Luna Moms Club Tip of the Week:

Educational Tip of the Week:

Fact: Plastic baby bottles are often made with polycarbonate plastic that can leach Bisphenol-A. This chemical disrupts proper hormone functioning, alters genes and disrupts normal physical and behavioral development.

Action: Use bottles made of glass or polypropylene plastic. Two companies who make these safer baby bottles are ThinkBaby and Born Free.

Staying Fit on Vacation

Here's my little guy on the beach in Ocean City, NJ- he LOVES the beach!

I've been so blessed this summer with a couple of wonderful family beach vacations. One week in Holden Beach, NC with my husband's family, one week in Ocean City, NJ with my family and various weekends with more of my husband's family in Carolina Beach, NC. While it is a treat to be at the beach it is not easy to fit in my workout when I am away from our daily routine!

A few weeks ago I drafted this blog post for WRAL's Go Ask Mom blog and it has been such great accountability for me. I can't go on vacation and not workout after writing about staying fit on vacation! Plus- I knew I had my Stroller Strides ladies to come home to... I couldn't come back out of shape!


So please read my latest blog post... at this address:

http://www.wral.com/lifestyles/goaskmom/blogpost/8020727/

And leave me a comment if you want to share about the exercise you got while on vacation!

Luna Moms Club Tip of the Week:

Fact: According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, indoor air quality is one of the top five environmental health concerns. Given that people spend about 90 percent of their time indoors, it's important to do what you can to reduce indoor air pollution.

Action: One of the simplest things you can do is open a window. Even if it's chilly outside (we should be so lucky!), you should open a window for just five minutes a day to significantly decrease the concentrations of indoor air pollutants in your home. Most home heating and cooling systems, including forced air heating systems, do not mechanically bring fresh air into the house. Open a window and start breathing cleaner air.

And play outside more!

Post-Pregnancy Challenge #9: Tired All The Time

I have a confession to make. For the first 6 months or so of Monty's life I saw bugs that weren't really there. Do we have bugs in our 70+ year old house? Oh yeah, we do but these were imaginary bugs that I can only attribute to being sleep deprived! I can't express how much better I felt when he dropped his night-time feedings and starting sleeping from 6:30pm to 7am!

Exhaustion can make us moms feel like grumpy, loopy, clumsy, forgetful, crazy people- with bugs crawling up our peripheral vision! Though if our husbands called us out on it we would probably just start sobbing- don't they see how hard we're working?

So what can we do about it? Unless you plan on handing over your mothering duties and hiding under the covers for a month (which I don't recommend) there's not much you can do about replenishing the lost sleep. Since we can't catch up- how do we get through this time?

Here are some things I DO recommend to combat post-pregnancy sleep deprivation:
*Accept offers of help from family and friends. Babysitting, vacuuming, meals- whatever it is- say yes!
*Eat whole grains, fruit, veggies and lean proteins and drink plenty of water especially if you are breastfeeding.
*Exercise- you'll find you have more energy after doing so!
*"Lean Mommy" (by Lisa Druxman) recommends Mommy Meditations- taking a quiet moment to practice your deep breathing, visualize your energy, and mentally let go of your stress. And if you fall asleep and end up taking a nap- that is great too!

If you're looking for advice on how to teach your baby to sleep through the night or nap on a predictable schedule, I recommend "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Marc Weissbluth. It worked for Monty and I hope it helps you too... but there are plenty of other sleep books out there that our friends have used with great success as well.

Post-Pregnancy Challenge #8: No Time to Eat Right or Take Care of Yourself

I can never seem to find enough hours in the day to do everything I want and need to do. If I get ahead in the laundry then I'm behind in the ironing. If I get the grocery shopping done I run out of time do anything beyond microwaving dinner. There really is never enough time to "do it all" and often the things I sacrifice are eating right and exercising. Does this resonate with anyone else? Please, please tell me I'm not alone (really- I'd love to see some comments)!

Here are some of Lisa Druxman's tips for overcoming this post-pregnancy challenge from her book, "Lean Mommy":
On eating right:
*Choose foods that are nourishing, fast, and easy to prepare. Toss a bag of almonds or walnuts or a banana into your bag when you're packing for baby and you'll be prepared with a healthy snack when the hunger pangs start.
*Plan ahead when you know you'll be eating out and make a healthy menu choice in advance. Most restaurants post their menus and nutritional information online.

On fitting in exercise (turning mothering into me-time):
*Turn your mothering duties into opportunities to exercise. Strap your fussy baby into a Baby Bjorn or sling and do some lower body toning exercises together while you sing or sweet talk your little one out of his or her fussiness. Some squats and lunges will gently rock your baby and firm up those glutes and quads at the same time!
*Give your baby a dose of sunshine and socialization by joining other moms for a Stroller Strides class or stroller walk around the neighborhood. You'll get some exercise and your baby will enjoy some impromptu playgroup time.

Years ago I saw an illustration that has stayed with me. The presenter had a big mason jar and next to it a collection of items. There were rocks, pebbles, sand, and a small pitcher of water. It seemed impossible but they swore they could fit all of these items in the jar at once. You know how they did it? They put the big things in first- the rocks, then the pebbles, then the sand, then the water. The lesson that has stayed with me all these years?

Put the big things in first and all of the smaller things will fit in around them.

(This is an old picture of my husband and I on vacation with our family in Bermuda... see you can fit a lot in if you try!)

Luna Moms Club Tip of the Week

Fact: Laboratory tests of eight industry-leader baby foods reveal the presence of 16 pesticides, including three carcinogens.

Action: Buy certified organic baby food (Plum Organics and Happy Baby are great flash frozen organic brands). Or make your own baby food from organic, pesticide-free fruits & veggies!

Post-Pregnancy Challenge #7: Discomfort or Pain in your Wrists

Every couple of months I know my son is going through a growth spurt because my wrists and thumbs start to ache. What does one have to do with the other, you ask? When suddenly there's more of him to carry around my wrist strength seems to take about a week or so to catch up.

Many women experience carpal tunnel syndrome during pregnancy and others during the postnatal period. Carpal tunnel syndrome is a condition wherein swelling in the wrists puts pressure on the nerves and causes pain, discomfort, tingling, and even numbness.

Bending at the wrist can exacerbate the problem but we can't just not pick up our babies for a week until it subsides. So what can you do about it?

In her book, "Lean Mommy", Lisa Druxman suggests first trying to rest your wrists whenever you can if you're feeling any of the symptoms above. When you are using your wrists make sure you are maintaining proper alignment. Take a look at your wrists when you pick up your baby and his/her stuff, push a stroller, or feed your baby. If they are not in a neutral alignment with your forearm then readjust and try to be aware of your alignment throughout your day and make small readjustments whenever necessary.

Some pregnant women find it helpful to wear a wrist brace to alleviate carpal tunnel symptoms during pregnancy. Your obstetrician can advise you regarding that piece of equipment if you think you may need it.