The Mom Crowd

I have several friends who are about to give birth, and they’re starting to prepare a playlist or mix cd for their laboring time.  When I had my first child, I took about four mix cd’s with me, because I wasn’t sure what mood I’d be in throughout the process.  I don’t remember any of them except for a worship music mix and a favorite Counting Crows mix.  Turns out I only listened to one of them once, ’cause the t.v. was on most of the time (or I had a stream of visitors).   Plus, my laboring experience was somewhat different; when I was in the operating room, I vaguely remember hearing peaceful music playing quietly. 

It’s funny; as I’m writing this post, I’m listening to my latest mp3 download, The Hives’ “Tick Tick Boom“, which is all kinds of cool.  I heard it playing during the action-movies montage during the Academy Awards, and my viewing buddies and I were all about finding out what song that was.  My friend busted out his iPhone and used that “retrieve the song” application.  Fun times!  Anyway, here are some lyrics:

You know I’ve done it before and I can do it some more/I got my eye on the score

I’m gonna cut to the core/I’m gonna cut to the core

It’s too late/it’s too soon

Or is it?/Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, BOOM!!

I guess it could be a good laboring tune, if you’re the type who plans to dress your baby in mini-Vans and rock-band onesies.  You know who you are. 

Here’s an article about relaxing music during labor, which contains further links to finding just the right music for your experience.  I’m pretty sure none of them mention The Hives.

What music aided you through your laboring experience(s)?  Do you go classical, movie-soundtrack, make-you-happy music, or comfort bands?  The more specific, the better! (p.s.  For the unitiated, that’s a picture of a “mix tape“, above.  )

I’ve been trying to lose the last 10 pounds from Graham’s pregnancy since Christmas.  I think I gained a few pounds over the holidays which didn’t really help matters much–BUT, I have 8 pounds to go.  Boy are they stubborn this time.  I don’t know what is making the weight stick around–it is because I am in my 30′s, have some thyroid condition, or am just too lazy but I really want to get back to my original weight. And wear all my clothes. And look good in them.  Oh, I can wear them, but I have a muffin top that I can’t stand.  I have been consistently working out 3-4 days a week, mostly on the elliptical running machine but the pounds haven’t been falling off like they used to.  I never really bothered losing weight right after Graham was born because I am one of those (unlukcy) women who don’t lose the last pregnancy weight until I am done nursing.  With child one and two I was back to my prepregnancy weight within 3-6 months after the last sip of breastmilk was drunk.  Graham quit nursing in October–4 months ago.  I thought I’d be seeing more progress than I have been seeing.

I started thinking that maybe the elliptical machine wasn’t enough.  Walking and Pilates had done the trick losing the weight with my first two kids.  I have a great video to do with an exercise ball that I enjoy but I wanted something else to throw into the mix.  I read an article in Cookie magazine about Tracy Anderson, who gained 60 lbs during her pregnancy.  She is a dancer and had battled some weight issues before.  She started doing a lot of research and trying her methodology on women of all different genetic shapes.  Her methodology worked on women with all kinds of body types.  The basic idea is that we overwork all of our large muscle groups and need to work on the smaller muscles to pull in the larger ones.  She put together a post pregnancy workout routine to help moms target the problem areas  after having a baby.

My stomach got so stretched out carrying all 12 lbs of Graham that it is in some serious need of muscle work!  I read some of the reviews on Amazon and decided to go ahead and buy it.  Of course, with most exercise–if you do it regularly you will see results.  I’m still trying to figure out how to incorporate fitting cardio in with this workout routine. And how much should I do of both?  She says to do the postpregnancy workout 4-6X a week.

On Monday I did video and I was using muscles that I didn’t even know I had.  The first half of the video is abdominal work–which makes sense.  Your abs get the most stretching and lack of use while you are pregnant.  The last half works on legs and arms.  All you need is a set of 3 lb. weights.  Every stomach muscle I have is sore!  I skipped Tuesday and did the workout again on Wednesday.  My muscles were crying as I did the video again.  They were tired from the Monday workout and were having a hard time keeping up.  One thing I like about the video is that I will be able to see improvement in my own strength as I keep it up.  I keep thinking that I’m 17 months postpartum so I can’t imagine how challenging it would be to start doing 2 months postpartum.  It is worth it though.  I don’t think it matters if you just had a baby or not–this workout is a challenge for anyone.  I got my husband to do a few of the exercises and he was shaking right along with me!

She uses classical music in the background which I find relaxing–especially if I am having to workout with all 3 kids running around me.  My only “wish” about the video is that it would be nice to see different angles of her doing the exercises more often.  Some of the arm movements aren’t explained and it would be nice to see them from a different perspective.

I am hoping to get rid of the last tummy jiggles but I am trying to tell myself that even if I never lost the last 8 lbs. I am still doing some healthy for myself and my kids.

Have you heard of Tracy Anderson’s Postpartum workout video?  Have you tried it?  What other post pregnancy workout videos or activities have you done? Does anyone know how much you should combine cardio with strength training?

I sometimes feel like my huge belly is not advertising, “There is a baby inside here.” Instead my belly says “Please comment on what you think the status of my baby is and ask me lots of questions!” One of the questions I often get asked is, “Where are you delivering?” I explain that I am having my baby at a Birth Center and I like to watch their faces as they receive the news. I even avoided telling my own mother for months, because I feared her negative reaction. When I finally told her she reacted exactly as I expected. So let me explain why I chose a Birth Center instead of going to an OB/GYN and delivering at the hospital.

I had never even considered a birth center until I read Amelia’s article, “Are Birth Centers Safe?” here at The Mom Crowd.  I feel very fortunate to have had a textbook delivery with my first with no medicine in the hospital, so I felt like I could consider another option when I got pregnant with my second.

Cost

The main consideration about where I delivered mostly depended on the cost. When my husband decided to start his own business we opted to buy Health Insurance without any Maternity coverage. It is cheaper for us to have a lower monthly payment and pay for any maternity costs in cash.

We called my OB/GYN and the hospital where I delivered to get their costs. My OB/GYN would be $2300 for 14 prenatal visits, plus $218 for a sonogram and $142 for each Non-Stress Test. The total cost of going to see my OBGYN would be around $2660.  I don’t have the exact numbers for the hospital, but when we called a normal delivery with no epidural or c-section would be around $5,000 in hospital costs. Going through the same care that I had with my daughter without insurance would be around $7,660.

We then called the new Birth Center in San Antonio and found out that they offer a cash discount. $3500 would cover all my visits and my delivery. This only includes up to 6 hours of care after delivery. Any additional hours will be $20 each to cover the cost of the staff. I have to pay extra for any  tests and my sonogram. At the Birth Center they only require 1 sonogram and even that one is optional. For less than $4,000 we feel like we are getting a great deal!

There was also a question of if I had Gestational Diabetes again. My OB/GYN would make me go to a Specialist that would cost about $250 a visit and I would have to go about 10 times. The Birth Center would not make me go to a Specialist if I could control my gestational diabetes with my diet as I did last time. Thankfully I barely passed my diabetes test this pregnancy!

Freedom, Comfort, and Options

My husband and I took a tour of the center, before we signed up. Everything was clean and we got a “good vibe” from the office. It is really peaceful there, almost like a spa. We especially like how I don’t have to have an IV when I am delivering if I don’t need one. I can move about and eat and drink, as I need.  Also, I like that can choose to birth in a bed, use a birthing stool, use a birthing ball, or get in the huge Jacuzzi tub.

The main benefit for us is that my husband wants to catch our second child. He felt like he didn’t really have a part in my first delivery other than rubbing my back and holding my leg. Also, two friends want to be at my delivery and I feel like the center is perfectly okay with extra folks in the room.

Benefits I Have Found Since I Started Going

The three midwives are incredibly nice and not intimidating at all. I have never felt like any question is stupid one. I can ask about my file any time. They also give me feedback on my pee tests. With my OB I always peed in the cup, but never knew why.

I also like that they are pretty flexible with appointment times and I can change my appointment time if I need to. I feel like they know me personally and really care about my health. I never feel like they are rushing me out the room when I have an appointment. I have never had health care providers be this kind and excited for me.

The Few Negatives of my Birth Center

As I mentioned before the mother only stays at the center for about 6 hours after delivery, so there is no overnight nursery care to catch up on your sleep. Also, my Pediatrician is not familiar with the new birth center and the extensive care that newborns receive at a birth center, so she not very encouraging of my decision. I will also have to take a special trip about 48-hours after delivery to have my baby examined at my Pediatrician’s office.

Amelia mentions in her article about what happens if something goes wrong and you need to be rushed to the hospital. Like her birth center, mine is located in the heart of our medical center. They said that most of the time they move a mother is because they have been in labor for a very long time and just want the baby out. It was a very small percentage of women who actually do get rushed to a hospital.

Peace

My husband and I considered every angle that we could come up with. In the end we are excited about our decision. My husband likes to call it “the hippie center” even though they have no tie-dyed clothes or incense. In fact, the center is very nicely decorated. He wants to order a pizza while we are there, just because we can! We will see how it goes. I will be sure to write up another post and let you know how the delivery goes!

I love the idea of being creative and crafty, but rarely indulge myself in making things. Recently, some of my friends have posted some super cute items they have made that are now high on my to-do list {after this adoption is final!}  I had to share them with you all!!

• Brooke’s Freezer Paper Stenciled T-Shirts

• Jennifer’s “Gloves for the Domestic Diva”
  

• Jennifer’s “Quiet Time Church Bag”

• And here’s some links for you to learn how to make BOWS, TUTUS, and WANDS for your little princesses!
• Twirley Skirt (for the more adventurous crafter)
• Here’s a very awesome blog that has tutorials for all kinds of fun do-it-yourself projects!

What are some fun crafts you’ve made?

Over at San Diego Momma’s blog she has a post running where the people in the comments leave a blog prompt for the Commenter before them. Got it? You can check out the original post about it here and a clarifying post about it here. San Diego Momma is one of the coolest bloggers ever. She met me on a blind blogger date when I happened to be in San Diego. She even let me interview her when I didn’t know what I was doing. You can check out the video of our interview here. So enough gushing about San Diego Momma and on to the prompt.

Jessica at BernThis.com gave me this prompt: Tell us the worst decision you think you’ve made in your life and why and if you need more to write about, tell us the best decision you made and why.

The Worst Decision

I really don’t believe in regrets, so the first question is kind of hard for me. In 29 years of living I have thankfully not have had to deal with a lot of bad decisions. The first one that comes to mind is that I feel like I wasted 2 years of my awesome time in college dating this one guy. He struggled with homosexuality and didn’t want to live that lifestyle. So I felt like I could fix him. At least if he had a girlfriend, then people wouldn’t think he was gay. Nosy college students would ask me anyway. Thankfully I didn’t go as far as Mary in the movie ‘Saved!’ In fact, we never kissed, because we were going to save our first kiss for our wedding.  We were pretty close to getting engaged, but we ultimately broke up because I feel like I woke up and saw that we weren’t a good match.  He just wasn’t paying any attention to me. I had to beg him to meet me for dinner, so I could break up with him. I feel like some of that time was wasted.

Kelly Willis sings a song called ‘Find Another Fool.’ I often think of him when I hear the song. The first 2 verses read like this:

Now we’re down to saying our goodbyes
And you still don’t see the truth
All I did was try to make life better for you
But a woman just gets tired of being used

So find another fool to love you
The world is full of girls like me
Find a fool to take care of you
That’s a girl I’d like to see
Who’ll be the one when all is said and done
I know you
You’ll find another fool

I sort of did feel like a fool when it was all said and done. Many friends and family came up to me and said that they were glad that we broke up afterwords. I then wondered – why didn’t they tell me sooner!

About a year or two later I met my husband and was glad that I met him at the end of college, because we decided to get married after we graduated. I don’t know if I could have been engaged for more than 6 months!

The Best Decision

The best decision I feel like I have ever made was moving to San Antonio in 1998 to attend the University of Texas at San Antonio. Moving away from my family and starting a new life all on my own is one of my proudest moments in life. I didn’t know a single person when I moved to a completely new city. I quickly found friends and a job. Since graduating college I have married, had a good paying job in my major, and now do what I love as a Stay At Home Mom.

I feel like since I have moved once on my own that I can do it again (now with a family), but there isn’t any rush. I seriously love my town and those that have become my family and friends here.

———

Thanks, Jessica, for the prompt. Sorry I can’t come up with anything juicier for ya in the worst decision department. I can’t wait to read your post on a smell that takes you back or reminds you of something from Melanie at A Dramatic Mommy!

 So what are the best and worst decisions of your life?