Before the baby comes

I don't remember if I've written about this before or not, so bear with me if you get a sense of deja vu. While life eventually reaches a settled place after Baby is born, it could be months before you start feeling as though you can handle any tasks outside of basic survival for you and your family. This is why it is SO important to get as much stuff done well before your due date. Things like moving, painting, landscaping, starting a new business; none of this should be contenplated post partum. Our plan for our first baby was buy a house BEFORE getting pregnant (done, I went off of birth control the week after we moved) and get all decorating, painting, planting, etc. done before the baby came. It mostly worked out. We spent the first few months painting (we like color), the summer working on the yard (first baby was born the beginning of September). Unfortunately, we were so busy, that it wasn't until the first weekend in September that we finally finished our list. That weekend we had a garage sale, my husband got his bike serviced, I took the cat to the vet and bought three months worth of food and litter for her, did five loads of laundry, my husband also mowed, weed wacked and stained our new fence (that he had built a couple of weeks before). Then I went into labor. I never had a second to relax (the crazy job didn't help at all with this).

This time around, we have until the end of June to get everything done so I have two months to relax. This means that we've been landscaping like crazy (it's never really done, and we have a tiny backyard, too!). The next project is built-in bookcases for our living room. Then we need to furnish #1's room with new furniture so we can move his baby stuff into the new nursery (at least it's already painted!). There will always be last minute stuff to take care of, but I am bound and determined to enjoy the most miserable part of THIS pregnancy!

Another reminder to eat local and know your food sources

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/29/AR2010032903824.html?hpid=topnews

As if we didn't have enough to worry about with the food supply, apparently manufacturers and suppliers sometimes lie about the content of the food such as type of fish or diluting honey or olive oil. Not quite as bad as putting melamine in baby formula, but who wants to pay premium prices for adulterated wine? Of course this goes back to knowing where your food comes from, at least as much as possible. You have a lot more control over what you eat when you know the farmer who grew your strawberries instead of going to the store and buying a bag of frozen fruit. There is only so much you can source locally, but the nation's reliance on packaged convenience foods doesn't help the problem.

Happy Passover

Religion can be a contentious topic. Growing up, we didn't really do it. My dad is a confirmed atheist, my mother is Jewish. We were raised sort of Jewish. We did (some of) the important holidays (Passover, Rosh Hashannah and Yom Kippur) but never went to synagogue. It wasn't until I went to college (with a very large minority of Jews) that I really began learning about my religion. I still have a long, long way to go, but it's really important to me that my children have a strong religious upbringing. It's okay if they rebel and reject (some of) it, but I at least want them to have the choice rather than feeling like they're playing catch-up the rest of their lives. Ironically, I had to marry a strong Lutheran in order to find a partner who both understood and respected my level of religion. I think a big part of raising a family is trying to do things differently than how you were raised, changing things to what you think would have made you happier. I'm going to screw some stuff up, but I'd like to think that I'll also learn and adjust. I'll make mistakes, but at least I hope to make different ones than my parents did.

Water

Something that I struggle with constantly is getting enough fluids. I'm basically built like a camel (not externally!) and feel fine with a minimum of fluids. I have little doubt that this contributed to my supply issues when breastfeeding #1 besides just not being good for me. It's recommended that during pregnancy a woman should consume 8-10 8 ounce glasses of water a day (64-80 ounces or more than half a gallon). I usually get about 48 ounces of fluid in me. The friends that I have talked to about how much water they drink while pregnant/breastfeeding tend to drink even more (up to a gallon). So I'm working on it. I'm using a liter bottle to gauge how much I'm drinking, and so far have been getting about a liter to a liter and a half a day, besides the pint of milk I drink with breakfast. The goal is to be up to three liters a day by the time I give birth and then keep up with at least that after. If anyone has any suggestions for getting more fluids in, I'm all ears!

Another reminder to take care of YOU

My husband and I haven't gone out on a date since Valentine's Day, mainly due to my back being wack for a month. So we finally did have a date night tonight. We really needed it. Pregnancy is tough, but a new baby is even tougher. It is so important (I cannot stress this enough) to get some couple time and "me" time. This past week I've been making a concerted effort to take a little more pampering time for myself in the morning. (needless to say, the full makeup routine has gone by the wayside in the last couple of months) One morning I gave myself a pedicure (ie: cut my tonails). Another I did a face mask. And so on. I used to spend every Sunday evening doing full manicure, facial, hair, etc.; that hasn't happened since my first pregnancy. My husband is always reminding me to do things incrementally, that stuff will get done if I break it up to fit in the time I have rather than waiting until I have large chunks of time together. And he's mainly right. So I don't get to spend an hour or more pampering myself, at least I can make sure that my legs are shaved more than once a month. Oh, and tonight I did have a little more time, which coinsided with a big Sephora give-away, hurray for multi-tasking!

Upper body strength

Continuing with my theme of exercise for the week, one part of the body that is missed by most prenatal exercise guides is the upper body. Not necessary for pushing out a baby, nobody remembers that after birth, you'll need to carry your baby. All of the time (for some). You cannot hold, hug, cuddle or love on a baby too much. You cannot spoil an infant. The only way they can be comforted and feel secure is to be held. Which means that your arms had better be up for it! Infants are easy enough, it's when they start getting bigger that there are problems (like if you have a baby in the 90th percentile for weight). Contrary to old wives tales, your strength may not grow at the rate your child does. Particularly if you're exhausted from frequent wakings and breastfeeding full time. So yet another thing to add to the start now program. Once your baby is born, use the child as a weight: lift Baby over your head, do chest presses with Baby, etc. They get a kick out of this, too.

PS-If you posted a comment yesterday, I think I accidentally erased it. I'm not seeing them posted, so could you check for them? Thanks!

Squats*

*I KNOW you know what these are!

One of the best positions to give birth in is squatting. It allows the pelvis to open up about 10% more than in any other position and also gets full participation from gravity. However, since the pushing phase can last a few hours, don't expect to just squat down when you're ready to deliver. You need to practice starting yesterday. No, no, no, don't get discouraged, starting today :). If you already have a child, chances are you squat down quite a bit to get down to his or her level on a daily basis. Yes, this is one area where I have drastically improved since last time around!

You can start small, you just want to be able to increase your stamina by the time your due date rolls around. (I could go look up the information in my Bradley book for their guidelines, but it's upstairs and I'm lazy, instead, go sign up for a Bradley class)

If you are planning on giving birth in a hospital, make sure to ask if they have squat bars. These are medieval-looking contraptions that allow for a bar to be secured at the base of the labor bed so you can squat down there. (Don't get me started on why they just won't let you squat on the floor instead of balancing precariously on the edge of a narrow bed) A lot of hospitals do have them now. Of course, you could always just stay off the bed during the long stretches of time when nobody is bothering to check on you anyway. Birth centers and home births won't have any problems with this.

Kegels*

Before I had my first child (I know, a common refrain), I was the Kegel champ. Before starting Bradley classes, I was doing 50 a day. With the classes I was up to 200. I never really experienced the "pregnancy bladder". Then came childbirth. (yes, I know, I pushed too hard) It was difficult to do Kegels after, so I let them slack off. Big mistake. I am now making up for it. Sneeze in the wrong position: pee in my pants. Wait to long to go to the bathroom: pee in my pants. Try showing my son how to hopscotch: that last hop was just a bit too much pressure on my sensitive muscles. My biggest problem is remembering to do them, I used to practice on my daily commute. I'd start as I was getting on the highway and usually be able to finish by the time I hit my first traffic jam (I had a really nasty commute). I am every thankful that I do not have that commute anymore, but scheduling Kegels is more difficult. But it is something that I MUST do, or I will end up in a Depends commercial.

Don't be like me: DO YOUR KEGELS!!!

*just in case you don't know, Kegels are the exercise that flexes your pelvic floor muscles: it's the action used to stop the flow of urine when you're going to the bathroom.

More on C-sections

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/24/health/24birth.html?ref=health

Yet another study has come out sounding the alarm of the ridiculously high rate of C-sections in this country. Unfortunately, the article barely talks about ways to prevent this (such as not having an induction), although it mentions some of the contributing factors (fear of malpractice suits being the big one).

A really important way to help prevent an unnecessary C-section is to check out the rates of your ob and hospital (if that's the route you're going, the best way, of course, if you are low-risk, is to have a midwife). If either or both of them have higher rates (30%+) then you need to discuss this, in depth, with your ob. Which, if you have a good practice, you should be doing anyway. Other ways are to try and avoid an induction and having a natural childbirth. Every time there is an intervention, it can lead to more. And stay at home as long as possible, the less time that you're in the hospital, the less time there is for interventions! (just don't wait until you feel the urge to push :) )

Eat Real Food

If you watch TV, you've probably seen the ads from the CORN INDUSTRY saying how High Fructose Corn Syrup is just regular sugar and it's not bad for you any more than sugar is. Until some scientists compare the effects. A study was just released from Princeton showing that oh, yes, HFCS does much worse things to your body than sugar does. (yes, this was done in rats, not humans, but startling just the same) I highly recommend taking a couple of minutes to read the synopsis: http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S26/91/22K07/index.xml?section=topstories

While it seems as though HFCS is in nearly everything, if you eliminate a lot of the processed foods that Americans seem to love so much, it isn't that hard to do. I have managed to virtually eliminate it (except for the nasty sports drinks I still have to consume) in the last couple of years. Also, enough cities now have laws that require chain restaurants to post nutritional information that you can find a lot of it on-line. Another way to educate yourself about what you're eating (basically, stay away from chains!). Restaurants that have rotating menus and advertise fresh ingredients are better bets, usually. A hilarious rule of thumb is that if your great-grandmother (whom we'll assume was a globe-trotting, adventurous eater) wouldn't recognize it, don't eat it. :)

Toxins in beauty products? Check out this blog.

http://notjustaprettyface.org/

I was forwarded this blog last week and finally had a chance to read the first page. Not bad.

Heath Care Reform

A small break for a political (although it shouldn't be) message. I'm spending today watching C-SPAN for the debate over health care. I support the bill for a variety of reasons. It is not the bill I wanted, I don't think it goes far enough. I would like nothing less than for health insurance (actually, all insurance companies) to be not for profit, either by changing how companies do business or by the government taking over completely (my ideal). I would like reimbursements to be determined by best practices rather than by professional organizations, shareholders and profit margins. And, of course, I would like alternative births to be encouraged. Studies show that low-risk women have better outcomes with midwives than with obs yet many insurance plans (mine included) do not cover midwives and/or out-of-hospital births. We live in one of the richest countries in the world, it is a moral outrage that we can't take care of our own citizens. (Respectful opinions welcomed!)

I'm tired! (Yeah, it's a Friday)

I'm feeling uninspired tonight. Hmm . . . oh, my back is about better, thanks to physical therapy! Yeah, not much else. And tomorrow we're throwing a party, so probably won't have a post. Sometimes resolving to do something every day doesn't mean that you'll do it well every day, right? :)

Birth Story for first baby

I think it's about time to share with you my birth story from my first baby. I love it so much, I had such a fantastic birth. Yes, it was an easier birth, but please don't think that my support of natural, out-of-hospital births would be any less if it were harder. This was a path I chose assuming that I would have a long, long first labor. (And I had a difficult pregnancy and postpartum, so it more than evened out!) (I wrote this for a previous on-line post)

First things first: #1 was born at 3:21am on 9/8/08 weighing in at 7 lbs, 12 oz and 20 inches long.

Secondly, I just want to say how proud I am of my husband. When we first started talking about getting pg, he was all about a medicated, hospital birth and couldn’t imagine anything else. With all that we went through, he did a full 180 and was 100% behind a natural childbirth in a birth center. And after the birth, he is 110% behind a home birth next time. I’m just so lucky to have a man who can grow and change and not get stuck in his own ideas without considering other options.

Okay, here are the details, up close and personal. I don’t think there’s anything that will scare the potential breeders. It really all started early Sunday morning. I woke up for my one am potty break and saw there was some spotting (bloody show), evidence that my cervix was dilating. Since I’m with a midwife practice, they don’t do any internal checks since you can start effacing or dilating weeks before giving birth and that can just give a false sense of urgency. I was a bit excited, but also knew that this just meant something was happening, not that something was happening soon. I woke up at six am to more bloody show, but no cramping or contractions, so I suppressed my excitement (a bit) and went on with my day (garage sale! Yeah, we really live it up here).

The day was busy and around six I was catching up with a friend in DC on the phone. After about an hour of talking to her, I realized I’d been having contractions the entire time. Not necessarily a bit deal, since I’d been having Braxton-Hicks for about two months. I decided to let her go and start timing with the stop watch we’d finally bought three days before. My husband came inside from mowing the lawn a little bit later to my announcement that I was having light, painless contractions 8-14 minutes apart. We decided to have dinner and see if they would stop. We ate, the contractions continued, but didn’t speed up or get any more intense. We discussed my husband working from home the next day, but decided to see how I would feel the next morning. I took a warm shower and the contractions finally did stop. I thought I was going to be fine, and would be able to go into work the next day and get a few things done.

When I woke up for my first potty break, I realized that I’d had a few contractions, but I thought it was the middle of the night, so I could probably just go back to sleep. Then I looked at the clock. I had been in bed for less than an hour and had had several mild contractions. This was not false labor. I wanted to let my husband get as much sleep as possible, so I just lay there for a while, the contractions starting to get more intense and some back pain with them. Baby was also moving non-stop in between contractions, so there was no chance of me sleeping between them. I made an effort to relax during and between, rubbing the small of my back when it was hurting. It wasn’t much longer when I needed to start vocalizing to help me get through the contractions. They hurt, but they weren’t so bad that I couldn’t cope. But the moaning finally woke my husband up. At first he thought I was just moaning in my sleep, but soon realized I was wide awake. As soon as he was up, I told him to go get the Bradley book so I could see where I was. He couldn’t find that, or the midwife manual, so I got up to go look in the nursery. I made it in there just in time to drop to all fours for the next contraction. As soon as it was over, I felt nauseated and rapidly went to the bathroom to get sick. I crawled into the tub and had my husband call the midwife. Getting into the tub was fantastic. I turned on the water for each contraction and just had it run over me. Sitting there wasn’t terribly comfortable, but the running water made up for it. My cat also sat on the edge of the tub with me, worried about what was going on. Considering what a pain she normally is, it was so touching to see her worried about me.

It was around 1am when we got in touch with the midwife. She listened to me have a contraction, determining that I was in active labor (you think?) and told us she’d meet us at the birth center at 2am. I couldn’t imagine waiting that long! My husband ran around to get everything into the car. Then I hit transition. I let out a scream for that first one, not realizing that it was transition. But the first one was by far the worst, and staying in the tub calmed me down. When I was time to leave, I didn’t want to. I was worried that by changing position and getting out of the tub that I’d be in more pain. What I was dealing with was still within the realm of coping, but I wasn’t sure how much more I could take. Then I started to feel a small urge to push. My husband: “We are going RIGHT NOW!”

I finished the contraction, threw on underwear and a robe, and he got me down to the car in record time. Fortunately, the contractions slowed down and were much easier in the car. My husband would only go 5 miles over the speed limit, mentally getting ready to have to explain to a cop if we got pulled over. Fortunately, someone else was pulled over ahead of us and we made it to the Birth Center in about 15 minutes. I walked in the door, meeting my midwife and her two assistants with “I’m ready, now!” They thought this was amusing, until they checked me. The women got me into the room, soft music playing and candles lit, while My husband got our bags out of the car. I lay down in the bed and felt much better. I was so exhausted, all I wanted to do was rest. They had the tub ready for me since I had originally planned for a water birth, but laying on my side was so comfortable. Then they checked me, and could see the baby’s head. I was ready to push, so they told me to go ahead and listen to my body. My husband kneeled by the bed and I held (squeezed) his fingers. I had one assistant at my head, putting cool compresses on my forehead and rubbing my back and arms. I had one assistant putting warm compresses on my perineum and holding my leg up with each push. The midwife oversaw everything and made sure that I had a drink of water during each break. I pushed with each contraction and rested in between. The rest made such a difference in my stamina. I was refreshed and (somewhat) ready to go each time. The pushing was really intense, but it wasn’t nearly as painful as I thought it would be. The first couple I was vocalizing really loudly and the midwife told me to take that energy and use it to push instead, keeping the vocalizations lower in my chest. This made pushing so much more effective. About fifteen minutes before birth, my water finally broke. The feeling was actually quite nice, with the rush of liquid feeling comforting. I had completely forgotten about it so I was surprised when it happened. Before I knew it, I could feel Baby’s head. I wanted him out! He started to crown with one push and I felt him slide back inside. I said, “No, I want you out now!” and the midwife told me it was okay, give myself some time to stretch. Well, I was ready to push a few more times, but I could feel his head coming out with the next push, so I just kept going and my husband was right there when I pushed him out entirely at once. It was so fast, there wasn’t even time for a picture. My husband put him on my belly and my son and I looked at each other for the first time. As soon as I could talk, all I could say was “That was it? I could totally do this a few more times!”

Because he came so fast, and his hand was up near his head, I did have a second degree tear that required stitches, but I didn’t (and never did) feel that. I also had a nasty hematoma (like a blood blister). And I lost a lot of blood, making me really light-headed any time I stood up for the first day. But I am so happy with how the birth turned out. A little extra healing time is so worth how easy labor was. I was fully prepared for a multi-day marathon and instead ran the marathon in a sprint. I took Bradley Method classes beforehand, and while I forgot half of it during labor, I feel as though they had me fully prepared on what to expect at each stage. What I took away from them that helped the most was trying to relax as much as possible during labor. I feel like it made a world of difference in my stamina and the level of pain. And also for the general philosophy of this is what our body is made to do, so we can handle it. While I know that natural childbirth isn’t for everyone, I really do encourage everyone to at least explore if it is an option.

Doulas

What is a doula? A doula is a woman who is there to support you during birth and/or afterward (there are postpartum doulas although they are not as common). Traditionally, this role would have been a female member of your family, someone who had attended births before. But since few women ever attend births not their own, we now have doulas instead. They are non-medical, but can be extremely helpful. What do they do? Support you and your partner. So, giving you massages during contractions, help you get into different positions to help labor progress. Get a drink of water for you, etc. Usually a doula will go to your house when you first start labor and then go with you to the hospital or birth center (or stay with you at home if you're having a home birth). They can help you understand what is going on, particularly if you're at a hospital and they want to do any procedure. A doula can help advocate for your birth plan. All of this can be really helpful, just to have another person on your side, if this is a first child.

Last time around, I looked into having a doula, but ultimately decided that we could not afford one since we had to pay for the birth out of pocket (got to love health insurance, I try to go the cheapest route and they refuse to pay anyway!). There is a doula training school nearby that I was going to inquire about a doula-in-training, but I didn't get around to it in time. Oops! Since my labor was only four hours, it didn't make much of a difference, but the friends who have used a doula really, really liked it. I have yet to hear anything negative about using one.

How to find a doula? You could ask your midwife or ob, whomever teaches your birthing class (because you are taking one, right?) or do a Google search. There aren't any requirements or licensing for doulas, but there are different associations that certify them. I'm lucky that in my area there is not only a huge midwifery school, but also lots of doula training.

What about me? I hadn't really given it much thought this time around. Since my labor was so fast last time, I'm not sure if I need one. We're also in the position of possibly paying for the birth out of pocket again, with only one salary this time. The friend who was going to help last time (but we forgot to call since everything happened so quickly) I swore I would call this time, at least to help with #1 (I will not be calling my mother, I don't want my parents around until after the baby is born, if you know me and have listened to my rants, I'm sure you understand). I think if I were going to the hospital I would feel differently. But feel free to call me out on my "do as I say, not as I do" stance :).

Midwife Appt Number Four

This afternoon was my latest midwife appointment. We started it off by me being assured that yes, as soon as I call for a midwife when I go into labor, one will head my way. And I was reminded to remind whomever is coming that #1 took four hours. This was the first time during my pregnancy I've seen the midwife who was in charge of my birth last time, and it was so nice to have some time with her. I adore all of the midwives, but there is a special relationship with the two who were there the first time. Anyway, they checked my vitals: urine, good; blood pressure 120/60 (good, but high for me); listened to Baby's heartbeat (and my midwife introduced herself, I love it when they do that), 150 bpm; took a vial of blood for the last of my blood tests. Spent plenty of time talking about my diet and going over some of the problems I had last time (particularly with breastfeeding) to make sure that the communication lines are open and to head off any issues this time around.

One of the wonderful things about midwives is that they allow the time, and actually take it, to go over everything. I cannot stress this enough. When I was with an ob last time, the appointments were about ten minutes each, including the time it took the nurse to take my vitals. Not nearly enough time to discuss what's going on, particularly for first-time moms. One of the biggest problems that I see with how pregnancy is treated in this country is that women are so uneducated. Even educated women don't know the half of it. I feel so lucky that my Bradley Method instructor last time was so knowledgeable and knew where to find answers. She also gave me the courage to finally leave my ob practice and switch to midwives. So let me add another plug for the Bradley Method as well. And one last thought: I think the best sources of information about childbirth are from women who have experienced it, and witnessed many, but who don't have an agenda. Doulas are excellent for this, which gives me tomorrow's topic.

First (happy) Pregnancy Dream

Last night I had an amazingly realistic dream about delivering my baby. It was during the day, my water broke at a trickle and I had my toddler with me. He played in his room, I called my husband, our friend who is going to attend, and my midwife. I drew a bath for a water birth and got in. In my dream I had one massive contraction and then I felt the head. My midwife arrived just in time to deliver my daughter. The whole thing was less than an hour (and was way cleaner than I could ever hope it could be). It was a FANTASTIC dream. The only thing wrong was that my husband couldn't make it home in time.

To analyze the dream: My son's labor and delivery took about four hours, so there's a good possibility that #2 could pop out even faster. My biggest fear is that it will happen during the day and nobody will be able to get here in time. I really don't want my less-than-two-year-old being the only one who assists. We only have one car and my husband takes public transportation to work, so him getting home to me could be an issue. Fortunately, our friend who will attend works in the same building as he does, so they could always take a cab to her place (ten minutes) and then she could drive him. I'm really hoping that he'll be able to work from home the last week or two before I deliver, but that assumes I'll be close to the due date, and I'm quite happy to be a little early. With my first child, my husband was a twelve minute cab ride from my office and the birth center was fifteen minutes from there, so it was less of an issue if I had a daytime labor (which, by the way, is not usual, particularly for a first birth). The second part of that is worry about the midwife making it in time. I will be having several discussions about that beforehand since I barely made it to the Birth Center last time.

Overall, I'm pretty confidant with how labor will turn out. It helps that I had one easy one already, and I try to keep worries at bay. But since all of my previous pregnancy dreams had been about miscarriage, it's nice to finally have a good one. Weird dreams are normal during pregnancy, I just hope they continue along this vein from now on.

Socializing with Baby

Since I've already talked about issues with pregnancy, I thought I'd move on to issues afterward. As we've been having these issues: namely that most of our friends are still single and childless. Both my husband and I really make an effort (as I previously blogged), and we've decided that part of the problem is that people are kind of freaked out by the kid. We talked about this with our friend that hung out yesterday. We met him right before I got pregnant with #1 and as he pointed out, he's pretty much always known us as a married couple with a baby. The majority of our friends were my husband's friends from high school and college and have known him mostly as a single, partying kind of guy. Now that he's married (ie: tied down), the game has changed. Neither one of us were ever stay out late people once we had real jobs, but a lot of our friends are. Strike number one against us. The invitations started slowing down once we bought a house in the 'burbs. Then they pretty much stopped after #1 was born. We're kind of at a loss at this point as to what to do. Yes, socializing has to be more on our terms, which is why we throw so many parties. But it's still not working. Hmm, I guess this post is becoming a bit of a vent. My point is more to be aware of where your friends are going, and whether or not you're on the same path. If just so you can address baby issues before it becomes a problem.

And if anyone has any ideas for navagating the waters of single and/or childless frienddom, please, please share!

Ultrasound #2

Sorry about no post last night, we had an unexpected guest and didn't say goodbye until eleven. It's nice having some friends who aren't freaked out by us being parents. Anyway, here, finally, are the pictures from my second ultrasound, from around a month ago. Nothing like staying on top of things, right? Our big ultrasound will be in another couple of weeks, fingers crossed that #2 is cooperative and we can find out the sex!

Eating Local

Continuing from yesterday's post, today's is about actually eating local and giving the finger to big agribusiness. The two best ways to do so are Farmer's Markets (making sure that they're actually local, some allow resale) and Community Sponsored Agriculture (CSA). I'm a huge fan of CSAs and there are enough varieties that you should be able to find one that you like. How most CSAs work are that you enter into a contract with a farm at the beginning of the season (like around now). You pay a certain amount up front and then you own a share of what the farm produces; the produce is then usually delivered to your home or a pick-up site weekly. In bumper years this is fantastic but if there is a drought or flooding, you'll be hurt a bit, too. The great thing is that it allows a farm to be supported regardless and if you're a member for several years, it will even out. One drawback with a CSA is that you don't usually get to choose what food you receive, if there are a ton of tomatoes one week then you get a ton of tomatoes. It is a great way to try new veggies and experiment with your cooking. Some farms let you pick and choose a bit, or order additional produce each week.

What I like best is that I'm guaranteed to have fresh produce and I don't have to think about it (mine is also year-round and delivered to my house). This was particularly great right after my first baby was born. At the very least, we had fresh fruit and veggies even if my husband couldn't get out to the store. Now that my son eats the same things we do, he gets new things to try all of the time. A lot of farms also have open houses at some point during the season so you can go to the farm and meet your producers (unfortunately mine was the weekend my son was born, and then his first birthday, so we haven't done it yet).

Enticed to try yet? Here's a link to find a CSA near you: http://www.localharvest.org/csa/ . The USDA also has information on it's website.

Food, Inc.

Before you read any more of this post, go watch it! Okay, good. It's been sitting in my Netflix queue I think since it came out and I finally got around to watching it last night. If you've read Omnivore's Dilemma and/or Fast Food Nation then there isn't going to be a lot more in it that you don't already know (both authors are interviewed and Pollan was a contributor). What it will show you that a book can't, is what your meat looks like before you eat it. Interestingly, the filmmakers were not allowed to film cattle feed lots (we get a lot of drive-bys and flyovers), pig farmers, or inside chicken "coops". One woman, who had a more humane chicken coop, allowed the camera crew in, and promptly had her contract with Perdue pulled.

What you come away from the film understanding is that industrial agriculture is all-powerful, has people in the highest places (USDA, FDA, Supreme Court [Clarence Thomas, surprised?]) and you, the consumer, are basically without rights. Either the right to know what is actually in your food, or the right for recompensense when things go horribly wrong and you end up with salmonella poisoning from your peanut butter (really, a poultry/reptile disease in legumes??). Scary stuff. Even the organic companies aren't blameless since most of the big ones are now owned by the huge food conglomerates (Dannon owns Stonyfield Farm yogurt, for example, Colgate owns Tom's of Maine). Better than conventional, but still not great.

What is the solution? Of course, the best solution is for us all to have sane jobs that allow for lots of home cooking (including yogurt, bread, etc.) and sourcing the majority of your foods from within reasonable driving distance (100 miles, for example). Eating within the season helps a lot too, even if you're getting your winter oranges from Florida and you live in, say, the Pacific Northwest. (confession, I bought an organic mango from Peru today to share with my son. We've been doing so well on local apples and pears for most of the winter, I needed a taste of summer.) This isn't always possible, but the more people who do it, the better it gets as local farmers suddenly have local clients. More on this tomorrow!

Pets and Babies

I'm a cat person, my husband is a dog person, so we have adorable little black kitty who is alternately fascinated by and terrorized by my toddler. Okay, so adorable is pushing it. I have an opinionated black cat who may or may not be the devil incarnate who hates all people but me and will tolerate my husband because I don't spend as much time on her as she'd like. However, she will only attack if provoked (or is scared out of her mind, like when traveling through major airports or if there's a house fire), so I was only mildly apprehensive about bringing a defenseless baby into her house (and yes, it is her house, we are merely tenants at her pleasure). Fortunately, while she doesn't really like it when my toddler chases her squealing with delight, the worst she has ever done is smack his hand (claws sheathed) when he corners her and will not leave her alone. Unlike, say my annoying mother, she knows better than to actually hurt him.

Then there is my parents' dog, an annoying, high-strung miniature schnauzer who is very jealous of them showing any attention to my son whom I would not trust for a minute alone with him. I think it's great to expose children to different animals and there are health benefits as well (children raised in a home with pets are less likely to develop allergies and asthma). I grew up with mainly cats and was terrified of dogs until I was a teenager, I would like to save my children this fate. The caveat being: know your animal! And even when you do, supervision is incredibly important, always! And teaching your child from a very, very early age what "gentle" means and to stay away from animals' faces.

At this point, my son has been around a lot of dogs at various people's homes and I still hover, even with the most gentle of them. Kids are loud and unpredictable, which is what will scare a pet more than anything. Having pets teaching children how to take care of things and compassion, both extremely important traits to have. Just make sure that everyone is safe in doing so.

Second trimester=better than the first

I've been so caught up in my back and leg problems that I hadn't even noticed that other things are better. So today is a thankful post. My nausea seems to be gone, unless I let my blood sugar dip too low (so I bought some ice cream). I finally noticed about a week ago that I wasn't nauseated, it had actually stopped about the same time my back problems started. Hurray, hurray for that!! Also, despite my fears, my skin has hardly broken out at all! My forehead has some spots, and one or two on my back, but no flashback to adolescence. I'm not quite as exhausted, although I wake up a lot from the pain, but still not as bad as a month ago (#1 also has been sleeping fairly well, which has a lot to do with it). I think once my back and leg are better, I might actually have a good pregnancy (knock on wood).

Bar soap

There are a lot of discussions about avoiding certain ingredients in soaps, such as sodium lauryl sulfate and parabens, but an even bigger issue is packaging. Body washes all come in bottles, usually plastic, and one ingredient is water. And even the cheapest body washes are still more expensive than bar soap. And expensive soap is way, way, way cheaper than expensive body wash. And it's still only wrapped in paper: renewable, recyclable, biodegradable (okay, not all of it, but you get my point). And stretching my point even further is that with a body wash you also need something to apply it with: a bath poof (usually made out of petroleum), loofah (can be natural, but doesn't last very long), or washcloth (soooo unfashionable!). The washcloth is the best choice since it's easily washed and lasts a long time.

Yeah, I know, I'm kind of stretching it tonight. But bar soap really is more environmentally friendly than body wash, even if you use regular cheap stuff from the supermarket. I usually use whatever my husband brings home from the hotels he stays in for work, it's going to be thrown out anyway (and this way I feel like I'm getting presents for free). If only I could talk my husband into using it. That's a battle for another day.

(oh, a baby connection: when you have yours, be really careful what you put on his/her skin. Now is the time to really, really read the labels. I love Burt's Bees! And don't wash the baby too much, other than the diaper area, they don't get that dirty.)

Model Hospital?

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/health/07birth.html?th&emc=th

In this morning's NYTimes an article about a hospital on a Navajo reservation that has low C-section rates, high VBAC rates and high use of midwives. Great story highlighting some of the problems with the birth industry.

Food allergies & babies

Okay, so not exactly pregnancy related, but since pregnancy ends with baby, I thought it would be worth blogging about. I was thinking about this because I know several women who have had to deal with baby food intolerance and breastfeeding and I also know several people (including my brother) with extensive allergies and food issues. This was something I was very concerned about with #1 and will continue to be with #2.

I'm pretty sure that #1 had silent reflux (no spitting up, but didn't like to lie down flat and general fussiness and lots of gas problems) and I know that he had a soy intolerance. The only times my baby threw up were the two times that he was given soy formula (thanks to his ex-pediatrician). Unfortunately, soy is also in regular dairy formula, although in much lower concentrations. My baby also had very mild eczema, which I'm going to attribute it to the soy since it went away with the formula (I didn't know there was soy in it until he was nearly a year old, a BIG lesson in ALWAYS reading labels!!). Because of this and my brother's allergies and celiac disease, I waited until after he was around a year old for a lot of potential allergens to be introduced. A couple of weeks before #1's first birthday I introduced wheat. I didn't want the birthday cake to be the first try. He was about fourteen months before I tried soy again (he was fine at this point). Eggs were tried about eleven months. Citrus at fourteen or fifteen months. He accidentally received his first peanut exposure the other night when he took a bite of my Asian noodles in a sauce that had ground peanuts (oops!!), and did fine. I'll be talking to his pediatrician at the eighteen month appointment next Friday about nuts in general.

Throughout the anxious testing, I was given a very hard time by my family elders. They have little understanding of my brother's issues and thought I was being ridiculous for waiting so long to introduce problem foods to my baby (of course, they also don't understand what the big deal is with organics or why I won't give my toddler sweets). I anticipate the same problems with #2. But, so what? It was my decision and it made me feel a lot better. There wasn't any harm in waiting, and some harm could have occured if I didn't. These are MY children and I have to do what I feel is right. My point being, that you have to listen to your self and follow your own conscience when it comes to feeding your baby.

Separate Spouse time

For Valentine's Day, I wrote about the importance of couple time, but just as important before you have a baby is individual time. My husband is really good at giving me girl nights, and I've been getting them on a regular basis since I stopped breastfeeding, but he's not as good about taking guy nights. A big part of this has to do with our friends, my one close female friend around here is extremely accommodating to me, willing to come to my house in the 'burbs and we tend to just go see movies and have dinner or lunch all of the time. She also works a regular schedule and gets off relatively early, so we can meet for a five pm movie and I'll still be home at a decent hour. My husband's friends, not so much. If I tried, I could probably count on one hand the number of times he's gone out since #1 has come along. But this isn't supposed to be a rant on their lameness. My point is, it is really important, especially before the birth of your first child, to go out and just DO stuff. All babies are different, but in general it's going to be a lot harder once one comes around to socialize. And the last thing you or your spouse want to feel is trapped and like you can't have fun anymore. And it doesn't always have to be going out, having people over is good, too (although much, much easier to continue once the bambino pops out). Or, if either of you is into video games, on-line gaming with friends. This is our big plan for tonight. We have a lot of friends around the country and one thing that the guys can do is play XBOX live together (plus one of our fabulous friends got us the video cam for it so we can live chat, too). It's not quite the same as going out for drinks with the guys, but at least he can do it with a sleeping baby upstairs.

Non-food cravings

I'm a movie buff, like, seriously, I have an entertainment room with one wall covered floor to ceiling with movies. My husband and I don't have cable, we have Netflix on demand and watch that every night that we don't watch a DVD that we already own (and sometimes we're so lazy that we'll just download a movie rather than get off of the couch and walk the two feet to grab one). So how does this relate to pregnancy? My movie choices have changed. I'm having Disney cravings. All I can think about is curling up to watch a classic princess flick: Snow White, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty; I want a happily ever after (the fact that I read Cinderella to my son at least once a day might also have something to do with it).

Before my son was born, my husband and I watched a lot of horror movies, he's a HUGE horror fan and I thoroughly enjoy the undead: Zombies & Vampires (Hello Angel!!). I've met George Romero and Ken Foree has a crush on me (no, seriously, I've met him several times and he ALWAYS hits on me, my one celebrity claim to fame [he was the hero in the original Dawn of the Dead, for those of you not in the know ;) ]). Starting in pregnancy, but really after #1 was born, I can't watch them anymore. Part of this is with a child to protect, scary movies have an addition layer of terror to them. But I think it's more than just that. I can still handle a good drama, I just don't want to watch lots of people die for ridiculous reasons. I don't know, maybe it's me getting older, but I'm going to blame it on the mother hormones.

Product review: belly balm

While at Pike Place Market in Seattle, I bought a bar of Moon Valley Tummy Bar (http://www.moonvalleyhoney.com/products/b-tummy_bar.htm) to try. My verdict: I didn't like it. For me, it was totally a texture thing, this is a solid lotion bar and my bathroom is too cold in the winter for it to get nice and melty to rub in well. It also has cocoa butter in it, and while I like the smell of chocolate, I prefer to smell it right before I eat it (I'm not a big fan of smelling like food). I think if I had tried it during a scorching summer than my opinion would be different. But, I have been using it on my every-expanding breasts and it hasn't caused them to break out any more than they already were (I've just given up on that, my skin will go back to normal a few months after I give birth). I hate to dis a company that I like and support, so I'm leaving it up to personal preference. They do have really yummy honey, regardless, and I think I'll still try some of their other products (soap, lip balm) as I need them.

And the kick is good!

Yep, first kick felt this afternoon! I'll be sixteen weeks tomorrow, so this was totally unexpected at this point. #1 I couldn't feel until 23 weeks. But there are some differences. Last time, my placenta was in the front, preventing me from feeling a lot, and I never got the distinct feet or hands coming through my belly. It was also a first, so it can take longer to figure out what you're feeling, although I was straining for so long that I think I felt things as soon as it was possible. This time around the placenta is in the back (does this mean back labor is less likely??) so #2 has free access to the front! And of course, I recognized the kick as soon as it happened. I was laying down in the nursery, since someone only wanted a short nap this afternoon and I was in pain, and Kick! just like that, right in the middle of my belly. Instantly made me less annoyed at my toddler's antics. And yes, it's nearly as miraculous the second time around as the first :)

Caught up

Okay, I've responded to all of the comments that have been made. Since January. My bad!

A little less pain

As if the normal pregnancy symptoms aren't enough, pregnancy has a way of doing stuff to your body to aggravate anything that should have been taken care of years ago, like my back. Last Thursday was my first appointment with my physical therapist (whom I now love, she made it so I could at least drive to her nearly pain-free). Here I thought I had just pulled a hamstring, nope, the sciatic nerve runs down your leg and if you hurt your back, the pain can localize in your leg. I'd heard of this, but I was SO CERTAIN that all I had was a pulled hamstring. Ha!

Anyway, so seven years ago when I originally hurt my back, instead of the dr. I went to telling me to go home and take some ibuprofen, he should have requested an MRI. Yes, I might have a slipped disk. Aggravated by pregnancy and my body loosening up. Since I had issues last time around, but nothing since then, I had figured my back was fine. Nope! When I showed up on Thursday, I was a mess. Several days of pain had lead me to baby my right leg, which meant that not only was my back injured, but I was all out of alignment from walking funny and my right hip was two inches higher than my left. (When the PT asked if I had noticed I just told her that in my day, I tend to look in the mirror for less than 15 seconds, so it would take a whole lot more for me to notice.) Anyway, postpone the back treatment, first I had to fix my hips. Fortunately, this was a simple exercise, which worked! Today I went back to start treating my back. And a little relief.

I know a lot of people will go to a chiropracter for back issues. For me, I prefer physical therapy. For two reasons. The first is that I feel as though I am in command of my healing. I am responsible for, and am able to do SOMETHING and it helps. Plus, once you know the exercises, if things start going a little wonky again, you have the tools to hopefully prevent anything worse. Second: my mother has had back problems my whole life, and has been going to a chiropracter on and off my whole life. Yeah, still has back problems. I've never seen them ever get much better, which could have a lot to do with my mother, but isn't a ringing endorsement. I have problems with any treatment that requires you to keep going back for an indefinite time. Oh, and PT still spends some time on massage, so yay for that! (My husband may give great massages, but he's still not a professional)

An apology to my readers

On two fronts, one, that I haven't written anything for days: today is my first less painful day in nearly a week and a half. I am so happy to finally be on the mend with what may be a slipped disk (AHHH!). My second Physical Therapy session was today and I can MOVE again!

But more importantly, I sit and complain about no comments and I didn't realize that there were several that just needed my approval. Please, please forgive me and continue to comment, I promise to check daily! I'm still getting used to this whole blogging thing.