In a recent Photo Contest for The Breast Cancer Site, the 3rd place winner was a photo that has received some negative comments such as;
"Is this a group for breast cancer or is this a group for prostitution? Because that's what she looks like."
"it has more to do with looking sexy than promoting awareness. She looks like a prostitute. What does that have to do with cancer?"
I am SO angry right now.
Why is it socially acceptable to showcase scantily clad women in ads for beer, cigarettes, & sports, etc.; but yet breastfeeding in public is offensive....and now a picture of a woman's breasts wrapped in a pink ribbon to represent the fight against breast cancer is offensive?
What is the world coming to? My body did not grow breasts for any man. Period.
Say what?
Who is Ares?
I have decided to share the story of my first child; "Ares".
During my 1st pregnancy, in 2002, I was twenty-five, and considered myself to be a knowledgeable person. I had just started the second week of my pregnancy and was healthy, other than being asthmatic & slightly overweight. I had a 3D ultrasound done at 27w4d to try and figure out the sex and everything seemed fine. We were told the baby was a girl.
The following weekend my husband & I attended a NASCAR race and were in the infield almost the entire time. On Monday morning, as I got ready for work, I realized that I had not felt my baby move since Friday. Up until that point the baby was very active on a regular basis. I immediately panicked & became hysterical. I called my OB & spoke with a nurse who told me to come in right away. I saw the Dr., who told me that everything was fine; it was just because I was overweight & the baby changed positions that I could not feel movements.
I left feeling reassured, because the Doctor gave me an explanation. The next day at work I started feeling cramps, like during menstruation and they were quite frequent. I mentioned this to a few female co-workers during lunch. They all said it was normal. The cramps became more painful and frequent. I was worried, so I called my Dr. again & his nurse told me it was Braxton Hicks contractions and not to worry. I was 28 weeks,4 days at this point.
So, a few days later I saw my OB again, this time for my normal appt at 29 weeks. He used a Doppler to listen for the heartbeat and then asked me to get dressed & come into his office. I went in & he told me that he needed me to meet him at the hospital to confirm something.
I got to the hospital & was directed to Labor &Delivery. I was clueless as to what was happening. My Doctor came in with a portable ultrasound machine, did a quick ultrasound & told me the baby did not have a heartbeat. From there, it was mostly a blur. I was induced and delivered our first child, a son about 12 hours later. I went home from the hospital 
without a baby and two days later endured my most difficult and painful Mother's Day ever. The following week we buried our son.
The reason why I am sharing my story is that until it happened to me, I thought stillbirth was an antiquated thing that didn’t happen anymore- with all the modern medicine we have. My Dr. never talked to me about kick counts. After this happened; I self-educated myself on stillbirth, including the risks & warning signs. In my subsequent pregnancies, I used a Doppler at home to ease my fears and pushed each Dr. for close monitoring. I also started kick counts at 26 weeks because of my prior history.
Again, I just want to make others aware that stillbirth is a real risk, and that while most cases cannot be explained, there are ways to reduce the risks. If this is the first you have heard of stillbirth, I strongly urge you to find out more. An estimated 28,000 babies were stillborn in the U.S. last year, 15 times as many as SIDS.
http://www.firstcandle.org/new_exp_parents/new_exp_countkicks.html
October 15th
Today is a special day. It is also a day filled with sadness, love, regret, and memories. It is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day.
What does this mean to me?
As someone who has lost a nephew to SIDS at the tender age of three months old, it can be a day of sad memories and unresolved frustration at the overwhelming numbers of SIDS babies.
As someone who spent her first Mother's Day mourning the loss of her baby, it is a day filled with overwhelming sadness. May 10, 2002 was without a doubt the worst day of my life.
I have since been blessed with three more children who I enjoy every day. They are a constant reminder to me to cherish life as it happens. I hope I never go a day without letting them know how much I love them. Tonight we will gather and light a candle to remember those babies who are in heaven.
Tofu what?
Recently, a friend of mine posted a tutorial on her blog about making Chocolate Banana Tofu Mousse. I am a lover of chocolate, bananas, and mousse - so the recipe seemed right up my alley!
Apollo, (my 6 year old son) is really interested in cooking lately, but it can be difficult to find something that he can help with that is safe for kids and will hold his attention. This was perfect!
Yesterday I set out to make the dessert with Apollo. It was simple, quick, and the results were absolutely yummy (and healthy!). The whole family loved it and declared it better than chocolate pudding. Try it yourself!
Here are some pictures from our kitchen...enjoy!
Apollo & the ingredients 
Letting tofu drain (he thought I was crazy for doing this step) 
Cutting the tofu
Covering his ears from the sound of the blender 
Proudly holding up our finished product.... 
Artemis enjoying her mousse!
1st day of the 1st grade
Well, I thought Apollo was the nervous one. He refused to go to sleep on his bed last night & instead insisted on moving his pillow & blanket to the floor.
However, I am the ONE awake at almost 2 am, awaiting the new day to begin. All of a sudden he seems so big.
*sigh*
One week old
August 1, 2003
August 1, 2003
My Costco ballerina
It had been a long day of running errands - Library, Post Office, Credit Union, & playing at the park. Last on the list was Costco. On the way there I realized it was almost dinner time. No biggie usually, except that Athena is now eating solid foods at lunch & dinner. I start to freak out because she has only had 3 foods (banana/avocado/sweet potatoes), none of which are served at the Costco food court. So I think, hmmm, I wonder if the kids can wait to eat until we do our shopping since I need to buy bananas anyway...
Umm no! - Artemis & Apollo both started to show the signs of being hungry (whiny, loud, asking for food, etc) on the drive there. So, I figure what the heck I will wing it, I have a bib with me & hey - Starbucks is in the same parking lot as Costco. As I found out the other day (while in Eugene) Starbucks is the perfect drive-thru ~ caffeine for me, vanilla organic milk for Artemis & Apollo, and a banana for Athena.
So, we are at Costco and head for the food court. Me, Apollo, & Artemis order food from the food court. I sit down, armed with a plastic spoon and the banana. Hmmm, no mesh feeder or bowl like I use at home. Momentary panic. Then I channel my inner MacGyver and go visit the soda fountain. Amidst many stares, I cut off a small piece of the banana, put it on a plastic soda cup lid (turned upside down), mash it up, & offer it to Athena (who is seated next to me in a shopping cart).
*Drum roll*...she eats it. Spoon after spoonful. Thank goodness! I was so relieved. She even drank from Artemis's water bottle like a little champ. I was so aware of the people staring at us. I am used to it by now, because I am usually the one with the loud kids, acting crazy (Apollo & Artemis like to sing and dance while shopping). It was still weird.
So, after what seemed like forever (probably 30 minutes) the kids had eaten & we set off to do shopping. Shopping was uneventful. Athena started to yawn, so I popped her in the pouch sling & finished up. We got to the checkout area and I thought, what the heck - I don't have too much, let's try the new handy dandy self checkout.
Apollo was ecstatic to help me and all seemed fine. We were halfway done, when I noticed that Artemis had stopped handing us items from the cart and was staring at her bum (butt). The panic alarm went off in my head and my heart started racing. She was putting her hand down her pants, pulling it out, & and looking at her hand in a very perplexed way.
Oh no! All over the floor...her pants...her shirt. Yup, she had an explosion. Diarrhea everywhere. So I tell her in a calm voice, I am almost done. She starts walking around me saying "Mom, I poop". I try not to laugh at her naivety and work as fast as I can. The poor employee overseeing the self checkout area hands me a roll of paper towels & calls for a mop.
I will spare you the details, but Apollo entertained Athena while I cleaned up Artemis in the bathroom. Clothes went in the trash can (yes, it was THAT bad). I put a new Pull-up & shoes on Artemis. We went back out into the warehouse & found her a pair of pjs. Artemis (and Apollo) thought it was hilarious to flash her naked body (sans pull-up) by pulling the blanket I had wrapped around her off and on.
Finally in line (again) to pay for the pajamas, the guy at the register had a great sense of humor and started teasing us. He announced to the guy boxing that Artemis had no shirt on. They started chanting "no shoes, no shirt, no service". Every Costco employee that walked by smirked at Artemis. After we paid, I put the pjs on her right away and headed for the exit.
Artemis and Apollo are just giddy with excitement by this point and since the new pjs had a ballerina slipper print, Artemis twirled like a ballerina the whole excruciating walk to the door. I was never so happy to leave Costco.
Wipe my bum bum!!
A friend of mine, Alanna, is an awesome green Mom and just added a tutorial to her blog about making your own baby wipes. She has included very clear pictures & instructions. Check it out here!
