Do you give yourself permission to relax?  I am a doer and it drives my hubby batty sometimes.  I cannot watch a movie without doing something else at the same time.  I feel so lazy when I am just watching t.v and doing nothing else.  These last few weeks I have been having to give myself A LOT of liberty to relax.  I think my laptop is getting kinda lonely.  Somedays, my sweet hubby has to give me permission and promise to clean or make dinner.  As moms in general we need to give ourselves the freedeom more often to care for ourselves.  When we are pregnant, this can mean the difference between being a nice pregnant lady, or a hormonal crazy lady.  Can you imagine all the energy your body needs to grow another person?  Make sure to take some time everyday to get a quick catnap or even to meditate for 10 minutes.  As my hubby told me today, we need a happy mommy so we have a happy baby.  Just think of it this way, when you are agitated or upset, the biochemical stuff in your body goes to the baby.  When you are happy, those endorphins go to the baby.  Wouldn’t you rather have a smiling baby then one that is always fussy?  Be kind to yourself, this is a time when your body really needs all the kindness it can get.  If you find it hard, I give you permission.  You can blame it on me.

It is always important to be in touch with your body both mentally and physically.  For now, we will just chat about the physically awareness.  During pregnancy, I believe it is even more important to cue into the signs your body gives you.  A happy body functions better right?  Don’t get too busy and forget to take care of your body.  Your baby needs you, he/she is depending on you.  It’s good the baby takes from your body what he/she will need before your actual body gets to use the nutrients.  On the downside, you can become depleted which can make you more susceptible to illness and possibly hospitalization.  You know the saying, “If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.”  Also, after having the baby it is vital to take care of yourself so you have a full milk supply, patience to take care of a crying baby, and avoid postpartum depression.

• Tired/Weary - During the beginning and near the end this can be a huge problem.  If you feel your feet dragging, take a cat nap.  During lunch time or early afternoon, allow yourself 20-30 minutes to rest.  Set an alarm, and take a snooze.  Also, in the evening if possible, go to bed an hour earlier than you usually do.  For me, that makes a huge impact.
• Nausea - This is trial and error.  What may work for someone else or even a previous pregnancy, may not work now.  You can leave a couple crackers by your bedside at night.  When you wake up, take some nibbles and let it settle before getting out of bed.  If after you eat, it feels your food may make a reappearance, take a rest.  Put your head down on the table or your desk, or sit up on the couch with your head resting on the back.  Then close your eyes and rest for 5 minutes.  You can also try chewing a piece of mint gum or sucking on a mint.  Also, eat smaller amounts and eat more often so you aren’t ever very hungry.  Sometimes, you just have to let yourself vomit in the morning before putting anything in your stomach.  That certainly is the case for me this time around.  Puke, get it over with, then enjoy breakfast.
• Swallowing the vitamins - I have always found, in the morning, they would cause breakfast to reappear.  Eat a couple bites of something right before bed, then take your vitamin.  Your body needs some food to be able to distribute the nutrients from the vitamins so make sure you eat a little something too.
• Equilibrium - Your center of gravity is changing.  Be cautious going down stairs or hills (especially the steep ones).  This is really important if you continue to exercise, just be aware.  Trust me, the stair climbers and ellipticals can be a doozy.  Be conscious of your foot wear.  I’m a heels kinda gal.  There are times when I have no problem, then times like Monday where it seemed I had never walked in them before.
• The baby - Always listen to your gut.  If you feel something is “off”, don’t hesitate to call your doctor.  Please promise me you will go to all your prenatal appointments?!
• Breathing - Deep breathing is great for the mind and body.  All the air you take in, goes to your baby too.  If you feel stressed (the baby feels that too), take some deep breaths.  Sometimes I find myself taking shallow breaths.  When you feel this or stressed, take a few minutes to close your eyes, breath deeply, and focus only on your breaths.

Move through your world with a little more caution.  Remember the belly does need a little extra space.  What other tips do you have?

I feel like I am really putting myself out there with this post.  I will be honest I am scared.  I am pregnant again.  For those of you who were with me last May in my journey, know my fears.  For those who weren’t, I had a devastating miscarriage.  I wasn’t going to say much until I had that first appointment to hear the heartbeat.  Something inside of me just says to put it out there.  My hubby and I talked about it, and if I lost this little one, I would be done.  We want a large family, however, I couldn’t take another blow. 

I have been sicker than with any other pregnancy.  I have been more emotional, and even have cravings (I never really had much of any).  Perhaps a good faith offering?  Sometimes I believe God gives us these little things to hold on to.  That little glimmer of hope we need to get through every day when we are uncertain of our path. 

Please keep my family and I in your thoughts and prayers.  I know I certainly need each and every one for the next month until I have my first appointment.

In 1350 women urinated on wheat and barley seed to see if they were pregnant.  She could urinate on the seeds for several days, “If the barley grows, it means a male child. If the wheat grows, it means a female child. If both do not grow, she will not bear at all.”This was the first recorded urine-based pregnancy test. In 1963 this method was tested with “modern” medicine and 70% of the time it worked!! Can you believe how smart those Egyptians were! Geesh!

In 1976 the e.p.t (early pregnancy test) was FDA approved. By the end of 1977, it was ready for consumer use. In 1978, it was advertised in various, major women’s magazines. An article in Mademoiselle’s April issue, stated “For your $10, you get pre-measured ingredients consisting of a vial of purified water, a test tube containing, among other things, sheep red blood cells…as well as a medicine dropper and clear plastic support for the test tube, with an angled mirror at the bottom.” HUH? Serious? Sheep’s blood? i have been inspired to go on a mission to talk to women my mom’s age to get some more scoop on this one! The test took two hours, and was more accurate for positive results (97%) than for negative (80%).

It amazes me to think not until the 80’s was there really the pee on a stick kind of test. It really wasn’t even that long ago women got pain relief during labor. Maybe soon they will invent a machine to quickly get your pre-baby shape back without the pain of a strict diet or personal trainer. i can see the pitch line already, “Place the belt around your abdomen every time you are breastfeeding and within 4 week you will look even better than before you became pregnant. It’s simple, easy, and very effective.”

If you want to read the comprehensive version of the history of pregnancy tests, go to A Timeline of Pregnancy Testing.  If you are a woman who experienced the sheep’s blood version, i would love to hear about it!

i have a question for you. Would you or have you gotten married while visibly pregnant? Today i came across maternity wedding dresses. i know, i know, not so taboo anymore. i have never actually seen or heard of someone visibly pregnant getting married.

i do have to confess i was a pregnant bride. i use the term bride loosely however. We didn’t want to deal with the finances or hassle of planning a wedding (have you ever seen the show Bridezilla? That would have been me!). On July 18th, i found myself at the Justice of the Peace in a cute summer dress from Walmart($8.88 mind you), my hubby to be, my 6 month old Chandlur, 3 friends, and about 6 weeks pregnant.  At the time not very many knew about our little Cozette on the way because we didn’t want people thinking that was why we were getting married.  If i was showing, i think it would have felt weird though.

What do you think?  Would you/have you waited until baby came to get married?  Are you a confident woman who wears a maternity wedding dress with the grace of a queen?

Would you give your baby to a teenage couple for a few days?  Did you catch the show The Baby Borrowers last night? 

My hubby and i greatly admired the couples who allowed their babies to be used for this experiment.  i am not sure if i could do it.  Would you be able to give your babies to a teenage couple for 3 days to show them how hard it is?  Just the pregnancy suit the girls had to wear caused an uproar in one couple.  Kelly didn’t want to wear it because it was heavy and made her look fat.  i just about fell off the couch laughing.  Do i hear a little shout out from the pregnant ladies in the house?  At lease they didn’t have morning sickness too:)  The guy, Austin was such a sport.  He ended up going to baby class by himself because she locked herself in the bathroom refusing to wear the belly.  When they got home, Austin even volunteered to wear the pregnancy suit and wore it the rest of the day.  Talk about a good man!  Another couple had bedtime issues.  Etta’s mommy was so upset she went over to the house and talked to the couple.  Sean was talking about leaving her in the crib because she was going to cry anyways.  Wouldn’t you cry too if your diaper hasn’t been changed in awhile and you are expected to go to bed wet?

i think this show comes at a great time when teenage pregnancy is on the rise and these kids see the glamorous cutesy aspect of having kids.  They don’t get to see how you feel after being up all night with a sick baby, or cleaning a public diaper blowup.  i sincerely hope this is a turning for our kids.  Just i wrote before in my post about the Gloucester girls….”Our pretty babies, they just aren’t ready” Dishwalla.

Check your local listings for The Baby Borrowers.  i love their tagline…It’s not just t.v, it’s birth control!

Run out and get the July issue of Vogue!  The ever fabulous and pregnant Nicole Kidman sat down for an interview according to Style.com where you can read an edited version.

She talks about how she has fallen in love with the Tennessee landscape and gardening.  Which she laughs about that she has followed her mother and sister into “the Kidman women’s hobby of gardening”.  A place she never thought she would be.  She goes on to chat about why her new movie Australia “is a dream project”.  Best of all, she shares her excitement of finally being able to bear her own child after having adopted two fantastic kids, and her amazing relationship with country star Keith Urban.

When speaking of the surprise of being pregnant she says  “I like the unpredictable nature of it. To feel life growing with you is something very, very special, and I’m going to embrace that completely. I don’t believe in flittering around the edges of things. You’re either going to walk through life and experience it fully or you’re going to be a voyeur. And I’m not a voyeur.”  And she certainly isn’t.

Now go get the new issue of Vogue to read the full interview, and check out the pictures by famed Annie Leibovitz!