First month

First month already done. Baby is the size of a poppy seed. Brain is being developed as I type this. I never got to enjoy this part the first time around since I was already 9-10 weeks pregnant when I found out. I also never got to deal with the "uncertainty" of the first 12 weeks. I'm definitely not sad I missed out on this part last year.

Since we had been trying for a while, we were both very eager to find out. I was blessed with irregular cycles so that means I have taken about 20 HPT since the fall (thank goodness for Costco!). And finally, with some stability, SUCCESS! We have always questioned our decision to either tell friends of not. And since Keegan will be sailing for the majority of the next several months, if I were to have any issues, I would need support from friends and family. We wont be announcing it on Facebook anytime soon but are definitely letting most people know.

Since we now need to start getting Abigail`s "big sister" room ready, I have decided to crochet a big beautiful afghan for her room. A fellow pregnant military wife in my neighbourhood has agreed to show me how! With summer break fast approaching, nesting can start early! Now if only this first trimester cold could go away...

My very first "Wordless Wednesday"

Wish I blogged more often

I truly admire you guys who blog on a regular basis. I wrote 6 posts back in August and once in December but other than that, nothing. Maybe I shouldn't over think it and just write shorts posts. Short posts are better than nothing right?! I would love to be able to put at least one out a week. Is that too much? Juggling work and home has filled my day to the brim. Wake up, get ready, work, make supper, try to entertain Abigail, then we all go to bed at the same time. Doesn't leave much time for anything else much less sit down and write about something.

And yet there is so much I could talk about! -Work. But I will actually stay away from that topic unless I want to risk my job. -Abigail. She is becoming so smart. Her vocabulary is expanding daily! -An update on my new year's resolutions. I have worked on them all! -My ever-expanding landscaping. Lots of new vegetables hopefully being added this year. -Eco-consciousness. All the little changes that we have made. -Complain. Well that topic list is unfortunately never ending.

Maybe I should start out with something really simple like posting a special picture once a week. Hopefully I will be pregnant soon since that will give me more options for a weekly post. Having 2 months off this summer should give me time to get into a routine. If you know of any other little topics that are easy to post about on a weekly basis, please share!

Bring on 2012

2011 has been a big year. Different from any other year. Not only did I go from "stay at home mom" to "working mom", but the way I want to live my life has changed as well. It feels like I'm being torn between the old and the new me. Hopefully my new year's resolutions will bring some peace to my inner chaos.

Stuff and stuff and more stuff! We have so much of it. And we don't even have as much as some people but it's enough to drive me up the wall. Our home doesn't have very much room for storage so most is out in the open or taking up valuable living space. We keep a lot of clothes, toys and stuff thinking that someday we will use it. I have actually returned some Christmas gifts I bought for A because we simply didn't need more stuff. From now on, quality instead of quantity. Time to purge and keep things as simple as possible.

Ever since I went back to work, we often find ourselves wondering at 5pm "What's for supper?" If I meal plan, I can be sure to have decent food in the house. We can cook more with real food instead of relying on processed ones. I would love to use local foods. This summer, I am hoping to expand our garden and to have more than simple tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce. Meal planning will allow me to take baby steps towards weeding out the bad and fuelling our bodies with better foods.

So far, I have cut out lots of chemicals in our home. We cloth diaper, I use baking soda and vinegar to clean mostly everything, and once something runs out, I try to replace it with a non-toxic version. My newest up-coming switch will be shampoo. I will give up washing my hair with a product full of ingredients that I can't pronounce. I will start rinsing my hair with baking soda and vinegar. Sounds ridiculous? It most definitely does but I have heard great things about it and I'm looking forwards to trying it out for myself!

Some people set resolutions that are impossible to attain. Hopefully mine wont be. To 2012, I say bring it!

Cancer sucks

It really does. You always hear about it. There's the terry fox run at school growing up, the whole livestrong and pink ribbon campaigns, stats showing nova scotians having ridiculous high numbers compared to the rest of the country... It never really affects you until it hits close to home and then you find out that it runs rampant in our families. By-product of our "modern" lives? There always seems to be a new product recalled for whatever cancer-causing reason. Number 1 reason why I try to live my life the simple way. I may not be able to control much, but what I can, I try to.

Mom had health issues for a bit and then months before my wedding, we finally found out she had the crappy cancer. She pushed her surgery until right after the wedding. 2 years later, it's back again somewhere else. They want to have surgery again but this time around, I was pregnant and ready to pop so she pushed surgery until after Miss A was born. Then the second part of her surgery was before Christmas. Now they say that it is back where it originally was as well as a new spot (spot # 5!). It seems to be never ending.

I normally try not to think of it too much. I don't let the bad things get to me and try to live life in a positive way. The passing of Jack Layton today kinda brings all the bad thoughts back. Ah well. I made sure to give Miss A extra big kisses tonight.

"My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world." -Jack Layton

17 months coming to an end :(

My last day of work was the Tuesday after Easter weekend 2010, almost 17 months ago. Those 17 months have gone by sooo fast! I spent the first month preparing for baby, spent the 2nd month taking care of new baby (I really don't remember anything from this time) and then have had a blast watching Miss A grow into the intelligent lady she is today. This momma has learnt a lot since then as well. I now realize how little I knew before Miss A came along but since her birth, I have learnt so much about the best things I can do for her.

I am living a much greener life than ever before. I am an avid recycler (even known to go through our garbage after guests have left to sort it properly) and am slowly getting rid of toxins in our home. Once the cleaning wipes, baby wipes and cleaners are gone, I wont buy any more of them. Cloth and a bottle of vinegar is all I need! I am also trying to use less and less plastic (bye bye humongous Tupperware cupboard!) since there seems to be more and more recalls due to crap leaving the plastic then going into our food. Whenever the next baby comes along, not only will they be cloth diapered as well but I may also invest in some glass bottles for when mommy needs some time away.

Prenatal class doesn't prepare you nearly enough for the upcoming adventures in breastfeeding. Many moms are told they should pump or feed formula as early as the first day because of supply issues. In most cases, it's all about supply and demand. When I thought she wasnt quite getting enough, I would simply feed more often. The more interventions there are, the more likely that things wont "work" out properly. Some wean early because they return to work or because the majority of North Americans believe it is not right to nurse passed a certain age. We will keep going as long as she wants to. Why would I take away what is proven to be best for her?

Cosleeping. I loved having her sleep next to me at night. It was a sad night when she slept in her crib for the first time. After several months of sleeping steady through the night, then some time of waking up for 2 hour play time at 2 am, we have now settled into a groove where if she sleeps the night, great! But for the most part, she will wake up once or twice during the night and if I can get to her right away, she can be back to sleep in a matter of minutes. I no longer make an issue of having to get up with her during the night. There is no point of stressing over something I really have no control over.

My whole world will drastically change in 2 weeks. I will no longer be a stay at home mom enjoying our mornings cuddling in bed or hanging out on the couch watching cartoons. I will be dropping her off at daycare and will not see her until many hours later when we will rush home, make supper, do bathtime then go to bed. I'm some glad I refuse to do school work at home since all my free time will be spent hanging out with Miss A who I will surely miss very much during the day. Since her daycare is literally down the hall from my classroom, how many times during the first week of work do you think I will go down just to spy on her?!

Car seat safety

Today, I volunteered at a rcmp road side car seat check. I hoped that it would be a very easy going afternoon and that everyone would do great but that definitely wasn't the case.

Some car seats were great. They had actually just gone through a very thorough inspection with St John's Ambulance so there was nothing for us to "fix". I had Miss A's seat inspected almost 2 months ago. Awesome learning experience. These parents were happy we were doing this road side check because they understood the importance of a properly installed seat. I even helped with a complete re installation. The dad was actually quite understanding and appreciative which was nice.

What I don't understand are those who knowingly use the wrong seats. In one case, the baby was obviously way passed the weight limit and she had the other seat but just preferred to use the bucket seat because it was easier to move it from car to car. Just because it's easier doesn't mean it's safe. There's a weight limit for a reason. One van even had 4 unbuckled kids because she jammed everyone in there to bring them to the beach! When the time comes and I have to drive any of Miss A's friends around, you can bet that they will either be in a correctly installed seat or they simply wont come in my car.

Most seats simply needed small fixes such as chest clip raised and straps tightened a bit. Unfortunately, the one thing that really surprised me was that not a single vehicle I saw had a child rear facing passed the age of 1. Some parents must see it as a milestone for their children and I do admit, a forward facing seat is WAY easier to fit in the car! The way I see it, 40 years ago, people normally didn't even bother buckling up when they were in a car. Eventually, research proved the added safety and it became law. Nowadays, it is generally accepted and people just do it. Hopefully parents will accept the research showing the importance of extended rear facing and it will eventually become law and just as accepted. Regardless, Miss A will remain rear facing until she reaches the weight limit of 45lbs for her seat and I encourage everyone to do the same :o)