Baby Favourites

I haven't been very good about keeping up on this series but I did an order today and thought I would share. A good friend of ours introduced us to a great store in Toronto that has a super online catalogue. They carry children's clothing but our absolute favourites are their hats. Pk has inherited the family fair skin and so in the summer, hats are essential. I love the hats from Snug as a Bug because they are fully washable, come in a variety of styles and sizes and are sized fairly generously (for our family's large heads). They have a large selection of everything from a moderate shade hat to SPF 50 beach hats that will cover up wonderfully. Pk has the one below in white and pink and we have just ordered her the next size in each for the next several years as well (since the sizes are generous, they last us longer), while the 20% off sale is on. I can't praise these enough and best of all, they are made here!

They also have a great selection of rainwear and outerwear. We bought these boots last year and they have been WONDERFUL. The liners are removable so for fall and spring, they are a rubber rain boot and with the lining in, they make a cozy winter boot. Definitely worth the money!

Enjoy!

Happy Memorial Day!

I hope that my American friends have had a meaningful day. I sometimes have some mixed feelings about the reasons for war but I would never, ever, ever, ever take away from the courage of those who face such danger. I can't imagine what those people face and the worry of their families. Thank you for your courage and sacrifice.

I don't know how to embed a video but this link is worth watching.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYlrrAWCTRg

Recipe Round-Up

This week has been a week of wonderful cooking. I tried several new recipes that are definitely going to be staples around here from now on.

The first was sometime that I usually wouldn't make but for some reason, this recipe caught my fancy and it was DELICIOUS. I have gotten some yummy recipes from Cooking During Stolen Moments and if you like quiche, this is a no-brainer. This Sausage and Spinach Quiche was fantastic and easy to make. I chose to make my own pastry (I don't like store bought, I find it really salty - I use the recipe that my mom and grandma always used and it works for me). Everyone here loved this!

Another nice recipe I tried was this Creamy Crockpot Chicken which I found via Michele at Frugal Granola. It was yummy, didn't involve many ingredients, the house smelled lovely and the ingredients were all fresh and healthy. This is another keeper!

Another really yummy recipe I tried this week was this hummus recipe from Hallee at Hallee the Homemaker, who I met through the UBP this year. Obviously, hummus is easy to buy at the store but since I am trying to avoid processed food and unnecessary ingredients, throwing together my own hummus is a no-brainer. What I really liked about this one is that it is really lemon-y. I find that hummus can be really yummy or really bland - I always thought the difference was garlic but while this one isn't all that garlic-y, the lemon-y kick makes it really, really good. I also got a nice idea and used this hummus in a wrap. Lindsay at Passionate Homemakers had a great post of healthy lunch ideas (lunch always stumps me!) and one suggestion was a mediterranean platter put together into a pita or wrap. I did a whole wheat wrap with tomatoes, hummus and black olives - it was amazing!

Finally, tomorrow at church, we are doing our monthly fellowship lunch and this month, our theme is sandwiches. We are trying to avoid the usual and go for some that are a little bit more interesting. I have tried these recipes and they seem like they have worked really well -

pimento cheese spread from Canadian Living

tuna olive salad from Canadian Living

Veggie wraps from Frugal Granola

Happy eating!

Status Update

I have been meaning to write a post about where we are with the baby but I have been pretty stress-y about it lately and actually sitting down and writing has been something I just couldn't seem to bring myself to do. It's time.

First of all, it looks like all is well, at least at this point. Nothing has been critical but I have hit the stage where the little things do creep up and I turn into a nervous wreck. All was easy until the 28 week mark when I switched from my GP to my o.b. The o.b. is nice but his is a very, very busy practice and he is very much a "dot the i's and cross the t's" kind of man (which is a good thing, in the long run but it means that I have had more tests than I did with Pk and tests always terrify me). My first appointment with him, I was getting my glucose test results and since a number of people had gotten pleasure from telling me how huge I was, I became very afraid that I had gestational diabetes. I went to the appointment and I could feel the near-panic attack start as soon as I walked in the door. Of course, the sugar test results were fine but my b.p. was off the scale since I was afraid. I told him that I have white coat but that resulted in having to go for a non-stress test at the hospital a few days later.

Obviously, if you know me, the n.s.t. was enough to really set me off. The baby responded beautifully (he is active as anything). I hate being on a monitor and to be totally honest, I didn't like the nurse at all that I was dealing with. She hooked me up, walked away and disappeared for 45 minutes, leaving me on my back (am I the only pregnant women who really suffers from being on my back after a certain point???). By the time she came to take my b.p., I was sore, grouchy and feeling terrible. Of course, it was borderline again. Ugh. The only thing that made me feel better was that when I saw my naturopath later that week, when I was feeling calm, it was 112/72 (not exactly high).

It didn't go any higher so my o.b. began to see that yes, it is stress and yes, I do seem to have what borders on a panic attack going into his office. I know, it's totally stupid but I know that I am definitely not the only woman who suffers from this. Anyway, we seemed to be in a fairly good place with all of this until last week (a week ago Thursday). B.p. was fine that appointment but baby decided to go from measuring slightly above normal for size to being at least 5, if not 6 or 7 cm larger than he should be). I was beside myself because Pk was no small baby (9 lbs, 1 oz) and her size was an issue at the end (mainly because they had me so scared that she was going to be 12 lbs that my b.p. started to climb - see the pattern here???). I ended up being sent last Friday for a 2 hour glucose test (I am quite proud of myself - 3 blood draws in two hours and I didn't bat an eyelash). I also needed an ultrasound but wasn't able to do that until yesterday. As you can imagine, at Thursday's appointment, when I was nervous about the test results, my b.p. went super high again. Good news is that my sugar test results were great and after being asked to lie down and think boring thoughts for 20 minutes, b.p. was back down to 120/70 but I was given the choice of having to go for another N.S.T. (which I am sure would lead to induction since I HATE being on a monitor and on my back) or buying a b.p. cuff and taking it at home. I think you can guess what I opted for - I am supposed to start taking my b.p. today.

The last hurdle was the ultrasound and I will be forever grateful to God that it went the way that it did. I don't know about you but my experience with them has been that 1. they never tell you anything which is really scary and leads me to walk away trying to read into everything they say and 2. at least later in a pregnancy, I get really, really, really sore after them. I was dreading going yesterday but the woman doing it was wonderful and I don't know why but she shared everything with me. Yes, it is a boy for sure, his heartrate is 136 which is right in normal range, he is very active, his head is down and at the moment, his back is to my left side. He is larger than average but still totally within normal perimeters (when she measured his head, she told me that while it is slightly larger than average, it will be no problem for delivery) and she even showed me his size on a graph (without giving actual weights) and pointed out that while he is above the average line, he is not anywhere near where he would be if he was huge. She said that everything looks good. I cried with relief. At this point last week, I was wondering whether I should schedule a c-section and be done with it. Now, I have some confidence that I will make it.

Overall, I am o.k. Because of the ultrasound yesterday, I am extremely sore and spent much of the night dealing with hip and back pain and wondering whether it was pre-labour but this morning, I just feel tired and achy. I have to say, I don't know whether this is a boy thing but I am being hammered, especially in the evening (to the point that once I lie in bed, I end up getting up and going and reading in the rocker for an hour, just to see if I can get him to settle). Another benefit of the ultrasound is knowing that he is head down because he is hammering so badly on my cervix when he gets going that it feels as if he is trying to kick his way out. I don't remember being this sore from the movement with Pk but at least I know he is well.

So, now you know my sorry, pathetic tale. Say a prayer for me or cross your fingers. I haven't done my b.p. yet this morning because my naturopath told me that it might be higher after a night of very poor sleep. I am going to have a lot to drink, try to catch my breath and see where we are at. I feel so silly and stupid for all the worry about my b.p. If you have any suggestions, I would love to hear them because it seems to be something that I just can't seem to control.

Summer is Here

I love summer. It's the biggest incompatibility between dh and I - he LOATHES heat and humidity whereas I don't mind it at all. I should probably qualify that - when I lived in the city, I hated the smog and the dirty feeling of the heat - the way that the concrete bakes and you feel like you like in an oven. When we moved out, I learned to truly love summer. I love the hum of what I think are grasshoppers and crickets, the warm, damp smell that rolls over you and I can't walk by a tree on a hot day without wanting to sit in its shade and enjoy feeling warm.

Typical for Ontario weather, we didn't waste a lot of time with spring. We tend to do that - cold, cold, cold, HOT, cold, hot... we don't seem to specialize in moderate. I read several wonderful English blogs and I get so envious of their March blog posts about gardens and outings... we don't have that but when summer comes, it comes. Today, the temperature, last I heard, was a balmy 32 degrees. Now, being 9 months pregnant that could be a bit of a problem but given that we have air conditioning (a non-negotiable condition of dh's when we bought our house), I really get to live the best of both worlds. I can enjoy the warmth outside and come in and be cool and sleep in a wonderfully moderate bedroom. The house is a bungalow which is a plus - it is very easy to maintain in terms of temperature, especially with the ceiling fan in the bedroom. I used to find it much harder when we lived in the city and the second storey of the house was always significantly hotter than the first, no matter what we did.

This morning, I got to enjoy one of the best elements of summer. My friend lives on a farm. They have almost 100 acres and while they lease the land out to a neighbour for crops, they have full run of the place. This morning, I took the dogs up for a run. It was 8 o'clock and the air had the hint of the heat to come but the grass was still wet with dew and by the time we were done our walk, the dogs were soaked and had the smell of morning - I don't know how to describe it. It isn't a nasty "wet dog" kind of smell at all, rather a slightly pollen-y, damp smell that is just so satisfying.

Even the light shining through our tree out front showed that hint of the heat of the day to come but to me, beckoned one to sit awhile and read.

I am rambling but fairly soon, I doubt there will be much rambling time. I love this time of year and being off right now and a bit lazy, I don't think it could get much better. It is such a treat to get a chance to savour the beauty of the light, the warmth and the heavenly smells.

Tuesdays Unwrapped

The cavalry has arrived and it is such a relief! We live fairly far from close friends and family and while we have some friends in town, they aren't the close friends with which I would feel o.k about leaving Pk once I went into labour - not because these friends are reliable (they are wonderful!) but because either they have their hands full with their own families or because Pk just hasn't had much time away from us, especially for an overnight. I am not very good at asking for help, especially in a case where I may be asking you to take my child for 24 hours (or longer). My mom arrived Sunday and is going to stay until after the baby is born. I can't tell you what a relief that is. Knowing that Pk is safely being cared for by someone with whom she is very comfortable and who knows the routines, etc. is more of a relief than I can say. Thanks, Mum!

Happy Victoria Day

Victoria Day, otherwise referred to as the May 24 weekend, is a Canadian institution. It is much more a symbol of the beginning of the summer than the official start of the season. It's a terrible weekend for driving as everyone who has any access goes off to a cottage or camping and the few who remain at home usually spend the weekend gardening (at least locally, this is seen as the first weekend that is guaranteed to be frost-free).

In some ways, this weekend is wasted in our home. Dh is NOT a fan of heat, of bugs or of being without a/c and it would certainly appear that Pk is much like her daddy - she likes to be outside but insists that all bugs must be removed and while she doesn't mind getting dirty, she wants to be clear a.s.a.p.

I was very grateful today that dh was willing to, as an act of love, go with us to the beach. We have taken Pk before but she didn't seem to remember. I think she is in love. She built sandcastles with Gran, gradually gained enough confidence to let us take her shoes off and let the water "tickle her toes" which eventually led to splashing and jumping in the lake. It was a wonderful way to spend part of the day. I personally could spend my entire life beside water so it was a nice treat for me. I hope that baby is fairly cooperative because I would love to spend some of the summer at the beach!