Halloween Safety Tips

It's Halloween and time for trick-or-treating with your little one! I'm sure your kids are pretty pumped too. I know as a parent to three little kids, I'm almost as excited as they are! We are pretty fortunate that we live near a neighborhood that loves Halloween. We walk in a parade with the kids and then go trick-or-treating right after. It's very cute to see all the dressed up and marching in the parade with big smiles on their little faces. The nice thing is that this year since Halloween is on a school night, they are doing the parade and the trick-or-treating fairly early. I'm happy that it will still be light out so the kids are safe. The CDC(Center for Disease Control and Prevention) has listed some great tips to stay safe this Halloween. Here they are!

S-Swords, knives, and similar costume accessories should be short, soft, and flexible.

A-Avoid trick-or-treating alone. Walk in groups or with a trusted adult.

F- Fasten reflective tape to costumes and bags to help drivers see you.

E-Examine all treats for choking hazards and tampering before eating them. Limit the amount of treats you eat.

H-Hold a flashlight while trick-or-treating to help you see and others see you. Always WALK and don't run from house to house.

A-Always test make-up in a small area first. Remove it before bedtime to prevent possible skin and eye irritation.

L-Look both ways before crossing the street. Use established crosswalks wherever possible.

L-Lower your risk for serious eye injury by not wearing decorative contact lenses.

O- Only walk on sidewalks whenever possible, or on the far edge of the road facing traffic to stay safe.

W-Wear well-fitting masks, costumes, and shoes to avoid blocked vision, trips, and falls.

E- Eat only factory-wrapped treats. Avoid eating homemade treats made by strangers

E- Enter homes only if you're with a trusted adult.

N-Never walk near lit candles or luminaries. Be sure to wear flame-resistant costumes.

Everyone have a safe and Happy Halloween!

Jessica

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by Jessica GPosted in Holidays

Trying to Have a Baby

When I was thinking about having a baby, I thought it would be easy to get pregnant. I didn't think the whole process would be so involved until I really started trying to conceive. I thought it would be simple. You know how the story usually goes. Boy meets girl, girl meets boy. Girl tells boy it's time to have a baby. Boy worries that his life is going to change forever but agrees anyways. Girl gets pregnant! Well, maybe not exactly like that!

What I never knew was that trying to get pregnant would be so scientific. I did so much reading and studying on how to get pregnant, on what to do and what not to do that it started to make me a little crazy. What I found out was that there was really only a twenty-four hour window to get pregnant. There's a seventy-two hour window for sperm cells to survive but only a twenty-four hour period that the egg is actually viable. I did some research and decided to try an ovulation kit. I loved being able to pinpoint the days and determine when and if I actually ovulated that month. So even though my body was showing signs of ovulation, I could see the exact time I ovulated to increase my chances of getting pregnant. It certainly felt like a science project but I didn't mind. I just wanted to see those two purple lines!

Month one rolled around and I felt different. I was sick to my stomach and just felt off. I would have sworn I was pregnant. Unfortunately it wasn't my month. I kept my head up and we decided to try again. About four days before I was actually due to test, I woke up and headed to the bathroom. I took and a test and low and behold it showed those two purple lines. I was in complete shock. My husband was in shock as well when I told him. He was convinced it would take much longer than two months! We were extremely lucky that it happened so quickly and nine months later we gave birth to a beautiful baby boy.

When we started trying for baby number two, we weren't as lucky right away. We tried for about six months to no avail. I was getting pretty discouraged. That's when I began to take my basal body temperature and chart along with using the ovulation kit. It was so interesting to watch. I started noticing that even after I ovulated my temperature stayed above the cover line. I kept my hopes up and tested early again. It was positive. I was beyond excited. We ended up with a little girl this time. We really felt so blessed.

Two years later after my daughter was born, I found out I was pregnant again with my third. There was no ovulation kit, no temping or charting or any of that scientific stuff this time. After the shock finally wore off, we delivered another beautiful boy. We were happy our family was complete. This time I was ready to close up shop! This Mama was ready to move past the baby making years and ready to enjoy life with her family!

So now that you know my story, I want to hear yours!

Did you have to "try" to have a baby? How long did it take to conceive? I would love to hear your "Trying to Conceive" stories!

Jessica

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by Jessica GPosted in Babies, Mothers

Birth Plan, what you expected?

When I was pregnant with my first, I read what seemed like endless amounts of books and magazines to prepare for his birth. I was completely hung up on a natural birth. For me that meant a vaginal delivery. I wasn't going to be shy about medication. I heard the horror stories. I knew it wasn't going to be pain-free. I kept picturing myself like they show in the movies with the mother screaming at everyone yelling "Get me the drugs, I need the drugs!" Yup, that was going to be me! Unfortunately, my stubborn little guy wasn't ready to come out into the world just yet. It wasn't until I was three days past my due date when I awoke in the middle of the night with menstrual like pains. It was every five minutes on the nose so I knew it had to be labor. It continued for a few more hours so we decided to head to the hospital. They hooked me up to the monitors and checked me. I was 1 cm dilated. They could have sent me home. Instead they decided to run a hot bath for me. I started to contract more so they decided to keep me. Apparently this was it and we weren't going home without a baby! I was ready to get the ball rolling. Once they broke my water, I dilated to 6 cm with very strong contractions. I finally got the epidural almost two hours later. I was about ready to lose it at that point! Little did I know that ten babies were being delivered at the same time and the maternity ward was a zoo! Finally my best friend (the anesthesiologist) came in and I felt a hundred times better! That's until I went numb from the waist down and couldn't move! Not exactly how I thought it was all going to unfold. Unfortunately after twenty-four hours of labor, I didn't progress. The doctor came in and told me they had no other option than to do a cesarean. I was devastated. I didn't prepare myself for a c-section. How could I not prepare myself for something that 1 in 3 women have to go through? The good news is everything went smooth. My son came into the world healthy and how he got here didn't matter anymore!

I started contracting with my daughter at 25 weeks and the contractions continued until she was born. I had a very tough pregnancy with her. I was in and out of the hospital a lot. At almost 36 weeks, I went to the doctors and I was 2 cm dilated and having contractions. My doctor sent me to the hospital. Again, they hooked me up and gave me some medication to stop the contractions. It stopped them for a little while but once the medicine wore off, I started having them again. They were about to send me home and decided to check me once more. I was 4 cm and was in active labor. It was time for another c-section. This time, I needed an emergency cesarean which required a whole team of specialized doctor's and nurses. Thankfully, I gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby girl. Not to mention, a big premature baby to boot. Even at one month early, she weighed a whopping 7 lbs 5 oz! She was doing great but just a little jaundice. I was able to take her home with me on time. The recovery of her birth was much harder since I had been contracting for so many weeks. I was just happy she was healthy.

I also started contracting pretty early with my third and I was in and out of the hospital. They ran all kinds of tests to make sure he wasn't coming early. Luckily, the tests showed he wouldn't. I guess my body was just done being pregnant at this point and I was very ready to be done with it also. The baby seemed to be lying on a nerve which made it hard to walk and get around. My c-section was planned for about ten days before my due date. We walked into the hospital and two hours later we were holding him in our arms. It was the easiest birth/recovery by far and I was so grateful for that. Especially with two other children at home to take care of!

So even though my birth plan wasn't exactly what I imagined it would be, we have three healthy children and I couldn't ask for anything else.

Was your birth plan exactly what you thought it would be?

Jessica

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by Jessica GPosted in Mothers