Making Your Own Padsicles

Most likely the hospital will provide you with the cooling pads you need after birth.  These are nice as you crack them and they provide a cooling sensation that will help bring down the inflammation.  However, these don't have the best ingredients in them and you most likely you will still want them after you leave the hospital as well.

To make your own padsicles you will need a few things:

• Bladder control pads - these are perfect because they are thick and wide enough for all of the blood after birth
• Aloe Vera
• Witch Hazel (alcohol free)
• Lavender and Tea Tree essential oil

The aloe vera will give you the cooling you will need as you will likely feel a burning sensation for up to a week.  Lavender will help reduce the inflammation and tea tree is known for antibacterial purposes.  Witch Hazel is also anti inflammatory.  Mix all of these ingredients together.  You only need a few drops of the essential oils.

Once these are well mixed spoon them onto each individual pad and spread the mixture out.  Place the pads in the freezer and keep them there until after your delivery date.  

Use as needed.  You will really be happy you prepared these padiscles :)

What is Baby Led Weaning?

Baby led weaning, or BLW for short is having your child feed themselves what they want and how much they want.  This allows your baby to make the choices they want.  You can start baby led weaning as long as the baby is over 6 months old and starts to show an interest in your plate.  BLW is all about skipping the purees and going right for finger food.  Purees contain so many empty calories and they contain unhealthy starch.  Baby food companies also dilute the baby food which lowers the nutrient amount.

If they refuse any food now, be sure to try again later.  Just because they didn't enjoy it now, doesn't mean they won't later.

Always remember to offer breast milk first.  There is no reason your baby should be eating solids to get a full stomach before the age of one.  This stage is about letting your baby explore different tastes and textures.

Some good tips on offering your baby food is to try a whole banana with the peel on the end so they can hold onto it, strips of cucumber, avocado slices about 2 inches big and pieces of broccoli (make sure you leave the stem so they can hold onto it while sucking on the top of the tree).

There are certain types of food you should just not offer to your baby.

DO NOT OFFER YOUR BABY
-Honey
-Shellfish
-Peanut butter
-Shark
-Undercooked eggs
-Food that is high in fiber
-Chips, sugar, junk food or any hydrogenated fats
-Anything with additives in it including yellow #5, yellow #6, red #40
-Artificial preservatives or sweeteners

OFFER YOUR BABY
-Fruits (bananas are a great start)
-Vegetables (avocado, sweet potatoes, etc.)
-Eggs
-Chickpeas
-Brown rice
-Peas
-Lentils
-Chicken and red meat

Please share your favorite BLW meals!  Also, be sure to check out my related article "Food Under One is Just For Fun".

Why I Ate My Placenta and Why You Should Too

It is pretty amazing that a human body can grow a whole entire organ in 9 months while pregnant.  There are many benefits to eating your placenta.  While some women eat their placenta raw, others prefer to encapsulate it.  Some people make art with their placenta and others will bury their placenta in their garden on the baby's first birthday to celebrate life.  

The placenta makes sure your baby is getting enough oxygen and nutrients during your pregnancy.  After pregnancy you will delivery our placenta and you may do as you wish with it as your body does not need it anymore.  Although your body doesn't need it internally, it can be a big help to consume it for many reasons.

-Increases milk supply.  Ingesting the placenta is known to increase the milk supply in a mother's breast milk.

-Increase red blood cells.  During birth we lose a lot of blood.  Ingesting our placenta will replace what we have lost so we don't become anemic.

-Increases energy levels.  Being a new mom, you may feel fatigued and have low energy.  Consuming your placenta will increase your energy levels so you can feel like a normal person again.

-Gets rid of postpartum depression.  Many new mothers will struggle with postpartum depression after they give birth.  The placenta will help this struggle.

It's strange to me that there aren't more people who don't ingest their placenta.  We are the only mammals on earth that don't regularly ingest our placentas.  I will be posting step by step instructions on how to properly prepare a placenta if you don't plan on eating it raw.

Birth Plan

It is important to have a birth plan in place whether you are delivering at a hospital or a birthing center.  A birth plan will let your midwife or doctor know what you want in regards to delivering your bundle of joy.  This is an example of my birth plan.  Feel free to copy it and/or change it up to better suit your desires.  I am happy to report my midwife had no problems with my birth plan and followed it to a T.

No pitocin

If C-section is necessary I’d like to make sure all other options have been exhausted.  My husband is to remain with me the entire time and for him to hold the baby as soon as possible, and I’d like to breastfeed in the recovery room.

I’d like to deliver the placenta without assistance from midwife when ready.  Do not rush delivery.

I’d like to keep the placenta after removal.  Please store in bags provided.

I'd like to hold my baby skin-to-skin immediately after delivery.

I’d like for my baby to stay in the same room with me, no nursery time.

I'd like to wait until the umbilical cord stops pulsating before it's clamped and cut and I’d like my husband to cut the cord.

If my baby must be taken from me to receive medical treatment, I'd like my husband to go with him or her.

I wish to birth in different positions as I see fit.

I plan to exclusively breastfeed my baby while in the hospital.

If my baby's a boy, I do not want him to be circumcised.

Pediatrician must examine baby in my room.

No bathing

No hat

No Vitamin K

No eye ointments

No hepatitis B vaccine

NO VACCINES PERIOD