Prepping For a New Change

Happy Monday! 

I'm excited to let you all know that we are prepping to switch over to a WordPress blog. I am not too computer savvy, so it is taking longer than I'd like, but I'm so excited to have a more clean and crisp blog site that will truly represent what we are trying to accomplish and share to all our readers.When I say "I", I mean Justin is working hard with the computer tech-y stuff and I'm gratefully putting in my input on design and set-up. ;)

Who knew setting up a more professional blog could be so complicated with different hosting sites, domain names, and basic set ups?!

I am mentioning this because I plan to take anywhere from three weeks to a month hiatus off my weekly Monday posts in order to spend my time finishing up the new blog and not stressing over having enough time with taking care of Cedric and making sure I still get some sleep at night!

We ALL know sleep is major for keeping your health and immune system high.  

Oh sleep, how whimpy and miserable I feel without you. I have not seen much of it the last three weeks. Cedric is working on five, yes five upper teeth right now, and we have been on and off sleep for going on almost four weeks. I always know I am experiencing extreme sleep deprivation when besides spinning headaches, I can tell that my immune system drops drastically and little illnesses and body issues arise. A few days ago I got a clogged milk duct. *OUCHIE.* Of course one main reason for getting them is lack or sleep and fatigue. Go figure. Luckily I caught it early on (with the help of my nurse friend Courtney!) and got that under control.

Yes, I have tried everything holistic and natural to help Cedric sleep, but in the end, it seems like letting him be comforted by the sweet nectar of nursing is the most helpful these days. And I am okay with that minus being displeased with not getting adequate sleep.

The stuff that have semi been working are the *Hyland's teething tablets before bed, during the day I use these Munchkin mesh holders that are perfect for putting frozen berries or breastmilk in to help numb the area as they suck on them. I do use an amber teething necklace, still not sure if it does what everyone swears by, but I figured if it helps even relieve some of the pain, I'll keep using it. Problem is I take it off at night for safety and that's when he usually has his biggest pain issues. While baby Tylenol is an option, I've opted to stick with the natural approaches.

So all that put together is my reasoning of a needed blog break to recuperate and finish off the new site. When I am sleep deprived, I have NO desire or creative drive to do anything but go on survival mode and take care of my baby and try to sleep when the opportunities arise.

I am extremely excited for the upcoming new blog design and a return to a normal sleep schedule when Cedric produces a toothy grin. He is SO close!  I will keep you all updated when the new site is up and I will have a fun new blog launch giveaway to get it all started! I'm in between doing a kombucha starter kit or giving away a really insightful, need-to-own book, Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook That Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats.  It would be great if you weighed in on what one you would rather me do as a giveaway!

Can't wait for it all to be finished!

Until next time...

Here's a sneak peek of the start of our new design!
The logo:

*Yes, in 2010 they were recalled, but they have changed their ingredients a bit, and I believe it to be a safe product. Belladonna is not an issue ingredient in the serving size quantity and actually acts to help ease the inflammation and pain. Of course, use at your own judgement for your children.

He's Growing Up So Fast

Confession time.

I am the mom who thought it was ridiculous that other moms teared up when their baby outgrew their newborn clothes, who reminisced over all the newborn firsts, dreaded their baby's first haircut, and never wanted their babies to mature.
I never knew much about taking care of a newborn/baby before researching and taking care of my own baby boy. It is crazy how much love and selflessness you feel as you hold your newborn for the first time and go through the "4th trimester". A lot comes naturally from the start, but a lot is also learned as new hurdles arrive with each stage of growth.

I've realized I'm not a huge baby person.

I know, that sounds terrible. I told you it was confession time. I am so excited for when Cedric can start walking, talking, and playing games with my husband and me. To really be able to interact with him will be so fun. To feel his reciprocal love with kisses and I Love Yous is when the tears will start coming to my eyes. It doesn't help that my husband is even more excited for getting past the baby stage. He will be such a remarkable Dad who will interact and support Cedric once he gets to talking and playing. I think it is hard for new dads to know what to do with a baby when a lot of the time they just cry for and need mama.

Okay, after confessing all that and sounding like a terrible mom, I have a NEW CONFESSION.

I am transforming into that weird-sentimental-crazy-emotional-mother. I am still extremely excited for Cedric's growth and maturation, but seeing how fast he has developed in these last eight months is a ridiculous wake up call!

Time really does fly by. 

 

Yes, the little man turned eight months on February 2nd. How is that possible that in a little more than four months my 7 pound newborn will be a year old?! (and definitely not 7 pounds anymore) I blinked and he is a toddler now, or at least he desires to be a little walking toddler.

Since the beginning I have really tried to grasp the whole "even if it's hard, cherish each and every moment of your baby's development,"and I do, but when you are so tired and the weeks continuously fly by, its hard to not start freaking out that time is flying by TOO drastically fast. 

I now find myself when he is peacefully napping (which is still a struggle some days) just staring at him and reminiscing about the many times in his '4th trimester' when he wouldn't fall asleep unless on me. I used to think that was so frustrating and time-consuming. Now looking at him sleep so peacefully all by himself, with his thumb, I have this crazy maternal desire to grab him up and convince him to nap on me.

Another time I feel this why is when I am breastfeeding. Cedric and I have always had a good, easy relationship with breastfeeding, which I am SO grateful for; I would almost call it an addiction of his. Justin and I did not want to introduce a pacifier, so naturally the nipple was his pacifier. I used to get SO upset, not necessarily towards him, but more of how tired I would become, every time Cedric would scream for the breast. Now (I don't know if it's from being a little more rested or what), on the nights he really cries multiple times for feedings, after I blink away the sleep exhaustion, I cannot help but stare and caress his head as he takes utmost comfort in gently sucking back to sleep. I can only explain it as magical, and makes me feel so needed and wanted.

Now, he is at this age where once exhausted, he gets extremely snuggly and close. He will whine for me to hold him close (his whines sound like 'mama's; how am I supposed to deny that?!) and he'll put his thumb in his mouth and rest his head on my chest.

I never knew of the indescribable amount of love I could feel from that little sign of 

needing me close.

It is a feeling I never want to cease; yet I know the near future will bring him wanting nothing to do with snuggles, but more of wrestling with Daddy and getting messy in mud. I know he will only grow to love me more, as he matures and can comprehend what love really means, but I know I won't always have the cuddles and close moments. And I will miss that.

Guess I am torn in between being stuck in this close, lovey stage of a world wrapped around mama and dreaming of the time when he will be able to say "I love you, Mama". I will stick with trying to get back to the recommendation; the here and now; the present moment. Let me soak in each second I have with my eight-month-old: the good moments and the struggles. Let me jot down the silly moments or the endearing ones, so that I can always cherish them, yet still be able to take the next day and appreciate the maturing little boy Cedric will develop into.

Hold him a little longer,
Rock him a little more.Tell him another story
(You've only told him four).
Let him sleep on your shoulder,
Rejoice in his happy smile.
He is only two and a half
For such a little while.

 Author: Unknown

Making an Effort With Your Husband After Having a Baby

Justin and I had a talk. I ended up crying and saying I missed him. Its like we were with each other these last eight months, but I did not feel we were really with each other. It is so hard when you have to give, give, give to a baby, to be able to focus on anything else. In the back of my head I knew Justin already knew I loved him, hey, I had said my I Dos to him on our wedding day. I knew if I had to focus only on Cedric that was okay. The problem is not being able to really talk to each other without Cedric getting fussy or needing me to put my attention on him. That really started putting space between our day to day relationship. Does not help when you are tired and have no energy to really put effort in as well.

I love how my mother has always described marriage and family. Put your husband and your relationship before your kids, in doing so you will show them parents who are one flesh and who are truly in love and honoring each other. This puts security in the family, that kids will see their parent's bond and know that this family will last in the long run. I am hoping it will also install in them the same desire and respect for their future spouses as it did to my siblings and me. Of course by no means ignore your children! Definitely at this baby stage where they need continuous help and attention. It can make putting each other first extremely difficult.

 Ephesians 5:33  "Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband."

In order to help, we decided for a weekly date (even if it was only an hour and half long), we NEEDED this. Getting out for lunch or a coffee date, only the two of us, and just date each other. Flirt a little, talk about each others feelings or dreams of the future, and act silly and in love. This could also be a time to place aside the worries of everyday life and the necessities that need to get accomplished, and enjoy each other. Focus one on one. Make each other feel important.

Our first date was at our local farm-to-table Italian restaurant. Napizza, "green-certified, no chemicals or preservatives, local farmers and suppliers, local ingredients, highly digestible, in-house nutritionalist." 'Nuff said. As you may know I'm gluten-free, so I'm not usually one for pizza, but they make an amazing gluten-free pizza, and if your not gluten-free, they specialize in an easy to digest, 72-hour-rise pizza dough that's amazing. If you're ever in San Diego, there are three locations to choose from. Sorry for the tangent, but we are foodies, and its hard not to get so excited about really well prepared, delicious food.

We had met up at the location since Justin had been out of the house already. When I got to the restaurant, being the ridiculously cheesy couple we are, Justin stretched out his hand and pretended to meet me for our 'first date'.

Yes, I love our weirdness. 

It was so nice to eat our lunch snuggled next to each other not having to worry about making sure the baby was not falling out of the high chair and fed, and to just talk. It wasn't anything romantic or charming, but the company of the two of us was so needed. After lunch and finishing our CrossWord puzzle we used to always do together (I like Tuesdays since I can actually guess some answers), we walked hand and hand to get coffee (and tea for the hubs).

When we were dating, we loved going into home stores and walking down the isles envisioning what our decor would some day be for our own home. We walked into World Market and relived those moments. As many of my readers already know, we are in a limbo year staying at my in-law's house, so we don't have our own home. It was cute and dreamy going back to those dating days and looking at things we would love to decorate our own home in the hopeful near future.

As we both walked to our cars we said our "goodbyes" and that we should really have a second date (there goes the cheese again). I could tell Justin was feeling light-hearted. Our date, only two hours long, had been that refreshing thing our marriage had needed.

Another thing we promised in helping our relationship was doing more as a family of three.

Most of the time if I had Cedric, Justin was working on school or working out, then I would pass him off to Justin as I took a moment to sit and reboot by myself. 

We knew this was not how we planned to raise our family, being split up. As I had mentioned earlier, I want our kids to discover love and devotion from their parents. So we decided to take an evening family hike. 

After having the pizza I felt I needed a little more exercise. 

It was great to still be on our "date day" but having our loved little munchkin along for the ride too. And Cedric is always happy to be outside... with a stick in his hand.

I really encourage you, if you are new to parenting, or just haven't had the time to spend one-on-one time with your husband, make time. Period. No excuses. Your husband and your kids will thank you, and you will thank yourself! 

Have you noticed a difference in your relationship when kids came into the picture? How did you make it work for you and your spouse? 

The Importance of Child Spacing

     You find yourself a boyfriend. You get pretty serious after a year or two of dating. "When are you gonna get married?" family and friends ask. You end up planning the big day and get married. Seems like only seconds after the 'I Dos', you're getting asked, "when are you going to have a baby?" Eventually, when the time is right for you, out pops baby number one. What question do the ever curious deem appropriate for the next part of your life? "When is baby number two going to come? How far apart do you want them to be?"

Child Spacing.

     Most often, conversations about child spacing are more time-based depending on convenience for the parents, or trying to figure out when it will be good to introduce baby #1 to a new sibling. Both are important factors to consider when thinking about trying for your next baby, but there is one factor I consider more important about child spacing: your (as a mother) health and nutrient levels in your body. 

        I was reading my go-to book for all things pregnancy and childcare related, The Nourishing Traditions Book of Baby & Child Care by Sally Fallon Morell and Thomas S. Cowan, and noticed a chapter called “Child Spacing.” I was like, ooh! Wonder if they will tell me interesting, non-hormonal natural birth control methods to complement what I have studied in another favorite book of mine, Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler. Weschler's book does talk a lot about natural methods, but most of the chapter looks at other cultures and their reasoning for having large spacing between children and how they achieve it.
        Most examples were of tribes among the South Seas, Africa, and South America. They've believed in child spacing so much that women had to stay away from the men while nursing (for three to five years) and completely abstain from sexual intercourse to ensure not getting pregnant until the time was right. This practice allowed the mothers adequate time to replenish their nutrition storage which then insured that every child born into their community was robust and healthy! I then scoured the internet on health websites, and they all pointed to the same conclusion: Space out a minimum of two years between trying to get pregnant again. This is extremely beneficial for the mother, the new baby being formed in her body, and her first born.

 I kept being shocked that I had never heard about the huge importance of child spacing before. 

Your mom bod 
      When you are pregnant, you give all your best nutrients to the developing baby inside you. Luckily with your first, if you have been healthy, you have plenty of stored nutrients to share with your baby and keep enough for your own health. By the end of the ninth month, even after eating a rich, dense diet, you are still going to be depleted in the full amount of vitamins and minerals needed to be at your full potential health.
        Anywhere from 6-18 months after having a baby, there are many potential risks on your body. Vitamin A is extremely important to avoid birth defeats. Nourishing Traditions shows the example of a European study that found one-third of women with short birth intervals had borderline deficiencies in retinol (Vitamin A). There are many statistics that show women who get pregnant right away (after having a child) have a hard time making it to full term, often going into labor before 37 weeks. It also can cause uterine ruptures and third trimester bleeding. With the depletion of vitamins and nutrients, more postpartum depression is more common and increased stress issues. No mother wants all that going on in her own self when she already has a baby to take care of!
The baby inside you   
       It makes sense that if you are going to be having many issues with being low in nutrients, that it will be forwarded to your developing baby in your womb. If there is not a large storage of vitamins and minerals, your baby won't be able to develop to their healthiest and full size. Going into labor prematurely usually means the baby comes out underweight and which can cause them to get sick more frequently then full-term babies. Babies born premature are at a larger risk of having disabilities, developing autism, asthma, and behavior problems as they grow. They also will not receive as fatty and nutritional mother's milk which is needed to build their immune system and set them up for success in the rest of their lives.
Your older child/children 
       Lastly, you must think about the baby you already have. The biggest issue the older sibling(s) have if another comes right after, is the need to stop breastfeeding so that the mother's body can focus what nutrition she DOES have left on the growing baby inside her. But as science has with-out-a-doubt proven, breastfeeding is HUGELY impactful to your baby's health and growth. Dr. Sears has the perfect reasons on why you should at least strive to breastfeed until two years (which is what I plan on accomplishing):

"The brain grows more during the first two years of life than any other time, nearly tripling in size from birth to two years of age. It's clearly a crucial time for brain development, and the intellectual advantage breastfed babies enjoy is attributed to the "smart fats" unique to mom's breast milk (namely, omega-3 fatty acid, also known as DHA). From head to toe, babies who breastfeed for extended periods of time are healthier overall. They tend to have leaner bodies with less risk of obesity. They also have improved vision, since the eye is similar to the brain in regards to nervous tissue. They have better hearing due to a lower incidence of ear infections..."

       And it keeps going on about other benefits. This is not a post about why you should breastfeed, but I think solidifies the essential reason to aim on spacing out your children for the benefit of your first born, and then for each one to come. 

So how do I not get pregnant right after my ovulation cycle starts up again?       

      Many women who've just had a baby go back on the Pill. But here's the problem: Going back on the Pill between pregnancies will deplete you of all the key nutrients for your next healthy pregnancy even more. Some of the most critical nutrients including folic acid, vitamin B, vitamin C, and zinc will be affected by the xenoestrogens (fake estrogen) and other man-made hormones released by the Pill. Besides physical health, these nutrients are key to a baby's intellectual development. Drug companies actually have to include a note saying you should avoid conceiving a baby within 6 months of using the Pill. Another huge problem with taking the Pill is its depletion of gut flora ( healthy bacteria) causing digestive problems for mother and baby. Babies are higher at risk of having bad acid reflux and spitting up. If a woman has been on the Pill, there is hope! Consuming rich foods high in vitamin A and E, vitamin B, essential fatty acids, magnesium and zinc with help get your body back on track. Also lots of probiotic foods such as yogurts, kefir, and sauerkraut will help rebuild your good bacteria and flora. That is one of the reasons I love making my kombucha to keep that good fermented healthy bacteria entering my body and into my baby's growing body. 

       So you're discouraged. You aren't supposed to get pregnant one after the other, but you're not allowed to use the Pill to prevent another pregnancy, let alone any other birth control that uses fake hormones. You aren't in a crazy tribe that makes you abstain and be shunned from your husband (reference to the Nourishing Traditions book) so how do you do it? 

     The chapter ends with saying how in our culture and modern times, no one wants to abstain for years, and I do not think that is healthy is your marriage as a couple, so they recommend Fertility Awareness Method, which I have read in detail how to do it. As I said early, I recommend getting a copy of Taking Charge of Your Fertility. I learned so much about my body and cycle through that book. It made me feel confident and informed about how to take care of my body and watch the different signs of each month's cycle. The method is actually 95% effective even though it always gets flack from people judging its method. I think a lot of people think of it as Family Planning Method, but the Fertility Awareness involves four different chartings/checks you do daily which help you perfect reading and knowing your body's cues when to have sex or when you need to use a barrier for protected intercourse.

*Full Disclosure* I was on this method when I got pregnant five months into my marriage. I do not blame the method at all though. We were still newlyweds, and we knew we were in the "unknown/not safe zone" of my cycle, but did the unwise choice to not use a barrier that time around. If you are going to behave and stick to the charting to a tee, I truly believe you can have success!

   

    Another huge part of succeeding in the Fertility Awareness method is the support and help of your husband. He needs to be on board with supporting you to chart and help reminding you to take your temperature everyday. He also needs to be mindful of when you tell him the days to be aware and not just jump into unprotected love making, but its really only 30% of days in the month, and if you have a kid already, it is not like you have the time nor energy to get it on that often anyways... ;)

    

       On the off chance that I do get pregnant sooner then I'd like, I have been making sure to get lots of healthy fats, vitamins, minerals, and oils into my body to replenish all that has been given to Cedric. I also am making sure I do not over do my exercise to the point where I burn all my fat. Yes, I, like so many other women, who look in the mirror and aren't pleased with the 10-20 pounds of extra weight, but I know it is EXTREMELY healthy and beneficial to be around 10 pounds over weight when breastfeeding and prepping for the next baby. If you want your milk to be high in good fats for your baby's weight and brain development, keep up those good fats and oils! I try to consume at least 2-3 tablespoons of coconut oil a day for Cedric and me, along side things like fermented col liver oil and ghee or organic butter.

Have you heard of the nutrient side of child spacing? Have you tried natural methods of birth control? Hope this has encouraged you whether planning your first or 5th child!  

Stevia-Sweetened Puppy Chow Recipe

         As most of you who follow my blog know, I have vowed to go at least a year without sugar, but with my sweet tooth, that pledge is so hard to keep. Thank God for the stevia plant. That healthy, calorie-free, no sugar natural sweetener. Countries all over the world have been using stevia in cooking for hundreds of years. While America usually finds these health remedies decades after everyone else has already been implementing them, at least we are jumping on the stevia band wagon instead of sticking to our good ol' corn syrup. Yes, that is sarcasm with having good and corn syrup in the same sentence. I will be having an informative fun facts post on stevia in the near future!
       I love looking at delicious, naughty dessert recipes I crave and trying my own healthy take on it. The other day Justin was reminiscing how good puppy chow was. We stopped and day-dreamed about the deliciousness for a moment, then looked at each other. "Why don't we just make our own variation.*light bulb* I know we can!" So if you haven't had puppy chow before, it's a real simple recipe and you usually have most of the ingredients in your pantry already.

All it takes is some sort of Chex cereal, peanut butter, chocolate chips, butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar. As you can see with these ingredients, it doesn't
quite fit my sugar-free diet.
We also do not eat peanut products, so we had to really figure out how to tweak the recipe but keep true to the yummy flavor profile the mix creates. Once you have put it all together, you get these cute little powdered handfuls of yumminess. hmmmmm....

   BUT THEN I FIGURED OUT A VERSION JUST AS DELICIOUS!

So I looked at every ingredient and figured out a substitute. Okay, full-disclosure, this recipe is 98% sugar-free, I figured that is close enough to my pledge of sugar-free-ness! Can't always have perfection on these things!

We did a Sprouts Market run looking for a sugar-free, gluten-free crunchy cereal alternative to regular Chex cereal. We couldn't find square shaped cereal that met our needs, so we found these Whole O's that actually worked good! It is "slightly sweetened", but it's only 4 grams of sugar for 2/3 cup and half that sugar is pomegranate juice not just cane sugar. You of course can use any variation of cereal you want, depending on your preference of ingredients.
 *we had tried this recipe before using popcorn, I do not recommend it, it got soggy! And half the fun of these is the good crunch texture that lasts.*
    As I said we do not use peanut butter in our house. We usually use raw almond butter, but lately we have really been getting into sunflower butter. There is this really subtle sweet note that you can get with sunflower butter that is slightly reminiscent of peanut butter. So that was the nut butter of choice for us to use for a sweet dessert. It is also nice that sunflower butter is like half the price of raw almond butter. We used the MaraNatha brand since it doesn't contain added sugar unlike most sunflower butters.
     The chocolate chip alternative was really easy, just use 100% unsweetened cooking chocolate and you are ready to go. Since I was at Sprouts, I grabbed the Guittard brand they had that came in a three pack of 2oz bars. Can't say unsweetened chocolate has the best flavor, SO BITTER, so when I melted it, I made sure to add a few packets of stevia to make it "chocolate chippy" tasting.

Lastly, since you sprinkle your puppy chow with a powdered sugar coating, I used the Truvia Brown Sugar blend we had. It, as its name suggests, is a thick brown sugar texture, so I put it in our magic bullet, and once blended, took on a nice powdery texture. If you look at the nutrition facts, it's not 100% sugar-free, but 1 gram from a tiny bit of sugar and molasses is pretty small. I totally recommend trying this stevia brown sugar when wanting to make 'sugar-free' chewy cookies like snickerdoodles. Makes them SO yummy without the guilt! So now that you have all the Family As You Go alternatives, let's look at the EXTREMELY simple recipe directions!

Stevia-Sweetened Puppy Chow

Author: Family As We Go
Recipe type: snack
Cook time: 15 minutes
Serves: matter how much you snack! 

Ingredients

• 12 ounce box of cereal (i.e. Nature's Path Whole O's or Chex squares)
• 2 tbls sunflower butter (or any nut butter of choice)
• 1/2-1 tbls butter
• a dash of vanilla 
• 4 oz unsweetened chocolate 
• 3 stevia packets
• 2 tsp Truvia brown sugar (or other stevia powder blend)

Instructions 

1. In a double broiler, add the chocolate, nut butter, and butter to melt. 
2. Blend the brown sugar in a magic bullet, food processor, or coffee blender, until powdery.
3. Once melted, add the 3 packets of stevia and vanilla and mix.
4. Pour your cereal in a large mixing bowl.
5. Once all your melted ingredients are mixed thoroughly, pour over your cereal. 
6. Use a large spoon and gently fold the chocolate mixture until it is evenly distributed on the cereal.
7.  Sprinkle the powdered sugar over the cereal and gently stir until evenly distributed. 
8. Store in a large ziplock bag or airtight container.

Hope you get the opportunity to try your own variation of this recipe! It's an easy, delicious snack for you and your kids when you are craving something sweet and crunchy.

Have you tried alternating recipes into healthier versions for your family? Do you use stevia as a sweetener substitute?