Here are some new pictures of me. See how my belly has grown!
Friday, September 26, 2008
Friday, September 19, 2008
Try this at Home
Last night we attended another session of our childbirth preparation class.
We practiced dealing with the pain of contractions. This is something that you can all do at home. Feel free to try it! Those of you who have birthed babies may have some interesting comments to share.
The teacher, LJ, handed each couple a cup full of ice cubes.
She asked us to take a big handful of ice in our right hand and hold it for one minute.
I-Ya-Yi! oooh ooh!
The ice burned my hand. It ached. I hopped in my seat, laughed, exhaled deeply. Then a minute was up. Contractions typically last one minute.
The rest of the class was looking at me and laughing. Each person then shared their reaction. None complained of the painful sensations I had felt. And I am the only one having a natural homebirth! Daniel said "I'm from Canada. I didn't even notice".
After a five minute rest, LJ asked us to again hold ice in the other hand for a minute but this time to focus on our exhales.
ouch! ouch.
But this minute passed faster and easier. This time I was prepared for the intense ice sensation.
Rest, next we held the ice and focused on relaxing from our toes to our head. Not so bad.
The next round LJ asked us to focus right in on the pain and the sensation. I looked at Daniel nervously. But surprising, this minute passed the fastest yet.
We continued this exercise for a total of eight times. I may choose to practice a few more times at home myself. It's an interesting experience into your reactions to challenging situations.
It could be a fun party game. Let me know if you do it.
We practiced dealing with the pain of contractions. This is something that you can all do at home. Feel free to try it! Those of you who have birthed babies may have some interesting comments to share.
The teacher, LJ, handed each couple a cup full of ice cubes.
She asked us to take a big handful of ice in our right hand and hold it for one minute.
I-Ya-Yi! oooh ooh!
The ice burned my hand. It ached. I hopped in my seat, laughed, exhaled deeply. Then a minute was up. Contractions typically last one minute.
The rest of the class was looking at me and laughing. Each person then shared their reaction. None complained of the painful sensations I had felt. And I am the only one having a natural homebirth! Daniel said "I'm from Canada. I didn't even notice".
After a five minute rest, LJ asked us to again hold ice in the other hand for a minute but this time to focus on our exhales.
ouch! ouch.
But this minute passed faster and easier. This time I was prepared for the intense ice sensation.
Rest, next we held the ice and focused on relaxing from our toes to our head. Not so bad.
The next round LJ asked us to focus right in on the pain and the sensation. I looked at Daniel nervously. But surprising, this minute passed the fastest yet.
We continued this exercise for a total of eight times. I may choose to practice a few more times at home myself. It's an interesting experience into your reactions to challenging situations.
It could be a fun party game. Let me know if you do it.
Play list
I am working a play list of songs for this pregnancy. My idea is to create a mix of good songs with the word "baby" in it. There are a lot of songs to choose from.
So far I have:
Baby Love by Diane Ross
Some People Want It All by Alicia Keys
Nobody by the Baby by Emmilou Harris with Alison Krauss and Gillian Welsch
I know there are more. Please make suggestions. Hopefully I'll be able to post the playlist on this blog for you all to download when its finished.
So far I have:
Baby Love by Diane Ross
Some People Want It All by Alicia Keys
Nobody by the Baby by Emmilou Harris with Alison Krauss and Gillian Welsch
I know there are more. Please make suggestions. Hopefully I'll be able to post the playlist on this blog for you all to download when its finished.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Baby Party
In an early post, I asked how am I supposed to get excited for this baby?
A good answer came in the form of a baby party. A baby party- like a baby shower where everyone gets together the celebrates the coming of the baby but without the presents. So luckily I have a couple good friends that offered to host and help plan the party. Erin offered her lovely backyard and house for the BBQ for any number of friends that I want to invite. And Melissa has helped come up with some great party activities.
Since we wont be sitting around opening presents and I definitely wanted to include Daniel and other men, we thought up some fun games. The best one is the Stroller Relay Race. The idea is we'll have teams of 3 or 4 that will have to race a course with an umbrella stroller and extra challenges like carrying a coffee cup without spilling any. The relay race course will be Erin's driveway.
We are also going to set up a due date betting pool. My due date is a little foggy- one doc said November 9th another November 12th and the conventional method says November 5th. So your guess is as good as mine. Maybe I'll find a way to post the betting calendar on this blog so you readers can place bets too.
The party is scheduled for October 11th. I wish our families were able to come but I know we'll see them all soon enough. Here's the invitation if you are considering attending.
I am excited for the baby party. I realized that this is a good, possibly last, chance to enjoy a party without the distraction of a little one. Plus the positive energy I get from friends marveling at the size of my belly or telling me how much they enjoyed their little ones really boosts my spirits.
I am encouraging people not to bring presents, I need that positive energy and support more than I need presents. (Although I have loved getting to open presents that show up regularly in the mail from our moms.) But my mom said that some people will absolutely want to buy something so I did make an alternative gift registry at her request. It may sound silly to you, but I want this baby to live in a world of less consumption and resource consumption, so I am starting at with its birth.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Birthday Cake
Anyone have a recipe they love for banana cake with frosting?
Daniel and I started birth class last week at Kaiser, my HMO.
We had some reservations. Several people had recommended this Berkeley homebirth class taught by a well known local teacher. We checked into that class and found out it cost $350. What? After all we have decided to shell out to have a homebirth (a decision I am really happy about and will have to write about later) we decided that was too much.
So we looked at what was at Kaiser. The birth class at Kaiser costs $70.
I was worried that we would stand out in the Kaiser class for wanting to have a natural birth. We decided we wouldn't tell anyone in the class we are planning to have our baby at home.
However, the first class far exceeded my expectations. The teacher, LJ, is open minded, experienced, and very good. Three other couples are from Berkeley too. I think Daniel and I seem more relaxed about the whole thing than they do. I guess I am lucky to have so many younger siblings and a close friend who is a midwife so that birth isn't such a foreign topic. In fact, both Daniel and I have a younger sibling that was born at home.
My favorite part was talking about early labor. LJ helped us think about early labor and what we could do then.
I have heard that the reason most first time homebirth mothers transport themselves to the hospital is 'failure to progress'. Failure to progress can be a synonym for impatience. First births can take a while. I totally understand how a first time mother could exhaust herself in the first 24 hours through excitement and anticipation. And when the baby doesn't arrive, she feels worn out, exhausted and fed up and goes to the hospital for pain medication and to get the labor induced. I want to avoid that. A relaxing plan for early labor seems like a good idea.
Here are some of her suggestions we liked:
Go for a walk or a hike
See a movie
Write thank you notes and have the baby enter in a state of gratitude
and my favorite make the baby a birthday cake.
I am already excited about baking a three layer banana cake with whip cream frosting ! It seems perfect to celebrate the occasion. Plus what a way to pass the time. Who has the luxury of time to bake a cake from scratch? I guess a lady-in-waiting, which I will be.
Daniel and I started birth class last week at Kaiser, my HMO.
We had some reservations. Several people had recommended this Berkeley homebirth class taught by a well known local teacher. We checked into that class and found out it cost $350. What? After all we have decided to shell out to have a homebirth (a decision I am really happy about and will have to write about later) we decided that was too much.
So we looked at what was at Kaiser. The birth class at Kaiser costs $70.
I was worried that we would stand out in the Kaiser class for wanting to have a natural birth. We decided we wouldn't tell anyone in the class we are planning to have our baby at home.
However, the first class far exceeded my expectations. The teacher, LJ, is open minded, experienced, and very good. Three other couples are from Berkeley too. I think Daniel and I seem more relaxed about the whole thing than they do. I guess I am lucky to have so many younger siblings and a close friend who is a midwife so that birth isn't such a foreign topic. In fact, both Daniel and I have a younger sibling that was born at home.
My favorite part was talking about early labor. LJ helped us think about early labor and what we could do then.
I have heard that the reason most first time homebirth mothers transport themselves to the hospital is 'failure to progress'. Failure to progress can be a synonym for impatience. First births can take a while. I totally understand how a first time mother could exhaust herself in the first 24 hours through excitement and anticipation. And when the baby doesn't arrive, she feels worn out, exhausted and fed up and goes to the hospital for pain medication and to get the labor induced. I want to avoid that. A relaxing plan for early labor seems like a good idea.
Here are some of her suggestions we liked:
Go for a walk or a hike
See a movie
Write thank you notes and have the baby enter in a state of gratitude
and my favorite make the baby a birthday cake.
I am already excited about baking a three layer banana cake with whip cream frosting ! It seems perfect to celebrate the occasion. Plus what a way to pass the time. Who has the luxury of time to bake a cake from scratch? I guess a lady-in-waiting, which I will be.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
The Yuba River
The South Fork of the Yuba River is one of my favorite places on earth.
Daniel and I drove up there this past weekend to swim and camp. Every time I go, I remember what heaven on earth the river is.
Camping is one of my favorite activities. Yet this is only our second camping trip of the summer. Camping often plays second fiddle to the lure of a party or a concert seemingly not to be missed. But on Saturday night, as Daniel and I sat on sandy ground eating boxed macaroni and cheese, we agreed that there is little more enjoyable than a simple meal under the stars with your sleeping bag just feet away. Probably it helps that there are few to no mosquitoes, perfect temperatures and no chance of rain. We decided our baby will love camping too.
Diving into cold water is no easy feat pregnant. I couldn't image anything other than a belly-flop. So I opted for the crawl in. Sometimes it takes two tries.
Daniel and I drove up there this past weekend to swim and camp. Every time I go, I remember what heaven on earth the river is.
Camping is one of my favorite activities. Yet this is only our second camping trip of the summer. Camping often plays second fiddle to the lure of a party or a concert seemingly not to be missed. But on Saturday night, as Daniel and I sat on sandy ground eating boxed macaroni and cheese, we agreed that there is little more enjoyable than a simple meal under the stars with your sleeping bag just feet away. Probably it helps that there are few to no mosquitoes, perfect temperatures and no chance of rain. We decided our baby will love camping too.
Diving into cold water is no easy feat pregnant. I couldn't image anything other than a belly-flop. So I opted for the crawl in. Sometimes it takes two tries.
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