Moving, again.

We got our lease renewal letter in the mail this week...  Ugh.  We know we're not staying here as it is so expensive!  But the problem is, we don't know where we are going.  We have to figure this out in the next two months though!

To rent or buy debate?

I am sooooooo over moving!  We have had nine addresses in the nine years we have been married over three states!

I am ready to stay put for awhile and unpack every.single.box.  That has yet to happen...

Without going political, the incentives to buy are just not there like they used to be.  I like that is is "ours" though.  To decorate.  Paint.  Hang things on the walls.  You know, make it home.  Every single rental we've lived in, house or apartment, we have yet to hang things on the wall or paint.

Renting makes sense though as then if something major breaks, it is not our savings account depleting...  We can chug away at this stupid student loan debt without worrying about saving for household repairs.  But then again they can tell you you have to be out in x amount of days and then you're at square one again.

Do you own or rent?  Do you recommend it?  Let's talk...

P.S.  PregEase giveaway ends at midnight tonight!!!

To Doula or not?!

I absolutely LOVED my ob/gyn Dr. Simckes back in Missouri...  Perhaps the great pregnancy experience under his care was that he also cared for me during infertility treatments?  We had an understanding.  He would let me have my way unless it meant life or death, then he took the reigns.  It was a patient-Doctor respected relationship.  I miss being under his care...

First time labor was overall great.  Charles was my rock and my mom was an amazing supporter.  Overall, I loved the ability to labor as I pleased.  I do have a couple regrets I want to do differently this time though.  Like, I regret them fearing the unknown of it being our first go at it and pressuring me to go to the hospital very early on.  Being admitted at 4cm meant a long time laboring in the hospital!  I want to be home with Little Miss as long as possible.  I regret getting the IV drugs.  Little Miss came out having some brief breathing problems and I can't help but attribute it to my "pain relief".

This time, I'll have Charles of course as my number one.  My mom will be on Little Miss duty so she'll be touch and go on helping during labor.  I fear Charles will become exhausted physically (I required constant pushing on my back that left my mom and Charles physically exhausted by delivery!) and emotionally if he does not have someone to help support him...  I don't know who will be on call for delivery because the practice is like 7 Doctors.  The smallest one I could find in the Charlotte area!  :-(  So I need Charles to be fresh if they try to pull anything.  Yeah, I don't have a huge trust for Doctors.  Especially here where the c-section rates are high!

So to Doula or not is the question...  With a price tag of $500-1000!!  Ouch!  I'm desperately trying to find a Doula who is not yet certified to help cut the cost some.

I would absolutely LOVE to deliver at the birthing center for a water birth specifically just across the South Carolina boarder but they are not crazy about me being on a baby aspirin a day thanks to MTHFR.  They want me to go see a Doctor for approval first.  Fine.  Until I researched this Doctor who just recently lost a wrongful death case against her!  Yeah, if she can't keep her patients alive why would I trust her for approval or not if I would be okay to delivery at the birthing center?!

So back to making the best of the natural birth friendly hospital in Charlotte...

Doula stories to share???  Please do!!!

P.S.  Don't forget to enter the PregEase giveaway ending January 7!!!

Baby concerns

I have to get this out there...  Hopefully someone has been here too and can offer reassuring encouragement.

My first dating ultrasound with Little Miss was 6w 1d.  That is the only ultrasound she measured spot on her due date!  Every single additional ultrasound she was slowly gaining dates from one day to 2-3 weeks by the end!  This was especially reassuring as my Doctor mentioned he was watching me for IUGR as it is seen in MTHFR patients.

Fast forward to this pregnancy...  First dating ultrasound baby measured one day behind. Second ultrasound, five days behind. Heartbeat looks fantastic.

In three weeks we have our NT ultrasound (going just for the ultrasound) on a different, newer, ultrasound machine. Hoping for a baby measuring on spot!!

Anyone gone through this??

Doctor says not to worry... I am trying not to. Really, I am.

Pregnancy Talk

I am still floating on cloud nine that I'm knocked up, again!  Each pregnancy definitely is unique though it is particularly amusing to me when one of my brothers is saying this to me...  :-)

And I'm continuously reminding myself, as not to freak myself out, that my body remembers being pregnant so things are happening sooner the second time around.  Like round ligament pain.

I'm nervous as to when my milk will completely dry up and if this will indeed lead Little Miss to self weaning...

I am excitedly nervous as to how she will do when we bring home the new baby...

I also wonder how long it will be before hubby and I finally agree on a name...

The kicker though, we're Team Green so we need to agree on a boy and girl name!

My latest favorite girls name, Olivianne.  He says no.  I love it!  Nickname Liv or Livi.

I am currently 10 weeks with our estimated due date being July 30, 2013!

Go enter our PreEase Giveaway to help us celebrate!! Ends January 7!

Anyone have any breastfeeding while pregnant/milk drying up/toddler weaning words of advice??

Help us Celebrate!

Rip it off like a bandaid...

Little Miss is going to be a BIG SISTER!

 I am still in complete shock.

Only seven cycles.

While still breastfeeding on demand around the clock despite being told I needed to wean for fertility to return!

Prenatals, D3, Baby Aspirin, Pregnitude, and Vitex were the only fertility enhancing products popped!

And lots of Prayer and Faith of course!

The other changes?

Over the last few months, I had read and was implementing some practices from Naturally Knocked Up's book.  The biggest changes being our increased consumption of Grass Fed Beef, Raw Milk Cheese, and Raw Milk Butter.  We were already drastically reducing household toxins in every aspect from cleaning to bathing to what we eat with and from.

Needless to say we are overjoyed by our second miracle baby on the way!  To help us celebrate, Fairhaven Health is offering a giveaway for one bottle of PregEase!

This stuff has been A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!!!  I get "morning sickness" in the evening this time so around 4pm I chew one {it taste like orange cream!  It is soooo good! I could seriously eat several at once based on taste alone!} and the nausea is gone for the next few hours!  It is enough to get me to bedtime where I end up crashing when putting Little Miss to sleep.  It is to help with heartburn too but thankfully I have not had that yet.

I will add that I used to get acid reflux quite often, even pre pregnancy.  Since I am taking this at least once I day, I have only had acid reflux once and that was after eating something very acidic!

Even Charles noticed quite the difference and asked me to make sure I do not let the PregEase run out!

So please, join us in celebrating and join the giveaway!  Open to USA residents only that are 18 or older!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


I was sent one complimentary bottle of PregEase for my honest review of the product.

Missing Drs

Boy has there been a lot going on here....  I'll dabble into one thought process. :-)

While moving to North Carolina has been fantastic in so many ways, one BIG way it has not.

Doctors.

I know we made the decision not to pursue fertility treatments, and we still feel that way.  I just miss the accessibility of my previous loved doctors. Easily being seen for a simple progesterone test to check ovulation for instance.

I received an e-mail last week that Dr. Ahlering from SHER in St. Louis was leaving the practice!  I only "got" to see him once as insurance changed and we fell pregnant naturally with our Little Miss!  I was sad thinking of the several friends I made in St. Louis who hug their beautiful children every day that he played a part in.  He is a great Dr!

I've been on the hunt for a Dr here for my lovely annual appointment and am so frustrated by the lack of small, as in, under 10 physicians, in one practice!  I so miss Dr. Simckes and the two man practice.  During my pregnancy, I knew I would be delivered by him unless an absolute emergency and then I knew the back up Dr too!  He knew my hearts desire to deliver vaginally and though he joked about csections when the rubber met the road, he let me labor as long as I needed and indeed walked in literally just in time to catch baby girl!  We had a patient/Doctor relationship.  With the practices here, not so much...

And that brings me to my theory on why North Carolina is a leader in csections!

I hypothesize that you have a relationship with ONE Dr and unless you have the luck of the draw and they happen to be on call during delivery, you wind up with one of several other Doctors.  Or if you rotate throughout your pregnancy, you maybe will see each Doctor in a 10 physician practice maybe twice?!  How do you establish a relationship of trust on that? Labor is not exactly the time to get to know the Dr that will deliver you.  You may be saying, "Write a birth plan out!"  Why yes, a birth plan is in the file but how many Dr really read it?! 

Back to my theory- Not your regular Dr is on call.  You're at a 7.  It is 10pm.  On call Dr has to be in the office tomorrow.  Because you are just a number to them, no patient relationship to stand on and do not know your hearts desire to deliver vaginally, they bully you into a csection and they are crawling into bed before midnight.  They don't have to deal with you again so who cares?!

If anyone is looking for my opinions, I believe practices should be smaller.  More intimate.  Doctors should know their patients, the regular ones as in during pregnancy.  Dr. Simckes did...  Have I mentioned that I miss being under his care??

Trying a new practice next week...  This one has 10 Doctors and 6 midwives.  I hope to utilize the midwives one day.

Potty Training 102

Seeking veteran parents help!  Or anyone that knows anything about potty training...

Quick recap- 

Day one of potty training on Monday consisted of waking up dry, one accident shortly after waking for the day, and an accident during naptime.

Day two on Tuesday consisted of waking up wet for the day, waking up dry from naptime, and pooping on the potty for the first and second time!  The issue arose when Little Miss and I took a quick trip to Goodwill and Walgreens.  She refused to potty before leaving despite our best efforts.  She told me in the car that she needed to go potty!  Thankfully, we were about two minutes from our destination and I convinced her to hold it.  We got to the bathroom with her dry but upon seeing the big potty, she refused to go!  Walked around no problem.  Back to the car we went for our second destination 5 minutes away.  About three minutes into the ride she said "POTTY!" and then was quiet.  I am assuming that is when it happened...  When we arrived she was wet.

Today is day FOUR of our potty training adventure!

Overall, I am pretty happy with her progress so far!  Daytime accidents minimal.  She's 24 months old.  I expected multiple accidents a day!

Any seasoned tips or tricks on transitioning to using the potty out and about despite it being a big potty?  Have I really destined myself to bring a little potty with us for the next 15 years of errands and traveling?  

And how about tackling sleep accidents...  Some days she is dry.  Others not so much.  She does not want to wear a diaper at all.  I guess we are going the "bootcamp" route?

Oh the bittersweet moments of Potty Training.  No more fluff butt cloth diapers.  No more pants not fitting because of said fluff butt.  Excited that she is reaching such a milestone though!!

Tell me about your potty training experience?  Your kids?  Other kids?

Lunaception

It arrived!!! Truly felt like Christmas came early!!!

Meet my new BFF.

Luness.

Though I call her Lunette.

Not really but doesn't she deserve a name?

"She" will help my crazy PCOS cycles regulate.

"She" will literally give us the green light when conception is most likely.

"She" will, God willing, shorten the time span in which we spend trying to conceive.

"She" will be a permanent fixture in our bedroom until I see two pink lines again! {And then I wonder what other benefits "she" would bring to Charles and My health!  Maybe even help labor along at full term during the "full moon" phase?!}

"She" will also be a Natural Family Planning {aka Avoiding Conception without chemicals!} assistant when that time comes.  Right now, we want a baby!  :-)

I was introduced to Lunaception several years ago in a brief this-sounds-cool reading.  I did not really think much else of it at the time.

That all changed about three months ago when I announced that we were no longer going to pursue fertility treatments in our quest to bring a sibling home for Little Miss.  I have spent the last several weeks researching it, wondering if there was something to this Moon Cycle.

 It makes sense to me.  Does a full moon not resemble a pregnant belly?  Back in the days when God created the Heavens and the Earth, artificial lights did not exist.  I can see the moons cycle indeed impacting our lives.  God does do everything for a reason...  In fact, I wonder if infertility rates are higher among city dwellers than country folk? {Catch my country twang?  :-)}

Coincidence?  A theory-  To help with utilities, we put heavy duty blankets/curtains on our windows in the bedroom and thus resulting a pitch black sleeping environment.  About three weeks ago it was a nice evening so we slept with the windows open.  Directly across from our window is a street light.  It glared into our bedroom all.night.long.  Very annoying.  This happened to be like day 10 of my cycle.  Right at two weeks later, I had a really light menstrual cycle that I can only attribute to the light signaling ovulation before my body was actually ready and thus a weak ovulation and weak period.

And then I read a review from Naturally Knocked Up {Fantastic book she wrote too by the way!} on this new product, Luness.  I was hooked!

And here I am, having just opened the package it came in all excited to try it!  I'm hoping after a few months of regular Luness use, I can wean off the Vitex but I will continue taking the Pregnitude as I have read too many reasons to continue taking it not only during conception but throughout pregnancy.  I notice a difference in me when I am off it for more than two days.

So now we just wait for the lovely witch to show so I can press that cycle start button and get this show on the road!  I promise to continue updating how Lunette and I are getting along.  :

Anyone familiar with Lunaception?  Tried Luness?

*Disclaimer- I was sent at no cost to me, Luness, to review and provide my honest opinions.

Potty Training 101

Smiles after a full day of Potty Training {and Chocolate of course!}

I learned a valuable lesson today.  Not that my vote really counts or anything political like that but in raising our daughter.

I learned that she is independent to the max.

I learned that she does not follow any parenting books.

I learned that all my experience with children applies zero to raising her.

I learned chocolate for Little Miss, Mommy, and Daddy is a necessity during potty training!

We tried this whole potty training gig a few weeks ago.  We purchased two little potty seats for the big toilets and were set to go.  I set the timer and insisted she try to go every 20 minutes. 

Tears.

Lots of them resulted.

When she woke up this morning with a dry diaper, I encouraged her to go potty.  This time in her new pink princess potty just her size!  She can take on/off her pants and panties herself and get on/off the potty all by herself so the need for any help is minimal.  She likes it that way.

She did!!

About 20 minutes later, she had an accident in the middle of the living room.  I thought we were going downhill from there...

I learned that when I asked her if she needed to use the potty, despite doing the potty dance, she would deny the urge and hold it.

I learned when I didn't say a word, she would magically stop what she was doing and run to the potty!

After she went, we would cheer and she would get her treat.

Our first full day at potty training is a success in my book!!

One accident this morning.  Accident at nap.  That's it.  TWO accidents on day one!

Success is at the end of the day she is still all smiles and taking on the personal responsibility of going potty.

Miss Independent.

My baby is growing up...

I wonder what day two will hold?!  Hopefully she will venture into the land of pooping in the potty too.

Little Miss Princess, of course!

 Gosh I love that face!!

 DIVA!!!!  She loves dressing up and had to get a thorough look at this "so pretty" dress she was wearing.  Had to fight tooth and nail to get her to take it off for bed too...

 I seriously want to cry at this picture...  I blink and see myself helping her fix her hair for Prom and blink again and there she is, wearing a white wedding dress as I stand in awe of my just turned two year old!

 She takes her role as Princess very seriously.  No goofing off while in paparazzi view.

Do these pictures of Little Miss (She's 2!) make up for my absence?

Pretty please?

What if I could distribute all the reaming "boring" candy Charles picked out?

It still absolutely baffles me that just three years ago to the day this was my Halloween.  My mom came to visit and encourage me as I was loosing hope on our infertility journey.  I'm so grateful for my mom and our miracle of Little Miss!

 Hope everyone had a safe and memorable day!