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Q & A: Facial Care during Pregnancy

By on October 2, 2008 in bellies & babies, natural & green

Brittney asked:

During pregnancy I’ve been breaking out a lot (on my face and other areas – with little bumps that you can feel but not always see). Wondering what facial care method you use and any you might recommend. I’ve been researching a bit and have heard of oil facial care (hesitant about that) but can’t find any other facial methods that people say are natural and work. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Great question Brittney and it happens to just be one I am dealing with currently but have not started to find any solution to the problem. I seem to only deal with red splotches during pregnancy and it drives me crazy. Currently, it comes and goes and I keep my facial wash routines pretty basic…water and soap! SO we are passing on this question to the readers. Any natural solutions to share to help us poor pregnant ladies?

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Karis’ Homebirth Story

By on September 4, 2008 in bellies & babies


Karis Ruth Edmonds
May 4, 2007
Arrival time: 2:50 am
Weight: 7 lbs. 6 oz.
Length: 20 ½ in.
Written addressed to my daughter following her home birth.

My dear Karis came just as beautiful as could be but bright and early on Friday morning, May 4th. Not only early in the morning but a week prior to your due date. One of the many miracles surrounding your birth. If you had weighed any more than you did, it would have been a lot more difficult. But overall, I really did not feel like it was that difficult. I felt the Lord’s presence throughout the whole process. Many have said I am a super mom, but I have been continually reminded that God is to be praised. I couldn’t have done it without His all sustaining grace.

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Nourishing Portable Food: Babies & Little Ones

By on August 27, 2008 in bellies & babies, recipes & kitchen tips

We are taking a pause from our simplifying series today to participate in the Nourishing Portable Food Challenge hosted by The Nourishing Gourmet.

My challenge lately has been to supply my little toddler (who eats a ton!) with portable nourishing food for on the go! We have to be creative in bringing snacks for car rides, church services, extended outings doing errands, etc. or we might just have a disaster! I have learned this lesson the hard way…don’t go grocery shopping when you kids are hungry unless you have something to give them! Being pregnant, I am also having to think about bringing good protein snacks for myself on the go.

Here are a few of our ideas…

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Pursuing a Natural Pregnancy – Protein

By on August 21, 2008 in bellies & babies, health & nutrition

Thus begins a series on pursuing a healthy and natural pregnancy. Upcoming posts include Karis’ homebirth story, midwifery, exercise during pregnancy, and other related topics. I do not profess to be an expert on health and nutrition, so make sure to run things by your midwife or practitioner.  If you have a topic to add to the discussion, please send it my way!

One of the most important things I understand to be in the increased in the consumption of a pregnant mother is protein (recommended between 80-100mg per day). This is essential, especially during the first trimester but continuing throughout the entirety of the pregnancy, for the healthy growth and development of the little one inside!

For further reading on the recommended diet for a healthy, natural pregnancy, check out the diet recommendation by the Bradley Method.

In my effort to increase protein and yet stay within my budget, I have been trying to think of creative ideas to increase proteins in my diet found in dairy, eggs, and beans, as they are more frugal than meat.

I try to aim to eat 20 grams at each main meal of the day and an additional 20 grams from a snack, totally 80 grams per day. I definitely do not accomplish it perfectly every day, but here are a few ideas that work for me.

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Simplifying the Toy Collection

By on August 20, 2008 in bellies & babies, frugal & simple

One of Karis’ toy baskets

I have been bombarded on many occasions by the overwhelming amount of toys I have come across at different homes I have visited over the years. Shelves and shelves of toys, a whole toy room dedicated to toy play. What a lovely mess they make! How many dolls does your daughter really need? How many cars does your son really have time to play with? Considering it has been shown time and time again how contented a child can be while playing with the box that his Christmas present came in, totally oblivious to the gift. I have been pleasantly surprised how my little girl can find more lasting entertainment with a little recycled container.

*My number 1 recommendation: if all possible, avoid plastic, battery operated toys and your life will be so much more peaceful! Replace these toys with wooden toys that will last and don’t need the extra money to replace the batteries. If you can start when you children are young or before they are born in keeping the collection small you will make things a whole lot easier for yourself (even if you get rid of toys when they are young, they most likely will not even notice!). Starting early in building contentment and allowing children to develop creativity and exploration skills will go a long way.

As my little one is pretty young still, we haven’t been overwhelmed with too many toys, but rather have been deliberate in carefully selecting items for her. As I have been seeking out the input of some well-seasoned mothers, here are some tips to keeping the toy collection simple.

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Simplifying Baby Gear

By on August 13, 2008 in bellies & babies, frugal & simple

While expecting the arrival of our first little one, I was quite overwhelmed by all the fun gadgets that were available for her entertainment. Everything from a jumperoo, exersaucers, play mats, toys for the car seat, toys for the swing, etc. I had a neighbor friend that received most of these for her little girl (born shortly after Karis) and I found myself struggling inwardly with desiring these items for Karis as well. Sounds silly? Well, they all looked so fun and did keep the little one entertained…

But…the question that I had to ask myself was did I really want my child to have all these gadgets? Would a huge supply of toys really entertain her or rather teach her that she had to be entertained by stuff? This overwhelming load of fun things could just as easily fill her with disatisfaction, and she could grow to need new and better things to keep her satisfied.

In the end we concluded that it was not necessary to invest in an abudance of gadgets…even when you can get them at a good price (using the wonderful tools of craigslist or garage saling!). We wanted Karis to learn to be content with a few toys and also develop the creativity to entertain herself. We also did not want to buy into the consumerism mentality that eventually just leads to increased waste. As we desire to be good stewards of our environment, this is very important to us. I was amazingly surprised by how easily she finds entertainment in such simple things, everything from tin food cans, measuring cups, the lid drawer, books, etc. At 15 months she doesn’t play with alot of toys…in fact, she would more often be found exploring the house.

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Karis & her dolly

By on July 31, 2008 in bellies & babies, news & giveaways

Karis received her first baby doll this week, and she absolutely loves it! I was on a hunt to try to avoid a plastic doll, if possible. I wanted to find something that would be more safe (to the best of my understanding) for her to play with, and chew on, if desired. I knew it would get a lot of love! A few options out there include Waldorf dolls and cloth dolls. I decided to go with the cloth version and found an adorable one (North American Bear Company doll) at a local children’s boutique. Although not incredibly cheap at $25, it is good quality company (should last, Lord willing), and I figured this will be her only one, as we try to keep the toy purchases to a real minimum. It also has cute little outfits that you can purchase separately, which will be fun for Karis in the future.

She added “baby” to her vocabulary as a result. Another great feature is it is so soft and cuddly – making it great to snuggle and sleep with, which she is enjoying greatly. She also loves giving baby doll kisses! I love to see her start to radiate those nurturing qualities. Better to learn now, especially with our second little one on the way. We are learning how to be gentle with the baby and love the baby. So fun!

Another cute one I saw was the Baby Stella doll. Alas, it was a battle of indecisiveness!

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Homemade Super Baby Porridge

By on April 2, 2008 in bellies & babies, recipes & kitchen tips

Karis’ cereal in preparation today, including: cooked brown rice & millet, egg yolk, sprouted sunflower seeds, and tahini – to be combined with my mason jar on the blender trick!

Making wholesome baby cereal for my little girl has been such a fun experiment learning how to incorporate nutritious supplements that are cheap and give a well rounded breakfast. This is called “Super” Baby porridge because it has all the ingredients needed to provide good nutrition to your little one. Thanks to Super Baby Food for all the wonderful ideas of making my own homemade cereal! You can’t beat the frugal cost and nutritional value of this concoction!

I like to wait till one year before introducing grains. Grain is not digestible, especially if it has not been soaked. Grain is a poor source of protein, iron and zinc. The starch-digesting enzymes in a child’s body do not kick in for one or two years.

According to nutritionist Jen Allbritton, “Babies do not produce the needed enzymes to handle cereals, especially gluten-containing grains like wheat, before the age of one year. Even then, it is common traditional practice to soak grains in water and a little yogurt or buttermilk for up to 24 hours. This process jump-starts the enzymatic activity in the food and begins breaking down some of the harder-to-digest components.”

That being said, I did introduce soaked brown rice cereal for my daughter around 10 months of age! Soaked is key!

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Book Review: Super Baby Food

By on March 21, 2008 in bellies & babies

food.JPGSuper Baby Food by Ruth Yaron is a wonderful resource for new mommies (and older mommies as well)! Thanks to Jerilyn for recommending it to me!

I borrowed it conveniently from my local library and found it extremely useful. I do not necessarily agree that you have to start incorporating solids at 6 months (I prefer to wait as long as possible, giving them the full benefit of mommy’s milk), but this book provides very good ideas for gradually incorporating solids at whatever age. To tell you the truth, I was very overwhelmed when I started Karis on solids, and this book has been a lifesaver. The author comes from a healthy viewpoint (encouraging readers to feed babies organic food as much as possible), and gives tips for making cereals and all baby foods very nutritious by incorporating ground nuts/seeds, and other boosters.

This book will carry you from beginning solids to toddler-hood with an abundance of recipes, meal planning, cooking, storage, heating, and safety instructions. I think I am just going to have to buy it myself! I learned so much for increasing nutrition in our diet as well!

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Input Request: Teething!

By on March 13, 2008 in bellies & babies

My lovely little girl has been teething terribly this past week, or so it seems. Upper two teeth just won’t come in…and they are so there! Any good suggestions to make this process easier? Looking for more natural remedies, if at all possible.

Thanks!

So far we have tried….Teething Tablets and Tylenol, which I would prefer not to use, except on extreme occasions, like last night (took 2 hours to get her to bed).

Love to hear your thoughts!

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