Meme Week: Day 3 - Three Knitting Memes

Knitting Meme 1: You Knit Where?

List the 5 places, other than home or a yarn store where you have knit recently.

1) Hamilton Bulldogs hockey game
2) Midwifery clinic lobby
3) The car
4) Other people's houses (my father-in-law's, my mother's, my grandmother's and my doula's houses)
5) The park! (Welcome dear Spring!)

Knitting Meme 2: Finish it!

List the number of your FOs/ UFOs.

Adult Sweaters: 1 / 1
Baby Sweaters: 1 / 1
Baby Dress: 0 / 0
Baby Pants: 0 /1
Stuffed Toys: 2 / 0
Baby Hats: 0 / 0
Baby Socks/Booties: 0 / 0
Baby Bib: 0 / 0
Baby Blankets: 4 / 2
Kids Socks: 2 / 0
Adult Socks: 3 / 4
Legwarmers: 0 / 0
Mittens, Wristwarmers or Gloves: 3 / 3
Hats: 6 / 0
Scarves: 5 / 1
Afghans/Blankets: 1 / 0
Shawls: 1 / 0
Rugs: 0 / 1
Dish/Wash Cloths: 22 / 3
Pillows: 0 / 0
Shrugs: 1 / 1

Knitting Meme 3: Check Your Library

List all books in your knitting library. (Include knitting literature but not magazines)

Knit Lit - Linda Roghaar & Molly Wolf
At Knit's End - Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Yarn Harlot - Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Knitting Rules! - Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Unusual Toys For You To Knit And Enjoy - Jess Hutchinson
Weekend Knitting - Melanie Falick
New Ideas For Crochet - Dasha Capaldi
Stitch & Bitch Nation - Debbie Stoller
Mason-Dixon Knitting - Kaye Gardner & Ann Shayne
The Knitting Goddess - Deborah Bergman
Knitting Tips & Trade Secrets
Learn to Knit Socks - Edie Eckman
Big Girl Knits - Jillian Moreno & Amy R. Singer
The Harmony Guide To Knitted Stitches
Last Minute Knitted Gifts - Joelle Hoverson

Well, it's a pretty small collection, considering the size of my love for the craft. You will notice an almost total absence of classic works and works by the masters (mistresses) of the craft (art?) like the ever estimable Ms. Zimmermann.

I'd like more books on socks, some on lace and, of course, some of Ms. Zimmermann's classic works. Oh, and Yarn Harlot's new book! I very much want that. I tend to go to the library a fair bit, so some books have been borrowed and returned. I plan on borrowing a few of the sociology of knitting type books like Knitting In America. I enjoy reading about knitting as much as I love the porn aspect of looking at a gorgeous pattern book. Oh and I need a few more stitch books! And something from the Knitting Over The Edge series.

Ahhhhhh, reading and knitting, my two loves.

Meme Week: Day 2 - Movie/Geek

Mark the movies you've seen you've seen with an (X). If the total is over 85, you have no life.

(X) Rocky Horror Picture Show
(X) Grease
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest*
( ) Boondock Saints
(X) Fight Club
( ) Starsky and Hutch
(X) Neverending Story
( ) Blazing Saddles
(X) Airplane
(X) The Princess Bride
(X) AnchorMan
(X) Napoleon Dynamite
(X) Labyrinth
( ) Saw
( ) Saw II
( ) White Noise
(X) White Oleander
(X) Anger Management
(X) 50 First Dates
(X) The Princess Diaries
( ) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
(X) Scream
( ) Scream 2
( ) Scream 3
( ) Scary Movie
( ) Scary Movie 2
( ) Scary Movie 3
( ) Scary Movie 4
(X) American Pie
(X) American Pie 2
(X) American Wedding
( ) American Pie Band Camp
(X) Harry Potter 1
(X) Harry Potter 2
(X) Harry Potter 3
(X) Harry Potter 4
( ) Resident Evil 1
( ) Resident Evil 2
(X) The Wedding Singer
( ) Little Black Book
(X) The Village
(X) Lilo & Stitch
(X) Finding Nemo
(X) Finding Neverland
(X) Signs
(X) The Grinch
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
( ) White Chicks
(X) Butterfly Effect
(X) 13 Going on 30
(X) I, Robot
(X) Robots
( ) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
( ) Universal Soldier
(X) Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
( ) Along Came Polly
(X) Deep Impact
( ) KingPin
(X) Never Been Kissed
(X) Meet The Parents
(X) Meet the Fockers
( ) Eight Crazy Nights
( ) Joe Dirt
(X) King Kong
( ) A Cinderella Story
(X) The Terminal
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Passport to Paris
(X) Dumb & Dumber
(X) Dumber & Dumberer
( ) Final Destination
( ) Final Destination 2
( ) Final Destination 3
(X) Halloween
(X) The Ring (I've also seen the vastly scarier Japanese version)
( ) The Ring 2
(X) Surviving Christmas
( ) Flubber
(X) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
(X) Practical Magic
(X) Chicago
( ) Ghost Ship
( ) From Hell
(X) Hellboy
(X) Secret Window
(X) I Am Sam
(X) The Whole Nine Yards
( ) The Whole Ten Yards
(X) The Day After Tomorrow
( ) Child’s Play
( ) Seed of Chucky
( ) Bride of Chucky
(X) Ten Things I Hate About You
(X) Just Married
(X) Gothika
(X) Nightmare on Elm Street
(X) Sixteen Candles
(X) Remember the Titans
( ) Coach Carter
(X) The Grudge (Actually, I've only ever seen the Japanese version.)
( ) The Grudge 2
(X) The Mask
( ) Son Of The Mask
(X) Bad Boys
( ) Bad Boys 2
( ) Joy Ride
( ) Lucky Number Sleven
(X) Ocean’s Eleven
( ) Ocean’s Twelve
(X) Bourne Identity
( ) Bourne Supremecy
( ) Lone Star
(X) Bedazzled
( ) Predator I
( ) Predator II
( ) The Fog
(X) Ice Age
(X) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
(X) Curious George
(X) Independence Day
( ) Cujo
( ) A Bronx Tale
( ) Darkness Falls
(X) Christine
(X) E.T.
(X) Children of the Corn (He wants YOU Malachi!)
(X) My Bosses Daughter
(X) Maid in Manhattan
(X) War of the Worlds (I know this version isn't a movie, but around what Americans call middle school, I would come home every day, put on the first of 4 sides of vinyl and lie on the livingroom floor listening to War Of The Worlds. I also used the opening monologue as my audition piece in Grade 9 drama club. While I didn't get an acting part, they were impressed by my geeky choice that I became the sound technician for the play.)
( ) Rush Hour
( ) Rush Hour 2
( ) Best Bet
(X) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
( ) She’s All That
(X) Calendar Girls
(X) Sideways
( ) Mars Attacks
(X) Event Horizon
( ) Ever After
(X) Wizard of Oz
(X) Forrest Gump
( ) Big Trouble in Little China
(X) The Terminator
(X) The Terminator 2
( ) The Terminator 3
(X) X-Men
(X) X-2
(X) X3
(X) Spider-Man
(X) Spider-Man 2
( ) Sky High
( ) Jeepers Creepers
( ) Jeepers Creepers 2
(X) Catch Me If You Can
(X) The Little Mermaid
(X) Freaky Friday
(X) Reign of Fire
( ) The Skulls
( ) Cruel Intentions
( ) Cruel Intentions 2
( ) The Hot Chick
(X) Shrek
(X) Shrek 2
( ) Swimfan
(X) Miracle on 34th street
( ) Old School
(X) The Notebook
(X) K-Pax
( ) Krippendorf’s Tribe
(X) A Walk to Remember
(X) Ice Castles
( ) Boogeyman
(X) The 40-year-old Virgin
(X) Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring
(X) Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
(X) Lord of the Rings: Return Of the King
(X) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
(X) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
(X) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
( ) Base-ketball
( ) Hostel
(X) Waiting for Guffman
( ) House of 1000 Corpses
( ) Devils Rejects
(X) Elf
( ) Highlander
(X) Mothman Prophecies
(X) American History X
( ) Three
( ) The Jacket
( ) Kung Fu Hustle
(X) Shaolin Soccer
( ) Night Watch
(X) Monsters Inc.
(X) Titanic
(X) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
(X) Shaun Of the Dead (Woohoo for good zombie flicks! I own this and Kieran and I have watched it a dozen times. Hmmmm, maybe that's what we should do this afternoon?)
( ) Willard
( ) High Tension
( ) Club Dread
(X) Hulk
( ) Dawn Of the Dead (I'm guessing this isn't referring to the Romero movie. Far better would be the original Romero version, but first you'd have to list Night Of The Living Dead, which I own which started the modern zombie genre. A fantastic and groundbreaking work - especially by casting a black man in the hero's role.)
(X) Hook
(X) Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe*
(X) 28 days later (A fabulous zombie movie.)
( ) Orgazmo
(X) Phantasm
(X) Waterworld
(X) Kill Bill Vol. 1
(X) Kill Bill Vol. 2
( ) Mortal Kombat
( ) Wolf Creek
(X) Kingdom of Heaven
( ) the Hills Have Eyes
( ) I Spit on Your Grave
( ) The Last House on the Left
( ) Re-Animator
( ) Army of Darkness
(X) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
(X) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
(X) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(X) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
(X) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
(X) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
( ) Ewoks: Caravan Of Courage
( ) Ewoks: The Battle For Endor
(X) The Matrix
(X) The Matrix: Reloaded
(X) The Matrix: Revolutions
( ) Animatrix
( ) Evil Dead
( ) Evil Dead 2
(X) Team America: World Police
(X) Red Dragon (How weird is this: I read this book in the lonely days in the hospital after giving birth to Kieran. Perhaps not the best postpartum reading!)
(X) Silence of the Lambs
(X) Hannibal

138/238

I obviously have no life. It's a good thing I can knit while I watch all of these movies!

There were a lot of movies missing from this list, though. Some directors weren't represented at all (Kevin Smith, Woody Allen, Martin Scorcese...), classic geek love movies that didn't make it to the list (any of the Godfather Trilogy, Apocolypse Now, Porky's, Snakes on a Plane...), flat out cool and beautiful movies (M, Empire of the Sun, Once Upon A Time In America, Taxi Driver...) and movies whose remakes were on the list in favour over their far superior originals (I've already remarked on Romero's absence).

And what kind of geek do these movies reflect the tastes of? Movie geeks (because it is really woefully inadequate as already stated), scifi and fantasy geeks, the young gamer geeks with little knowledge of the mindblowingly fantastic movies of 30 and 40 years ago?

Ah well, it was fun to see my high score! Even on a list I thought wasn't great.

Meme Week: Day 1 - 100 Books

I am declaring this week Meme Week on Momcast. Each day this week I'll bring you a different meme. You can maybe learn more about me, get inspired to do a meme or just peruse a little mindless fun - because, let's face it, some days you want to think and some days you don't.

100 Books, found on The Point Of Knitting.

Bold the ones you've read.
Italicize the ones you want to read.
Leave Blank the ones you aren't interested in.

1. The DaVinci Code (Dan Brown)
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien)
6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)
7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien)
8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)
9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)
12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden)
16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Rowling)
17. Fall on Your Knees (Ann-Marie MacDonald)
18. The Stand (Stephen King)
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Rowling)
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkien)
22. The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
25. Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)
28. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)
31. Dune (Frank Herbert)
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34. 1984 (Orwell)
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)
36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
38. I Know This Much is True (Wally Lamb)
39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)
44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)
45. The Bible
46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
48. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)
49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb)
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)
53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens)
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrew Niffenegger)
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)
64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davis)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
69. Les Miserables (Hugo)
70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
71. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)
72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell)
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
78. The World According to Garp (John Irving)
79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
80. Charlotte's Web (E.B. White)
81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)
84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Watership Down(Richard Adams)
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer)
91. In The Skin Of A Lion (Ondaatje)
92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)
93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)
96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)
100. Ulysses (James Joyce)

59/100 read.

Nice to see a good representation of Canadian authors.

If you decide to participate in this meme, leave a comment with your URL!

Recipe: Mamaloo's Mexican Pie

The night after Quesadilla night is a challenge: how to come up with a suitable Mexican meal that is significantly different than the previous night's but uses up all the leftovers?

I solved that little problem with the following:

Mamaloo's Mexican Pie

In a lightly greased pie dish, layer the following:

1 tortilla
4 TBSP refried beans
4 TBSP salsa
1 tortilla
4 TBSP refried beans
4 TBSP guacamole **
1 tortilla
4 TBSP refried beans
1/4 C diced peppers
1/4 C diced green onion
1/2 or 1 C grated cheese (Cheddar or Monterrey Jack are best)
1 tortilla
4 TBSP salsa

Bake in oven at 400 F for 20-30 mins

Serve in wedges with a dollop of sour cream.

Variations: use enchilada sauce or salsa verde in place of regular salsa. Add leftover rice to a layer. Add leftover beans or corn to a layer. Add leftover beef, pork, chicken, ground beef or ground turkey to a layer. Add olives to a layer.

** Mamaloo's Easy Peasy Guacamole
2-3 mashed avocados
1 capful of lemon juice per avocado
1 clove of garlic, minced, per avocado
salt to taste

Delish!

If you are feeding this to little ones, make sure their pie is cut up into bite size pieces. Kieran had a little trouble chewing up the fresh tortillas and choked on a couple of bites. When we cut everything up even smaller, however, he was fine.

This also keeps well for the next day's lunch at work!

Pregnancy Week 24: Refusing Gestational Diabetes Testing

At our most recent meeting two weeks ago, my midwife recommended I test for Gestational Diabetes (GD). This is common, though more so in Obstetrical care where virtually all pregnant women undergo this test.

GD is a weird beast. It's not a true disease, like Diabetes. There is no chronic impairment of insulin functioning. The concerns for GD are different than regular Diabetes. With regular diabetes one worries about kidney functioning, insulin functioning, circulation and the body's ability to heal itself. With GD the concern is that the baby may put on too much weight and experience hypoglycemia when it is born, taxing it's internal organs before they've had a chance to get strong.

With traditional diabetes, one either doesn't produce adequate insulin to process sugar (type 1) or one's body doesn't use the insulin properly (type 2). Type 2 diabetes is often developed because one's abuse of sugars (such as table sugar and high-fructose corn syrup) leads to the body's chronic inability to adequately process that sugar. Of this second type of diabetes, it is often wholly treatable/manageable through lifestyle changes, as it was a condition most often created via lifestyle.

With GD, the pregnant body, all pregnant bodies, break down sugars at a slower rate the more pregnant one is. In this way, all pregnant women have GD to one degree or another.

This pattern of becoming progressively more sugar intolerant poses a problem for testing. One can test on one day and not be diagnosed as having GD and be tested two weeks later and suddenly be diagnosed as having GD. A third test can show different, higher levels. In science, a test that cannot be repeated with the dame results both times is not a scientifically rigorous test. Some object to the GD testing for this reason.

And, then, the moment the baby is born, GD disappears from the radar. This is very unlike traditional diabetes, which can not truly be cured.

As flawed as the test is and as misleading the condition's name, in cases where women are having real problems, it's good information to have. Most often the condition is managed through diet. In extreme cases, insulin may be given. But, if a woman has a severe case, one won't need to do GD testing to figure it out. There will be signs.

So, when my midwife recommended the test to me, I declined, letting her know that I wasn't comfortable with the test and the stress the test and it's possible findings would cause in my life.

The midwife said that she was asking me to do the test due to two risk factors: my age and my weight.

But, risk factors are not symptoms. I'm at risk of developing yeast infections more often in pregnancy, but I'm not at the lab every week getting swabbed. I'm also at increased risk of having a baby with chromosomal problems but I wasn't rushed off for an amnio at 12 weeks.

I have no symptoms associated with GD. I haven't gained any weight, the baby is measuring fine, I am not spilling glucose into my urine, I haven't been particularly thirsty or urinating frequently and I haven't been fatigued or nauseous. I've had one yeast infection and a UTI, but those were under non-normal circumstances.

My nutrition has been better this pregnancy than last (except for this week when I suspect baby is going through a growth spurt because I could eat till the cows come home and I'm craving sugar something awful!). I'm quite proud of the lifestyle changes I've already made and I continue to make more. Since the majority of GD cases are treated through nutrition, I feel there is no real reason to take the test, as I'll be implementing the same changes I've already made in my diet. Minus the soda, of course!

I made a deal with my midwife, though: if I start exhibiting actual symptoms, I'll get the test. Until then, I'll continue to focus on continuing to improve my eating habits.

Making Pregnant Women Cry

On Friday afternoon, Sean and I were IMing back and forth. Suddenly, instead of text, he started sending images. He had gone to an old website of ours (when I use to handcode my sites each time I posted! Haha! Remember those days? The days before everyone just used Blogger and WordPress and Moveable Type?) and was sending me photos that were posted there.

The photos were all from Kieran's first year of life.

And, what do you think my reaction was?

Hysterical sobbing! Yes, the sentimental pregnant hormones came flowing out of me in snotty torrents!

Kieran rushed over to me to double check that I was OK, gave me lots of kisses and gently and sweetly told me that everything would be alright. What a sweetheart!

Wanna see what I was crying over? Over course you do!

Canada Day, July 1, 2003 - Kieran was 3 mths old.

Taken that same day, this image sorta illustrates the way Kieran looked in his first few months: he never smiled and look outta sorts all the time.

I love this image! Kieran had started babbling and laughing and getting really animated, so this compilation of images shows his emerging personality.

This was the first image Sean IMed to me and it sent me right over the edge. I can remember so vividly what it was like to watch Kieran learning to be a person. I can remember the pure joy of hanging out with him. Don't get me wrong, many times were very difficult for me, but on the whole, Kieran and I always got along really well. He made me soooooo happy, just as he does now. He is pure entertainment!

The thing that is so weird looking back at these photos is now that Kieran has an almost perfect command of the English language and can even make jokes, this baby seems almost like a different person.

Of course, it wasn't all giggles and daisies!

Luckily, by the time Kieran was three and four months old, the good times outweighed the bad.

And speaking of weight, look how skinny that kid is! I had problems with my milk supply. Kieran was healthy, growing and meeting all his milestones, but I never did put a lot of pudge on the poor kid. Hopefully, that will be different with this baby, but regardless of the breastfeeding challenges we faced, I persevered and I was really happy that we did.

We have always been very AP style parents. We co-sleep, we feed on demand, we carry. Here is the third carrier we tried, after Kieran grew out of the Snuggli and I couldn't really get the ring sling to work for us.

The first day we bought this, probably a day or so before this picture was taken, we were in a mall and Kieran would not stay put in his stroller. He wanted to be up in our arms experiencing the world at our level, snuggled up close to our hearts. It was something he had recently started doing.

Out on my own the first time it happened, I wasn't particularly pleased to have to carry Kieran in my arms AND push the bloody big stroller around. Out with Sean at the mall one day, both our arms were sore quite soon toting the little man around, so we bought a new carrier and put Kieran in it face out for the first time.

He was in it for about an hour when we went out to the truck to strap him into his seat and drive home. As I put my hand under his chin to steady it and start unlatching the straps, I unconsciously squeezed the fabric covered foam directly in front of his face. It foamed! It foamed like a cartoon of someone putting too much detergent in a washing machine!

Kieran had spent an hour chewing away at the top of the carrier, loading it liberally with gob that then foamed out of the fabric when touched! Yuck! It was grotesque and hopelessly funny at the same time.

Kieran lived in that carrier until I got my Mei Tei a year later. Then he lived in that!

A year later, Kieran had filled out but hadn't grown any hair yet!

In this image, he looks exactly the same then, sleeping, as he does now, sleeping. Except for the hair thing, of course.

He is finally looking like the little boy he was becoming and not the baby he used to be.

And here he is looking like the person we know best now: full of laughter and mischief, silliness and curiosity.

I miss those days long ago when he and I were so physically close all the time, when he depended on me for so very much. I depended on him just as much, I think. Seeing these photos at this time in my pregnancy was really moving for me. I'm so glad I get to go through these phases again. Making people is so much fun.

Fotos For Friday

This is Gyspy. She is my Father-In-Law's Cockatiel. We're going to be taking care of her for a few weeks while Grampa Bill gallivants around Scotland and Portugal.

Normally Kieran is far too manic for the bird to come near him. The other morning he was sitting on the livingroom floor reading quietly when Gypsy flew down from her chosen perch atop a bookshelf and alit on Kieran's back.

You would think he'd be delighted that the bird was finally sitting on him, but not so. Kieran screamed and called for me. When I arrived in the livingroom, Kieran was bent over, crying, squealing that he didn't want the bird on him. I laughed, thinking Kieran was merely startled, but he kept on crying and squealing.

I shooed Gyspy away and picked Kieran up, enfolded him in my arms and did my best to calm him down. I talked to him about how he'd finally been still enough for the bird to visit him, about how lucky he was that Gyspy had shown she liked him and how simple it was to shoo her away, but the poor kid remained hysterical.

It was a good five minutes before I could get him to stop crying. His face was drenched and bright red. His breathing was ragged. He clung to me in desperation.

After that, it took a few days before Kieran would be alone in the livingroom. And when he was, he would generally dance and stomp around to discourage Gyspy from finding in him a perch of solitude.

He has since come to terms with the bird. She knows not to sit on him, he doesn't freak out if she chooses to sit on the back of the sofa he is on. It is a happy relationship, now.

I just have to get Sean, normally the patient and easy going partner in our marriage, to see being occasionally being shat on as no big deal. That is going to take much longer, I fear.


Here is what we look like lately.

The dog you see at the very bottom of the image is Choco, who is the newest family member of my Sister-In-Law's (and her hunk Marshall).

This picture was taken about a month ago. I would show you something featuring my girth belly but our camera died in January and replacing it is still a month or two away.


Here is Kieran!

I can't believe he'll be four in a few weeks. I can't believe I'm the pregnant mother of a four year old! Married, even! Haha! It is amazing how our lives change and grow.

Isn't that a beautiful smile?

This was taken the day Kieran went tobogganing with his aunt and Marshall (and Choco!). In this image he is testing out the tube and is pretty excited about plunging headlong down snowy hills.

In Which I Exhibit My Poor Parenting Skills

So, yesterday, Kieran and I were sitting in the kitchen, at the computer, looking at a picture of Max (or Max & Ruby fame) and discussing how the letter "M" makes the "mmmmmm" sound. This is an example of me being a good parent.

I begin to realise that I can hear a scratching sound coming from a particular low cupboard that is known for mouse visits (and so I only use it to store foil and waxed paper and such - a major space waste).

"Kieran, do you hearing that sound? I think it's a mouse. And I think he's in that cupboard." I put to the cupboard in question and Kieran slides off his stool to creep over and examine the situation.

"Let's scare the life out of that mouse," I suggest.

"How?" Kieran asks.

"Let's bang the cupboard door really loud and then the mouse will run away."

Without further prompting, Kieran grabs the door and slams it three times. Then he opened it up and peered inside.

"I don't see a mouse, Mom."

"That's because he's running." And here is where my parenting skills take a steep nosedive. I look into the cupboard and shout out in a cruel voice, "Run you little fucker!"

And, Kieran being my little darling, immediately shouts, "Ya! Run you fucker!"

I whip my head around and say very sternly, "Don't you dare say that! You know you're not allowed to say that!"

Kieran has heard my message loud and clear; we've been down this road before. He knows that there are words mom uses that he is not allowed to say. He knows that mom is a naughty girl for using bad words. Unfortunately, mom really likes to swear.

Just then, the mouse emerges from the opposite side of the kitchen cupboards and makes a break across the kitchen floor to the far corner of the kitchen where each year he and his brethren tunnel into the apartment. Seeing the mouse out of the corner of my eye I scream. I scream like a starlet in a b-movie facing down a monstrous psychopath.

Kieran yelps and jumps at my scream and looks to where I am suddenly pointing.

"Holy moly! That's a big fucker!" I gasp before I can stop myself.

Kieran catches a glimpse of Mouse Hulk before he ducks behind the recycling basket and his last sprint to freedom. "Wow, he really is a big pucker, mom!"

I break my gaze away from the mouse's exit path and stare a little shocked at Kieran. "Kieran!" I protest. Really, though, I'm not entirely shocked. And here is where I nail my own coffin shut. I giggle for a second at my clever little son circumventing the rules so that he can swear without actually swearing.

Kieran can feel my vibe and laughs and jumps up and down practically singing out a string of questionable phrases, "That pucker ran outside! Look at that pucker go! He was a really big pucker!"

"That's enough, Kieran!" I shout at him trying to stop the madness I created.

But he is having too much fun, and when he gets started in on a manic cycle like that, it's hard to break. "Pucker, ducker, sucker, mucker!" He sings at me as if taunting me.

There is little I can do but let it run it's course, hang my head in shame and hope that we can soon move on to a new subject. I guess the Battlestar Galactica habit of saying "frak" hasn't fully sunk in yet, more's the pity.

---

ETA: Here I Go Again

Me: Let's get you dressed.
Kieran: No, let's play airplane! (He proceeds to jump on his bed with his arms outstretched making airplane noises)
Me: No, really, we have to get dressed so I can shower and we can go downtown to meet Daddy!
Kieran: I think we should ply a game! (Still jumping and giggling)
Me: Come here please I have to get your clothes on.
Kieran: Let's play a jumping game! (Still jumping, but now giggling wildly and jumping away from me each time I reach out to grab him)
Me: How about we play the "Get Your Damned Clothes On" game?
Kieran: Haha! Let's play the damn game! Damn! Damn shirt! Damn clothes!
Me: (Hangs head in shame.)

Fiber One Chewy Bars Saved My Son's Colon!

I've written about Kieran's struggles to learn how to poop on the toilet regularly and our efforts to help him.

Inspired by the very cool site Parent Hacks, we began Operation Poops For Cars where we rewarded Kieran with a Matchbox truck (and a couple of vehicle related dvds) for successfully pooping on the toilet without accidents of any kinds. The program was wildly successful and we didn't have another accident (except for the other night, very weirdly, but I'll bring that up later) since it's inception a few months ago.

One of Kieran's previous problems began when we first started toilet/potty training: Kieran day trained for peeing in a couple of days but would withhold his poops until he had a diaper or pullup on at night. He went from pooping every morning like clockwork to going every third day.

At first this was OK. I didn't want to push the poor kid and felt he'd be more successful if left to come to toilet pooping on his own. Except instead of getting better, his withholding got worse. Some weeks he would poop every third day. Other weeks he might go as long as the entire week.

This wasn't good.

I have experience with Encopresis, a condition that can start by severe withholding that ends up distending the colon so badly the child cannot control their bowel movements and soils themselves daily. My little sister had that problem and it was very hard on her and my mother's inept handling of the situation (blaming, confrontation and lots of negativity) not only made the Encopresis worse but scarred my sister emotionally.

I didn't want any of that. I didn't want any problems Kieran might be having to ever get out of control.

So, we tried upping Kieran's fibre intake. I didn't want to do this with supplements or use stool softeners to encourage more frequent pooping, so we made sure Kieran's breakfast always consisted of whole grain toast and some fruit. More fruit snacks showed up in the house and I encouraged Kieran to start eating more vegetables, particularly raw ones in the form of crudite.

All of these efforts had some success. We got back to the third day poop regularly and, combined with Operation Poops For Cars, Kieran became almost totally toilet trained (nights are a different phase for us and I'll post about that another day).

Yay!

But still, that three day cycle was bugging me. If only I could get that down to every second day if not every day. How was I going to break that three day cycle without resorting to medications or pseudo-food additives?

Enter Fiber One Chewy Bars.

Each Fiber One bar boasts 35% of an adult's recommended daily fibre intake. They are about 100-120 calories per bar and have 9 grams of fibre. They taste like a chocolate bar (and the one drawback is that they are sweetened with high fructose corn syrup - the new black death). After inhaling eating half a bar shortly after ripping the box open, I devised a plan.

Kids are recommended to consume fibre using the following rule of thumb: the number of their age + 5 = the number of grams of fibre recommended for daily intake.

I would chop the bar in half (16.5% recommended adult daily fibre, 50% recommended Kieran daily intake) and eat one half daily as a morning snack. I would eat it in addition to my regular already decent moderately high fibre diet. The other half of the bar would be chopped into half (8% recommended daily fibre, 25% recommended Kieran daily intake) and give one to Kieran as a morning snack, in addition to all of the other fibre conscious things we were doing with his diet (apples, grapes, broccoli, high-fibre breads and cracked wheat crackers, amongst other things).

A wonderful thing began to happen. More times than not, Kieran had a poop every day. On a few occasions he even pooped twice a day!

It was a miracle!

And, before anyone worries unduly, each of these poops was a good sized, firm sucker. It wasn't like I was giving the kid uncontrollable butt explosions!

For myself, I noticed an uptick in my own regularity. I wasn't really having any troubles, so the changes in my bowel health weren't very dramatic, though when I get to the end of this pregnancy, I may be thankful for the subtle enhancements the Fiber One bars offer.

Even more interesting, when the supply ran dry (I haven't yet seen this General Mills product on Canadian shelves and my dealer supplier is American. Those of you gentle readers from the US should have no trouble maintaining a regular supply) Kieran's bowel regularity didn't change much.

I fully credit the Fiber One Chewy Bars with saving my son's colon. And they taste like a chocolate bar, which for a pregnant woman with lots of stored energy is a wise alternative treat. (If only we could get them to sweeten the things with something other than high fructose corn syrup!)

Maternity Clothes & Nursing Bras

My belly is big, though that's mostly "stored energy" (which is my chosen euphemism for fat - like it?), and baby is growing longer and bigger and stronger every day. I definitely have to wear clothing specifically created for pregnant women, except, of course, for anything already gigantic and stretchy. I had to buy maternity undies a few weeks ago since my regular beloved Hanes were starting to bu into my tummy.

The horrid thing about buying clothes when you are pregnant, tall and have a lot of stored energy is that there are very few options available (in Canada) and they all cost an arm and a leg. I really want to buy a pair of jeans. The thought of dropping $50 on something I can only wear for another three or four months freaks me out, given our present need to be a little frugal.

I could always re-sell my maternity clothes (the ones I've bought, not the ones my generous family and friends have let me use) on eBay. But, the rate of return isn't that great.

The underwear I bought, which are not made of terribly good cotton, cost me $21 after taxes! For three pair! Those suckers are going to practically dissolve come July, I'll have worn them so often!

And then there are bras! Oh lord, the bras! I hate bras. Maybe I've just never had a good bra, but I find them so darned uncomfortable. The more structured they are, the more uncomfortable. I don't particularly want to wear underwire bras, particularly since I'm a nursing mom (or will be in a few months - though I've begun leaking colostrum occasionally at night) and it's not recommended, as well as the word floating around cancer circles that underwires and too tight bras may be partly responsible for the explosion in breast cancer rates in the last 20+ years.

No, I want to wear sleep style bras. Despite my large breast size (which I am hoping will begin to decrease as I shed all that stored energy post partum but more on that later) I really just need something to keep the girls from drooping too far down and giving them a tiny bit of shape while also being accessible for a hungry baby. I got a couple of Bravado Bras the last time around, but I hated the elastic band that went around my ribcage; it was too insubstantial and it's wide size caused it to roll horrible so that after a few wears it was permanently deformed.

I'd love to try out one of their new designs. It looks better made than the original line. There is also this bra, from Medela, a company that also makes decent breast pumps and nursing accessories. And, I've had my eye on this company for years.
They do a nursing bra that comes with lots of cool options for fabric lining and sizing.

For now, I'm trying to get by with a couple of bras that are really not the right size for me. But, considering that as of summer I will be needing nursing bras pretty much exclusively for two years (or more, who knows with this baby), spending money on non-nursing bras is a luxury I can't afford.

Pregnancy: Week 23 - Food & Weight

I am now 23 weeks pregnant, which is roughly 5 months for those of you not saavy to the month thing. 23 of 40 weeks = more than halfway there!

My ultrasound report came back clear. There was an additional note from the radiologist stating that the images were "sub-optimal due to maternal size", meaning that my stored energy interfered with their ability to get really clear images of everything. The images were clear enough to declare that there were no problems with baby and that everything was there: spinal column appeared fully formed and fused, four chamber heart present, three umbilical blood vessels, a normal nuchal fold, a brain and on and on. Everything appeared present and normally formed.

I wasn't worried about it. I had a gut feeling that everything would be fine. The "sub-optimal" sort of stuck in my craw, but who am I kidding. I already know I have a lot of stored energy.

And, for the second month running, I have not gained a single pound! Which means, I am slowly and gently converting stored energy into baby. At this rate, normal weight gain is around one pound per month. In the last month, or so, that goes up to one pound per week as the baby packs on brown fat at a furious pace in order that they have their own allotment of stored energy for the labour, birth and inevitable post birth crash. I'd like to see if it's possible to keep any weight gain to an absolute minimum for the rest of the pregnancy.

Now, I'm not doing anything really strict to keep my weight gain reasonable (if presently non-existent). I already wrote about some of the changes I'd made to my eating habits that have made my diet much healthier. Let me tell you, it hasn't been hard at all. I'm still eating when I'm hungry and eating as much as I want.

I've been paying more attention to quitting eating when I no longer feel hungry, something my "finish your plate" parents messed up for me, and have been better at pushing my plate away. Being "done" is beginning to mean something different than it used to: I am done when I no longer need to eat or want to eat, not when I have eaten everything on my plate and made sure there are no leftovers.

I also haven't been terribly strict about not drinking soda. I don't drink it as often an I'm trying to choose a diet option when I do, but I'm not beating myself up over this one.

A Physiatrist I once went to see about some joint pain talked to me about losing weight. He advised that I didn't make any drastic changes. Failure was deciding to diet or adhere to a total plan of eating. Success, he counseled, would be found in small, slow, permanent changes. That's what I have been trying to do. I can snack on hummus and pita for the rest of my life and know that it is a far better snack than a bag of Smart Food popcorn.

One of the things I've decided to do is try to follow the recommendations for feeding children. I can't remember where I read it, but I can recall a mother talking about feeding little ones and giving this sage advice: 2 food groups is a snack and 3 food groups is a meal. So, if we have a snack of pita and hummus, I'm getting my proteins and fibre taken care of = 2 food groups. At lunch, some (baked) french fries, a hot dog and apple slices hits starches, protein and fruits = 3 food groups. A handful of onion and wheat crackers and cubes of cheddar is a snack of dairy and whole grains = 2 food groups.

If I follow that pattern, I can be reasonably assured of getting a decent array of good nutrition in me. My focus is on proteins, whole grains, calcium and fruit & veg. And, it's this sort of thinking that has helped me feed my family better since Kieran came into our lives.

Random Comments & Observations

The Hot Water Heater
Returning from grocery shopping on Saturday evening, the landlord had finally sorted out the hot water heater. On Friday afternoon, he finally got down to the house to check that the heater was well and truly trashed broken. When he called in his warranty, the warranty holder told him that due to the unrelenting cold weather recently, that replacements on hot water heaters were 3 to 5 days behind.

He called around and I guess he was able to get a contractor to help install the thing. So, around 8:30pm on Saturday, I got into a hot shower and gratefully scrubbed away the grime and stink that three days had accumulated.

The No Wash Experiment
I tend to have greasy skin and hair. So, to go for a day without a shower shows on my body. My hair gets stringy and greasy looking and my face looks like an oil slick.

On the other hand, the rest of my body feels positively superb. No water to rinse away the natural oils on my back, hips and belly left me feeling un-itchy for the three washless days.

I'd consider not showering as often and instead spot washing in the sink, except the pink bits reek! I know that's not what you wanted to read about today, but I'm shocked at how smelly you get down below if you don't have a shower to rinse it effectively away. It's not like I didn't lather everything up and rinse it off each morning, but standing at the sink wasn't a good alternative to a nice hot shower.

So, I think I may experiment with showering every second day, especially when the baby comes and I'm getting used to taking care of two kids. But, for now I'll stick to rubbing lotion all over my dry, dry, dry, itchy skin.

And, Speaking Of Lotion
Living in Canada, it being winter and my being pregnant has conspired to make my skin freakishly dry and itchy. I've got a couple different types of body lotion but notion was working particularly well.

Until, that is, I got some Keri lotion. Wow! This is the thickest lotion I ever used in my life. It's wonderful. I put it on my belly, hips, legs and butt and not one bit of itching at all. I've started drying myself just a little so there is still a bit of water on my skin and applying the Keri lotion before putting on my deodorant and the rest of my post shower routine and I've been really happy with the results.

I think I'm going to put it on my feet at bedtime and see if it'll soften up my heels a little.

If you are having trouble with the winter weather drying out your skin, or if you were in the market for a good all-round body lotion to keep your skin nice and mist and soft, you can't go wrong with Keri. I give it the Itchy Pregnant Canadian seal of approval!

Jerks!
Anyone watching The Amazing Race All-Stars? I am and I have to get this off my chest: I can't stand watching Mirna and Charla. Charla exploits her small stature to try to get advantages and Mirna is just plain frakking rude!

As one team stood at a ticket counter in an airport, making a request for tickets, Mirna stands beside the woman and shouts at the ticket agent continuously. She's bloody lucking she wasn't escorted out of the building for being that disruptive in an airport never mind drop kicked for being a shitty person!

And, then, later, after completing a challenge, she returns to her vehicle in her bikini (it was a water challenge) where a Chilean local is waiting for her to help with directions and she says, in a put on South American accent "I am wearing a bathing suit, it is weird, I know."

First of all, the man speaks Spanish. He understands some English. Speaking English in what you think is his local accent will not make what you are saying any more comprehensible. And, the guy has seen a bathing suit before, you idiot! He's from Chile, not another planet where there is no water!

They keep coming in second last, so maybe soon they'll mess up and be eliminated and I can be spared their fantastic cultural stupidity and bad manners.

No Hot Water!

Everyone smells a little in our house. Except Shrimpie, I suppose. But Sean, Kieran and I are getting pretty rank. We haven't been able to properly wash ourselves in more than 24 hours because there is no hot water!

No hot water!

We've called the landlord. Considering that yesterday was rent day, we were surprised when he never bothered to even return our call.

The other tenants have called the landlord, too (there are two women who live on the second and third floors, respectively). They haven't gotten a response either.

I'm pretty handy with most things, but I don't know a thing about water heaters and furnaces. One of the women from upstairs decided to check and see if it's simply a blown pilot light.

She went down into the depths about 10 minutes ago and has yet to return. I'll give her a few more minutes before sending out the sniffer dogs - who should have no trouble locating her as she's been sponge-bathing like the rest of us. Though I have to say that she looks remarkably good for two days of sponge-bathing in a little bowl of boiled water!

You can't even begin to imagine the disgusting stack of dishes that have piled up and calcified in the last day!