Argentina

Summering for a month in Buenos Aires with my family.... be back in July. Chau!

Olive oil and my Ear

A couple weeks ago I picked up my phone while it was on speaker phone full blast and someone blasted my ear drum. Then a few days later, my opposite ear got all stuffed up, started ringing and I couldn't hear from it. I got a few fleeting headaches with it and was worried it would turn into an infection, so my husband candle burned an old newspaper while it was funneled and sticking in my ear, but all I felt was a little fizzling in my sinuses. Then we poured a few drops of warm extra virgin olive oil into my ear and covered it up with a wet, warm cloth. I pulled on it all day before that, and finally the next day it cleared up. I'm gald it didn't turn into an infection. Have you ever used olive oil to soothe an ear ache?

Birth Stories Blog

Hello readers, The girls at Birth Stories saw me on Design Mom and asked if they could post my story on their blog. This time, I included a picture of me in labor. (Check out how relaxed I am) I also really liked the home birth story posted before mine entitled, "The Home Birth of Rosie."

So, if you are pregnant and want an amazing birth, I would get a mid-wife. Part of the reason I loved my birth experience is because I had a mid-wife, who stayed with me through the whole labor and never left my side. I felt so at ease and reassured by her the whole time. I heart midwives. I would never think of birthing without one. Usually, you need to see your midwife throughout your labor for pre-natal check-ups so you get to know each other. But I only started seeing mine the last month of pregnancy, because I switched birthing centers. Not planning on having a home or birth-center birth? No problem. Midwives can go with you to the hospital.



A picture with my midwife, Kelly, one week post part um.

I am So Blessed

I finally convinced my boss to let me work from home and remote into the office on my laptop. I feel so blessed that I get to stay home and be my daughter's mother full-time. I love Hazel! These are some cute pictures of her after a baptism. Hazel is on the left, and her cute friend Hali'a is on the right.

Choline by Standard Process

Are you looking for a product to help clear up your "mommy brain" also known as memory loss during and after pregnancy? I take Choline from Standard Process. It has helped me remember what I want to blog about. You wouldn't believe the times I've had a great idea during the day about what to post the next day, and then when the next day came, I couldn't remember what it was. Does that kind of thing happen to you? It drives me crazy, but this totally natural supplement has helped clear the fog out of my memory. Want to learn more about how and why it works? Go here.

Hypnobirthing- Taking the Birthing World by Calm

By popular demand, I am posting about Hypnobirthing. Ever since my birth story was featured on Design Mom, I've gotten several requests for more information about the method I used. I recommend going to www.hypnobirthing.com to get a basic over-view of Hypnobirthing and to find a practitioner in your area to take classes from if you are pregnant. Also, the Amazing-Birth website is a great resource to read articles on Hypnobirthing from media sources who have done stories on Hypnobirthing. Click on the "Amazing Birth Stories" tab to read some stories of natural birth via Hypnobirthing.

Go here to read another great Hypnobirthing story from a Hypnobirthing Practitioner in Rochester, NY.

I took a class from Hypnobirthing Practitioner Vivian Keeler with Amazing Births and Beyond in Miami Beach, FL. She was great. I loved the classes because it dispelled all my fears about birth through going over chapters in the Hypnobirthig Book, by watching videos of live, calm births from women all over the world, and by listening to the CD throughout the day and before going to bed. The CD really relaxed me and put positive thoughts in my head about birth. That was really the only "Hypnotic" part about Hypnobirthing, just listening to a cd. Plus I loved learning the deep breathing exercises in class with my husband and learning about the different natural birthing positions that help baby come down the quickest and without straining. I didn't get to "breathe my baby down" all the way because I had a doctor who took over and made me push. But if I would have had my wits about me, I would have told him off and kept breathing my baby down. I think the deep breathing helped me and my baby stay healthy during the pregnancy, because you take in so much oxygen and hold it, and then slowly let it out. When my baby came out, she was completely white and pink. I think that was in part due to the fact that I breathed so deeply and slowly during the birth, which kept oxygen flowing to her the whole time, hence her beautiful, healthy hue.

She was also the only baby underneath those horrible lights that didn't cry for the whole two hours she was there in observation. My husband watched her the whole time and said that she only let out a few little peeps, not even a cry. I like to think that was in part due to the fact that she had such a wonderful and calm birth experience.

Ten minutes after she was born, I immediately started nursing her for the next 45 minutes, until the nurse snatched her away from me. In the hypnobirthing classes, you are taught to apply skin to skin contact to the baby right after birth to a) keep it warm and b) foster a bond between mother and baby. It is thought that a baby's first few hours after birth shape the babies temperment and personality a lot. A plus for having your baby in a birth center or at home is that you control the hours directly following the birth.

What is great about Hypnobirthing is that it is a collaborative, not an alernative method. You can use it in any birth environment: in the hospital, in a birth center, or at home. I would recommend it to anyone who is pregnant and wants a calm, relaxed birth.

Images from IdealBirthing and WellBeing

Non-toxic House Cleaners

It's springtime and it makes me want to clean the house. I like to use THIS product everywhere: kitchen floor, bathroom, cabinets, doors, even for carpet stains. It's called Advanage, The Wonder Cleaner and it's an all-purpose cleaner made from an aloe vera base. The lady who sold it to me even ate some to prove that it's natural and non-toxic. It comes in a huge, concentrated bottle, which lasts all year. I love it for killing ants, too. (Sorry if you think that's cruel, but we get infestations in the winter here. If you know of a different non-toxic ant-killer or deterant, let me know!) I love non-toxic cleaners that actually work, and this one totally does. And the best part about this cleaner is it smells good and you don't have to cover your nose and mouth while you use it. It's even safe to use during pregnancy. A huge bottle costs $39, but if you buy three you get a big discount. My friend, Daniella, uses Maleleuca products, which are also non-toxic and biodegradable. What cleaners work for you in your home?