Archive for February, 2010
As mentioned in an earlier post, our bathroom is under construction (almost done now!). So, I have been showering at my Ma’s house. The other day I packed my bags for my weekly shower (I know. Gross), proud of myself for remembering my bra this time. I began to get ready for the shower and realized I forgot my underwear. Grrr. I toweled up, ran downstairs and asked my Ma if she had a pair of undies I could borrow. 
She looked at me, distraught and said “Oh Amie, I wear small, bikini style underwear. I don’t think I’ll have anything that will fit you”. Keep in mind that my mom is this hot, little number going on 60.
I proceeded to explain to her that I am still in the same underwear that I was in before I was pregnant.
As she came upstairs she exclaimed, “Oh Amie, I just don’t know, let’s look though, maybe we can find something.”
I said with a bit more excitement, “MOM! Didn’t you hear me. I am still in the same underwear. Anything will work.”
She digs through her drawer sighing and pulling out the biggest pair of panties she can find, “Hmmm, well, maybe these will work.”
Snatching them from her hand and huffing off, “Those will work. Of course they will work.”
I stomped back to her holding the pair of underwear that I had shown up in with two hands, “See? Same size. Same underwear as before.”
“Oh.” She asks, “What size are those?”
February 26, 2010
I went to the doctor yesterday. I am now 37 weeks. T minus 3 weeks until my due date. Laid down on the terribly uncomfortable doctor table. She felt my belly and said, “Oh! She feels like she is sideways now.” I thought, “no way, I feel her head in my pelvis.” So, she checked me and sure enough her head is where it should be, not sideways. So, basically the girth of this baby is comparable to a baby who is laying sideways. Awesome and ouch. Looking forward to delivery.
Things that must be done before I deliver: under construction bathroom must be finished, thousands of boxes full of baby paraphernalia must be organized and put away, baby furniture must be painted, two more showers, art auction to be hosted on Feb. 28th, documentary must be wrapped up. Whew! I think I can! I think I can!
Happy belated Valentines Day everyone. I would not be wishing you Happy Valentines Day if it weren’t for the awesome card my adorable husband made for me below that I want to show off. That’s Frankie on the left and Floyd on the right. Steve keeps asking me, “See the heart that their tails are making?” Do you see it? I think Floyd kinda looks like he wants to kick Frankie’s ass.
February 18, 2010
As unreal as it may seem to us, there is a baby coming, inevitably, this baby will be here sooner than later. Steve and I have talked a lot about preparations for the baby. We tend to do that; to talk about preparing more than we actually prepare. Whether the thing actually gets done is of varying importance.
One of the things we have been talking about preparing for is how to be sure that we have our 2, four year old dogs prepped for the best possible outcome of living with their new sister/master, Matilda. We have gotten them to go to their beds with pretty good ease. All we have to say is “bed!” and they both run frantically to one of their beds, sometimes knocking heads trying to figure out which bed they should each be on to get the best spot for the treat they know is coming. Sometimes they switch beds, sometimes they each get on the same bed, uncomfortably, but hoping that they will be the first to get the treat.
On our list of over 30 things that need to be done before Matilda is here, was to get a baby doll that will pose as Matilda. We spent a couple of evenings making over the doll, passing it back and forth, bouncing it and cooing at it–yes, it felt a little crazy.
Frankie could have given a rat’s ass. Floyd on the other hand thought the baby’s large head was a play toy. So, we worked with his boundaries. I didn’t think he got it. And then, the other day, we inadvertently left the doll on the couch. Next thing we know, the baby has two tennis balls and Floyd is sitting in front of it whining for her to throw them. Success! He thinks the baby is human and is treating her as such. I think it is going to be ok after all.
Yesterday was Steve’s birthday. He has made things so much easier for me throughout this pregnancy that I felt like I should have planned something super spectacular.
But, I failed to plan anything.
So, I got him sushi for lunch and a heart shaped cheesecake. In the evening we went to Steve’s favorite restaurant Pueblo Solis. The snow storm had just begun when we left for the restaurant.
Afterward, Steve wanted to go see Avatar. Steve insists that certain movies have to be seen in the theater. Avatar was one of them. When we left the restaurant, the snow had accumulated on our car to where it had to be wiped off again. I had assigned Steve a two drink minimum, so I was designated driver. Probably against our better judgement, off we went to the movie theater. Three hour movie + snow storm + 45 minute drive home = Amie scared shitless, moaning, whining and crying about how the car is sliding off of the highway and everyone else in the world needs to learn how to drive because they are all going to die if they don’t SLOW DOWN.
All out of love for the birthday boy. You are the greatest husband and daddy to be, honey. I hope you had a fabulous birthday and I look forward to preparing to prepare for the rest of our lives together.
February 9, 2010
As mentioned in an earlier post, we are trying to incorporate as many non-toxic products as possible into our lives and into Matilda’s life. I believe this is important for a number of reasons. First, it is proven that a lot of the ingredients/materials found in many baby and adult products can cause asthma and allergies. Second, why not go as natural as possible? Who really knows the long term effects of all of these toxins.
I have to say that it was not the easiest thing to put together a baby registry where the products fit the criteria that I was looking for: safety, toxin levels and quality or “will Steve, myself and our baby like this product”. Apparently this is a very high standard to reach and not many companies are on board to do all three. It seems that most companies focus on one and seem to forget about the other two.
Because of the difficulty I had finding a lot of these products, I decided to register at Babies R Us and Amazon. I would have loved to of registered at one of the smaller online companies that sell a lot of the products I was looking for, but having three separate registries seemed like a little much.
So, here it goes…I obviously have not tried a lot of these products. I thought I would show you the products in our registry and talk a little about why I chose each of them.
1. Stokke Tripp Trapp Highchair–This is one of the only non-toxic highchairs I could find. Don’t let the price point scare you because it can be used all the way into adulthood. I like the fact that it encourages your baby to sit at the table with you while she eats.
2. Kushies Baby Shangrila Multi-Sensory Activity Play Mat–Could not find information on the toxin levels in this product, but love that they use a lot of black and white in the material. Babies eyes are attracted and stimulated by black and white patterns.
3. Graco Pack ‘n Play Portable Playard – Nouvelle–Bromine levels are < 8ppm which is a negligible level according to Friends of the Earth. It has high customer ratings on Babies R Us and it is not obnoxious looking.
4. Sunshine Kids 18460 Radian 80SL Convertible Car Seat–Very low toxin levels according to Healthystuff.org. Very high NCAP crash test rating. I feel confident that we found the best car seat on the market.
5. The Nesting Pillow-Organic Nursing Pillow with Washable Slip Cover–It is 100% organic inside and out. All 5 star customer reviews.
6. Ergo Dark Chocolate Organic Baby Carrier–This carrier is supposed to give better support to your baby’s spine and hips. Very high customer reviews.
7. Nuby BPA Free 7 Piece Medical Organizer Kit–This is the only BPA free medical kit I could find.
8. Moby Wrap Organic Cotton Baby Carrier–Great ratings and organic.
9. I had a really hard time finding a stroller that was not a thousand dollars with low toxin levels and high customer ratings. I ended up registering for the Schwinn Hope Single Swivel Wheel Stroller. I could not find anything on the toxin levels on this one, but would love to know. I wanted a light three wheeler that I could jog with and at least some of the proceeds go towards breast cancer research. If you are looking for a decently priced four wheel stroller with high ratings and low toxins, I think the Joovy Caboose Ultralight Stand On Tandem Stroller checks out pretty good.
10. None of the bouncers with low toxin levels had very high customer ratings, so we decided to go with the Fisher-Price Newborn Rock and Play Sleeper. If anyone comes across the toxin levels for this product, I would love to know them.
11. Don’t know the toxin levels of the Fisher-Price Papasan Cradle Swing -My Little Lamb either, but I heard they are crack for babies. I’ll keep you posted on that one.
We registered for a few other small things, clothing and what not. I will maybe do another post on my favorite clothes once we have her here and can talk intelligently about what we like and why.
We are also going to try to brave the cloth diaper world. We are taking a class at Cotton Babies on Wednesday to try to learn the ins and outs of cloth diapering. Not that it is rocket science, but there are just so many options out there now. I am leaning toward the all in one organic Bumgenius. We shall see.
I hope you happened upon this list sooner than later and that it saved you bucket loads of time. I kept thinking while I was doing all of this research that I wish I had a list like this.
I would love to hear about the products you have come across that are low in toxins and high in quality. Always looking to support companies who do it right 
Good luck with everything!
February 6, 2010
I had my second ultrasound yesterday to check the size of the baby and to be sure that everything is looking ok. All looks well-maybe a little too well. This little girl is in the 98th percentile for weight and size. They are guesstimating between 9lb. and 11lb if I go full term. All I can say to myself is take it one step at a time and see if you can do it. See if you can get this very large girl who is going to come out talking and smoking and lifting weights out naturally. She’s gonna be like “Hi Mom, I’ve been waiting to meet you. It was quite cramped in your belly, now give me a steak. Medium rare.”
Here is the conversation that was had between myself, the ultrasound tech and my ma.
UT: What are you going to name this child?
Me: Matilda. My mom doesn’t like it but we don’t care.
Mom: I’m calling her Mattie.
Me: That is not her name.
UT: You should listen to your mother. This little girl is going to grow up and ask you why you named her Matilda.
Mom: That’s right, I told her that.
UT: You should listen to your mom. What is the child’s middle name?
Me: Parker
UT: Mmmm. I knew you all were a little different. Aren’t you.
Mom: They’re a couple of hippies.
UT: Maybe she will call herself Melanie, or Matte.
Mom: I’m calling her Mattie.
Me: Mattie is not her name. Her name is Matilda and we love the name and she will too.
And then the conversation turned to lecturing me about how many sweets I eat and how I made this baby this big and it’s not because I weighed 9 lb. 3 oz. and my husband weighed 10 lb. Nope, it’s because I ate too much. And also how crazy I am for trying to go natural and how it’s not going to be possible with a baby this size.
I take it all in stride. We shall see.
Anyone else deal with frowns and funny looks when they told the name they had picked? I know some people don’t tell until the baby is here, but I figured that it would give everyone time to get used to it. Looks like it is going to be an uphill battle. Once she is here she will be nothing but Matilda to everyone.
February 4, 2010
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