May you always be as happy, carefree and free-spirited as you are right now.  And may all you hopes, dreams and wishes in life always come true.

I love you bunches and bunches pumpkin pie

My sweet little baby (not really such a baby anymore) will celebrate her 2nd birthday on Sunday.  The party preparations are under way.

The celebration has been planned.

Great friends have been invited to spend the day with us.

The birthday cake has been ordered.

Party decorations have been purchased and are waiting to be put up.

Presents have been purchased and wrapped just waiting in the closet for little hands to unwrap them.

Sunday’s festivities will be so much fun.  Maya will have such a wonderful time (I can’t wait to see how excited she gets over her cake, her presents and having her friends here to share her special day with her).  The weather is supposed to be amazing here, just perfect for the day we have planned for our sweet little girl.  I can’t believe she will be two already.  Time flies…

For most women it will be perfectly safe to continue working during your pregnancy with no changes.  However, there are some jobs out there that are just not safe for pregnant women.  The job itself, or other environmental factors surrounding the job could be damaging to the baby growing inside of you.  Women in these unsafe jobs will need to request a change in position for the duration of their pregnancy or determine what can be done to make their job safe during their pregnancy.  It is important to remember that an employer cannot discriminate against you because of your pregnancy, meaning they cannot fire you or lower your pay simply because you are pregnant and asking for a temporary change in position.

Before you talk to your employer about your need to change jobs be sure to educate yourself on your rights and how you are protected under the law.  Do some research of your own and then talk to your human resources department.  Your employer may not be happy about your request to change jobs during your pregnancy but you need to do what is right and safe for you and your growing baby.

Jobs that are unsafe for pregnant women include:

• Any job where you are working with hazardous chemicals such as pesticides, toxic cleaning solutions, lead, second hand smoke, etc.
• Any position where you are doing heavy lifting.
• Any position where you are exposed to radiation.
• Any position where you are at risk of falling or being struck by heavy objects.
• Any position that has you climbing a ladder or some other similar device.
• Any position where you are exposed to large amount of germs that could cause serious illnesses.

Here are a few of the specific jobs that are unsafe for pregnant women:

• Farming
• Dry Cleaners
• Factory work where there is chemical exposure, too much heavy lifting, or a risk for falls.
• Print Shops
• Craft shops that expose you to drying chemicals, paints, etc.
• Highway worker
• Toll Booth operators.
• Construction
• Certain Healthcare fields

Your employer is required to disclose all dangerous contaminants  in the workplace and to protect pregnant women from being exposed to dangerous contaminants.  If you feel your job is putting your pregnancy at risk talk to your employer, your human resources department, your doctor and anyone else you may be able to help you get into a temporary position in your company that is safe for you and your pregnancy.

For more information on workplace safety during pregnancy, what your rights as a pregnant employee are and what you can do to protect yourself during your pregnancy visit the follow government websites.

• National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Occupational Safety & Health Administration
• U.S. Department of Labor Women’s Bureau

The Butterfly House here in St. Louis, MO is a great activity to do with your kids either on a cold day in the middle of winter when you just need to feel some warmth, or on a yucky, rainy day any time of the year.

The Butterfly House is operated by the Missouri Botanical Gardens and is located within Faust Park  in Chesterfield (a western suburb of St. Louis).  The Butterfly House is open year round and offers people an opportunity to see and experience almost 50 different variates of butterfly.  It consists of a walk through a butterfly garden that allows you a chance to get up close and personal with the butterflies (they are known to land on you!), several different bug exhibits in the main lobby, a movie that teaches child (and adults) about the life of a butterfly starting out when it hatches as a caterpillar to when it takes flight as a butterfly.  They also have a cute little gift shop.

The cost for the butterfly house is $6 per adult and $4 per child 3-12 years old (under 3 is free).  This is the only down side to the Butterfly House.  Although I think the facility is amazing and love that it offers you an opportunity to get so close with so many butterflies I think the cost is a bit high for what you get.  I’ve been several times and just suck it up and pay the admission because both myself and Maya just love it there, but I think a fee of a couple dollars less would be more reasonable.

For the most part you can expect to spend about 1-1.5 hours at the Butterfly house.  The little educational movie they show is about 15 mins long and you can spend as much time as you want walking through the butterfly garden.  It is really hot and humid in there so usually 30-45 minutes is tops for us.

Maya just loves seeing all the butterflies, especially when they land on either us or our stuff (one landed on our camera last time we were there!).  I would definitely recommend the Butterfly House to families looking for something a little different to do with their kids when the weather gets bad.

For first time moms bringing home their brand new little baby presents a lot of challenges.  Figuring out what your baby needs based on their different cries, learning how to breastfeed, finding the right balance of sleep.  It is all new and it takes time for you to get to know the ins and outs of motherhood; the ins and outs of your baby.  One of the big challenges is figuring out what works to calm your baby when all their needs have been met.  Sometimes babies just cry, every baby has their fuss time.  Over the first days and weeks of being home with your baby you will slowly figure out when your baby’s fuss time is and what works best to calm them.  It will feel so good that first time you are able to calm your crying baby and they lay resting peacefully.

Here are a few calming tricks you can try when your baby is fussy:

• Lay your baby on your chest and let him or her hear your heartbeat.
• Play soft music as you rock your baby.
• Talk or sing to your baby in a soothing voice.  They are used to hearing your voice from inside the womb and it is very calming to them.
• Babies love a rocking or swinging motion.  Try using a rocking chair or a baby swing to sooth your fussy little one.
• Take the baby for a walk in the stroller, in a sling, or for a drive in the car.  Movement is very soothing to babies.

Don’t worry, you’ll figure out the tricks that work best with your baby and you’ll be an old pro at calming him or her down before you know it.  It can be frustrating, tiring, upsetting to have a baby crying for no reason.  If it becomes too much for you to handle take a break, get your spouse to take a turn at trying to calm him or her.  This phase does pass.

If you are worried about your baby’s crying or worried about your reactions to the crying be sure to talk to your child’s pediatrician or your doctor.

Have you joined the Million Baby Crawl?  Maya joined today.

So, what is the Million Baby Crawl you might ask.  Well…

The Million Baby Crawl is being organized by Seventh Generation, creators of household products that are environmentally friendly and free of dangerous toxins, to support the Toxic Chemical Reform Act, a bill before Congress.  This bill will take quick action on eliminating the most dangerous chemicals from household products, require full disclosure of the health and environmental impact of all chemicals and support science to ensure products are safe for those most vulnerable, our babies.

By becoming part of the Million Baby Crawl you can help tell congress that you support this bill and want to see major changes in the household products market to ensure that the products we use everyday, those that our children are exposed to are safe.

Join the crawl today, make your voice heard.

This past week we have done a bunch of fun fall activities with Maya.  She has loved it.

We went apple and pumpkin picking this past weekend which was so much fun.

We went to the St. Louis Zoo for Boo at the Zoo and for their Spooktacular Trick-or-Treating event.  Maya loved getting all dressed up in her kitty costume!

We carved our pumpkin.  At first Maya didn’t want to help, but ended up having a blast playing with the gross insides of the pumpkin.  She was very pleased with the end product.

The only thing we haven’t done yet is rake leaves and let Maya jump in them.  We don’t have quite enough fallen leaves in our yard yet.  Maybe later this week or next we’ll have enough (and they’ll be dry) and we’ll be able to check another fun fall activity off our list.

Before Maya was diagnosed with a peanut and tree-nut allergy I didn’t give any thought to what kids with nut allergies did on Halloween.  Trick-or-treating is a big part of Halloween and probably the part kids most look forward too.  Going around the neighborhood in their costume collecting candy from all the neighbors is what people most associate with Halloween.  However, if you have a child with a nut allergy the candy part of Halloween can become a bit scary.  A lot of what ends up in your child’s trick-or-treat bag will either contain nuts or present a cross contamination risk.  You don’t want to have to take that joy of trick-or-treating away from your child.  They go through enough in life because of their nut allergy that makes them feel different, this doesn’t need to be one of them.

Making Halloween safe for your nut allergy child doesn’t have to be difficult, it just requires a little forethought on your part and a little imagination to make your child feel special and not left out.

If you are comfortable it is perfectly safe to continue to let your child trick-or-treating with his or her brothers and sisters and friends.  Set specific ground rules and make them apply to all your children.  Such as, no one is to eat, unwrap, play with anything they get in their trick-or-treat bag until they get home and you have a chance to examine it all (this rule should apply regardless of whether your child has a nut allergy or not).  Once your child gets home take their trick-or-treat bag and go through it.  Remove all candy that contains or may contain nuts.  Many parents with nut allergy kids do an exchange, for everything they take away they replace it with something that is safe.  You could also just have a trick-or-treat bag pre-made for them them and when they come home exchange they bag they have for the new safe bag.

There is plenty of Halloween candy that is safe for nut allergy kids.  Here is a list of a few I could think of (be sure to always read the label as some manufacturers may change their processes at any time):

• Skittles (all varieties)
• Most jelly beans
• Anything made by Haribo
• Hershey Kisses (except the peanut butter and almond varieties)
• Full size Hershey Milk Chocolate and Krackle bars
• Milk Duds
• Hershey Kissables (great M&M alternative)
• Rolos
• Many Wonka products including; nerds, bottle caps, runts, gob stoppers, pixy stix and tart n tiny.
• Smarties (rockets for my Canadian readers )
• Laffy Taffy
• Tootsie Rolls and Tootsie Pops
• Lifesaver Gummies
• Whoopers (except the peanut butter variety)
• Sweet Tarts
• Sunmaid chocolate-covered raisins
• Twizzlers
• York Peppermint Patties
• Red Vines
• Jolly Ranchers
• Starburst
• Candy Corn

To name just a few

You will likely have to spend a bit more time in the candy aisle than most people because you’ll have to read labels carefully.  Luckily there are lots of options so you will be able to find several things to hand out for Halloween and to give to your child as an alternative.

Our plan this year, since Maya is still so young, is just to let her to a little trick-or-treating on our street and just keep what is safe.  She doesn’t need a lot of candy, so I figure what she is left with should work out just fine.  Once she is older I plan on doing the exchange with her by taking what isn’t safe and replacing it with something that is.

What tricks do you use to keep your nut allergy child safe on Halloween?

Halloween is just around the corner.  I feel like summer just ended and already we are in the midst of fall and trick-or-treating time is upon us.  I like Halloween.  All the decorations, seeing all the adorable kids in their costumes, giving out candy on Halloween night.  As parents we want our kids to have a great time, enjoy themselves, but stay safe all at the same time.

Halloween is a time for kids to dress up and have a great time trick-or-treating with their friends.  A time for them to use their imaginations, have fun and enjoy being a kid.  What kid doesn’t love Halloween?  As parents we play an important role in making sure our kids have a safe and happy Halloween.  It is our job to help them use their creativity to pick out a great costume while making sure that costume is safe and appropriate.  It is our job to teach them about the important safety tips that will keep them safe and healthy as they venture out for some trick-or-treating.

As your kids get ready to celebrate Halloween in a few days here are a few important safety tips to keep in mind.

• Make sure your child’s costume is safe.  Masks can be dangerous as your child can’t see well out of them.  If they will be wearing a mask make sure the eye holes are big enough for good visibility.  Also, be sure there aren’t any long pieces hanging down around their feet that could pose a trip hazard.
• Teach your child about appropriate Halloween behavior including; what houses are okay to visit, stranger rules, staying in a group, etc.
• Always have a responsible adult available to accompany your children out trick-or-treating.  They may feel like they are old enough to go out on their own, but having an adult present helps keep them safe.
• Explain to your child that he or she should not eat any of the candy they collect until they have brought it home and allowed you to examine it.
• Consider the weather in your area.  If it is cold where you are make sure your children are dressed appropriately.
• Set guidelines for how long they are allowed to stay out, how many homes they can visit, etc.

The most important thing is to make sure your child understands the rules and what will make this a safe and happy Halloween.  Let them enjoy themselves while keeping a careful eye on them to ensure they are safe.

The first trimester can be difficult for a lot of women.  You aren’t showing yet, you may not have told very many people about the pregnancy so you are likely suffering through the rough early months alone and having to answer a lot of questions about why you aren’t feeling well with an answer that doesn’t give away the “real” reason.  Don’t worry through, the first trimester will be over before you know it and then you will be on to the much easier second trimester (often referred to as the honeymoon trimester).

There are a few things you can do to help ease some of the common complaints of the first trimester:

Fatigue: feeling fatigued and always tired is common during the first trimester.  The best way to deal with this symptom is to get more sleep.  Listen to your body and do what you can to get that needed extra sleep.  Take naps during the day, go to bed early, sleep-in in the morning if you can.  As your body adjusts to the changes taking place and you enter your second trimester many women find they are no longer as tired.

Frequent Urination: Having to go to the bathroom all the time is probably one of the most common symptoms of pregnancy and something that many people (pregnant) or not associate with pregnancy.  Frequent urination is often one of the earliest signs of pregnancy.  It is important to get plenty of fluids during the day while you are pregnant, however, you can watch that you don’t drink too much before bed so you don’t interrupt your much needed sleep.

Morning Sickness: The most common and probably the most annoying early pregnancy symptom, morning sickness can put a real damper on those first few months.  There are varying degrees of morning sickness.  Some women may find they are only slightly nauseous, others will have full on vomiting several times a day.  Morning sickness can happen any time of the day (not very aptly named) and is due to the hormonal changes taking place in your body.  The triggers of morning sickness very for some having an empty stomach will trigger it, for others it will be the smell or taste of certain foods, for others lack of sleep can be a trigger as well.  A few things you can do to help curb morning sickness include:

• Eat several small, healthy meals throughout the day.
• If you know a particular food or drink is a trigger avoid it when possible.
• Take your prenatal vitamin before bed instead of in the morning.
• Try to avoid skipping meals if you can.
• Drink plenty of water.
• Eat dry crackers when you first wake up, before you even sit up.

As I mentioned above these symptoms will pass and you’ll be on to something new.  With each trimester you’ll find a whole new list of complaints, but remember why you are doing this and what the end result will be, it’ll help make it all seem worth it.

If you have any concerns about anything you are experiencing during you pregnancy be sure to talk to your prenatal caregiver.