth stories I am amazed with how long they kept women in the hospital after birth. Two days was enough to drive me crazy, I couldn't imagine 5 days. Having a midwife gives you the choice to go home earlier and birthing at home appeals to me that much more.

These have all been valuable lessons although I wish they were lessons that women didn't have to be faced with everyday. I am extremely grateful and feel blessed to have had a med-free birth and a healthy child and there are so many more reasons why I believe I should birth at home. I will share more on my decision for a home birth in the coming weeks.

Valentine hearts his way

2012-02-14T15:56:00.001-05:00

I had intentions to be really creative this Valentine's Day with all kinds of great inspiration on Pinterest. Afterall, this is the first year I have helped E make his very own cards. But then E got a fever on Thursday and hasn't quite been himself the last few days so we toned it down to some simple heart gluing and painting - just the way he prefers to craft. As it turns out, he was super proud of these hearts this morning as he handed them over to his day care provider, even if we started the day off with a little extra crankiness.

We left most of the crafting to last night but this weekend we were able to get a few special crafts done with him for the extra special people in his life including cute heart shaped handprints.

Happy Valentine's Day!

These crafts have been submitted to the Kids in the Capital craft carnival. This month we are celebrating Love and Kindness. Join in the fun!

E's Night Terrors

2012-02-13T10:59:00.002-05:00

In November, we had our very first experience with night terrors. E had a bit of a fever from a bug that was going around day care and thankfully it only lasted two days. However, it seemed to be directly linked to two nights in a row of night terrors.

Night #1. 5:00am - I was woken up by high pitch screaming in E's room. I went in to find E standing straight up in his crib, screaming like I have never heard him scream before. When I asked him what was wrong he did not answer. This was very unlike E. He has always been so great with his words and explaining to us what is bothering him. I called for Hubby because I was very scared at this moment. E continued to scream and would not answer us. I tried to take him out of his crib and comfort him but he pushed me away and pulled away from me like I was hurting him. We tried to wake him up/snap him out of it because it seemed like he was just having a nightmare and possibly a temper tantrum. He banged around in his crib, rubbing his head against the crib bars. IT. WAS. TERRIFYING. Hubby pulled him out next and held him close, not letting him lash out. Suddenly, he seemed to start to snap out of it. He yelled out, "milk!", so I went downstairs and grabbed a glass of almond milk for him. When I quickly returned he was sitting calmly in his father's lap, smiling and cuddling him like nothing happened. He drank his milk, we placed him back in his crib, kissed him goodnight and that was it. The whole episode lasted a LONG ten minutes.

Hubby and I went back to our room asking ourselves WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!? DO WE NEED TO CALL AN EXORCIST? WHERE DID THAT DEMON-LIKE CHILD COME FROM?! It was terrifying to say the least.

The first thing I did when I got to my desk at work that morning was Google "night temper tantrums". I didn't really know what a night terror was and had always thought they were linked to a nightmare or scary thought. E's episode from the night before seemed more like a temper tantrum to me. Every single thing linked me back to the definition of a night terror and it couldn't have defined our experience any better.
Signs:

Uncontrollable screaming and no talking.
Seems frightened but can't be awakened or consoled.
Doesn't acknowledge you.
Usually lasts 10-30 minutes.
Cannot remember them in the morning.

Tips:

Do not wake the child.
Protect them from harming themselves.
An episode will end on it's own.

We felt relieved to find an answer and were a little bit more prepared knowing what he were up against in the future.

Night #2 - 2:30am - Again I am woken up by screaming and again I walk in to see E standing in his crib. Hubby tries to hold him. He pulls away from me every time as I try to rock him in the rocking chair to encourage him to fall back asleep. If we put him in his crib he harms himself by hitting his head on his crib. He fights to be freed from Hubby's arms. Eventually after ten minutes have passed and he is still screaming we brought him into bed with us and let him kick and scream between us, hoping he will snap out of it soon. Twenty minutes later we had a happy boy again. When we asked him why he was crying it seemed like he had no idea what we were talking about.

Fast forward to last night. E had a fever at day care on Thursday so we had to pick him up early. He was not himself all day Friday and Saturday but started coming around yesterday afternoon. We knew he was overtired because of his constant wakings at night due to his fever, but he would not nap. Finally around 3:30 pm he climbed on my lap on the couch and fell asleep.

Late afternoon nap on the couch for a feverish boy

He woke up only after an hour and was not a happy camper. This time we experienced something similar to a night terror, but in the afternoon. It was a full-out temper tantrum. Poor feverish, overtired little guy. You just can't get mad at that. He went to bed fine later that evening, but again we had another terror at 3:00am this morning. It only last a few minutes and soon enough he was nuzzled in bed with me and fast asleep.

For E it seems these terrors only come when he has a fever and is overly tired. They can be very stressful for us because you feel hopeless and want to comfort them and stop the crying. I really hope we don't have many more of these, I don't think my heart can take it!

Have you ever experienced night terrors with your children?

Move over big brother

2012-02-10T20:17:00.001-05:00

The other night I settled into my regular evening spot on the gliding chair. E collected his favourite soft brown blanket and stuffed friends to join me for some bedtime stories. Every night he climbs into what Hubby and I call his "little nook", his safe haven on my lap.

I look back now at how this nook as evolved from a cradle hold while I nursed him to sleep as a baby, to an acrobatic half cradle-half sitting up spot as a young toddler as we neared the end of our nursing relationship, to sitting straight up with his back against my belly with books in hand. The last few months his position has changed once again. I can no longer bare his weight on my belly and so he sits almost completely sideways on my lap to make room for his books, teddy, penguin, giraffe, blanket and of course, my growing belly.

As I leaned over the side of the chair to retrieve the books he had picked out and stacked on the floor beside me, he tried to climb up onto my knees without my assistance. Next thing I knew he was half off my lap and tilting backwards into a spiral flip to the floor in slow motion. Huge gasps and cries followed and I was convinced he had a minor concussion from hitting his head off the door of the closet. He surprisingly didn't have any marks and was more frightened than anything. I couldn't stop thinking about it all night.

I felt terrible for not paying more attention. I also felt terrible because he knows our new routine and his new nook so well, that he was being careful not to push against my belly. In minding my space, he lost track of his balance.

I picked him up so quickly and held him tight. Once he caught his breath and settled down he asked, "Mommy, can you push over your belly?"

Explaining to an almost three year old that my belly won't be going anywhere anytime soon and that it will soon be replaced with someone who will rock his world even more is nearly impossible. It seems like little brother or sister is already getting a head start in marking their territory. Poor big brother has no idea what is about to hit him!

Mom's Birth Stories: Seventh of Eleven

2012-02-09T07:27:00.002-05:00

The following is my Mom's seventh birth story (it's me!). For a little background, check out my first post about this series, Mom's Birth Stories, her First Birth Story, Second Birth Story, Third Birth Story, Fourth Birth Story, Fifth Birth Story and Sixth Birth Story.

Her story is broken into 4 sections: Pregnancy, Labour and Delivery, Breastfeeding and Reflections. I have also provided some of my comments and reflections at the end.

Pregnancy
My husband and I didn’t have a set number picked out for the size of our family. I often thought early on that if I could put in an order for them I would have asked for two of each sex, however life doesn’t work that way.

Up to now I’d been praying for another girl once I’d become pregnant so this time I decided to ask and pray before the fact. Over the years I’ve found that it’s when I surrender to God’s will that he has blessed me with more than I deserve so I was prepared to stop at 6 children with only one daughter if that was what He wanted, however I was still hopeful.

Some comments I received prior to the birth were negative and skeptical. They said that even if I had a girl that the difference in age (nine years) would mean that these sisters would never be close. I retorted that my mother-in-law’s younger sister was nine years younger than her and they had a great relationship; also my older brother’s wife is nine years younger than him and that they hope to spend the rest of their lives together.

I learned that my previous doctor was doing abortions which I did not agree with so I switched to another obstetrician. He looked at family history and because my mother had triplets (still born) he scheduled an ultrasound. This was my first ultrasound but back then the technicians did not reveal the sex and I was afraid to ask for fear of being turned down anyway. I learned only that there was one baby. He asked if I smoked because the baby was small. I’ve never smoked. The doctor said I was due on August 28which is our wedding anniversary.

Labour and Delivery

She was born just after midnight(12:08 am) on that date. As she was born I was happy to hear that she was a girl and then I asked what time it was to see if she had indeed arrived on our anniversary. Hallelujah! My husband was with me and fed me some ice chips to keep my mouth from becoming too dry during the labour (all that breathing).

The labour length was 5 ½ hours. There was a woman resident doctor who delivered #7. My doctor didn’t arrive in time. She said it was better to message the area below (perineal massage) and let it stretch and tear rather than cut so I didn’t have an episiotomy for the first time. She did however break the membranes which didn’t seem to want to rupture on their own. I ended up with a few stitches which healed quickly. Her weight was 8 lbs ½ oz.

Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding the same day with no problems. I breastfed her for 13 and ½ months.

Mom's Reflections

Best part of this pregnancy was having an understanding woman doctor for the delivery and welcoming our second daughter on our 12^th anniversary.

The worst part was developing minor varicose veins on my left leg (during pregnancy) and the painful delivery (it never really got easier).

This experience taught me to be thankful and glad I persevered.

My Reflections
This was an exciting birth story to write out because it is my birth story. It's interesting to read my Mom's views about her family size as it continues to grow and how her committment to her Roman Catholic beliefs shine through.

I like to tease that I am lucky #7 because I was the girl my parents were hoping for AND I was born on their wedding anniversary. But you can't pick favourites right? Right?

I mentioned some of the details of this birth story to a friend and she asked if I thought some of the details were ironic. Afterall, I have taken quite a liken to natural birth and this happens to be the first birth my Mom has a understanding woman doctor who also puts a stop to the unnessary episiotomies. I think that is kind of cool.

Oh and 7th baby and labour still isn't easy? That puts all those silly comments people have to rest that think after a few births the baby practically slips right out.

Keeping tabs:

Baby #1 - Boy - October 5, 1972

Baby #2 - Girl - February 24, 1974
Baby #3 - Boy - June 10, 1975
Baby #4 - Boy - November 23, 1977
Baby #5 - Boy - July 4, 1979
Baby #6 - Boy - December 22, 1980
Baby #7 - Girl - August 28, 1983

Choices

2012-02-08T18:18:00.005-05:00

I’m independent. Hubby’s independent. We don’t like peopletelling us what to do and I wouldn’t expect my child to react well with demandsor under a bossy authoritative roll either.

I hated feeling like I didn't have a choice growing up. In ourhouse it was my parents way or the highway. It was worse when my Dad put down his strict foot. It was his way or well, his way. No questions asked, no other sides considered. Do what you are told anddo it now. This is right and you are wrong. I didn’t put up a fight oftenbecause I knew it wasn’t worth it, but when you are told to do something or gosomewhere it never feels good. You feelpressured, controlled and uncomfortable. If given the chance to make a choice on my own maybe I would made the“right” choice or maybe not. But I would have learned from those choices nevertheless. The choices I could have been given didn't have to be bigchoices, just something, anything to make me feel like I could think formyself.

This is where a lot of my parenting around “choices” comefrom. While E is still a long way frommaking any big choices in life, I want him toexplore his independence and feel comfortable and supported in that role. I also want to minimize temper tantrums. It's a win-win situation.

Sometimes it’s hard. Especially those mornings where I justwant him to put his boots on already inside of fish-flopping around on thefloor giggling and making a game out of my building stress because I’m runninglate. Or those days I want him to eat his dinner and he refuses and tries toleave the table. Or the days I pick him up from day care and he doesn’t want toleave. These are the days I try toremember to take a step back and place myself in his little shoes. These arethe times that I try to remember that my little independent man just wants tofeel like he has the power to make a simple choice. And choices are what I try topresent him with.

Most of the time giving him a choicemakes him feel more at ease, in charge and much easier to handle. Little does he know, he doesn't usually have a choice in the end result - it's just how we get there that makes all the difference.

Every morning he is given many choices. WhileMommy is in the shower, he can go play in his playroom, “sleep for 1 moreminute” or cuddle in bed with Daddy. Before we leave the house he chooses between a red, orange or yellow vitamin. When I pick him up later in the day at day care I try not to walk in and say,“It’s time to go home. Let’s go.” Lately he has been resisting and has wantedto stay with his friends, especially if he is one of the first to be pickedup. Yesterday I asked, “When we get homedo you want to play hockey first or do you want to help Mommy make dinner?” Inanswering my questions with his preferred choice he usually completely forgetsabout the current task of putting on his coat and boots and happily skips outthe door looking forward to the choice he has made. Success. When making dinner I like to include him in meal planningand the odds are he is more likely to eat it. Last night I asked, “Should wecut up carrots or cucumber?” and we were both perfectly happy with his choiceof, “Boff of fem”.

Sometimes these choices can backfire, like when he chooses neither and says, “nufing”, instead. Or when I catch myself giving him a choice that gives him all the power by mistake like, “Do you want to go home now?”. But if I carefully give him easy choices to make with the same end result in mind, things are easier on both of us and makes for a happy little toddler.

Choices – one of myfavourite parenting tricks!

The No-Cry Sleep Method and my little interview in Canadian Family magazine

2012-02-07T21:12:00.000-05:00

The Sleep Doula contacted me on Twitter after I replied that I had success with the No-Cry sleep method and I agreed to answer a few questions for Canadian Family magazine.

Clips of my interview were strewn together in a spread about different sleep "training" methods titled, "A Good Night Sleep: Finding the best sleep-training option for your family". The methods listed were Cry-it-Out, Supported, No-Cry, and Co-sleeping or Bed-sharing. I've used a bit of each except cry-it-out (it didn't suit me and my family), but I found Elizabeth Pantley's book, The No-Cry Sleep Solution to be my best resource. I had actually just recommended this book to a friend who is a new mother just days before the interview. In the interview, I talked a bit about how this book helped me, including:

Helping me become a more mindful parent and understand normal infant sleep habits
Effective nursing to sleep and staying asleep strategies
Introducing a "lovey" to ease into nap times and the day care transition
The importance of a night time routine and consistency from me

These are all things that worked for my family and I highly recommend this book to any new parent.

Here's a shot of the page. To read the full article pick up the March 2012 issue of Canadian Family.

I am happy with how my little interview went and how appears in print. It's kind of neat seeing your name in a magazine!

P.S I'm loving Twitter these days but I have to admit it took me awhile to get into it. If you are on Twitter and we haven't connected yet, be sure to send me a hello at @aliciafagan!

24 weeks

2012-02-06T11:03:00.000-05:00

In my 17 week update I wrote a bit about the differences in this pregnancy compared to when I was pregnant with E. I'm still experiencing the huge food let downs and gagging and feel like I'm growing like crazy. In fact a coworker recently told me that I was huge and the equivalent size of another coworker on the day she left for her maternity leave. Awesome, I look 9 months pregnant! I actually don't look that huge I promise. I'll try to get around to a belly shot soon to prove it.

A couple things have changed. Baby's heart rate has been around the 130 bpm rate lately and many of the old wives tales are pointing toward's boy. During the first trimester I was convinced it was a girl, but now I'm thinking boy. And I can only think of boy names. Maybe it's just easier to match a name up with an older brother?

I'm still tired, but instead of falling asleep whenever I can I was hit with a bit of insomnia for the last few weeks. Waking up for work in the morning has not been fun.

I had an ultrasound at 19 weeks and the baby was very active. Measurements went well until the Ultrasound Tech had to measure the spine at which time the baby would not cooperate. I even stood up and moved around a bit hoping it would help. I ended up having to go back the following week at which time it took maybe 10 minutes because baby was in perfect position. I made sure to tell the the Tech that I did not want to know the sex. It was tough closing my eyes and looking the other way while she took measurements in those areas, but I stood my ground without peeking.

I discussed my wishes for a home birth with my midwife. I was nervous telling her that we were moving and was worried she might not approve of the distance if we do decide to move just out of town. I was relieved when she was not concerned at all and was very welcoming in my plans. So I am really excited to announce that a home birth is my official plan and I am moving full steam ahead watching home birth videos and reading all kinds of great resources. I'll share some of my learning's here soon.

I feel so empowered with this pregnancy because 1) I've been there and done that and 2) my midwife is awesome. There's something about feeling like you have a choice that makes you feel more at ease about your decisions. I was able to opt out of the glucose test (the one for gestational diabetes) and that is something I would have never questioned during my first pregnancy. It's hard to explain but it just feels great. I don't feel like a patient when I'm at my appointments. I feel like I have a new friend that is empowering and supporting me every step of the way.

So I'm feeling great overall and really can't complain. I've started a new exercise routine at my workplace gym during my lunch hour and it feels great to have more of a routine with my walking again. Last week I started the Tupler Technique program through Kangaroo Fitness and this week I'm starting Prenatal Yoga with Little Lotus Yoga. So many exciting things starting this month that I'll be sure to update you on soon!

He dreams of hockey

2012-02-03T23:16:00.000-05:00

I've always figured any child of ours would be a lover of sports. E has been sitting on the sidelines of ball hockey, baseball, soccer, hockey and golf for all of his 2.5 years so far. Hockey has been his sport of choice and there is nothing more exciting to him than an invite to play road hockey or to go watch one of Daddy's games.

Lately I have been thinking, can being THIS obsessed with one thing be healthy for him? I work in national sport and one model that is frequently talked about is Long Term Athlete Development (LTAD). If you are thinking I am already considering my child to be a national level athlete, that is not what I am getting at. It's just one thing that will always be at the back of my mind - raising a child that is well-rounded and tries a number of sports rather than streamlining and focusing on one sport alone.

That being said the more I thought today about E's current hockey obsession the more I feel like I should embrace it. I think as parents we can only help our children learn and flourish by embracing their current interests and help them explore them further. When E was really interested in bugs this summer I took him to the library and we brought home a stack of books about bugs and we explored bugs in the grass at the park. When he talks about wanting to bake, I pull him up to the counter and we measure and stir and watch our creation rise in the oven window. Why should this be any different?

Over the holidays Hubby was given a box to the Senator's skills competition and so we invited some friends and the kids had a blast. Do you think E has forgotten that experience? The weekends can sometimes get tiring when he is constantly asking to go back to the Scotiabank Place, but how can we not laugh?

The last 24 hours may have been the highlight of his current love for hockey.

Last night we cleaned up the playroom, organizing all the toy bins and clearing the floor of the mess. When finished, E declared the wide open space we created to be the ice and with Hubby's old hand-me-down helmet on my head and one of his Lemieux jersey's on, I was the goalie and E was the "player". At bedtime, along with some other books we read the usual NHL Hockey Shapes book and Robert Munsch's Just One Goal and I tucked E into bed with nothing but hockey on the brain.

This morning as he sat on the toilet he told me all about Hubby's friend who plays goalie and then went off to retrieve his equipment to bring to bed with Hubby while I jumped in the shower. This is what I saw and what I see daily when I got out of the shower.

What do you mean I'm going to daycare and not the Scotiabank Place?

The hockey equipment was then returned to it's "safe place" in the playroom where we leave it everyday to avoid a fight. He is usually very compliant knowing that as soon as he gets home he can run upstairs and find it exactly where he left it.

Tonight after packing up his goalie equipment and carting it around the house in his "hockey bag" otherwise known as my cloth grocery bag we settled down for some bedtime stories. The Cat in the Hat and Click, Clack, Moo made the cut tonight along with an unusual but very fitting choice. Pulled from the shelf where I have been keeping a stack of Hubby's childhood sports heroes was this novel and he sat through the entire first chapter.

Bedtime story

Sweet hockey dreams my baby boy.

Mom's Birth Stories: Sixth of Eleven

2012-02-02T14:59:00.001-05:00

The following is my Mom's sixth birth story. For a little background, check out my first post about this series, Mom's Birth Stories, her First Birth Story, Second Birth Story, Third Birth Story, Fourth Birth Story and Fifth Birth Story.

Her story is broken into 4 sections: Pregnancy, Labour and Delivery, Breastfeeding and Reflections. I have also provided some of my comments and reflections at the end.

Pregnancy
This pregnancy happened while nursing #5. All thoughts ofhaving that second daughter seemed unlikely because this baby was big and long(up under my ribs in the last month). I told my daughter my suspicions so asnot to get her hopes up.

When I was about 4months pregnant with this baby I was having my hair cut in a friend’s homesalon. An older lady waiting her turn noticed my bump and asked me if I was pregnantagain. I said yes to which she replied, “You bad girl!” I was shocked at her comment because I wasmarried and I thought I was taking good care of the ones I had already. She had fouradult children of her own. I explained that we felt very fortunate to be ableto have children which we loved because many young couples are infertile and desperately want to have children. She concluded, "That’s a very good wayof looking at it”.

Labour and Delivery
Due date was December 20th. I figured about the 23rd. Born Dec 22, 1980 at 1:10 pm.
Labour length 4 hours. He was induced.
Weight - 7 lbs 11 oz.

My doctor (OB) was going on holidays and wouldn’tbe around after the 22nd so he asked me if I wanted to have this baby beforeChristmas. I said yes so he said come in Monday morning at 8 am. When we got into town my husband was starving so we went to a restaurant and he ate a bigbreakfast in front of me. I wasn’t in labour and was hungry but didn’t see thepoint in eating and then having an enema later. It was a vivid memory.

The nurse started an IV drip in my arm but nothing reallystarted until 9am. The labour pains came on very similar to natural labour butprogressed quickly. The delivery was very similar to my previous pregnancies.An episiotomy was cut as usual.

This was my husband’s first time in the delivery room. Iremember squeezing his hand during the intense pains. It was like night and dayto have my husband there beside me and to both share the joy of our baby’sbirth together.

Hospital stay was only 2 days this time, returning on the 24th, Christmas Eve.

Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding the same day with no problems. I breastfed him for 11 months.

Mom's Reflections
When I got home from the hospital my only daughter said,“Mom, I just want you to have one more, a girl”. I sure didn’t feel like itright then but I said we’ll see.

I remember sitting in the rocking chair (in the playroom while the children played around her) the day I got homeand nursing the baby and I inadvertently exclaimed (while suffering severeafterbirth pains) that maybe I shouldn’t have come home so soon. The children inunison said, "We’ll help Mommy, please stay home.”

I asked Mom to elaborate on Dad's presence at birth for the first time. Her response:

Dad was very supportive. He said it was stressful to see me in such pain but it was less stressful than not knowing what was happenening before. He realized that once fathers were allowed in that it was only right that they should share in their child's birth. Before then, he felt that he shouldn't be there because he could be in the way and he wasn't a doctor or nurse. He remembers feeling happy that the baby was healthy and that the pregnancy had come to an end (long time). He was relieved that it was over.

My Reflections

Starting with this pregnancy, I notice the beginning of Mom's memories of lovely "comments" from others (like the one at the hair salon) about her family size. I love how she never fights back but simply answers time and time again that she is blessed. I don't think I could be that strong against criticism.

I cringed when I first heard about her induction because I've learned that medical inductions for a non-medical reasons are very scary and can turn ugly. I find it funny that her OB could get away with going straight to an IV strictly because it was the holidays and he was going on vacation. But Mom agreed and was ready to have that baby so it was her choice. I am so glad that she lucked out and didn't have any set backs or problems with this birth because of it.

Can you believe Dad's nerve eating that big meal in front of her? I guess it was her choice not to eat, but she was preparing for her sixth enema. I still can't believe they continued to give enema's every time back then.

A couple people asked about her repeated episiotomies. This was her sixth birth and six episiotomy. She had the same OB (a male) for birth 1-3 and then again the same OB (a male) from birth 4-6. This was standard procedure for these OB's. Mom said she didn't have any issues with scar tissue and since she was always healthy she healed quickly. Her body had a sufficient amount of time to properly heal between each birth ranging from 1 1/2 to 3 1/2 years apart. I am happy to report that this was her last episiotomy, but you'll have to read the next birth stories to find out more!

I also had to laugh at my Mom's comments as she was surrounded by all six kids in the playroom on Christmas Eve. It must have been an overwhelming time for her. I already have this feeling with baby #2 on the way!

Keeping tabs:

Baby #1 - Boy - October 5, 1972

Baby #2 - Girl - February 24, 1974
Baby #3 - Boy - June 10, 1975
Baby #4 - Boy - November 23, 1977
Baby #5 - Boy - July 4, 1979
Baby #6 - Boy - Dec 22, 1980

The guessing game

2012-02-01T07:00:00.004-05:00

Part of the fun of not knowing the baby’s sex is trying to guess what ‘it’ will be. There are quite a few theories and old wives tales out there so I thought I would test some out.

Ancient Chinese Birth Chart
Factoring in my age and month of conception, we’re having a girl.

Cravings
Salty = girl, sweet = boy. Uh oh, I crave both. Yet, I have always craved chocolate and sweets more than salty, so I’m going to give this one to the girl because I rarely crave salty otherwise.

Heart rate
If the heart rate is above 140-150bpm you are having a girl, below that it’s a boy. It’s best to only test in the last half of the pregnancy and it worked for predicting E’s gender. E’s heart rate was always around the 150bpm in the beginning and dropped to a steady 120bpm near the end. This pregnancy started around 160bpm and now sits at 130bpm. I’m predicting boy again, according to this.

Beauty
Another saying is the when you are pregnant with a girl she “steals your beauty”, hence making you gain more weight and have poor skin features, etc. I haven’t had much weight gain (yet) and skin has stayed the same. Boy, again!

Belly shape
If you carry low and out front it’s a boy. If you carry high and everywhere it’s a girl. So far I am just carrying low just like I did with E but I don’t believe this one as much because it all depends on your body shape. Boy it is I guess.

Ring direction
For this one you attach your wedding ring to a string and hold it above your belly. Hubby tested this one out and after I discovered he was actually swing the string I demanded a redo. If the ring swings in a circular motion is a girl. If it swings back and forth, boy. Back and forth it was = boy!

That makes the score 4 for boy, 2 for girl!

Just for continued fun I found this quiz on the About.com website called: “Boy or Girl” and this answer at the end of my quiz made me laugh.

You answered 5 items out of 10 Yes.
Your score is 50%. Congratulations! According to the Old Wives it's a boy!
So, you’re telling me it’s a 50/50 chance?

Hungry Caterpillar Craft

2012-01-31T21:51:00.000-05:00

One of E’s favourite books is The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. I’ve been reading it to him since he was a tiny little babe in my arms and it’s fascinating to me that he can now sit on my lap and count and name the colours along with me. Also amazing is how turning that last page to see the beautiful butterfly never ever seems to get old.

E and I made some crafts to celebrate his love for this book. A few weeks ago we made some caterpillar’s out of recycled egg cartons, but the excitement was short-lived and they didn't stay in one piece for long.

This week we made a new craft using construction paper, a marker, scissors and some glue. We cut out all the fruit and numbered them, cut out a leaf, cocoon, the caterpillar himself and as E like's to recite, the "beautiful butterfly".

Now when we read the book together E can count the fruit and show me the colours. He can place the caterpillar inside the cocoon and he can show off and fly his decorated butterfly. This has been one of our favourite crafts so far!

This family craft was made for the Kids Create! Kids in the Capital January Craft Carnival.

One of those weeks

2012-01-30T13:50:00.000-05:00

After a weekend of no naps last weekend, I mentioned to E's day care provider (DCP) that I thought he might be growing out of his naps. Something that I have been denying for some time now. Monday and Tuesday proved this to be true when he refused to go to bed at his regular bed time and didn't seem tired at all after being well rested from a 2 hour nap in the afternoon. Wednesday his DCP and I decided we would try him on an 1 hour nap schedule and that has seemed to work much better, but he is still fighting bed times. I think we need to get rid of that nap all together but I am just trying to hold onto it as long as possible. What on earth am I going to do when baby #2 comes along?! Ah! The thought of it stresses me out a bit.

Hubby worked late nights all week and almost all day all weekend which meant he needed his rest in the mornings and I was on both morning and evening routines all by myself. I nearly lost my mind. Most mornings E was compliant, others he tested every little bit of my patience and sanity. Thank goodness for Hubby's ability to swoop in and be the nice guy and smooth things over. Yes, I just said thank goodness. Honestly, I'm fine with E listening to him right now even if it means that I'm the bad guy in the house. As long as there is some type of answer to the madness, I'll take it.

Since I spent most of my week and weekend lone-parenting I didn't have the energy or the enthusiasm to be out and about. So, to show how much of an amazing Mother I am I ended up losing my patience, raising my voice and realized how frustrated I could get at the silliest of things. Okay, it really wasn't that bad. We made muffins, went sledding, cuddled and all that awesome Mother stuff, but I still feel like a failure. I was only impatient and frustrated with Hubby's work schedule and I took it out on E. Not fair to him at all. I was just not myself. So when I put E to bed last night and told him I was sorry for being a cranky Mommy I went downstairs and had a little cry to myself.

When Hubby got home we declared this our first giant failing-as-parents week and vowed to make things better. Chocolate and copious amounts of junk food were eaten while we sulked. Then we watched Dodgeball, which could possibly be the stupidest movie ever, but it was good for some cheap laughs.

And today I am out and about playing hooky from work. Because not only do I have a million things to do after accomplishing nothing this weekend, but every once and a while Mama needs a day to herself and if that means taking a mental-health day every once and a while - call me crazy!

Birth, parenting and an open mind

2012-01-25T12:20:00.000-05:00

Source

I had a rather disappointing encounter with a stranger theother day. In noticing I was pregnant,she struck up a conversation with me asking if I was excited and if it was myfirst. The usual questions. I told herit was my second and that, yes, I was really excited. She then proceeded to tell me that sheaccompanied her best friend during her first birth last year and it was herfirst birth experience. Her friend received an epidural and she couldn’t “believewhy anyone wouldn’t get one of those!” and that she “doesn’t know anyone youwouldn’t dare get one!” and that “they are amazing!”. I calmly replied, “Um, me.”And went about my business. I receivedblank stares and “OMG’s!” and all kinds of weird looks. She asked, “we’ll wasn’tit so painful?” and “are you going to do THAT again?” in a way that made mebelieve that she thought I would be crazy for putting myself through that seeminglyhellish torture again. I calmly repliedthat yes, it was painful, but that it was a good pain. I wasn’t suffering andthat at the end of my experience I knew I would be getting the best gift – a baby!and so it was all worth it. I only received a big blank stare and “WOW” in response,but I really hope it was enough to open her eyes and mind a little and plantthat little seed that birth can be natural and normal and GASP! not traumatic.

I really struggle with these situations. It is terribly sad to know and encounteryoung women who have no idea how birth is intended. All they know is what they see on TV which isa terrible depiction of a normal birth or what they hear through friends whohave had traumatic birth experiences for whatever reason or perhaps storiesfrom their mothers when things could have been A LOT different (trust me orread my Mom’s birth stories). Normalbirth is sadly not normal these days. Itmakes me want to take on a huge awareness campaign. It’s just frustrating that I actually hadthis conversation; that young women my age know so very little about birth.

I am not expert by any means but I have done my fair share on reading upon birth and have educated myself on the topic so that I am comfortable andexcited to give birth. Yes, excited! I am one of those crazy birth junkies whobelieves that birth is amazing and beautiful. I love birth. In saying that, I try to stay away from themillion facts I could rhyme off. I try not to be judgemental or defensive. Itry to be calm and cool and answer questions ever so matter-of-factly. Throwing out stats won’t help me in thesesituations. Responding as if naturalbirth is completely normal, hopefully will.

I also try to remember that I was once a childless women whowas uneducated on birth and other parenting topics. What would my pre-baby selfask or say in response?

Maybe I came into parenting at an advantage? My mother hadnatural births and breastfed. I grew up on a farm and birth happened regularly.Running to the barn to see a cow give birth was thrilling, not scary. Watching new kittens nurse was so very cool. I grew up around nature so as an adult I didn’thave reason to think that these things were anything but natural. I neverreally doubted that natural birth was for me.

Becoming a mother has opened my eyes A LOT and looking backI realize that I used to be very closed-minded on certain topics too. Some of these very stereotypical sayings cameout of my mouth.

Co-sleeping and bed sharing? My childless self thought that itwas too risky and would foster too much dependence in baby. As a new mother, Isoon found out that co-sleeping was one of the best ideas out there, thatbreastfeeding while lying down in bed just to get even a few more minutes ofshut-eye was nothing but heaven-sent and that baby of mine just wanted to beclose to me – why would I deny him that?

Breastfeeding? I never understood the benefits of extendedbreastfeeding until after I weaned my son at 16 months. When I was childless I didn’tunderstand those who breastfed after GASP! the child could ask for it. How many times do we hear women say that achild is too old to breastfeed if they can ask for it? The truth is, your childhas been “asking for it” since they day they were born through cries, grunts,etc. The only difference now is thatthey can communicate their wants in words, cute little sayings or baby signlanguage. Tandem nursing was always an unknown to me. Now? I think it isfreaking awesome.

It’s amazing how far a little education can go. It’s a beautiful thing when all those trialsand errors work and you find what works best for you and your family despitewhat others may recommend or condemn. And an open mind? It is one of life’smost powerful tools.

Looking for our new home

2012-01-24T21:11:00.000-05:00

Last year I ranted a bit about a potential move. As it turned out, we decided to stay in our current home for a another year and that year is now coming to an end. I've been religiously checking home listings and inundating Hubby's inbox with links to homes that may be worth a look-see. The truth is none of them really cut it on paper, so I knew they wouldn't really in person either.

I think my problem is that I want to move SO badly. I love this area that we live in, but not exactly our street or unit. We have been living in our small three bedroom terrace home for four years now and it has never really felt like home. I want a home of my own, one that I can make my own without worrying about rental agreements. I want to live in a family friendly area. I want more space. Want, want, want.

This week I finally found a house that I feel fits the bill, almost. It's in a small town a short-commute from the city. It's within walking distance to shops and surrounded by beautiful scenery. It is in gorgeous shape. The only thing is the lack of bedrooms. The best part? Hubby is completely on board. So on board that we have booked a viewing for this week! Who knows if it is "the one", but we are both excited to check it out and really get serious about the home buying and moving business.

This whole experience starting last year and leading into the last few months had me completely change my point of view. Originally wanting something bigger and newer, I then went to small and fixer-upper. Now I am completely happy with something just slightly bigger than what we have now. Bedrooms? I am considering bunking the kids in the same room if it means I can have a finished basement. Big back yard? I am considering a small yard if it means we are near a big park. In the country? I am more interested in small town, walking distance to things now. I've changed a lot of my priority list because I know I can't have it all (HGTV anyone?). It is also important for me not to settle, as I have a tendency to do when it comes to big things like this. It doesn't have to be perfect and timing is not on our side. Fingers crossed that things work out!

Mom's Birth Stories: Fifth of Eleven

2012-01-20T09:15:00.000-05:00

The following is my Mom's fifth birth story. For a little background, check out my first post about this series, Mom's Birth Stories, her First Birth Story, Second Birth Story, Third Birth Story and Fourth Birth Story.

Her story is broken into 4 sections: Pregnancy, Labour and Delivery, Breastfeeding and Reflections. I have also provided some of my comments and reflections at the end.

Pregnancy
I got pregnant while nursing #4 (then weaned #4 at 11 months) probably because I had introduced juice as well on Doctor’s recommendation.

This was the only baby that I really didn’t have the right sense for. I thought he was going to be a girl. Perhaps it was because I really want another daughter and sister for my first girl. He turned out to be the smallest/lightest boy but is now probably the heaviest and tallest!

Labour and Delivery
My contractions started a couple of days before on the 2nd of July but he wasn’t born until July 4th at 9:58 AM. We had gone to City Park to wait for the contractions to be steady and stronger before going to the hospital and I was definitely in labour when we checked in but after a few hours the contractions stopped. The nurses said they’d keep me overnight but all was quiet into the 3rd of July. After my husband left for the evening chores (on the farm) I decided to do some serious walking and kept walking for hours until contractions began again. It wasn’t until early morning that I knew it would probably be impossible for my husband to be by my side. The irony was that this time he was planning to be there for the birth. This was before cell phones and before my husband could leave his work so by the time he came in the morning after chores I had already had #5. I remember a doctor walking by who had been in the delivery room an hour before and looked at me propped up in my bed smiling (I was thinking how my husband didn’t have to go through that delivery experience and that we had another healthy son) and he commented, "You just look too happy to have just had a baby!"

My husband had no idea that the baby had arrived since no one had told him so when they directed him to the recovery room where I was he asked me if I had had any more contractions yet. Perhaps they thought he knew or it was another shift of nurses, I don’t know and maybe because I still had a bit of a belly right after and the sheets covered me and of course baby was taken to the nursery, he didn't have a clue. I laughed and said. "Oh, they didn’t tell you? Happy early birthday it’s another boy!

Baby #5 weighed 7 pounds 6 ounces.

While in the hospital I met a lady, J, who was expecting her fourth child as well. She had three girls and was looking for a boy. I had three boys and a girl and was looking for another girl. After when we met at the nursery, she told me that she had another girl and I told her I’d another boy. We both laughed because we were in the same boat. It turned out that her husband was an engineer on the ferry which I had to take to get to the hospital. We met again years later and she did end up having a boy as her fifth child and I eventually had another girl too...and then some.

Baby #5 was lying transverse like #3 and had to be turned so again I had a lot of brusing and again I don’t know if they used forceps or not. That whole business was painful and I guess I hollered out in pain because J asked what time I delivered which matched up with hers and she said she could hear me in the next room and asked if I was always that noisy. I said not usually, but it helped to scream a little while in extreme pain.

The labour length was 4 hrs of false and 8 hrs of real. An epsiotomy was cut as usual. Like #4, this was another drug-free birth.

Breastfeeding
I weaned #5 at 10 months because I was pregnant with #6.

Mom's Reflections
The best part of this pregnancy was staying in the hospital after false labour and finishing the job (unlike baby #3's false labour). The worst part was the painful delivery.

The sad story was big sister wanted a sister and big brothers wanted a brother so it was like a game and the boys cheered when they were told, but sister cried. She was very excited to help care for the new baby though and grew to love him regardless of his sex.

My Reflections
Mom said this birth was very similar to #3 because of the false labour and because of the baby's transverse position. It's funny, however, she also explains that not one birth was the same as another. Each were very unique experiences. She must have experienced a lot of pain with the transverse adjustment, but powered through without drugs!

I find it funny that when my Dad finally could attend and had prepared himself to be at the birth, the timeline didn't work out and he needed to tend to the farm (the cow's needed to be milked). Also, it's funny that he walked in the next day not knowing baby had already arrived! Mom is quite the trooper for going through these births on her own.

Keeping tabs:

Baby #1 - Boy - October 5, 1972
Baby #2 - Girl - February 24, 1974
Baby #3 - Boy - June 10, 1975
Baby #4 - Boy - November 23, 1977
Baby #5 - Boy - July 4, 1979

A couple more toddler approved salad dressings

2012-01-18T23:21:00.000-05:00

I've shared one of E's favourite salad dressings before - Toddler Approved Avocado Salad Dressing - and I thought I would share a couple more that we have tried that have received raving reviews from my little salad lover.

Salad dressing is something that I stopped purchasing over a year ago. I started paying attention to all the questionable ingredients and in E's case, all of the dairy ingredients. It was only natural to start exploring with different tastes and homemade recipes.

Regular ingredients in my house include a blend of fresh garlic, parsley, lemon, extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar and apple cider vinegar. Eventually I'll get around to exploring with more oils and spices, but these basic ingredients are my go-to's right now. Here are a couple other recipes that I have on a dinner rotation at our house:

Dairy-free ranch dressing

Hubby and I used to LOVE ranch dressing and went through some withdrawals when we made our house dairy-free. This is a relatively new recipe to me that I have now made numerous times. I usually toss it with a standard garden style salad and has E asking for seconds. It is especially perfect for dipping raw veggies. I plop it down on the table when I get home at the end of the day and it holds E over until I have dinner ready. This dressing is from one of my favourite food blogs, Adventures of a Gluten free Mom.

Tahini-lemon dressing

I actually only tried this recipe for the first time last night, but it will be on a regular rotation from now on! We enjoyed it with a bok choy, apple and carrot slaw/salad and I couldn't keep E's fingers out of the bowl. Delicious. This recipe is from another favourite healthy food blog, Oh She Glows.

I hope your toddlers enjoy them just as much!

E's Birth - My First Birth Experience

2012-01-17T22:09:00.001-05:00

Originally it was my plan to finish off my Mom's Birth Story Series with my first birth story, but I decided to take advantage of a sudden urge to write it all out today. It really is about time I get around to writing out my birth story with E. After going through almost half of my Mom's birth stories, I can really see how much of a great influence she was on me. I am fortunate to have had her expertise in the field on my side. And many of the stories she shared with me when I was pregnant for the first time encouraged me to research more and ask my Doctor more questions. So thank you Mom! As I prepare for the birth of our second child in May, I think it is an important step to reflect on my experience not only for strength and encouragement but writing of the actual birth plan.

E's Birth Story

I had the two weeks off on vacation before my due date (April 23, 2009). My plan was to prep the house, baby clothes, etc and prepare some freezer meals to have for when baby came. I had an OB with E, but most of my appointments were with a nurse (rarely the same one) and my OB would whisk in for the last few minutes for questions. At my 39 week appointment a nurse performed a cervical check to see if "how close I was". I didn't know any better then, but I know now how ridiculous these checks are. She told me I wasn't even close, that the baby was still too high and that I would be over due. Talk about depressing. Leaving the office that day I had a little cry in the car with Hubby. I was SO ready for this baby and the nurse had just squashed every little hope I had for going early.

After a day of self-pity I picked myself up and continued with my daily exercise routine. I was in excellent physical shape while pregnant; running on the treadmill until 7.5 months and then continuing to walk briskly every day until the end. I took the dog for long walks, up hills and through the woods. I was on a mission to walk this baby into motion.

Two days later, a Saturday morning at 9am, I woke up with extra pep and decided to make Hubby and I pancakes for breakfast. While I was preparing our meal in the kitchen I felt a trickle in my underwear and ran upstairs thinking I was peeing my pants. It turned out to be the "bloody show". I had read about the bloody show but to be honest the sight of it freaked me out. I called the hospital to speak with a nurse in the delivery unit and she told me it would be a good idea to come in and get checked to be safe. After breakfast we headed in.

I was hooked up to monitor and had a cervical check again that showed that I was only 2 cm dilated. The nurse asked me if I had a high pain threshold in which I replied "I think so". She was monitoring my contractions which were consistently 3 minutes apart and had been noticing that I didn't even twitch. I could barely feel them, but they were coming up as stronger than she expected.

We were sent off to walk around for an hour to see if I would progress. We were told to stay at the hospital but Hubby and I went out and grabbed some lunch and did a little shopping instead. We even found a great new diaper pail that we hadn't got around to getting yet! I called my parents and told them I was in the early stages of labour. When we returned it was determined that I was not progressed enough to stay at the hospital and we were sent home. I was discouraged but happy at the same time. As a first time Mom, knowing "when" to go the hospital was my biggest battle. I really wanted to labour at home. On the way home we stopped at the grocery store to stock our fridge and I remember seeing family friends who asked how I was feeling. I was so exciting to tell them that the time was very near.

That evening, Hubby had a hockey game at 11pm and while the contractions subsided I decided, that why not, let's go to the game to keep my mind off of things. I watched from the stands and let him know that if he saw me waving frantically that he was to get off the ice immediately. Back home that night I woke at 2am with contractions again and although they weren't very strong, they were consistent and the anticipation was building. I couldn't sleep so I decided to have a warm bath and then went downstairs to rock on my yoga ball while watching TV. At 6am I woke Hubby up and told him that I was ready to go to the hospital. I wish I held out longer, but being my first labour I was anxious and wasn't sure when the "right time" was. I called my parents to let them know that this was the day and that I would call with an update later (they would have a 2 hour drive ahead of them).

Yet another cervical check at 7am, and I had only dilated a couple more centimetres. While my contractions were getting stronger I was still able to talk through them. Hubby and I walked the halls of the hospital and they got stronger and stronger and I would bend over the hallway rails while Hubby massaged my lower back. Having another cervical check an hour or so later, I was finally admitted at 9am at 5 cm dilated. A nurse was listening in and talking to the nurse checking me when I told her my plans for a natural birth. She immediately told the nurse at the computer to switch her care so she could be with me and to put me in the largest birthing room at the end of the hall. I felt pretty special that this particular nurse wanted to be with me and so lucky to have someone that cared about my wishes. I called my parents to let them know that I was being admitted, only to find out from my brother that they had already left.

One thing I knew and read a lot about was staying upright and moving throughout labour and that I did. My room was huge and I had a lot of room to move around. I had a great walking pattern and would call Hubby over to massage my lower back with each tough contraction. I tried the jacuzzi tub but soon realized that I didn't feel comfortable and much preferred walking around. Between contractions I sipped on watered down apple juice that the nurse fetched for me and watched a hockey game on the small TV in the corner with my Hubby as I continued to walk. I think I may have walked a marathon in that room that day.

At 1pm I was checked again and had not dilated at all. At this time it was decided to break my water. An hour later I still hadn't progress and so it was decided that I had to be given a small amount of pitocin to help induce my labour further along. Hospital time lines! I agreed to the minimal amount to start to see if it would help kick start things. The nurse took four tries to put the IV in. I had some nasty bruising on my arms and hands because of this. Sure enough, within minutes my contractions picked up again. The nurse laughed and said that I had barely received any pitocin and that it must have just been the threat that got my body moving. I was happy to have the IV removed.

From 2pm on my contractions jumped me into active labour. I leaned over the end of my bed and squatted, visualizing the baby descending with each contraction. I rode each wave/surge and welcomed them, still walking like crazy between each one. I did not have much pain in my abdomen, my pain was the worse in my lower back and Hubby explained to me later that he felt bad for how strongly he was digging in and rubbing. It helped so much and near the end my nurse also joined in. At 6:30pm I told them I had the urge to push and when they told me to climb up onto the bed I remember saying that it did not sound like a great position. It certainly wasn't and I wished at the time I could be birthing while in a squatting position.

I remember doing a couple sets of pushes through my contractions and how gloriously relieving it felt. A resident doctor came in and stood very calmly beside me telling me in a monotone voice to "push, push, push". I wanted to slap her and tell her to leave me alone. The other nurses I think could notice my frustration and the resident was given other tasks. After "purple" pushing for about 20 minutes the nurses came to the conclusion that E's head was slightly tilted and was not clearly fitting down the birth canal properly. His head needed to be adjusted. I was flipped from one hip to another a few times in an attempt to straighten things out. This plan worked well and it also relieved some of the back labour I was feeling. Through the next few sets of pushes my breathing was becoming sporadic and the room became overwhelming. I believe this was my "transition phase". Nurses were yelling for me to push, nurses were coming in and out of the room to see my much talked about natural birth - it was chaotic. I joked between one contraction with my nurse and Hubby, asking them if it was too late for drugs. At this time, I was starting to doubt myself. My nurse attached a mask to my face and told me to inhale the gas. I did not like the restricting feel to the mask and removed it. Again and again they encouraged me to put it on to help me relax and Hubby even tried to help, but I declined. What ended up helping me calm down was Hubby speaking above everyone and telling me to just listen to him. This was our plan, this was on the notes that he carried in his pocket. I was to listen to him to help relax, and it helped immensely. I drained everyone else's voice out, turned my head to touch his face and only listened to his commands and reminders to breathe (which he was getting from the Doctor that had finally arrived). The next 25 minutes flew by as I pushed intensely again (I wanted to speed things up so I did 4 reps of pushes per contraction to my nurse's surprise - not a great idea now that I'm more educated) and before I knew it I went from feeling the burning ring of fire to pushing my baby out at 7:15pm. Totalling my active labour at 5 hours and 15 minutes.

Our surprise baby boy, E, was born on April 19, 2009 (4 days early) weighing 6lbs 15oz. He was placed on my chest only briefly and Hubby cut the cord (something he was sure he wouldn't be able to do, but jumped right in when asked). I must have been given pitocin to birth the placenta (but I don't remember being asked about that). The placenta came shortly after and I remember the nurses pushing (with all their weight) on my stomach to help it along it's way. That was a pain I wasn't expecting! While E was being weighed and checked on, I was given a local anaesthetic and the doctor gave me 4 stitches for what he later told me was a 2nd degree tear. The doctor was extremely friendly and told me he had a family of six. He congratulated me for being "a champ", but that's all I really remember about him. He was not the OB I had met with, but a Doctor within the same clinic that was on call that day. He was in and out of the room in no time.

Once I was cleaned up, Hubby went down to the waiting room and gathered my parents. I was given E to hold, but he was all bundled up. We didn't have much skin-to-skin during the first hours at all. I'll never forget the overwhelming emotion I felt when I saw my Mom. The only thing I could say was, "Mom, I did it!" I knew she would be proud of me and having a drug-free birth was something I talked to her on the phone about often. My parents didn't stay long and I was encouraged to go pee before being transferred to the Mother-Baby unit.

I just gave birth!

Once in the Mother-Baby unit I asked for the nurse to assist me in breastfeeding and she assured me that someone would later. E was taken through the normal hospital tests while Hubby accompanied him and I waited in my room. It took 2 1/2 hours to initiate breastfeeding which still really upsets me today and something I wouldn't stand for again.

I experienced a lot of swelling and since I had gestational thrombocytopenia (low blood platelets) throughout my pregnancy the hospital would not give me ibuprofen to reduce the swelling. Acetaminophen helped with the pain and hemorrhoid cream helped with some minor hemorrhoids. Ice packs and sitz baths helped relieve the pain. I'll never forgot the feeling of weakness in my bottom muscles. I woke the next morning and urgently had to go pee. The problem was I couldn't hold it. So while I tried to quickly get out of my hospital bed, I completely peed the bed. It was pretty humiliating at the time to call the nurse and ask her to change my sheets, but she laughed and said not to worry - apparently it happens a lot. I look back now with laughter - this is one of the funniest stories I have from after the birth and have shared with all my friends. It's something I wasn't prepared for, to say the least.

E's latch was weak and he would fall asleep constantly while trying to nurse. It would take me weeks and a lot of nipple pain in the beginning to work out our breastfeeding relationship. E and I were finally discharged at 36 hours after much pleading. There was nothing more that I wanted than to be in the comfort of my own bed in my own home and soon enough we were off as a family of three!

Stay tuned to more on lessons learned and birthing plans for baby #2...

Belly Kicks

2012-01-15T20:47:00.000-05:00

I'm finding this pregnancy a lot more exciting at times because I have E to enjoy all the excitement and build-up with.

Sometimes he tells me he wants to kiss my belly or hold the baby or have a big belly of his own. When we ask him what he thinks of having a new baby he tells us he will sing rock-a-bye baby to them. And when we ask him if he wants a brother or sister he replies with , "a baby".

From these displays of affection you would think he understands what lies ahead. You would think that he is old enough to perhaps be unphased by these upcoming big changes. It does relieve a little stress knowing that he is open to sharing his little world with a sibling.

But when I called him from my bed for him to rush over to feel the baby kicking my belly, I was a little shocked by his response. As he jumped up and snuggled in close, he lifted his leg and with a mischievous grin asked, "Can I kick your belly too?"

Okay, so maybe he's still really too young to understand and has NO IDEA what's going on. Step away from Mommy's belly E, step away.

Baby Planning: Nursing Wear

2012-01-13T08:53:00.000-05:00

When I read articles about the "necessities" for pregnancy, breastfeeding and baby I have to laugh. I was a first time Mom once and I believed them all (well except the ones that told me I need things like a wipe warmer, but I'll get back to that some time). I wanted everything on those lists - to the exact number they listed (ie. 6-8 receiving blankets, etc). I am amazed with how much more relaxed and practical I have been with this pregnancy. In keeping with my goal of minimizing stuff around here I am trying not to buy stuff that I can really do with out and will continue this while planning for our second baby.

Yes, we all know that breastfeeding is natural and all that I really need is a couple milk producing breasts, but in saying that, I believe that there are many products out there that sometimes just make life easier or more comfortable or less awkward. One of those for me is nursing wear.

I purchased a couple quality nursing bra's last time and will do the same again to make sure I have proper fitted ones. I personally love comfortable cotton ones and one's especially for sleeping in. I've been eyeing a couple of really comfy looking ones from Nummies.

I got away with maybe two nursing tops throughout the whole time I nursed E (16 months). The rest of the time I wore t-shirts with tank tops underneath or v-neck shirts. But you know what? Sometimes it was just awkward when trying to nurse in public and not wearing the best shirt to easily lift and load. Playgroups were never a problem, it was when I was out and about and not want to expose my belly or the rest of my body when trying to lift my shirt. So, this time I am committing to buying some practical and fashionable nursing wear. Afterall, I'll buy a dress for one wedding, why wouldn't I buy a nursing top that I can use often for 2+ years? I wish I would have thought of that last time around.

Here are some nursing wear pieces I've been eyeing these days:

I love the functionality of the Momzelle brand shirts. Such a great brand and it's a bonus that the women who designed and started this buisness is a Canadian Mom. Check out her video from when she was on Dragon's Den.

Momzelle Nursing V-Neck Tee

Momzelle Original Nursing Tank Top

There is a variety of styles that I am loving, but especially this one for fun.

Momzelle "I make milk. What's your superpower?" T-shirt

I'm a t-shirt, jeans and hoodie kind of girl, so I was also super excited to find this nursing hoodie from Boob.

Boob B-Warmer Nursing Hoodie

While these aren't neccessities I am looking to treat myself and add a few of these key pieces that I can mix and match and get plenty of use out of. See? Practical!

Do you have a favourite nursing top or other piece of clothing that you love/loved to wear while nursing?

Mommy Scissor Hands

2012-01-12T10:08:00.001-05:00

E had a bit of a Justin Bieber thing going on for the last couple months. I love his hair long, running my hands through his golden brown locks, but I think it was starting to hamper his development. No joke. His hair was getting into his eyes a lot and so I finally stopped procrastinating and did something about it this weekend.

I picked up a pair of hair cutting scissors at Shoppers Drug Mart for $15.99 which I know I will get my money's worth. This kids hair grows like crazy and taking him to a salon usually costs me $15-20 a pop. I watched a Youtube video (ha!), strapped him in his booster seat, covered him in a bath towel and dressed him in his painting smock, put a movie on in front of him and voila - welcome to Mommy Salon!

Before picture - all set to go!

With my new scissors, some water to wet down his hair and a comb I was all set! He was awesome and just watched his movie, laughing as chunks of hair hit the floor. I think it took me a good 30 minutes after I checked and re-checked his head to make sure I didn't miss anything.

After picture - Yeah! Mommy didn't ruin my hair!

I'm feeling pretty invincible these days. Seriously, I cut my child's hair without completely screwing it up. Another DIY project under my belt...now what? Nothing scares me now!

Better yet, Hubby was so impressed that he said I should start doing his too. But I'm not that cocky :)

Mom's Birth Stories: Fourth of Eleven

2012-01-11T23:26:00.000-05:00

The following is my Mom's fourth birth story. For a little background, check out my first post about this series, Mom's Birth Stories, her First Birth Story and Second Birth Story, and Third Birth Story.

Her story is broken into 4 sections: Pregnancy, Labour and Delivery, Breastfeeding and Reflections. I have also provided some of my comments and reflections at the end.

Pregnancy

We were using a natural family planning method called Sympto-Thermal to determine fertility times of my cycle. (Unlike previous pregnancies, she was not breastfeeding prior to conception). The thermometer broke before I conceived and I just didn't get another one right away, not intentionally. I was happy to know that I'd become pregnant shortly after because I was longing for an infant again. It's such a special time in a women's life that it's hard to accept never experiencing that again until your sure that's what you want and what is best for your family.

Labour and Delivery
Baby #4 was due on November 16th, but wasn’t born until November 23, 1977.

My plan was no drugs and no epidural (read her Third Birth Story for her reasoning) and this was the first time men were allowed into the delivery room so I was really hoping my husband would be by my side. Well, he was afraid he couldn’t handle me in pain and not be able to help so I was very disappointed but understood to a point his decision not to.

This time I not only had abdominal pain but I also had severe back pain. I don’t know if this was caused from the previous epidural given at my last delivery or from an injury when I slipped on the stairs while carrying an armload of laundry while very pregnant.

I had a Doctor’s appointment earlier that day and my Doctor asked if there was anything he could do for me. I said yes I just wanted to have this baby so he did a "stretch and sweep". He said this may or may not start things rolling. The five of us (three children) were on our way to Smith Falls for some farm supplies when my labour began and became regular and strong so we got off the 401 and brought the children to relatives (3 different sets of relatives as to not overwhelm them with 3 children) and then went to the hospital.

Again the doctor broke the membranes once I was dilated enough. My labour length was 8 & 1/2 hrs. He was born at 12:27 AM. Baby #4, a boy, weighed 8 lbs 5.5 ounces. The hospital stay was still 5 days long.

Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding began the same day and on demand. Baby #4 was breastfed for 11 months at which time he was weaned because of nipple soreness from the next pregnancy.

She had a different family doctor who did not recommend weaning at 6 months like the previous one did with her 3 previous children.

Mom's Reflections
The best part was our health and great recovery. The worst part was the painful labour and delivery. I was pleased with myself for going o'natural and felt more confident as a person and especially as a Mother.

Mom also reflected on the fact that they dropped off each of the three children to different relatives before heading to the hospital. They didn't have anyone near by that could take on three children for the five days in hospital so it was their decision to split them up almongst their relatives. They discovered after, while talking to the children, that they would much rather have been together so they never chose this method again.

My Reflections
Go Mom! This was her first all-natural birth and I'm so happy for her that she achieved her desired birth plan this time. And, with her largest baby! (out of all eleven). I want to yell, "Ah, come on, suck it up, Dad!" about him not joining her in the delivery room, but things will get better here. It is also awesome that breastfeeding was continued until 11 months at which it was her own personal decision to wean. All in all, I love this story and the fact she is starting to take more control in her decisions and experiences.

Keeping tabs:

Baby #1 - Boy - October 5, 1972
Baby #2 - Girl - February 24, 1974
Baby #3 - Boy - June 10, 1975
Baby #4 - Boy - November 23, 1977

In with the new: Three Words for 2012

2012-01-06T09:10:00.000-05:00

I've been reading a lot of posts about New Years resolutions. I had already thought of cutting mine down this year and focusing on a few keys areas, when I read Lara's post: Three Words. Brilliant!

Here are my Three Words for 2012

Minimize

There are a million areas I want to minimize in my life: stress, spending, waste, stuff, clutter, toxins. I will continue exploring and tackling these items throughout the year.

Source

Grow

I am looking forward to growing and building on my business ideas. I also want to expand on some of my interests and learn new skills and gain more knowledge through professional training. And of course, growing as a person, wife, mother, sister and friend. There is always room to grow here.

Source

Accept

Patience has always been one of my strong suits, but acceptance? Not so much. I have really grown in acceptance and have started singing a different tune in the last six months. This will continue to be something that I will keep in the forefront of my mind to guide me through tough times, stressful times and other changes in life that I may otherwise have a tough time adjusting to and accepting.

Source

A friend suggested making is a vision board. I love the idea of having something to look at everyday as a reminder. I am making it my plan to put this together this month.

What are your 2012 goals? Do you focus on theme words?

Out with old: 2011 in review

2012-01-05T21:27:00.000-05:00

I thought it would be fun to look back at some of the things I've accomplished, experienced, tested out this year and have to look forward to expand upon in 2012. What better way than to look back at some of my goals for 2011 to see how I measured up.

Eco-friendliness & a healthy home

I have made huge progress in this over the last 12 months. I have switched over almost all our family's personal care products including soaps, shampoo and conditioner and toothpaste to all-natural products and it feels great. I've tried a couple deodorants but haven't had any luck - I'm still on the look out for an all-natural one that works as well as my ol' faithful chemical ridden one. Also, on the list is Hubby's shaving cream and body spray he can't seem to live without and with my heightened sense of smell these days I can't handle much longer.

I started making my own laundry detergent, but when I get to the bottom of the jar have been known to buy an eco-friendly jug from time to time. I also use soap nuts as a back-up. My all-natural home made detergent works well, but it needs some tweaks and I need to work on a follow-up on this.

I make all my own household cleaners using lemon, baking soda, water and vinegar and have been using Dr. Bronner's castile soaps too. I am working on an effective dishwasher detergent.

I received a brand new stainless steel cookware set for Christmas and so I was very happy to ditch my unhealthy non-stick pots and pans that I've had for years. I'm also almost done switching over all my plastic Tupperware to glass dishes.

Fitness & Health

I had a running/walking buddy during lunch breaks throughout the summer at work that kept me motivated. With the onset of the colder weather my fitness levels have rapidly declined. I am looking forward to getting back into the gym during my lunch breaks until the beginning of my maternity leave in May. I have a few other pre-natal activities planned in the next few months too!

I published weekly meal plans for the majority of the year which really helped our family nutrition. I am diving more into healthy meals this year - still room to improve!

Business Goals

I am getting closer and closer to making some of my business ideas a reality. Joining a great network of women has helped so much. I am so fortunate to have their support and guidance. More on this to come in 2012!

Cheers to 2011. I'm ready to take on many new goals in 2012!

Don't worry - it's apple juice.

Overheard at nap time

2011-12-29T15:19:00.000-05:00

I think that I have the foundation for the next big reality TV show. The setting would be in toddler's playrooms, in the back seat of the car and for the highlight of the show - behind closed doors in their bedrooms while they should be napping. Camera's would follow them around town and catch their ridiculous tantrums and demands in public. It would be a comedy of course.

I have heard the most ridiculous, hilarious and downright annoying things come out of my toddler's mouth in the last week and a half since we have been home together on holidays. Today was NO exception and it began as soon as he woke up.

We listened to the usual chatter, the singing of the ABC's and Old MacDonald when he woke up and waited for the cries to come get him. Soon enough he was demanding popcorn and movies and bacon and eggs at a restaurant. We have been clearly living it up on these holidays and he's been getting spoiled and a little too accustomed to these treats. When Hubby told him no, he cried to me and said, "Mommy, Daddy made me cry." Instantly breaking his Daddy's heart.

At my midwife appointment he repeatedly told me he was hungry and wanted to eat a hang-ga-bur and fries. Clearly, remembering the meal we had on our road trip the other day. He demanded it until I dragged him inside Tim Horton's and told him that we were getting soups instead at which he yelled out "I want hang-ga-bur and fries!" I dragged him right back to the car and told him that with that behaviour there would be no lunch. And then the sweet little angel that I know best came back to life and asked me, "Mommy, what's the matter? I am hungry. Please can go we go back and eat lunch?" Oy.

When we got home it was clearly nap time. He tried every excuse in the book including the need for a cup of milk, medicine, his nose wiped, to go pee. And this is what was heard for the first 20 minutes of nap time: "I DO NOT want to nap. I want to go downstairs with Mommy and make chocolate cookies. I will eat chocolate cookies because I am the boss! No fair! Mommy said NO and that is rude! RUDE! RUDE! RUDE! I will not sleep in my crib. I will cry and Mommy will come and see me. And she will bring me downstairs to watch a movie. NO, NO, NO I am not sleeping! No fair!"

See how he thinks he has me all figured out? I won this one - hitting publish in silence.

That is until he wakes up and starts calling me "Alicia, because that is your name" again.

Seriously, turn this life into a reality show.

Wordless Wednesday {Belly Watch! 18 weeks}

2011-12-28T18:34:00.000-05:00

Mom's Birth Stories: Third of Eleven

2011-12-27T20:04:00.001-05:00

The following is my Mom's third birth story. For a little background, check out my first post about this new series, Mom's Birth Stories, her First Birth Story and Second Birth Story.

Her story is broken into 4 sections: Pregnancy, Labour and Delivery, Breastfeeding and Reflections. I have also provided some of my comments and reflections at the end.

Pregnancy

When I finished nursing my second baby at 6 months I became pregnant that same month with baby number 3. Our plan was to have a third child whenever pregnancy happened following weaning but didn’t expect it to happen right away. The irony is that when the doctor had to figure out my due date he had no period to go by since I hadn’t had one for 15 months. Instead he went by my weaning date and presto! came up with June 10, 1975 as a due date on which baby #3 was born!

Labour and Delivery
I had false labour a week before he was due and spent three days in the hospital waiting for it to start up again. Turned out I needed my doctor’s release but no one told him I was in so finally I asked when he was coming in and he came & gave his consent to let me go. That was depressing seeing all those new Moms and babies and nothing happening to me.

Friends encouraged me to have an epidural so not knowing if this might be my last baby (big joke) I decided to be easy on myself and get one. It took three attempts to put the needle in the right place in my spine and that was during intense labour when I had to curl up. Baby was born shortly after. I didn’t feel any pain, but could feel him being born. There was a moment of panic when they yelled they had seconds to get him out since he was transverse and needed to be turned. I think the doctor just turned him by hand, but I don’t know if he used forceps? Baby was a little blue due to lack of oxygen so he was taken to the neonatal floor for a few hours but they assured me all would be fine after he was given some oxygen. Again the doctor broke my membranes to help with the delivery. Again I was in the hospital for 5 days and husbands weren’t coming in the delivery room yet. Again the doctor cut an episiotomy. The nurses told me I bruised badly and was a little sore but they thought it was brutal. Baby boy's (#3) time of birth was 10:02 am. The labour length was 5 hours. His weight was 7 lbs. 12 ozs.

Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding began the same day. I'm pretty sure this is when the nurses told me to do demand feeding. "Nurse when baby was hungry." I only nursed him for two months because there was a lot going on like feeding a gang of men who were working on the new free stall barn and housing two hired hands plus hosting two bridal showers for sister-in-laws. The stress and ridiculous work load probably was to blame for me getting my period at that time. I couldn't nurse comfortably with strangers in the home and I didn't know enough about nursing more often to stabilize my hormones so I weaned baby #3 early to better monitor my cycle so as to family plan a larger space before the next baby would be conceived.

Mom's Reflections
The best part was my good health and baby’s health. The worst part was the freezing coming out from the epidural (tingling in my legs ) which I couldn’t move to relieve. I started to cry and my husband said don’t cry now it’s all over but I really hated the feeling so I made up my mind never to have an epidural again! (Not to mention the known risk of being paralyzed for life.). It was exciting to see the reactions of big brother and sister when we brought baby 3 home. At that time we had three all under three years old. They were too young to be jealous and we emphasized that the baby was theirs too.

My Reflections
I wish they would just stop with the episiotomies already! That makes me cringe every time. And still, my Mom was all on her own in the delivery room. She did not have a great experience with her epidural and I can attribute her stories to the reason why I was so sworn off medications during birth before I even started my family. She said she was very shaky and didn't even feel comfortable holding her baby for fear of dropping him. It sounded horrible to me and I swore never to put myself through that either. Spoiler alert: this was in fact her one and only epidural. She said never again and I'm happy for her that she stuck to her plan.

Breastfeeding obviously didn't go as well this time around. I couldn't even imagine the stress she went through at that time with 3 children under 3, hosting and feeding (on strict schedules) 2 hired hands and all of the other events (bridal showers and then weddings). These days women are encouraged to surround themselves with support in order to establish breastfeeding. You really need to have a "breastfeeding babymoon". She had the opposite. All three babies drank cow's milk immediately upon weaning. On the farm the milk is much like whole milk, but always boiled first to kill bacteria.

I have to laugh every time Mom says they were planning on having three children originally. We have 8 more stories to go! And, in case you need help in keeping tabs:

Baby #1 - Boy - October 5, 1972
Baby #2 - Girl - February 24, 1974
Baby #3 - Boy - June 10, 1975

Christmas Hourly Photo Challenge 2011

2011-12-25T23:56:00.000-05:00

Last year I participated in Miss Fish's photo challenge and had a blast so I had to try it again this year. Here's a peek at our day...a photo every waking hour. Warning - they are a little E focused, but I couldn't help it!

10:00am - Let's go see what Santa left (he slept in because he is sick with a cold!)

11:00am - The boys didn't want my planned pancakes so I made Rudolph themed fried egg and toast sandwiches instead

12:00pm - Playing with his new train set!

1:00pm - Reading some new books.

2:00pm - Home from the park and enjoying the big snowflakes landing our noses.

3:00pm - Colouring instead of napping

4:00pm - Wrapping up the last couple salt dough ornaments that finally dried

5:00pm - Checking out Nanny's Christmas train

6:00pm - Putting in Nanny's basement

7:00pm - Yearly shot in front of Nanny's tree

8:00pm - E's bedtime snack

9:00pm - relaxing in front of the TV.

23 days of Christmas fun!

2011-12-23T22:03:00.000-05:00

Here is what we have been up to for the last 23 days as part of our #25daysofChristmas list of activities:

1. Attended the Illumination Ceremony on Parliament Hill. E loved it!
2. Watched Rudolph and I was surprised that the abominable snowman didn't phase E as much as I anticipated.
3. Decorated our tree.
4. Decorated the rest of our house.
5. Sang Christmas carols. He's a pro at singing Rudolph now!
6. Made a paper chain with scraps of Christmas paper to hang on our tree.
7. Made cookies - chocolate chip!
8. Wrote a letter and mailed it to Santa. E asked for a beautiful rock.
9. Painted a Christmas wooden door hanger to hang on our front door.
10. Made snowman ornaments.
11. Watched Polar Express in our pajamas and had stove top popcorn (with melted Earth Balance and sprinkled with nutritional yeast, yum!)
12. Watch a personalized Magic Santa video (a few times).
13. Made paper snowflakes and hung them from our curtains behind the tree.
14. Made more cookies - healthy version of these no-bake chocolate cookies.
15. E painted his very own home made wrapping paper (I forgot to take a picture but he used his roll of easel craft paper and painted with brushes, cookie cutters, stamps and his hands - they turned out awesome!) We also made gingerbread trail mix and have been snacking on it ever since.
16. Made even more cookies - peppermint patties - this time dairy free and for a cookie exchange with friends.
17. Made Reindeer Thumbprint Christmas cards for our friends and family.
18. Visited my family and E had a blast with all of his cousins. How cute are these boys? 6 boys in a row born within the last 31 months!

19. Had a Christmas music dance party in the living room.
20. Make homemade banana ice cream topped with berries.
21. Made a gingerbread house and a batch of gingerbread cookies.
22. Sang Christmas carols and visited in-laws for dinner. We also drove around the blocks to check out all the nice Christmas lights.
23. Made salt dough ornaments for friends and family.

There are so many things I had to switch from the original list this year, but we've had so much fun regardless. In the next couple days leading up to Christmas and the following week of holidays I hope to cross the rest off the list.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

17 weeks

2011-12-22T06:30:00.014-05:00

It's been a while since I've written about my pregnancy so I think I'm due for an update.

The first trimester seemed to have dragged on forever, but now I'm looking back and thinking holy cow I'm almost half way there! I can't really complain about how I'm feeling these days. I've been pretty lucky, although I've felt much more nauseous with this pregnancy than the last. I can't help but compare every little detail of my pregnancies. There are so many things that are different this time. Just to name a few...

Food in general just doesn't appeal to me. When I was pregnant with E I wanted to eat everything in sight (other than a bit of an aversion to red meat in the beginning), but this time around nothing sounds good and I don't ever feel like eating anything in particular. I am really struggling with making nice meals because I know when I sit down to eat and get a couple bites into my meal I will be done with it. This is happening more often than not and it is really unlike me.
Gagging. Oh, the gagging. I never had this with E and wow, is it ever an inconvenience! I can hardly brush my teeth without gagging at least three times. This always makes me feel horrible in the morning. Smells and even thoughts can set me off too.
Baby kicks and growing belly. I have felt the fluttering sensations for a few weeks now, but last week I started feeling full on kicks from baby. With E I didn't feel anything until 21 weeks so it has come much quicker this time (and I knew what I was looking for). My belly has officially popped, again much quicker than last time. Oh, how I loved pulling out my stretchy maternity pants!
Baby's heart rate has been consistently around the 160's bpm. E's was always around 120-150 bpm. Maybe it's a girl?
I am still much more exhausted and recently I'm having a hard time going to sleep. I don't remember having any sleep issues with E. Headaches are constant lately because of my lack of sleep.

Last week I got a call from my midwife's office that my urine sample showed that I had an unhealthy amount of bacteria in my bladder and the beginnings of a urinary tract infection. I am lucky to have not even known because I didn't have any symtoms, but really glad they caught it. I just finished seven days of antibiotics and hope it worked! I have never had an UTI before, but I know they are common in early pregnancy.

I have to admit, although I am not feeling as great this time around, having a toddler to share this experience with trumps it all. Seriously, how can you not laugh and enjoy these moments while your little boy is walking around with his shirt up telling you he has a baby in his belly or telling you to be careful around his belly so you don't hurt his baby? It has been so much fun with him so far.

In the next couple weeks I will be having another midwife appointment and my 19 week ultrasound (where we will NOT be finding out the sex). I plan to discuss my option of home birth with my midwife further at this time because it is something I am now seriously considering (and have discussed with Hubby) and have many questions about. I'm also looking forward to bringing E and have him listen to the heartbeat in the relaxed atmosphere (have I mentioned how much I love having a midwife this time?).

Also, on the agenda in the coming weeks is some belly shots. I haven't taken one yet! With my first pregnancy I had Hubby take a picture of me every 2-4 weeks and I even made a scrapbook. I'm really slacking this time! Hopefully we can get a nice family shot on Christmas day and build on that.

Wordless Wednesday {Thumbprint Reindeer Family Christmas Cards}

2011-12-21T16:29:00.000-05:00

Mom's Birth Stories: Second of Eleven

2011-12-20T22:08:00.000-05:00

The following is my Mom's second birth story. For a little background, check out my first post about this new series, Mom's Birth Stories and her First Birth Story.

Her story is broken into 4 sections: Pregnancy, Labour and Delivery, Breastfeeding and Reflections. I have also provided some of my comments and reflections at the end.

Pregnancy

When I asked my Doctor what he recommended for a good space between children he said 1 to 3 years. When my first baby was six months I weaned him on my Family Doctor’s recommendation (standard then) and became pregnant the following month. (My sisters and brothers are all 1 or 2 years apart and my husband’s too so this seemed right). We wanted our children to be close too.

With this pregnancy I started off 10 pounds lighter and didn’t drink as much milk (Doctor said the amounts suggested were too generous) although I had heartburn a lot and discovered later it was probably the tea I drank. I remember he said to eat soda crackers before I got up in the morning and this helped a lot.

I remember feeling like I was pregnant and taking in a urine sample one week and it came back negative. I was pretty sure I was pregnant so the next week I brought in another sample and it was positive so perhaps it was too early to detect it the first week.

Labour and Delivery

My Doctor’s due date for me was February 14 but my second baby arrived on February 24, 1974. My labour length was 17 hours, but it wasn’t all hard labour. I went in on a Saturday afternoon and baby girl was born at 7 am on Sunday. The nurses gave me two Demerol shots spread apart by hours which I think made me drowsy. When I was delivering her I could barely keep my eyes open and when they turned the mirror for me to see I strained to see a full head of dark hair and then closed my eyes again. I heard them say she was a girl which I was happy to hear and I knew that she was born on Sunday which was my favourite day. I was in the hospital for 5 days again as was the practice. I had told my Dad before my second baby was born that I was hoping for a girl and for her to be born on a Sunday. After my Dad remembered what I’d said he commented that I must be doing something right to have both of my wishes come true. We laughed and felt very blessed. Baby #2 (a girl) weighed 7 lbs. 3ozs.

Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding began the same day and all went well. I knew more and and so it was easier to have her latch on, etc. I remember when they brought my baby into the room for nursing, another mother had said that there was black haired baby in the nursery that looked native and then she saw it was mine. (Her features were very different than her older brother who was blond as a baby).

Baby #2 was breastfed for 6 months as which time the Doctor recommended weaning.

The weaning went much better (for both of us) because I did it gradually. It was easier and more natural.

Mom's Reflections
The best part of this pregnancy was having very little pain during the delivery. The worst part of this pregnancy was being too drowsy to watch her be born. My doctor gave me a small episiotomy again which healed quickly. This birth experience made me realize that I needed to be proactive in deciding what I was given during labour.

My Reflections
Many of the hospital practices were the same then as Baby #2 was only born 1 year and 3 months after Baby #1. It still all seems very scary to me that my Mom did not seem to have much control over any decisions made during her labour. After going through these stories and hearing many more over the years, it's no wonder I feel so passionate about woman making their own choices and being informed these days!

I asked my Mom about being 10 days over due and if she was pressured to being to induced. She said the doctor never suggested induction since they always said 2 weeks either way of the due date was normal. Rather than growing from this, today's women and doctors jump into inductions way too early these days. This is something that has definitely gotten worse.

Christmas Craft: Snowman Ornament

2011-12-14T22:55:00.000-05:00

E and I made these craft's the other night as part of our #25daysofchristmas activities. I actually had all the supplies in our craft box that I had picked up over the last year or so for other crafts. Here is what we used:

styrofoam balls
ribbon
buttons
popsicle sticks
paint
glue gun
markers
fluffy pipe cleaners

I took care of the hot glue gun parts and E was happy to decorate the rest. He is pretty proud to see them hanging on our Christmas tree.

This family craft was made for the Kids Create! Kids in the Capital December Craft Carnival. It's really easy to join in the carnival and there's still time!

Mom's Birth Stories: First of Eleven

2011-12-13T11:07:00.002-05:00

The following is my Mom's first birth story, set in 1972 (she was almost 23 years old at the time). For a little background, check out my first post about this new series, Mom's Birth Stories.

Her story is broken into 4 sections: Pregnancy, Labour and Delivery, Breastfeeding and Reflections. I have also provided some of my comments and reflections at the end.

Pregnancy
Our plan was to have our first child when I had completed two years of teaching elementary school and have my permanent certificate in hand for possible future use. Little did we know then that (my Husband) would start a new job and so we weren’t very prepared financially to begin a family, but begin we did.

We were both so happy to find out that the following month I became pregnant. My Husband wanted me to have a small girl so as to have an easy first birth, but I was hoping for a boy to carry on the family name. During the first couple of months I felt nauseated in the mornings but never to the point of vomiting.

A scary time was at 6 months pregnant while wall papering my living room. I had been climbing on and off a chair. I started to bleed (spotting) so I contacted my Doctor and he ordered bed rest for three days. My mother-in law came over and told me of her miscarriages (to prepare me for the worst I guess), but it made me worry more. All was well and I learned a valuable lesson on what I should and should not do.

Labour and Delivery
My due date was September 29th, 1972 according to the wheel. I learned later to monitor my cycle and discovered that I ovulated a week later most months so he was right on time as far as I’m concerned. Baby Boy #1 arrived on October 5th at 11:15pm weighing 7 lbs 10 1/2 oz. My labour length was 8 hours.

He was the only one born in a Catholic Hospital because they moved the maternity ward to the General Hospital by the time I had my second 16 months later. The nurses were great at the Catholic Hospital and seemed to have more time to be with me. Back then, the Father was not allowed in the delivery room. The practice then was to shave the pubic area and give an enema while in labour to prepare for delivery. One nurse held my hand and coached me through the birth like a mother (my Mom had died the year before). I was surprised to see my legs shaking uncontrollably when the doctor asked me to put them up on the stirrups (nerves I guess). The nurse put warmed up flannel sheets next to me (maybe she thought I was shivering?). The delivery was painful and the nurse told me she was going to give me something to relax me. I didn’t know any better at the time and I wasn’t prepared to discuss their reasoning so in my thigh went a needle and some Demerol . I understand it’s banned now? My doctor was accustomed to giving episiodomies so I had a small one (few stitches). It wasn’t too uncomfortable (I think he gave me a local anesthetic).

Hospital stay was 5 days which was standard at that time. I had to have a bowel movement before I was allowed to go home and of course waterwroks had to be working well too.

Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding was introduced on the next day and it went well. Scheduled feedings every 4 hours were recommended and actually worked for this easy baby. While baby was in the nursery and while I was sleeping, he was given sugar water.

Advice given in the hospital: Some babies sleep a lot so keep trying and don’t let baby nurse too long or you’ll get cracked nipples. Do not wash your nipples after each feeding, but allow them to air dry and let your breast milk keep them moist.

Baby #1 was breastfed for 6 months as which time the Doctor recommended weaning.

I didn't know how to do it gradually and he didn't tell me so I quit cold turkey and that was a little sore, but no real problems. I sure was a "green horn" and too shy to ask for more information then.

Mom's Reflections
The best part of this pregnancy was delivering a healthy baby after only gaining 16 pounds and feeling well most of the time with a quick recovery after the birth. The worst part was not being able to share the labour and delivery with my Husband, the pain during the intense labour and delivery and not having my baby in the room with me. I had to go to the nursery and see him through the glass. They only brought him to me for scheduled feedings.

I didn’t really have a birth plan accept that I would listen to the doctor and not take anything that would jeopardize my child’s health. In later pregnancies I would be more confident to make decisions on my own. This birth experience made me a happier, extremely grateful and humbler person because I had a lot to learn, a huge important responsibility and a lot to look forward too.

My Reflections
Wow, how times have changed AND stayed the same in 39 years! I really enjoyed going through this first story with my Mom and learning everything she has gone through.

Pregnancy

I had to laugh at how kind hearted my Dad was in hoping Mom would have a small girl for her first birth.

Labour and Delivery

I couldn't even imagine not having my Husband or anyone I trusted by my side during labour. I am grateful for the nurse my Mom had that day.
I couldn't even imagine going through pregnancy, birth and new motherhood without a Mom to support and assist me with all my questions.
Thank god the shaving, enema and episiotomies aren't standard or normal practices in most Hospital's anymore.

Breastfeeding

I can't believe they used to send babies off to a nursery away from their Mothers. Mom said it was very stressful not knowing if your baby was okay. It almost felt unreal that she was a Mother because she didn't have a baby to hold. Now, immediate skin to skin and introducing breastfeeding within the first hour is highly recommended.
Sugar water was given between feedings - yikes!
We know so much now about on-demand breastfeeding. I can't believe that this 4 hour schedule actually worked for my Mom. She said she was lucky to have a happy baby that stuck to the schedule once she went home. I was lucky to have 2 hours between feedings with E!
The breastfeeding advice she received in the hospital is still somewhat relevant today.
The Doctor recommended she wean her first son at 6 months old. Now, exclusive breastfeeding is recommended until 6 months (at which time solids are introduced) and continued until 2 years old.
I had to look up "green horn" which actually means inexperienced and immature. I feel terrible for her that she stopped breastfeeding so quickly (ouch!) and grateful that she didn't have any serious issues or mastitis because of this.

Looking forward to hearing more about how she grew to make more decisions on her own and how she learned from her previous experiences!

Growing Up

2011-12-12T08:37:00.000-05:00

{I'm joining Capital Mom today by blogging about a moment from my life based on a theme she has provided. This week’s Monday Moment theme is Growing.}

This past week I experienced two embarrassing temper tantrums in public.

I could blame it on the overcrowded stores during this holiday season, the extra long line-ups at the cash, the jam-packed parking lots, already pressed nerves, tempting toys sitting on the shelves or just poorly timed shopping trips and outings.

The truth is he's just naturally at that stage in life where he is pushing our buttons, testing our limits and looking for more control and independence. He's growing up and we need to learn how to grow with him.

{If you are a Mother of a toddler you should watch this new video titled, "Toddlers: The Hours Are Long, The Years Are Short" by PhD in Paretning. It's exactly what I needed this week.}

More on Breastfeeding: Let's talk about Booby Traps

2011-12-08T06:00:00.001-05:00

I have to admit, I didn't know much about the term "booby traps" when I was pregnant and breastfeeding. I was however, aware of some of the situations and pressures I may find myself in. For someone as stubborn as me who was completely determined to breastfeed and did not want to consider any other alternative, I was fooled more than once.

I set myself up to have a successful breastfeeding relationship with E. I educated myself by reading a lot of the right books. I attended a pre-natal breastfeeding course. I met with lactation consultants at breastfeeding clinics in the first few weeks. I made sure to include Hubby in the process as it is important to have someone close that supports you in your decisions. I took myself to infant playgroups and surrounded myself with other breastfeeding mothers.

I was lucky to have been breastfed and watch my Mother breastfeed my younger brothers and sisters and so breastfeeding has always been naturally normal to me. Some women don't grow up in this environment and may have never seen a women breastfeed until they attempt it themselves. This is a huge problem in our culture.

It makes me so sad that women may not be as supported by their family, friends, doctors, etc which may have a negative affect on their breastfeeding relationship. I felt very isolated in the early days with E because I did not have any close friends who were Mothers and my in-laws who live close by are not familiar with breastfeeding. I was lucky to have a Husband to support me, a Mother to call and the perseverance to work though any issues I had.

Breastfeeding is natural, yes. But it is not all roses and unicorns. Many women face small struggles in the beginning and as difficult as it can be, unfortunately there are many outside sources or "booby traps" that can damage your relationship even more.

Here are some of the institutional and cultural "booby traps" I encountered while breastfeeding E:

When pregnant I attended a baby trade show and signed up for some contests. Instead I "won" free formula samples and coupons in the mail. Little did I know that these formula companies were given my contact details.
When shopping at a maternity store and signing up for their "rewards club and newsletter", instead I received more coupons in the mail from formula companies. (I even had a friend who received a complete Nestle "gift" in the mail complete with formula, bottles and a cooler bag. I thought I missed out at the time, until I read more into formula companies marketing tactics).
When E was born I had a lack of skin to skin time, therefore missing out on the most important time - the magical hour.
In the hospital I had very delayed assistance to initiate breastfeeding with an inattentive nurse and no lactation consultant on staff. This resulted in a lethargic baby, a weak latch and a sleepy nurser.
Formula samples were sent home from the pediatrician to "supplement" when slow weight gain was a concern in E's first few weeks rather than a referral to a lactation consultant. (It's a good thing I made my own decision and went to a breastfeeding clinic).
After orders from the pediatrician to give supplementing a try, I supplemented my son once after a feeding, which turned out to upset his stomach even more. (After my own research and trouble shooting I discovered his "failure to thrive" was due to a dairy protein allergy).
Being the first of my friends to breastfeed they did not understand the importance of breastfeeding in public and extended breastfeeding, therefore making it uncomfortable for me.
My family-in-law did not breastfeed and therefore questioned feeding schedules and parenting. "He's hungry again?". "Why fuss with pumping when I can just give him formula?" "You still haven't weaned him?"
When I started to wean E from his daytime feeds while I prepared to go back to work after 12 months, the allergist and nutritionist I met with did not approve of me giving him rice or almond milk as a daytime substitute. I was given dairy allergy sensitive formula and tried it for 2 weeks until I decided it wasn't working and that I had been duped into a silly booby trap. I continued to nurse E in the mornings and evenings and followed my gut and he drank water or rice or almond milk while at daycare.
At 16 months, I weaned E after feeling cultural pressure.

As you can see, even someone as determined as myself can get trapped. You can only imagine how much longer the list above could be for a mother who doesn't necessary prepare herself. If you aren't aware of how these situations can directly affect your breastfeeding relationship you will get trapped into weaning too early or cutting your relationship too short. While I believe it is usually society that fails us, not the mother that fails at breastfeeding, I do tell my friends that they need to prepare themselves to succeed. Saying, "I'm going to give breastfeeding a try", does not hold up in our culture often. I was lucky to have had a natural birth therefore didn't have to worry about any medical interventions causing problems to early nursing. I have spoken to many friends who weren't so lucky. Sometimes these situations can't be prevented and in that case I believe that dwelling on the past does not do us any good. Looking to to the future and informing others, does.

Here are some more breastfeeding and related posts I have written:

My Top 10 Breastfeeding Tips for New Mothers
Reaching out to a new mother
Breastfeeding Support

And here are some absolute MUST reads about breastfeeding that can also help explain how some of the "booby traps" above could have and did directly affect mine and many women's breastfeeding relationships:

The Truth Behind Common Breastfeeding Myths by Nurtured Child
Just 3 Things Every Expecting Mom Should Do by Best for Babes
What are the Booby Traps? by Best for Babes
Why do moms quit breastfeeding? by PhD in Parenting
We live in a bottle feeding culture by Your Birth Coach

Breastfeeding Support

2011-12-06T22:17:00.000-05:00

Source

If there's one thing I struggle with in my passions, it's my desire to educate and inform others around me and knowing my limitations. I am constantly battling and second guessing myself on whether I should step in and say something when I specific topic I am passionate about comes up or if I should just sit back and let the person figure it out on their own. It's not that I am an expert in any certain field, but there are things that I am experienced in and knowledgeable about and can only wish others feel the same way or know the same things. It's like anyone with any type of passion feels, I'm sure.

In saying that, I strongly believe that Mothers need to support each other more. Support can come in many ways. I may not understand or have any experience in one Mother's struggles or decisions, but I will support her in any way I can. If a Mother asks me a question I will answer it honestly. My struggle is finding the balance between supporting and educating. I don't want my opinions or knowledge to come off as "preachy", but at the same time there are things I strongly believe every Mother should be aware of and given the chance to know more about. If a Mother never asks, how do I bring the topic up? What if they are faced with a situation that I could have warned them about? What if I could help them have a successful breastfeeding relationship if I just spoke up?

My close friends and family know that I am a huge advocate for breastfeeding. It is one of my passions and something I am drawn to and love to support other Mothers with. If I could, I would go around shouting facts and helpful tips on breastfeeding to new mothers from the mountains tops. I would run through the streets handing out every helpful book, pamphlet, or article on the topic. I would herd Mothers into breastfeeding clinics, La Leche Meetings and Lactation Consultants offices. Instead I try to help when asked, try to educate when given an opportunity, and blog (thank you blog!) my thoughts, hoping that this information crosses the right people at the right time.

I plan to write more about breastfeeding in my space here on the web. I am not currently nursing (E weaned just over a year ago), but I will be nursing again when baby #2 is due to arrive in May 2012. I am currently in my element as I support a friend who is nursing her 2 week old and just getting into the groove of things. Ah, I remember those days! I look forward to her text messages and emails everyday. I'm not sure if there is more of trained or professional future for me in breastfeeding support and awareness, but it is something that I have had in the back of my mind for some time now. All I know for now is that when I get an email or text message back from friends saying that a small adjustment or tip I suggested made an immediate positive difference in their breastfeeding experience then I go to sleep much happier those nights.

Remember when...

2011-12-05T23:05:00.001-05:00

He remembers a lot. I don't know why it surprises me day after day. He is getting much wiser with age and he has experienced so many new exciting things in his 2.5 years that are worth remembering. In just this past week he has said:

Mommy, remember when...

We went to the Zeum (Museum) and we saw the dinosaurs?
You go to Couver (Vancouver) and I missed you and I went in Daddy's silver truck and looked all over for you? And I called you and said Mommy, where are you?
Daddy go to Morf Carolina (North Carolina) and I missed him and I was sad and I cried?
I go to Wolfe Island and see Grandpa driving the tractor and the wagon and I play with my cousins?
I go to the restaurant and I see my friends there?
I go to Miller's farm and get a pumpkin and Daddy get a big pumpkin too?
I see the fireworks at the Castles (Parliament buildings) and all the lights?
We put the decorations and the lights on the Christmas tree and when Daddy see it he was so happy?

Yes, I do, I say. I remember all of those things!

I say, E remember when...

Daddy and Mommy didn't have you yet?
You were but only a dream I had and only tiny flutters in my belly?
You were something I couldn't even imagine, a love I couldn't even fathom?

I can't.

New pictures of my little man

2011-12-03T23:06:00.000-05:00

Last month I met up with Claire from Claire Ross Photography to get some updated shots of E. The last proffesional shots I have of him was when he just turned 2 and at 2.5 now he has grown up so much that I wanted to share some new pictures with my family and friends for Christmas.

I feel very fortunate to have met Claire through a mutual friend. She took our family photos last year and I truly treasure them and have them plastered around my house. Since then, I can't help but recommend Claire to my all my friends and I have really loved following her blog and Facebook page where I get to enjoy her talent with all of them in their very own pictures. Claire is one of the most kind hearted women I have ever met and the first thing I noticed with her was how comfortable and relaxed I felt at our shoots. I felt as if we were already friends as we laughed throughout. And being a Mother herself she could easily entertain and find what made E tick.

This time Claire brought along her two adorable children for our shoot and I was really happy that E could play along with them. It took him a while to warm-up to the camera while he clinged to me, but not long after he was climbing on the logs and rolling down the hills with the others.

Here are only a few of my favourite shots from the day. To check out more, head over and "Like" Claire Ross Photography's Facebook page!

Shy boy

Blue eyes

Loving the slide

A "real" woman giving birth normally

2011-12-02T06:00:00.004-05:00

National Geographic is currently holding their 2011 photo contest and there has been a few birth photographs submitted. These photos aren't new to me - I've seen them before. I love birth photos and are drawn to them. I believe birth is a beautiful thing and when I saw this picture titled, "I Love You Baby!", on Pinterest months ago I immediately pinned it to my board and checked out the rest of the photographers website.

I Love You Baby! by Lynsey Stone Photography

I had never really seen birth photography before this year. The more I see it, the more I think about having a photographer at my next birth. I would have loved to have in-the-moment pictures like this during E's birth. Afterall, it was one of the most life changing and amazing highlights of my life.

As amazing as I believe these pictures are, I know there are people out there that believe they are disgusting or believe they aren't a great depiction of birth for as many reasons that they can rhyme off. The usual haters. It really bothers me. It bothers me just as much as the people that complain about breastfeeding in public and breastfeeding photography. People just don't know what normal is anymore.

I came across this article on Babble, titled "One of the Most Strikingly Powerful Birth Photos I've Seen", about the photo contest and the picture above and unfortunately I read through to the comments. Why must people be so negative and judgemental? Especially other mothers?

There are comments stating that the Mother in the picture would be more believable as a "real" birthing woman if she looked more than 20 weeks pregnant and not all skin and bones. I suppose if she was overweight it would be more believable? Real women come in all shapes in sizes. This one happens to be in great physical shape. Commenter's also question whether the photograph is fake because everyone seems to be in perfect camera position. A sign of an amazing photographer and a normal birth I would say. Haters say that the Mother is not in a "normal" birthing position so the picture is unbelievable. Lying on your back in a hospital bed is NOT NORMAL!

There are many more hateful comments and thankfully many commenter's correcting the uneducated. Hopefully it will help them realize how truly amazing and normal birth can be. If you click through to the photographer's website and the site listing the birth story you will read that this was a planned unassisted homebirth.

How "real" can she get?

A Christmas tradition we won't be doing this year

2011-12-01T08:00:00.001-05:00

Remember last year when we took E to get pictures with Santa?

Yeah, that's certainly not happening this year.

It's not that I'm completely opposed to the tradition (even though it's a huge money grabber). It's just that ever since Halloween this kid is not a fan of costumes. And he sees right through that man sitting in the big red chair - IT'S A COSTUME. He doesn't want any part of sitting on that stinky stranger's lap and I don't blame him one bit. It's a bit creepy handing your child over to a complete stranger anyways.

If E bought into the whole idea I'd probably be in line at the mall, but after last year's episode I knew it would have to be forced upon if I wanted to do it again. Losing my son's trust and watching him squirm and cry in Santa's arms just for an expensive 4x6 is not that important to me. No thank you.

I had already made up my mind before we had to pop into the mall last week. Children were lined up and I saw a baby crying on Santa's lap and it made me sad. Then E got a glimpse of Santa through the decorations and said, "No, Mommy, no costume!". That pretty much sealed the deal. We'll be sticking to writing a letter to Santa again this year. We may or may not venture back to Santa's lap in the future, but only if he asks us to.

Toilet Paper Roll Family Craft

2011-11-30T21:38:00.000-05:00

E is really into make-believe and puppet-type play these days. He will frequently come to us holding two toys, handing one over and while wiggling the other toy around ask, "Who are you?". While I hold a cow and he holds a sheep, we can go from being astronauts to hockey players to farmers to just plain ol' cows and sheep again. He loves acting out the conversations and I like to try to make them as silly as possible.

I love following his lead when it comes to his current interests. Puppets are now definitely on his Christmas wish list. But in the meantime, I wanted to find a creative way to expand on this. I've been keeping a lot of recyclables in a big craft bin, including a stack of toilet paper rolls. The inspiration from this craft came from one I saw on Pinterest. How cute would it be to make believe with little craft versions of ourselves? With only a small list of supplies, you can make one too!

Toilet Paper Roll Family

Supplies:
Fabric or felt
Glue
Scissors
Pictures
Yarn or other embellishments

Our Toilet Paper Roll Family

What do you think?

Thanks to my Mom for letting me raid her bins of fabrics last time I was visiting. And props to E for some great gluing and wardrobe decisions. He decided we were all to wear jeans to start. And he picked Hubby one styling shirt and that brown belt really finishes the outfit. Cowgirl Mommy is looking pretty in her glue stained silk shirt and E decided he wanted to be dressed in just plain blue. I was happy to dig out a picture of the dog too. Our family is complete (for now - we'll need to add a baby roll in May).

This family craft was made for the Kids Create! Kids in the Capital November Craft Carnival. It's really easy to join in the carnival - so check it out! It has given me a great excuse to dig in and get creative with E. Stay tuned to Kids in the Capital for my next post, re-capping this month's crafts and announcing December's theme!

2011 edition of 25 days of Christmas

2011-11-29T06:00:00.002-05:00

Andrea at a peek inside the fishbowl got me hooked last year on a 25 days of Christmas activity calendar. I had so much fun planning it with our little family, but have to admit I was a little over ambitious. This year, with Hubby's work schedule in mind, I'm toning it down a bit.

Here is our list for 2011 in no particular order.

1. Attend the Illumination Ceremony on Parliament Hill on Dec 1st.
2. Write and mail little E's letter to Santa and walk down the street to put it in the mailbox.
3. Have a Christmas music dance party in the living room.
4. Go to another Santa Claus parade. E and I already went to the Kanata one, but we will need to take in another one as a whole family.
5. Decorate our tree and house.
6. Make cookies for our daycare and work friends.
7. Make paper snowflakes and decorate our windows.
8. Make homemade banana ice cream with yummy toppings.
9. Make homemade Christmas ornaments for our tree and for gifts.
10. Watch a Christmas movie in our pajamas.
11. Sing Christmas carols.
12. Paint some gifts for family and friends at Gotta Paint.
13. Purchase and donate a toy for Toy Mountain.
14. Watch classic Christmas TV shows together.
15. Have a candlelit dinner.
16. Walk or drive around to see all the houses lit up with Christmas lights.
17. Make Christmas cards for our families.
18. Have a family Christmas on the farm and get a picture of E and all of his little cousins together.
19. Go sledding down the hill at our local park.
20. Go public skating.
21. Curl up with blankets and read Christmas stories and drink hot chocolate.
22. Make a snowman.
23. Go see a movie at the theatre. I'm thinking Happy Feet 2 and it would be E's first time in a theatre.
24. Watch a personalized Magic Santa video.
25. Make Christmas pancakes.

What family activities do you have planned this month?

Closed

2011-11-28T20:13:00.000-05:00

At the top of Whistler Mountain

I'm sorry, I can't be bothered right now.

I'm either sleeping in, gazing at the beautiful mountain views, getting some much needed exercise by walking around the village shopping, eating delicious food and ordering with only myself in mind, or relaxing by the fire in my hotel suite.

If you are inquiring about wifely and motherly duties please try again on Wednesday.

***
I'm joining Capital Mom today by blogging about a moment from my life based on a theme she has provided. This week’s Monday Moment theme is Closed.

Mom's Birth Stories

2011-11-23T10:52:00.003-05:00

If you're new to my blog, you may not have come across the fact that I am one of eleven children. Yes, ELEVEN! It has been a blessing growing up in a large family and the more I grow as a parent myself, the more I appreciate my mother. Because being a mother is not an easy job, as many of us have come to learn.

Our current ages range from 39 to 19. That's 20 years of pregnancies, births and breastfeeding. She's experienced in many of the things I take great interest in and she's a gosh darn saint if you ask me.

I've written a bit about my views on birth. Natural and informed birth is something I am passionate about. Looking back at my mother's stories eases my frustration slightly, because seeing how things were 39 years ago really does show that we have come a far way.

The thing that amazes me the most is how my mother endured pregnancy, birth and child rearing again and again with little support. Unlike me, she didn't have a mother to call to ask questions. Her mother passed away just two days after her wedding and never lived to see any of her grandchildren. My mother was also the first of her siblings to have children. She had a couple friends and distant family, but she was pretty much on her own. Unlike me, she also didn't have the Internet or easy access to the many books I read from the library. She read what she could get her hands on, but what like many people do she relied on her Doctor to guide her. As a farmer's wife, she also did a majority of the child rearing, since my father was always in the barn or the fields. And don't even get me started with the negative comments she received as her family grew larger. She is a strong woman. I think you get the picture?

Last month, when I wrote about my views on Dr. Nancy's pending live-streamed birth, I mentioned that my mother gave birth eleven times and that it certainly doesn't get easier. After reading through some of those comments I realized that something I've always wanted to learn more about were my own mother's birth stories. My mother kept a lot of notes and journals for each of her children and frequently goes back to them when I ask questions. She can easily give me specifics from when her labour started to the date I got braces. She has pages and pages of frayed yellowed notebook paper in her binder listing milestone after milestone. I love her binder. But the one thing that is missing is her overall experience and her feelings and how giving birth shaped her into the woman she is today.

I have yet to write out my full 1st birth story. My goal is to write it out once I get through my mother's stories. I'm planning to post each of her stories separately because we all know how unique each can be. I've given her some questions and now once she has written out a few stories, I have many more follow-up questions to ask. I don't want to miss any important details. I can't wait to share her stories and more importantly, write them out for her.

What would you ask your mother about birth? What important details would you want to know?

Always smiling

2011-11-20T20:21:00.000-05:00

During one of his nightly calls while away, Hubby reminded me that if I was planning on driving anywhere substantial that I needed to get the oil changed if I hadn't done it already. Oh bossy sprockets! I thought (Yes, that's a Thomas the Train quote). I didn't have time! Why do I leave everything to the last minute? I had to pack E up for Grandma's for the day, get the oil changed, go to a friend's bridal shower then head down to Kingston for two more events. Needless to say, I was up early Saturday morning.

Our first stop in the morning was the garage and E sat silently in the back as I drove stonefaced thinking of all the things I packed and may have forgotten. I was in good form I realized, only making one mental note to stop at the drug store on the way to Grandma's for more cough syrup for E's lingering cough.

That's when E piped up. Knocking me out of my frazzled state.

"Mommy?!"
"Yes?"
"Um um um um um um um um um...I just want to kiss you!"

We entered the garage for our oil change and what is usually a tedious task had turned into an amazing learning adventure. I watched E as he sat in silence watching the mechanics' every move and as the large door was lifted and we drove out of the garage, the back seat came alive again. "That was so much fun! Let's do it again!"

Next was the drug store and we scurried hand-in-hand through the aisles and were soon out the door. As we walked out, the sun escaped from behind a cloud and blinded us. E exclaimed, "Wow, Mommy look! Look at the sun. It's so comfy and cozy and so beautiful!"

Living in the moment.
Breathing everything in.
Appreciating the littlest things.
Teaching me always.

This week I'm grateful for...

2011-11-19T06:54:00.000-05:00

Amanda from Let's Take the Metro started a Gratitude post link-up every Saturday. She writes, "I'm writing a weekly post to express gratitude for everything I have been blessed with in my life. Will you join me in sharing just five things you are grateful for this week?" So here I am reminding myself to be grateful.

1. A new nephew! And I get to go see him this weekend! A safe and healthy delivery for my SIL is also something to be grateful for. That makes 2 girls and then 6 boys in a row for my parents grandchildren so far. 3 more babies are currently cooking...

2. A cleaner house. Notice how I didn't say clean? It's just cleaner...that's all.

3. Another cute baby boy born to my friend yesterday. And sweet cuddles enjoyed at the hospital last night. So grateful for being able to support her, but most of all so proud and happy for her.

4. Hubby flying home tonight. Even though I said things may be easier around the house when's he gone, life in general is better when he is around. Looking forward to our back-to-normal-craziness and a new outlook.

5. A jam packed day consisting of a bridal shower for a friend, wedding dress shopping with my best friend and an evening with my Mom and sisters for my Mom's birthday. Can't wait!

My Pregnancy Checklist - #2 maybe not?

2011-11-18T08:38:00.000-05:00

I’m crossing off a list I made last year of things I would do differently with my second pregnancy. Last week, I talked about crossing #1 off my list.

I’m not sure why I was so set on this one a year ago, but I really don’t feel the same right now.

"#2 - I will find out the sex. We kept little E's sex a secret, but we both strongly felt he was going to be a boy. It was important for me to keep it a secret for our first child, but the suspense nearly killed Hubby. I don't know why but I don't think we can do it again!"

We gathered enough gender neutral things last time that I can’t see why we can’t use them again. Otherwise, why else do I need to know? I don’t need any more baby stuff that would need to be gender specific. Even though we were both pretty convinced that E was a boy we packed a gender-neutral outfit for the hospital just in case. Maybe I would pack a cute little girly one this time, just in case.

The thing is I thought I would be really anxious to find out if we were having a girl this time. Turns out I’m not that interested in knowing. Having another boy sounds just as exciting.

Another funny thing happened this week. Hubby’s Grandma asked me if I was going to find out this time. This is the same woman that asked and asked and asked when I was pregnant with E. The constant asking was clearly her way of trying to sway me into breaking and finding out, but I stood my ground. When I hesitantly responded this week, telling her I’m thinking of keeping it a surprise again, she responded with a, “That’s nice. It will be nice to have a surprise again”. Wow, I couldn’t believe it. No rhyming off of the pros to finding out the sex! So that pretty much sealed the deal for me. I think. I'm not sure if Hubby can hold out.

…to be continued.

Sasha

2011-11-16T21:19:00.000-05:00

After hearing the name Sasha come up again and again while E is playing with his toys, I decided to ask some questions.

Who is Sasha? My friend.
Is Sasha a boy or girl? A little boy.
Where does he live? At the farm with Grandpa.
What do you do together? We count on the puter.
When do you play with him? 6 firty.
Where did you meet him? At the hospital and the restaurant.
Where is he now? He is at the restaurant, Lonestar.
What's he doing there? He is playing there.
Is he coming to our house? At 6.

There was no hesitation in his answers. Straight up facts. So, is it safe to say that since I have never met or heard of a Sasha in E's life that perhaps my 2.5 year old has an imaginary friend?

Get a Melissa & Doug 25% Off Coupon When You Take the North "Poll"

2011-11-15T11:19:00.000-05:00

I'm a huge fan of Melissa & Doug toys. E loves to play pretend with his wooden play food and is becoming quite the pro with his wooden puzzles. This year for Christmas I have my eye on some more Melissa & Doug toys for him so when I saw this opportunity to spread the word about this deal, I couldn't pass it up. Enjoy!

Melissa & Doug want you to tell them which of their educational toys you think is the best! Just click on the image below to place your vote in the North "Poll!" You'll Get a Melissa & Doug 25% Off Coupon** to use at MelissaAndDoug.com just for voting!

In my groove

2011-11-14T21:13:00.000-05:00

Hubby is away for a week.

Maybe I shouldn't admit to this and maybe this is insulting or a bad sign, but things are just easier when he's gone. I have been wracking my brain the last few days trying to understand why? Why do I feel more at ease? Why is the house cleaner? Why is the dog not annoying the heck out of me? Why do I feel like I can do anything and go anywhere without hesitation?

I think I finally figured it out. It's certainly not easier physically in the amount of tasks I need to do in a day. It's mentally and emotionally easier because of my expectations.

Expectations. They are a killer.

When Hubby is here, work constantly calls on him. And it stresses. me. out. Work calls him while we are enjoying a nice day at the park together as a family. Work calls him when we are starting our Saturday morning lying in bed and making tents, looking forward to what lies ahead for the rest of the day. Works calls when we are expecting him home for dinner. Work continues calling on him when I am waiting up for him to come home.

When he is here I expect him to pitch in and it's disappointing when he can't. When he needs to tend to work I am stuck, usually last minute - to take the dog for walk, to put the laundry away, to feed the dog, to make lunches - many of his usual chores. When I get stuck with them time and time again it is emotionally draining. It's tiring and it puts me in a horrible mood. I can't and I try not to take it out on him. His job is important. It's just unfortunate that it takes him away from us so often and makes things fall on my plate more often than not. I am always trying to stay strong. This is something that has taken me a long time to accept, but I can't deny that is still bothers me at times.

So while he is away this week, E and I are doing whatever we want whenever we want because we don't have to worry about being on call. We have a great morning routine and evening routine. I haven't seen my house this clean in weeks. I'm getting a ton of sleep. I am not letting anything get in our way. I feel free.

I think I need to take this approach even when he is here. If I don't expect so much from him, maybe things will be easier on all of us. If I don't grumble every time I have to take the dog for a walk. If I don't pout every time I need to fold and put away the laundry or throw the garbage out. If I just expect to do everything even when he is home, his pitching in will be more of a blessing. If I assume that all the chores are already on my plate, like they are this week, things will be more easily accepted. I know it doesn't seem fair, but it is our reality at this time. Maybe it will work?

Have you ever found things easier when solo parenting? Seems crazy, right?

My Pregnancy Checklist - #1 check!

2011-11-09T07:00:00.024-05:00

About 11 months ago I found out I had another nephew* on the way and it prompted me to start thinking about what I would do differently with my second pregnancy. I really appreciated the comments that streamed from that post and have learned so much since then. So here I am, expecting baby #2 and checking my list.

The first thing on my list was:

"1. I will get a Midwife. With little E I had an OB, but with no doubt in my mind I will switch to a Midwife next time. I like the idea of going through the pregnancy with 1 or 2 midwives that work together and having them there with you on the day of birth too. With my OB, it was just whoever was on call from the clinic that day. I had a great OB, but the connection and assistance I needed just wasn't there."

I've had two amazing appointments with my midwife so far. I decided to go with a new midwifery clinic here in Ottawa that was started by five (I think) midwifes who are branching out from a collective to cater to a community in need of a clinic. Since the clinic was still under renovations in the beginning, my first appointment was at home on my couch. Amazing. E even got to chat with our midwife and sit on my lap and ask questions. It was such a blessing to have our family together at the appointment in the comfort of our home.

My second appointment was at the new clinic which is conveniently close to my workplace. I'll take an appointment on a comfy couch over a crinkly paper covered examining table any day! My midwife is everything I have ever hoped for. Caring, reassuring, easy to talk to, focused. My calmness with this pregnancy is amazing so far and although part of it is probably because I am no longer venturing into the unknown - having a midwife and knowing that I am not going to have to fight my way to a natural pregnancy and birth is calming.

We've had a dating ultrasound and got to see our little peanut and have heard the heartbeat a couple times. Initial blood work has been completed and these results I will discuss further at another time. All in all, Mommy and Baby are healthy and strong!

I am looking forward to documenting more of my feelings and experiences with this pregnancy, adding more things to my list and checking them all off!

* Since that nephew was born there have been 4 more pregnancies announced in my family. Can you say baby boom? We're taking over the world!

Big News!

2011-11-08T10:17:00.000-05:00

I started the month off well and although I didn't commit to NaBloPoMo, I was hoping I could keep the streak going. I couldn't.

My usual writing time is when E is in bed and I usually stay up WAY too late. I just can't do it these days. I. AM. EXHAUSTED. As soon as E is in bed, I either crash on the couch or head straight to bed. Yes, my house is a disaster and I don't care.

All of this extra and much-needed sleep is actually a good thing and it's because I have been (literally) holding some really good news inside.

E is going to be a big brother!

As you can imagine, I have A LOT to talk about this these days. It is a very exciting time for my little family and growing extended family so be prepared for lots of baby talk around here for the next little long while!

29 weeks to go!

A classic dairy allergy

2011-11-03T21:14:00.000-04:00

At the end of September, we had a follow-up appointment at CHEO for E's dairy allergy. We were referred to the Gastroenterology clinic because all of his symptoms have been gastro related.

The Doctor confirmed that everything I have done thus far is correct. Trusting my gut and eliminating dairy from his diet completely and stopping the "trials" was the right decision. We had blood tests done and they confirmed that he is in fact allergic to dairy. She called it a "classic" allergy, although there is still a slight chance that he may grow out of it until about 5 years old. I'm not even thinking about that anymore.

We are lucky E's symptoms are not anaphylatic or life threatening. But they do cause him discomfort and who wants to see their child in pain? I'm very strict with the foods that E eats and I am extremely lucky that his day care provider is so accommodating. It's our extra help, like family, that I need to keep a close eye on. If you have never had to live through an allergy, you don't think to double check the ingredients of every package and this is something we need to do. The first thing I did was email and talk to those who watch him periodically to explain the findings and listed the ingredients to watch out for. It gave me piece of mind that they are now informed and it helped them understand a little bit more.

We've come this far and dairy is no longer something I crave for him. We have adopted a healthy diet otherwise and he is a strong healthy boy. If anything, I was happy leaving that appointment. Someone finally agreed with me. We finally got answers. We can move on.

My lesson to new parents out there? Keep asking questions. Don't take no for an answer. You know your child best.

For more on our journey with this allergy, from the beginning when E was only a few months old to now at 2.5 years old - you can check out the posts I've written on this topic in the last year:

It's no use crying over spilled milk
Crossing my fingers
Again
The Dairy and Soy Battle Continues
So(y), What?

Wordless Wednesday {A spider and a witch}

2011-11-02T20:37:00.000-04:00

I promise this is the last Halloween post :)

What Halloween does to a toddler

2011-11-01T10:20:00.041-04:00

For the past few weeks E has been exposed to all kinds of creepy decorations and costumes and this has been the first year he has really understood what was going on around him.

I made a huge parenting mistake and decided to nip into the new Monster Halloween store down the street from his day care one evening. I wasn't expecting to be bombarded by chattering skeleton teeth, spinning clown heads and crawling spiders. Needless to say I took my boy out of there right quick as soon as he gripped onto my shoulder. I thought there would just be a bunch of costumes hanging on the wall, honest!

At daycare some of the bigger kids wore masks one day and that REALLY scared him. That evening and the following few nights I was constantly reassuring E that they were just silly costumes. Eventually, he learned to reassure himself and while playing on the floor with his trucks I could hear him making conversation between his toys. "Roarr!!!", said one truck. "It's okay, it's just a costume", the other would reply.

Then one car would say, "Do you want to go to the Ween store?" and the other would say, "No thank you, it's too scary".

I scarred my child for life!

The Monster Halloween store had a costumed employee stand on the corner of the street promoting and encouraging drivers to stop during evening rush hour. Unfortunately, this street corner is on our route home and E would ask questions and watch the costumed employee dance around. The costume went from a werewolf one day to a monkey or a frog other days. When we would get home and park the car, E would ask where the werewolf was. When we started walking up our front steps he would ask if the monkey was following us. And when we got in the door he would tell me to shut the door so the frog couldn’t come in. He would constantly remind himself about the costumes while walking up the stairs at home and never wanted to go to another room by himself. And while in the bath tub he was suddenly terrified of his wind-up swimming frog, had to have the shower curtain open and constantly asked, “What was that sound?”. When we would snuggle in bed in the morning and hid under the blanket tent he would say, “No one is going to scare us! No one is going to get us!”

Yes, this Halloween season has done a number on my child!

Last night the three of us went to three houses of people we know and E was super excited to go trick-or-treating. He got a couple handfuls of dairy free candy and was thrilled to see all the costumes and decorations and point out at the jack-o-lanterns. While some of them spooked him a bit, for the most part he was overjoyed and excited and all the spooky thoughts seem to escape him. I’m happy to see everything ended on a somewhat happy note – I was terrified that my child had been scarred for life. Now let’s hope everyone packs up their costume’s and decorations now and I don’t have to deal with this for another year!

The making of a spider costume

2011-10-30T23:01:00.000-04:00

My Mom rarely purchased us a costume-in-a-bag. They were really pricey when we were growing up and even if you factor in the $19.99 deals you can get now - multiplying that by the 6+ of us going out that night makes for a very expensive Halloween. What we did instead was created our costume using things from the dress-up box or my Mom actually sewed something together and sometimes purchased a mask or accessory to complete the look. Costumes were then passed down years and years. It put the fun into Halloween - piecing together the perfect outfit to play the part. I totally want to be that Mom helping my child put to together their vision for the perfect costume.

I always love going through our family photo albums. It usually turns into a huge laugh-fest, especially our group Halloween shots. Last year for Thanksgiving I went through all the Halloween pictures, pulled them out and put together an album. It ranged from my oldest siblings in the 70's to the youngest group in the late 90's. Man, did we laugh. Here are some that I'm in:

An old lady

A white cat

Minnie Mouse

A witch

For E's first two Halloween's I caved and bought a costume-in-a-bag. He was an elephant the first year and a horse last year. This year we asked him what he wanted to be. First he decided on a lion, then a bat, then it was a pirate or maybe a hockey player...but he always came back to a SPIDER. So a spider it was. I could TOTALLY make a spider.

I picked some supplies at Dollarama, Michael's Crafts and Value Village. A black toque ($1.00), eye balls ($1.99), 2 packages of black socks ($4.00), a red sleeveless shirt ($1.99), black hair elastic bands ($1.00), safety pins ($1.00 ) and a spider web cape ($1.00 ) which all came to under $12.00.

I hope I can get some better pictures tomorrow night, but these will do for now.

I'm pretty happy with how the costume turned out and well, you can see how thrilled E is to be a "spooky spider".

Fall Leaves: Garland and Cookies

2011-10-27T07:00:00.005-04:00

To play along with the “Leaves” theme this month with the Kids in the Capital craft carnival, E and I made some garland to hang in the house to celebrate Autumn.

We gathered some leaves from the park and I traced them onto construction paper. Then E coloured the pieces of paper with his crayons. I cut the leaves out and one-hole punched the top of each leaf. Then, using his superb hand-eye coordination, E strung the leaves onto the twine (this was both fun and frustrating for him, but he was very proud of himself). When he finished we hung the garland on the wall in our dining room.

Leaf garland

I really love how it looks. I think we will need to change it with every season and celebration now.

We also made some leaf stamped peanut butter cookies this month. Instead of pressing the top of the cookies with a fork like we usually do, we used two different leaf shaped cut-outs that I used earlier in the month for my apple pie crusts. Rather than pushing the shapes all the way down like a cookie cutter, we simply imprinted the shape on the top of the cookies. E had fun rolling the balls of dough and flattening them out, too. We made larger than normal cookies to fit the cut-outs - E loved the big cookies! It's always fun baking with a toddler. Measuring, mixing, rolling, cutting, watching through the oven window and taking that first bite - each step is that much more exciting!

Leaf cookies

Did you make any "Leaves" crafts this month or have you made any in the past with your children that you would like to share? There's still one day left to link-up!

Wordless Wednesday {Miller's Farm Pumpkin Patch}

2011-10-26T09:05:00.000-04:00

Footsteps

2011-10-24T09:40:00.000-04:00

With their strides in sync, in unplanned matching outfits this is one of my favourite pictures. It is proudly displayed on our living room wall, depicting their like father, like son similarities. E points to it often and likes to relive the moment. "Remember when I went to the golf course? Remember when I hit the putter?"

When we had a guest over recently, E pointed it out to them, telling them how he and his Daddy play golf - so proud.

This photograph tells a story about the the first time we took E to the driving range. It shows how E admires his Father. It reminds us to be mindful of our actions because a little one is not too far behind, following in our footsteps.

***

I'm joining Capital Mom today by blogging about a moment from my life based on a theme she has provided. This week’s Monday Moment theme is Photograph.

Happy 1st Blogiversary to me!

2011-10-20T09:57:00.000-04:00

All because this little 'ol blog...

I've met a great group of people both online and offline. I've gone to a couple great networking events. I've learned more and more about myself everyday. I've found new passions and have started following new dreams. I've become a better parent and wife. I've found my feet all over again. And that was only the first year!

This marks a perfect time to reflect on some of my favourite posts and posts that have meant the most to me...and hand out some awards!

The Most Popular Post award goes to "Affection". It was the first post I wrote for the Carnival of Natural Parenting with the Natural Parents Network. I am so glad I decided to join this carnival. I have learned so much about my own parenting style and how I can be a more mindful parent.

The Most Helpful Post award goes to "Postpartum Gift Ideas" which was also a post written for the Carnival of Natural Parenting. It is also the most searched for post on my blog. I am proud of this post and I'm happy to find that people find it useful.

My Favourite Post award goes to "So much fun together", which I wrote in part of Capital Mom's Monday Moments. It isn't my favourite because it is well written or popular. It's my favourite for the memory I have saved and can re-read again and again. It still brings tears to my eyes and still does every time he says this to me out of the blue. The theme for that Monday Moment was Arms and boy, did I wrap my arms around and squeeze him that day!

And then there is all the posts I've written over the year that may not deserve an award, but that I love to reflect on. I've written some posts about who I am, where I'm from and what life events have molded me - good and bad; about growing up on the farm in a family off 11 children and sharing these experiences with E. I still have a lot more to say, including some input from my Mom that I'm excited to share.

I've chatted a lot about my views and choices on different natural parenting topics like circumcision, sleeping and nursing and letting your child "blossom" on their own. And also my views on birth and those who are trying to normalize it.

But most of all, I love to journal E's milestones and our little everyday experiences.

Thanks for reading, even if my posts can be very sporadic and all over the map at times. This year has been all about finding my voice and following my instincts. I have some exciting posts coming up and look forward to another year of ME!

2.5 years old

2011-10-19T21:54:00.000-04:00

Today, E turned 30 months. I just can't believe I have a 2.5 year old! I'm taking tonight to remember some of the really cute things he says and does at this age.

Some words that he says so adorably that I never want him to learn the correct pronunciation:

Bana = Banana
Hang-ga-burr = Hamburger
Oat-ba-neal = Oatmeal
Lellow - Yellow
Zeum - Museum

What he's trying to say:

I'm sorry, Mommy. I didn't know you. = I'm sorry, Mommy. I didn't see you (when he bumps into me by mistake or is trying to pass by)
What you sayin’ to me? = What do you mean? (when he doesn’t understand a word or phrase I say)

Things he says often that are too cute:

I so sorry! You want my to kiss it better? – when he knows that we are hurting
How about.... – when he’s thinking
Remember when... - when he's still thinking
Put my down! – when he wants to walk all by himself
Daddy said no to me! – when he is tattle-tailing
Phew! That was close - said usually when he is on adventure
Watch this little trick! - when he is showing me some kind of dangerous move or jump
Don't leave, I gonna miss you - whenever one of us leaves his side
What I my eat for my lunch? – a question he asks everyday when I’m making dinner
We have so much fun together, right? - when he wants to melt my heart
Eggs, bacon, sausage, chicken, noodles, pickles, hang-ga-burr and ketchup – his menu when asked what he wants to eat

He continues to amaze us and we often find ourselves looking at eachother dumbfounded thinking where the heck did he learn that or how the heck does he know that?! He remembers things better than I do and will bring up events from months ago. Like tonight while eating snack he says to me, "Remember when I see the dinosaurs at the zeum (museum) and I see the T-Rex? That was fun looking at it, right Mommy?" which is something we did MONTHS ago. Like I said, he just amazes me.

Pretend World

2011-10-17T10:16:00.000-04:00

Zooming around the grocery aisles in our rocket ship,

Going on adventures with toy cars to rescue ocean animals from exploding volcanoes,

Climbing up Daddy’s mountains (legs) and driving along his bridges (arms) with rescue cars,

Using a flashlight under the blankets and camping in the “tent”,

Going to the “restaurant” and cooking up meals with play foods and play pots and pans,

Going for walks with the dog and having red-light, green-light races through the park,

Going shopping for leaves and rocks with the tiny plastic shopping cart down the street,

Playing road hockey and skating “really fast!” and shooting the puck” really hard!”,

A new and exciting pretend world = bliss.

***

I'm joining Capital Mom today by blogging about a moment from my life based on a theme she has provided. This week’s Monday Moment theme is Bliss.

Wordless Wednesday {Thanksgiving on the farm}

2011-10-12T09:44:00.000-04:00

His first best friend

2011-10-11T09:39:00.000-04:00

E has a best friend at day care. In the morning to speed him up, promises of seeing his friend always makes him move faster. He asks if he can bring one of his toys from home to share and play with him and as soon as I park the car at day care he asks me if I can see him.

Mrs. X (his day care provider) tells me that they have really bonded the last few weeks. They play lovely together and follow each other around, always looking out for each other and asking for one another when one isn’t around. It could possibly be the cutest thing ever when I see them together and it makes me so happy to see how much he enjoys his friend's company.

His friend usually arrives at day care first and greets him at the door with squeals of excitement, but this morning I dropped E off and his best buddy was just entering the house too. They took their shoes off together and then E stood up and pressed his nose to his friend's face and asked, “Do you wanna play downstairs wif me?” And off they ran.

Our little hockey commentator

2011-10-06T07:00:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, I posted a picture of my darling E soaking up his Daddy's hockey game. It was the first game we had taken him to this season - a perfectly scheduled weekend afternoon game rather than the usual late night games that Hubby plays.

He sat and watched and pretty much stayed in the same position for almost the entire game (except maybe the last 10 minutes while he explored the stands in the arena). He's been to many games before as Hubby has always been an avid player. He also attends my ball hockey, softball and soccer games and has watched Hubby come in on the 18th hole many times on the golf course. But it never ceases to amaze me how a child so young can be so consumed with what he is watching. He pays such close attention and watches specific plays. He with no doubt will be an athlete like his parents.

This particular game was very exciting for him. He is much older now and understands the game a lot more than last year. We got there early and picked out the perfect seats right against the glass. He watched the goalie's warm-up and commented on the really, really hard shots and the other players skating really, really fast. He pointed out the numbers on the jerseys (although everyone was number 64 according to him) and we talked about the colours of the jerseys. We talked about the different sounds - like the loud whistles and the sound of the puck hitting the boards. He could pick out his Daddy from across the ice and smiled every time he did. He loved watching the Zamboni come out and clean the ice. Who says a hockey game isn't educational?

We enjoyed dinner with our friend's and headed home and to my surprise E fell asleep in the car. He must have been really worn out from the concentration he had on the game. So to bed early, he went.

Then 4am came and I heard my little man calling for me.

I'm awake, Mommy! I'm done sleeping!

We welcomed him into our bed and assured him it was still night time and to go back to sleep. But he couldn't sleep. No, he had way to much on his mind! And so for the next hour until 5am...this is what we listened to:

Daddy skate really fast AND THEN he shoot the puck. It go BANG. It hit the boards. The Zamboni cleans the ice. Daddy number 64. He wears a jersey. Daddy's jersey blue and orange. Daddy skate really fast AND THEN, AND THEN he shoot the puck AND THEN Mommy and (E) watch Daddy play hockey. He shoot the puck really, really hard. The goalie STOPPED the puck. I bring my hockey stick. I bring my puck. Daddy brings his hockey stick. What else, Mommy? What else Daddy bring? Daddy bring his puck too ANNNNDDD his equipment ANNNDDDD Daddy bring his helmet ANNNDDD bring his skates. Where's my hockey skates? I wanna wear MY hockey skates!

Hubby and I at times we gasping for air. We couldn't hide our laughter. This child sounded possessed! The AND THEN's are what really got me. He was barely taking a breathe between each play-by-play. It was as if we were at the game and he was commentating it. He was so excited to tell us all about his experience and we didn't stop him. It went on and on and on like this until he finally settled down and fell back asleep for another 5 hours (bless his little heart).

We learned two new important parenting lessons that night...
1 - Don't let E go to bed before talking about the eventful day to avoid the early morning wake-up aftermath and
2 - Take him to a hockey game if you really want to wear him out.

P.S. Remember that really funny clip from Dude, where's my car? with Aston Kutcher when the Chinese drive through lady keeps repeating And theeeeeennnn? It was kind of like that - hilarious but annoying at the same time.

Wordless Wednesday {If you want his undivided attention...}

2011-10-05T14:15:00.000-04:00

...take him to Daddy's hockey game.

My take on the upcoming live birth

2011-10-04T22:36:00.000-04:00

I've been following Nancy for a while now - even before she started getting international coverage. I'm drawn to everything baby and especially natural birth and so I was especially interested in her natural birth videos and her experience as a birthing coach. And yes, I'm signed up to watch her give birth online to her third child (although I'm not sure it will be something I will lose sleep over).

I gave birth to my son naturally and I'm obviously a huge advocate of natural birth within my circle of friends and family. It boggles my mind with how uneducated people are about birth and how they don't prepare themselves and let others take control of their experience. I'm trying to do my part in educating those around me.

"Those who have the privilege to know, have the duty to act" - Albert Einstein.

I'm paying close attention to Nancy's story and I've been reading a lot of comments lately on all the articles about her plan to give birth and they are REALLY firing me up. The following seems to be the three most popular comments and areas of discussion - with my take.

1. "She's just doing this to become famous".

Perhaps there is a small part of her that is happy about the exposure her business as a birth coach is getting, but I believe that Nancy has set out to do this for the greater good. We need more women to help normalize natural birth. We need to stop believing what we see in movies and thinking that birth is really just like those shows on TLC. While I will not be setting up video camera's for my next birth I commend her for her decision and for what she is trying to accomplish.

2. "It should be an intimate moment with only your close family present."

Would you consider a delivery room at the hospital, intimate? Hardly. Doctors, nurses, residents coming in and out. All of them yelling for you to push! push! push! I had a natural birth in a hospital and I had these distractions and more. If you have watched the birth video of her second birth you will see that she hardly exposes herself at all and she is very calm and inspiring. She also doesn't smile and wave to the camera. She is having an intimate birth experience with her support team. I can imagine it will be the same deal with this birth.

3. Showing her third birth is an unfair presentation of natural birth since it will be easier and "the baby will practically fall out".

OK, this one actually made me laugh. Really, people? Really? Yes, she will be mentally tougher having "been there, done that", but having previous children doesn't mean it will be physically easier on her. Nor does it mean it will be quicker. My Mother gave birth vaginally eleven times and she'll tell you how much easier it doesn't get. If only it was that easy to predict!

There are many, many more disheartening comments out there. People comparing it to disgusting bodily functions, comparing her to Octo-Mom looking for her 15 minutes of fame (15 minute birth - wouldn't that be nice?), and commenter's just being downright ignorant. I'm just tired of reading SO MANY uneducated comments from these people. I'm tired of people saying that exposing birth and breastfeeding is disgusting - but sex and pornography are glorified. If you don't want to see it - don't tune in. But in my mind if you are feeling this way, you NEED to watch this birth. Maybe it will just wake you up to reality a little bit!

Jumping back into gymnastics

2011-10-03T21:55:00.000-04:00

Can I go play now? He asks as we arrive and register. We take off our shoes and he wiggles free from my arms and takes off to watch the children during the previous class, itching to get out on the floor.

We haven't been here for three months because we took the summer off to enjoy more outdoor activities. He has been talking about going back for weeks.

When we are given the go-ahead he runs ragged, not looking back. Balance beams, hoola hoops, bean bags and bouncy balls. Swinging ropes and rings, climbing mats and ladders, mini-trampolines. He heads upstairs and quickly remembers the rules - only one jumper at a time. A few minutes of bouncing and silliness and then a break for another child's turn - I'm surprised with how cooperative he is.

He takes off running across the trampolines and through the crowd of parents and children. He tells me he wants to jump into the blocks. I smile, thinking he will probably stand at the edge and wait for me to lift him in - like he always has. I struggle to keep up and he disappears before my eyes - happily diving right into the pit of foam blocks without hesitation. Where has my timid toddler gone? Amazing - after months of being away that he can jump right back in where he left off...and some.

***

I'm joining Capital Mom today by blogging about a moment from my life based on a theme she has provided. This week’s Monday Moment theme is Jumping.

A new creative itch

2011-09-30T06:59:00.000-04:00

I've been really inspired to get more crafty these days. I think it's a mixture of enjoying crafts with a child who is now old enough to work with crafts supplies and an addiction to all the pretty things on Pinterest. I've been working on some DIY home decor projects at home that I hope to start sharing shortly. E and I have been doing a lot of painting and crafts lately, including this children's scrapbook I shared yesterday.

I thought it would be fun to share my love of children's crafts with other parents in Ottawa. Join me on Kids in the Capital today for the first post of my themed monthly craft carnival. This month we will be crafting with leaves and you don't need a blog to participate - so please join in the fun!

Click here to read on...

"You Are Loved" Children's Scrapbook

2011-09-29T08:46:00.000-04:00

I've been wanting to make E his own little photo album since he was an infant. One of his favourite first books was a board book of baby faces. I loved seeing his reaction to their facial expressions and listen to his squeals of delight with each page turned. As he grows older he loves pointing out and naming the people in pictures on our walls and going through his baby albums. As much as I love showing him his photo albums, I've put a lot of work into making them nice and I want them to last many years. I decided to make him his own photo album filled with friends and family and that he can hold and love all he wants.

"You Are Loved" Children's Scrapbook

Supplies:

Package of heart shaped cardboard
A binder ring
Scrapbook paper
Mod podge
Scissors
One-hole punch
Markers
Stickers
Pictures

I picked up most of my supplies at Michaels Craft Store and also had some on hand already from previous projects.

The first step was to trace the hearts and cut out the scrapbook paper. Next we mod podged the paper onto each side of the hearts. After the paper was set I cut out the pictures of E's loved ones to size. Loved ones include his parents, grandparents, cousins and godparents. I have so many more hearts to make in the future to include his aunts, uncles, friends and day care provider too! The pictures were mod podged onto the hearts and then I let E loose with his stickers. Well, kind of. He would have preferred to put a sticker on top of each persons face, but we came to an agreement that on each of their shirts would suffice. I was really proud of him for picking the stickers out for each page. He surprised me by picking stickers of tractors for his farmer Grandpa which was really cute.

Once he was happy with all of his sticker selections I trimmed the edges of the hearts to cut off any excess scrapbook paper. Next I one-hole punch the top of each heart and attached the binder ring.

Ta da! A quick and easy scrapbook for E that he can enjoy and wear out as much as he wants. It currently sits on our coffee table and I have been enjoying watching him pick it up and recite everyone's names and the stickers they are "wearing" on their shirts. He is so proud of his very own photo album of the people that love him so dearly.

This post was created in participation with Dionna at Code Name: Mama and Mandy at Living Peacefully with Children's "Families, Create!" Carnival. This month's theme is Friends and Family.

Recipe: Toddler Approved Avocado Salad Dressing

2011-09-28T06:45:00.002-04:00

Suddenly, I have a 2 and almost a 1/2 year old that LOVES salad. I never thought I would hear a toddler asking me for more salad, please! He has always picked away at some Caesar style salads I have made (dairy free), but I have finally found the perfect blend that has him clearing a whole plate of salad. And it's really healthy too!

Toddler Approved Avocado Salad Dressing

1 avocado
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small clove garlic
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tbsp fresh parsley

Add all the ingredients to your blender and voila! you have one very healthy dressing that hopefully your children will enjoy too.

I serve it pre-mixed with chopped iceberg or romaine lettuce, diced carrots, diced cucumber, diced tomatoes and diced yellow pepper. This has been E's favourite combination so far and what we had for dinner last night, topped with grilled chicken breast. I didn't realize how proud I would be in watching my child eat and love a salad!

I found it has taken him until now to learn to chew the limp parts of the lettuce leaves properly without choking, so ice berg lettuce was crunchy enough to get him started. He still prefers the spine of the romaine lettuce because of the crunch factor. He loves garlic and other strong spices and flavours, so adjust these ingredients to your child's liking.

I have been using avocado in place of mayo in many recipes now including tuna and chicken salads. I also tried an avocado chocolate pudding that E loved (me not so much, but it wasn't terrible). Any more creative salad or avocado recipes for children out there?

Singing a different tune

2011-09-26T08:56:00.000-04:00

We don't have a cookie cutter life. We rarely sit around the table for dinner as a family. More often than not family outings consist of just me and E.

It has made me angry, sad and frustrated. I've cried many tears. This is not the life I planned and dreamed of. But this is our life and I must live it to the fullest. The life I was given. I could wallow in self-pity. I could sing "Oh, woe is me". But otherwise life is good. Pretty great actually.

We love each other and our child. We have the same goals and visions. We share an equal amount of responsibility to our family. We need to make sacrifices and both play our parts in making our goals a reality.

I pass off the questions and ignore the judgements. I'm learning to accept. I'm learning to make changes to the things I can. I'm finally singing a different tune.

***

I'm joining Capital Mom today by blogging about a moment from my life based on a theme she has provided. This week’s Monday Moment theme is Singing.