The Right Choice

I watched this video couple nights ago.

This video has really touched me. I cried throughout the whole video.
You can see her emotions change with each paper she shows. I admire and adore her and her beautiful son.

This is my first ‘political’ post.  You know how they always tell you to never talk about politics and religion. Well, here I am talking about it.  Obviously, this is my blog where I share opinions about everything, so if you don’t agree. I am perfectly okay with that. We don't have to agree on everything, and I'll still care about you.

I grew up in a family where it is okay to have an abortion. If a girl cannot (or ‘should not’) have a child, then for the girl’s and saving ‘face’ for the girl and/or family to abort the child. I grew up thinking this is okay.  When I married Steve, I still thought the same thing. I actually did not want any children.  We won’t get into that right now, it’s for another day. S wanted children, and knew this about me. After a couple years, I knew in my heart that I wanted a child. I wanted to share the moments of raising a child with the love of my life.

We decided to start trying. Couple months later, we found out we were pregnant. As all pregnancy checks, my doctor asked me if I wanted to check if the baby is “okay”, making sure there are no birth defects and such. S and I thought about this, I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. I want a “normal” and healthy child. S said no to the procedure. I asked him if he would still want the baby if the baby was not “normal”. He looked at me, almost shocked, and said, “I would love our baby regardless.”  We decided not to go with the procedure.

During an ultrasound at 16 weeks, D had at least 4 white specks in his brain. This definitely did not sit well with us. We were worried thinking the worst. Our doctor assured us that many times the white specks will go away, and if it not, then they will carefully monitor the baby and into childhood. We were still stressed.  Then at 30 weeks, I started to bleed. Not just a little spotting, but enough that I had to use a pantiliner.  You can imagine how Steve and I felt. This was about 8pm, we called the on-call doctor, and she told me not to worry and to only call if I bleed enough to use a pad. We did another ultrasound when the clinic opened the next day. D was healthy, nothing was wrong. The bleeding was from the placenta ripped from the walls of the uterus.

Exactly at 39 weeks, D came out healthy, screaming, and our’s.

I believe that the moment that I had D, and held him in my arms… I knew at that moment I cannot imagine my life without D, regardless if he is “normal” or not. I really felt that God created D, and having me raise him to be a God-man. I pray every night that both my boys will grow to be good, respectful, and a lover of Christ.

Now, as for abortion, I do not believe I would have gone through it. S wouldn’t have let me if I wanted to. His love for me and our children is so strong that when I think about his love I can feel my heart overfill with love.

I do have friends that have had abortions.  I can tell them that they should not do it, that they should really reconsider, and that I’m sad for them. I know that it was a difficult and stressful decision, but I would still be sad for what they have to go through. I do not judge them for making a choice that I would not have ever made. I am not the one to judge how you want to do things. It is not my place to judge you and my neighbor. But I am sad that they had to go through that kind of decision.

God gave us choices to make in our lives. I can tell God, you, and everyone in the world that I have done some really stupid things in the past and that I hope God can forgive me. I have asked God’s forgiveness, but there are days where I still have not forgiven myself. We all make bad decisions; it’s just learning from it and uses these mistakes as a reminder to be smarter next time.

If you have agreed with me up to this point, you may not agree with me now, because I know S does not agree with me. I do not agree that the government should ban abortion, government should only ban late term abortion. Why? God gave us these decisions to make, whether they are good or bad, he gave us these decisions. I also think the government should stay out of our lives. If banning this choice, is government controlling us?
Are we making our own decisions? Our own mistakes? I may ask you what if your child becomes the next genius, Pulitzer Prize winner, inventor, etc?  Would you have known if you never had that unborn child?

I do believe these abortion clinics should inform the mother with what they are really doing. Let them listen to the heartbeats; let them see their unborn child’s hands, the feet, etc. Clinics should give them an option of adoption.  I believe this should be mandatory.  There are so many parents that cannot have one of their own, and would do anything to have a baby to call their own.  There are always options.  Abortion is not always the best or the right one.

Here is another video. This fills my heart with joy. Go Team Hoyt!

Baby Must Haves - Breastfeeding

This part of the Baby Must Haves is items for breastfeeding.

Let's get started, eh?

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1. Breastpump. This is very important. If you have any thought of breastfeeding, even for a month to a year, you’ll need to get a breastpump. You can purchase it from big box stores, you can look up on Medela’s website for a list of sellers in your area (this is probably where you’ll find cheapest, since they don’t have to the overhead cost of a building), or rent it from the hospital. I know there are people who buy it used, but I personally would not buy one used. Here is what FDA have to say about it here.

I recommend the Free Style Breastpump (picture above). I actually have the Medela Pump In Style Advanced -- I love how they call it “Pump In Style” … because it’s so in style how you’re pumping. Holding it as you walk on the catwalk, haha!  The Free Style is a little bit more expensive than than Pump In Style Advanced. When I had Child #1, Free Style was pretty new, I heard mixed reviews about it. I didn't want to chance it. But when I had Child #2, it was really difficult to run after a toddler while you’re attached to this machine, which is attached to the wall. When I pump at work, I would have indentions from the parts on my arms so I could read a magazine or book while pumping.  

Needless to say, I am saving up my pretty pennies for the Free Style for Child #3.

One last thing, I recommend finding a lactation consultant at the hospital and make sure that the breast shield fits your breast correctly; it’ll make it more comfortable and get the most out of pumping.

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2. Storage bags. I recommend Lansinoh’s brand. I don’t like the Medela brand because after freezing them, the bags would become brittle and break and the milk would be leaking all over the place, and I don’t like risking contaminated milk for my baby.  I’d fill the bags up to 6 – 8 oz, even though they have the marks to 6 oz, this helps me save on buying bags. I’d only start doing this when the baby is about 6 – 8 months, when the baby would eat more. Before then, I’d just fill them 4 – 6 oz, since they don’t eat as much. ~$10 for a box of 50

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3. Lanolin. There are two brands that I have tried, Medela and Lansinoh. I recommend Medela’s. It’s a bit creamer, and Lansinoh is too thick. The baby would have a hard time sucking if I had Lansinoh's lanolin on, I would have to wipe my nipples first for him to get a good suck. The hospital have samples of Medela’s lanolin too, I like these little ones for the pump bag. Lanolin helps for cracked nipples, and it is baby safe. It’s soothing for your nipples, and let’s be honest, no one wants cracked nipples! 

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4. Nipple wipes. I know, wipes for your nipples? I recommend it! It’s soothing! I wipe my nipples after I breastfeed, and this helps keep it clean. We don’t want bacteria be lurking around your nipples (it could cause Thrush.  If you get it then the baby gets it, and it seriously takes forever to get rid of!)

5. Bottles for breast milk. Not baby drinking bottles, but I guess you could keep in those too. We had bottles for breastmilk only.  I recommend getting at least twelve to eighteen 4 – 6 oz bottles for pumping (because when you start pumping at work, you’ll need at least 4 – 6 bottles a day.  I wash bottles every other day).  I have about 30 storage bottles (I pump 4 - 5 times/day, and breastfeed if the baby wakes up at night). I personally really like Evenflo storage containers that I have, but I cannot seem to find them online so I could post a picture for you. The plastic is thicker than the Medela brand.  The fat would get stuck on the Medela breastmilk storage containers and it would be hard to get it off when I would move milk from one container to the next (and they take longer to dry too). You want the fat in the milk, it has the nutrients and keeps the baby full. I also have the 2 oz. bottles – they look like tubes – from Medela.  I barely use those. I got a lot of them when I was pumping for Child #2 when he was in the NICU.

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6. Steam bags. I would wash the pump shields and accessories about once a week at home, but at work, it’s nice to make sure that they’re clean with every pumping.

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7. Water. This is so important. You’re pumping milk out, you’re going to get thirsty and very hungry. You’re also going to get tired. Pumping wears me out. You’re pumping calories out of your body! This is a good time to help lose the baby weight! Eat healthy. I recommend checking out Lindsay Brin for helping on losing weight.

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8. Fenugreek.  A friend used drops, and put it in their drink. I liked the tea mixed with honey. Alvita Fenugreek Seed Tea Bags are my favorite. Fenugreek tea will help produce more milk if you have trouble producing milk.

9. Pump bra. It’ll be your arm saver!  Sorry, no picture. Basically it's a band around your chest with holes for your nipples, and there is a spot where the breast shields sits. 

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10. Nursing pillow. This will help your arms when you breastfeed. I have the Boppy, and bought a foam wedge that I have the baby's head lay on, so I don't have to hold the head up. It worked for a bit, but not sure if it was worth the extra money for the foam wedge.

That concludes my top 10 must have for breastfeeding. 

I had really enjoyed breastfeeding both my boys, it’s such a wonderful way to bond with the baby. I hope you enjoy it. And please, don't hesitate to ask any questions.

Also if you have a hard time with breastfeeding or pumping. It’s okay to not do it. A lot of mothers feel that they are letting their baby down by not being able to – which causes frustration. But your health (physically and mentally) is just as important. I promise I will not ever looking down on anyone who chooses not to breastfeed because of personal or medical reason. That’s why we have formula!

Take care of yourself so you can take care of your baby. That's the most important thing.

For those experienced breastfeeding mothers, what items could you not live without?

Must Haves for Babies

My dear friends, you are to hear it first. We're going to be "trying" for baby #3. You know, we are not technically trying, but not preventing. You know how that goes, right?

So, I’m going to have a series of posts of all the must haves for everything. From breastfeeding to diapers!

Budget is always tight... and when you have kids, it gets tighter. There are just so many things out there, and you think to yourself, "Do I really need this?"  There are 10 parts to this bathtub, are they all necessary? I don't think there is a bath with 10 parts, I totally made that up, but you know what I mean!  Any moms out there will give you the best advice on what they couldn't live without for the first couple months of their babies’ lives.

Today, I’m just going through the general must haves. Then I will get into the specifics later in the series.  If you have any suggestions, feel free to comment!

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1. Breastpump. I can give you lists and stories of breastfeeding. I breastfed both boys until they reached one. I have pumped in the bathroom at work, in the car, etc. For anyone that wants to breastfeed or to even give it a try, I recommend figuring out where you'll get a breastpump before you have the baby! Either buy or rent, but know where you have access to one!  I didn't get mine until after the Child #1 because someone recommended that it wasn't necessary. I was in so much pain, and wish I didn't take that recommendation!  So, get that figured out!  Since you’re going to be breastfeeding, you’ll need all the things that come with it. Milk storage bags, lanolin, nipple wipes (I highly recommend this), etc. I’ll have a post about breastfeeding later this month. I recommend Medela free style (I'll get more into why spend the extra cost in the more specific post) ~200+ for a double electric

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2. Swing. I recommend one that goes two ways, front to back and side to side. We had a swing that only went front to back. Child #1 liked the swing going front to back, but Child #2 liked going side to side. The swing was hardly used for Child #2, which was a bummer. He wanted us to rock him to sleep, which is his side to side motion. This was a bit harder on us. ~$160

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3. Swaddling sleep sack. I really just like the sleep sack of it. The swaddling part really depends on your baby. Child #1 would break open of swaddling after a month, and didn't want anything to do with it. Child #2 was at the NICU, so, he was swaddled with large blankets. So, the swaddling didn’t really do much for him when he came home. But the sleep sack is great because it’s a blanket on them, without trying to put a blanket on them. They’re always covered! This is great for the cold nights. Sleep sacks are much safer than blankets! I do favor brands, and the only brand of sleep sacks that I buy is Halo. ~$35

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4. Sleep Gowns.  Child #1 always had gowns, I hardly put in him onesies at home. It was easy to change his diaper, and if he had a blow out, it was easy to change. If you don't prefer gowns, then choose something that is easy to snap so you can access the diaper easily! You want to make diaper changing as easy as possible! You can find some decent price ones at Walmart or Target.

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5. Kimono onesies or Side Snap onesies. I really recommend this for first time moms. I didn’t grow up with babies, so, I was really hesitant with everything. I was nervous on changing Child #1. When the baby doesn’t have any neck support, it’s really difficult to change the baby. Especially when you’re trying to get onesies over their head, as they bat their arms as you. So, I recommend buying side snap onesies, you unsnap them, open the onesies and lay your baby on top of the onesies and then snap it back up. It’s so easy, no need to worry about how to hold their neck while trying to put the onesie over their head! Ahhh, easier = less stress! You can find some decent price ones at Walmart or Target.

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6. Noise machine. I never realized how important this is until Child #2. We didn’t have a noise machine for Child #1. He wakes up to everything! Since Child #2 was in the NICU with lots of other babies crying and nurses moving around, he was used to noise. We had gotten a noise machine for him, and he sleeps through the night! By the time we got the noise machine for Child #1 (he was about 20 months?), it was too late. He couldn’t handle the noise [and still can't!]. The above picture is what we have, but I can't exactly recommend it. We don't use the light projection, just the ocean waves and sometimes rain. It was about $20, and the sound sometimes gets soft, then loud if you barely touch the volume wheel! Which ever brand you decide to buy, a noice machine is a must.

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7. Pack n Play. Instead of a bassinet, we got the pack n play with the bassinet part. We didn’t get the fancy one; we just got the most basic one. It was not necessary for us to get anything fancy. Since we saved money on getting the basic, so we bought two. One for the bedroom and one for the living room - this way we didn't have to drag the pack n play to every room while carrying a baby (believe me, it's almost impossible). When the baby was done sleeping in our room for the first couple months, the extra pack n play was for grandma's or daycare (some in home daycares require you to provide a pack n play for your child). ~$70

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8. Soothies. I love these. With Child #1, they didn’t sell them at the stores. I purchased them online with Child #2, then the week after I ordered them, I saw them at the stores! I love the fact that they’re all in one piece, you don’t have to worry about parts falling off. They’re cute, I love how I can see their mouth when they suck on it! Child #1 used advent pacifiers, he was fine with them. But I like the pacifiers that they don’t mush their mouth on. Since I breastfed, and I like how the soothies are like a nipple. Yes, they're consitantly sucking on some kind of a nipple. I really like GumDrop pacifiers (picture above) because it wouldn't smush against their nose. Here is a good youtube video on the difference between GumDrop and Soothies. Child #2 had some that were vanilla scented at the NICU! He loved those! I have seen GumDrop pacifiers at Target and Babies R Us. ~$2.50 for one

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9. Moby Wrap AND Carrier. I have the Beco carrier. The wrap is perfect when they’re little. We would go on walks as Child #2 is asleep in the carrier. You can use it as a carrier too, but my boys were too active that I consistently have to readjust and tighten. With Child #2, I decided to shell out some big bucks and get the Beco Carrier. The picture above is the one that we have. I got a gender neutral color. I absolutely love it! Steve loves it too.  As soon as Child #2 had head control, we put him in it. He loved it! We'll turn him around when he's about 6 months, he liked to see what was going on. We still put him in it once in awhile, he doesn’t mind just as long as he’s close to us. It’s easier for us too, we still have both of our hands free and we have him close. Beco Carrier ~$130 and Moby Wrap ~$45

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10. Bulb Syringe. The hospital grade one is the best one. The ones that you buy off the shelves are terrible. They don’t work very well. But the blue one from the hospital is amazing!!! If you can convince your nurse to give you an extra, you should do it! It helps when they're teething or have a cold, because their nose will be running like crazy, or they'll be super stuffy. They won't like you for it, but they don't like having a red nose either!




That concludes my top 10 list of Baby Must Haves! Let me know what other items that you couldn't live without!!

Some of the other lists will include:
Breastfeeding Must Haves
Diapering (cloth or disposables) Must haves
Post-Birth Must Haves

I will link these up as soon as I have them posted!

squealing

Our little baby C have started squealing!
I love it when they start making noises of happiness! :)

new baby

Sorry I have been so absent!

We just had baby #2 end of July. He decided to come 6 weeks early! He was just anxious to meet his brother! :)
He was in the NICU for 3 weeks. He is now home with us! We're so grateful for his good health, doctors, nurses, hospital, etc!

When things start settling down, I'll be creating away!

Thanks for your patience!

Invitations

So, I've finally took pictures of our invitations to our open house!

I took the idea from Amy Butler's Kindly Cards. I did revise the envelope and added an extra tab, so it could be mailed without the card falling out.



I had gotten some double sided scrap book paper.


the invitation itself would take a lot time to write! So, we decided to print them out on vellum paper. Double sided tape was used to keep it on.


We also used double sided table to enclose the smaller tab over the larger tab.

It didn't take too long to make. It took us a night to cut and tape.

So, what do you think?

Our Baby Nursery

We have almost everything picked out for our baby nursery.

Steve just painted the room with Airway couple nights ago.



He'll be painting a blue stripe of Harlequin Blue tonight.

We currently have the crib and combo. The glider is actually not in green, it's in a microfiber swirly expresso brown. Unfortunately, I could not find the fabric for it. There also is an ottoman that matches. It's actually at the shop, but we both wanted to have the paint done before we bring the glider and ottoman home.

There are just so much to do and prepare for before our wee one arrives in two months!! TWO months!! ack!

One last thing that we'll be looking for is a upright light. I'll be looking for that, if you have a suggestion, feel free to let us know!

(x-posted to steve and nicole + 1)

Halloween

We hope everyone had a safe and fun Halloween.

My work, my boss really, is big into dressing up for Halloween.

It's hard to find something that would work when you're pregnant!

So, I went as an Eight Ball :)

(x-posted to steve and nicole + 1)