Mama in the City

Yesterday I hauled Ben and his car seat into the Zip car and we hit the road from downtown to the north part of our city for a lunch date. There is nothing like a nice summer day lunching with a girlfriend! Our date was to meet up with a friend and her baby girl B at Munch Family Restaurant (formerly called Babyeats). The thing that got me excited about this restaurant was that they offered a baby food menu and had a play area for tots. Reason enough to make the trip from downtown. I felt good knowing I could bring my loud boisterous baby boy and we wouldn't get the stare down from fellow dining patrons if he decided to sing!

The scene was mum's lunching with their tots or mum's with babies and young children who were meeting up with a friend. The cool thing is that everyone seemed to be having a stress free time. I was really looking forward to the baby food menu, especially because you are asked to not bring in outside food for your baby. I was curious what they would have to offer and had high expectations. You might have read about what Ben likes to eat here.

I was disappointed that the baby food options were applesauce or carrots but we ended up going with carrots. The actual baby food was so so and a very small portion for a baby. We also ordered yogurt and the portion was still really tiny too. I was hoping for some thick creamy full fat yogurt but what we got was a little watery and hard to spoon into a baby's mouth because of the consistency.

I liked that Munch served wine and had a full menu to choose from. My friend and I both ordered the same thing: a free run chicken, double-smoked bacon and avocado with chipotle aioli served open face on a nice toasted foccacia with a side of salad. Sounds delicious doesn't it? This is how it goes: pretty tasty, nice choice of bread, excellent crispiness of the bacon, chicken a bit dry, salad just okay. Nothing fantastic to rave about: it was all just okay.

However, the absolute best part of our experience was the great play area for children! It made the experience and is probably what would bring me back if this city mama decided to make the trek again. There was a good choice of age appropriate toys for babes up through toddlerhood and older. Bring up the quantity and quality of food and I would be giving it more top marks. Next on the list of baby friendly eateries to try is Little Nest in Vancouver.

Last week Product Wednesday was about hair products and I am going to go with the hair trend this week too! My product is the Mason Pearson hairbrush. First off I need to tell you that this is no ordinary hair brush and you won't find it at the local drugstore around the corner. It is considered a sort of 'speciality' hair brush and it is a true investment. This brush is something you can literally have for decades. I was given a Mason Pearson brush on a past birthday from my husband and I have loved it from day one. Something about the boar and nylon bristles seriously leaves your hair static free and shiny as ever.

The Mason Pearson website says that the, 'hairbrush cleans the hair, stimulates the scalp increasing the blood flow to the roots. A natural conditioning oil -sebum- comes from a gland at the base of every hair; brushing spreads it along the length of the hair giving it strength, suppleness and producing a healthy sheen'. I totally agree with that! I can't talk enough about how it gives your hair a glossy shiny.


Now this is an old school product and has been around since the 1920's. Maybe your grandmother had one? You can buy it on line at www.drugstore.com, www.folica.com and a few top hair salons will also carry it. Now, I know you might be thinking something along the lines of, 'holy crap that is an expensive hairbrush!' It is but it will outlast and outshine the 12 hairbrushes you buy over time and in the meantime you will have glorious silky hair.

There is a family member I do not talk about. She is quite hairy and is known to have a bad odor and her breath can be just terrible. Her name is Maggie and she is about 9 years old and we adopted her from the local SPCA about 1.5 years ago. We aren't totally sure how old she is but she is an older gal who was found wandering along the streets of a neighbouring suburb all by her lonesome. She had no collar on or chip in her ear and so after hanging around the SPCA she came home with us. We think she is a miniature Australian Shepard but don't have her history.



When I was pregnant Maggie diligently stayed by my side. If I was in the bath she was right there in the bathroom with me and when I would go have a nap she would come and lay down at the side of the bed. This is the most interest she ever paid me. As it got closer to having my son our dog Maggie would follow me around the house. She knew something was happening.

Everyone would ask how the dog was with the baby and we always would say, 'she couldn't care less'. She just didn't seem interested in the bundle of joy we brought home even with the persistent loud crying. She looked more annoyed and stopped following me around and instead she would take off and find a quiet place in our apartment away from all of us. When Ben started to become mobile and dropped food from his highchair it seemed that Maggie became more interested. Now I am finding myself saying, 'stop french kissing the dog'. Ewww and gross. Ben loves his dog Maggie and Maggie is starting to become tolerable of Ben. Now Maggie the dog is a city girl. Riding the elevator up and down and checking out sights and sounds.

One thing that unites women across generations and through time is motherhood. You can be a mother in a different country and when another mother is hurting the Internet is there to support each other. This blog business has opened me up to a few special stories that have really touched me more than I thought. So, gone are the days of motherhood support only being your neighbourhood or maybe a group that you belong to. Now, mothers can be in different situations, like struggling with day to day life and sleepless nights or struggling with the health of your babe, and motherhood support across the world is there. Of course we are all in different situations and probably have different beliefs but the thread of motherhood is powerful and all encompassing. When things are grim and time stands still we look past our frivolous differences and support one another because we love our babies.

My son is healthy but I can still feel the hurt for a mother with a baby who is struggling to live. The love for my own baby is so strong and stretches so far that you know that a fragile balance exists and that in a second things can go from pure happiness to a deep dark place that feels bottomless. The health and well being of our babies and family is really the utmost important part of life and is the meaning behind absolutely everything and anything. Who cares about fancy lip glosses or the perfect latte when health and family are off balance.

There is a mama and I do not know her personally. I have never met her or even exchanged a personal email with her. However, I know about her family and watch her babies grow because she has opened up to the blogosphere and shares her motherhood experiences with a tremendous amount of readers. Her baby was born with a heart defect and months later he is now having his hardest struggle as his heart beats at over 225 beats each minute. Her baby is close in age to Ben and once in awhile when I look at her blog pictures I see hints of my own baby in hers.

I don't know them but the world wide web has brought Minnesota and British Columbia a bit closer. I've never snuggled that baby but he is in my thoughts today. Today I hold my own baby a smidgen tighter and feel his heaviness in my arms. My arms and back might ache but I don't care because he is right there pulling at my hair and smiling up at me. I know the balance of happiness is fragile and I am going to be right here living in the moment. Go see who I am talking about here www.mycharmingkids.net.

I have followed www.whoorl.com for about 2+ years now and have always enjoyed her posts, style and her love of lip gloss. She did a post recently on 'Favorites' and I am going to do the same. Here are some of my favorite things that make me smile.


This is my favorite picture of me and my son. Taken by my favorite photographer who just so happens to live with me.


ben's baby feet
a bright fragrant bouquet of garden flowers
blueberry pancakes for any meal of the day
staying the night in a fancy hotel with my honey
freshly pedicured feet
belly laughs from my baby
clean and tidy bedroom with fresh bed sheets
receiving cards and notes in the mail
eating BBQ hamburgers on my parents patio
bubble baths with a multitude of bath products


I will go with Whoorl tradition and ask you: if you had to pick ONE favorite thing right this very minute what would it be?

One thing I have always tried to maintain with effort and energy is my friendships. I would like to think that I have put priority into these relationships and have definitely tried my best to keep connections going over time. I know that I have an easier time when a girlfriend lives within the same city but that is not always the case. I love to keep friendships going by sending cards and notes and remembering birthdays and occasions, all because I love my friends.

Since becoming a mother I have noticed a decline in my availability to meet up with girlfriends for late night dinner and drinks or casual coffee meet ups arranged at the last minute. Once in awhile life gets busy and I forget something but I will eventually remember because my girlfriends are important to me. I have noticed since Ben was born that I have slipped up on a birthday here and there and have failed to return phone calls on time and I expected this and sort of think that it is a normal reaction to life changing and getting bigger. It seems that my friendships with my ladies have changed a bit or quite a lot actually. Now there is the careful act of making time for girlfriends and balancing your baby and trying to fit it all in.

I have noticed that some friendships have grooved closer together since motherhood arrived and some are harder to keep up. I am sure this is totally natural and just one of those transitions in life. Maybe I can juggle it all and maybe I can't? If you know me personally you know that I am a sentimental fool and pine for memories from the past. Somehow, as time goes by, I tend to make them glorious and I hold on to them tightly.

Those friendships that I put effort into in the past are still there and I love them so dearly. Girlfriends are a really great part of life and I think mine are pretty awesome. It might not be the exact way that it was before but maybe in someway it is better? On that note it is Wine Friday and so I make a toast to girlfriends!

I'm not much of a bottled water drinker but this is so cool. Love it!

Lately I have been having a bit of a hair crisis and so I have been digging through my chest of hair products for a little hope. Pregnancy definitely did a number on my hair and I find that it is just different now. It was gorgeous and lush during pregnancy and provoked comments from friends about the thickness and shine. I loved it! Then a few months into my post partum life my hair started dropping out at an alarming rate and the pony tail became my go to look. Along with my ever receding hair line! Ack!

Now the hair has stopped falling out and is regrowing and so I am trying to put a bit more effort into taking care of my mama mane. Less slicked back pony tail and more luscious locks when I can. One product that helps make my hair shine and feel absolutely smooth and silky is the glossing cream by Frederic Fekkai. You only need the smallest pea size amount of product to run through your damp hair and the shine is huge! I find that the travel size tube lasts such a long time. The cool perk is that this glossing cream also protects your hair from UVA and UVB rays which can fade your 'enhanced' color. It leaves my hair feeling so rich and smooth.


Is there a product that you absolutely love and would love to brag about? Leave me a comment about it and give me the scoop!

At this time last summer I was big, pregnant, swollen and hot. I was in my last month of work and was dreaming about being on maternity leave. The 12 hour shifts were getting to me and I couldn't move around very fast during a birth. I dreamed about the upcoming year off and it seemed endless and potentially amazing.


I pretty much envisioned my new mother self traveling with our new amazing baby all over the place. Off to Florida to see my husbands family and maybe to France to just live and experience! I had great aspirations of studying and doing some course work for my nursing career. I'm not sure what happened but I have not done either of these things and I have a work schedule looming around the corner.



I'm not totally shocked and don't feel too badly about not getting these things done. I am just surprised that the year off is on its way to being over and I am feeling a little stumped. Where did it go? There was a full year off ahead of me and now there is about 6 weeks. There are things I didn't get done but I know that there is so much more that I did get do. This last year has been exhausting but also so amazing.

Since Ben was so screechy as a little baby we never did do any big plane travel and because he needed lots of love and attention the idea of studying was also sort of nixed. Of course over the months I often thought about my 'to do' list often but more important stuff kept popping up. The year is almost over and I already have started reflecting back on what I actually did get done.

So, what did I get done besides being a mama to a busy boy? Well, I was in two wedding parties as a bridesmaid all before Ben was 9 weeks old. At one of the weddings, as I stood up at the front, my baby screamed loudly throughout the vows (sorry Krista and Lance!). I took him on a float plane and traveled from Vancouver to Victoria alone with him first at 9 weeks and again a few months later. We walked the whole city together. Back and forth, back and forth. Something I never did before I had a baby and a stroller and days 'off'. I pushed myself out of my comfort zone at baby music class and sung my heart out and wiggled and moved just to make my boy happy. I had many wonderful baby dates with fellow mama friends and friends alike! So wonderful and sweet.

I guess I over planned my year off and didn't really account for all the real life factors to come into play. Like the fact that being a new mum is all consuming. No matter how I slice it I have loved my year off on maternity leave and it sort of feels like a gigantic gift. I'm curious how things will all work out but I don't want to over think it. I guess they will just work out how ever they do.

As a maternity RN I get to meet a lot of interesting people who are experiencing something big in their lives. It is pretty cool forming temporary intense relationships with patients. I have found that some expecting parents bring a lot of stuff to the hospital. After your baby is born are going to be moments when you will want your partner to go home for a bit and this is the perfect time for them to bring back more things for you and for the baby.

Let's start with the basics! You just need a small bag like a tote or a carry on suitcase. You won't be needing a full size gigantic suitcase or huge hockey duffle bag. I would often give a little smile when I'd see the amount of luggage some expecting parents brought with them. It looked like they might be flying away on a fun two week get away. Unfortunately space is usually tight in the hospital room and we don't have any luggage carts to help you move your belongings. Let's move on with what to pack for labor in a hospital.

A sarong is a great option to tie around you as you move around in your labor. If it gets wet it will dry quickly and it can also be tied over your body, around your waist or even just to cover you if you feel exposed in the shower or bath. I didn't use a sarong but before I went off on maternity leave I did a labor with a girl in a beautiful pink sarong and it worked perfectly! Also pack a tank top that is loose so you can quickly pull it up or off when needed.

Next pack a bath towel from home that you wouldn't be too upset if you happened to lose it. Hospitals will usually supply you with towels but I brought my own. It was big and soft and I am glad that I packed it. It felt familiar and was so much better than the small stingy towels that hospitals provide. Don't forget to bring something you can to tie your hair up with and get it off your face. A stretchy headband and some hair elastics will do the trick. Some small travel sized shampoo and soaps for a nice shower after the baby is born is a nice treat. I found something nice about having some fruity smelling products to use after Ben was born. Less hospital and more normal.

Stash away a lip gloss or chapstick and some little mints. All that breathing makes your mouth so dry and so does puffing away on the nitrous oxide! If you can remember to put in a tooth brush and some tooth paste that's a bonus. Have a few snacks for you and your partner. Think granola bars, jelly beans, prepackaged apple sauce, banana, Gatorade.

There are some extra comforts that will may help you feel cozy. Bring some flip flops that you can wear in the shower as you labor and also around your room and the hallways. Also, bring a pillow from home for both of you because hospital pillows are terrible. Take along a blanket that rolls up small to use initially post partum or for your honey to use. Don't bring the cashmere throw but do bring a little something.

Don't forget to make a list of important phone numbers, a calling card or cell phone and some extra coins. If you want to be super cool and make all your nurses happy pre buy a box of chocolates (not Pot of Gold, please) or a Starbucks gift card. We will treat you the same but we might like you a little bit more.

I think my favorite thing to do on a weekend is just hanging with my little family and doing something around town. This weekend we walked from one end of the city to the other, it really is quite a small city, and headed to the beach. I know that once I head back to work these carefree moments will be harder to get so I am going to try and make the most out of them while I still can. Ben loved dipping his feet in the water as the waves splashed his little baby feet. I want to remember how good it felt to experience. Fresh, exciting and pure happiness as a mother.

Nothing irritates me more than reading newspaper articles that talk about a mother being shamed for breastfeeding in public. North America is so backwards about nursing babies in public and it makes me cringe. I found this article in our local Vancouver newspaper and I had to roll my eyes. Seriously! Are we really having this problem still because I can't believe it. I guess that I have been fortunate that all of the hundreds of times I have breastfed in public no one has ever glared at me. The newspaper article was fine but it was the comments that really made me fired up! I absolutely despise people comparing breasteeding in public to them taking a crap in public or having oral sex in public and on and on. It is 100% legal to breastfeed in public. 100%. I can't say the same thing about oral sex in public though.

Today I breastfed Ben on the beach in public and I saw more bouncing boobs in bikini tops than people saw of my own boobs. I saw more rotund male boobs with big areolas parading around than anyone saw of my own areolas. North America, get with the times! Breastfeeding in public should be the norm and really not create this kind of controversy.

Click HERE to read the original article.

Click HERE to see some massive bikini boobs that people are probably more okay with seeing in public.

The comment section is working but the counter is not working on the front page! So, post your comments! I am reading each one :)

I decided to make the executive decision to just redraw for the baby blanket today. Unofficial rules by Mama in the City. So, a second draw was done and the lucky recipient of our Purl Mama & Baby Miso Miso baby blanket is Amanda Brown of www.kickyboots.com Congratulations fellow mama!


To make things even sweeter for ALL of you readers, Purl Mama & Baby is giving a 15% discount of all orders for the rest of July. Just click here enter mamainthecity at checkout and you are golden! Happy shopping!

Time to talk about another product I love! This isn't a new product but it is one that I have been using for the past few years and really love. Aveda Lip Glaze is always in my purse or in my make up bag and I have tossed it in the stroller too. When I was working I would always have one in my scrub pocket because I liked to look glamorous for all those pictures new parents like to take. I have been known to apply it when the baby was crowning so I could be ready for the photo opportunity. Just kidding..... or am I?



My favorite colours are: Wineberry, Raspberry Tea and Pepino. Actually, since it goes on quite sheer and not overpowering most of Aveda's colors I can dig . It is also perfect to put on top of your lipstick for a little added vavoom! The lip glaze goes on smooth and not sticky and applies a perfect amount of colour and gloss. Since it is a wand application it won't squish out in your bag. I also like that Aveda uses recycled goods to make the packaging of this product.

Have you tried this product yet?

Since the stroller was a bit difficult to bring on the water taxi, I have tried out a Granville Island Public Market tote..and Ben fits. He seems to like it? What do you think?

Some days seem to go by so quickly and morning meets night and we start all over again. Other days drag on and on and nothing gets accomplished but getting by. Sometimes I am dressed and ready to go early in the morning and sometimes I am seriously in my pajamas at noon. We had a good day today. This was our day:

6:20 AM- wake up and face the day! Ben is up and ready to go! weeee!

8:00 AM- Breakfast for baby some delicious blueberry and apple mash with oatmeal. A Ben favorite. Followed by a generous smattering of Cheerios to buy me a few extra minutes of coffee sipping.

8:00-9:30 AM- Play time! I half watch The View and drink more coffee and keep Ben busy.

9:30-10:45- Ben nap and mama gets to have a shower and do a bit of tidying up and boring house stuff.

11:30 AM- out the door and headed along the seawall to get on the water taxi. Off to Granville Island for a Mom and Tot meetup and picnic. Sidenote: folding your stroller with one hand while holding your baby and picnic items is hard work. I eventually had to get a few people to help me so we could get into the water taxi.

12 Noon- Get to our destination and we are the first people there besides the organizer. Typical me. Meet new mamas and babies, from our online meetup group, and talk about the main baby subjects: how old is your baby, what is their name, do they sleep well.

1:30 PM- Checked out the Kids Market and buy a birthday present for a baby friend. Ben does some loud practicing with his voice and then falls asleep in the stroller. I go and get an americano!

2:30 PM- Take the water taxi home and enjoy just sitting peacefully in the breeze. Ben wakes up moments into this but is having fun waving to all the tourists on our taxi.

3:00-4:00 PM- Fun times with Dad, playing on the floor and building blocks.

5:00 PM- Out the door again but this time to the park next door for some swinging good times and sunshine. Then off to post a card and buy dinner groceries and walk the dog. Multi tasking is what Mum's do right?

6:00 PM- Home and baby has dinner with a bit more play time. He devours his sweet potato and chicken dinner in no time.

7:00 PM- Oh! It's time for Ben's bath and almost time for bed (yeah!).

7:30 PM- Not quite sleeping but we are winding down the day!

7:45 PM- Night night baby. I am sure we will hear from you sometime tonight!


So, what did you do today?

Since I wrote about my pregnancy losses readers have shared with me their struggle with infertility, both unexplained infertility and infertility complicated by medical conditions like PCOS. I have heard from readers who have experienced their own miscarriages and the private feelings that come with that. The post on pregnancy loss drew the most traffic and the most emails from all of you. Thank you, I feel really warm knowing that you shared your struggles with me.

On the day the post was published over 100 readers went on to read about pregnancy loss and more readers came each day. Probably because miscarriage is still a secret society of womanhood, so when you see someone writing about it you tend to ZOOM into it. A little relief to read someone elses experience and thoughts and to know that women have fertility struggles and lose pregnancies.

A common thread was that most of the women didn't want other people to know. It is a secret. I understand the need to protect yourself as you navigate because it is painful to talk about. Especially not knowing if you will get a negative reaction when you decide to share. Why is it that we can talk about constipation, varicose veins and body hair with no problem? Yes these are three topics I have noticed in conversations. Why can't we talk about miscarriage without being weary? Maybe for some people it is cultural and taboo to talk about but I am going to try my best to open it up with written word. I am going to be honest and I am not afraid to put my name next to miscarriage.

Many women get pregnant with ease and without trying. This is just a fact of life and it is the way we stay populated and continue to grow as a world. If you struggle to get pregnant or have lossed a pregnancy it can be painful to see women float through getting knocked up and glisten with their pregnancy sweat as they grow. You see their expanding baby bump with envy and this is normal. It is a form of jealousy but a jealousy of wanting the same thing. To be a mother, to have a child, to experience pregnancy. It is our human nature to want this and it is okay to feel that. I dedicate this post to all of you who have had to struggle or are struggling with fertility or pregnancy and to those of you ladies who have been open enough to tell me about your own personal experiences.

My baby boy Ben. 10 months old with 6 teeth. Loves to eat and does not sleep (through the night). Smiles and claps, grooves to tunes. Loves to watch, loves to learn. Loved by Mama.

In the last two days I have nursed my baby while sitting on the floor at the Vancouver Aquarium, among the amphibian display, and the next day while perching on a display table beneath a leopard print thong at H+M. When my boy wants to nurse he is ready like now and quite dislikes the idea of waiting.

I have found it easy enough to just find a quiet spot and feed my hungry son. No excess blankets or drapes just my baby snuggled in my lap. I've found that after 10 months of nursing the whole process is pretty efficient and simple and there is no flashes of body parts or stress. It is all quite efficient and discrete and the two of us have our routine down pat.

I have nursed my baby all over the city and feel pretty confident breastfeeding public. I learned how to nurse with ease and comfort from watching my oldest sister nurse her little babies. There are some tricks to feeling calm and it took me a few weeks into Ben's life to get there. By the time he was 5 weeks old things were starting to feel easier and of course nursing an older baby is easier than nursing a little newborn. At least that was my experience!

So, here you go! A few tips from Mama in the City for feeling totally awesome while nursing your sweet baby in public:

1. As you wander the city your baby needs to nurse now! Find a hotel that has a large lobby with a scattering of armchairs. This is most larger hotel chains or even boutique hotels too. I have nursed Ben many times at the Marriott Pinnacle Hotel downtown. It is excellent for this and especially so as it is connected to Caffe Artigiano! On the same floor as the cafe there is clusters of lush armchairs and tables. No one is ever hanging there because it is not the main lobby floor. You can shuffle the chairs to tilt away from any potential walk by traffic. I have nursed here many times and it is really perfect.

2. Wear a tank top and a loose sweater so when you lift up your tank to nurse the sweater will cover your side. I find that if I crunch down and put my shoulders closer to my lap you can cover up everything.

3. Cross your legs. You are a lady after all! Kidding! Crossing your legs brings your baby closer to you so you don't strain your arms trying to hold all their weight and worry your boob will flop into the public if your arms give out. This is a tip I learned from my sis. Thanks sis! It also creates less space for any tummy skin to flash.

4. Don't look down at your little one as he has his dinner. For some reason staring down at your baby nursing draws other people to do the same. They follow what you are looking at so keep your head up and look around. If someone walks by and you feel uncomfortable just smile or catch their eyes. Cause your nice? No because they won't really take in the fact your nursing but respond with a stare at your weird smile or smile back. Trust me! Try this one out.

5. If you are known to leak milk from the other side while you nurse ,and don't have any nursing pads on, my friend taught me to lift up the other side of your shirt while you nurse. Just shift your shirt away from your breast. This way if you do happen to leak the spot won't be directly over your boob and be super obvious while it dries. Instead it will be lower and shifted away. Thanks for this tip Bal!

6. Hang out with friends who support your breastfeeding and understand how it can be overwhelming at first. I had a few great friends who were so cool with helping me find a good spot to nurse Ben when he was just learning to latch. Some were not mamas but they were good friends.

So, do you have any tips for feeling totally awesome and relaxed while nursing out and about? Did you feel that nursing in public wasn't for you? I am interested! I have nursed hundreds of time out in public in the city and have only ever received kind smiles from the people who have noticed. Have you had other experiences?

Let's get down to business. The winner of the oh so nice Miso Miso baby blanket by Three Little Trees compliments of Purl Mama & Baby is............


Alikins76 come on down! Congratulations! Woohoo! To claim your sweet baby blanket email me your mailing address at
nuggins AT gmail DOT COM and Purl Mama & Baby will ship it off to you.

Thank you to all the ladies who entered and a big thank you to Purl Mama & Baby for being involved in our FIRST give away!

For the last 30 years I have worried about something. Well, maybe not as a tiny child but my parents might tell you otherwise. I have spent hours and hours worrying in my life. Sometimes this trait is kindly referred to as a worry wart. Which actually just sounds kind of gross and possibly another thing to worry about. I usually worry about health related stuff and not too much about other things but I have been known to 'pre worry' about upcoming things even like going on a vacation. Vacations are suppose to be fun and relaxing but I could come up with something to worry about. Like the fact you may come to a fiery horrible death in your Fiat 500 car as you tour around Florence with your husband and your unborn child within.



The other day I went to my doctor because I was worried about a mole on my arm. I had obsessed over it for awhile and drove my husband nuts getting him to stare at it. Did it look different? Was it moving? I kid! It didn't move but it looked sort of funny. Of course I went to my good friend Dr. Google and looked up all about moles and I came to the educated conclusion that it was deadly and that this was 'it'. I felt sick and let my imagination go on and on about all the possible consequences of having a terminal mole. So, I go to the real doc, not to be confused with Dr. Google, and he takes a look and smiles and tell me it is 100% benign. Carry on dear mama it is okay. Of course I walked out like I knew that would be the answer. Maybe I did but I had already worried about the possible other conclusions. This is how I have lived my life so far.

Why do I do this to myself? I know it drives my husband nuts and it can't be good for you. You would think that I would realize that letting myself go on and on with worry has never helped me cope with anything in real life. It has never prepared me with any of life's up or downs or at times when bad things have actually happened.

So, now I am worried that you won't see the cool give away underneath this post hehe. Don't forget you can be a Grandma, Auntie, Friend, Sister to win the baby blanket. Don't be afraid to enter in the comment section of the last post. You could be that cool person with a stock pile of neat gifts in your 'gift closet'. You wouldn't have to worry if you needed a present at the drop of a hat!

Go on and enter! Contest ends Friday morning at 0800.

Woot! Mama in the city has exciting news to share with you. One of our favorite baby mama stores has offered to give away a gift to one of our readers! Our lovely friends at Purl Mama & Baby have a beautiful Miso Miso baby blanket from the company Three Little Trees to gift to one of my readers. This baby blanket is soft and lush and perfect to snuggle a baby in. It features a chocolate and aqua giraffe pattern that is so lovable. The totally cool thing is that Three Little Trees also gives you a packet of seeds to plant and watch grow along with your baby. Umm...totally cute!

Purl Mama & Baby has long been a website I've used to buy chic mama gifts for baby showers and for treats and fun stuff for myself. I like this on line shop because it is local and their choice in products is just right. I seriously can't find one thing on their website that I would not like to have or give as a gift. I am psyched to have my first website give away be from this company.

What you need to do to enter for your chance to win is simply leave me a comment on this post. Put your name and just press enter or you can leave me a fancy remark but both will get you an entry. Check back here on Friday July 10th to see if you are the winner! Comments will be turned off as of 0800 Friday July 10th 2009. The winner will be announced just after.

The great news is that Purl Mama & Baby is cool enough to ship this gift anywhere in Canada and the US. Click here to check out their website.



So, go ahead and leave me a comment and you might win this sweet sweet baby blanket. You don't need a baby at home to win this prize (it would make a great gift).

I am trying to take full advantage of my year long maternity leave and get involved in some fun baby activities while I have the opportunity (time!). We have already done a cute music class and now moved on to baby gymnastics at a cool little gym downtown called Jump Gymnastics. It does classes for the six and under crowd and it is pretty close to our apartment, which is always a nice.

Ben is the only boy in a class of just over a dozen and he is rough and tumble and ready to go! It is an interesting thing to take in the different types of parents that come together during these baby classes. Especially as they are interactive and require you to really get down there with your baby and just go for it. In our music class there was one dad on paternity leave but a few who came on and off through the months. In today's gymnastics class three dads were there helping their babies tumble around on foam mats.

I find that the addition of dads is always refreshing and adds a little bit more to the class. Dads do things differently than mum's and it seems that we sometimes parent differently. I hate to say that I like it! The role of the modern Dad has really evolved since the days when fathers to-be sat in the waiting room or even waited at home while we birthed our babies. There are more expectations put forth and more dads are hands on with the day to day stuff.

The progression of the role of the modern dad is one to be embraced, celebrated and encouraged. I think this progression stemmed from the need for a two income family and has really advanced the role that dads have in providing child care to their babies. Culture changes and the new norm gets established. Today's dad wears his baby in the sling during the fussy hours, puts together fresh baby food and can handle the bath routine with precision.

I really think it is cool that as Ben grows up his role model will be a man who is involved and I know so many of you are out there.

Oh summer! I love you! You are seriously great! I love a good reason to wear a girly skirt and a big brimmed hat and hang outside in the grass all afternoon with my family and summertime gives me that perfect occasion! It feels almost mandatory to take advantage of sunshine and free local city events. So, today we walked down the street to one of the local parks to take in Vancouver's International Jazz Festival and it was rocking. Good swinging tunes and of course all the street vending food you can get your hands on. Which means my husband was in his summer element eating mini donuts.

We relaxed in the grass and hung out watching all the people come and go; people watching is always a good time at any event. Summer in Vancouver means feeling the fresh breeze of the water as the sun beats down on your shoulders. It was one of those days that feels perfect and you can forget all your worries and put off your 'to do' list and you can just be.

Ten things I miss from my pre baby life:

1. Sleeping in until I actually want to wake up.
2. Going to the bathroom in private.
3. Casually eating your take away food in the park at my own leisure.
4. Late night date nights with my honey that start at 8 PM and not end at 8 PM.
5. Thinking, 'yeah it's the weekend! It's my time!'
6. Not feeling guilty for going out with girlfriends.
7. Enjoying home decor and impractical decorating items.
8. Being able to come and go.
9..................
10...............

Ten things I love about my now baby life:

1. Chubby baby thighs that I can smooch and nibble anytime.
2. Having Ben wave at me and think I am the coolest person ever.
3. Wearing him on my hip, in my sling, and having people smile at us.
4. Finding out just what kind of Mum I am.
5. Singing my 'Canadian Idol' heart out at baby music class. I am really good.
6. Having deeper friendships with friends who have babies.
7. Naked baby bum.
8. Having my baby learn to feed me Cheerios and watch him look so proud.
9. Realizing how much love and care my own Mum went through to raise me.
10. Raising a baby to a boy and into a man.

The other day I met a new mama friend at one of our downtown baby groups. It was time for our class to wrap up for the summer and we decided to end the morning with a coffee with our babies in tow. One topic led to another and we started to discuss pregnancy loss and the fact that we both had experienced the joy of a thriving baby but also the hurt of a pregnancy loss.

As I meet the needs of a busy ten month old baby right now, it feels like a life time ago that I experienced my 2-3 miscarriages. My first miscarriage at 12 weeks then a second one at 9 weeks and then a chemical pregnancy around 5 weeks. Benjamin snuck up on us a few months later. Pregnancy loss is a sorrow that I can conjure up just by reflecting on the experience. It doesn't seem to matter what beautiful things happen in your life it will always be something that somehow defines you even in the smallest ways.

I got pregnant quite easily on our very first adventure into trying for a baby and I was pretty impressed with myself at the time. We went to our GP's office the exact same day that I had gotten a positive pregnancy test because we were that excited. I was elated and scared and already thinking ahead about baby plans. As a perinatal RN I knew that every single pregnancy has a chance of miscarriage and I knew that I was not exempt. I had a scientific mind behind pregnancy and thought that this would help me navigate the emotions that any pregnancy creates.

In retrospect I remember feeling that my first pregnancy didn't feel quite right. There was always something unknown tugging at my thoughts and to be completely honest I didn't necessarily picture a baby being born as a result of this current pregnancy. Was it women's intuition? I had some spotting at week 5 and more spotting at week 8 but my GP told me to hold tight and just relax and let things take a natural course. If things were progressing well than we would know at 12 weeks when we would listen for a fetal heart beat.

It was during an ultrasound at 12 weeks that I learned the pregnancy had ended sometime around week 8. I left the hospital knowing that there was an embryo in me that needed to come out. There was no baby to be born or pregnancy to continue. It was done and I wasn't sure what to feel or what to do. My husband and I walked home from the hospital and I felt numb.

A few days went by and we told our close friends and some of my family about what was going on. I felt emotional and worried and really alone; I questioned if I could get through this and wondered if something was wrong with me. I ended up taking some medication to induce a miscarriage at home. This experience was not for me at all and I hated every painful moment that it took away from me. I ended up in an ambulance and being sent to the OR for a STAT D+C to remove the products of conception and stop the bleeding. My only positive memory from this miscarriage is the lovely woman OB that was on call and the sweet nurses that took care of me and acknowledged that this was hard and that it sucked.

I really believe that the physical pain caused by the strong induction medication left me with a more difficult recovery ahead. I now had intense emotional pain, I felt like a big pile of crap from the anesthetic and my body was tired from the hours of painful contractions. It was a crap experience followed up by an even crappier ending. I felt empty. To top it all off I ended up getting shingles a few days afterwards. I now have a permanent scar on my forehead to remind me of the shingles brought on by the physical and emotional stress of my first pregnancy loss.

I had a few sweet friends and co workers who were of great support and even some who had traveled this path before me. They offered me tremendous friendship and support and told me that they too had experienced pregnancy loss; some early at 5 weeks and some later at 16 weeks and a few had losses even later with even harder stories to share. No one had talked about this until after I experienced a pregnancy loss. It is a secret world that we should really share with each other. It felt reassuring and made the loss feel more normal for me.

As time went on people expect that you have gotten over losing the pregnancy. That you have moved on and aren't still thinking about it every day. So friends stop asking how you are doing and instead talk about other things, like the future. The best of friends knew to ask you how you were even months down the road. How amazing that they acknowledge that hardship that you had encountered and to know you might not be over it.

From the time of my first pregnancy loss till the time I gave birth to my first born son spanned just over two years. I know that some people journey even longer on their road to having a baby with even more grief and I acknowledge that wholeheartedly. Having a healthy baby did put some distance between the feelings of loss and those of pure bliss but not until after I held my newborn on my chest seconds after he was born. I always felt that worry of losing any pregnancy because of my experiences. Pregnancy loss is now something that I have lived through and feel deeply touched by.

Happy Canada Day to you! We have some fun family type of plans to celebrate Canada day in the city. A little family time and lunch with a good friend. Hopefully we can go and listen to some music in the park nearby. Of course Ben will be wearing a festive Canada Day shirt. It never gets dull here or quiet; Ben has been testing his vocal levels all morning!

Besides Canada Day it is also 'Product Placement Wednesdays'! Apparently people are a little leary of the comment section because I get a lot of emails about upcoming Wednesdays posts. You guys have some great suggestions, keep on sharing them! I love getting your product ideas. Try out our new comment section which is suppose to be easier.

Today's product is something I often use multiple times a day as the laundry piles up. This Wednesday I would like to introduce 'Method baby squeaky green dryer cloths'. Do you use them? Aren't they fabulous! The wet sheets have a sweet scent of rice milk and mallow that leaves your laundry smelling oh so good! I will even seek them out if they are not stocked up in our neighborhood drugstore.


The great thing about these dryer cloths is that they are moist in the package and are made with plant based softeners. So, if you are vegan or vegetarian this is a product for you. Even if you don't have baby clothes to launder the seriously good scent is worth it for your own duds. There is no animal fat or toxic softeners in these dryer sheets. Which is always good news.

Leave me a comment and suggest a product for upcoming an Wednesday!


Canada flag picture courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/people/ianalexandermartin/