[21-24 April 2005]
What a whirlwind. Having a new baby, an existing 4
year old, companion animals, trying to sleep and
eat...whew! Glad the first few days are done.
Nothing really exciting happened. I came home on
Friday around 11am. It was so good to be home! I
greeted all the animals (best part of coming home)
and slipped into my own bed. Ahhhhh there is no
place like home.
Everything is rocky until you can settle into some
sort of routine. We have had one night with Cage up
and unappeased...otherwise pretty smooth goings. I
am eating small meals round the clock and so is
Cage. My pattern has pretty much been he eats, I
eat, we sleep, repeat. Of course there are
exceptions...spending time with the rest of my
family, bathing, etc.
Things I have been eating...
I
am trying to let my body be my guide. Children have
cravings for certain foods...that is their body's
way of telling them they are lacking the nutrients
in the foods. Adults learn to ignore these
cravings...I am training myself to listen to them
again. Now if your child says he is craving sugar
filled sweets I would have to say he is pulling your
leg. Fortunately for me we don't fill our house
with such things and my son is known to turn down
candy for a tomato.
I
have been eating a lot of fruit and veggies. I sat
and ate a head of broccoli in one sitting, a head of
cauliflower in another, and a pound of baby carrots
in the third. I am an apple junkie...applesauce,
apple juice, apple cider (apples in their natural
state are known to help alleviate pain...to make raw
applesauce put apple pieces in a food processor or
eat the pulp left over from a juice machine) as
well. I have been doing protein boosts (grilled soy
cheese with deli slices, beans, tofu products, bbq
seitan) several times a day. Today (4/25) I am
actually able to cook again and have some regularity
that way but I am not writing about that until
tonight.
[20 April 2005]
I had a rough night sleeping. I was so
nervous knowing that I would be going
through labor the next day. I got out of
bed to have a light breakfast with Jake
(just some cereal and soy, nothing fancy)
and got so nervous I ended up with a gall
bladder attack. So I took my medicine and
finally fell asleep. Chris woke me up and
said we had 15 min to get to the hospital (I
was scheduled at 11am). I was so nervous
but Chris helped me get ready and we were
off.
We arrived at the hospital late, but they
said that was good for them. Every room on
the birthing floor was full and they were
trying to make room for me. They did, I got
a corner room with a nice view. Not that it
was much comfort. Something about going
into the hospital knowing they are going to
give you drugs to induce labor was way too
scary. So scary in fact I went into labor
all on my own. They didn't nee to induce
me, they just 'helped' it along. My nurses
were very sweet. The first nurse I had
insisted that I have an epidural (spinal
block to stop pain) since I did not have one
with Jake. I said ok, although I was a bit
weary either way. The pain is
tremendous...but what if I lost feeling?
Well I had the epidural and felt great. I
could still feel the contractions but they
didn't really hurt. Then the epidural wore
off. Right in the hardest part of labor. I
wasn't allowed to get up and go to the
bathroom, walk, squat...I was told to stay
in bed. That made me angry. Then the blood
pressure cuff kept going off and that made
me angry too. Lets jus say I was not a nice
happy camper. My Doctor ended up calling
the Epidural Doctor and after a long time I
got some relief...right in time to push.
Three contractions later and I had a baby
boy. Cage arrived at 5:55pm on 4.20.2005
He was 7 pounds 8 ounces and 20 inches long
My Doctor said that is excellent considering
my gall bladder problems and the special
diet I was on. I have to say I agree.
After I was cleaned up I had a celebratory
feast of tofu and mixed veggies from my
favorite Chinese place.
And that is how Cage came into the world. I
am so happy he's here.
Before I left the hospital the head of
nutrition came up to talk to me. She said I
am the only vegan the hospital has had in 8
years. She also saw how I was adjusting my
diet (they sent up vegetarian menus...some
of them included beef soup or gravy...so I
would ask for substitutions and double some
things, etc) and said she could find no
faults with it at all.
[19 April 2005]
I am having a hard time doing anything
tonight...tomorrow is baby day. I have an apt at
11am to go to the hospital and start induction.
This is unfortunate but they feel they gave him
enough time to come on his own and my gall bladder
is in sorry shape. Needless to say I am a super
nervous wreck.
I got the baby's new car seat out today and set it
up by my bed. Disco noticed it and started
sniffing. She has laid by it all night, staring at
me, waiting. She has taken her food to eat by it
(it is the same car seat as Jake had). She was such
a help with Jake. She would alert me that he had
woke up before I could hear it myself. I just felt
this {ed: Kids & Pets essay} was important to
the site. I couldn't imagine getting rid of anyone
for this. I read it and read it again but I am so
spacey with nerves it might not be as good as I
think. If it isn't send it back and I will work on
it in the hospital.
[17 April 2005]
Had an all out rough day. No way I sat, stood, or laid could I
get comfortable. Every 10 min I am running to the bathroom,
lol! I didn't feel much like eating today. Around noon I had a
Lightlife deli slices sandwich with spinach on it and around 9
pm I had 2 ears of corn on the cob and a half of a black bean
burger. Around 3 am I had another ear of corn. I think I am
running out of womb (bad attempt at humor) and my stomach is
squished. Only a few more days and then Cage will be here. I
can't wait!
[16 April 2005]
What a day today was. We have been needing a new car for quite
sometime. I am too picky and Chris is too cheap :) My Mom called and
said "You are going to meet us at the car dealership." So we did.
My concerns with a car are that it has to be good on gas without
compromising the size and of course no leather. I really wanted a
hybrid (gas/electric) but I really didn't feel comfortable taking on
that kind of a payment. I ended up with a full size sedan (biggest car
I have ever owned) that gets 29 mpg hiway and 23 mpg average city. Not
bad! And it is big enough so I will not be one of those cars with two
warring kids in the back seat. Chris got a car as well, same as mine
but a earlier year and different brand (same family). We are happy, they
are both large enough to haul kids and animals, live traps fit in the
trunk for emergencies, and they are both nice cars. (Of course we
bought used, no way are we made of money, lol.) We get to pick up our
vehicles on Monday.
Now our summer project can be to get my old Volkswagon Camper Bus
running and turn it into the official animal getter vehicle.
Today's Diet
Well we cancelled plans to have the cookout. It ended up not working
for any of us. Hopefully we will be able to get together soon.
For breakfast I had a slice of the banana bread
For a snack I had some broccoli and carrots
For Lunch I had a grilled veggie pita (from the bar down the road...I am
so happy they started carrying something I can eat!) and a pickle.
For Dinner I had a large salad with no dressing. We went out to eat
with my Mother and her husband. The salad was so fresh and with such a
wide variety of greens and other veggies there was no need to put
anything on it.
For a snack that night I had a fruit leather (I love those things)
Another snack I had a piece of leftover sauce pizza.
And, although very small amounts and very broken I did get some sleep.
yay!
[15 April 2005]
I have tried and tried to sit down and write a nice professional
informative piece on breastfeeding and breast health all day....unsuccessfully.
I fell asleep at around 1am this morning and woke up at 2:30am.
I have been awake ever since with baby pains and a sense of
pressure that is killer. So what you have [ed. note:
see menu] is my down to
earth perspective and advice.
My what a day today has been. I got about an hour and a half of sleep
due to contractions and pressure. My mood has been on a
roller coaster. I saw this commercial where they used a song from the
movie West Side Story and it made me think of all the unwanted and
tortured animals and I started crying. Then I got mad at myself for
crying (after all what good am I if I am so sad I can't function). Of
course I had to make fun of myself for getting so mad...turning my anger
on myself is not the solution. Now repeat that for everything...not
being able to see my feet, not being able to eat peanut butter, you name
it I have a mood for it. I haven't eaten much today due to the pain and
general uncomfortableness. You may be thinking why don't I go to the
hospital or Doctor...well its because they will induce my labor and I
want to give it every chance to happen on its own. That's another thing
tat made me moody, lol...I am a glutton for punishment and being
natural.
For breakfast I had a partial slice of the banana bread I made last
night and a big glass of soy milk.
For a snack I had some grapes
For lunch I had some cheese-free pizza...sauce and loaded with
organic fresh baby spinach.
Another snack I had a tomato with organic marjoram, oregano, rosemary,
thyme, and sea salt
It has been just me tonight to cook for so I made a veggie burger for
dinner. I put ketchup and mustard on it. I also ate some raw spinach
and a cherry fruit leather.
Pretty exciting food day huh?
I am about to go have a glass of hazelnut milk and crunch some carrots
with the dogs. I might have a warm glass of organic veggie broth with a
scoop of nutritional yeast in it. This is very soothing to me and
tastes so good. The dogs go crazy for the yeast too.
I have an urge to be outside and close to nature. Maybe I can convince
the dogs to go lie in the grass with me and get off my bed, lol :)
Tomorrow (as long as I am not in labor or in too much pain) I have
offered to host a vegan BBQ for some of my non vegan friends. We always
have a blast with these. Gentle education and taste explosion. I did
convince a friend of mine to go no dairy and she went from 300 or so
pounds down to around 200 in less than a year. Her complexion has
cleared up, and she is much healthier. She is still losing weight and
not eating as much meat as she did before. You know who you are and I
am so proud of you! We will make a vegan out of you yet ;)
[14 April 2005]
For breakfast today I had 2 pieces of dry toast with organic strawberry
(100% fruit) spread and a handful of raisins.
For lunch we made open face veggie sandwiches...wheat bread, garlic smashed
potatoes, and green beans on top. (I did cheat on my diet a little...I drizzled a
tiny amount of basil infused olive oil on top). Then I blanketed the whole thing
in rosemary and thyme.
For a snack I had some pretzels and more raisins
Dinner I made a 'pizza'. Chris came home with some organic round bread made from
rice flour. I added spinach, mushrooms, and onions all diced together with some
soy cheese. Then after it came out of the oven we topped it with fresh tomatoes
and sea salt. We also had (100% fruit) applesauce.
For our evening activity we made my 'melt in your mouth' banana chocolate chip
bread. All natural and vegan of course. We had it with a scoop of tofutti
vanilla (fake) ice cream on top. The great thing about this is that it makes
awesome French toast for tomorrow :)
I also have been slowly snacking on the pizza I made earlier...a bite here a
bite there. It is really good cold.
Early this morning around 2:30am I had a piece of wheat bread with a few slices
of Lightlife 'turkey style' slices, some fat free vegan mayo, and tomato.
Right now I think I will crunch on some carrots. I always have to share them
with the dogs or they get offended.
I drank about a gallon of water today (I do everyday) and a few glasses of juice
with super green powder.
I did take my vegan prenatal vitamins (made with ingredients that are all
natural like broccoli, spinach, strawberries, etc) and also a vegan calcium and
vitamin d supplement (honestly I am addicted to the way they taste:)
[12 april 2005] I saw my OB/gyn
She said my cervix is now
dilated to 2 centimeters so the baby will come any time. My blood
pressure was a little on the low side ~ as it always is. We have
determined that the baby is laying on a nerve in my lower back causing
discomfort. Ahhhh the joys of pregnancy :)
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