No Nonsense Parenting

To Speak or Not to Speak? -Gimme your opinions and SOUND OFF!

2010-10-03T20:52:00.000-07:00

Believe it or not, there are times when I'm unsure whether or not I should say something. Yes, shocking, I know but really, there are situtaions in my life where I have to wonder whether opening my mouth is going to be WORTH the outcome. Usually, yes, it is because I don't care if people don't like me for the fact that I share information (fact based, scientifically supported information). A favorite quote of mine:

"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." -Eleanor Roosevelt

It is *so* true. You can't feel guilty because someone tells you that there is information that PROVES that breastfeeding is a superior infant choice unless you LET that make you feel guilty...and why on earth would you? Because you'd rather NOT know so that you can CHOOSE not to do it? I'm not sure, I honestly can't imagine (and remember, I have done it all and formula fed my other children, but when I learned more, I didn't feel guilty and start a mommy war, I took that information and did better). And this is, of course, just an example. Obviously formula exists for a reason and I would love to see it improved, regulated more strictly and, of course, for more breastfeeding information/support/breastmilk donors/etc were available.

But this is taking us FAR away from the point of my blogpost. :)

Sadly, you'd think the only things parents would argue about would be infant feeding, discipline, perhaps toys/devices and maybe sleeping arrangements. You might be surprised to know that another hot button issue in the momosphere is carseats. Yea, carseats. And not just the "Evenflo vs. Graco" type debate but people who ACTUALLY get offended when you tell them the LAW on infant/child carseats/restraints. (For carseat laws go here This lists the most basic information and needs to be read carefull and should also be cross-referenced. Also remember that MINIMUMS aren't the safest.)

While at Target this weekend, a woman was pushing her cart in front of me. She had with her a toddler and an infant, perched on the cart in his infant carrier. The straps on the carrier were so loose they were sagging, hanging off his shoulders and the chest clip was down by his groin. Now, it is likely she loosened this and pushed the clip down as soon as she got him out of the car (although that's a little scary too, considering he was teetering on top of the cart...) but I couldn't help but wonder, "What if he was in the car like that? What if she doesn't know (or worse, doesn't care) that it's incredibly dangerous?" and as I followed her (incidentally, we were just taking the same route through Target for about 5 mintues) I just couldn't muster up something to say to her. I didn't want to come off as rude, know-it-all, condescending etc. Part of my problem was trying to figure out HOW to say something to her. What would I start with? How would I broach that topic without her feeling totally defensive or insulted. And that wasn't my intention, by any means. And so, I contemplated so long that she took a different turn and then, it was too late. Still kicking myself for that one.

And what would have happened? Likely, she would have either told me she loosened it as soon as they got out of the car; told me to f*ck off and mind my own business (ouch); thanked me for my concern or said she didn't know and (hopefully) put it in effect. I sadly must admit I let that second possibility affect me too much and for whatever reason, I let it make me a bit nervous.

Hopefully next time I won't let my nerves get the better of me, after all, it really was a matter of life and death if her infant was riding in the car restrained (I use the term loosely) like that. And so my question to all of you fellow mommies is this:

What would you do in this situation and have you ever been in a similar situation where you felt compelled to say something? Did you? How did that go?

I think this could be a great discussion and, of course, needs to be kept civil and respectful. So sound off!

Weaning is such sweet sorrow...

2010-09-30T02:25:00.000-07:00

When I was pregnant with my third child, Alex, I had set my mind on breastfeeding. I knew that my lack of success with my other two children was due to a lack of knowledge on breastfeeding. After all, just because it's natural doesn't mean it comes to you (or your baby) naturally. Yes, all babies are born with the basic need, tools, and know-how to breastfeed, but there is a lot of interference at play in today's maternity wards, and it can and does affect breastfeeding.

I figured in order to have an enjoyable and successful breastfeeding relationship this time around, I would need to arm myself with some basic understanding of what makes a good nursing relationship. Most women will tell you that the first few weeks are tough, but after that, it's smooth sailing. But many times, "tough" doesn't even begin to describe those first few weeks of nursing, as I experienced with baby #1.

My first source was nursing forums on the web, like different breastfeeding groups on the mothering site Cafemom.com. I learned a lot from these women, but many of them didn't seem to be too hell bent on nursing. There were many posts on weaning for convenience, supplementing, and bad advice that even I, as a so far unsuccessful nursing mother, noticed was bad. I was lucky enough to get a copy of "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding" (a new edition has just recently been released with more updated information and witty writing style). This book was GREAT. I feel I owe my breastfeeding relationship with Alex to La Leche League. I read every chapter in that book that would pertain to the beginning of my nursing relationship.

At the moment of Alexander's birth in to this world, I accepted him on to my chest. We gazed in to each other's eyes and I attempted to latch him on the breast. Nope, he didn't want anything to do with it. However, after a little time had passed, he eagerly found his way and latched on. But I popped him right off.

One thing I had learned was my cracked, bleeding nipples with my first child, Maggie, were *not* normal and could have been avoided. Pacifiers and a lack of knowledge on how a baby SHOULD latch led to me suffering because of her poor, shallow latching during nursing. When Alex began his first breastfeeding, he was doing it wrong. I removed him from the breast, and we attempted again. As we would continue to breastfeed over the next few days, I continued to correct his latch when it wasn't perfect. I knew how to and what to look for, because I had made sure to learn before hand. It's hard enough adjusting to a new baby, much less a new baby and two toddlers *and* learning how to breastfeed! Having the information before all that stress made this whole nursing thing a ton easier.

Once we settled in to it, our nursing relationship took off. I knew I was going to breastfeed, but I was so happy to have been able to make it that much easier. My plan was to let Alex nurse until he weaned, an age that varies widely across the globe, and even across the country. Most children in the US wean between ages 2-3, but it's hard to tell as extended or "full-term' nursing isn't very common (or accepted) in the US and many women feel societal pressures to wean, even before the recommended and encouraged age of 1.

I must admit, I really didn't think he would nurse past 2. Age 2 was my goal. It is the minimum recommendation from the World Health Organization and the benefits of breastmilk don't stop...ever. I knew his health, and mine, would be optimal for as long as he continued to nurse. But again, I didn't know exactly how long that was going to last.

His 2nd birthday came and went, and "nursies" were one of his favorite past-times. I was happy to continue nursing, afterall, he was hardly sick and suffered no ear infections in his first 2 years of life.

Around age 2.5 I started to encourage and enforce certain rules. If he threw a fit, demanded to nurse, or pulled at my shirt, he was not going to nurse. He would have to wait. If the fit continued, he was not getting it. Just as with anything else, I disciplined him for bad or inappropriate behavior and his attitude toward nursing was no different. I also attempted to night wean him, as I noticed he was losing his suckling reflex (a sign that your child may be ready to wean) and it was getting painful to nurse at night.

I was not at all prepared for him to stop all together, and even these attempts at "regulating" breastfeeding were hardly successful, though I didn't give in or up.

Around the age of 2 years and 10 months my friend was visiting. Alex announced to her that he "had nursies for the last time.". It was so matter of fact and we both laughed at how funny the statement was. He responded with "Yup, I'm a big boy now.". At that moment in time, I did not believe anything he had said. He had been going to bed without nursing, and was maybe nursing once at night, but he still asked during the day. Some days it was only once or twice, others it seemed much more than that, but it didn't seem near done.

Sure enough, that *was* the end of it. As much as I was feeling ready for it to be over, I was surprised at how I felt once it WAS over. I think, in part, because I had expected to know the last time he was nursing, to remember it. To end the last 3 years with some sort of big "Hoorah!". But no, he had decided he was done. Perhaps, in part, to my gentle encouragement that we needed to go about things a little differently.

I do miss it every now and again, just because the bond was so wonderful and we were able to make that quiet, calm connection in the middle of a hectic day, but all in all, I am happy. It seems a little odd now, to have had this relationship for so long and now it's gone. He has become quite the snuggle bunny. I love it, because now we can just cuddle and he doesn't decide to start demanding to nurse, as if that was all I was good for. Instead, I get hugs, kisses, "I love you, mommy".

Yes, it's sad to think he has nursed for the last time, and I don't even know when that was, but I really like this "new" relationship. I hope that by nursing him until he and I were both done has served him well. I'm happy to have made such a turn around and he has taught me so much about mothering. Now, I can look forward to continuing to grow in our relationship, and to nursing the next baby until he/she is "a big boy or girl". :)

I Am a Human Toilet: Repost

2010-06-01T12:24:00.000-07:00

This is a blog I wrote back in 2008. I find it funny, reading it over again but the reason it's even on my mind is that I get the most RANDOM "ads" posted on it. I reject them all but some of the stuff is really weird (like, freaky weird). I'm debating deleting the originally blog so I don't have to moderate anymore inappropriate ads but until I decide for sure, I thought I'd share it here.

Enjoy :)

2.26.2008

I am a human toilet.

Being a mother comes with many other titles. You learn them as you go. You become a homemaker many times, a chef, a designer, a manager, a hostage negotiator, and many more things! One title I never thought I'd bear was that of "human toilet" but alas, my fate has been sealed...

I was first introduced to my new job duty with my first child. I was still breastfeeding Maggie and so she was having that seedy, mustard looking poopy as she wasn't on solids or anything yet. Well, I was a young, single mommy and we shared a room at my mother's, so I didn't have a nursery and I usually just changed her on my bed. As I carefully removed her poopy diaper and folded it ever so nicely, I figured she'd be fine diaper free for a sec (after all, it was all in the diaper, right?). Well, I wasn't prepared for what happened next! As I lifted her legs up to put her new diaper on, she projectile pooped ALL OVER ME! I was not only a new mommy, I was a young mommy, so this was not something I was AT ALL prepared for!! I was covered in seedy, liquidy poop! I changed clothes, sheets and finally her diaper and jumped into the longest, steamiest shower ever!

Now that I had experienced this, I knew you were never safe, not even for a moment, from the poop factor! I was always prepared with a fresh diaper to slip right now after the dirty one. I would even make sure to unfold it and prepare the tabs prior to removal of the soiled dipe!

I made it 5 whole years without ever experiencing a poop drench again! That is, until last night...

The baby beast was sitting on my lap, bouncing and cooing about, when I heard the puttering warning sounds of diaper doody (yes, that's a purposeful typo). As he ever so joyfully filled his drawers, my brother and I continued our conversation, that is until I felt wet...very wet. I figured he probably leaked a little and so I lifted him up and O.M.G. I was COVERED in his poopsie! I had no clue how it had made it's way from his bowels to my pants (and shirt, and chair...) because he had not a "drop" on him!!

I laid him down and went to clean up (I've learned now having 3 kids, that hot steamy shower I had the first time...was the last in a LONG time...). Once clean and changed I came back to solve this mystery. The beast was kicking around and laughing, not even phased by the mess in his drawers, but there was still no apparent leak!

Upon further examination, it was clear where the mess had seeped from. Somehow, and without leaving much of a mark, it had leaked out from between his legs, the crotch area, and nicely settled on moi. When I opened his diaper, there was barely a skidmark inside. He had, in fact, covered me in all of his wonderful poopiness.

I finally came to terms with the fact that on top of being a program organizer, a maid, a magician and a performer, I was also a human toilet.

Setting Boundaries

2010-05-14T21:00:00.000-07:00

I love the *idea* of letting my children explore and experiment with things, permitting they are appropriate and safe. However, I find that the *idea* of letting them do this and the reality of being able to allow it often collide...and explode.

I wish I could allow them to be crafty and NOT CARE that there was glue and glitter and marker all over the kitchen, but I have a house full of 7 people to maintain...plus, who wants to waste money replacing things that get damaged?

I wish I could laugh as they chased each other around the house, SHRIEKING with delight and making my ear drums ring, but, unfortunately, I do not enjoy migraines...plus you can only take so much medication before you're doing more harm than good!

I wish I could let them get FILTHY in the dirt playing outside, catching bugs and picking their nose, but I can't help but tell them to "Keep away from there, in case there's black widows!" or " Please keep those DIRTY fingers out of your mouth...and your sister's!"...plus, I really like to avoid unnecessary exposure to germs and deadly pests, even if SOME germs are a good thing.

I wish I could NEVER have to yell or raise my voice at my children, but if I never did they'd never hear me over their own chorus of cheers, chants and tears...plus, I hear yelling a little keeps you from going off the deep end completely.

I wish that I could say I loved breastfeeding ALL the time because it's only beautiful and wonderful and joyous, but then I'd be not only a liar but discrediting myself and the other moms when they are going through a BAD or DIFFICULT phase...plus, let's face it, after 2.5 years sometimes you just want to say no, because you can.

I wish that I could let my house stay in a constant state of toy mess and not get frustrated at the massive piles of trucks, barbies and stubbed toes that result from it but, I enjoy NOT stubbing my toe to a bloody nubbin and having a neat and organized house that doesn't automatically scream "KIDS LIVE HERE" when someone walks in the door...plus, who really enjoys having bloody nubs for toes?

I really do wish I could live up to the *idea* of that kind of mom, but instead, I'll keep doing my best to reach that point and not cry if I miss it by an inch...or a mile...plus, who REALLY wants to be *perfect* anyhow?

Placenta Encapsulation-Phase 2

2010-05-11T18:53:00.000-07:00

I posted the first part of the process yesterday and I really hope you learned something you didn't know about placentas and encapsulation of them. After going through this process now, I am eager and excited to help another mama out by offering encapsulation for her. I hope this was useful to you and please, feel free to share this blog with mother's you know to spread the word on the benefits of placenta pills and help someone learn the process.

STEP 11:
After removing the placenta from the oven and letting cool, break larger pieces by snapping them. Pieces should be about 3/4 in.

STEP 12:

Place pieces in grinder (Mr. Coffee works great, but remember, you must only use this grinder for placentas so you'll need one separate from your "regular" coffee grinder). Note that some pieces may not grind down. Larger calcifications or clusters of hardened vessels will simply stay intact, that's ok. Just discard this larger chunks.

Your ground placenta should look like this:

STEP 13:
Pour all the ground placenta into a bowl or onto a deep plate.

STEP 14:

Take the two parts of your capsules (we used organic vegetarian gelatin capsules, sizes 0 and 00. 0 seemed to work best for me and is a little smaller.) and scoop them towards each other in the freshly ground powder, making sure to seal tightly. Place in "resting place" on paper towel.

STEP 15:
Discard any excess capsules that came in contact with the powder as well as any excess powder that you couldn't encapsulate.

STEP 16:
Wipe down the pills to remove any loose powder, grooved paper towels work great. Then place in jar/bottle/bag to give to mama. Store in fridge or freezer.

We were able to yield 122 good size capsules from this placenta. Mom takes about 3 tablets 2-3 times daily for general use or up to 8 a day if using to stave off post partum depression.

A huge thank you to the lovely Jessica J. for teaching Doula Faye and myself this art of placenta encapsulating. I am happy to offer this service to anyone who might be interested and we'd love to spread the knowledge, know-how and fun of this ancient art.

Placenta Encapsulation-Phase 1

2010-05-10T22:07:00.000-07:00

This is honestly not something I would have ever thought I'd think was beneficial or anything short of freaky. However, the more I learn about pregnancy and childbirth, especially the benefits of natural remedies or alternatives, the more this became a topic of interest. I'm sad now that I never got to examine my placenta much less use it to my advantage health wise. Encapsulation is not consumption in the sense that you're "eating" your placenta. It is the process in which you cook and dry it with herbs and put it in pill form to take post partum.

For more information on the benefits of placenta encapsulation and why many women choose this option (or perhaps to learn of the benefits for yourself) please visit: http://placentabenefits.info/about.asp

What you need:
*Dissection kit (surgical scissors, scalpel, tweezers)
*Sterile Gloves
*Strainer
*Large Pot
*Baking tray
*Oven/dehydrator

You must only use these items for placenta encapsulation. If you're doing this regularly, you need to make sure you have a separate baking tray only for placentas, a separate pot only for placentas, a separate strainer...you get it.

STEP 1:
Wipe placenta clean with gauze or cloth, removing as much blood/debris as possible.

STEP 2:
Remove membrane (sac) with scissors, following the margin of the placenta.

-Puncture hole in membrane with sharp point of scissors and follow along placenta's edge, removing as much as possible. You can try to remove the membrane from the fetal side of the placenta as well.

STEP 3:
Using scissors, remove cord at base.

STEP 4:
Fill pot about 1/2 way with water so that strainer can sit above water level, floating freely without touching the water.
-Grate fresh ginger over placenta, covering lightly.

-Pour ground tea (chai is good, vanilla chai smells heavenly) over placenta, 3-5 bags depending on size.

-squirt with lemon.

STEP 5:
Place placenta in strainer over water, remember water should not touch placenta.

STEP 6:
Once boiling, let steam for 20 minutes, placenta will shrink.

STEP 7:
Remove steamed placenta from strainer and place on non-stick baking tray.

STEP 8:
With scalpel and tweezers, cut into even strips.

STEP 9:
Arrange evenly on tray to allow air flow.

STEP 10:
Place in oven 200-225 degrees and bake for 8-10 hours.

Pieces should be completely dry, black and not at all rubbery.

***Phase 2 tomorrow!***

This process has been not only fun but VERY informational. The placenta is an AMAZING organ. Something that only begins to grow as life begins and continues to grow with your baby, providing nourishment during your pregnancy. How awesome that it's amazing benefits don't end there? I hope you enjoyed what I've shared so far today and look forward to the rest of the process and sharing that with you tomorrow.

Please post any questions or discussion below.

Solids: The When, What and HOW.

2010-05-10T14:02:00.000-07:00

WHEN?

The AAP states that all infants should be exclusively breastfed for 6 months of life and then at least a year or however long is mutually desired.

Many people don't fully understand what "exclusively" breastfeeding means. It means nothing but breastmilk: no formula, no solids.

Why wait 6 months, why not 4?

A baby's digestive tract matures enough for solid foods (those that aren't breastmilk) between 4 and 6 months of age. Waiting until 6 months ensures your baby's digestive tract can tolerate solid foods. Many of the problems associated with early solids do not show up until later in life and many parents and/or doctors never make the association. It's thanks to many years of studies and the advanced knowledge we've gained about infant's bodies that we know waiting the six month MINIMUM is ideal for optimal health, now and in the future.

Another point often left out of the solid discussion is watching for signs of readiness. Just because your baby is 6 months old doesn't mean they are ready, and just because they've met all the signs of readiness doesn't mean you shouldn't wait until they are 6 months old.

Signs that indicate baby is developmentally ready for solids include:

* Baby can sit up well without support.
* Baby has lost the tongue-thrust reflex and does not automatically push solids out of his mouth with his tongue.
* Baby is ready and willing to chew.
* Baby is developing a “pincer” grasp, where he picks up food or other objects between thumb and forefinger. Using the fingers and scraping the food into the palm of the hand (palmar grasp) does not substitute for pincer grasp development.
* Baby is eager to participate in mealtime and may try to grab food and put it in his mouth.

Baby really needs most/all of these stages to be met as WELL as the 6 month minimum age before they're ready for solids.

A reminder: Solids are only for exploration and taste in the first year. They do not replace breastmilk, they are not a nutritional supplement to breastmilk and they should always be given AFTER nursing session. Solids are the first step in weaning.

For more information on solids, visit this great link:
http://www.kellymom.com/nutrition/solids/solids-when.html

What have you learned over the years as to how to approach solids? Did you learn anything knew today? What questions might you ask?

WHAT?

Most parents today think the first introduction to food should be fortified rice cereal. Many pediatricians praise that little box of mush. But, how good IS rice cereal, or any cereal, for your little baby?

More on rice cereal: http://www.homemade-baby-food-recipes.com/best-first-food-for-baby.html

You can SKIP the cereal altogether and go for healthy, fresh foods instead. Remember that some foods are unsafe for infants (eggs, peanut butter and milk. Dairy can be added around 9 months old in the form of yogurt, cheese, etc).

Avocado is a great first food as it's mostly bland and high in natural fats, which are important for a developing infant. Many moms will mix breastmilk with their first solid feedings, but it's not necessary. Read your baby, watch for their cues. Let baby take the wheel, too, with exploring solids and don't be afraid of the mess.

Always wait a few days between new foods to watch for possible allergies/reactions and don't over-feed solids.

HOW?

Like I said, let baby take the wheel. Put some food down in front of him/her, sit next to them and watch him explore and enjoy. If baby has met the required milestones for starting solids, then they should be able to pinch and put to mouth any bits of food. If they are unsure of what to do, offer a little taste to intrigue them.

Take it SLOW.

There is no rush to get your baby to eat food. They are getting all the nutrition they need from your milk, this is just for fun and to help them learn so that by about a year old, they are able to eat more meals.

It's always important to listen to your baby, but you have to maintain a sense of responsibility.

Your baby COULD over eat, so don't let them eat more than an ounce or two.

Always wait at LEAST 6 months and make sure all milestones of solids readiness are met.

Avoid known allergens and always watch for reactions no matter what it is you've fed them.

Always wait a few days between trying new foods.

Don't rush, go at your baby's pace.

Have fun!

Epidural Epidemic - Drugs in Labor: Are They Really Necessary. . . or Even Safe?

2010-05-09T20:10:00.000-07:00

Just had to share this well written, well cited article. I do not hate women for getting epidurals, I hate the cultural fears and over-management of childbirth by Obs and CNMs that has caused them to think they NEED it and led them to LIE on it's safety. Please, take control of your labor and delivery. *Know* the risks of epidurals and other interventions, learn when they ARE necessary and how to avoid them. Look for alternatives to managing pain and labor because they DO exist, they ARE effective and they leave you feeling more positive and accomplished about your birth. It's not a slight against you, it's not an insult to women who've gotten epidurals (I'm ONE of those women!) it's about doing BETTER and becoming more INFORMED for yourself and your baby.

Epidural Epidemic - Drugs in Labor: Are They Really Necessary. . . or Even Safe?
By Joanne Dozer and Shannon Baruth
Issue 95, July/August 1999

The use of epidurals is so common today that many perinatal professionals are calling the 1990s the age of the epidural epidemic. Believed by many in the medical profession to be safe and effective, the epidural seems now to be regarded as a veritable panacea for dealing with the pain of childbirth.

It is true that most women experience pain during the course of labor. This pain can be intense and very real, even for those who have prepared for it. But pain is only one of many possible sensations and experiences that characterize the experience of giving birth. Barbara Katz Rothman, a sociologist who studies birth in America, writes that in the medical management of childbirth, the experience of the mother is viewed by physicians as pain: pain experienced and pain to be avoided.1 Having experienced childbirth ourselves, we have great compassion for women in painful labors. However, we also feel a responsibility to mothers and their babies to explore issues concerning the use of epidural anesthesia in labor issues that are seldom discussed prenatally.

Several factors make the use of epidurals potentially hazardous. The Physician’s Desk Reference cautions that local anesthetics - the type used in epidurals - rapidly cross the placenta. When used for epidural blocks, anesthesia can cause varying degrees of maternal, fetal, and neonatal toxicity which can result in the following side effects: hypotension, urinary retention, fecal and urinary incontinence, paralysis of lower extremities, loss of feeling in the limbs, headache, backache, septic meningitis, slowing of labor, increased need for forceps and vacuum deliveries, cranial nerve palsies, allergic reactions, respiratory depression, nausea, vomiting, and seizures.2 In addition, a piece of the catheter that delivers the drug into the duraregion of the back may break off and be left in the woman, a dangerous risk that necessitates surgical removal. One of the most well-known side effects of spinal anesthesia is a spinal headache. Depending on the amount of anesthetic used and how the catheter was placed, the headache can be mild or severe, lasting between one and ten days after the birth. This is not how any of us wants to feel in our first days and hours with our newborn.

Epidurals also have been linked to an overall increase in operative deliveries: cesareans, forceps deliveries, and vacuum extractions. A meta-analysis of the effects of epidural anesthesia on the rate of cesarean deliveries was undertaken by a group of physicians who examined, categorized, and analyzed all available literature. Eight primary studies revealed that the rate of cesarean section was 10 percentage points higher in the women who had received epidural anesthesia. One study actually found that the cesarean rate increased to 50 percent when the epidural was given at 2 cm dilation, 33 percent at 3 cm, and 26 percent at 4 cm.3 What caused this increase? In the first stage of labor, the muscles of the pelvic floor may become slack from the numbing effects of the epidural, causing the baby to change an otherwise ideal position or fail to descend into the pelvic cavity. In the second stage of labor, the anesthetized woman often is unable to push effectively since she cannot feel her muscles. When the baby does not descend properly or is malpositioned, progress can slow or stop, resulting in a longer labor and the increased possibility of a cesarean section, vacuum extraction, or forceps delivery.

In addition, epidurals usually slow contractions, which prompts medical personnel to administer intravenous Pitocin in order to strengthen them and increase their frequency. Even with Pitocin, which carries its own set of risks, an anesthetized labor may remain prolonged, risking a difficult labor with lack of progress. Prolonged labors put both mother and baby at greater risk of infection, necessitating the use of antibiotics. The longer a labor and slower the progress, the more likely it will end in a forceps, vacuum, or cesarean delivery. Since cesarean section is a major surgery, it strongly influences a woman’s recovery and the initiation of breastfeeding. Of course, the rate of postpartum infection is much higher with cesarean births. All vacuum extraction and forceps deliveries increase the risk of morbidity and birth injuries.

Another effect of epidurals during labor is the creation of hypotension in the mother, which can lead to bradycardia (a decrease in the heart rate) in the fetus. All types of anesthesia, including epidurals, can negatively affect the baby’s heart rate, possibly leading to fetal distress and necessitating an operative delivery. The newborn can continue to have breathing difficulties after birth, requiring supplemental oxygen or even resuscitation. While these problems may be resolved immediately following the birth, they often require the mother to be separated from her baby for neonatal nursery observation. This separation delays bonding and initial feeding. In addition, poor muscle tone and increased acidity in the baby’s blood due to bradycardia and oxygen deprivation may affect her ability to suck effectively, hampering initial attempts at early breastfeeding.

A mother’s temperature may become elevated with the use of epidural anesthesia, resulting in the infant being taken to the nursery and given a full work-up for possible infection. This may include extensive blood work and a spinal tap.4, 5

Furthermore, though epidurals usually remove all sensation in the lower body, "windows" can occur which leave the woman experiencing the intensity of her labor (perhaps on one side of her body) but with extremely limited mobility - obviously hindering her ability to cope with her contractions.6 The idea that pain medication can play a role in "natural childbirth" is deceptive, despite the assurance of the authors of What to Expect When You’re Expecting that "...wanting relief from excruciating pain is natural...therefore pain relief medication can play a role in natural childbirth."7 This is rather twisted logic, since the concept of natural childbirth depends on the mother experiencing both mental and physical sensations of labor. The epidural may allow a woman to be awake and aware of what is happening, but she will not be experiencing a natural labor as she will be numb to any physical sensations below the waist. A split between the mind and the body is effectively created with this anesthetic, disengaging her mind from her physical feelings. Could such disconnection be natural childbirth? Robbie Davis-Floyd, an anthropologist who studies birth in America, argues that the woman in labor with an epidural "...is separated as a person as effectively as she can be from the part of her that is giving birth."8 There is an eerie quality to this kind of birth; the mother is robbed of her own connection to her power and life-creative force. She loses the opportunity to experience the inherent wisdom of the body and its ability to birth without interference. Indeed, most women who have felt childbirth agree that it was a deep, enriching, and positive experience.

What alternatives do women have for the relief of pain in labor? Unfortunately, many women enter the birth experience with a strong belief that birth is something horrible and nightmarish. They are already filled with fear, not only for their own and their baby’s safety but also about what they have heard is the unbearable pain of childbirth. Another important fear is that of "losing control" during labor and delivery. A mother often is labeled out of control if she expresses the natural, primal sounds of labor. Technologically oriented medical practitioners who are sure that childbirth is something to be wrestled into submission feel that the sound of a mother wailing in pain is a sign that she is "losing it" and ought to be medicated. In hospitals, mothers are often told by well-meaning nurses to be quiet so as not to disturb the other "patients." But release of sound is a natural way to express and release painful - and intense - sensations. Suppressing a mother’s natural instincts to move around freely and make noise in labor will increase her actual pain. The prepared childbirth movement - in particular the Lamaze technique - has been successful for some women by helping them remain "in control" by training for structured labor breathing. However, some women actually do connect to their body rhythms and natural breathing patterns in labor, and if they are more loyal to themselves than to their training, they may be seen as wild, out-of-control "Lamaze failures." This failure is defined as their inability in labor to be mannerly and controlled. In fact, one of the primary psychological reasons for lack of progress and cesareans is a fearful mother’s unconscious attempts to control the intensity of her labor. Her lack of progress is due to her inability to let go and surrender. Mothers are told they must be in control when actually they need to let go.

So how does a mother let go and find her way through the pain of labor? First, she needs to give birth where she feels safe. For some women this may mean a medicalized hospital birth; others may feel safest at home or in an alternative birthing center. Most women find that they feel safest in the loving hands of a practitioner with whom they have developed a supportive and loving relationship. This person may be a special kind of doctor or it may be a midwife. Midwives specialize in personalized, supportive perinatal care. Support is the best form and prime source of non-pharmacological pain relief. Support can also come from the love and care of a partner. If you are having your baby in a hospital, it may be worthwhile to secure the help of a knowledgeable friend or a doula. Support can be active: massage, breathing together, encouraging words and attentiveness, and reassurance that what it happening is normal and that you are handling it well. Other support can be more passive: a midwife’s calm demeanor, a gentle nurse’s presence, the peaceful attentions of loved ones. A laboring mother needs to feel safe, loved, and accepted. And when she is, whether she screams, hollers, whines, moans, bargains, begs, or just plain doesn’t act "civilized," giving birth vaginally without medication is a triumph in itself.

One of the ways to endure labor is to recognize (ideally, during one’s prenatal education) the connection between fear, tension, and pain - the "fear-tension-pain syndrome." Basically, when a mother feels fear, she will be tense and experience more pain. Relaxation relieves the tension that helps create the sensation of intense pain. The notion of a relaxing labor might seem crazy, but it is possible, and we have seen it many times. Of course, a mother will feel more relaxed and safer in the birth environment of her choice and with her chosen caregivers. Perhaps the more the mother chooses about her birth environment, the more fully she can relax.

Childbirth education classes that focus on birth as natural and normal encourage women to trust the birthing process. Birthing is full of new sensations which can be frightening and difficult to integrate; some women tell us that they felt they might split in two! Understanding the reasons behind the sensations can make them more manageable, since we fear most that which we do not understand. Another key concept in prenatal education is truly believing we can birth our babies, just as women have done for ages. The world was well-populated long before modern obstetrics, and today the lowest maternal and infant mortality and morbidity rates are in the countries where natural, midwife-assisted births are the norm.

Not only can we birth our babies naturally, we can birth in our own style. Birth doesn’t need to be performed in any specific way. It is a woman’s right to create her labor her way, and she needs to be accepted for her way of doing it. She may find help in deep breathing, light breathing, dancing, singing, yelling, screaming, moaning, crying, walking, or bathing. She needs support for whatever works to assist her to birth her baby. Soaking in water can also help tremendously in reducing pain in labor. Prenatal yoga can be extremely helpful since it teaches women to relax by using deep breathing techniques and imagery. Both of these methods help her to connect more profoundly to her body and baby.

No woman should feel like a failure for having used pain relief medication during labor. There is a time and place for it in specific circumstances, and epidurals may be very effective. However, the decision to use an epidural should be an educated one, made only after all other options have been exhausted. Birthing is hard work. It is sweaty, noisy, and emotional, and it always requires our full attention. If we accept this, and stop trying to make birthing "civilized," we can help mothers to endure and cope.

Assisting a woman who is giving birth also is hard work, requiring education, love, and our full attention. Supporting birthing women in this way results in less fear, less pain, and a decrease in the need and desire for epidural anesthesia. The satisfaction of a natural birth - including the sheer endurance of pain and sometimes overwhelming sensations - is accompanied by great joy, even ecstasy. The realization of all these complex emotions is experienced not only by the mother but also by her partner and those who assist, attend, and support her in labor. The sense of joy and accomplishment from a natural birth is the right of every woman - and a wonderful gift to any newborn in those very special, first moments of life. NOTES
1. Barbara Katz Rothman, In Labor: Women and Power in the Birthplace, (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1991), 80
2. Sifton, David W. Ed., The Physician’s Desk Reference (Montvale, NJ: Medical Economics Company, 1996), 2318.
3. Joseph Gambone, D.O., and Katherine Kahn, M.D., "The Effect of Epidural Analgesia for Labor on the Cesarean Delivery Rate," Obstetrics and Gynecology 83, No. 6 (June 1994):1045-1052; Thorp, M.D., et. al., "Epidural Anesthesia and Cesarean Section for Dystocia: Risk Factors in Multiparas," American Journal of Perinatology 8, No. 6: 402-410; Thorp, M.D., et. al., "The Effect of Intrapartum Epidural Analgesia on Nulliparous Labor: A Randomized, Controlled, Prospective Trial," American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 169, No. 4: 851-858.
4. Author’s name, "The Bad News About Epidurals," Time, March 24, 1997, page 40.
5. Fusi, et al., "Maternal Pyrexia Associated with the Use of Epidural Analgesia in Labour," Lancet 8649 (3 June 1989): 1250.
6. B.M. Morgan, S. Rehor, and P.J. Lewis, "Epidural Anesthesia for Uneventful Labor," Anesthesia 35 (1980): 57-60.
7. Arlene Eisenberg, Heidi Murkhoff, and Sandee Hathaway, What to Expect When You’re Expecting (New York: Workman Publishing, 1984), 227.
8 Robbie E. Davis-Floyd, Birth as an American Rite of Passage (Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1992), 115. OTHER REFERENCES
Griffin, Nancy. "The Epidural Express: Real Reasons Not to Jump On Board," Mothering , Spring, 1997.
Mitford, Jessica. The American Way of Birth. Dutton, New York, 1992.
Morton, Sally, Ph.D.; Williams, Mark, M.D.; Keller, Emmett, PhD.; Peaceman, M.D., et. al., "Factors that influence route of delivery - active vs. traditional labor management," American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Vol. 169, No. 4, 940-944.
Sepkowski, Lester, Ostheimer and Brazelton. "The effects of maternal epidural anesthesia on neonatal behavior during the first month," Development of Medicine and Child Neurology, 1992, 34, 1072-1080. This article was originally edited by Leslie Hauslein. Shannon Baruth is a birth assistant, apprenticing midwife, mother to Cassidy Rose (2 1/2) and Sage (14 months), and partner to Michael. She graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 1997 with a bachelor’s degree in anthropology. She resides in rural Wisconsin. Joann Dozer is a registered nurse and CPM who has been delivering babies at home for more than 20 years. A trained Gestalt therapist, she provides counseling and workshops for women and couples. Joanne is the mother of Scott, born in 1968 in a hospital delivery that included the use of Demerol and spinal anesthesia; Lianna, born in 1973 in the birthing room of an Amish midwife’s home; and Emily, born in 1976 at home with a midwife and doctor.

Breastfeeding Joys

2010-05-07T23:21:00.000-07:00

I thought today I'd share a great blog written by a friend, activist and doula. She writes on the joys of breastfeeding.

Visit her blog. She's new to this but I think you'll enjoy what she'll have to say. She is filled with warmth, knowledge and compassion.

Joys of Nursing

Being a Mom of two under two can be very challenging at times. From changing diapers to cleaning banana out of the carpet, all while trying to get dinner on the table by 5 and keep up on the Laundry. There is little time to stop and take time for your self.

There seems to be only brief moments when the world comes to a halt and nothing else seems to matter. It happens a few times throughout the day as you are cleaning, cooking, or chasing your toddler. It even sometimes happens while you are running your errands. You hear a coo, or a fuss and nothing else in the world matters everything stops and its just you and your baby.

Her sweet little lips rooting for the warmth and comfort of the breast, pure satisfaction comes across her little face as she latches on. Her eyes meet yours and your heart swells with love. There is nothing more rewarding.

I have found from the first moment I held my children in my arms I knew I had to provide what was best for them. There is nothing more pure more wonderful and more loving than Breastfeeding your baby. Knowing that my body is capable of fulfilling all the needs of my infant is truly satisfying.

Kids Things Say

2010-05-03T16:55:00.000-07:00

Yes, you read that right. The title is fitting, since many times, our toddlers try so hard to imitate what they've heard from us and use it in context, but usually miss one or two things in the process.

Alexander is at that fun stage where his vocabulary is taking off but it his thought process hasn't quite caught up. His new favorite phrase is "Told you! Haha" but he uses it at the most random and inappropriate times. Of course, this just makes it funny and adorable.

What are some cute and crazy things your kids are saying (or have said)?

I love to hear all the funny (or embarrassing) stories!

Natural Mama Meetup

2010-04-04T20:42:00.000-07:00

A mutual natural mama and I met the other day for coffee and decided we NEED an anti-mainstream mommy group. Sadly, breastfeeding, cloth diapering, and other things that were once normal are no longer viewed that way. The minority of mothers today who practice these are often outcast, or even mocked, for believing in a better, healthier, natural alternative to disposable products and man-made foods. As a result, it can be difficult to enjoy playgroups when you have nothing in common on the parenting spectrum with the other mothers.

There isn't a huge amount of women in this area who parent this way, but I know there are enough to form a nice group. It will be great for moms to be able to ask for advice on this topics from moms that actually know and can share, rather than from women who will snort and laugh when you talk about your cloth diapers.

If you're in the Turlock, or any of the surrounding area, come by our Facebook page and listen for updates. We look forward to getting this off the ground.

Who Profits??

2010-03-01T17:13:00.000-08:00

Cross Posted from my other blog

I'm sharing this article on THIS blog not to argue in favor of homebirth or say that choosing hospital birth is wrong. Like *most* things I post, it's purpose is to educate, share and make you think. Leave your constructive comments below.

Who Profits?

Anyone can admit that we are easily influenced and swayed by what seems to be a popular opinion. Most people would agree that it is much easier to be a PART of the masses than to be APART from them.

"What is popular is not always right,
and what is right is not always popular."

When it comes to parenting (specifically birthing and infant care) we are led to believe that our instincts are no longer necessary and that technology knows better than nature. But who profits from this philosophy? Certainly not mother and baby. Instead, there is a very large LITERAL profit to be made off of influencing you in your choices.

There is money to be made off of where you birth, how you birth and also, how you feed and treat your infant. The hospital makes a very large portion of their profit from the labor and delivery ward and let's face it, hospitals are businesses. They do NOT want to lose that money, even if it might mean safer outcomes can occur at home for low risk women. Obstetricians make thousands of dollars off your birth (and prenatal care) whereas homebirth midwives make around $4000 (for both the birth and prenatal care total). A cesarean can cost you more than $20,000 and only costs your OB 30 minutes of work (and a nice early bed time if you aren't "progressing" fast enough). Vaccinations, routine exams and procedures (episiotomy, circumcision, forcep delivery) all take just a moment to do/perform and net a nice profit.

Now, before you stop reading and get angry and tell me I hate OBs and that I think hospitals are evil, let me say, no. OBs are SPECIALISTS. They are INCREDIBLY skilled in saving what needs to be saved BUT for that, I think *most* of them have a difficult time knowing and trusting that birth is normal. If your focus of study is all that can go wrong with something, it's hard NOT to want to act in a precautionary manner. For this, I believe that most OBs truly have women's best interest at heart with certain things. However, there are a few scenarios that are indisputably self centered and dangerous, serving the woman absolutely no benefit.

To continue, it is ignorant to think that every ad or persuasion doesn't have an underlying hidden meaning. Formula companies for example want to make money. They do not care about you and your baby, they care only for the profit. At the beginning, when infant formulas were first introduced, they provided a way for the women who could truly not breastfeed or have a wet nurse a way to provide for their infant children. Again, just like the hospitals, this can be and was life saving for those infants. However, there was profit to be made, a feminist movement of choice and a desire to no longer have to feel tied down to your children...and they marketed that. Today they advertise with such sayings as "Just as good as breastmilk" or "Has all your baby needs!" Stop. Think. Who profits from promoting breastfeeding? The mother and child who nurse. Who profits from promoting formula feeding? The industry.

Am I going to lose sleep over another parents' choices? Nope. But as a parent who did things this way and that way before stepping back and evaluating the choices, I wish only to share the other side of the glass with you. I would never tell a woman what choice she should make, I can only share what I know and what I continue to learn, because I care.

To say that homebirthers are selfish or that it's dangerous, because that is what those who profit from your hospital birth tell you, well...that makes you sound not only uneducated, but silly.

Remember who profits from routine interventions in normal birth: it's not you...and it's certainly not the baby.

A Day (or 4) in the life...

2010-02-24T21:12:00.000-08:00

As a hobby and part time side job, I have a small freelance photography business offering portraits to locals. I've always wanted to participate in a 365 project, where you take a photograph every day for a year. I started "late" rather than on the first day of 2010 and didn't set my goals high. I'm not tracking something or striving for artistry but simply making sure I use my camera EVERY day, regardless of what I end up shooting.

I have a feeling the constant will develop as a catalog of days spent with my babies. So far, on day 4, here are the results:

I'm glad I finally decided to take on the "challenge". Whether or not great art comes of it, or I simply capture the beauty in every day life I am excited to see where it all goes and to use my camera EVERY single day.

Have you ever done this yourself? (Share a link!)
Want to start one? (Go ahead!)

The Co-sleeping Conspiracy

2010-02-18T21:53:00.000-08:00

While pregnant with my first baby, I didn't think much of babies "needing" to sleep anywhere. Yes, we bought a crib and yes, the intention was to have her sleep in it, but I never thought of it as something she HAD to do. It was natural for us, from the very beginning, to snuggle in my bed. After she'd fallen asleep I'd sometimes lay her in her crib, only to bring her in bed with me at the first night time waking. This was just easier, for both of us. Less waking up for her and more z's for mom. Eventually, she naturally slept alone in her crib/bed without needing to come in to mine.

The same happened with baby number 2. I just gave birth to this precious little thing, that last thing on my mind was being separated from her! I wasn't breastfeeding, but that didn't matter. I was able to snuggle close to her, watch her breathing, comfort her while a bottle was made and keep her warm. Again, she naturally "weaned" from co-sleeping to sleeping in her crib. Both of the girls never had a problem napping in their cribs or even sleeping the first portion of the night there.

While pregnant with my son, my third baby, I began to see a lot of debate show up on co-sleeping. Either I never really paid attention to or noticed it before but apparently, it was a huge controversy. There are even campaigns that slander co-sleepers and parents are almost always blamed in co-sleeping deaths, while crib deaths are referred to as "SIDS". I was pretty shocked, to be honest. I had never researched co-sleeping (during my first two pregnancies I didn't research anything at all!) but I just knew there was nothing dangerous about it. I didn't consume alcohol and then sleep with my babies. I always was careful with pillows and blankets. The once heavy sleeper I was in my high school years disappeared as soon as I became a mom and I was aware of every move my babies made in bed. I didn't see the big deal.

For new parents, there can be a lot of information to take in. We constantly get well meaning, but sometimes awful, advice from family and friends. Many people gasp if you mention you sleep with your baby and they are quick to tell you about all the dangers.

But here's the thing: there are always SAFE and UNSAFE ways to do things, especially co-sleeping.

NEVER:
*Drink alcohol or use drugs and then co-sleep with your baby/child.
*Take medications that make you drowsy (this includes types of cough syrup, tylenol pms, sleeping aids, benadryl, etc)
*Use an excess of pillows and/or blankets.
*Pull the blankets up too far or over baby's head.
*Place your newborn between the wall and you.

ALWAYS:
*keep baby off pillows (mostly for newborns)
*Avoid overly stuffed blankets
*Be aware of where baby is at (when you stir or wake up, check on baby, just as you would in their crib).

For those of you about to become parents, do not worry about what people will think. It IS ok to take your baby to bed with you. Practice common sense safe sleeping, in cribs AND your own bed, and do not be ashamed to say you co-sleep with your little one. Motherhood is tiring and those first few weeks and months are not only an adjustment period but a learning experience. You may swear you'll never co-sleep only to find out it's the only way TO sleep. As with anything else, make sure you have ALL the info. Babies sometimes inexplicably pass away and yes, some babies are killed due to UNSAFE co-sleeping. If you do it, do it safely.

Happy sleeping!

What's in Breastmilk?

2010-02-11T21:03:00.000-08:00

What's in Breast Milk?

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) strongly recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life. It is optimal for both babies and mothers. For babies it can protect against infections and reduce the rates of later health problems including diabetes, obesity, and asthma.

For mothers breastfeeding helps the uterus to contract and bleeding to cease more quickly after delivery. Breastfeeding can reduce the risk of breast and ovarian cancer and also provides a great way for mothers to bond with their babies.

Find a Lactation Conultant in Your Area

The advantages of breastfeeding are numerous. Breast milk is ultimately the best source of nutrition for a new baby. Many components in breast milk help protect your baby against infection and disease. The proteins in breast milk are more easily digested than in formula or cow’s milk. The calcium and iron in breast milk are also more easily absorbed.

The following is a brief overview of the components of breast milk and the nutrients they provide for your baby.

Proteins

Human milk contains two types of proteins: whey and casein. Approximately 60% is whey, while 40% is casein. This balance of the proteins allows for quick and easy digestion. If artificial milk, also called formula, has a greater percentage of casein, it will be more difficult for the baby to digest. Approximately 60-80% of all protein in human milk is whey protein. These proteins have great infection-protection properties.

Listed below are specific proteins that are found in breast milk and their benefits:

Lactoferrin inhibits the growth of iron-dependent bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract. This inhibits certain organisms, such as coliforms and yeast, that require iron.
Secretory IgA also works to protect the infant from viruses and bacteria, specifically those that the baby, mom, and family are exposed to. It also helps to protect against E. Coli and possibly allergies. Other immunoglobulins, including IgG and IgM, in breast milk also help protect against bacterial and viral infections. Eating fish can help increase the amount of these proteins in your breast milk.
Lysozyme is an enzyme that protects the infant against E. Coli and Salmonella. It also promotes the growth of healthy intestinal flora and has anti-inflammatory functions.
Bifidus factor supports the growth of lactobacillus. Lactobacillus is a beneficial bacteria that protects the baby against harmful bacteria by creating an acidic environment where it cannot survive

Fats

Human milk also contains fats that are essential for the health of your baby. It is necessary for brain development, absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, and is a primary calorie source. Long chain fatty acids are needed for brain, retina, and nervous system development. They are deposited in the brain during the last trimester of pregnancy and are also found in breast milk.

Vitamins

The amount and types of vitamins in breast milk is directly related to the mother’s vitamin intake. This is why it is essential that she gets adequate nutrition, including vitamins. Fat-soluble vitamins, including vitamins A, D, E, and K, are all vital to the infant’s health. Water-soluble vitamins such as vitamin C, riboflavin, niacin, and panthothenic acid are also essential. Because of the need for these vitamins, many healthcare providers and lactation consultants will have nursing mothers continue on prenatal vitamins.

Carbohydrates

Lactose is the primary carbohydrate found in human milk. It accounts for approximately 40% of the total calories provided by breast milk. Lactose helps to decrease the amount of unhealthy bacteria in the stomach, which improves the absorption of calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium. It helps to fight disease and promotes the growth of healthy bacteria in the stomach.

Breast Milk is Best

Breast milk has the perfect combination of proteins, fats, vitamins, and carbohydrates. There is nothing better for the health of your baby. Leukocytes are living cells that are only found in breast milk. They help fight infection. It is the antibodies, living cells, enzymes, and hormones that make breast milk ideal. These cannot be added to formula.

Though some women ultimately are not able to breastfeed, many who think they cannot actually are able to breastfeed. Lactation consultants are able to provide support to women learning to breastfeed. For those who are not able to breastfeed, milk banks can be an alternative.

Last Updated: 08/2006

Compiled using information from the following sources:

Breastfeeding the Newborn: Clinical Strategies for Nurses. Biancuzzo, Marie, 1999.

Bestfeeding: How to Breastfeed Your Baby. Renfrew, Mary et al, 2004.

Diaries of a Milk Maid

2010-02-08T23:17:00.000-08:00

While pregnant with my first child I didn't have a strong belief or point of view on breastfeeding. It is widely accepted and believed to be the ideal choice of food for any infant, but for many, including my former self, formula is a perfectly acceptable substitute. Infant formulas are also often believed to be just as good as breastmilk. And why not believe this, it's how they are marketed, many hospital nurses push it even when you wish to breastfeed, and the answer to any problem with a nursing infant is to supplement with formula. Is it any wonder I hardly breastfed my first daughter past a few months?

During the short time I breastfed Maggie, I didn't enjoy it. I was told that cracked and bleeding nipples were part of the horrors of breastfeeding, and so when mine became cracked and bloody, I nursed through it, and of course, hated the experience. I wasn't informed by anyone that the choices I made, even in birth, could affect our nursing relationship or that just one bottle could be the beginning of the end. At that point in time, I don't know that having the information would have changed any of my choices anyway. For me, I think I had to take that path and make those choices. It has aided in the way I've formed my current opinions.

You see, I've been there, I've done that. I'm not looking down on women who were given poor advice or lack(ed) the information available. I didn't have it myself. I have been on all sides of the spectrum: I nursed and switched, I exclusively formula fed and I exclusively breastfed. When I say "I know how you feel" in regards to breastfeeding and formula feeding, I mean it.

Thankfully, despite not getting the best start in life, my girls are thriving and healthy. That's wonderful. I didn't see that and say to the indisputable scientific fact "This is untrue, my kids are FINE, therefore, formula does not decrease overall health!". No, instead I said, "This is amazing, interesting information. How lucky I am that my girls don't have (insert health issue, like asthma, diabetes, childhood obesity, etc) for not receiving breastmilk." But, just because my girls came out unscathed didn't mean I couldn't do my best to give my next baby an even better chance at a healthy start to his life. I made it my mission to succeed at breastfeeding. That mission started while I was pregnant with my son.

I read EVERYTHING. I joined breastfeeding forums to see what problems real women were facing with breastfeeding. I read "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding" from cover to cover like it was the breastfeeding bible. I posted concerns and sought help, before I could even have a problem. I figured, the issues with breastfeeding in the past, for me, were all due to lack of information, so I armed myself. The worst thing, I imagined, would be to have an issue arrive, and try to find the answer at that time, rather than avoiding the issue to the best of my ability, or having the answer already.

I learned my nipples cracked and bled with my first daughter because she wasn't latched properly. A baby who's properly latched will not cause that kind of pain or damage. The only thing that should be expected is initial soreness, for the first few weeks and a slight discomfort at latch on. Once your baby is suckling away, it shouldn't hurt. If it does, it's not right. Learn about proper latch while pregnant. It's ok to have to "learn" to breastfeed. It's natural, but you and your baby will both have to be teachers and believers in each other.

I also learned that scheduling was not only unnecessary, but could hurt my supply and our nursing relationship. When you have a newborn, their stomach is only the size of a marble, and by 1 week the size of a pingpong ball. You cannot expect so much to fit in there. This is why your newborn will nurse almost constantly, because it can only take so much at a time. I didn't resent nursing every 1-2 hours, knowing this is what my baby needed and WHY he needed it.

Weight loss and weight gain are always on a parent's mind. Many babies will lose 10% of their birth weight while in the hospital. This is normal, I learned, and no cause for concern. I also found that when you're receiving IV fluids in labor, your baby is going to have water weight, so they aren't actually losing as much as you think. Wet and poopy diapers were the best way to gauge my newborn's intake, and there were definitely plenty of those!

I could write a book on this information (which is why La Leche League has done that with the womanly art of breastfeeding) because there is a solution or explanation to almost EVERY scenario in the breastfeeding world, you just have to know where to find that info!

If I had to limit my advice to the single most important factor in successful breastfeeding, it would be preemptive education/prevention. You don't search for the answers to the questions on your test while you're taking it, you prepare for it. You study, you perfect your knowledge the best you can with all the resources available. Breastfeeding should be no exception, if you truly wish to succeed. You'll find your breasts aren't too small or too large; that your baby may nurse every hour for 45 minutes or every 3 hours for 15; That your baby doesn't know how to latch right away and it may take 1 try or 100 tries. The one constant, the one truth, is that less than 3-5%(depending on the source) of women can truly not breastfeed their babies exclusively, so chances are, the issues you might be facing, can be worked through. You just need the tools.

Dinosaur Vs. Bedtime

2010-02-05T16:36:00.001-08:00

I saw this book at Target the other day and it immediately made me think of Alex. "Alex Vs. Bedtime" would be more appropriate, I thought. Last night was night #2 of him falling asleep without nursing. The night before was pretty hellish and he was up until almost midnight (not TOO uncommon for him) and he was NOT very happy. I just loved him and tried to snuggle with him. It was a battle, especially just trying to keep him contained on his little bed instead of running wildly around. Last night he was out by 11:30. From about 10-11 was pretty awful. But, around 11 he realized he wasn't going to get nursies until morning (even though we talked about and prepared for this and I repeated it over and over). He did say, in tears "Make me happy, mommy. Nursies make me happy.".

It was pretty heart breaking but I know that this is what is necessary for us at this point. I do not intend to wean Alex. I fully support him nursing until he's done, however, it's become more than an obsession and it's caused him to get little sleep, and me as well. I do not want the last part of our nursing relationship to be frustrating. I also do not want to resent his need to keep nursing, which is what I was beginning to feel.

I noticed in the last 2 nights that he actually stayed asleep longer before waking up asking to nurse. Night #1 he woke up frantic, flailing and screaming for it, but last night when he did finally stir, simply crawled into my bed and groggily asked to nurse. I let him. He also hasn't nursed at all today, and is currently napping. I do hope it doesn't lead to him weaning fully, I just want to cut down this night nursing...I cannot do it all night long, work part time, homeschool my older child and take care of them all day (and night, now that my husband works graveyards again).

So, tonight when it's time for Dinosaur to go to bed, I hope the roaring is down to a minimum and maybe we'll shave another 15 minutes off of that bedtime. He seemed to enjoy being sung to sleep last night, telling me "That's a good song, mom" after hearing "Twinkle, Twinkle" 3 times. :)

Circumcision: The Uncut Version

2010-02-02T20:15:00.000-08:00

I love this blogger. This particular article was so appreciated, though. It's just too bad that circumcision is still America's dirty little secret.

Sadly, many new parents do not even research circumcision. This is just as disappointing to me as when they choose to keep their sons intact, but do no research and therefore don't care properly for them. When we just blindly make decisions, especially those about our children's health (Vaccinations, elective surgeries, feeding, etc) we aren't just hurting ourselves, or our kids...but the population as a whole.

If you circumcise your son because it's "Just what everyone does" what other things are you going to alter in the name of popularity? Will you get your daughter a boob job in high school if "everyone else is doing it" according to rumor? Because that's all that myth is, a rumor. Roughly, only half of US boys are being circumcised today. In some areas, like the West Coast, that number is as low as 30%. But, I won't make an argument for something as important as circumcision based off of location. After all, perhaps you're on the East coast which boasts a disgustingly high circ rate of 90% in some areas. And after all, you may move someday.

I'd much rather convince you of the ill effects of infant circumcision with FACTS. To do so, I'm going to list common pros that are given in favor of circumcising young infant boys. Then, I'm going to explain why they're bull shit.

"My husband is circumcised, I don't want him to wonder why he doesn't look like daddy"
-This is a very common reason for wanting to circumcise an infant. But, let's just think about this for a second. What other body parts of your husband's need to match? If your son's ears are different, are you going to alter them? No. And hey, your son won't have the same genitalia as you, but you'll explain that to him, that boys and girls look different. So why not explain to him that his daddy had a surgery as a baby to remove his skin, but you didn't do that to him because *insert whatever reason here, like "You were born perfect".* I can tell you that your son, if he has any questions at all about dad's privates, will probably be more interested in why he has pubic hair and why daddy's penis is bigger than his. You don't go around performing elective surgeries on people so they match. We're all different and unique...this should involve a life lesson, not scalpels.

"All his peers will be circumcised and I don't want him teased in the locker room."
-If a child is going to be teased about something, there's little you can do to prevent it. He could be teased for having a small penis...you're not going to get it enlarged. Plus, this excuse works on the assumption that guys are going to be checking each other out in the locker room. In the rare event that someone were to poke fun at your kid for having a foreskin, there are many retorts your son could shoot back, like "Why are you checking out my junk, jealous?" or "At least I'm not lacking in that department and have my whole penis." There's no reason to alter your perfect infant because someday, someone in some random situation may tease him. Plus, I remind you that the circ rates are dropping, drastically. The boys of today are being left intact, much like the rest of the world (85% of the men in our world have their foreskins).

"Well, those two reasons aside, it's better for his health. It's cleaner, it's easier to clean and he won't spread STDs as easily."
-No, no, and, no. To understand this you have to first understand how the foreskin functions. In infant boys, the foreskin is fused to the glans (head of the penis) much like your finger nail is attached to your finger. When your baby pees, it flushes out the inner part of the foreskin (and remember that urine is sterile) so this works to keep your son clean. Also, by keeping his foreskin, you prevent feces from his diaper from touching his urethra or getting under his foreskin, and therefore, prevent the chance of him getting foreign bacteria in his urinary tract. Older studies suggested that circumcised boys were less likely to get UTIs. There are more studies that show no difference and others that show that intact boys get them less often. Regardless of what the truth is, girls are more prone to UTIs than either circumcised OR intact boys, and we treat them with proper hygiene and antibiotics, no surgery.

Now to clean, let's imagine this: An intact boy requires NO special care. Because the foreskin is fused to the glans, you do NOT retract it, ever. This could cause pain, tears, and adhesions. Instead, you wipe only what you see, like you wash your finger. If you circumcise your infant, you'll have much more to do. During the healing process, you'll be taking care of a wound, in a diaper. Afterward, you'll have to clean any skin that was still left very thoroughly so that he doesn't get an infection. You may also have to worry about the freshly cut skin trying to heal back to the glans, usually resulting in adhesions. Advice on this varies from "do not retract" (like in intact boys) to "you must retract to prevent the adhesions or break them" so there's really no TRUE information on what to do. When the intact boy retracts naturally (sometime between infancy and puberty, but most commonly toddlerhood) he can retract, rinse and replace at bathtime. No soaps, just water. No harder than if he lacked foreskin.

As far as STDs are concerned, no study really has the truth established. Those that say intact men are at greater risk, or rather carriers, of more infections (like HPV) are grossly incorrect and make little sense. The most commonly quoted study is about a group in Africa, where they taught the freshly circumcised men safe sex practices and provided them with condoms, but not the group they left intact. They also didn't factor that the freshly circumcised men weren't having sex while their penises healed. They found that the intact men contracted HIV more often than their cut counterparts, based on their poor approach of collecting this data. This study was, on top of it all, cut short (no pun intended). We can also look at the population of America and conclude this study makes no sense. Our own HIV/AIDS rate is quite high to that of other industrialized counter parts, yet, we have an astoundingly high circumcision rate (about 90% of grown men in the US are circumcised, as this was the rate about 20-some years ago). So, how is it that we have such a high rate of HIV/AIDS when we also have such a high rate of circumcision? That makes no sense...

On top of that, to argue in favor of surgery on infants, to possibly reduce the risk of STD transfer in adults is irresponsible. Instead, we need to teach our children how their bodies function, how STDs are transferred and contracted, and push safe sex. THIS is what will protect your son or daughter, not a false sense of protection because they were circumcised (or their partner is).

"But uncircumcised penises are soooo gross!"
-Really? How attractive is YOUR genitalia? If a man you were really in to took you home, and you started to fool around, and he caught a glimpse of your goods and never called you again because it was "so gross" he'd be labeled an asshole. Most genitals are not very attractive, female or male; circumcised or not. We are all made differently and none of us "match". To discount a person because they have foreskin is incredibly shallow. Just like a man discounting a woman for having an extended clitoris, longer labia, or not having her clitoral hood removed is shallow.

There is nothing gross about the state of a man's (or infant's) natural penis. This is how they are SUPPOSE to look; without tight skin or dark circle scars. We tend to be afraid of what we don't know, but that doesn't make it's ok. It's just ignorance to how a penis is suppose to look. If your son's toes were oddly shaped and ugly, you wouldn't remove them. They are part of him, and you love every bit.

"Well, I've never actually seen one. I didn't mean it was gross looking because of the skin, I meant because of all that nasty stuff that builds up in there!"
-If you've never seen one, how do you know it's nasty? Oh, because of rumors and stigmas surrounding intact men in America. Well, we're talking about infants, for one. Remember how I said the glans and foreskin were fused? Yea, there's nothing "building up". And, the "stuff" is called smegma. This is a natural lubricant produced by the body, you have it too. It's your discharge. It keeps your pH balance normal, it keeps you lubricated for sex, it keeps your skin there soft. Everyone needs to practice proper hygiene, circumcised men included. In the end, a dirty penis is a dirty penis. Most intact men take extra care to keep themselves clean, partly because there is such a stigma about having a foreskin. In order for smegma to build up, the man needs to really lack in caring for his man bits, and this would probably be no different if her were circumcised, and I doubt you'd put EITHER penises in your mouth. But again, we're talking about infants, and whether you need to worry about his for YOUR son...so again, the answer is no. For the first portion of his life, his foreskin is self cleaning, after that, you teach him how. After that, it's up to him whether he'll be a slob or a Mr. Clean kinda guy. Regardless, it's nothing to remove body parts over.

"If it was unnecessary, they wouldn't do it."
-Many insurance companies, and state medicaid, are no longer covering circumcisions. Certain hospitals have banned the procedure as well. I've heard, first hand from friends/aquaintances, quotes in the range of $350-$1500 to have the surgery performed on their newborn. The reasons given "It is not medically necessary, it is a preference." My co-worker and I were discussing this issue one day. She was telling me that she had taken him (her son) to the pediatrician to get it done, because the hospital didn't perform the. The pediatrician told her the procedure was not covered by her insurance because it was considered a cosmetic surgery, and it would cost them $400. She debated it, but he told her that there was absolutely no reason to do it, that many boys today aren't getting circumcised, and told her proper care (not to retract). He's 5 and while her intentions walking in to the pediatricians office that day were to circumcise him without a thought or any research, she told me how happy she is that it wasn't covered and that he remained intact. I'm pretty sure he'll be happy about that, too!

If there are any other reasons you've heard for someone wanting to circumcise, I'd love to hear them. If you've been considering it and are still confused, have more questions, etc I would love to address that.

There are so many decisions for new parents to make, and it's important that you're informed. What I found when researching circumcision was that EVERY pro-circ benefit could be debunked with medical facts. That was enough for me. Why expose my perfect newborn boy to the risks of bleeding, pain, MRSA staph infection, decreased sensitivity and genital integrity if there were no benefits to it?

For a great first time parent article, check this out: http://www.circumstitions.com/Itsaboy.html
Here's a group of doctors opposing circumcision: http://www.doctorsopposingcircumcision.org/
For a quick, easy fact-checking decision maker, look at this: http://circumcisiondecisionmaker.com/
To find out why this group is fighting for baby boy's rights, go here: http://www.intactamerica.org/
Already raising an intact son (or pregnant with one who'll stay that way) join us here:
*Raising Intact Boys* on cafemom.

Rules and Regulations: As They Pertain to Nursing Toddlers

2010-01-29T23:07:00.000-08:00

So after working a short closing shift at the store tonight, I came home to a sleepy Alex who wanted mama snuggles. I welcomed him with open arms but attempted to put off the insistent "nursies" requests. You see, while I strongly believe in child-led weaning, we are at a point where I must set limits. The nursing relationship should continue so long as both parties are happy with it. I wasn't happy where we were at but I figured there was a happy medium between nursing CONSTANTLY at 2 years old, and weaning completely.

So, I've implemented a few "rules" for our nursing time. This is for both of our sanity. Mine, so that I don't resent the nursing relationship and can enjoy it until it naturally ends and him so that I don't loose my mind! HAHA

That being said, I never saw myself setting limits on nursing behavior. I figured that in the first year I would nurse 100% on demand with the exception of certain rare circumstances; and I did. After the first year, I continued to allow him free access at all times, but as he grew a little older I noticed that instead of nursing less at night and gradually dropping night feedings, he was nursing ALL night. After observing and taking some time to think about what was going on, I realized that he was such a busy toddler during the day (playing, rough housing, etc) that he was literally too busy for nursies. Here he was burning all this energy and then making up for it at night. Now of course, I always offered him a full course of meals throughout the day, but he was not too big on eating, still isn't that big of an eater.

This was where I started to question natural full-term nursing, maybe it wasn't for us. But, I kept reminding myself that there had to be a way to make it work, I was going to give it that minimum 2 years. Perhaps part of my drive to continue nursing was subconciously due to not nursing my other 2 children. Nonetheless, I wasn't going to call it quits without putting forth some effort.

So, at around 16 months I tried to offer him to nurse more during the day, hoping this would decrease those night time feedings. That proved unsuccessful. I ended up nursing more during the day, and just as much at night. Can we say "ouch"?

The next course of action was to try other methods of getting him back to sleep when he stirred. It makes sense, it's a logical choice. So I'd pat him and rock him, and he'd cry for nursies. I'd have my husband try to soothe him, and he'd cry for nursies. Now, you'd think that after just a few minutes of being loved and cuddled and crying he'd go back to sleep. No. This kid could literally scream for hours for nursies. Oye. After a few nights, my husband and I could not take it and we gave in to the nursies.

It seemed to let up a little, he wasn't attached literally all night long. I could live with a few night time feedings. However, out of nowhere it seemed to start up again, this time he was almost 20 months old. I couldn't stand it. Like I said, I was beginning to resent nursing, as a whole, because the night time nursing seemed so out of hand. But I couldn't let him scream all night either, I have 2 other children to take care of in the day and need to sleep!

My local La Leche League had some good tips: Talk about how nursies go to sleep at night and he can have them when the sun comes up, refuse a few times and put it off before giving in, keep doing what we were doing and within a week or two he should get it, etc. Ok, great. New game plan, let's do it!

I talked to him about how the nursies have to go to sleep as well and then when the sun comes up, they are awake again and he can have them. He liked to talk about this and we showed him the sun through the blinds and kept watching as it set, then we'd exclaim "Bed time, nursies!" and let him nurse one last time. This ended up not working too well. I could put him off a little in the middle of the night, for the first few wakings, but by 4am he wanted them, no questions asked.

This has been an ongoing battle and we've at least gotten it to the point that he's not nursing all night long, only a few times to fall back asleep. We lay him to sleep in his little bed after he's fallen asleep and he comes joining us that first time he wakes up, I just wish I knew how to keep him asleep all night...perhaps it's an unreasonable expectation. Maybe he inherited my poor sleeping habits. It might be due, now, to the fact that I am working part time away from the home. Whatever it is, it's one of the ongoing battles we face as parents. I *know* that nursing him longer will provide better health now and over all for the rest of his life. It's not that I mind, regardless of the difference in opinion of many peers and even family members. The science can't be argued because of personal opinions and comfort. For Alex and myself, it's just something we have to work on, much like a biting face or pants wetting.

After all, I'm sure I'll get a good night's sleep in about 18 years...right?

(Ironically enough, I stumbled upon this shortly after writing this blog. Hmm.)

You Are My Sunshine

2010-01-28T21:15:00.000-08:00

"You are my sunshine
my only sunshine
you make me happy
when skies are gray.
You'll never know dear
how much I love you.
Please don't take my sunshine away."

My mom always sang that to my little brother and me; it's always been such a sweet soothing song. I started singing it to my Maggie when she was first born and it's a lullaby I continue to sing to this day to all of them. Other favorites include: Baby Mine, Mr. Sun and Hush Little Baby.

Those who know me know that I sing...almost constantly, in fact. So it's no wonder my babies enjoy my singing since they've heard it nine months before meeting me. There were some nights when Maggie was so fussy and inconsolable, and I'd just sing to her; partly to cover up the sound of her crying, yes, but also to help soothe her back in to sleep. When Iris would wake up in the middle of the night, during the time my husband was working graveyard shift, I'd sing to her as she fell back to sleep in my arms. And as Alex would lay there, wide awake nursing and fighting sleep, I'd lull him with a song, too.

Each time I sung to my babes, it brought me back to my own infantile days when my mother would cuddle me, stroke my hair, and tell me I was her sunshine.

What childhood snuggle memories do you have?
Did your mother use to sing you to sleep with a lullaby?
Do you sing it to your babes?

Why did no one tell me?

2010-01-27T15:01:00.000-08:00

When I was pregnant with my son I was told by many people, friends and strangers alike, that I was in for a lot of fun, a lot of love and a full heart of love when talking about my future son. The one thing no one honestly told me, was just HOW different raising a boy would be to raising a girl.

First of all, the clothes are harder to find and nothing's as cute for little boys as it is for little girls! I felt lost in the boy's department after shopping for pink for the last 4.5 years!

Secondly, no one told me that the nausea he gave me while I was pregnant wouldn't stop when he was born! Since birth the boy has kept me on my toes and I am constantly worrying about him in one aspect or another...the heartburn and indigestion stayed, too.

And how about finding a name!! You have to be so careful it's not too pretty, can't be mistaken for being feminine...I wanted something strong but not burly. The arguments over names ranked with WW2. And to this day, I'm still not 100% sure about what we picked!

And when you're pregnant with a girl, how many times do you and your husband fight over the cosmetic surgeries she may or may not have after birth? There were no major discussions before with the two girls but throw a boy in the mix and now not only is name picking harder but you have to pick a penis, too!

I could probably go on, but I'll spare you all. If you're a mom of girls and then had a boy, you totally know what I'm talking about! But then all moms of boys know this: that a boy fills your heart with a kind of love that you can only have for your son. Something about how they are constantly creating near death experiences for themselves (and you) brings you closer together. Something about this rough and tumble little kiddo giving you hugs and cuddles pulls at your heart strings so differently.

I always worried, after having my first that I could never give as much love to another child as I had given to her, and yet, two kids later, I've learned that your heart grows and grows, and gives and gives, even after you think it's at capacity.

Was there ever a time in your pregnancy/pregnancies that you wondered what you had gotten in to? How did that change after having your baby?

Search me, I'm famous.

2009-08-16T23:20:00.000-07:00

Ok, so not *really*, but you CAN see me when you do a Yahoo! search.

After reading through my stats on my flickr account, I noticed certain viewed photos had not been viewed THROUGH flickr, but an outside source. I was able to click and it took me directly to where the photo was found by the searcher. Pretty neat. The tag typed in to Yahoo! search was "Nursing in Public" and my photo was on the first page, the 8th image. It's a great shot that my now 6.5 year old took of my son nursing in Historic Columbia, CA last summer. Neato!

Have you ever found your own photo when searching on line? I think it's pretty neat, but at the same time, I sort of feel like people can "spy" on me. I guess it's all part of having any segment of your life on line.

Here's the LINK if anyone is interested, just thought it was sort of a neat find to share!

Procrastination is a pain in the mouth!

2009-08-05T00:06:00.000-07:00

I posted not long ago about Maggie's first big girl tooth. She has since had one loosen up, and the adult tooth behind that just started coming in.

She is SO worried about it possibly hurting, that instead of wiggling her tooth and playing with it with her tongue in hopes to get some cash money from mommy and daddy, she leaves it alone. So much so, that it actually started to tighten back up!!

Now, I understand she is probably scared...after all, she has never lost a tooth before. I've sat and talked with her, explained how it hurts just a little when it's pulled, but that it's quickly fixed with ice cream and it won't hurt at all the next day and she'll have money to spend or at to her savings! She doesn't believe me!

I've never been here before, as a parent. As a kid, yea, but my mom always yanked our teeth out for us...ugh. I know, like many other things, it will happen in it's natural course of time...but she's beginning to avoid any foods that are tough so as to not accidentally lose the tooth, either! It's driving me bananas!

I'm so tempted to bump into her mouth and knock it out! Something I of course would never do...but jeez! How much longer are we gonna baby the tooth?

No Nonsense in this blog...

2009-07-27T16:50:00.000-07:00

My grandmother, 84 years old, had spinal surgery today. I don't know the details or what type of surgery, so I apologize in advance for anyone who was going to ask. She has made it through and the surgeon said it went well, but things like this always get me thinking.

It was risky for her to have surgery, but she passed all the tests and the doctor was very concerned, as if left untreated, a small bump or fall could have sent her into full on paralysis. So, it was a risk worth taking to her to enjoy the rest of her life to the fullest she could.

I've never undergone any surgeries, and am definitely fearful of ever having to. But sometimes, there's not much you can do about these things. Aside from fear of my kids losing me if something ever went wrong, because even the most routine surgeries carry the risk of death, I fear what I would do if any of my children had to undergo something like this.

As a mother, I think our biggest fear is the loss of our children. Sometimes, it becomes more real on our journey as mother and child. Has there ever been a time when you were faced with the harsh reality of life as it pertains to motherhood? What was the scenario and how did it go? Would you do anything differently?

I know this is a touchy subject, but I can't even imagine how difficult it would be to go through any serious illness, or surgery, or battle...but moreso, I can't imagine watching my child go through it. Your insight is much valued and your opinions always welcome.

Hair today, Gone tomorrow.

2009-07-23T16:53:00.000-07:00

Having had two girls prior to my son, I am still getting used to the idea of frequent hair cuts. We tend to let Alex go quite a while before buzzing his pretty hair away. We usually take him in for a cut, where they scissor the top and do a longer buzz around the back. This time, however, we didn't want to "waste" the $12 on a hair cut that we could do for free...but ahhh, even free things come at a price!

First, the buzzers we had were not in the best condition...two pairs of my brother's. The first pair made noise but the blades didn't move...at all. The second pair seemed to be working fine, and Seth tested on his arm before I took them bravely to Alex's head. That resulted in a bald CHUNK missing from the front of his hair because they CLOGGED AND STOPPED WORKING. What makes this WORSE is that these buzzers had no attachments, so we're talking B.A.L.D.

*sigh*

I frantically call the BFF in tears about how I've ruined Alex's hair, we're suppose to go run errands, we couldn't spring the money for a hair cut and certainly can't spring it for new clippers...ahhhh!

Thankfully, 30 of the longest minutes of my life later, Seth reaches his friend, who has clippers we can borrow and we proceed to give Alex his hair cut...which like I said, ended up costing a lot more than we bargained for!

Here's the before and after:

Unfortunately, that first pic is a couple weeks old and his hair was even longer...but I apparently don't have any more recent ones (oops!). I also wish that instead of bursting in to tears I would have snapped a shot of his funny bald spot prior to the finished hair cut. Oh well, live and learn! I thought after 3 kids, I'd know more by now!

2:30

2009-06-16T23:11:00.000-07:00

My oldest daughter is smart and independent and loves to do things for herself. This is GREAT about 99% of the time. You know, she loves to get her own drink, or go play outside (in the fenced in backyard) by herself, or take care of the baby while I am helping her sister. She also brushes her own teeth, HOWEVER, I have GOT to give them a "review" when she's done, because she doesn't LIKE actually brushing them, which is why she volunteers to do it so she can race through!

Tonight after brushing, I asked her to come over so I could inspect. She smiled and I asked to see the inside, since the back of teeth are not only harder to brush, but easy for kids to "forget". Well, lo and behold when she opened up wide I got a big surprise! Her first adult tooth has broken through! I began screaming and cheering and told her what a big girl she was and how exciting! She began to celebrate with me, the baby laughed maniacally and Iris giggled along.

She was one of the few kids in her K class that hadn't lost any teeth yet, and I wasn't too surprised as I still had 3 baby teeth in 8th grade that were pulled in order to start my orthodontic work. Wow...my big girl! I do have a few concerns, like the size of this tooth in comparison to her small mouth and also, how far away from her current "tooth line" it is. I expect all my children to need braces since terribly crooked teeth run in the family. We'll have to see how this all goes. I *think* her from left bottom tooth is slightly loose, so maybe in the next week or so she'll get to put it under her pillow for the Tooth Fairy! Whooo hooooo!

Adventures in Potty Training!

2009-06-16T00:47:00.000-07:00

I would NEVER suggest to someone to start potty training before two...usually. My stance is typically that when a child is ready, not only will it be easier and less messy for you, but it will be easier emotionally on the child. Some kids are ready at 2...others are still not ready at 4. Gentle encouragement after a certain age is great, but honestly, your kid won't be in diapers forever...don't push it!

My girls were both trained right around 2.5 years old. It was quick, easy, and painless. I had always heard boys are so much harder to train than girls and that they usually aren't going to use the potty till age 3 or later, so I never expected this. Alexander first used the potty at a year old. He loved it, thought it was great, plus, he got to play with his favorite toy...if you know what I mean. He continued to randomly use the potty for a while, with no pushing from me, but just happy encouragement when he wanted to go.

For the past 2 months he's consistently pooped in the potty (hooray for not having to wash poo diapers anymore! LOL) and has been hit or miss with his tinkles. Some days, we could have gone all day with no accidents, even during nap, others, I went through every pair of undies he owned in an hour. Needless to say, that was perfectly fine, I HARDLY expected a potty trained 18 month old. Now, at 2o months old today, he went consistently, even at the grocery store, in underwear. While shopping he even "told" me he had to go pee, and went IN the potty, on the other end of the store, without so much as a drip in his underoos. I am SO proud of him. This is AWESOME. I don't know if it's because of his sisters, I don't know if it's because of cloth diapering, I don't know if he's just a genius (haha) but this is such new and uncharted territory for me...and I LOVE it.

So, wish Alexander and I luck tomorrow (today) with our new adventures in underwear!!

Just a day in the life!

2009-06-09T11:06:00.000-07:00

So it was not even 9 am and Alex was already painting the cabinets with butter. How, pray tell, did he get butter?

Well, Maggie has a cut on her finger that she insisted needed bandaging, so she ran to the bathroom to get the stepstool, to reach the counter, to get the band aids. However, she did not put it back, so a few bored minutes later Alexander made his way to the stool to find the butter that I had used to put on their toast not long before (we were still EATING breakfast!) and he decided that what he wanted to do with the butter was to give the cabinets a shine...so he did.

Shortly after that, while I was cleaning up the cabinets and putting the butter away, he decided to take off his undies and sit on the couch to pee. If he knew he had to pee, and he knew to take off his underwear, I really don't know why he chose the couch as his target. *sigh*

While cleaning up the urine, he climbed up on to the end table, let out a loud "Ta da!" threw his hands up in the air and launched to the ground, unharmed, thankfully.

I get a diaper on him, because today just doesn't feel like a day to work on potty training and relax for a few minutes before chaos ensues again...it's just another day but man, these days are long!

Photo OP

2009-06-07T20:41:00.000-07:00

I had mentioned in a previous blog that I would be creating a blogspot for my photography, so that those of you not interested in those musings could avoid talk of it on a regular basis and because, aside from that, this blog was created to chronicle my life as a mom to my 3 darlings.

So, for anyone who was curious about it, I want you to go here and check it out. Let me know what you think about how it looks and feel free to comment on the posts/pictures over there. Thanks ladies!

School's Out for the Summer, School's Out for Forever...

2009-06-05T11:39:00.000-07:00

Today is Maggie's last day of kindergarten but more than that, it is her last day of school. Next year we will officially kick off homeschooling. The method is still to be decided, but we're leaning towards charter school, at least for the first year. I am both excited and sad. There are just too many issues with the school system and our family. I thought that a private school would have been better, but alas, politics and bullshit follow you everywhere.

All in all, she had a good year and made some good friends, one of whom is an angel and I hope never loses touch. There were many instances that occurred with other children (bully type issues) that I feel were not handled well, if at all, by the school and staff. It brought back my own memories of how horribly my brother and I were treated, but ours were because of our hand-me-down clothing and our obvious naivety. Nonetheless, it started a course of bullying that followed me from school to school. It didn't help that I developed breasts in fourth grade, owning a C cup in 6th grade. In 8th grade a rumor started that I had implants. I remember thinking, even at the age of 13, how preposterous that notion was, but it did little to sway the popular belief that my breasts were fake.

That has taken me off on a tangent! My goodness. Well, in a few minutes I am leaving to bring our 4 kittens to school for Maggie's last show and tell. I am excited, as is she, to share the kittens with the kids and go to the class one last time. There is a party at the park afterward for all the K students that she wants to attend, so I think we'll have to make an appearance.

I am excited to start a new phase in our life and am looking forward to a busy summer.

Acrobatic Nursings

2009-06-01T22:27:00.001-07:00

From the time he realized he had feet, Alexander has taken it upon himself to make nursing time into a game. This usually serves to entertain himself, not so much me. It was innocent enough when it started, he'd gently stroke my cheek or chin with his foot, or rub my collar bone...but then, it became more, so much more. The gentle strokes soon turned to kicks FOLLOWED by loving touches. Eventually the kicks were all that remained and not long after that he would simply THRASH about in my arms, typically causing me to say "Enough! You're done!" and end the whole session right then and there.

The thing is, he's not doing it to be mean, the opposite in fact. I think he just so enjoys his nursies but really and truly doesn't know how to sit the heck still! I definitely enjoy still nursing him, as it's usually the one time in the day we are NOT dealing with utter chaos, but when he's in an ornery mood it just makes me irritated!

I think I'm going to purchase some football gear and stay completely suited up throughout the day, this is what my toddler has driven me to! If it's not one thing, it's another. Is it too late to back out of this? *snicker*

What I've been up to

2009-06-01T00:24:00.000-07:00

So what exactly do I do when I am neglecting my blog here? Well, other than wiping noses and bottoms, picking up toys while balancing dishes and picking up and dropping kids off at school I am working on my photography. I started taking pictures for fun years ago, *never* serious about it whatsoever. However, after having Alexander I've really started to focus on what I am doing. It is slowly growing in to a business and I recently invested in a new camera to aid in that even more.

I love it and hope to see it really become something. The kids, however, are not always as fond of me having a camera in their face, but the people I have had the pleasure of working with so far have been thrilled. To me there is nothing more fulfilling than taking pictures and capturing someone's life, especially growing bellies and sweet new babies. *melt* The baby bug is biting again...how is this possible?

On top of picture taking I am dealing with the emotions that every mother deals with when her baby has progressed from baby to toddler. On top of the emotions that accompany the quickness in which children grow come the emotions of DEALING with a toddler. For me, I am experiencing many new things because Alexander is my first boy, my first nursling, my first cloth diapered baby, etc. But he is also the first child that has truly tried my abilities as a mum. He has always been "all boy" but now that he's gained new abilities as a rough and tumble tot he is even more intense. Some days all I can do to keep myself from running to the loony bin is to literally run away and hide. If he can't find me for 5 minutes, maybe it'll be long enough to calm down and not string him up by his toes!

Remember that book "I'll Love You Forever" by Robert N. Munsch? He reminds me oh so much of the little boy in that book...

Margaret has one week left of school after which she will be a 1st grader! Holy cow! I cannot even begin to believe I have a first grader. She survived kindergarten, and at a Catholic school, no less. It is official, though, that next year she'll be homeschooled, most likely through our local charter school...that is, unless, we end up in the great state of Texas. Which is a story for another post!

Iris seems to both despise and enjoy preschool, which is typical Iris fashion to be basically fickle as all get out! She only goes two days a week and will also be out by Friday. I am wondering what I am going to do with these kids all day come summer...I better start planning now!

As much as I could keep writing, and oh how I do want to, I must saunter off to bed. I've gotten in to the habit of staying up far too late working on pictures and it's getting the better of me come afternoon each day!

I promise to keep the blog updated and plan to start one specifically for photography so I don't bore those of you not at all interested in it! Thank you to anyone who still reads these ramblings! Nighty Night!

I'm a horrible person and deserve to be smited!

2008-12-09T21:47:00.000-08:00

Wow, I am even afraid to look at how long ago I last posted. I have been absent for far too long and far too much has happened!!

Kids are growing bigger each day. Maggie is in Kindergarten, Iris in preschool and Alexander is just terrorizing me all day! We are living with mom because my hubby was laid off this summer. He took the opportunity to go through the corrections academy and received his certification...now he's just looking for work where budgets haven't been cut or put on hold.

My photography has really taken off and I hope to see my little business grow this next year. I am enjoying the art very much and am so happy to be taking pictures. It's really fun for me and gives me something to focus on (literally).

I will be back to blog, I just need to get into the swing of it again! Man, how time just flies!

The Disappearing Brownies

2008-07-27T17:30:00.000-07:00

Living with my mother has been a feat but I won't delve into that here. No, this post is serious. Much more serious than even my mother. This post is about brownies. Yummy, chocolate brownies which I made the other day. I made them with all the important ingredients, especially love. Extra love. I mixed up two batches of brownies and poured them into their appropriate dishes. I poured half into a deep square baking dish and the other into a more shallow rectangular dish. I baked them up and let them cool. The shallow brownies I sprinkled with powdered sugar, a subtle yet scrumptious solution. The other batch was adorned with triple chocolate fudge frosting, it even had miniature chocolate chips in it. My mouth is watering just recalling these brownies...

The first batch went rather quickly. Between my brother and the kids, they were eaten right up. I knew my mom would enjoy the frosting smothered bunch, but I didn't know how much. Before I had even known it was cut into, almost half was gone. I was surprised to see how fast they were going, especially since I hadn't even SEEN any of them go!

Each time I re-entered the kitchen, more were gone still! What could possibly be eating my brownies so stealthily? I soon had my answer...

My mom was extra cranky and not feeling well. She let me in on a secret: Aunt Flo was in town. Oh dear lord almighty, save me!! She's a mean, evil woman, that Flo. Every time she visits she puts an evil curse on my mother. Thankfully she hates breastfeeding and so I've avoided her myself, but not my mom! No, and I swear she's gotten worse. On top of turning her into a witch, she also takes the form of a choco-holic. I am not exactly sure how my brownies managed to last as long as they did, but eventually, every last bite was eaten.

I never actually saw her in the act, but I know. I know that the only cure for that curse Aunt Flo bestowed upon her was my chocolatey brownies. At least they went to a good cause.

Me vs. 5

2008-07-25T16:52:00.000-07:00

Anyone want to place bets on how the night will go? I am babysitting right now for my DEAR friend Toni. She has twin girls who just turned 3. I also have my 3 kiddos (ages 5, 3 and 9 months). I wonder how long it will be until I run out of here screaming and pulling my hair out...any guesses? Haha.

Cloth Diapering Mamas, enter to win!

2008-07-20T21:30:00.000-07:00

Win a Bum Genius 3.0 Starter Kit from Nature's Child - Wholesome Goods for Mothers and Babies

Life as it pertains to ME

2008-07-16T19:28:00.000-07:00

Man, where have I been? Crazy town, I think, and I took the express!

My dear sweet husband was laid off, as were many others (12 just in his department). I know that our economy is doing poorly, and it's even harder when your only source of income is *POOF* gone. We had to move into my mother's house and I am so surprised I am still alive. This is probably the hardest thing I've done as a parent. I lived with my mom until Maggie was about 18 months, then Seth and I moved in together. Maggie is now 5.5 years old...and I'm here again.

It's weird being in the same room I was a teenager in. So many devious things happened here. Now it's a bedroom for 5. My closet is packed full of clothes and I'm so thankful I begged for a closet organizer as a teen, because it is SO useful now!

Aside from the usual burdens of living with your parents, things are going pretty well. I think I'm going to start midwifery school earlier than anticipated. Why not? We're here rent free. Seth is also pursuing his dreams of law enforcement and looking for part-time work to just "get us by" in the meantime.

Alexander and Iris caught some bizarre summer cold and they've been keeping me up the past few days, poor babes. I'm hoping we can qualify for medi-cal, since Seth lost insurance along with his job. Go figure they get sick right after we lose it.

Lately, I haven't been feeling well. It could be a number of things though the popular vote has gone to pregnancy. I won't know for a while, I have no money to test but some nice mommies have offered to send me one. I love the online community of girlfriend's that I've built. You guys rock. Hopefully soon I will know what is making me sick. I'm hoping it's just stress, and sore nipples are a bonus...

Maggie was accepted into Sacred Heart School. My heart is set on homeschooling, but with everything going on, this might be best for now. We will be purchasing her uniforms soon. I can't believe my baby girl is almost in kindergarten. I am developing heart palpitations. Holy freakin' cow.

Iris has blossomed into such a wonderful child. A hurricane still, but discovering so much for herself. Swim lessons have turned her from a aquaphobiac to an olympic diver! Ok, not really, but close! She now will go under water and blow bubbles! Yea!!

Alexander has had to sit on the sidelines during swim lessons with Dad, but he's enjoying the outdoors. He's been crawling for a couple of months now and is cruising along furniture. He's also standing unassisted for longer periods of time. I wonder if he'll be my "early walker". He's also still nursing on demand and eating few solids, his gag reflex is pretty sensitive. He weighs 24 lbs now and is just so big and healthy. Aside from this drag of a cold, he's a happy little boy.

I hope this summer is treating everybody else well. Tell me what you've done with it. Any vacations planned or taken? What's your favorite thing about summertime?

A day in the life...

2008-05-13T19:40:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I imagine I'm something else instead of "mom". I will sit back, close my eyes and drift to a place where I can be anything, anywhere in the world. I quite enjoy these daydreams, but I think that the fantasy could never replace my reality. I'm just so darn happy, even though I find myself stressed or stretched thin many times. I can truly and honestly say I love these kids so darn much and cannot imagine myself any place better!!

Not long ago I started on a new mom adventure and entered the world of cloth diapers. I think we've been CDing for about 2 months now, not quite sure. So far, it's going really well. I need to purchase more covers, but I knew when I started I didn't have the recommended amount, so of course, that's made it a little harder on me. All in all though, it's very possible to do, even with 3 kids and off site laundry, and I feel more than ever there's no excuse to NOT cloth diaper. I wanted to make a list of the pros and cons that I personally have compiled. This is not everything, but this is most that I can think of.

PROS

Cost. The savings are amazing. Even when you factor in detergent and water/heating energy, you save a load (no pun intended!).
Ease. It is only slightly more difficult when using prefolds, and when using AIOs (all-in-ones, just like sposies but made of cloth) it is no harder. You can also find WAHM (work at home mom) businesses that make very affordable diapers and there are so many varying colors and brands to fit YOUR life.
Better on babe. Alexander was suffering from chronic red butt, and ever since the cloth, we've had no problems!! I'm REALLY happy that his cute little bum is protected.
Environmentally friendly. Anytime I feel like "Oh, it's so much easier to use disposables" I think about how great the CDs are for the environment and how they are reusable AND made of natural materials. I like that, unlike sposies, they don't take up to 500 years to decompose!

CONS:

Require more planning. Now, I know you have to keep on top of your disposables and make sure you don't run out, but you can buy them 200 at a time. With the cloth, I have to make sure I plan to do laundry before I'm pushing it. I have only "run out" one time, and it was, of course, my fault (slacked on laundry that week) but nonetheless, I had to buy some sposies for the day because of it. I have, however, now learned to keep some on hand just in case.
Time. They take time not in the sense that I don't have any, or even when it comes to actually changing him, but I do have to factor in the extra 2-3 loads per week. Now, if I had a washer and dryer here, that'd be no problem...but I don't. I have to go to my mom's house, and so it does tap into my time a little more. The plus is that I (aside from that one time) can't really slack on laundry. If I'm going to go do a load of diapers, I may as well bring a load of something else, also!
Comments. Not that I let anyone else's opinion bother me, but I do sort of get sick of hearing "Oh, really? People still do that?" or "Why?!?!?! That's so GROSS!!" when they have absolutely NO clue what CDs are like.

That's probably it. All in all, I highly recommend trying them. Quite a few different sites offer starter packs. If someone wants to try cloth that's the most like sposies, they should try BumGenius or Gdiapers.

There really isn't much new in my life. My husband is taking vacation starting tomorrow, and we've been so excited for this!! We have quite a few things planned for the family and we just plan to enjoy every moment of it! He's been working so hard and really deserves this break. I am so anxious to just spend time with my lovely family.

A day in the life of "mom" may not be as exciting as my "dream" jobs and I don't always get to look forward to vacations, but no matter what, the good outweighs the bad. No matter what, there is just no place I'd rather be. No matter what, I am mom...and it's not that bad.

CARSEAT INFO AND SAFETY

2008-04-05T22:18:00.000-07:00

*FROM A CERT. CARSEAT TECH*

Just to let you know, car crashes are the #2 killer of children under 1 year of age, it is the #1 killer of children 1-14.

The absolute bare minimum is 1 year AND 20lbs. What is best practice? To keep your child rear facing for as long as possible. The AAP recommends keeping your child rfing until the weight limits of your seat which is either 30, 33 or 35lbs. Another thing, MOST states have LAWS in place that say your child HAS to be in a rear facing child restraint until 1 year AND 20lbs. So ANY dr telling you that it is okay to FF them before 1 year is WRONG.

I am a Child Passenger Safety Technician and I all too often see the horrific aftermaths of children who were forward facing and were involved in a car accident. Most recently, we reviewed a case study of a 26 month old, 26lbs child who was in the middle of the backseat, ffing, in a 5 pt harness seat. A car came into their lane and they were in a head on collision at 45mph. This little girl suffered a broken C2 vertebrae. She was the LUCKIEST child. She was in a HALO for 3 months. She had to into temporary state custody b/c the mother couldn't care for her (due to the mother being in the hospital). Evidence shows that if she were still rear facing, she would not have sustained this life threatening injury.

I have had a broken neck before, my C1 and C2 vertebrae's were broken. This area controls breathing, movements, etc...Christopher Reeve is a prime example of having a broken C1 and C2 vertebra in his neck. It is NOT a nice injury and I would never wish that upon anyone...especially a child. It breaks my heart when I hear of parents ffing their child too soon. Because of this kind of mind set that it is a "milestone" to ff your child at 1 year AND 20lbs, many MANY children are needlessly injured.

When a child is in a frontal, head on 35mph crash and their car seat is NOT tethered and they are using a 5 point harness, they will go forward 32". When their seat is tethered, a child will be thrown forward 28". It is imperative that families recognize the NEED to keep their children rear facing for as long as possible.

Here are several links to support keeping your child rear facing for as long as possible.

http://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/c...trics;109/3/550
http://www.carseat.org/Resources/633.pdf
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/stayrearfacing.aspx
http://www.car-safety.org/rearface.html
http://www.cpsafety.com/articles/RFAlbum.aspx
http://www.thecarseatlady.com/car_seats/re...cing_seats.html
http://myangelsaliandpeanut.tripod.com/id5.html
http://momtoaliandshae.tripod.com/keepingkidssafeinthecar/
http://www.aap.org/family/carseatguide.htm
http://www.aap.org/family/1to2yrs.htm
http://www.aap.org/advocacy/releases/travelsafetytips.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRP7ynNI8mI
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9916868
http://www.carseatsite.com/rear-face_article.htm

Here are a few crash test links to show you the difference in rear facing vs forward facing:

http://www.oeamtc.at/netautor/html_seiten/...icosipriori.mpg
http://youtube.com/watch?v=rsqE-uOtMM4&mode=related&search=
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K62Ea8Fs4ng...related&search=

Here is a crash test of a 12 month old RFing
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v163/jen_nah/carseats/?action=view&current=video06A_MGA_213_RearFace-Convertib.flv

Then, here is the SAME 12 month old FFing
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v163/jen_nah/carseats/?action=view&current=video06B_MGA_213_ForwardFace-Conver.flv

I think 15 links is enough for now, but I do have MANY MANY more showing support.

For those who say their children were uncomfortable rfing, your child knows nothing different. In fact, their legs bending the way they do RFing is actually comfortable to a child. It may not be for an adult. A child is usually more uncomfortable with their legs dangling over the edge or close to the edge of the seat than they are all "squished" up. ALL children go through the kicking, screaming, yelling phase b/c they are active, crawling, walking, etc and would much rather be doing that than harnessed in their seat. They also WANT to see mom or dad in the car. They can hear you, but can't "see" you. They are all phases and they will pass. A child is TOO tall rfing when their head is 1" below the top of the SHELL of the seat OR (check your car seat manual) if you own an older Britax, it is when the tips of the ears are even with the shell of the seat rfing. There is NO documented cases of a child's legs being broken in crashes, but there are TONS of documented cases of children with spinal injuries.
42% of accidents occur in rural settings. 25% of them occur within 5 minutes of your home.

Autopsy reports have shown that children under 2 years old are at 4 times the risk of Internal Decapitation when forward facing. What is Internal Decapitation??

Wikipedia says this:
Internal decapitation, atlantooccipital dislocation, describes the rare process by which the skull separates from the spinal column during severe head injury. This injury is nearly always fatal, since it usually involves nerve damage or severance of the spinal cord. Hanging relies on allowing the subject to break their neck under their own weight.

Here is a lady that actually survived Internal Decapitation http://youtube.com/watch?v=PWmJ1m3Jvhc&mode=related&search=

So, as you can tell, it has ZERO to do with neck STRENGTH. I was in a side impact crash where the drunk driver was going 65-70mph and it snapped my neck--I was 20 years old.

Did you know that if YOU are in a 30mph, one vehicle accident and your child weighs 20lbs, they turn into 600lbs of force. THAT is a LOT of force for a child.

Consider this: A car going 40mph would hit a tree with the same force as hitting the ground after falling off a 50 foot cliff. A person inside the car would hit the windshield (unrestrained, of course) with the same force as hitting the ground after a fall from a five-story building.

Another thing to know is that when a child is RFing, the BACK of their carseat--the part that goes behind their back and head--take the brunt of the crash force. In a FF car seat, the CHILD takes the brunt of the crash force.

This shows spine development. You can see how the spine doesn't fuse together until they are quite older.

This diagram shows you how "top heavy" children are and how disproportioned they are.

No one needs to feel bad or scared or worried. Here is the information. Some crashes are unsurvivorable no matter what safety precautions have been taken.

*reply to poster for code and repost*

Cloth...why?

2008-03-30T22:10:00.000-07:00

With Earth Day quickly approaching, the question that may be plaguing many minds is “What can *I* do to better our earth? To help our planet?”. Many people will devote to recycling every can of soda they drink, or using earth friendly house cleaners, but there is one “green leaf” that’s turning over: cloth diapering. We think of cloth diapers as an old ratted rag held in place with a gigantic safety pin, but today’s cloth diapers leave much more to the imagination! With different work at home mom businesses making custom diapers, and even larger companies like G-diapers with biodegradable liners that are neither cloth or disposable, the possibilities on keeping baby and planet clean are endless!

But, why on earth would somebody want to deal with the mess of a cloth diaper, the hassle of extra laundry and the cost when disposables are far easier! After all, it only takes 500 years for one disposable diaper to degrade! The reasons are many, and actually, may be a lot greater than you think!

Firstly, the cost is astronomical. The money you can save from cloth diapering is enough to put a down payment on a car…or two. The average household will spend about $2000 on disposable diapers per child. Compare that with roughly 200-300 on cloth diaper accessories, and that can vary depending on the type you buy. From the more time consuming, yet economical prefolds with cover, to the fancy all in one diaper that is worn just like a disposable, but bears a larger price tag.

The second reason you may consider cloth is our beautiful earth. Not only do disposables take years and years to break down, but they are made with toxins. These leak back into the earth and are DEFINITELY not good for our planet. They are also not reusable (duh) so you spend money month after month on something you could purchase one time, wash, and reuse! Rinse, reuse, recycle, right? You can do that with cloth. With the diapers that have held up through your child’s use, you can resell to another parent interested in started the tradition themselves!

Thirdly, those same toxins that harm our earth can be dangerous to your baby! Why would you put something directly on your child’s skin that could kill them if ingested? Dioxin, a carcinogenic bleaching chemical, banned in feminine hygiene products, yet still used in making disposable diapers, is one of many reasons you may want to “think green”, and I don’t mean poop!

One thing that really swayed my decision to convert to cloth, aside from money and the benefits to my little one, was just how fun it was shopping and searching for the different diapers!! The designs out there will match any style you have, from punky diapers bearing skulls and cross bones, to pretty petite flowers dancing across your child’s perfectly wrapped bum. On top of being able to customize your diapers by look, many work at home mom businesses (like those through sites like www.etsy.com) offer a variety of materials to make your diapers from. Many are hypo-allergenic, made of hemp, fleece, and many other comfortable materials to accommodate the needs of you and your cloth booty cutie. I have so much fun shopping for new diapers, and I’m STILL saving money over disposables. As a woman, being able to shop AND save money is a godsend!

There is a list of endless reasons why one would want to use eco-friendly cloth diapers. Though disposables do have their pros, the cons far outweigh that. So, when the time comes, and you’re making some of the very important decisions while awaiting your little one, add this to the list. Cloth diapering: definitely NOT a thing of the past, but the thing for our future!

-Katie Holt

All I really want...

2008-03-21T19:11:00.000-07:00

Out of all the things that I could achieve in life, all I really want is for my children to be happy and healthy. I want to make sure I am making the best choices possible for their growth and development, and not just in the here and now, but in the long run, for the rest of their lives. I want them to grow up to know that their mother might not have always made the best choices, but instead of burying her head in the sand and ignoring her mistakes, she learned from it. Can I take back anything that I did differently with my older child? My second child? My youngest child? No. Can I hope to enlighten them, and others by sharing what I have done over the years and also, what I've learned, through experience as well as research and maturity? Yes.

When I share advice with someone, whether it be anecdotal or factual, I don't share it because I enjoy the sound of my own voice. I don't share it because I think my way is the ONLY way. I don't share it because I think they are bad, or stupid, or failing. No, not at all. If I thought that they were a lost cause, why would I bother? Instead, I share what I've come to know because I DO care. Because, if I can help YOU avoid feeling the regret I've felt at times, then it is worth it. If I can help YOU to make a better choice for you little one, that may greatly benefit their health, THAT'S worth it.

Often times women will say that it's not my child to care about, but, when you hear a tragic story on the news, about a child abandoned, or beaten, or murdered...do you not feel bad? But, it's not your child to care about, is it? See, that's just silly. Of course you care! You, as a mother, cannot help but care about other children, because you see your own children IN them. Now, don't go on thinking that I'm comparing beating a child to different forms of parenting, what I am comparing is the compassion that one feels over different children.

How many of us have thought we were right about something before? Seriously, we've ALL thought we were right about SOMETHING!

How many of you have been WRONG at some point about what you thought you were oh so right about? ALL of us. We have ALL been there, be it an answer on a quiz in school, the judgement of a friend we thought we could trust who then betrayed us, picking the wrong man we thought was the love of our lives, and even making decisions with our children that we believed to be best. Later on, we may discover that what we thought we were SO SURE about, was in fact, poor judgement or even misinformation. This does not make us bad. This does not make us stupid. This does not mean we cannot LEARN and CHANGE.

So, you study harder or take your time on the next test. You are more careful who you become close to. You are more selective and cautious when dating. You research and learn more for your next child and perhaps even *gasp* make some changes.

We could all benefit from opening our ears and our minds, but we're not the only ones involved...our children are. Sometimes, you must swallow that pride, admit that perhaps you were wrong, and do what it takes to create a better choice for your family, for your children...for their future and yours.

So...

2008-03-16T01:54:00.000-07:00

Turns out I am not pregnant.

When I first thought we had "oopsied", I was a little disappointed since it wasn't the "ideal" time to have another child. I do know I want 4, and I started to accept that this might be the only time I get that, since hubby is so hot/cold on the subject. As I waited until a good time to test (no period due to ebf) I started to embrace and even get excited over the idea of having a fourth child around sooner than later, however, it's not going to be now. The test was negative. Actually, THREE tests were negative. It is what it is, and I'm not sad per se, but I'm a little bummed. What if DH really resists having another child? I am NOT done. I literally NEED a fourth (not need in the sense of life or death, or even happiness vs. unhappiness). Mostly, it's a completion. I don't feel complete yet. It's just what we're meant to have...4.

Anyway, enough rambling. My time will come, I hope.

Why SHOULD you breast-feed?

2008-03-09T00:14:00.001-08:00

We often hear from women how hard it is/was to breast-feed. Some of these well-meaning women may have been there themselves, but many never gave it a go OR approached it with little to no knowledge or desire. You can look up the benefits of breast-feeding and any medically based site will tout it's benefits. We all KNOW that breast-feeding your child is the best thing you can do for them, but here's some reasons why you should straight from the mouth of a mother.

Why do I think you might care what I have to say? Well, I've been on BOTH sides of the fence. Actually, I've been on both sides as well as balancing ON the fence. I have only recently been able to come to terms with some of the guilt I feel over my past choices, and I would HATE for any other woman to have to struggle with the guilt I did simply because you, like I, were uninformed.

So, here are my personal reasons on why *I* think *you* should breast-feed your baby(ies).

It is the biological norm- your baby's tummy is designed for consumption of breast-milk. A baby's digestive tract is sensitive and it is susceptible to bacteria. The phrase "breast is best" isn't really the best term, it should be "breast is normal", because it's the STANDARD for optimum infant health.
It's FREE!- When I informed my husband that I would be breast-feeding our son come hell or high water, his reaction was simple "Cool, because formula's freakin' expensive!". It wasn't until I educated him more, during my pregnancy, on the benefits of breast-feeding, and even after watching his son thrive on my milk, that he looked at it for it's many other benefits. To him, in the beginning, it was simply enough that we would save, literally, THOUSANDS of dollars by breast-feeding.
It's easy- it might not always be easy in the beginning, and yes, many mom's DO face hardships with nursing (though many can be avoided with good education on nursing and/or professional help from an LC) but once you've established your nursing relationship, NOTHING is easier than expose breast and attach baby. That's it, you're done! No lugging around powder, sterile water, clean bottles AND a baby! Boobs are attached, portable, and always ready to go!
It's soothing- and not just for baby! Yes, it's true, breast-feeding will calm a fussy baby or whiney toddler like nothing else can, but it is also quite comforting and soothing for mom, both metaphorically as well as literally. When you nurse, you release oxytocin (the feel-good bonding hormone) and seratonin (the sleepy one!) which puts you (and baby) in a state of goo-goo-ga-ga lovey bliss!
It HELPS PPD- Breast-feeding can help keep PPD (Post Partum Depression) away as well as help it to be less severe. In the event that you still experience PPD to the point of needing medication, there are medications you can take while nursing that will not hurt the baby.
It's educational- What? How is breast-feeding educational? Well, let me tell you! When yo breast-feed, other people will inevitably see you doing it! If you have older children, they will undoubtedly be around as you feed the baby, and if they are anything like mine, they will ask questions! This is the PERFECT time to share the beauty of breast-feeding with your children. Remember, they are the future! You can also educate OTHERS by breast-feeding. If you are breast-feeding in public, there may likely come a time when someone confronts you about it (either positively or negatively) and BOTH circumstances can prove benefitial to their breast-feeding education! If it's a negative reaction (usually pertaining to whether you are in the right for breast-feeding in public) you can give them a legal education, as almost every state has a law for breast-feeding mothers, and to my knowledge, NONE have a law AGAINST it! I carry a copy of my state's legislation in my wallet. If it is a POSITIVE encounter, you can perhaps tell an inquisitive person WHY you breast-feed, encourage them to keep going (if THEY are breast-feeding) and all in all, give them exposure to breast-feeding which is helping to remind people it's NORMAL.
It's fun- it really is! Especially as your child grows, breast-feeding can become acrobatic and humorous! As you gaze down at your little one suckling away at your breast, you get smiles, giggles, and even the occasional game of peek-a-boo as your baby hides in your breast. Sometimes, the world just melts away as you enter your own little world.
It eases baby to sleep- Instead of resorting to possibly damaging methods like CIO (Cry It Out) or having to spend hours rocking, singing or DRIVING to get your baby to go to sleep, you can simply lay with and nurse your child into a peaceful state of slumber. Granted, all babies are different, and what works for one might not work for all, but I have yet to meet a breast-feeding mother who couldn't simply lay with and nurse her little one to sleep, even into the difficult i'llkickandscreamtogetmywayandavoidbedtime toddler years.
It's bonding- You hear it all the time, and if you are or have been a formula/bottle feeder, it may jab you the wrong way, putting you on the defense to say "I'm BONDED with my baby! You can bottle-feed and bond ALSO!". Well, no one said you CAN'T bond with a baby despite bottle-feeding. The difference is HOW you bond and how WELL you bond. Breast-feeding gives you skin-to-skin contact, something very essential to newborn bonding. There is no other choice, if you breast-feed, you WILL be skin-to-skin with baby. Also, your breasts are attached to you, meaning there is NO option for NOT holding your baby when you feed them. Even when laying down, you are in contact with your baby. I know many bottle-feeding mothers that SWEAR they have never bottle propped, but truth be told, you WILL do it at some point, it's undeniable. It doesn't mean you ALWAYS bottle prop, but you will be much more inclined to do so, especially when you're trying to get things done and the darn baby just doesn't understand you can't drop everything for them right now! And let's not forget, baby's do learn how to hold bottles, and while they can also hold breasts, they can't exactly do it ALL on their own! Feeding is a very important time for baby, it is important that they are held, so even if you aren't nursing, please, hold your baby.
Your child will thank you- I have actually thanked my mother for breast-feeding me. I think it is so wonderful that she made the little sacrifices in order to provide me with the best start in life. She breast-fed me EXCLUSIVELY for my first year of life. I am so happy to know that my mom held me and cuddled me and comforted me, just like I do my son, while also providing me with the most nutritious food for me! I just recently spoke with my friend who discovered she was bottle-fed and when she asked her mom why, she said she just "wasn't comfortable doing that." My friend's response was "Gee, THANKS, mom!" (obviously she was being sarcastic). If your child is still young, they will thank you each time they nurse, just by gazing at you with that intensity, rubbing your breast as they fall to sleep. If your child is a toddler nursing, they may thank you verbally, with something like "Thanks for giving me your yummy milk, mommy!". Even if you're never given a verbal thanks, the appreciation will be there, at some point. You will know, just watching your child thrive off the milk you provide for them, that they are thankful. They are thankful they have a mommy who cares, a mommy who loves them, a mommy who sacrifices to give them the norm, the standard, the best.

If you choose not to breast-feed, I hope that you (and your child) never suffer any guilt from the decision. I say that from the bottom of my heart, having been in a position of regret. If you choose to breast-feed, make sure you have a system of support. Educate yourself in pregnancy by reading books like "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding" (put out by LLL) or "So That's What They're For", join a group like La Leche League (membership is not required to attend meetings or even borrow from the library) and make sure if birthing in the hospital you have in your birth plan that you wish to see an LC immediately following birth. Arming yourself with knowledge PRIOR to having your baby will help you feel more confident and will also help you counter any difficulties that may arise early. It is a selfless act to breast-feed, and your baby will benefit greatly from your choice to do so!

(cross posted with http://savebirth.blogspot.com)

Together, we can move mountains!

2008-03-06T22:26:00.000-08:00

I've been meaning to blog about our little day trip up to Pinecrest, but haven't found the time. What? With three kids you mean I didn't have free time to doodle around on my blog?

My mother and I took the kids up to the mountains to experience the beauty and wonder of SNOW! The trip was destined to be interesting with my brood, but I wasn't expecting half of what we ran into.

The night before we left, I checked to see what the weather would be like up near Strawberry, and the forecast was great! Sunny and warm! We had stocked up on snow gear from places like "Once Upon a Child" and "Good Will" and were raring and daring to go!! The girls had been excited for weeks about this trip, and so was I, however, for some reason, I had a bad feeling the night before the trip and just didn't sleep well. I slept terribly that night and was dragging the next morning.

I got the kids together and headed over to Gramma's where we loaded the van and got ready to go! My mom drove so I could sit in the very back of the van and take care of the kiddos. We filled up the tank and headed to the mountains.

The trip was pretty uneventful, listening to toddler tunes all the way there, the kids were ACTUALLY behaving, and the scenery, of course, was breathtaking. I was surprised that Maggie was so appreciative of the beauty of nature. She kept saying "Whoa, look at that HUGE tree! It's SO beautiful!". Gosh, I love her.

Alex slept most of the time, but he did make faces like this before passing out:

We arrived in a small town in the Mountains after a long stretch of nothingness. I suggested a pit stop to nurse the baby and have the girls stretch their legs. We pulled into a little gas station and I nursed Alex while my mom took the girls inside. The air was crisp and clear, a perfect day! We took off after about 20 minutes and oddly enough, my car alarm starts going off, then stopping, then on again. Not knowing what was going on, my mom pulled off on a little road and walked the perimeter of the van, looking for SOMETHING that might explain the possessed alarm. She was about ready to climb back in when she did a double take on the back right tire. Was it flat? Almost. So we went to the gas station across the street (thank goodness we were in town AND that I suggested we stop!) and filled up with air. The attendant informed her of a tire place just back down the street AND they were open. We swung by there, they patched the tire, and $15 and 15 minutes later we were on our way, hardly skipping a beat!

We headed into Dodge Ridge and pulled off in an area to play. I was unaware that they had just received 3 feet of snow the weekend before, so it was NOT very well compacted. After getting all suited up and ready for the snow, we trekked maybe 10-20 feet in 30 minutes. I was carrying my almost 19 pound son and falling into snow upto my thighs. Needless to say, it was NOT easy. Also, Iris was incredibly frightened of the white wonder and did nothing but shriek and cry. We turned around and headed back to the van, where I stripped out of my winter garb and hung out with Alexander and Iris. Maggie and Gram took the sleds and decided to make the best of it.

I'm sad that I didn't get any pictures of Maggie's first time in the snow, but I do have these:

All in all it was a fun trip. We stopped at "A Pie in the Sky Pizza" and had ourselves the cheesiest, greasiest, BEST pizza of all time in Mi-Wuk Village. I must say, though the trip threw us for a loop at one point, it all went smoothly and we were still able to enjoy ourselves. The snow may have been a bust, but the girls got to see a lot of natural beauty and I got a good work out during my snow trek. I want to head to the Sequoia National Park next time, I think Mag would LOVE the redwood forest, and it'd be a little more Iris and baby friendly!

Baby Burn and Genius

2008-03-05T20:27:00.000-08:00

Well, I was going to post about how I'm a horrible mother and didn't put sunscreen on the baby. I'm getting use to the warm weather still and since it wasn't actually hot, I guess I just didn't think about it. I also didn't plan on 2 hours at the park (that's another story). Well, needless to say he got burnt. I didn't notice it until later on in the day, but he is a red little tomato. The back of his head and neck and down his arms. :( I feel awful. He seems totally fine, so looks like I'm the one who has to suffer, thank goodness! I would feel even WORSE if this was upsetting to him. I don't want him to suffer because I was a moron. Gah, I am buying sunscreen to put in EVERYTHING: my purse, diaper bag, the van, AND here at the house.

So, the BRAGGING part. I wanted to take pics to show my wonderful cafemommies what an IDIOT mommy I was, and he SAT ALL BY HIMSELF!!! I am SHOCKED. He's only 4 1/2 months old! He's wanted to sit for a while and he will if you hold his hands, but if you let go, he always sways around and tips. Not now!!! Here's a pic of the back of his baked head WHILE sitting UNASSISTED!!

He sat like that for a few minutes before slowly teetering over. Haha. Anyway, thanks to all my BIN ladies for the support on how to cope (emotionally and medically) with his little burn.

The moral of the story: if you're a big fat, moron mommy like me, then make sure you pack the sunscreen.

I am a human toilet.

2008-02-26T23:10:00.000-08:00

Baby, baby, oh baby!

2008-02-25T22:00:00.000-08:00

So...I absolutely LOATHE artificial birth control. The feeling of having artificial hormones in my body and the fact that ALL BC has a "back up" plan to keep an egg from implanting (yes, if it becomes fertilized, it prevents implantation, which to me and many others is a form of abortion) is enough to keep me off it. Not to mention the TERRIBLE symptoms (weight gain, horrid periods, etc) that I experienced when on it. So, where am I going with this?

Seth and I decided while I was still pregnant with turd #3 that I we would use NFP (natural family planning). I had mocked this idea many times before (ex: Q: What do you call a couple that practices nfp? A: PARENTS! hahaha) but the more I learned about it, the more it just made sense. And actually, the more I learned about BC, the scarier it became!!

Now, it's no secret that I'm breastfeeding, and exclusively no less. Ecological breastfeeding is a very effective way to keep fertility at bay, HOWEVER you must "follow" it to a T or else it isn't going to be as effective. We planned on utilizing the benefits of this while I took time to get some NFP books and learn my cycle etc. Well, I didn't plan on having such a good baby! He has been practically sleeping through the night since he was a newborn and even during the day can go hours without a feeding. In order to make breastfeeding an effective way to curb fertility, you MUST feed every 4-5 hours AT LEAST. Needless to say, this hasn't been the case, especially the last 2 months.

Where am I going with this? Well, the Mister and I were having our monthly intimate session (yea, we probably do it more than that, but with 3 kids and still only being 4 months pp, I'm not feeling all that "hot" right now) and basically, we weren't very careful. I haven't bought ANY NFP books (my fault, I know) and so we've been playing it safe, until Friday night. Now, it's way too early to tell anything, obviously, and I'm most likely NOT fertile, even with the breastfeeding gaps, HOWEVER, it really is a possibility that I could end up pregnant from this friendly little romp.

Am I upset? No. Ideally I would have LOVED to TTC when Alexander was around 18 months old and hubby has been pretty on the fence (but moreso on the side of the fence that says "NO MORE KIDS!") so, this would still be a very welcomed pregnancy as I KNOW I want at least one more, it just isn't how I would "plan" it.

At first I was sort of stressing, but, why? Why stress when a) I don't even KNOW if I'm pregnant and cannot test for probably 2 or 3 weeks b) I WANT a fourth child and c) I know, each time I have sex, with BC, condoms, NFP, whatever, it IS A REAL RISK that I could get pregnant, everyone knows that (right?). So, whatever will be will be! I am going to be slightly anxious/nervous for the next couple of weeks until I "know" (I swear, I hate my mind, all day I "felt" pregnant lol) but whatever the results, I'm ready!

**for the record, when used and practiced correctly, NFP is just as effective (if not moreso) than BC. If you are unhappy with the side effects of your BC or just like to life a more natural life style, purchase some books on NFP and start practicing, but do it the right way or else, like any other BC method, you affect it's effectiveness and put yourself "at risk" for getting pregnant**

The Cup of Puke

2008-02-19T19:04:00.000-08:00

Maggie woke up sick this morning, which my husband blames on my Turkey, though I disagree! In any event, she was throwing up every 30 minutes or so for a few hours, then just stopped. She said she was good enough to have lunch with Gramma.

We picked Gramma up from work and went to Perko's, where the girls ordered smiley pancakes. Maggie ate pretty fast, we tried to slow her down, but there was no stopping her as she consumed those pancakes as if in an eating contest! After going back to work with Gramma and visiting her co-workers, the kids and I headed home. Just around the corner and Maggie said her tummy hurt. I had to think fast. She had her cup, from the restaraunt. I had her take off the lid and get it ready, just in case she couldn't hold it until home.

A few short minutes later, I hear the lovely sound of her pukefest. Thankfully, she has good aim, and I have automatic windows to clear the air!!

How to Cope

2008-02-10T11:27:00.000-08:00

Often times I'm approached by strangers (or even friends and family) asking how I cope with having 3 kids, especially being so young. The short and simple answer is "You just do! There's not a choice NOT to cope!". But, really and truly, there are mechanics in place to make this mother-child relationship work times 3.

So, without further ado, here's how to cope:

Pick your Battles
This has got to be one of the most important pieces to making my puzzle work! If I were to scold or correct everything that one child did "wrong", I'd spend my whole day nagging. I don't wish for my kids to live in a negative environment, nor do I wish to reside in one. So, instead, I pick the parts that I feel deem worthy of discipline or lecture. These include instances that are dangerous, in which someone was hurt (emotionally or physically), when they crossed the line of inappropriate or when they blatantly disregaurd a rule. Other times, I just let it roll. 9 times out of 10 your children will do things simply for the attention they get anyway.

Don't Plan
Now, I may be alone in the mom world here, but for us, if I DON'T plan and just do things spontaneously it works so much better! If I plan on doing something, it almost always stresses me out, gets the kids riled up and ends in a negative way. If I just go on a whim, our ship runs much more smoothly! Now, I plan to a certain extent, like, I know I will need to get groceries sometime in the next 2 days. But, that's the most planning I'll do for it. Then, sometime in the next 2 days, I'll pack the kids up when they're in good moods, load them in the van and head to the store, which will most definitely end up being a hell of a trip, but less of a hassel than had I planned it! It also makes it easier to be spontaneously with a baby who I nurse on demand. Since he's not scheduled, I can nurse him when he asks and then head to the store and not have to worry about nursing, shopping and chasing 2 0ther kids all at once!

Get rid of schedules!
This doesn't work for everyone, and I know it. But for us, NOT scheduling is so nice! Firstly, I HATE being told what to do and when to do it! I'm not always hungry at noon every day, sometimes I want lunch at 11, or maybe 1. Our kids are no different. I keep a vague time frame for when I like things to be done and I DO enforce that, however, it is definitely not to a tee. Bedtime is anywhere before 10pm. Breakfast is whenever the kids ask to eat. Naps...HA, I'm lucky if anyone naps! But that's ok!! This is how we run. This is what works!

Me time!!!!
This is big and EVERY mother should have this, but every mother should remember that her number one priority is her kiddos. Sometimes, me time just DOESN'T happen, and you HAVE GOT to be ok with that. I am! Yeah, I need to walk away sometimes and I've done it! You know those commercials advocating against SBS (Shaken Baby Syndrome)? The ones that say "If you feel like shaking your baby, put it down and walk away."? Well, I utilize that philosophy. If I feel I'm going to yell or spank my kids, I walk away. I believe in gentle discipline, treating children with love and respect, like human beings. So, if I feel I'm not going to treat them that way, I leave the room. I take a breather. Sometimes, that's the only "me" time I get. Other times, I'm able to have my husband (who's usually only working or sleeping) take the kids for 15 minutes. This is usually just enough time for me to regain my strength. Ideally, I wish I could take a weekend away with my husband, but that's not a reality, and I won't let fantasy affect my parenting. Maybe some do. *shrug*

Don't Compare
I don't compare myself to other mommies. If I did, I would go crazy. Why? Because all mommies do things differently. I can't worry about Jane's finances and how they seem so much better off than me, and I can't worry about Marcy's debt because I can't imagine how she does it. It's not my problem. We have our own individual problems. And the same goes with kids. I can't worry about Donna's kids and how they are doing in school, or what milestones her baby has met (or not) or how her marriage is or isn't going. If I looked at all the things other people had, instead of focusing on what we have or need, I'd spend my whole life trying to rearrange my whole life! Ridiculous. So, I worry about us. I focus on us. I am proud of us. I make choices for us. This is how I cope with not going CRAZY!

The thing is, what works for me and mine, may not work for you and yours, but this is how I cope with life as a (practically single) mother of 3. If you're having trouble, feel free to adapt one of my methods, but remember, I am in no way responsible if it doesn't work! Seriously. :)

Typical Day...

2008-02-09T22:26:00.000-08:00

As I'm basking in the warm sunlight of my glorious rose garden, draped in soft silk that blows in the gentle breeze, I reach over to take a sip of my ice cold long island. Just as I bring the cool glass to my hot, wet lips, it's knocked all over my beautiful white sheet...and I realize one of the kids has just jumped up onto the bed, and disturbed my peaceful sleep. Time to start the day!

I quickly and quietly shoo them away, desperately trying to avoid waking the sleeping babe next to me. I slide out from under the covers and tip-toe out the room, shutting the door ever so silently. I pour some cereal and milk for the girls and set them at the table to enjoy their breakfast.

I rush to go tinkle before the baby wakes me up, ready for his boob a la carte. Brushing my hair into a quick and neat pony tail is a must if I want to avoid the tugging and pulling the baby will put it through (not to mention the wonderful spit up I usually end up with!). When I walk back into the bedroom to adorn my oh so bodacious mommy body with clothes, the baby stirs and makes his morning cry, letting me know it's time to eat.

As I sit down to nurse him, the girls are finishing up breakfast. They begin running around the house while I calmly feed the baby. As he laps up the last of his yummy goodness, he smiles and coo's his good morning hello's.

Just when I think things are going peaceful, one of the girls begins crying, right after I hear a nice crash in the other room. As I sit the baby up he spits up his breakfast all over my clothes (Outfit number 1: lasted 5 minutes). I comfort crying baby number one while cleaning up spitty baby number 2, while lecturing bratty baby number 3, and wiping the regurgitated milk off my furniture (and self).

I can't wait for the rest of the day!!

No Nonsense Parenting

To Speak or Not to Speak? -Gimme your opinions and SOUND OFF!

Weaning is such sweet sorrow...

I Am a Human Toilet: Repost

2.26.2008

I am a human toilet.

Setting Boundaries

Placenta Encapsulation-Phase 2

Placenta Encapsulation-Phase 1

Solids: The When, What and HOW.

WHEN?

Epidural Epidemic - Drugs in Labor: Are They Really Necessary. . . or Even Safe?

Breastfeeding Joys

Joys of Nursing

Kids Things Say

Natural Mama Meetup

Who Profits??

**Cross Posted from my other blog**

A Day (or 4) in the life...

The Co-sleeping Conspiracy

What's in Breastmilk?

What's in Breast Milk?

Proteins

Fats

Vitamins

Carbohydrates

Breast Milk is Best

Diaries of a Milk Maid

Dinosaur Vs. Bedtime

Circumcision: The Uncut Version

Rules and Regulations: As They Pertain to Nursing Toddlers

You Are My Sunshine

Why did no one tell me?

Search me, I'm famous.

Procrastination is a pain in the mouth!

No Nonsense in this blog...

Hair today, Gone tomorrow.

2:30

Adventures in Potty Training!

Just a day in the life!

Photo OP

School's Out for the Summer, School's Out for Forever...

Acrobatic Nursings

What I've been up to

I'm a horrible person and deserve to be smited!

The Disappearing Brownies

Me vs. 5

Cloth Diapering Mamas, enter to win!

Life as it pertains to ME

A day in the life...

CARSEAT INFO AND SAFETY

Cloth...why?

All I really want...

So...

Why SHOULD you breast-feed?

Together, we can move mountains!

Baby Burn and Genius

I am a human toilet.

Baby, baby, oh baby!

The Cup of Puke

How to Cope

Typical Day...

Cross Posted from my other blog