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We have found yet another “Parenting Essential” for you – the Rugged Idea Blankets. These awesome blankets are made from Rip-Stop Nylon and Fleece – making them durable, cozy (yet lightweight), and water/wind proof! They come in 3 sizes: small (changing pad), medium (perfect for your stroller) or large (great for a double stroller).

We own the Rugged Idea Medium sized Blanket and absolutely love it! It has ties, so that it can be tied to our stroller in a moments notice, and is lightweight and compact enough that we can carry it with us wherever we go! It has gone to the park with us, watched fireworks with us (we sat on it), and covered our legs when we got chilly.

Fall is approaching, and the possibilities are endless! Cover a stroller so your little one is blocked from the wind/rain and warmth is locked in. Or, use it when wearing your baby to help protect your little one from the elements. Use it to sit on in the park, to cover up infant carriers, or as a mat to play on in public places.

These blankets are great – no matter the season, no matter the activity – and are a new favorite for us!

Go HERE to get yours, now!

Welcome back!

I have a confession to make:  I hate those cheap little Easter baskets that come out every year, and worse than that…I hate the grass.  Okay, hate’s a strong word but I really don’t understand why people BUY the crap.

This year, we’re going for reusable containers of the storage variety.  You know, the cute little canvas boxes …or the twine and bamboo ones, etc.  They’re cute and pretty and guess what?!  They hold Lorelei’s stuff quite nicely in her room and help us keep the place organized since totes and containers are what we seem to always be short of.  If you don’t really have a need for organizational goodies, you could consider a wagon, toy dumptruck, wheelbarrow, pretty pillowcase, or anything of the like.

Instead of grass this year, we’ve asked Lorelei’s Mimi to pick up some thrift store/dollar store cloth napkins or dish towels.  Lorelei is constantly requesting “TOWEL, mama.  TOWEL!” so this would be perfect.  Other ideas?  Pillowcases, scarves or play silks, costume jewelry, etc could easily add some “pizzazz” to the gift – and they won’t hide in your carpet until winter.

Besides having crazy weird dreams and now weighing 117 lbs (I gained 4 lbs in 2 weeks?!), pretty much everything still feels the same.  Same dry skin as 2 weeks ago (but not nearly as bad as 1st and 2nd trimester) – this is just normal dry skin – not the flesh eating sort that makes you want to just rip your skin off.  My entire body is slowly just plumping up, and if I were a cow I’d be worried.  Basically, I’m feeling really good this past week.  Today, I actually had a burst of energy and was able to clean up and vacuum L’s room and put together her toddler bed (yippee!  I can now mark THAT off the list), bake 2 loaves of bread – one whole wheat and one whole wheat banana bread), and wash a load of clothes.  So, those things are finished and I feel rather accomplished, thankyouverymuch.

A friend of mine hooked me up with a HUGE stack of birth books to read so I’ve been quite busy with those.  I know the technicalities of it all, as I’ve been here before, but I love reading the different approaches and mindsets for birth.  I’ve read some very hippy books as well as some not-so hippy books.  I’ve read books that suggest you moo like a cow during labor (which I totally plan to do, by the way) and others that focus on hypnobirthing (something I may use PART of to help me in certain stages of my labor).

My favorites so far are definitely:

Ina May’s book

The Birth Partner by Penny Simkin, P.T.

Birthing From Within by Pam England and Rob Horowitz

Basically, Ina May is just really cool and would possibly make me consider heading to her “farm” to have this baby…except not.  But, the idea was entertained in my head, and that means something.  (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, Ina May is a midwife and she has this “Farm” where women can come and give birth in close proximity to doctors and such, but they stay in these cabins and go for completely natural.)  The Birth Partner is supposed to be for Steven to read, but I’m basically reading it and then giving him the cliff notes.  Right now, I’m loving that it’s one of the few books I’ve found that actually TELLS you how to deliver a baby in an emergency setting.  Not something I want to have to know, necessarily, but would be really cool to print out the info to have in the car and house…on hand.  It also has all sorts of other information, although some of it is a little bit dated (but not too bad).  The third book, Birthing From Within combines art and creativity with preparing for labor so I obviously LOVE this one.  One of the authors actually teaches her own classes (which this book is based off of) and I think it’d be super great to be able to attend those.

Anyways, those are 3 that I’d completely recommend – regardless of what TYPE of birth you are going for…whether you want a completely sterile hospital birth or you want to go all crunchy granola and do it at home.  Good stuff.

Yesterday, my husband was laid off.

Or fired, take your pick.  “Laid off” sounds so much more easygoing – but either way you slice it, it’s the same.

There were no warnings, no suspicions, no write ups.  Just, one day your boss is gushing over how great you are, and then after the weekend…he has to let you go.

Oh, but he’ll write you a stellar recommendation for any job – and he does really hope you bring the wife and girls back by to visit, because he’d really like that.  Well, you know what I’d like?

Anyways…

Right now, I’m trying to be grateful for the things we do have.  I’m trying my darnedest to see the silver lining and to not lose sight of the good things we still have in our lives.  I’m trying not to think about the fact that the baby will be here soon or another mortgage bill will come due soon.  I’m trying to remember that everything happens for a reason, and God will take care of us.  I’m trying to understand that as hard as this may be – that God had a different plan for us and it didn’t involve a job at a company that was just buying it’s time with investors as it was.

I’m trying.

We’ll get through this, we always do.  I know that.  And, I guess in the end, it’s the journey who makes us who we need to be.

I just wish mine involved themepark passes and ice cream cones.

In hindsight, no obstacle seems too great – but, it’s during those seeming landslides that everything seems too great to bear.

Please say a little prayer for our family.  (I’d much appreciate it.)

This past weekend, mom and Lorelei and I went for a girls’ day out for shopping and such out of town.  After circling the Cracker Barrel parking lot 5 times, hoping a parking spot would magically appear – we finally gave up and moved onwards.  Finally, we settled at the Golden Corral.  Yeh, yeh.  I know.

Sure, the cluster of rat tails and mullets surely did amuse me – but, mostly because I figured I’d have seen that sort of thing in a more “country” setting than the city we had chosen for our weekend “shopping” excursion (which mostly consisted of going to Target because OUR town hasn’t one).  We ate quickly and were soon on our way.

Lorelei and I made our way to the exit area – a small walkway located beside the cashier/hostess – and waited against the wall for mom to finish up.  In front of us stood 2 girls – somewhere around my age – and a guy who was with them, but I’m not sure if it was in the “brother” or “boyfriend” sort of way.  Or both.  You couldn’t really tell.

One girl, a pretty brunette with her hair pulled in a ponytail called the guy over and asked him if he’d carry the tray and plates.  Actually, although it was in question form, I’m pretty sure it wasn’t really an inquiry.  With a slight nod, he moves away from the wall and towards the girl as she abruptly pulls his face closer to hers, bursting forth some urgent whispers.

He chuckles and looks our way.

Must be something on the wall behind me, I rationalize.

She nudges him and says something more to him.  This time, he looks directly at me and then quickly away.

Then, she glances in my direction.

F*ing wall.  I’m pretty positive it is indeed not the wall.  Oh my gosh.  Did a huge zit erupt on my forehead and swallow my eyebrows? I feel for a bump, or a lesion maybe.  No.  Nothing. I sniff quickly, wondering if a booger was dangling from my nostril, like a tiny bungee jumper.  Nada.

The second girl, petite with blonde curls, pats the brunette’s back obviously wanting in on the big secret.  The brunette turns to her, whisper in her ear and the brunette looks at me.  Again.  As does the blonde.  She smirks, turns around and then moves her chin back over her shoulder, her eyes peering down behind her back towards my daughter.

At that moment, I realized their conversation topic.

“Could you be a little more OBVIOUS?!”  I said, their expressions turning to shock and gazes dropping.

Turns out, there were no boogers.  Turns out, I really do look young – which gets to be a little awkward when you’re pregnant…and look like you’re 16.  So, I decided to set the story straight.

I’m not 16, I’m 12.

Hello!  Well, I was told that I should probably have a birth plan and, to be honest I did: Have a baby.  But, the greater forces that be didn’t think that was good enough, so I logged on to a website that basically made one for me.  I threw that one away.  It was like 4 pages long and didn’t even have pictures or diagrams or anything.  So, I decided to make my own.

I know you already know my name and basic sexual history from my chart and all, but I heard that you should really make friends with the nurses – and, I just want you to know that I’m totally down with that.  Usually, I don’t really let my friends touch me in all the places you’re about to, but I understand.  I would like to request, though, that you at least chat me up a little beforehand, you know – so it doesn’t feel so cold and all.  Bonus points if you make funny kissy faces at me.

Also, I’d really appreciate it if maybe the student nurses could stay away from my va-jay-jay.  It’s not that I don’t want to be their friend, I just don’t want to feel like I should be selling theme park tickets.  You understand, right?

I realize all births are different, and therefore all moms probably have their own brand of crazy coming in, so I had a few things I thought we should discuss (if you have a really short attention span, please skip to page 3):

-  Please ask me before you go doing anything up in my hoo-ha.  I have this weird reflex of kicking and wouldn’t want to kick your head.  So, if you’re wanting to do something like strip my membranes, make sure I’m cool with it.  Thanks in advance.

-  If my water breaks before labor, I want to wait a while before being induced.  Like, 12 hours.  I promise I won’t take a bath or sit in any mud puddles in between.

-  Since I’m basically going to be displaying my goods all over the place, I’d really like some mood music and lighting.  Barry Mantilow is cool and all but I’m kind of thinking more along the lines of oceans and such.  And, I don’t want to set your alarms off, so I guess I can pass on the candlelight, but do you think we could maybe dim the lights a little?  I’ll bring the music if you’ll dim the lights *wink wink*

-  Can I please have two hospital gowns?  I’m thinking I might want to get up and try some different positions and I realize I probably won’t care THEN, but come on.  Help a girl out.

-  Can you please just ignore me if you see me take a swig of water?  I realize I can’t have buckets, but this is some hard work.  Ice chips just lose their cool factor after a while.

-  I know I’ll have to have an IV or a port or something, but for the most part I think it might be cool to be able to move should I feel the need.  It’s highly probable that I won’t feel the need, but I like to keep my options open.

-  I’ve decided that I don’t want an epidural.  The problem is I might change my mind.  Don’t listen to me.  Even if I plead or tell you I’m dying.  I really don’t want one, so just tell me they’re out or that someone ran over the anesthesiologist.

-  Since I’m not having an epidural, I might do some really weird things.  You know, like moo or cross my eyes and zone out.  I might even hop up like Elvis, grab my crotch and sing, I’m really not sure.  I’ve been reading some really hippy/crunchy books and who knows which set of advice I take.  You are more than welcome to moo with me, by the way.  Or, just moo at me.  I’ll think you’re hilarious and will probably bring you cookies when I come back.

-  I’m thinking I’d really like a mirror.  You know, so I can apply my chapstick and then make sure I’m pushing right and stuff.  It helped last time.

-  As far as episiotomies go, no thanks.  Unless of course, it’s a medical emergency…but still, ask before you do it, okay?

-  If my husband leaves with a limp or a black eye, he most likely just ran into the door or something.  Just ignore it.  It’s cool.

-  After my baby is born, I’d really appreciate it if you could not whisk her away but could maybe do all of the suctioning and wiping down while she’s laying on me?  And then I want to breastfeed before all of the “routine” stuff starts getting underway.

-  My husband wants to cut the cord, but if he gets all pansy-like, that is up for grabs.  My mom will probably bare her teeth and nails if you don’t let her do it though.  Just sayin’.   I’d also really appreciate it if you could wait until the cord stops pulsing to cut it.

-  Speaking of pansy-ing out – If my husband should get all dramatic and go unconscious, just gently move him over with the toe of your shoe.  Try not to kick him, or anything but DOOD, this is my day.  He can get his own nurses, or wait his turn.

-  Once my baby is born, please hold off any of the crazy family members that somehow used their ESP powers to find out I was there.  I’d really like to bond with her and my husband and establish breastfeeding before we take on any visitors.  If you need to, you have my permission to send them to the neurosurgery or general surgery waiting rooms.  At least it’ll buy me a little bit of time – plus it’d be kind of funny (obviously moreso for me, not them).

-  Since I’m breastfeeding, can you please not give my baby any sort of pacifiers or artificial nipples or formula?  I know you probably wouldn’t, but I just wanted to be sure in case when you talk to me next I’m all mumbly and you can’t quite decipher what I just said.

-  I’d love to give my daughter her first bath, by the way.  I brought some baby stuff, so please let me know if you guys are down with that.

-  I’m okay with the Vitamin K shot, eye goo, and PKU prick, but can we do that after the initial breastfeeding, please?

To RECAP:

Things might get a little weird.  Mooing, Elvis crotch grabbing, and the like.  (Confused?  You should’ve read the whole thing.)

No episiotomies

Please wait until the cord stops pulsing before it’s cut

No students touching me

Please ask before you do anything that will affect me or my baby.  You can do whatever you want to my husband.

I plan to breastfeed, so please no formula, nipples other than my own (artificial or not), or pacifiers

I’m super excited to make an announcement this morning – in fact, I’m SO excited that I actually got up at 7am this morning which should really mean something because that never happens. Ever. Whole Foods Market has just released the beginning of their series of podcasts this month, and their focus?

Pregnancy and Baby (oh, heck yes!)

From now until March 30th, they’re offering MY READERS an incentive to listen and provide feedback to their Whole Baby Podcasts covering: Natural Baby Body Care, Pregnancy – A Time to Go Natural, and Organics for Baby, Beyond Food.

So, why am I so excited? Because I have recently teamed up with them to offer one awesome reader (because you are all so awesome) a bag full of goodies just for participating!

Hylands – Teething Tablets, and Teething Gel

HOW TO ENTER (please read carefully as this is not like other giveaways):

                        Natural Baby Body Care  (March 10) 

                        Pregnancy – A Time to Go Natural   (March 17)

                        Organics for Baby, Beyond Food   (March 24)

This past week, we’ve been finishing up tons of small projects – one of which I had bought the materials for MONTHS ago!  So, this WFMW is an idea for displaying your child’s artwork!

I found these 4 frames (just the frames) in the middle of an aisle at walmart.  I’m guessing they got busted or something, since I’ve not seen them there regularly.  I originally had picked them up to make dressing frames to help Lorelei learn how to dress herself, but then decided I’d just paint them white (with turquoise along the inner edge) and display her art.  I’m planning to either attach a little clip or a magnet to the wall, so we can have a moveable art gallery.  This way, I can display any 4 of her art pieces and change them out as she grows (same with A).  The items taken down from the “gallery” will either be professionally framed or put into sleeves in a binder so we’ll have them!  Obviously, I don’t mean EVERY crayon drawing or every time she sneaks off with a permanent marker…but her better stuff, you know?