Thursday, September 30, 2010

Breastfeeding

Breasts and babies.

Breastfeeding.


The big taboo over the most natural thing in the world.

I don't have a problem breastfeeding in front of others. Yes, it's a private time between Ganon and myself, but the mere presence of others doesn't lessen that. I put him in position, pull my shirt up and my bra down, and my nipple is in his mouth. (Not that it was always that easy - but that's another post.) My brother and stepdad got used to it within a month. It's not like I'm just dangling my boobs out there for all to see - I cover up and angle as best I can without making things unnecessarily difficult for either Ganon or me. My grandfather (once it was explained to him that regardless of what he had been told, breastfeeding was better than formula) has never expressed any discomfort at the idea, nor when I managed to nurse in the same room as him. I have never known this man to hold his tongue. Though he would rather make a joke than say something that might be taken as insulting, he gets is point across. My mother and grandmother, however, seem to think that nursing in front of a man - especially a family member - was highly scandalous.

The first time I nursed Ganon while visiting my grandparents, my mom got up, got a blanket out of the diaper bag, and threw it over the baby while I was nursing him. Now, it was a very warm summer day, and my grandparents don't have air conditioning. There was no need for the blanket other than to 'hide my shame'. As my mother so delicately put it: "Your grandfather doesn't want to see that." [emphasis hers] More recently, my grandmother was holding Ganon when he got hungry. I stood up, took him into my arms, and went to sit back down on the couch. As I turned around to sit, my grandmother gave me a very no-nonsense look, and said, "You can go in the other room to do that." Rather than cause a scene, I pursed my lips and sequestered myself in her bedroom.

Slightly grumpy, I sat down on the bed and began to nurse Ganon when, to my pleasant surprise, my grandfather came in the room. He turned on the TV and fetched the remote for me. I couldn't help but smile, feeling both grateful and righteous. Not only was I made more comfortable and relieved of my guilt, but I was right in that my grandfather wasn't offended by my nursing. Not that that changed my mother's or grandmother's views, but I'm no longer insulted by their ignorance.

Monday, September 27, 2010

First tooth

Ganon's first tooth is starting to make itself known.  Occasionally, the poor boy will just start crying, then try to gnaw on my knuckles.  A bit of acetominaphen eases the pain, but I know it will get worse before it gets better (when the tooth finally ruptures).  The reason I make note of this pre-tooth teething is that I am going through the same trouble.  That's right, my son and I are teething at the same time.  One of my wisdom teeth is currently forcing itself through the flesh of my gums, letting me experience first hand the type of pain that is just around the corner for my son.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Bellyaches

When I first became pregnant, I noticed that I became very ill whenever I ate or drank something containing high fructose corn syrup.  Having a glass of soda resulted in the equivalent of 24 hours of food poisoning. 

The thing you might not realize, however, is just how many foodstuffs contain HFCS.  Good ol' Wonderbread, for example.  Most shelved baked goods, in fact, including hamburger buns and cookies.  Though thankfully things from a bakery are usually HFCS-free.  Soda, of course, has it, and popcicles.  Many cereals, and the list goes on...  I've gotten into the habit of checking every label, regardless of the product, since several unexpected 'surprises'.  It's not a corn allergy, as I can eat an old fashioned corn on the cob without trouble, and even regular corn syrup doesn't bother me.  I guess the slight differences from the processing make it unrecognizable as food by my body.

Since this was a new 'allergy' (Having not been tested for an actual allergy, it may be some sort of intolerance, but the result is no less miserable) beginning during pregnancy, I did a bit of research and found about half of the anecdotal cases to be rid of a new allergy after they gave birth, though almost all noted the allergy in the children they carried.  After my 6-week followup appointment after Ganon was born, I decided to test things out.  I had a couple of Chips-Ahoy cookies, which had the HFCS further down the ingredient list (so possibly less HFCS than other products).  Happily, I didn't become ill at all, and felt only the slightest twinge of nausea. 

A couple of hours later, however, I discovered a real problem.  After breastfeeding and giving a nice big burp, Ganon was whining and squealing in pain.  At first I thought it was just more gas, or maybe he was tired and needed a nap...  But the next day, with more experimenting - half a can of soda this time - I ended up ill, and Ganon's post-nursing screams intensified.  Major facepalm.  Whatever it was that made me ill (abdominal cramping included) was somehow being passed to Ganon through my milk.  I felt just awful!  I had caused him such pain because I wanted to have some junk food.  Not that I could have known he would be affected, but I was still wracked with guilt.  I guess growing up Catholic gave me an overdeveloped sense of guilt!  Now that I know, I am doubly careful to keep HFCS out of my diet, and since Ganon begins eating baby food soon, I will need to be just as careful with his foods.

Now, I think ahead a few years to when Ganon visits friends' houses, or snacktime at daycare, or even well-meaning grandparents sneak him some sweets.  As he gets larger (and therefore has more body mass), will the effects lessen?  Will he, like me, be able to eat a small treat with little trouble, or will he be miserably in pain from the smallest cookie?  Will other parents and caregivers realize how prevalent HFCS is?  That something as innocuous as a hamburger (depending on the bun) could cause such problems in my little boy?  With HFCS being rebranded as "Corn Sugar", will it become more difficult to spot in products - and will there be a difference in labelling between HFCS and regular corn syrup?

This is going to be difficult.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Old Spice

I miss the Old Spice commercials featuring the Man Your Man Could Smell Like.  They were hilarious, and I particularly enjoyed the personalized You Tube responses.  Apparently I wasn't the only one, and a craft swap was organized around these commercials, and I, of course, decided to participate.  After re-watching the entire Old Spice playlist, I was inspired!

First up, I created two tickets to That Thing You Love. 


The PDF is available here: http://www.mediafire.com/file/8vb7tx4nk72v0de/tickets.pdf

Print a couple onto cardstock, cut them out, and be the man her man could smell like!


I also made a little amigurumi of The Man Your Man Could Smell Like, complete with removable towel and 6-pack abs~


Designs copyright Ganon's Mom, feel free to share with credit, do not sell this pattern.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Sleep

Guess who regularly sleeps for 6 hours at a time!  That's right - Ganon.  My body considers that a full night's sleep, so I am just beaming with pride and well-restedness right now.  He's also not an early bird, so he usually goes back to sleep until around 9am. (Yay me!) 

Granted, he hardly naps anymore, but I'll take what I can get! :)

Monday, September 13, 2010

Scarfie the rainbow-colored Scarf of Sexual Preference

I was recently turned on to A Very Potter Musical, and its sequel, A Very Potter Sequel.  If you're a Harry Potter fan and have a sense of humor, you should check them out.  In addition to the Sorting Hat, this parody musical adds the Scarf of Sexual Preference - a rainbow scarf.  Having wanted a rainbow-colored scarf for some time, needing a scarf for the impending winter weather, and having a propensity for silliness, I made this quick pattern:

Scarfie, the Scarf of Sexual Preference
Materials:
approx. 1/3 skein of worsted weight yarn in each of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple
US size 11 circular needle – 32” or as large as you can find.
Size G-6 crochet hook (optional - for alternate cast-on and cast-off)

gauge: 3sts and 6 rows per inch in garter stitch

Instructions given are for adult (child) sizes
Finished scarf is 6 (4) feet in length and 6 (4) inches wide

Instructions:
Cast on 216 (144) stitches using purple yarn.
Knit 6 rows using purple yarn
Repeat for blue, green, yellow, orange, and red yarn.
Bind off loosely.
Attach 6” tassels or fringe to ether end, being sure to keep the color order
Optional methods:
I used a modified crochet cast on for this. I wrapped the yarn around the knitting needle, ch2, and repeated until I had 215 (143) sts on the needle. I then slipped the last loop from the crochet hook onto the needle, completing the cast on.

I used a similar cast-off for this. I slipped the last stitch from the knitting needle onto the crochet hook, ch2, * sc through the next st, slipping it off of the needle, ch1, and repeat from * until one st remained. Then I sl st into the last st before tying off.

To make the scarf look more like the puppet Scarfie from A Very Potter Sequel, embroider or attach a happy black felt face to one end.

 
I hope you enjoy!
 
Harry Potter copyright J. K. Rowling, A Very Potter Musical and A Very Potter sequel copyright Team Starkid, pattern copyright Ganon's Mom, feel free to share with credit, do not sell this pattern.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Vaccinations

When Ganon went in for his first round of vaccinations, I dreaded every moment. 

I remembered screaming as a child whenever I saw the syringe... I had to have several nurses hold me down for each shot.  I had spent hours upon hours reading various ways to make the whole experience less traumatic for him, and myself as well.  The consensus seemed to be breastfeeding.  Sources varied as to whether nursing before, during, or after the vaccination was best, though. 

I decided to go with my gut, and postponed Ganon's late-morning meal until we had arrived at the vaccination clinic.  He nursed away on breast #1 while I listened to all the required information before the shots could be administered.  When he stopped to burp, we plopped him down on the exam table and the nurse, as quickly as she could, gave him two injections in one leg and one in the other.  He just kind of blinked in surprise as the first syringe pierced his skin, and cried loudly once the nurse pressed the plunger, and continued until the last needle had been removed.  Then his cries turned to fussing, and by the time I had sat back down to finish nursing, he was happy as a clam again!  A few hours later, the muscle soreness set in, so he spent the rest of the day on acetaminophen, but he was fine by morning.  A truly amazing child.

There are times, when I have been bragging about Ganon's greatness, that I fear I will give my childless friends unrealistic expectations for their future children.  But then I remember my overdeveloped sense of schadenfreude and smile.

Monday, September 6, 2010

Lon-Lon Milk

I wanted to create some Lon-Lon milk bottle labels for baby Ganon's bottles... so I did.  I couldn't decide if I wanted them to be more like the N64 in-game bottles, or redesigned, or in Hylian or English... so I did all three.  That's the best part about being indecisive; you can have it all!

In-game style:

Stylized:



Extra backs (to wrap around larger bottles):



Here are all the files as PDFs
http://www.mediafire.com/file/t33b9a6ppn743w5/lonlon.zip

Zelda and all related concepts and designs are copyright Nintendo, pattern copyright Ganon's Mom, feel free to share with credit, do not sell this pattern.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

3 Months

Ganon is now three months old.  My how time flies!  He is officially an 'infant' and not a 'newborn'.  I've finally gotten into a nice rhythm of daily activities, timing naps and feedings, and taking the baby out of the house.

It's kind of funny, remembering how frazzled I would get just trying to take Ganon out to visit one of his grand parents' houses.  I would stuff the diaper bag full, certain that the weather would change, several outfits would be spit-up on, and diapers could not last longer than 20 minutes.  I would inevitably return to the bedroom at least three times to fetch forgotten items that simply could not be done without.  I would literally run back and forth through the house with Ganon in my arms, gathering items and triple-checking everything before I put him in his carseat.  Now, it's almost a smooth process - refill diapers and wipes in the bag, otherwise the diaper bag is kept packed (including the ever-essential spare pacifier!).  Bottles are unneccesary (yet another bonus to breastfeeding!), and anything else can be done without. 

I find that as I gain confidence, things come easier, increasing my confidence.  What a nice cycle to be in! :)