local : all aboard!! santa is on the christmas train in fillmore and is ready to take you to pick out your christmas tree! and then you'll chop it down (ok, that's kinda sad) and take it back home on the train. are you enjoying my longest title ever?

less than an hour north of los angeles, you can jump on a holiday train in fillmore.  santa will be on board to take you to the christmas tree farm where you will select the perfect tree.  then, they will load your beautiful tree onto the train upon your return!

this sounds so super fun!  a wonderful holiday treat to enjoy with the kids (and hey, there is booze sold on board!  sa-weet!).  but seriously folks, there are food and beverages sold on board...i don't think they're organic ;).

also, there is another option---the santa dinner train that departs on friday and sunday evenings and serves a full meal while santa visits with all the kids.  and finally, your third option is to go after christmas on their "return santa claus to the north pole" train ride....in a vintage train!

tree farm visit train:

saturdays and sundays nov 28th through dec 20th
departures 10:00 and 2:00

santa dinner train:

friday and sunday nights dec 4th-20th
departs 5:30 pm

return santa to the north pole train:

saturday december 26th and sunday december 27th
departs 6:00 pm

sids linked to crib mattresses?

if i could talk you into buying one extremely important item for your newborn, it would be an organic mattress....whether you intend to have your baby in your bed or her own crib.  i have logged many many hours on researching the link between non-organic mattresses and sids, and i think you will be shocked how little information is shared with the public once you look into it.  i came across the site below that has an awesome article on the toxic mattress link to sids, and in order to not write the world's longest post here, i would love to refer you to it:

healthy child

i was a little wary at first since this site sells a variety of organic items including mattresses.  but they have clearly done their homework (otherwise i would never refer them) and list all of their legit references at the bottom of their articles.   plus, they directly link you to variety of safe mattress options which is nice.

click on the additional links within the above article that will lead you to other important topics like:

factors that may increase the risk of crib death (including the vaccination link)

co-sleeping and toxic gases in adult mattresses

what may help shorten your labor

i was recently speaking with my lovely friend danielle, who was my incredible doula (i'll post more on her amazing-ness later), and she shared with me the 2 things that the shortest first-time mom natural labors she witnessed had in common.  they were:

pre-natal yoga at least 2-3 times a week and acupuncture right around the due date to help induce labor.

danielle told me i was one of these short labor examples---my labor was 7 hours plus pushing.  i did pre-natal yoga 3 times a week.   i had acupuncture on my due date and a couple days later on the eve of my labor.  i delivered naturally 4 days late.

i just spoke with a first-time mom friend yesterday who walked around for weeks at 3cm, days at 6cm, and had about 20 minutes of labor/contractions until she quickly pushed the baby out!!  guess what she did?.....pre-nata....ok ok, you get the point....

my usual disclaimer....you never know how your labor will go, but there are things you can do that may likely help you stay ahead of the curve....

random post : ovarian cancer

please read about the subtle signs of ovarian cancer (just so you know!) from this young mother who was diagnosed with stage II after being dragged to the doctor by a friend who learned of her symptoms:

http://breezymama.com/2009/11/13/liz/

so easy! make your own organic baby food for cheap.

whenever you decide to introduce solids, you can start slow and introduce one meal a day.  funny, we use the word solid, but the phrase should be "introducing goop."

if you intend to store batches, try to stock up on some glass baby food jars, as mentioned in a prior post, or order some 4 oz. mason jars on amazon (see amazon link in sidebar).  order a couple dozen if you really want to make life easier.

though we haven't introduced meat to our one-year-old, dinner is in the style of a meat and one or 2 sides.

our "meat" (otherwise referred to as "mulch" by my husband):
combo of high-ish protein, high fiber items---anything from organic lentils to barley to split peas to broccoli to green beans.  we literally combine all of these.  they are cooked, if necessary, and run through our twin gear juicer (see amazon link in sidebar).  here are more affordable single gear juicers : omega 8003 and green star.  read more here on why blenders are not ideal for pureeing food.

sides:
any single or combined organic fruit or veggie...more often fruit.

pick one day every week or 2 to make a batch.  cook, if necessary, and then run everything through the juicer (including skins--high in good enzymes) or dice by hand.  keep enough in the fridge for 3 days worth and freeze the rest for the coming week.

then, any time you want, you can grab a couple from the freezer and leave them in the fridge to thaw for the next night's dinner.  it's fun for you, and baby, to mix and match.

here are some helpful sites:

nutritional information on all foods with info on steamed, raw, etc of each.  enter item in search box.  or you can enter the nutrient you desire and it will reply with a food match.

shelf life info whether refrigerated or frozen.


bon appetit!!

UPDATE : my son would only eat pureed foods until he was about 13 months.  at which point, he started protesting by spitting them out.  he wanted little diced morsels of solids instead.

great soft-soled shoes for new walkers...

this line of shoes from pediped is perfect as it is the next best thing to barefoot walking.  babies that are just learning to walk are encouraged by doctors to do it barefoot or in soft leather sole shoes.  pediped was created by a couple in 2004 that saw a hole in the marketplace.  check out all of the cute styles here.  sizes start at newborn.  they also have a line for older kids with rubber soles that are "a smart choice for parents concerned about the long term development of their children's feet."

we've recently resorted to buying shoes for the first time for our one-year-old as they are the only way to keep him from pulling his socks off----plus, barefoot doesn't work so well in the winter....

UPDATE : save 15% with promo code DEC09 until december 31st.

be aware of your body's vitamin levels during pregnancy and while breastfeeding...

if you are going to breastfeed, it would be ideal for you to get a blood test of, at the very least, your vitamin levels.   try to get this test done in the baby's 4-8-months-old zone.  by this time, you can accurately detect what the baby is sucking out of you (ie making you deficient in) in time to change it without it affecting baby's health.   lactating women are commonly deficient in vitamin d, b12, and zinc.

regarding pregnancy, it is often normal for your ob/gyn to conduct a blood test near the beginning of your pregnancy to test for anemia, etc.  of course, you can certainly request a more in depth test too.

while pregnant and breastfeeding, your recommended dietary allowance of these most commonly deficient vitamins is likely:

vit d3 (as calciferol) = 5,000 IU -- or spend 20 minutes/daily in sunlight, no sunscreen.
vit b12                     = 2.8 mcg
zinc                         = 12 mg

for pregnancy and lactating vitamin and mineral supplement fact sheets, check out the national institute of health's site.  although, i know, for example that they really low-ball on vitamin d.  read more about 5,000 iu of vitamin d here.

the best way to know for sure what you should take to supplement is to get a blood test--if you are deficient in something, you may need up to 5 times more than the rda.

this is a random post : awesome organic towels on sale!

in the event that you MAY be looking for new awesome organic cotton towels, i wanted to let you know about some on sale.  this past year, i cheaped out and went with west elm's organic towels and immediately saw threads raveling.  learn from my mistakes, people.  buy these from under the canopy...i have some of their hand towels ($8.49 now! $12.99 bath towels) and the quality is fantastic.  they have lots of other beautiful items as well...bedding, clothing, and more!

recent nyt article : does breastfeeding help you loose the baby weight?

this past week, there was an interesting article in the new york times about whether breastfeeding helps mothers lose weight.   some not only lose the weight, but start dipping below their original pre-pregnancy weight.
if you intend to breastfeed, you'll have to eat approximately 500 calories more than normal for your baby.  but be careful that they are not just empty carb calories.  aim for fruits, veggies, nuts, whole grains, etc.

first weeks with baby : you're going to need help

you may be superwoman, but caring for a newborn is like nothing you've ever experienced.  it certainly is not impossible, but at the very least, please ask your husband to stay home form work for the first week home from the hospital.  beyond that, trust me, take up every offer of help because you will need it.  if someone offers to drop off food, just tell them yes and when they should do it.  if a friend offers to come over and sit and hold the baby, say yes and take a shower or a nap.  and have them grab lunch for you on their way---and they may also need to put it straight into your mouth for you or you might forget.  if you're breastfeeding, you need to constantly eat to replenish--and some days it is tough to constantly prepare snacks for yourself.  also, you should drink at least a glass of water each time you breastfeed your baby.

affordable, accurate, eco-friendly ovulation test

those disposable pee stick ovulation test cost a bloody fortune, so you may want to invest in a fertile focus ovulation test.  you can use it over and over and over again.   it looks like a tube of lipstick and you just put a drop of saliva on the little piece of glass inside.  then it tells you whether you're "not fertile", "transitional", or "fertile".  i can personally vouch for this product as i used it successfully when trying to conceive.   read more here.

if you breastfeed, try to do it in front of young girls....

does my title sound extremely creepy?  all i'm trying to say is that we learn by example, and it's important that girls witness women breastfeeding their babies.  that way, those girls will grow up and not only feel comfortable breastfeeding, but also have an idea of how it's actually done.

it ends up it's hard to type one handed...

i would like to sincerely apologize for my minimal posting these last few weeks.  i am trying my best to heal a nerve injury in my right arm and hand----and it's taking forever in my impatient mind.   never fear, i am still around and itching to write every day--and will certainly be doing that again as soon as i possibly can!   for now, i am trying to post at least a few times a week....all the best, and thanks for your understanding....

baby registry : the one layette item that we couldn't have lived without

certainly everyone would have their own particular item here.  and honestly, i guess the true answer would have been diapers (though there is a school of parents that think babies shouldn't wear diapers...um, ok)....i digress....

baby gowns!  baby gowns is my answer!  my son wore them from day one until they were thread bare around the 4 month mark when we finally moved on from them.

the fact of the matter is that you are going to change a bajillion diapers in those first few months and the gown has the quickest and easiest access.   the snaps on onesies add extra work and pants are no easy feat.  plus, this way, dressing the baby becomes a much more pleasurable and quick experience for everyone.

additionally, they are great for baby to sleep in because they are like having a built in blankie.  they are also womblike and allow baby to feel his own limbs/legs as he gets to know his body.

if you can find a convertible gown, it will certainly come in handy too as it can transition into a pants onesie.

first weeks with baby : feel comfortable going out and breastfeeding in public....in cute, easy-access tops!

this may sound insane, but after our homebirth, we did not go out into public with our baby until he was 3 weeks old.  and by "public", i mean we walked 2 blocks to some shops around the corner from our house. not only was it the height of flu season (and we were a little paranoid), but i was recovering from a pelvic injury, so it just took us a while to venture out.

also, it's tough to get it together enough, if you're breastfeeding, to feel like you can comfortably get the baby on your breast without flashing everyone at a restaurant or store (by week 4, i could give a rat's ass about flashing everyone at my family reunion if i had to).   so, i would like to dedicate this post to breastfeeding fashions.

i have laughed with other mothers about how, in the first weeks, we only owned 2 garments that we could breast feed in...a robe and a zip up hoodie.  as you may have noticed, these have not been at the height of fashion in recent seasons, plus you start to feel bad about the permanent zipper imprints on your baby's face after a while.

ok, back to the fashion....cue the music....

i found that once you get your breastfeeding bra worked out, tops are easy.  you have probably already seen the nursing tanks and often expensive and blaaah tees that are in the marketplace, so i will jump to what i found to be easy, affordable, and stylish.....

victoriassecret.com

that's right (it's not just skanky underwear on there! they have great clothes.), once you feel like you have a handle on what your general body size is going to be like post-baby (i knew this within a few days), jump on your computer and start ordering.  you're going to want to order henley styles that can be unbuttoned decently low down.  any top that has a surplice style (looks like an overlapping v-neck) or fitted cardigans are good too.  even tops with large v-necks and cowlnecks will work great.  oh, and don't forget the forgiving babydoll top.  you will live in these for as long as you breastfeed, unless you choose to go the route of just lifting your shirt to allow baby to feed.  also, i cannot stress the importance of cute tops with pockets enough---really great for stashing the cell phone or keys on the fly.

money saving tip--sign up on their website to be on their email list, since they constantly send out sale emails.

local : get into the halloween spirit with a vintage train ride to a pumpkin patch!

saturdays and sundays through halloween, the fillmore & western railway company has vintage trains departing every 2 hours to a pumpkin patch throughout the day.  take a 40 minute train ride to pick out your own pumpkin and also enjoy the festive corn maze, carousel, arts and crafts booths and more!

also, on friday and sunday evenings through halloween, take your older kids for a bar-b-que dinner on the same, but spookier, vintage train and search for the headless horseman during your haunted hayride upon arrival at the corn maze.

if you cannot make it to these halloween festivities in fillmore (1 hour nw of l.a.), they offer wonderful santa train trips just before christmas. you can ride to a christmas tree farm to cut down your own tree and bring it back on the train!!  i'll post about that in december....

see all fillmore train festivities here.

more on....zzz....zzz....swine flu....zzz

i always love our updates from our wonderful pediatrician jay gordon on H1N1.  because just when the media starts to creep under my skin and frighten me with swine flu statistics,  i have a great calming email in my inbox from him on the topic.  here is a snippet...

"The CDC released fatality data this past week and were quite clear in their assessment of this relatively non-virulent strain of influenza:

75-80% of the 76 children had significant or severe underlying medical problems.

Any child's death creates an extremely difficult public discussion but of the 300,000,000 Americans there are 45,000,000 children and teens and there have been 76 deaths of younger people. About 15 of these deaths occurred in seemingly healthy children and teens.

Please put all of these numbers in the proper perspective and realize that there are many important lifesaving topics for the media to publicize but none which sell papers and create TV viewership quite as well as this new flu."
read the entire message on his very informative website here.

alternative highchair that travels!

if you're not that psyched about plastic baby items taking over your home, here is a product that will make you happy.  it's the handysitt child's chair.  a 5.8 lb wooden booster seat for $89 that can easily attach to a chair at your table or a restaurant's or grandma's. isn't it nice to be able to have your child join you right up at the table?  age range is for kids 9 months to 4.5 years. there is also an attachable back leg option (for additional purchase), if you'd like to make it stand alone at some point.

for more photos and info on this general style of seat, check out the higher end product for $149 from minui. it's on amazon here.

zee most beautiful baby cradle in zee whole wide world

i came across a stunning cradle recently by the danish company leander.  the designer was inspired by his sister-in-law who had twins and needed to be able to comfort both of them at the same time.  read more here on the leander website.

what labor feels like

before i had my first baby 10 months ago, i remember asking a friend with 2 kids what labor feels like.  i asked,"is it like crampy or burning or tearing or what?" and she said,"yes, all of those."----gulp.  and this coming from someone that had 2 medicated births...i knew i was in for a challenge as i was planning for an unmedicated homebirth.

i wish i had known i was doing this actual post back during my homebirth labor, in which case, i would have asked my doula to take notes as i called out every single variety of sensations i was having.   it's true that amnesia of the pain sets in after the birth. but i'm going to try my best here.

labor, for me, came on like menstrual cramps in my low back (i'm going to continue to use the word cramp, but what i am describing is the menstrual kind, not the stabbing or gassy kind).   these were different from the frontal uncomfortable braxton hicks cramps i was having all day that day.   i knew the labor contractions were new and different, because they were timing out consistently (as compared to braxton hicks which were more random and just a hardening of the belly like a turtle shell).

the first couple hours, the cramping (again that dull menstrual feeling--but much stronger) came on quickly and intensely.   3 hours in (which flew by in a blink), i was on my side in bed, with a body pillow, semi-yodeling on my out breaths.   i took a bradley class but i could not, for the life of me, be quiet when breathing out.   i always moaned or yodeled.   i had a hard time standing as every time a contraction came on, i would keel over to hold onto something, get an intense cramping/pressure in my uterus, need to sort of bend my convulsing legs slightly, and end up on my tip-toes to get through the contraction. shower didn't really help....was hard to stand.

once i got into my rented birthing tub, i had the urge to push---so i did, and i saw my plug shoot out/my water broke.   this was all somewhat relieving because i was able to move into a different sensation that felt a little more proactive and controllable.   it's so strange how one minute you think the repeated crampy contractions feel like they're lasting forever, and then out of nowhere you have the urge to push.

i am skipping details of my birth story (which i will write about later) in order to only focus on the feelings in this post.

my labor was very short for a first baby (6 hours), and so ok----back to the pushing.    i tried squatting, side lying, sitting on the toilet, but ended up on my back in bed (the last place i wanted/envisioned).   i really needed to be able to be very well supported while pushing, because it takes extreme energy and focus.   i would have needed to be a body builder to hold onto my husband while squatting and trying to push---when i tried, all of the focus/energy was on just supporting my upper body, instead of on pushing, during a contraction...not good.

when you are in the pushing phase, you wait for a contraction to come on (they are happening approximately every 2 minutes at his point), and when it does, you want to be focused and ready.   you are in position (me on my bed with both legs jacked up--2 different people were holding them), and you feel the contraction/cramping coming on, so you take a deep breath and push like your life depends on it in a very focused area (this comes naturally).   i guess it could be compared to having a very constipated bowel movement with all of your abs and pelvic muscles engaged.   you get about 2-3 pushes in before the contraction ends and you have to wait for the next one.   some people push 5 minutes, i pushed 3.5 hours (which is HIGHLY unusual--i was distracted by vomiting and baby's foot kicking up under a rib causing sharp cramping).

here's the part no one talks about---when the baby's head is just reaching it's largest circumference at your vaginal opening, if you don't get it out during that push..........you just hang out (la-la-la) and wait a couple minutes until the next contraction.   i'm not gonna lie to you, this is when i was screaming bloody murder (and thought my neighbors might call the cops)---see photo above.   in the multitude of resources that i studied before birth, i never read about the huge head just sitting there while you wait 2 minutes for the next contraction to come on.  it is a hot, burning, stretching feeling.   i think it took me about 2-3 more contractions to get the head out.  after that, the rest of the baby's body is pie.   the doctor is in full effect helping glide the head and shoulders out gently.  my son's cord was wrapped around his neck, but this is not uncommon and not a problem unless it gets pinched somewhere (and restricts oxygen flow). the fetal heart monitor would have alerted us had there been a problem here.

once the baby is out, you are so awash in endorphins and oxytocin bliss, that the stitches (if you have to get any--i had 4 after a local novocaine shot) and the placenta coming out are like complete non-events. you basically do not feel them.  even the entire labor quickly vanishes from your mind.  it's the most bizarre and wonderful thing.

i must say that people probably do not talk about true labor details for 3 reasons: a. most do not have unmedicated births, b. you honestly do get amnesia about it, and c. it sounds scary.

i will write more later in how this was the most amazing experience of my life, and that i recommend it for anyone that is interested.

these are the positives of labor :

--you are in another dimension, so hours fly by in what feels like minutes
--the pain stops between contractions, so it is bearable
--your body naturally provides the endorphins you need to relieve you
--you know the pain will stop in the near future
--you are doing this to receive life's greatest gift (why should it be easy-breezy?)
--the pain is no where near as bad as society makes it out to be (my pain expectations were so high that i was relieved that it wasn't that bad)

as a comparison, i am having nerve pain in my arm right now and it is 100 times worse than natural childbirth.  particularly because it is non-stop, and i don't know if or when it will get better.

here is my stating-the-obvious disclaimer : this was my experience and everyone has a different one.