Life as we call it

Yesterday was the most recent appointment with my midwife, and good news the baby grew! The measurement is still a little small but the 2cm improvement is a big one! Thanks for those who prayed and sent good thoughts for her not to be growth restricted! Other news on the appointment I elected not to take the group b strep test. Why would I elect not to take a test for a bacteria that is linked to serious illness in newborns? First because 0.5 percent of the women who have tested positive for GBS and delivered without treatment, had infants that became ill from it making that a rare occurrence. Second I'm doing a home birth so I don't have the use of intervening drugs be pushed on me, but that doesn't mean that the midwife could not administer the antibiotics through an IV during the birth process. Third I do not do well with antibiotics, as I've had a problem with sinus infections for most of my life and came to the discovery that the antibiotics given to me by the Doc. would make me more ill so that I could "feel better." Which means I got all of the side effects, lets add a little nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, extra dizziness, ect on to that sinus infection. Needless to say I decided to prefer to function better and get better by using homeopathic remedies and by doing this I also found the cause of the infections (something I sought from the doctors but they never wanted to diagnose) which was dust allergies.
However, with my reasons not to do the testing that does not mean I'm not taking natural preventative measures which Mary Lou has included in the birth booklet that she gives to her customers. These measures and the statistic above are referenced from Mothering Magazine, prevention can be done through the use of probiotics or the ingestion of fermented foods such as pickles, yogurt, kefir, miso and tempeh. Miso and tempeh are pretty frequent in my diet as well as



GT's Organic Raw Kombucha which really boosts my immune system, gives me energy, and is packed with the best vitamins for pregnancy, since most of the immune system boosting herbs I use are so are not to be used during pregnancy I have defaulted to this and yes it is safe for pregnancy. Garlic is also very effective at treating this as well which is something I include in nearly every meal.

The Impending Baby

Monday was my most recent appointment with Mary Lou (my midwife) and everything is great except the belly is measuring a bit small and it didn't show any growth from the last visit =/ So I had to set up another appointment with Dr. Rothbart to get an ultrasound done to see what exactly is going on with my little girl.
Fast forward to yesterday morning...The the ultrasound is done and she is measuring slightly small but not showing any growth restriction (although it could be the first signs of it) or problems with her getting nutrition. So I just pray that she is petite and that growth restriction is not the cause! Anyways no pics from the visit but I had my hubby get video enjoy.

Things of today

I had my midwife appointment today and things are all good the only thing is that the baby has not turned yet but that's not too much of an issue till my next visit. Which if she hasn't turned by then, I've got exercises to do to make her turn. Anyways yoga helps out with that too so I need to join a class by next week to help with that and the ever on going hip cramps. Also another thing that Mary Lou (my midwife) brought to my attention was potty training infants http://www.pottywhisperer.com/howitworks.html which I think is cost effective and eco friendly by not wasting water on washing cloth diapers or putting disposables in landfills. Really if a kitten can use a litter box why can't we teach an infant to use a toilet? Are we really dumber then a kitten as infants as toddlers? I would pray not, and the people who do that prove it.
Since I'm on an eco kick right now I'll go into a few of my ambitions with the home front. I really want to start composting since I cook nearly every day and with the rinds and extra bits going in the trash I feel bad because it can go for good use and on top of that it stinks up the house when the trash is opened. The biggest issue it that I don't have space outside to compost things so I'm looking into getting a NarureMill electric composter

I also want to start a little garden on my balcony for that compost to go to good use. Now for those who know me I have quite the brown thumb =( but for some crazy reason I think I can do this with the baby in the household. For starters I'm not going to be growing from seeds but I'm going to buy young "organically" grown plants from a new seller that I spied the other week when I went to the Saturday Santa Monica farmers market off of the 3rd Street Promenade. So the things I want to start growing are peas, blueberry's, tomatoes, and garlic. Then I'll move on to lemon and avocado trees, carrots, potatoes, and work on growing other things from seeds. Most of this push to make my brown thumb green is because of several agendas first being that I want to start juicing and growing ones own produce is highly cost effective since it takes a lot to make a little juice. My other agenda is that I think its a good thing to invest in my child's future by being able to teach her practical and useful knowledge like this. My third agenda is with the major corporation pushed consumerism mentality which is horrid for the environment.
Anyways I shall leave you with and image of fresh baked vegan chocolate chip banana bread!

A day in the life

Today was the second official appointment with the midwives of Beach Cities Birth Service Mary Lou and her backup midwife Ashley, who works out of Mary Lou's home as well. I really wanted Jason to meet Ashley so this was my second appointment mainly with her and the next one is with Mary Lou. The appointments are extremely relaxed and generally the same routine with a lot more care and respect. The general routine is pee in a cup and insert a strip that checks for protein (preeclampsia) and sugar (gestational diabetes) which showed up negative for both! Checked my weight which is 170.5 I gained a whole half a pound from the last visit. Next was getting the blood pressure checked which turned up good as usual. Then Ashley checked the positioning of the baby which it seems that she has turned already (meaning she's upside down which is a good thing) but it won't be really noticeable or an issue till the next visit. Things are progressing really well and I pray they continue to!
Also this past weekend Jason and I found out two of our friends gave birth, another two are pregnant and the wife of a new business contact of his is pregnant as well! So ladies if in California beware the water unless you want to get pregnant ;)

On with my creative ambitious eco friendly side, I have completed phase one of operation Christmas Tree Demise which was using a little hand saw on out little four foot christmas tree to remove the branches from the trunk. Phase two is set to begin shortly and is the removal/collection of the needles (for candles and perhaps potpourri} and the drying/sectioning of the trunk (for a variety of items one of which I just thought of ...I may carve a section, with my new dremel 300 =D, to make my own candle mold which is classified as crazy ambitious but I love me power tools) So I've got a lot of work ahead of me.