25 Ways to Encourage a Mom-to-Be...

I recently read GypsyMama's blog featuring 100 ways to help a new mom. It was filled with tons of ideas and I encourage everyone to read it and then re-read it when a woman in your life is expecting. Many seasoned moms would admit they forget how difficult it can be in the beginning...the whole "momnesia" sets in and the early days of motherhood become very romanticized.

This list inspired me to develop a new spin on this...25 ways to encourage an expectant mother. From my experience, people generally love prenant women. They are overly helpful to pregnant women to ensure they 'take a load off'...but here is a list of ways to provide more than physical support.

1. Tell her she is glowing
2. Don't critique the future name of her baby
3. Organize meals to be delivered by family and friends
4. Make her a mocktail

5. Offer to paint the nursery
6. Invite her for a pedicure
7. Don't remind her life will never be the same
8. Order her an upcoming subscription for a new parents magazine

These are my favorite magazines to read!

9. Stop asking if she plans to breastfeed
10. Offer to help her register for baby gifts
11. Buy her a little maternity-wear something
12. Don't ask if she plans to get an epidural
13. Call to find out how her doctors appointment went
14. Stock her freezer with meals for many weeks postpartum
15. Send her a gift card for ice cream {Hello Coldstone!}
16. Buy a bottle of champagne to pop open in the hospital
17. Bring her a fresh, delicious fruit salad
18. Don't tell her to "sleep while she can"

Me - approximately 21 weeks pregnant

19. Mail her a Mother's Day card, if this occurs during her pregnancy
20. Tell her she barely looks pregnant
21. Send her a non-baby book to read
22. Offer to babysit older children so she may rest
23. Give her a bottle of wine for a random night postpartum
24. Shower her future baby with a baby shower

Me at one of my baby showers with my Grandma

25. Tell her she is never alone and give her permission to call, text, or email anytime, anyday

I hope you can take a cue from this list when a lady in your life is expecting - whether it is her first or her fourth pregnancy! I have been blessed by friends and family that have executed some of these to make the {long} 9, er, 10 months...just a little bit easier!

What other ways would you add to the list or did you experience yourself?

Meal Planning Monday

With J being away on business for a couple of days this week, it makes meal planning a bit easier since I am happy eating a salad for dinner or...just veggies or...simply a bowl of cereal.

As always, I want to try a new recipe and this week is no exception with two new recipes, the links are below. Here is my list of breakfasts, lunches and dinners for the week.

Breakfasts: Oatmeal, Egg Sandwich, Straw Smoothie & PB&J Sandwich, Oatmeal, Veggie Omelet
Lunches: Turkey Sandwich, salad w/chicken & strawberries, Raemen Noodle Soup, PB&J, BLTs
Dinners:

• Monday - tonight was impromptu since I was alone - I made raemen noodles, then drained them and added them to a large skillet of veggie stir-fry {I only used half of the sodium-laced seasoning packet and I sprinkled it in the stir fry}
• Tuesday - OYO night - on your own- I'll probably grab 2 tacos from the T.Bell Fresco Menu before Miss L and I go to our ECFE class
• Wednesday - Jer is back - I think we'll do Chix Fajita Baked Potatoes
• Thursday - Spinach & Feta Stuffed Chicken Breasts
• Friday - {Grocery shopping day} Baja Fish Tacos
• Saturday - We are cashing in on our free pizza courtesy of Papa John's and their Super Bowl Coin Toss promo...

I will report back on these new recipes. Last week's Fish Tacos weren't worthy of a post...we'll try Baja style this Friday!

Making Skim Milk

I always knew I wanted to breastfeed my baby for the obvious health reasons {for both of us}, but deep down I was selfishly ready to get my pre-baby body back. Every single thing I read stated that breast feeding is the very best method to "melt away the pounds." Friends of mine declared it the easiest weight loss solution, having loss their 40/50 prego pounds through this method. Some of my new mommy friends are back to their pre-preg weight at 6 weeks or shortly there after.

Well, I have a theory. After talking with other new moms {very scientific sample}, I am certain {or hypothesizing, what's the difference? :) } some of us produce whole milk and some of us produce skim milk and some women are more like 2%-ers.

I'd like to think I am making skim milk; or at least that is what I tell myself. After nearly 7 months of breastfeeding, I can tell when I pump that the consistency is always the same - very little "fat" on the top. If I was a cow {and sometimes I feel like one}, the milk man wouldn't have to skim very much!

Aside from producing the low-fat variety, I have gathered from other moms that when a breastfeeding mother has a petite eater, perhaps a small baby with an equally small appetite, there is not as much demand for breastmilk. Thus, moms are not burning all of these calories as fast as "they" say...and thus, the pounds are not melting off. I experienced this around the 7 week and 9 week marks {post-partum}, as I actually GAINED weight in between my visits to the Dr. Who does that? Why isn't this breastfeeding-weight loss theory applying to me? I only gained 30-ish pounds with my pregnancy {which is really good considering I had 6 weeks on high-dosage of steroids}, I should have lost half of that in the delivery room, right?

With the goal to get healthier and more physically fit...I have been eating better {more specifically portion size, I've always had a healthy diet} and getting more active {30-day Shred, Wii Tennis, Zumba routines from YouTube}. I have been stepping on the scale every week to monitor my progress and am happy to say yesterday I hit a new low into the 150's...only 6 pounds shy of my pre-pregnancy weight and I'd say about 14 pounds shy of what I call my ideal weight.

For now, I will continue to produce the skim milk for my little doll, get my body physically fit in time for summer and remind myself of the Doctor's orders: 9 months up, 9 months down. I am confident I will hit my target by the time Miss L turns 1!



Crawling and standing at 6 months...
I think {Skim} milk is doing her body good!



Not Your Mother's Meatloaf

I can honestly say, I made meatloaf for the first time last week. This was a dish typical in my grandmother's home for "supper," and is nothing spectacular in my memory bank. For Jeremy, this was a dish typical at his mom's dinner table...with a side of buttery (really yummy!) potatoes, of course! With that said, meatloaf has never been a top recipe to try in our weekly meal plans.

Then, I came across this web site for working moms:  http://www.workitmom.com/, which featured a recipe for "A Little Bit of Heaven: Mini Meatloaf Wrapped in Bacon. Jeremy's family claims Bacon is nature's candy...so I knew I couldn't go wrong with this recipe!

Fridays for Fat Tuesday

I've never been to Mardi Gras, but growing up we certainly did observe the celebration and meaning behind Fat Tuesday...as we prepared for Lent and our Lenten promises.

This year, J and I are giving up sweets - defined as - cookies, cakes, candy. I was half-tempted to give up alcohol...but let's face it - I gave that up for 10 months last year, I'm not yet ready to do that again.

We decided to celebrate Fat Tuesday with a Dessert Date to the local TGI Friday's.

We have already scoped out the dessert menu and selected two items to share and savor, as these will be our last sweets until Easter Sunday (we don't 'cheat' on Sundays or one day per week like others).




Brownie Obsession




Peanut Butter Pie



Meal Planning Monday...er Tuesday

I wanted to blog about our meals last week when I planned out our week...but I am a little delayed. My goal each week is to try at least one new recipe, as well as make our "usual" rotations, and try to use up random pantry and freezer items.

Last week our meals included three new recipes:

Saturday - Dinner for friends at our home...Chicken Piccata (a new version), with baked asparagus (will blog about these soon!), complete with a heart-shaped fruit pizza for dessert!

Sunday - Mock recipe of Wendy's chili (see previous post) - providing ample leftovers and some freezer meals

Monday - Mini Meatloaf, parsley new pototoes, steamed broccoli (see upcoming Thursday post)

Tuesday - OYO night - "On Your Own" Miss L and I have a standing weekly class every Tuesday evening...so we do our own thing for dinner...except last week was V-day and my dear husband brought home a heart-shaped Papa Murphys pizza, so I didn't have to worry about making anything. How sweet!

Wednesday - Baked Spaghetti - a layered caserole of spaghetti mixture, meat sauce and shredded cheese...sort of like a spaghetti lasagna

Our version of Wendy's chili



Mini Meatloaf



I can't remember past that...

But here is what is on tap for this week:

Monday- Mexican Monday - Chicken Fajitas with a side of black beans (new recipe)
Tuesday - FAT Tuesday - since Tuesdays are usually a OYO night...we are doing a "very light" OYO dinner followed by a big fat dessert together later. We are opting for TGI Friday's Brownie Sundae and Peanut Butter Cup Pie.
Wednesday - Ash Wednesday - Tuna salad sandwiches
Thursday - BLTs
Friday - Fish Fridays - Fish Tacos - still seeking a (new) recipe
Saturday - Company party

Our Great Escape

We enjoyed our annual get-far-away-from-old man winter-vacation with 10 days in sunny southern California. We invited our friends, my brother and his girlfriend, to join us on the trip. We also invited my youngest sister to join us for a long weekend-small vacay...sadly, due to issues flying standby - she was unable to join us.
We love visiting California, but this was our first time to the Palm Springs area, located in the Coachella Valley, about 90-120 minutes east-southeast of LA. We really lucked out with above-average temperatures in the 80's and mid-70's and found the Marriott Desert Springs resort to be absolutely fabulous.

Our 2 bed/2 bath unit was nearly on hole #4 of the Marriott valley golf course and right across the street from the pool...the important things. We golfed, cocktailed, spent time by the pool, enjoyed one day at various Orange County beaches (Newport, Laguna and Huntington), and took a really cool Aerial Tram ride in Palm Springs which takes passengers up to 8,700 feet high (going from 75 to 40 degrees in just a few minutes). Miss L loved the pool, and was a trooper napping in her car seat under an umbrella so we could enjoy some adult time at the pool (or even nightime hot tub visits) too! All-in-all, we had a fabulous trip and our lil' family of 3 extended the trip two more days to soak up the California sun!

Here are some of my favorite phrases of the trip:

"I don't think we can have a baby this cute...I can't stand all of the attention" - says Miss L's Uncle JJ to his longtime girlfriend

"Your daughter is gorgeous! All grandparents think their grandbabies are the cutest, but yours is REALLY cute. Even cuter than ours." - says random "Grandma" in the resort lobby

"Does the blue line mean she did something (in her Pampers Swaddlers diaper), because I swear it is always blue!" - says Miss L's Uncle JJ

Some things we learned on our trip include:

• If you are over 60, you MUST own a kindle to use poolside
• It definitely takes more than 60 minutes to get from LAX to Palm Springs
• We found out our resort was actually in Palm Desert, not Palm Springs, like we thought
• Regardless, the average age for this area is 65
• And Palm Springs is infamously known as the "it" destination for the gay and lesbian community

Jer and I have a vacation anthem every year. This year's anthem was: "Somebody that I used to know" by Gotye. It was #14 or so on the Top 18 charts on Alt Nation when we left on vacay and within a week it was #1 on that chart. If the number of times we played it is any indication, we certainly helped it soar to #1!

Here are some photos highlighting our fun times...

New Parent Hype or Overpriced Teether {Sophie}

Last year, while visiting friends with an infant, we learned of this special giraffe toy named Sophie. As nieve parents-to-be, all we really gathered was this $20-something squeeky, rubber giraffe was the "it" toy and all of the hip mommas at Gymboree class were running to the nearest store to purchase one, or two!

Fast-forward to December 2011, Miss L turns 4 months and begins teething. We watch as our baby friends enjoy their Sophies and hear all of the raving reviews from their equally hip mommas. So...Miss L's daddy thoughtfully purchased her, her very own Sophie for Christmas...Miss L loves it! Here is what I learned...

Sophie hits on all five senses:

• Sight: the dark and contrasting spots all over provide visual stimulation
• Hearing: her squeaker keeps baby amused and helps baby understand the cause and effect
• Taste: made of 100%  natural rubber and food paint, and has lots of body parts to chew on
• Touch: perfect for baby's small hands and very soft to touch for baby
• Smell: the special scent of the natural rubber makes it easy for the baby to identify amid many other toys

This is our go-to teether, the one we carry with us in the diaper bag and the one toy she reaches for amongst the blanket of toys. The funiest thing we experienced was watching Miss L lick the long neck of Sophie from bottom to top. I guess Sophie is a popsicle for babies! It was hilarious.

If you question whether your child will require such an expensive teether...I hope I have saved you the doubt, the confusion and debate...dash to Babies R'Us.

Top 10 Favorite Blogs

It seems that blogging was mildly popular a few years ago (okay, maybe 5 years ago) and reserved for those who liked to write...publicly. Then, facebook, Twitter and the likes took the social media spotlight...now that everyone is comfortable with these fun Internet resources, blogging has exploded to the 10th degree. Now, everyone is a blogger. Perhaps, as a society, we have grown real comfortable with our wearing our emotions on our social media sleeves. To me, blogging has become entertainment...sort of equivalent to watching TV...but usually more useful.

Everyday I find new blogs to follow...covering topics of interest relevant to my life: mommyhood, wifery, cooking, entertaining, traveling, business and keeping a home.

Here are some of my favorites, including dear friends' blogs and Internet strangers...I hope you will take the time to check out these blogs and find similar enjoyment from them:

• Life and Baby
• Fun Event Planning
• A fully-stocked blog with a weekly agenda of topics
• Dear best friend from MI - with 3 boys, 2 and under...living in sunny FL, 1000's of miles from family
• Dear friend from Indy - adventures as a SAHM and wrestling widow wife
• Dear friend from Indy - chronicles of another new mom and nearly full-time single parent too!
• My sister Jener Delane's blog - helps me reminisce of fun college times
• My sister Lynnae's blog - reminds me to be honest with myself
• My Happy House
• The Domestic Wannabe - I am very excited to be a guest blogger on her site later this month

I encourage you to "follow" me and any blog...as followers make blogging even more fun! good night!

Vacation Entertainment

As Miss L, a nearly 6 month old, was a pure joy to have with us on vacation. So often, people asked us "who is watching her?" (while we left for CA for ten days)...and the natural response was, "She's coming with us!" She had two flights each way- which brings her up to a grand total of eleven (11!) flights thus far...prior to her six month celebration. This is more than many people experience in their adult lives. Babies travel so well, I can honestly say it was EASIEST at two months, EASIER at four months and mildly EASY at six months. She more easily distracted these days...but on the other hand, needs more continuous entertaining. 

I will post again with more photos and details about our trip. For now, I wanted to share this hilarious video of Miss L dancing with her daddy. I don't know what is more funny - her giggles or us adults laughing our butts off! Either way - you are guaranteed to laugh!

She was an American Girl...

Well, she was an American Girl. Raised on promises! Oh wait, that's the popular Tom Petty song. Although, it is one of my favorite songs to dance to after a few cocktails. I was referring to the new "American Girl" in my mind...the overly-priced, adorably-addiction inducing American Girl dolls.

Growing up, I was never into dolls very much (see previous post about that topic)...but as I quickly learned living near the MOA with an American Girl superstore...these are a big deal and I didn't want to deprive my little baby doll of the American Girl experience. We all like to live vicariously through our children, right?

Earlier in the summer, before Miss L arrived in our world, I was shopping/browsing the AG store at the MOA with a dear friend. We both quickly observed that the 2011 girl of the year, was this beautiful Hawaiian girl namd Kanani. This became very exciting for me, as I danced Hawaiian dancing growing up, love all things Hawaii, went to Hawaii this year, and am having a girl during this year of the Hawaiian girl. How ironic? Right.

Sooo, fast forward 3 months. Jeremy and I decide that the one gift from Santa should be Kanani...and then we each had our own agenda of items to purchase Miss L to wrap for under the tree. Great!

As procrastination would have it...I wait until the very last week prior to Christmas to scoot over to MOA, (note: this place is literally 15 minutes from our home)...to find out they are sold out - completely...Ebay is the only option. Nearly crying as I exit the parking structure, I call Jeremy and explain how horrible of a mom I am...afterall, I have had this idea to make this purchase for over 5 months!

Fast forward 5 days to Christmas morning, as we are opening presents from under our Christmas tree...I open a package marked "To: baby girl." I question, which baby girl this is for? Of course, the answer is reached once I open the large, rectangular shaped box and discover Kanani. Truth be told, Jeremy searched the Ebay listings the moment I called him, followed it up with a local Craigslist search and purchased the American Girl that very evening. Christmas was saved. I was in tears (of joy), because it reminded me of how lucky Miss L and I are to have the best daddy and husband in the world!

Miss L is nearly the size of Kanani

Tired of Counting Sheep...

Why oh why am I awake...at 1:30 a.m. I've had a busy, fun and eventful day with Miss L...and should be fast asleep in my comfy bed, but instead, I am on the couch watching a boring drama on Lifetime, sipping caffiene free tea, while trying to lull myself to sleep. After reading my dear Florida friend's recent blog post, it made me think about honest blogging. I usually blog about all of the positives, after all, I am honestly an eternal optimist.

I feel like, these days my mind just goes...and goes...like the Energizer bunny.

First, there is soo much I want to communicate to a few of the people I love...things they probably don't want to hear, but would be good for them to hear. Things I want to say only because I care deeply about them, am passionate about their happiness and health, and am naturally always trying to "fix everything," people included. I have a difficult time accepting the fact that the values drilled into my head by my parents while growing up, are no longer shared by those same influencers. I am frustrated by the choices some people in my life make on how they live their life, yet, I keep my mouth shut...after all, if you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all. On the flip side, I take great pride in the fact that I am the new influencer and role model for my siblings, and now my daughter...and I strive to do the best job possible.

Secondly, I feel torn. Every day, I go back and forth about the desire to provide a quality of life for my family {financially} and providing a quality of life for my family {logistically, mentally, physically, emotionally}. Work from home mom or Work full-time outside the home mom...it's the age-old debate...er, well, the stay at home mom vs. working mother debate. It's like the left and right sides of my brain are playing dodgeball 24/7 upstairs. I want it all...but then again, who doesn't?

The last thing on my mind...poo! Yes, now that I am a parent...I think about poo...every.single.day.
Miss L is having an issue since we left California and it is to the point of causing her real pain and tears shed. We're trying all of the home remedies - warm bath, rectal thermometer, bicycle kicking, belly massage, nursing, lavendar scented Cozy Hugs teddy bear. Thankfully, she went to sleep just fine...but I hope my lil' angel stays that way until 9:30 a.m....just like last night. We will see how she does tomorrow, but I am planning a phone call to the Ped in the morning, followed by their suggested remedy - maybe a little prune juice, a baby suppository, or something else. We shall see.

It's now 2:19 a.m. - maybe I should try the bed thing again.

1 down, 11 to go!

I don't know about you, but the month of January just flew right by me! Usually this is a good thing, I mean a GREAT thing, as I loathe winter as much as much as Cows love Chick-Fil-A.

However, this year, when the winter months "fly by," it means my baby is one month closer to turning one years old. Which in turn means she will be graduating from high school in what will feel like 3 more years. I wish for time to sssllooooww down and to relax and enjoy every day.

I can honestly attest today was enjoyed from morning to eve. Beginning with Miss L sleeping in until 9:30 a.m. (Horray!!) to enjoying our Storytime for Babies at the local library, to her blissful nap during my car wash today, followed by an afternoon stroller walk.

I am thankful this winter has been wildly mild, in both temperature and snowfall, for the North Pole and most of the Midwest. To enjoy a nice snow-free stroller walk today, in the 40 and sunny weather, on February 6...is just unheard of. Last year, I remember gaining about 19 inches of snow in one day around this time and the temperature gauge on the TV screen stating a big, fat, ZERO...for consecutive days. That was my welcome to Minnesota...not so "NICE" and warm!

Since January came and went with very few posts on my blog, I plan to make the most out of February's shortened calendar and blog like crazy. I have soo much to write about about our fun-filled adventures...in the coming months.