Baby Food!

My sister (who is also six months pregnant!) just told me she saw a commercial about the Baby Bullet. I thought it sounded pretty cool but since I already have a good food processor I figured it was unnecessary. Then I decided to look it up for myself and it looks pretty awesome! I think I might consider getting one of those for myself... they actually have a deal going on right now where if you buy one you get one free (hmm, Tiffany? Does this sound like it's targeted to us?).

She said she's interested in making all her own baby food, and I am as well. I referred her to Weelicious, which has tons of great recipes for babies, toddlers, and children. I then stumbled upon a GREAT website called Wholesome Baby Food. This website is excellent because it not only has excellent recipes but it has recommended foods for certain stages and a lot of information about food allergies. I think I'll be referring to this website quite frequently once baby is about four months old.

Hooray for healthy babies and for healthy, organic baby food! For all of you following my blog feel free to share with me some other sites for homemade baby food, or just anything pregnancy/baby related! I'd love to share information. :)

Week 25

I feel very pregnant now. Depending on what I wear some people tell me I barely look pregnant and others ask me how far along I am and want to talk baby with me. My baby girl moves around all the time now. Early in the week, on Tuesday, I woke up and could feel her moving quite a bit so I looked down to see if I could see her... I could! I yelled for Chad to come and look and every time he came to look the baby wouldn't move. So after he would walk away she would move again, so I'd yell and he'd come running then she wouldn't move for him. So he told me maybe she doesn't like the yelling. So when she moved again I snapped my fingers and tried getting his attention some other way. He heard me and came running in and this time she moved for him! He looked at me with wide eyes. He put his hand on my belly and she bumped into it, making it move up and then down.

Every day she moves rapidly now. I suddenly feel very close to her and I am starting to really believe that I am having a baby. My thoughts are always consumed with plans for her bedroom and I am constantly thinking of the day she is born into our world. I can hardly wait, but until then I have so much to do that I feel rather overwhelmed. I love this little girl so much already and I am so excited to meet her.

The Emotional Ups & Downs of Pregnancy

Why Do I Feel This Way?

Mood swings, insecurities, fears, ambivalence, impatience, and anger are all likely to surface during your pregnancy -- often at unpredictable times. Why do you sometimes feel so out of control while you're expecting?

Hormonal surges can cause your emotions to fluctuate wildly, notes psychologist Fred Cavaiani, MA, a consultant for the Women's Center for Medicine at the Detroit Medical Center. But that may only partly explain the changes in your mood. Let's face it: Having a baby is a momentous life change. It's natural to feel joy over this new addition to your family, fears about your new responsibility, and even pangs of longing for your freer pre-baby days.

"You're a walking receptacle of feelings," he says, "and you don't have the ability to suppress them." So express them instead. "Open up to whatever it is you're experiencing," advises Cavaiani. Discuss your mood swings with the people you are closest to. "Sharing your feelings calms you down, helps you see things more clearly, and gives you the objectivity to find solutions."

It's difficult not knowing what the future holds, and typical to feel apprehensive about labor, delivery, and motherhood. There's also the added worry of how you'll manage to balance both work and your family life once the baby has arrived. All moms-to-be have worries, says Adrienne B. Lieberman, a childbirth educator and the author of Easing Labor Pain (Harvard Common Press, 1992). "There's a real crisis of confidence as you approach this exciting, tumultuous time," she says.

What Can I Do?

Here are some tips to help you get through the emotional struggle:

1. Don't worry about your worrying. Some psychologists actually view these anxieties as a reflection of your growing attachment to your fetus. But to get the reassurance you need, discuss your fears with your health-care provider. Some moms-to-be even feel better having more frequent prenatal checkups just to be extra sure that their pregnancy is progressing normally.

2. Prepare an action plan. "It's very anxiety-relieving to be planning for the future, rather than just ruminating about it," notes Lieberman. So do some research and gather information about the things that worry you the most. Seek out opportunities to mingle with other moms-to-be in exercise groups, childbirth classes, and baby-care classes.

3. Ask other parents how they cope. Talk to working mothers about how they selected their child-care arrangements, and find out how they manage to balance their careers and family life. Financial and health issues are a huge worry for many parents-to-be. But, "the burdens will lighten when you share them with others and come to realize you're not alone," Lieberman says.

4. Dream. Don't be surprised if you become obsessed with anything baby-related and begin dreaming about babies every night -- and day. Dream on! These reveries are a way of getting ready for motherhood, and of bonding with your child, says Cavaiani. Fantasies let you glimpse the euphoria that you'll feel when you first lay eyes on your little one.

Advice from Moms

Expectant mothers from across the country gathered for an online chat with americanbaby.com. These women are experiencing a wide range of emotions: fatigue, anxiety, guilt, fear, and, above all, profound joy. Here are some of their comments:

Juliet (seven months pregnant; Brandon, MS): "I slept through the first trimester, but I was more energetic after that. You feel better and you get your appetite back. You finally notice your pants getting tighter and think, 'Wow, I'm pregnant and I feel good. And I still look good!' It's so exciting wondering what it will feel like when the baby moves, and then later on, when it finally does, seeing it make ripples on your stomach."

Deborah (nearly three months pregnant with her second child; Kansas City, MO): "With my first pregnancy, my emotions were really erratic. Anything could set me off. My husband and I got into more fights over things like housework, and I cried very easily. This time I feel mostly guilty and overwhelmed. Sydney just turned a year old. She's very active and wants lots of attention. I feel bad for wanting to rest instead of play with her."

Lyn (four months pregnant; San Diego, CA): "Early on, my biggest fear was that I might miscarry. Now, I worry about what to do about work. I also have anxious thoughts about how much our lifestyle will change. It won't be as spontaneous or relaxed as my husband and I are used to."

Carol (five months pregnant; Princeton, NJ): "Sometimes I envision myself holding my child's hand as we cross the street. I also try to picture my husband being a dad. He's never been that comfortable with kids, but now that we're expecting, he's been spending more time with children. I look at him interacting with them and feel tears welling up as I think: 'This is so cool!'"

All content here, including advice from doctors and other health professionals, should be considered as opinion only. Always seek the direct advice of your own doctor in connection with any questions or issues you may have regarding your own health or the health of others.

Article from parents.com.

Today I Met an Angel

"I would walk down the aisle and see all these people and it would be the little children -- you know, the two-year olds, the five-year olds -- who would look up and still had some contact with that kingdom of heaven. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could all behave that way?" ~Bert Sacks

This week has been a very, very rough week. This week I cried more than I've cried since I was sixteen, and that's A LOT. There has been a lot going on at home and life is extremely overwhelming right now.

After one of my evening classes at UW I sat next to a man on the bus who helped me change my perspective on things a little. Is he an angel? Well, perhaps not, but he was an angel to me at that moment. After we had a bit of a discussion and he introduced me to some interesting reads, he handed me a "Real Change" newspaper and he was featured on the cover. His article was the feature story; a story about all that he has done for needy children in Iraq. Now the U.S. governement is saying he owes them A LOT of money.

I thought a lot about what I learned from this man in about ten minutes time on a city bus, and now I think of things in my life a little differently. Thank you, Bert.

...Success in Life

"... success in life is not how well we execute Plan A; it' s how smoothly we cope with Plan B. And for most of us, that's 99 percent of the time." ~Sarah Ban Breathnach

"To keep our faces toward change, and behave like free spirits in the presence of fate, is strength undefeatable." ~Helen Keller

A Person Who Has Good Thoughts

"A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely". ~Roald Dahl

Chain Letter

I'm not a fan of chain letters, and when I get them I usually skim them, realize they're dumb, and hit the "delete" button. My sister just sent me one, though, and it says some nice things.

"When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift... thrown away. Life is not a race. Take it slower. Hear the music before the song is over."

"Life may not be the party we hoped for... but while we are here we might as well dance!"

I like these. My life right now is the craziest it has ever been, and sometimes I needed to be reminded to slow down. Lately I need help relaxing...

24 Weeks

Photo from Baby Corner.

What Color Will Baby's Eyes Be?

Daddy's are aquamarine blue and mommy's are milk chocolate brown.
What color will baby's eyes be?

p.s. The sad faces are because we were just about to leave Jamaica. I thought it was a good photo to show our eye color so that's why I chose it.

Just for the Hell of It

I decided to take a stroll through memory lane by looking through some old photos. I stumbled upon my photos from when we were in Jamaica and I couldn't help but notice how different I looked five months ago. For one, I was tan, for two, I was very newly pregnant (we were pregnant before Jamaica, though we are saying it happened there), and for three, my big boobies hadn't grown in yet.
So, since I'm weird, I decided to put my swimsuit on from summer and see how different I look. Here I am now. Eek!

I find it crazy that a body can go through so many changes in such a short amount of time. These crazy, magical bodies of ours!

Eating Well During Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

"If you have the option of ingesting only organic food during this critical time, go for it! If you're trying to balance budgetary concerns with environmental ideals, pick organic items at the top of the food chain first. Organic meats, dairy, and eggs all are very closely regulated. If you can only afford some organic items, start there and carefully wash your mainstream produce before consumption. Also, consider the pesticide chart later in the chapter to decide which produce items need to be organic and which mainstream fruits and veggies have lower pesticide residue.

The following snacks have kept pregnant moms happily satisfied while providing quality nutrition.

- Almonds
- Unsulphured dried apricots
- Peanut butter on multigrain toast
- Whole-grain cereal
- Homemade hot chocolate or steamed milk
- Pita or veggies dipped in hummus
- Full-fat yogurt with fruit
- Sliced mango in lime juice
- Avocado drizzled with sweet wine vinegar"

The Eco-Nomical Baby Guide,
written by Joy Hatch and Rebecca Kelly (authors of Green Baby Guide)

Skinny Mama?

This segment was taken directly out of the amazing book, Skinny Bitch: Bun in the Oven. I highly recommend this book to every preggy out there, and I recommend the original Skinny Bitch and Bitch in the Kitch to all other women in the world. The bitches who wrote the book are going to be bluntly honest and tell you to become a vegan, and their information is all obtained from legitimate research. Awesome! Go ahead ladies, and learn the amazing truths about a well-balanced plant-based diet, and other wonderful things about healthy, natural living.

So I feel like a lard ass and my midwives, the people at WIC, my husband, and others have constantly been on my case about being too skinny. Blah, blah, blah. And now I'm gaining crazy amounts of weight... well not really, but it seems like it. I gained four pounds in a week and that was weird to see those numbers on the scale. Whatev though, I'm feeling great and eating super well. My energy levels have also risen lately, so that's awesome because I'm SUPER busy.

"It's totally understandable to be weirded out by all the changes occurring in your body. So knowing how all the weight gets distributed may make you feel a little better. It's actually kinda cool:

- Baby: 6-8 pounds
- Placenta: 1-2 pounds
- Fluids in maternal tissue: 2-4 pounds
- Uterus: 2 pounds
- Boobs: 1-2 pounds
- Blood volume: 3-4 pounds
- Amniotic fluid: 2 pounds
- Fat and nutrient stores: 4-7 pounds

See? You're not a buffalo. You've got all sorts of extra blood and guts and fluids weighing you down, all of which are necessary. (Plus you get boobs!) So get over the weight gain."

Gotta love those bitches.

23 Weeks

I survived my first week back after break! I am working with a new group of kids at a new school. I am now in the Federal Way district, and I absolutely adore the school, the kids, and the teacher with whom I work. I know I am really going to enjoy it here!

Here are some of the silly things I heard from kids this week regarding my pregnancy:

Child (girl): "Your belly is really big."
Me: "Thank you."
Child (girl): "Wait, are you pregnant?"
Me: "Yep."
Other child who was eavesdropping (girl): "Are you having a boy or girl?"
Me: "Girl."
Child (girl): "Girls rock!"
Other girls who were around who were also eavesdropping: cheers of excitement and big smiles of agreement.

Haha, so cute. Then later that day (the skirt I was wearing did not hold back my bump at all so it was noticed by many of the children):

Child (girl): "Are you going to have a baby?"
Me: "Yep."
Child (girl): "My mom had four babies and my aunt had two but one of them died."
Me: "Aww, that's sad."
Other child (girl): "That's because a monster ate it!"

Kids are crazy and awesome and I love working with them everyday. I thought that after leaving kindergarten I wouldn't hear as many silly things from kids, but I still do no matter the age! And I would like to point out that the vast majority of kids who notice me being pregnant are girls. Always girls! Gotta love 'em.

Here's the big belly! That baby girl is growing like crazy!

Yoga

Photo from here.

Here are four reasons why yoga is a great option for you:

1. Body knowledge: Yoga is a wonderful tool for becoming better acquainted with your body, says Jyothi Larson, author of Yoga Mom, Buddha Baby (Bantam). A regular practice also trains you to focus on different areas of your body, which is particularly helpful during childbirth.
2. Mood moderation: Yoga's emphasis on breathing and moving simultaneously helps you breathe more deeply, says Larson. For some women, it triggers feelings of deep relaxation and well-being. The calmer and more relaxed moms are, the calmer their babies are.
3. Posture perfection: Pregnancy can cause even the straightest arrow to slouch. Then you start nursing, pushing a stroller, and lifting a baby and your posture may really suffer, says Larson. Some of the best yoga benefits are increased back and shoulder strength, which improves posture. Yoga also opens up your chest, making it easier to stand up tall.
4. Moral support: Joining other women in a pre- or postnatal yoga class is a great way to make new friends, all of whom are facing the same challenges you are. Even if you prefer to practice at home, an occasional class at a studio lets you tap into this network.

from parents.com