Archive for September, 2009

What are you nails saying about your health?

Author: Sophia

Sep 25

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I visited Dr OZ website and found tons of good info there. One of them was about our nails and what they tell about our overall health..

Nails can signal whether you are suffering from a  heart diseasse, immune disorders, or other infections.
If your nails  color changes to  yellow or green this could signal  a problem with your respitory like brochitis, or from swelling of your hands (lymphedema)
Indentations that run across your nails  called Beau’s lines  this can happen when you are injured, have a severe illness like a heart attack.

Dr M. Roizen stated that ” A healthy, normal nail is smooth, without ridges or grooves (although these are often normal variants). Ideally, all the nails are uniform in color and consistency and free of spots or discoloration. ”

By the way, if you are trying to grow your hair, as i am here.. if you want to know whether your hair is really growing, don’t look further.. Look at your nails. Are they growing, long and healthy? If yes, so is your hair.

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Filed under: Mommy Tips

OMG Julian…Where’s Eli?

Author: Sophia

Sep 24

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Remember when i said today was not a good day?

Here’s the icing on the cake, if you want to call it that…Where’s Eli?
My husband had gone out to get his flu shot in the morning. Julian was playing on his computer, Eli was strapped on his rocker, while the music was playing on the background.., so i went to take a quick shower. Eli must have realized i was gone, he started crying …So i am trying to  rush, i hear Julian say  to  Eli it is going to be ok baby Mmmmmmwa, baby got a kiss. He keeps quiet, Julian is reading something on the computer loud , then Eli starts crying again.

A few seconds later, he is quiet, so i decided to take my time in the shower…I got out of the shower get dressed, still no crying baby. I got done, then decided to go check on him…OMG!!!!, my heart starts beating  so fast as if i just run a marathon. The rocker was empty. Julian is sitting on the computer. I am looking on the floor to see if Julian unstrapped him, and he fell down .  Still No baby anywhere. Looked in the kitchen, by the couch,, by the TV no baby.

At this point am almost yelling, Julian where’s Eli? He looks at me, like  he doesn’t know. I looked at the front door it was still locked. Then the balcony door…it was unlocked.  I am in a panic almost crying , I opened the door and there holding Eli was my husband. You got to be kidding me! I am still trying to catch my breath, i am almost in tears, and my husband is just  smiling,  saying  “i have the baby”. I go back inside, my legs are shaking..i sit on the couch and just trying to fight back  the tears. My husband follows me inside, trying to say something to me.. Eli looks at me and smiles, i just collect myself and try to smile back and  i stand up to go hold him.

I hugged him so tight, poor thing, he just layed on my chest chewing on his fingers.  I mean, you just don’t understand. You have to be a parent to understand  what this felt like. You know, i thought the worst. I didn’t hear my husband getting back home, and he was the last person i thought of having the baby.  Oh God, i pray for safety of our children, and hope if anyone’s child is missing tonight, they get to come back home soon.

Goodnight all!

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Filed under: Baby, Mommy Diaries

My Snoring Husband…Oops, :)

Author: Sophia

Sep 24

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Today is not quite a good day for me. I must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed.. or should i say am suffering from lack of enough sleep. Eli did fairly well, however it is his dad that kept me up. He has sleep apnea, plain English he snores.  It is a serious condition, and if you are reading this and you  have been told by your partner you snore too loud, talk to your Dr about it. I made him go see his Dr and  he spent the night in a sleep center, where they monitored/ video taped him. He was given one of those sleep machines.. can’t think of the proper name for it now.  Anyway, the machine comes with a mask that you put around your face,  and you put  either distilled water or purified water, one of the two in that machine, so you have plenty of oxygen to breath in.  It does work. The first night he slept with it, he woke up in the morning well rested. He said he didn’t feel as tired as before.

 

So , last night… i have no idea what in the world my husband did with  his tubings , somehow they got loose and of course even though the machine is plugged in, he is snoring so loud and i can’t sleep. I Kicked him on his foot, woke him up  asked him to adjust his machine, he does it then 5 minutes later he snores again, i hit him with a pillow, he wakes up saying Sophia i have the mask on.. am like but you are snoring , do something!

 

Well, finally i fell asleep , but of course  Eli wakes up. I feed him go back to sleep then my husband snores again, this time he had removed his mask and was holding it on his chest…Arrrrrrrgh, Shiiiiiil… Thank God i didn’t wake up Julian. So he says, ok honey i will go sleep on the couch. Good Idea.  I finally sleep maybe 15 min, then i hear that snore again all the way from the living room. I woke up, find my not so nice now husband holding his mask on his chest! So i asked, did you drink tonight? He said well only a couple of beers..That explains it!  When he drinks and this is for anyone that snores, when they drink alcohol.. the snoring gets worse that day!

 

He finally wears his mask, and i go back to sleep, 530AM Julian wakes up. His dad goes to sleep in his room, but i want to sleep too. Julian goes to his dad, and kisses him on the cheek and says to him ” Daddy, Daaaddy, wake up pleeeease..I want you to wake up with me…”  Wow, i think to myself.. i can’t remember the last time Julian woke me up that nice.  Well, i went back to bed.

 

My husband woke me up to go get the flu shot. We got the flus shots  at WalGreens because my Dr’s office was out. It cost us $24.99 per person. Apparently my insurance doesn’t cover the flu shot. So this means when the H1N1 becomes available too am going to have to pay for it…Nice!  I am taking Julian on Monday to get it at the Allergist, so they can monitor him for any reactions (has egg allergy).  We all have to get the shots to protect Eli. He will not be able to get any flu shot till he is 6 months and that is in December.

Wow.. I feel much better. Thanks for letting me vent!

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Filed under: Mommy Diaries

Holy Macro!! This woman gave birth to a 19.2 LB Baby.

Author: Sophia

Sep 24

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An Indonesian woman has given birth to an 8.7-kilogramme (19.2-pound) ...
AFP
Oh my goodness… I have a 3 month old who weighs 16lbs! Talk about having a baby who weighs 19.2 lbs, omg. If this happened to me, i think this would be the only child, i won’t do it again…uh ah       , not me. 

Wed Sep 23, 9:59 AM ET

An Indonesian woman has given birth to an 8.7-kilogramme (19.2-pound) baby boy, the heaviest newborn ever recorded in the country, a doctor said. The baby boy is pictured here next to a baby of average size at a hospital in Medan, North Sumatra.

(AFP/Dede)

 
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Filed under: News & Entertainment

Tame Your Mouth…Not that Again?

Author: Sophia

Sep 23

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Are you the type of person if it ain’t your way you just throw a hefty fit? Well you may want to consider taking it down a notch, seriously..  What if tables were turned? Won’t you want someone giving you a break? There are some people at your service you may seriously consider not going off at.

Your waiter or waitress
This person probably brought you a wrong order, or didn’t get your steak done at your liking. So she forgot your drink , again…Don’t make a scene in that restaurant, chances are the poor guy already feel like crap for messing your order. Simply let them know, and chances are they will gladly make the correction for you. Let me remind you… they will be handling your food.  I have worked with waiters that have told me what they used to do to peoples foods after they have been mean to them, the things they had done to their foods, make me want to just  throw up.. just thinking about it. So the next time you find yourself looking at a rare piece of steak while you clearly ordered  a well cooked steak. Smile at the waiter and  politely ask that the cook re-do it, they get it.

Your nurse
I know the labor pains will make you call anyone sitting across from you any name in the book, and yeah you could probably break someones arm too while on it..That can be excusable. Nurses take in  a lot, so when you do get around to feeling better, a little courtesy please. Be nice to your nurses.  I don’t need to remind you that you spend a lot of time with nurses compared to your Doc. They won’t hurt you, but of course they are human too.

The customer service Rep
So you got the wrong charge on your bill…calm down, the person on the phone knows that as well. The call will probably go much faster if you stop the name calling and all that. If you stay to the point they will eventually credit your bill, or adjust it. If the Rep can’t do it, he or she may  refer you to the right person that can.  Remember, if you really play nice, that rep may catch something else that you missed and may kindly make another adjustment. Of course, if you do chose to be all nasty about it, he may find that you are still getting a promotional discount that ended months ago and may just disable it and of course your bill gets bigger than before you called.

I could go on and on, but let’s try to put ourselves in other people’s shoes before we act out!

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Filed under: Family

Working full-time and exclusively breastfeeding? Here are 9 ways to make this a success!

Author: Sophia

Sep 23

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If you are a new mom, getting ready to go back to work and are worried sick how you can still keep up with nursing while working.  I did this  with my 3 year old, and now doing same with my 3 month old. This is what helped me out…

1. First get yourself a good electric , double breast pump this will make pumping much easier. I use a medela pump, they are quite expensive ($300), but worth every penny.  If you really look at it, fomula is not that cheap either.

2. Follow a schedule. If you pump around the same time daily your body gets used to this and you will end up needing to be away for about 15-20min at most.  I work 8 hours, initially i used to pump 3 times, but now i only need to pump 2x. I get 2 breaks and a lunch. So i use that time to go pump…so your boss won’t have any complains there.

3. Relax. When you  have a lot in your mind, you  are not giving your body a chance to let the milk flow out. So let all the stress go out the window while you pump away.

4. Think of your baby. This works for me all the time. I think of him smiling and laughing while i tickle his belly, the next thing i know is milk slowly coming out.

5. Don’t rush. If you still feel full, then pump till nothing comes out anymore. Remember the last milk that comes out …the hind milk…it is full of fatty acids. This is what fills the baby, and nourishes them as well. ( If you want to know if your baby is getting too much fore milk –the clear milk, almost like water that comes out when you start pumping or nursing, esp when your breasts feel full.. the baby’s poop will appear green )

6. Drink water. I have my 32oz  water mug from the hospital sitting at my desk at work, filled with water, then i have no excuse not to drink water throughout the day. You are pretty much hydrating your body, what better way to do it than with water.  No added calories, good for your digestive system, and many more.

7. Eat something. I eat small meals throughout the day, so am not starving. I snack on fruits or raw veggies.  When you have a full tummy you are  more likely  to pump milk.

8. If you are struggling with your milk supply, talk to your Dr about what to take to increase your supply. Oatmeal has always worked for me. I buy the quaker oatmeal  from sam’s club- has 55 packets, i always have some at work, just in case i need some, plus oatmeal is very filling.

9. Get your breastfeeding supplies. Have your bottles, storage bags, lanolin ointment for your nipples, nursing pads, and wear a good nursing bra or nursing tank ( i get mine from Target) and you should be ready to pump smoothly at work. Plus get the medela cleaning wipes..They will save you some time.

And .. just in case  you have chosen not to breastfeed your child, that doesn’t make you a bad mother… We are all different, as long as our babies are healthy and cared for, that is all that matters!

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Filed under: Breastfeeding | Tagged as:

Swine Flu…From the Dr himself..I went to Afghanistan and all I got was H1N1

Author: Sophia

Sep 23

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September 23, 2009
I went to Afghanistan and all I got was H1N1
Posted: 09:51 AM ET

By Dr. Sanjay Gupta
CNN Chief Medical Correspondent

It started as a cough. It wasn’t the kind of cough where something is temporarily stuck in your throat. It wasn’t the kind of cough where simply clearing your throat would’ve been adequate. This was the kind of cough that hurts when you do it. A stinging pain that makes you wince and guard and hope that you don’t have to cough again any time soon. I thought I might have a fever, but of course, I was in the middle of covering a war in Afghanistan, and the conditions were… well, hot. So, maybe it was that. Problem was, the next day I wasn’t feeling any better – in fact, I was worse. I woke up in my dusty desert tent and tried to step out of my sleeping bag. Two steps later, I almost hit the deck. Incoming. Except this wasn’t due to any sirens going off, this was due to my own body simply being unable to hold myself up. I was lightheaded and freezing cold – even though it was over 100 degrees outside at that early hour of the morning.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who contracted H1N1 in Afghanistan, receives treatment.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who contracted H1N1 in Afghanistan, receives treatment.

I was nauseated and my entire body hurt. I tried to explain away my symptoms with lots of different excuses. You don’t sleep much while covering a war. My bulletproof jacket didn’t fit perfectly and was very heavy. There was a lot of dust and dirt, and maybe I had what the Marines referred to as the Kandahar Krud. It turned out to be none of those things.

I remember looking over at my camera man, Scottie McWhinnie. He looked absolutely awful. He was wearing a scarf on his head, and it was completely drenched in sweat. He was coughing so loudly and frequently that I was really starting to worry about him – and about myself. We each had it, whatever “it” was. I made a command decision. As a physician reporter in a war zone, I was going to get us medical care. That prompted our visit to a battlefield hospital, not as reporters this time, but as patients.

It is worth pointing out the irony of a medical reporter getting influenza type A, which was then ultimately confirmed as H1N1. (The term swine flu is a misnomer, as this strain is made up of several different components, including swine, but also avian parts.) It really didn’t matter if I got tested, as my doctor told me. It was the only flu strain circulating and I had it, and so did Scottie. We both had high fevers, the lack of appetite, terrible sinus congestion, body aches, and yes – that hacking, come out of the blue.

I am not someone who gets sick, really ever. And this was the sickest I have ever been. I would’ve much preferred my own bed with all the comforts of home – including a wife who would’ve taken great pity on me and allowed me lots of rest and relaxation. Still, I am here to blog about it, after taking the requisite few days to stay at home and not spread my gift from Afghanistan to all my colleagues at work. In case you are curious, there wasn’t much the doctors could really do for me. Some Tylenol and a sinus decongestant (the same my wife would’ve given me). We also got IV fluids, given our inability to keep anything down. Within a couple days, I felt a lot better, and a few days after that – I was back to normal. It was a lot like… the flu – with a different name. A lot of people will get the exact symptoms I described above, and for most people, it will simply mean a few miserable days, hopefully spent in your home – and not in a war zone.

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Filed under: Allergies and Asthma

OMG.. This is sick! Mackenzie Phillips: I Slept with My Own Father

Author: Sophia

Sep 22

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I found this story on People.com .. This is sickening! How can a father have sex with her own daughter… How can a daughter consent to having sex with her own father ? This is wrong in every level.  Hell! I grew up in Africa, and that is not acceptable, so talk about going to Fiji , so they can be together? Oh Please. This is abuse, betrayal, and yeah i am glad you all got help. You both needed it!
September 22, 2009 07:40 PM EDT

Mackenzie Phillips Photo by: Dane Andrew / ZUMA
Mackenzie Phillips: I Slept with My Own Father | Mackenzie Phillips

“Don’t hate my father,” Mackenzie Phillips tells PEOPLE.

But in a tell-all book out Wednesday, the former childhood actress reveals that her dad, musician John Phillips of the ’60s band the Mamas and the Papas, engaged with her in a long-term incestuous relationship.

Phillips, 49, who has survived drug addiction, arrests and divorce, writes in the book High on Arrival that she was already a star playing a boy-crazy teen on the TV sitcom One Day at a Time when her father had sex with her on the night before she was to marry Jeff Sessler, a member of the Rolling Stones entourage, in 1979.

“On the eve of my wedding, my father showed up, determined to stop it,” writes Phillips, who was 19 and a heavy drug user at the time. “I had tons of pills, and Dad had tons of everything too. Eventually I passed out on Dad’s bed.”

Blackout

“My father was not a man with boundaries. He was full of love, and he was sick with drugs. I woke up that night from a blackout to find myself having sex with my own father.

“Had this happened before? I didn’t know. All I can say is it was the first time I was aware of it. For a moment I was in my body, in that horrible truth, and then I slid back into a blackout.”

Phillips’ life began to spiral out of control. In 1980, she was fired from One Day at a Time because of her constant drug use. That same year, she went to rehab – with her father. She even toured with him in a band called the New Mamas and the Papas. Her sexual relationship with him had become consensual.

Delusional

“I was a fragment of a person, and my secret isolated me,” she writes.

“One night Dad said, ‘We could just run away to a country where no one would look down on us. There are countries where this is an accepted practice. Maybe Fiji.’

“He was completely delusional. No, I thought, we’re going to hell for this.” 

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Filed under: News & Entertainment

A Baby Changes Everything…

Author: Sophia

Sep 22

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Literally, changes everything. Before  we had our boys, we lived for the day. My husband and i loved to go out and have a good time. He spoiled me rotten, Then.. I guess he would probably say the same thing here, i spoiled him rotten as well. Everyday was a date night, every weekend was dinner and a movie, or drive around town.  We would go shopping together,  even though he hated the long hours at the mall, but he would do it just to be with me….or should i say , to make me happy :)

Now we do live for our boys. We try to make decisions that will work best for them, try to find ways to make sure that they are taken care of, now and in the future. Those shopping sprees, mmh i look at it, like everything i ever wanted i got. It is all all bout the basic needs now and meeting our goals daily.

Well…I know what most of you reading this post are saying… what about  quality time , what the heck.. yeah am talking about sex…mmmh, you know what i mean. Exactly, what sex?

When Julian was born QT – quality time  was pushed to the side,  I think Julian alone wanted to remain  the only child.Most new Parents can swear to this, everytime you are about to get busy, that baby wakes up or cries so loud. I bet most men would love to ignore the babies, but not the mothers here. So yes, babies DO change everything. Then you find yourself tired  most of the time from just taking care of the baby all day, and the last thing on your mind is sex. Well it may be there, but given a choice, i chose sleep. 

So , then you  find yourself  looking at another big baby…yes, men can turn out to be big babies sometime.  Then you get to remind yourself you are both in it together and still have to make time for each other.  We have this rule, every week we make time for each other no matter what. We call it our date night. We would have dinner and a movie in at least  every Saturday or Friday night.  Sunday is usually our family time. We would either take the kids to the park, or if we stay in, we would make it up during the week. Still we would have floor time with the boys.

Sometimes i have to remind myself am still a wife, lol…I think of myself more as a mom…I mean, only another mother can understand what i mean. Honestly, you find yourself thinking about your children all day, and rarily thinking about your husband, when you do it is  when you want him to help you  with something, or want to share a joke about something the children did, or other.  So, when i do get home from work after a long day away,  and find  the children are in bed…we do sit and just chat and just catch up on things. 

What changes as well is Your relationships with your friends. Your baby could bring you and your friends closer or even further apart.  I am talking about your single friends or those without kids yet.  You can get so caught up with everything baby, that you lose touch with some of your friends or you just find that your  interests have shifted. On the other hand, you make  new friends mostly other moms in your support circle.

So you think you were such a heavy sleeper, you are so scared you will not hear your baby cry at night? Think again, that is not possible. I think it is part of how we were created. I used to sleep like a log…my family will testify to this. My husband used to come home find me sleeping, he would go take a bath, or sit on the table eat dinner, while i slept on the couch and will not hear a thing. He would have to wake me up, so i could go sleep in the bed. One time in boarding school, Moi Girls Isinya, in Kenya… There was a fire alarm in our dorm. Everyone woke up and went  outside, i slept through it all.. I woke up when they came back an hour later.. Now, all that baby has to do is just make a sound and am up. So yes, a baby does change you.

There is so much appreciation for everything really… I find that there is so much to life now.

Have a goodnight!

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Filed under: Baby

2 Yr old boy washed away by flood, dies in Georgia…

Author: Sophia

Sep 22

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OMG.. The Georgia  rains were pretty serious. I read this story on CNN about the  father  who lost his 2 year old boy to flood.

“”In Carroll County, Georgia, a 2-year-old boy died after fierce floodwaters ripped him from his father’s arms while the father struggled to hold on to bushes, officials said.”

Oh my goodness… I am crying for this family. Can you imagine what the father has to be going through right now…Imagine having to watch your baby get swept away right in front of you and there is nothing you can do to save them….I mean my heart breaks out for this family… the mother and just the entire family, they will have to live and deal with this tragedy for the rest of their lives.  I hope they find strength in each other, and my prayers are with all the victims.

We have family in Atlanta, Thank God they are safe at the moment.  The  current death toll has now  risen to 8.  

So if you have loved ones in the state of Georgia,  please check up on them to make sure they are ok.  Stay safe.

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Filed under: Baby, News & Entertainment
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