Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all our readers!
We hope this New Year brings you all the health, happiness and abundance you deserve!

We know that January is the month of resolutions and big changes for many, and we here at Expecting Success, are no exception! Our blog will be moving to a new home and soon, our programs will be launched; connecting you with your very own RN Consultant!

Thank you to each and every one of you who have shared your comments here or on our Facebook page. We look forward to making 2013 the year of Expecting Success!

To your success!
Amy Deagle
CEO

Birthing Orgasm Fact or Fiction?

As I was preparing myself for the birth of our child I started reading a book called Ina Mays Guide to Child birth. Great book by the way, encouraging and enlightening. Anywho…  as I was reading through this great piece of knowledge I learned about “birthing orgasms.” I had not heard of this before but the theory is that ``there's an integral relationship between the processes of birth, sexual arousal and orgasm—they share the same equipment and pathways (electro-chemical, neurobiological, energetic and more).`` http://www.orgasmicbirth.com/node/307 As I was curious about this I began reading and researching more about this crazy thought that child birth can be bliss rather than the previously conceived notion of unbearable pain.

So I developed a game plan for my own birthing experience and prepared my partner for the part of child birth where I could be in euphoria and sexual arousal… Well unfortunately for me this time around I did not experience the pleasure of a birthing orgasm. My man, so clever, thought as my contractions were intensifying that he could help relieve some pain and I hear “So do you want to make out?” Secretly I laughed in my head but at that time nothing was coming out of my mouth except primal noises to cope. I don’t remember the pain now but I sure remember no orgasm. Good luck to you.

“Commandments for Parents, written from a child’s point of view”

The following is a direct quote from this little book called God’s little devotional book for moms.  The six little points are so true and with life’s business we tend to forget the most important things in our lives!  I hope you enjoy and give your little ones a BIG hug!

“Written from a child’s point of view!

1.      My hands are small; please don’t expect perfection whenever I make a bed, draw a picture, or throw a ball.  My legs are short; slow down so I can keep up with you.

2.      My eyes have not seen the world as yours have; let me explore it safely; don’t restrict me unnecessarily.

3.      Housework will always be there; I’m little only for a short time.  Take time to explain things to me about this wonderful world; and do so willingly.

4.      My feelings are tender, don’t nag me all day long (you would not want to be nagged for your inquisitiveness).  Treat me as you would like to be treated.

5.      I am a special gift from God; treasure me as God intended you to do- holding me accountable for my actions, giving me guidelines to live by, and disciplining me in a loving manner.

6.      I need your encouragement (but not your empty praise) to grow.  Go easy on the criticism; remember, you can criticize the things I do without criticizing me.”

SIDS SCARE

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is the leading cause of death in infants aged 0-6months. It can happen to any infant no matter good health or bad.

Early this morning was like every other morning; my babe woke around 4:15am to feed. I fed her and she feel back asleep easily, so I put her back in her bassinet in our room at the foot of our bed. As I had drifted back to sleep I found myself abruptly waking up, thinking I was rolling over with my babe still in my arms (a recurring night scare). I had become panicked. Getting a bit more wits about me I realize that’s not the scare… my babe was coughing, choking, and gasping for air. Thank the Good Lord above for my fiancé and his quick reaction, he already had her in his arms, comforting her, and ensuring she was getting back into a normal breathing rhythm. There was a huge sigh of relief, but we both were shaken up. As for my babe, she fell back asleep like there was no problem to begin with.  We put her in our bed beside me (co-sleeping is a risk factor in SIDS) and I watched her breathe. There was no more sleeping for me, every breathe she took I was holding mine.  Such a precious gift that can so easily be taken away.

 I thank God every day for my little one and blessings she has brought to our family. No one ever wants to think that their child could die but it is important to learn ways to lessen the chance of that ever happening. I am going to do everything I possibly can to keep her safe. Everyone should know some tips to reduce the risk factors in SIDS:

©       Breastfeeding

©       Safe sleeping environment- no loose sheets/blankets/etc., firm/flat mattress

©       No co-sleeping (other than increased risk of SIDS, studies also has shown that co-sleeping increases stress hormones in mothers that co-sleep)

©       Babe should be in parents room for the first 6 months in bassinet/crib

©       Pacifiers are said to reduce risk, once babe is sleeping don’t force pacifier back in

©       Make sure babe is warm but not too hot

©       A smoke-free home

God Bless,

                Heather

Sleep Training

What is sleep training? My baby is just 3 months old now and I am hearing more and more of this sleeping training, what method are you using? How long is she sleeping? Newborns sleep about 16-17 hours of sleep (usually short sleeps, waking every 2-3 hours to feed). Increasing the length of night time sleep and shorter naps, by 1 year they need around 14 hours of sleep (sleeping majority 10-12hours at night).

So I have begun my reading up on baby sleep and wanted to share my top 10 helpful tips on baby sleep for me and 3 month old baby: (I am trying to create healthy sleep habits and am open to tips from readers.)

1.       Routine bed time- bath, massage, bedtime story, lullabies

2.       Routine nap time – good start is 1 in morning, noon, and evening, or start 2 hours after rising

3.       Routine- to get baby’s on day and night schedule- have them napping during the day in light and sound and nighttime is dark and quiet.

4.       Timing- if they get over tired try next day 1/2hour sooner

5.       Flexible- once you get a routine they change it up

6.       Feeding- they slowly drop feedings during night

7.       Try to get them to fall asleep not feeding

8.       When wake up try not to make eye contact (engage in social interaction increases  wakefulness) and rub their tummy

9.       Have a blanket/lamb skin that familiar with sleeping and then you can take it anywhere and have a piece of home

10.   They won’t die if you don’t burp them before bed after feeding ( Burping can wake up my baby and sometimes it wakes them up, but they will wake up if a burp is bothering them).

 

Amanda's Favourite Top 10 Activities to get In the Christmas Spirit

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! My absolute favourite time of the year. I love all of the magic that this time of year brings- especially with two little ones. I just wanted to share with you my top 10 activities that I do with my family to get in the spirit. 

1- Build a snowman- As soon as the first snow falls and it becomes sticky enough, it is so fun to get outside and build a snowman (even if it looks a bit more like a snowblob!)

2- Go sledding/ tobogganning- I live in the flat country, but having grown up in the hills my favourite winter and Christmas break memories are of sledding down the hill with my siblings. But, I live where there aren't many hills, so we improvise and I pull my two little ones around in their sled (which is actually a calf sled- best sled ever as it is super durable!) This is so much fun for my kids and is great exercise for me!

3- Build a gingerbread house- This is a bit messy with toddlers, and quite honestly half the candy gets ate before we are finished, but it is fun to build a special project with my little one that we only do at Christmas (we don't buy into a gingerbread house for every season!)

4- Watch Christmas Movies and Shows- Our favourite are The Grinch Who Stole Christmas (the original version- sorry not a big fan of the Jim Carey version although I do love the music on that one!), Thomas the Train Christmas DVD( my daughter loves this and we actually watch it throughout the year!).

5- Check out local Christmas Lights- I love driving around with my kids looking at everyone's lights and Christmas displays. This is made even better with Christmas music playing on the stereo!

6- Pick a charity and make a Christmas gift donation- I love being able to give to those less fortunate during the holiday season. It is important for me to teach my kids that there are others in the world who may not be as fortunate as them and it is important to share and help others. This year my charity of choice is our local women's shelter.

7- Go visit Santa- I love looking through pictures and seeing the classic Santa pics- be it the happy or screaming scared kid! Luckily my kids haven't been scared of the jolly old man just yet and we have ended up with some pretty cute (in my completely biased opinion) pictures.

8- Decorate the tree together- Growing up decorating the tree was always a family affair. Now that I have my own home I am trying to keep this tradition. Having a just about 3 year old and a 1 year old means that my tree has only non breakable ornaments and some sections are particularly heavy with ornaments but I love letting my little helpers be a part of the excitement. Ideally my tree would be up mid November but with two crazy climbers I am waiting until a bit later this year.

9- Donate toys and clothing that has been outgrown to a local charity store.- As much as I would like to say Christmas isn't a bit commercialized it is, and knowing that Christmas usually brings more toys and clothing to our house I like to try and benefit others by getting rid of my gently used clothing and toys that my kids have outgrown and have the added benefit of more space in my house. I choose to donate our things to a local charitable store that resells the goods and uses the money to help those in need. I like the feeling of cleaning out my house and helping others at the same time.

10- Christmas Baking- Nothing makes me more excited for Christmas than getting my freezer stocked full with Christmas baking to give away to friends and family (and to enjoy for myself!) My favourites to make are caramels, homemade turtles, and peanut butter cups (these are all a bit easier to make without the kids). With my kids I love making peanut butter chocolate chip cookies and decorating sugar cookies (although this one is a bit of a mess making activity!)

Hope  you all have a wonderful Christmas season surrounded by friends and family!

You are What You Eat

Do I want to be a block of butter or a slim trim carrot?

If I were a carrot there would be no extra handles to love, just a lean, mean, orange? (I guess I could live with that), cancer fighting machine.  I think the carrot may have more fun too, a nice tone and crisp figure. When bent to its breaking point it makes sure its strong enough to make a sharp snap, everyone respects a tough cookie… I mean carrot. There is so much more going on for the carrot. Antioxidants and beta carotene seem to spice things up and keep things interesting. Everyone would want to hang around a carrot at the water cooler to hear the fun stories of carrots crazy antics. If I ate enough carrots to turn into one I am sure I would be the pumped up super mom that always seems to be prepared and have already done 10 things on her To Do List plus have the house spotless by 8 am.

Butter on the other hand even sounds bland and bla, no wonder it’s a couch potato. When it sits around its lard appearance just makes me tired thinking about it. When it’s fired up it just turns to a puddle, it just can’t handle stress that poor chunky butter. Of course it looks so enticing at first like “You want me… I’m so comforting” and then wammy 3 buckets of butter drenched popcorn later I’m beached in the movie theatre thinking I don’t think I’ll be able to peel myself out of my seat to go home.  

I have to admit the butter gets me from time to time and butter’s best friend Ice Cream is even harder to say no to, but the more carrots (fruit and vegetables) I eat, butter is less appetizing. When I think of my child I definitely want her to be a carrot. So I guess I’ll set the example for her. Let’s cheers to our new Carrot like bodies and teach our families healthy eating habits.

Smell the Roses?

As soon as you become pregnant people always say "Enjoy it, it goes so fast!" Sometimes it feels as if those people are liars- hello morning sickness, cankles, acne, bladder filling for ultrasounds, answering when your last period was for what seems like the billionth time this month. But somewhere in all of the less than desirable parts  and those oh so sweet and beautiful parts of pregnancy time really does seem to speed up. From the moment I found out I was pregnant with my first child, it feels as though I have stepped on the express train in life. I remember what life was like before I was pregnant- but only vaguely . In the past 3 years my life has seemed to be on fast forward- I know that days still have the same number of hours, there are still 365 days in a year, but life just speeds up once kids enter the scene. As soon as I found out I was pregnant the world seemed to spin just a little bit faster as I juggled doctor's appointments and work schedules. Then all of a sudden it was time for me to go off on mat leave and my first child was born. The months following her arrival seem like a blur to me and then it was time for me to return to work. Then pregnant again and back on the same routine of doctors appointments and ultrasounds and then my son arrived. Now I am back to work again and I think, seriously how did this time just slip away from me? What about you- do you feel like everything seems to go faster after kids? What do you do to "enjoy the moment" and capture memories?

Babyproofing

Recently on our site I asked what the most important thing you could do to childproof your home. A follower challenged this question with another question: Do you childproof your home or home proof your child? I had never thought of it this way!

The reason for posting the question was in light of the recent death of toddler who was strangled on a blind cord. There are so many things in your home that you do not realize can be a hazard until you have a child. Everything seems harmless until your little one starts to explore. I am currently paranoid that my son is going to somehow end up falling into the toilet. Ridiculous I know but it is a serious concern of mine. I do agree that it is important to take the obvious precautions- moving chemicals, etc. to places where children can’t reach them & putting up baby gates. But I am not sure how to “home proof” my child?

I envision this as a lot of yelling, stress, broken mementos, & an injured child! Do you leave up your precious items & hope your child gets the hint not to touch them? Perhaps all infants & toddlers are as persistent as my son, but we are currently battling not standing in the tub & I ashamed to say he is beating me! I can’t imagine having to constantly redirect him away from “untouchable” items. It would take up my entire day!! And I feel like I would be constantly yelling at him. But, on the other hand it would be nice not to have to pack up our lives in order to keep him safe & myself sane. I commend those who have left their home in its “pre-baby” state & managed to keep that way! I’ll keep you updated on how our battle goes… both the tub & the childproofing!

 

Digestive Health for Baby

Probiotics for baby, worth the investment?

Nuts for Nutrition

Finding out I was pregnant and my mom being a health nut, I was in for quite a treat when I went down to visit it her in Arizona for a month in my fourth month of pregnancy. Before I never thought about how important diet and nutrition was for a pregnant mother.  As I was settling into the fact that I was that pregnant mother I felt the responsibility to provide the best nutrition for me and my baby.  I went to the health food store the day I found out and got prenatal vitamins to help support my diet.  Pregnancy and breastfeeding is the only times you have full responsibility for what your child is ingesting. You have the choice to provide the best nutritional foundation in such an important and rapidly growing body of your child. Below is an interesting article:  

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/04/30/Poor-Nutrition-in-the-Womb-Triggers-Permanent-Genetic-Changes.aspx

So my mom began my granola crusade.  Smoothies every morning, ensuring I had enough protein and water, and absolutely no sugars or artificial sweenters. By the end of my trip I felt I had to hide in a closet just to have a taste of my beloved Dr. Pepper.  As my pregnancy was nearing the end it seemed as though I splurged more than enough. Being 2 weeks over due it seemed like I would find myself in Dairy Queen saying “well this will be my last blizzard, my baby is coming any day now.”
I think there has to be a balance, between healthy eating and the occasional splurge.  I want to support my child and give her the best start I can possibly give her, starting with healthy nutrition. Now that I am happily settling into the mother role I find it’s harder than ever to eat right. Its seems time fly’s taking care of my little one that I forget to take care of myself and eat right. That’s why I am making it a priority, top of my list, from this blog forward.

p.s. If you see me eating or drinking something unhealthy I give you permission to tell me whats up. Peer pressure will get me back on track… My body will thank you later.

Thankful

Today I am thinking of all the things I have to be thankful for. It is so easy with the day to day routine to forget all of the little things and the big things that really make our lives. I am truly blessed to have a loving husband, two wonderful children, supportive friends and family and a home to live in a relatively safe country. I have access to health care, information, freedom of speech and religion, a job of which I love and the freedom to work the hours I want. So many things that many people in other parts of the world would love to have, and I am truly thankful that these things which I sometimes take for granted are all in my life. My challenge for you today is to really think about what makes up your life- who are those special people, what are the special things that you value.  As often as you can write down what you are thankful for- you will be amazed at how this little task will change your outlook on life.  I have found that once you realize what all you have to be thankful for, all of the things that seem to "weigh us down" in life seem smaller. Thanks and have a great day!

 

Baby Body Bliss?

I had never really been overly confident with my body; I just accepted it as “it is what it is,” and tried to think as little about it as much as possible. But the further in the pregnancy I got it was harder and harder it was not to notice the large basketball growing in my tummy. My girlfriend brought me over a huge tub of maternity clothes that I made work, which was great with me.  I did not see myself with the “glow” what so ever.  Below is a link to what happens to your body and organs as your baby develops over the 40 weeks…

http://www.msichicago.org/whats-here/exhibits/you/the-exhibit/your-beginning/make-room-for-baby/interactive/

It is amazing how your body accommodates such a large entity and crazy to think our bodies are made for this.  I still can’t believe that pregnancy is norm and so surprised at really how fast your body does return to somewhat of normalcy.  But now what can I do to get my body back into shape? I have been doing some research and found interval training can produce great results. Surging your heart for 30-45 seconds within a ultimate target heart rate and resting in repetitions, no gym necessary. Sounds about up my alley- don’t ned to commit much time and can do it anywhere.  Not just to get in shape, working out also helps release endorphins with increases mood. Together with good nutrition I am going to try it and you can keep me to it. I hope to report back to you telling you about my blissful body… or atleast a happy heart feeling good about myself and my body.

http://fitness.mercola.com/sites/fitness/archive/2012/11/09/high-intensity-training.aspx?e_cid=20121109_DNL_art_2

 

When does it become too much?

I am sure we have all been there… we over commit ourselves.  Whether it be to be the “PERFECT” : mom, worker, house keeper, volunteer.  My mother in law always said that it is so important to keep the house clean and spotless… and how dare I not iron my clothes.  Really?  Ironing is not even mentioned on my page long to-do list!  Seriously…

Now don’t get me wrong…I tried.  But.  Yes there is always a but…my husband and I both do shift work.  Number one thing that leads to chaos as our routine changes.    Number two, three girls love their clothes and accessories…I was forever doing laundry.  Number three, we live in rural areas…activities for my girls include an hour and half round trip. (Quite exhausting when it’s just one parent dragging sleeping kids into the cold, dark house)

I would wake up and feel as if I would ‘clean house’ from sunrise to sunset and still not accomplish everything other then annoy my girls by nagging them to ‘Clean Up!’.

Then, do they really need to be involved in three activities each?  Whirlwind.  No they don’ t need dance, hockey and music lessons.

This fall I was exhausted just thinking about it.  So, due to location, dropped hockey (for this year, then will see as they did well last season).  We chose one activity for the fall, skating lessons.  We still have a 45-minute one-way drive, but once a week is doable.  My house, well that’s hit and miss.  And I have an internal struggle to be “Super working mom with the clean house”…but the little time I am at home… That time should be focused on the three most precious gifts in our house…not vacuuming or wiping the Nutella prints off white cupboards.

A tip I learned from my sister, accomplish one housecleaning chore a day…and spend quality time with your loved ones without feeling “guilty”.

Anyone else have any tips? Anyone else struggling with the overwhelm of it all?