* I took a trip to the office kitchen and saw that our Halloween candy bowl now contains a) a Dum Dum, b) a Starlight Mint and c) a blue Jolly Rancher. We should really just toss the candy and put it out of its misery, right?
* Which reminds me of the time my parents and I were on a train from York to London and we got stuck for HOURRSSS due to "leaves on the rails". You'd think trains could just GO OVER THE LEAVES and all, but you'd be wrong. So, of course, since this leaf situation has been stewing all day, there are like a million people crammed into this one train which is stuck on the rails in the middle of nowhere (with sheep). My dad and I managed to score seats but only in the "Quiet Car" where no cell phones or loud conversations are allowed. About an hour in to the delay we pool our coins and I go off to the cafe car for some crisps. When I get there I am told that they are sold out of everything but Polo Mints and Champagne. I report this back to my dad which OF COURSE, since it is hilarious and since we are in the Quiet Car, prompts a fit of uncontrollable, side splitting laughter on both our parts. We nearly got kicked off that train to hang with the sheep outside.
* I realize those two thoughts are tenuously related.
* But it is FRIDAY tomorrow, people! And I am getting a little antsy over here!
* I have a wedding to go to this weekend. Anyone want to take bets on whether any of my party dresses will fit?
* I am mostly worried about the boobs.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Jumping on the preparedness train
So, as I hinted yesterday, I want to try natural childbirth. It is something I've been thinking about, in the back of my mind, pretty much forever. I've just always felt a) that I must be capable if women have been delivering without drugs since the dawn of humanity and b) that doctors and scalpels are SCARY.
Let me make this clear from the get go: I am opting to try natural childbirth mostly from a position of wanting to avoid scary doctors and their scary knives. The concept of a C Section freaks me out FAR MORE than the concept of a painful 36 hour labor.
Having said that, let me also make it clear that I have a VERY healthy respect for the fact that I have no idea what I'm getting myself into. I've never been in labor, obviously, and by many accounts I've been told it is going to be a million times more painful than I can imagine.
I'm going into this with an open mind. I do have a birth plan and I do have definite opinions on how I want things to go. I also understand that at the end of the day, a large portion of the process is up to Bean and I have no way of predicting how he is going to handle labor and delivery. He could be breech. He could come early. He could be HUGE. I just don't know, and because of that I haven't imposed any rigid "rules" on myself.
If I find myself in an extraordinarily difficult or long labor, I will accept an epidural. If Bean is in distress, I will accept the possibility of a C Section. If I leave that hospital with a healthy baby then I DID IT RIGHT. Regardless of what my ideal may be and how the actual experience may differ from my ideal.
I'm not going into this blind. I've started to do my research, and I know I have much more to learn. I've read "Your Best Birth", "Ina May's Guide To Childbirth" and watched "The Business of Being Born". I've also got a copy of "Spiritual Midwifery" in my to-be-read que, and I'm open to suggestions for more reading and viewing (hint! hint!). I know that I've barely cracked the tip of the information iceberg. I have been doing prenatal yoga almost every night and have been paying special attention to my breathing, and to how my breathing affects my body. I've been feeling out the doctors at my OB practice to determine how open they are to the concept of natural childbirth, and how supportive I can expect them to be. I'm doing my best to prepare for this experience, and to be realistic about what I'm getting into.
I've made certain decisions already that I feel will help up my odds of delivering naturally, or at the very least avoiding a C Section. I will not be induced. I understand that if I am extraordinarily late I will be pressured to induce, and, if that happens, I am determined to try natural induction methods before chemical methods. I will avoid Pitocin at all costs. I will flat out refuse Misoprostol / Cytotec, whatever the circumstances. This is not to judge anyone who has taken the induction route, only to say that I've seen the evidence that induction leads to a higher incidence of epidurals and C Sections, and that evidence has convinced me to avoid it.
The hardest person to convince of all this? Boy. He started out saying "I just don't want to watch you in pain for 6 hours". Of course, I laughed at him and told him WE SHOULD BE SO LUCKY to have a 6 hour labor. The next time he said it, he was up to 12 hours. Then 18. He is starting to see that I don't want to do this for egotistical reasons. No, I do NOT think that they'll send me home with a medal along with my baby if I pull this off. My main goal is to avoid unnecessary medication and intervention in order to have the safest experience and recovery for Bean and for myself.
And that, blogfriends, is where I stand.
Let me make this clear from the get go: I am opting to try natural childbirth mostly from a position of wanting to avoid scary doctors and their scary knives. The concept of a C Section freaks me out FAR MORE than the concept of a painful 36 hour labor.
Having said that, let me also make it clear that I have a VERY healthy respect for the fact that I have no idea what I'm getting myself into. I've never been in labor, obviously, and by many accounts I've been told it is going to be a million times more painful than I can imagine.
I'm going into this with an open mind. I do have a birth plan and I do have definite opinions on how I want things to go. I also understand that at the end of the day, a large portion of the process is up to Bean and I have no way of predicting how he is going to handle labor and delivery. He could be breech. He could come early. He could be HUGE. I just don't know, and because of that I haven't imposed any rigid "rules" on myself.
If I find myself in an extraordinarily difficult or long labor, I will accept an epidural. If Bean is in distress, I will accept the possibility of a C Section. If I leave that hospital with a healthy baby then I DID IT RIGHT. Regardless of what my ideal may be and how the actual experience may differ from my ideal.
I'm not going into this blind. I've started to do my research, and I know I have much more to learn. I've read "Your Best Birth", "Ina May's Guide To Childbirth" and watched "The Business of Being Born". I've also got a copy of "Spiritual Midwifery" in my to-be-read que, and I'm open to suggestions for more reading and viewing (hint! hint!). I know that I've barely cracked the tip of the information iceberg. I have been doing prenatal yoga almost every night and have been paying special attention to my breathing, and to how my breathing affects my body. I've been feeling out the doctors at my OB practice to determine how open they are to the concept of natural childbirth, and how supportive I can expect them to be. I'm doing my best to prepare for this experience, and to be realistic about what I'm getting into.
I've made certain decisions already that I feel will help up my odds of delivering naturally, or at the very least avoiding a C Section. I will not be induced. I understand that if I am extraordinarily late I will be pressured to induce, and, if that happens, I am determined to try natural induction methods before chemical methods. I will avoid Pitocin at all costs. I will flat out refuse Misoprostol / Cytotec, whatever the circumstances. This is not to judge anyone who has taken the induction route, only to say that I've seen the evidence that induction leads to a higher incidence of epidurals and C Sections, and that evidence has convinced me to avoid it.
The hardest person to convince of all this? Boy. He started out saying "I just don't want to watch you in pain for 6 hours". Of course, I laughed at him and told him WE SHOULD BE SO LUCKY to have a 6 hour labor. The next time he said it, he was up to 12 hours. Then 18. He is starting to see that I don't want to do this for egotistical reasons. No, I do NOT think that they'll send me home with a medal along with my baby if I pull this off. My main goal is to avoid unnecessary medication and intervention in order to have the safest experience and recovery for Bean and for myself.
And that, blogfriends, is where I stand.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Bits
Today, there will be bullet points.
But sharpen up your pitchforks, ladies, because tomorrow it is going to GO OFF. I'm working on a post about natural childbirth. YOU'RE WELCOME FOR THE WARNING. I've been reading a lot about it and I've formed a few opinions and I'm going to express them, right here on this blog. I'll be jumping into the deep end of the pool, so to speak . . . as I know this is one of those hot button topics, like vaccines! And breastfeeding! And going back to work!(PS: I have opinions on all those things too. My little blog is growing up! It just may stir up some controversy after all.)
Today, however, I'm going to keep it light around here:
* I'm doing a giveaway via StyleLush! Head over there to enter to win a free pair of coin earrings or a free coin bracelet . . . winner's choice!
* Last night, because I am fourteen inside, I went to Bath and Body Works to buy a stash of their new Twilight Woods stuff. Yes, because it has the word "Twilight" in the name. SHUT UP! I tried their new Winter Formula Shower Mousse, which is nice and a fun alternative to soap, but nothing groundbreaking in my opinion. I also got a tube of their newly reformulated Body Cream, which I have to say kinda blew my mind. I love how Bath and Body Works creams smell (you don't even need perfume!) but they've always been kind of irritating and not the most moisturizing thing out there. This new formula is actually a huge improvement. It contains some of the same ingredients (milk proteins, for one) that are in my favorite splurge body cream and, while it isn't quite as good as the splurge, it is a reasonable alternative for everyday. So, consider this a good ol' virtual pat on the back for B&BW! Well done, guys.
* I posted this on Flickr as well, but in case anyone didn't see it there, I thought I'd post it here too. I'd hate for anyone to miss THREE MINUTE MICROWAVE CHOCOLATE CAKE. Yep. Seriously. I printed the recipe ages ago and had it tucked in the back of my recipe binder thinking I'd NEVER try it because, seriously, like that bs is going to work, right? Then one day last week I went to the bank and there were photos of CAKE everywhere. Then my husband IM-ed me that they were having CAKE at his office for someone's birthday. And did you guys catch the part about how I'm pregnant? I wanted cake so badly I could've ripped my eyeballs out. I pulled out the recipe and to my shock and delight, a few minutes later I was eating gooey chocolate cake. Recipe reprinted below (I want to give credit where it is due, but I can't find the link where I originally printed it from! The same recipe can be found here.)
1 Coffee Mug
4 tablespoons flour (plain flour, not self-rising)
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil (I used canola)
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (the recipe says optional, but DO THIS! They get all gooey and melty and fantastic.)
Small splash of vanilla
Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well.
Add the egg and mix thoroughly.
Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.
Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla, and mix again.
Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed! (Or, just use a really big mug like I did)
Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.
So, who's having cake tonight?
But sharpen up your pitchforks, ladies, because tomorrow it is going to GO OFF. I'm working on a post about natural childbirth. YOU'RE WELCOME FOR THE WARNING. I've been reading a lot about it and I've formed a few opinions and I'm going to express them, right here on this blog. I'll be jumping into the deep end of the pool, so to speak . . . as I know this is one of those hot button topics, like vaccines! And breastfeeding! And going back to work!(PS: I have opinions on all those things too. My little blog is growing up! It just may stir up some controversy after all.)
Today, however, I'm going to keep it light around here:
* I'm doing a giveaway via StyleLush! Head over there to enter to win a free pair of coin earrings or a free coin bracelet . . . winner's choice!
* Last night, because I am fourteen inside, I went to Bath and Body Works to buy a stash of their new Twilight Woods stuff. Yes, because it has the word "Twilight" in the name. SHUT UP! I tried their new Winter Formula Shower Mousse, which is nice and a fun alternative to soap, but nothing groundbreaking in my opinion. I also got a tube of their newly reformulated Body Cream, which I have to say kinda blew my mind. I love how Bath and Body Works creams smell (you don't even need perfume!) but they've always been kind of irritating and not the most moisturizing thing out there. This new formula is actually a huge improvement. It contains some of the same ingredients (milk proteins, for one) that are in my favorite splurge body cream and, while it isn't quite as good as the splurge, it is a reasonable alternative for everyday. So, consider this a good ol' virtual pat on the back for B&BW! Well done, guys.
* I posted this on Flickr as well, but in case anyone didn't see it there, I thought I'd post it here too. I'd hate for anyone to miss THREE MINUTE MICROWAVE CHOCOLATE CAKE. Yep. Seriously. I printed the recipe ages ago and had it tucked in the back of my recipe binder thinking I'd NEVER try it because, seriously, like that bs is going to work, right? Then one day last week I went to the bank and there were photos of CAKE everywhere. Then my husband IM-ed me that they were having CAKE at his office for someone's birthday. And did you guys catch the part about how I'm pregnant? I wanted cake so badly I could've ripped my eyeballs out. I pulled out the recipe and to my shock and delight, a few minutes later I was eating gooey chocolate cake. Recipe reprinted below (I want to give credit where it is due, but I can't find the link where I originally printed it from! The same recipe can be found here.)
1 Coffee Mug
4 tablespoons flour (plain flour, not self-rising)
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil (I used canola)
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (the recipe says optional, but DO THIS! They get all gooey and melty and fantastic.)
Small splash of vanilla
Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well.
Add the egg and mix thoroughly.
Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.
Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla, and mix again.
Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed! (Or, just use a really big mug like I did)
Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.
So, who's having cake tonight?
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