Leigh Anne Blogs: 2016

Friday, July 29, 2016

Tips For Drinking More Water

I've been working really hard at drinking more water each day because it's really important, especially while you're pregnant. I bought a purple cup and a blue water bottle from Amazon. Both are BPA free. The cup holds around two cups of water, and the water bottle holds around two and a half cups of water. I try to drink one full cup (two cups) in the morning when I brush my teeth, and another one in the evening when I take my vitamins and brush my teeth. At lunch, and throughout the afternoon and evening, I try to drink at least one water bottle (two and a half cups) as well as one bottle of sparkling water (two cups). I try to drink store bought purified water or tap water that has been filtered through our water pitcher. All together, that is a little over eight cups of water. I'm still working on keeping up with this routine, but it really helps to get in the habit of doing this, and is really beneficial.

Contigo Party Cup,

16-Ounce, Stainless Steel,

Insulated Double Wall

Ello Pure BPA-Free
Glass Water Bottle
with Lid, 20 oz

How to Do a Stairway Photo Wall

I wanted to explain how I did my Stairway Photo Wall for anyone who might want to do something similar. I ordered the picture frames from Amazon. They are called "WOOD MEETS COLOR Wood Wall of Pictures". I ordered the black and white frames. The set came with a piece of paper that had all of the picture frames printed out on it, so that way you could cut them out, and stick them to your wall however you wanted them.

How I Put the Picture Frames On the Wall?

I started with a small vertical picture frame and used a tape measure to measure five inches between it and the window frame at the bottom of the stairs. I stuck the matching paper cutout on the wall. If your picture frames did not come with cutouts, you can make your own by tracing each of your picture frames on a piece of paper. Then I measured five inches across from the top of that picture frame to the bottom of a large horizontal white picture frame. I then measured again five inches from the top of the large horizontal white frame to the bottom of a large vertical black frame. After that, I did the same thing again, with my last large horizontal frame, and then again with a small vertical white frame. At this point, I had a diagonal line of five picture frames on my wall each five inches apart. Then all I had left were small black and white frames, and I placed one five inches above and one five inches below each of the three large frames.

How I Hung Up the Picture Frames?

I used small nails. I did not use the tacks that came with the set. I used two nails per frame because using one made the frames wobbly. I hammered the nails on the paper cutouts, took the cutouts off, and placed the frames over the nails. Then I used a level to check and see if the pictures were even. If a frame wasn't even, I adjusted the nails by hammering up on a nail or down on a nail.

Overall, it was pretty easy to do, and I think it turned out really well! I hope this helps anyone who wants to do something similar on their stairway wall.

How Toxic is My Makeup?

Skin Deep Cosmetics Database is a website that rates cosmetic products. I'm trying to detox my home and different products I use, and this site is a good way start to this process. Listed below are the products I am currently using and how toxic they are according to this site.

3, moderate hazard

2, low hazard

5, moderate hazard

3, moderate hazard

4, moderate hazard

no rating available

no available rating

2, low hazard

Labdoor

Labdoor is a website that rates vitamins and supplements. The vitamins I am currently taking are Rainbow Light Prenatal One, and Best Naturals Vitamin B6. Labdoor gave my prenatal a quality ranking of #9 of 25, a value ranking of #2 of 25, and a grade of A-. They did not have a ranking for the B6 vitamin I'm taking. Go check this website out to see how your vitamins rank!

"The Better Baby Book" Dos and Don'ts

I really enjoyed reading "The Better Baby Book" by Lana and Dave Asprey. Listed below are just some of the many things they talked about in the book that you can do before, during, and after pregnancy to have a healthier baby.

Do:

-Read Books to Your Baby While Pregnant

-Sing Lullabies

-Listen to Classical Baroque Music

-Stay Hydrated with Purified Water

-Choose Water Over Sweetened Drinks

-Take a Prenatal Vitamin

-Eat Healthy Fats (Egg Yolks, Butter, Coconuts, Coconut Oil, Avocados, Olives, and Nuts)

-Eat Raw Vegetables

-Substitute Peanuts with Almonds

-Choose Organic Milk from Grass-Fed Cows

-Eat Organic Eggs from Free-Range Hens

-Eat Meat from Grass-Fed Animals

-Eat Dark Chocolate and Cocoa Butter

-Stay Away from Mold

-Use Air Purifiers to Improve Air Quality in Your Home

-Try to Avoid Electromagnetic Fields (EMFs) When You Can (Such as Electric Lines, Cell Phones, Wireless Devices, WiFi Access Points, and Microwave Ovens)

-Keep Cell Phones Away from Body When Not in Use

-Use Battery Powered Alarm Clocks with Red Displays

-Limit How Many Ultrasounds You Have

-Use Fragrance-Free Products

-Use a Toothpaste Free of Fluoride, SLS, and Titanium Dioxide

-Expose Your Skin to The Sun Every Day

-Make Sure Everything That is Contacting Your Babies is Natural and Chemical-Free

-Reduce Stress

-Do Yoga Two or Three Times a Week

-Do Low-Stress Exercises Like Cycling, Pilates, Swimming, and Walking

-Have Initial Eye-Contact and Skin-to-Skin Contact with Baby

-Delay the Clamping of the Umbilical Cord

-Breast-Feed Your Baby if you Can

Don't:

-Smoke or Use Tobacco, Drink Alcohol, or Take Illegal Drugs

-Drink Tap Water or Bottled Water (Drink Purified Water)

-Eat Excess Sugar and Carbohydrates

-Eat Wheat, Soy, and Mushrooms

-Eat Dairy Products

-Drink Pasteurized Milk

-Have Caffeine or Decaf Drinks

-Eat Canned Food or Leftovers

-Eat Processed Food

-Eat Cracked Eggs and to Avoid Salmonella Wash Eggs Before Cracking

-Eat Most Seafood (You Can Eat Flounder, Haddock, Pacific Sockeye, Salmon, Petrale Sole, Sardines, Wild Tilapia, and Freshwater Fish Like Trout)

-Eat Fried Food

-Eat Artificial Flavorings, Preservatives, and Colorings

-Use Products with BPA

-Use Products with Sodium Laureth Sulfate or Parabens

-Use Makeup That is Not Natural or Organic

-Dye Your Hair

-Handle Cat Litter

-Sit Laptops on Your Lap

-Use Hairdryers Often

-Use Fluorescent Bulbs and Blue or Green Spectrum Light at Night

-Use Poor Quality Formula (If Not Breast Feeding, Use a High Quality Formula Like Nutramigen or Alimentum)

(Asprey, Lana, and Dave Asprey. The Better Baby Book. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2013. Print.)

Thursday, June 23, 2016

TTC and Pregnancy Menu Plans

This is how I plan meals while TTC and during pregnancy. I got the meal planners from BabyCenter, and found all of the recipes for the meal planners online. I organized it all in a notebook. Most of the meals are crockpot meals because that is the easiest way for me to cook. I printed off the meal planners on magnetic paper and put them in clear pockets. I stick the menu I am using for that week on the refrigerator, and I use a dry erase marker to check off which foods I've eaten. I do not follow the menu plans exactly, but just use them as an example of healthy foods to be eating. I made lists on relayfoods.com of each meal plan. There are four for each trimester. This makes it easy when you don't feel like grocery shopping. You can just go to your list on Relay Foods and put the items from your list in your cart. It is more expensive to shop this way, but is more convenient because with Relay Foods someone else shops for you and you just pick your foods up at a designated location. I linked the BabyCenter meal planners, and recipes I found online for the meal planners below. I hope this is helpful for anyone who is TTC, pregnant, or just trying to stick to a healthier diet!