Wordless Wednesday - Fluffy Bums and Then and Now (Easter Special)

Hannah - 2010 (4 months)

Maisey - 2012 (3 months)

Wordless Wednesday - sisters bonding before nap time

I became a midwife today...

Well sort of....

I got a call from my father-in-law this afternoon (just under an hour from when my daughter and I had to be at a meeting about my sister-in-law's wedding shower/tea). The conversation went basically like this (this is most of what I remembered. Also FYI some of this content may offend some people, we are talking about a birth here):

FIL (father-in-law): you busy?

me: not really I have a meeting at 2:30...

FIL: (pause) I have a sheep lambing and I think she is having some trouble

me: (pause) you know I have only watched my dad pull calves but never done it myself

FIL: yah, but I called your MIL (said her name but don't want to use it) and she figured you could help

me: oh?

FIL: plus your hands are smaller then mine...

So it was agreed that I would go out to the farm and see if I could help check the sheep to see what was taking so long for her to lamb. So I packed up my daughter and didn't bother changing because I figured it might get messy.

My in-laws only have a few sheep, more of a hobby then anything else. The farm is run more on grain. Now I am use to growing up with cattle they are big but quite brilliant animals and they herd quite well. All of the above, I found out is not the qualities of sheep (sorry if I offended people who love sheep but they really do not herd all that well).

So I showed up at the farm my FIL is in the barn waiting for me. We then managed to get the right ewe into the barn into the right stall. (again a warning to those who do not like to hear about a birth this is not the blog post for you).

My FIL then managed to get the ewe on her back so that I could see what the problem is, I could see a tiny little nose and two hoofs, it appeared that the head was trying to come out before the feet which is a no no in delivering of lambs. My FIL wanted to know if I could see if the the lamb was alive so I removed the sac from around its nose and mouth...and it licked! So it was still alive at this point. 

So the next option was to see if we could get the legs "unstuck" you do this by slowly pulling on one leg of the lamb until you hear it release and then the other. It worked!!! The lamb came out quite easy after that and WOW was it ever a big lamb! Which according to my FIL was probably minutes away from dieing because the lamb was too big for this first time mom to deliver on her own.

We then trimmed the wool around the utter of the ewe so the lamb would be able to find a tit to drink from. Ewe and lamb were then united and she promptly started to lick her baby off. It was quite the sight too see (unfortunately I forgot my camera will try to take a picture of the lamb in the next few days).

So I wish everyone an early Happy Mother's day as I sit here in awe that I could help a first time mom deliver her lamb.

Lots of Bunny-Hugs

Cecette

Toddler wearing - the first couple weeks

Well I have had a couple weeks to work with my new carrier the Beco Gemini. And I have to say this is a pretty cool carrier!

Since the weather is warming up here I have been walking to go pick Hannah up from daycare after work. This has given me lots of practice of having to put on the carrier. I have used it in both the front and back position (not facing out as she is too heavy for that in the front position). So here are a few things that I found out.

The Good Stuff!
It feels very durable and I can cinch Hannah quite close so my center of gravity isn't shifted too much. If I don't feel like doing a back carrier that is fine cause it works just as well in the front position. Also found out back carrier is not as hard as it seemed...in fact I feel like quite a pro when other mom's see me swing Hannah on to my back with such ease (well, now isn't that just tooting my own horn :D...but with as much practice as I have been getting in I should be a pro at it lol)

My Not So Favorite Parts...
I am not in favor of the way the shoulder straps look when it is in back carry. I know this seems trivial but still a slight con for me. It seems to bulge a little and the outer edges seem to pop out (see the pictures I have attached). The other not so favorite part...the fact that I have to have it tight which causes some ummm fat distribution into some not so flattering ways. I have found that if she is in back carry I can pull a longer shirt out over top the waist band which hides some. After googling this topic it seems to be a consensus that most if not all soft structured carrier cause this "muffin top"/"fat redistribution" problem.


So here are some pictures from a recent walk over Easter weekend at the farm. Hope you enjoy!

Getting ready for the walk (I think I might need to cinch her in close...I think I did as the walk progressed)

 Looking at the sheep and the new lambs!

Playing in a big puddle!

Hannah is watching the farm dog jump into a Juniper bush...she thought it was quite funny.

If anyone has any tips on using the Beco Gemini I would really appreciate it! Especially if you see something in the pictures that could be improved by adjusting some straps etc.


Lots of Bunny-Hugs!
Cecette

My First Wordless Wednesday - Hannah 15 mos

All credit for this picture goes to Framed by Jen.

hmmm MIA...again

WOW have I ever been MIA from here!!!
I feel so bad but I guess I do have a few excuses lol...

I started back at work (orientation to the health region was in December and orientation to the site was start of January) I am casual in Home Care and Part-time in a long term care unit. I have to say yes the orientation was quite good but I still feel a little like a fish out of water when it comes to some things. I think it has more to do with my confidence being away for so long. Though some things do return fast when you have stressful situation to deal with...found that the hard way on my second shift at the long term care. At least it was an orientation shift so there were two of us to deal with the "issue".

My little DD is happy and healthy attending her day home daycare. I am not sure if I posted about my daycare issue...it has been so long since I have posted. Well if I am repeating myself (which having a quick glance at the recent posts I don't think I mentioned it) please just skip this portion.
Back in September I found a wonderful daycare that was run by a very nice lady (they are funded I think provincially, and are considered to be a daycare not a home centre) the plan was for Hannah to go a few days before I started orientation in December to get to know the place and to be use to the place. The cost was $450.00 a month for going 4 days/week (and still that if I send her less), once she hits 18mos it decreased to $400.00. So I thought that was pretty reasonable. We went over what Hannah likes/dislikes etc. I stressed that it is very important to me that she stays in cloth diapers and that she gets two naps a day. Some people don't want there kids at 12mos to have two naps but I do...cause Hannah can be an absolute bear if she does not get those two naps. The lady running the place said yes she was fine with all that...I wanted to make sure because the closest kids to her age were 6mos older than her and were not on the same schedule. Well, when it came time to start her orientation days the lady actually looking after the Hannah was not to keen on changing the current schedule so that Hannah could have her two naps. The other babies went outside to play at 1030 (Hannah's first nap) and then had their one nap at 1230 (at the time that Hannah would be up) till 14:30 (the time Hannah would go down for her second nap). I could see that this would be an issue. I also came to the realization that at this point in Hannah's development she needed more babies her age and to be in a place that was able to give her the two naps she needed. Therefore, we found our perfect match day home daycare! When Hannah is a bit older I might consider taking her back to the daycare so that she is in an environment that is like preschool rather then a babysitter atmosphere; but at this point this is what Hannah needs.

So that was my daycare issue...it got worked out (but there were a few very stressful days).

As for my side job (the cottontail kisses boutique) it has been almost put on hold because of the increase in work load with Hannah and the new job. I hope to start back at it in February, but more than likely it will get pushed till March (when hubby is home with us and we are settled in the new house).

Well, I think it is bedtime...I work an evening tomorrow so should get some rest.

Lots of Bunny-Hugs!
Cecette

p.s. As a side note I pay at the new home daycare $20 a day and it is not a set amount to bring her. So it can be 5 days or 1 day...which is nice for me seeing as I have shift work.

How Many Is Just Right...

My little girl turns 8 months here in August and it is amazing how she has grown. She now can almost crawl (a commando style where she pulls her self along with her arms), can get to her hands and feet (with her bum in the air) and is developing a personality of her own. It is fun to see how she reacts to new things and is just starting to get into everything. It is amazing how she knows what I don't want her to play with as she seems to be attracted to those things.

However, with her turning 8 months my thoughts do turn to having a second child. At this time we haven't really set a limit on the number of children we want. It originally started out as 3 kids (as both my husband and I have two siblings) but for me the number changes every day. I do know that I would like to provide a sibling for Hannah so I know the number we want is more than one. I do like how compact that two children are (not the children themselves but the amount of stuff that you have to bring) compared to 3, 4, 5 or more. However, I see moms in the store with 4 little children toddling after them, it looks so cute. I know that in reality more kids are stressful and can be a money strain but I do think that there are some positives to a larger family.

So how do you know when you have hit the perfect number of children????

After a lot of thinking and searching the net for help I have narrowed down to a few questions that might help us decide....

What is the maximum age you want to be when your last child is born?
The chances of complication rises with age, as well as a decrease in fertility. Also do you want to be in your mid to late thirties and still be getting up with a newborn?
I am 24 right now so I think I have a little more leeway with the age issue. However, I would like to still be less then 35 when I am having my last child. Now, I don't want to say that people shouldn't or can't have children over the age 35 (my husband will be 38 at that point). For me and my husband it would be ideal if our children were at least in there 20's before I turn 55. That way we would have time to save for our retirement plus have a few years were we don't have children in University to support.
So for me it works out to being about a 10 year span that I would want my children in.

What age gap is right for you?

If you want 5 years between each, you want to be finished having kids at the age of 35 and you are having your first at 23. Then you really can only have two children...unless you alter one of the parameters...such as different age gap or your maximum age (cause if you already have a child you can't really alter your current age :D)
This one I really still struggle with...so I will go into this in the next post (I have been doing lots of fact finding on what people are saying about the perfect age gap).

How many children can the place you live accommodate?
If you are not willing to move then your have to think about the living arrangement that you can accommodate. Would you have every child have their own room or would you want to double up in a room? I grew up in the same room as my sister and didn't get my own until she went to University (I was then in grade eleven). Eventually my hubby and I will be taking over the family farm where the homestead house has 4 bedrooms (other then the master room) plus there is room in the basement for at least two more bedrooms. So this really does not limit us.

Can you/are you willing to get a bigger vehicle if needed?

We have a VW GTI and a Chevy extended cab truck. We could squeeze three kids into the car but anymore and we would need a larger vehicle. My ideal situation would be to get a large SUV and keep my car for work travel. I don't really see this happening but I could always dream.

Can you afford childcare if both parents have to work?or is one willing to stay home?
I just signed my DD up for childcare to start in January of 2011. For an infant full-time is $500/month and a toddler is $450/month. Now I am not sure if there is a discount for the number of children you have in at once but it can get pretty expensive. I work as an RN and will be going back to work to help support the family when my husband starts to farm. My hubby would be able to parent on weekends, evenings, and nights but he has lots of farm work to accomplish. Plus, after the move there will be lots on his plate to figure out. So it is just easier for us if we can get our daughter into daycare.

I have also read online that with more kids eventually you do have someone who could look after the other kids. Now this also depends on your oldest child's temperament. Are they capable of looking after the other kids (and will the other kids co-operate with having a sibling babysit?)

I believe that the amount of children you have should be based on how many you can emotionally, physically and financially support.

The best piece of advice that I came across was on the website Family Education. At the end of the article about planning for more children it talks about being flexible. That the best idea is to have a "settle-in period after the birth of each child" and then you can "readdress the issue if more children". This is important because it "prevents you from finding yourself overloaded based on a random number you may have pulled out of your head long before your wedding night."

I think that is a pretty good idea.

or I could just take an online quiz and have it decide for me...lol...if you were wondering I did take several, and they usually said 3 or more....hmmmm didn't really help lol

Lots Of Bunny-Hugs

Cecette