27 weeks: My baby is the size of a what?

a Pot Roast. Yes, moving away from the conventional fruit or veggie reference, Fit Pregancy has declared Lily is now a tiny 2Lb Zero oz. baby pot Roast. You'll all be please to know I passed my glucose test, the nurse said my level was 113 whatever that means. But most exciting this week is the pending weekend where we're all getting together to celebrate my baby shower!!! The guys are going to be busy replacing the roof on mom and dad's house, it's a big weekend for everyone.

The Baby Cage and 29 other dumb inventions

Hahaha, time released photos of the 30 dumbest inventions. The baby related ones are especially hilarious.

picture from time.com

Here we have The Baby Cage for the urban couple looking to give their baby a little sunlight and fresh air, even in the confines of a highrise. I guess people really did worry less about safety back then!! Makes what Michael Jackson did with his son "Blanket" seem slightly less crazy.

~or better yet the fake breast with a heart beat used to soothe babies, of course made in Japan
~or how about the baby holder for all those times you would have missed out on ice skating just because of your life choice to have a baby?
~and nonbaby related, but cat related, the Mouse frightener!!! oooo so scary.

25 weeks

Just past the 6month mark, time is starting to fly by. Lily is the size of a Rutabaga. Cute huh? thebump.com compares her to an Eggplant, slightly cuter I guess!


I had a really exciting week in baby land for lots of reasons and got my Shower invites in the mail, they are so cute I squeeled! I'm still loving prenatal yoga, and took my last Hypnobirthing class. I'm sad it's over because it was so relaxing, hopefully I can retain all I learned for the big day.


Keep your fingers crossed for me as I take my glucose test Monday morning. Sugary Glucose Drink here I come!

25 week babycenter update link
25 week thebump update link

23 week update

Baby Lily is growing right along, the email updates say she's the size of a large mango (about 1 lb), she can hear music and feel motion so I guess that means it's time go dancing with her. I've finally got my registries up, althought I'm sure they need tweeking. I'm growing anxious for her crib to come in and we registered for a Glider at Great Beginnings, but think that we should shop around for a better deal on one first. Lily likes to kick me alot in the evenings, Dave got to feel her kicking so Laurie, be prepared since you're already afraid of my stomach alone, now it will be moving as well.

We did a new thing at prenatal yoga last night to help you sleep better, I made it to 5:15am without waking up which is a big victory over most nights when I wake up between 2:30-3:30am. The dr. gave me the icky orange drink that I'll have to drink before my next appt so they can monitor my glucose levels, hopefully it won't be as bad as everyone says. Our third birthing class is this saturday, we've really been enjoying the class so far, but there's only one more class after this one, hopefully I don't forget everything we learned.

What you put on your skin

http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/ Helps you determine the safety of products you use everyday like Toothpaste, Shampoo, Sunscreen, Makeup, etc.

Each item is giving a hazard level which is determined and classified by Ingredients in the product that are linked to: Cancer, Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Allergies/immunotoxicity, Use restrictions, and Other concerns. This really helps you rank related products when determining which you prefer. I'm doing an overall average ranking score of the every day products I use, and overtime trying to improve that score. I encourage you to do the same to see where you rank.

So right now I'm using

• Biolage by Matrix Color Care Hair Conditioner *6


• Biolage by Matrix Color Care Shampoo *7


• philosophy 3-in-1 ultra rich shampoo, shower gel *5


• Pantene Pro-V Curl Defining Scrunching Mousse *7


• Secret Invisible Solid Anti-Perspirant Deodorant Spring Breeze *4


• Colgate Total Plus Whitening Toothpaste *5


• Clinique dramatically different moisturizing lotion *4


• Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Massage Lotion for Stretch Marks *6


• OPI Nail Lacquer nail polish *4


• Burt's Bees Beeswax Lip Balm (Tube) *2


• Neutrogena Oil-Free Moisture, SPF *7

So that totals 57 if you add all the hazard levels together and divide by the number of products, in this case 11 equals and average of a little over 5. While 5 may seem like midway between 0-10, it still carries a good deal of risk and doesn't even include all the products that come in contact with my skin like hand soaps, fabric detergent biproducts, etc. I'm also surprised that the cocoa butter for stretch marks comes in at a 6. Considering it goes right on my growing stomach with my baby inside, I'm feeling I should use it sparringly.

Other products we have in the house or have used in the past

Wet 'N Wild Jumbo Juicy Flavored Lip Balm, Strawberry *9

Coppertone Sport Breathable Sunscreen, Faces, SPF 50 *5

Purell Purifying Essentials Instant Hand Sanitizer, Crisp Apple hand sanitizer *6

Hawaiian Tropic Dark Tanning Lotion, SPF 4 *9

Rembrandt Plus Peroxide Toothpaste, Wintergreen Flavor toothpaste *7

Cauliflower Part 2

Roasting Veggies always gives such a depth of flavor that you can't get from steaming or a microwave pouch. The roasted asparagus and roasted broccoli I've made was such a big hit, I decided to try the simple roasted cauliflower recipe mentioned on ThatWife from allrecipies.com. It's a 5 ingredient recipe, even easier than the broccoli one we love, and cooks alongside my roast chicken during the last half hour as a faster alternative to mashed potatoes or mashed cauliflower. I loved it, Dave loved it, and it's becoming another vegetable staple in the house.

Roasted Balsamic Cauliflower
from allrecipies.com

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 head cauliflower, chopped into bite size pieces

Directions
1.Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil
2.Stir the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and garlic together in a bowl. Add the cauliflower and toss to coat; spread the mixture onto the lined baking sheet.
3.Stirring occasionally, bake in the preheated oven until tender, about 20 minutes.

Invest in your health

Dave and I recently joined a CSA (community supported agriculture) that collects local organic produce and distributes it once a week between members. Their blog posted the infamous Michael Pollan's post that provides an interesting point that many people wonder, why is healthier food more expensive than junk food:
Why do carrots cost more than twinkies in the store, but are cheaper to manufacture?

Dave and I still maintain that even though you're poor, you can eat cheaply and healthily (not sure if that's a real word) by buying chicken, broccoli and ww. rice for much less than fast food, or processed foods, however I do see that buying organic, hormone free foods is more of an investment than the alternative. One of Michael's other videos touched on why it's worth it to spend more on your food, and how American's simply choose to budget less of their incomes towards food:
Pay more $ for better health, lower healthcare costs