When my friend, Karen, turned 21, her mother gave her a different sort of gift.  It was a box full of letters that she had written to Karen many years before.  For the first several years of Karen’s life, her mother wrote her a letter once every month or two.  The letters marked time and described how Karen was growing, what the family was doing, and current joys and challenges.

Time goes by quickly.  As your due date approaches, consider jotting down some notes in the form of letters to your baby, a personal journal or even a personal notebook.  These are special times and it will be fun to reflect back several years from now.

• Make things colorful and include some pictures.
• Jot down what you are feeling.
• What excites you most about your baby-to-be?
• What makes you most nervous?
• How are you spending your days?
• Are you wrapped up in preparations, or is everything ready for the new baby?
• What do friends and family think?
• Do you know if it’s a boy or girl yet?
• What names are you considering?

Enjoy writing your letters and notes to this little person that you have yet to meet – face-to-face!

We’re now officially past winter solstice, and days are getting longer! Days are of course still shorter. During these winter months, have you considered giving yoga a try? Prenatal yoga certainly provides many benefits. Not many mothers realise but there are so many things you can do during your pregnancy that will positively impact the health of your baby. This could be in direct ways, for example I love these prenatal vitamins for my baby, or by looking after your own wellbeing through something like yoga. The feelings of calm that it induces and the improvements it makes to your physical health will be felt by them.

• Yoga classes are a nice social activity too. Classes themselves are often quiet, but before or after class is a nice opportunity to meet some new people. If you become a regular at a certain class, you may notice that you become reluctant to miss a class since you’ll be looking forward to seeing these new friends.
• Yoga exercises gently tone and condition to give you more strength and flexibility in preparation for the birth of your baby.
• Yoga breathing helps give you and baby a good supply of oxygen. Breathing exercises can have the effect of refreshing the body and increasing your energy level.
• Yoga meditation can serve as a centering exercise. You will learn to better handle stress and release any unwanted bad feelings. Focusing on the positive can increase both productivity and overall happiness throughout a day and may increase sense of self awareness.
• Yoga relaxation can serve to prepare you mentally and physically for birth.

Check out classes in your neighborhood. Many yoga studios offer free trials or packaged bundles for classes. Or, find a class online to learn a little more. Here is the Mamaste Yoga – Prenatal Yoga Podcast

These 9 months, eat well for you and baby.  The Mayo clinic specifically recommends Folic Acid, Calcium, Iron and general Prenatal Vitamins in this article here.

Of course good nutrition is not only limited to when you are pregnant.  Stay up-to-date on your vitamin and nutrient knowledge with this cool interactive info-graphic from Information is Beautiful.  Snake Oil?  Scientific Evidence for Popular Health Supplements. (For more detail on their information sources, scroll to the bottom of the visualization and click on “find out more about this image.”)

Want to learn how to get specific nutrients from everyday foods?  Check out these charts, which show minerals and vitamins broken out by food type.

As always,  be sure to have the vitamins/nutrients discussion with your doctor.

Forget that busy schedule – healthy, tasty meals are still an option for everyone.  Here are a few tips and tricks to make eating healthy easy for you.

• Plan a week’s worth of meals in advance.  Think of how to creatively use left-over’s.
• Keep a grocery list.  Store the list somewhere easily accessible so that you’ll update it whenever you notice that an item needs restocked.
• Save Sunday’s paper and find a moment to clip coupons.
• Buy fresh foods from the grocery store every 3-4 days.  These include vegetables, fruits and fresh breads.
• Get into a routine for certain meals.  Eating similar things at each meal makes shopping easier.  Introduce some variety to keep it interesting.  (e.x., oatmeal for breakfast, salad for lunch, etc.)
• Purchase meats and fish in larger quantities and freeze extra.  Upon return from the grocery store, separate meats and fish into portions for immediate consumption and for freezing. Package portions for freezing separately for convenient defrosting and use later.
• Prepare several portions of salad all at once.  Slice vegetables and lettuce.  Package a portion of vegetables all together in one zip lock back.  Put lettuce in another.  When ready to use, simply mix together with a little salad dressing.  Portions of salad can be prepared 2-3 days in advance.
• If you anticipate a busy week, prepare something over the weekend that can serve for several dinners or lunches.  Consider a chicken or lasagna recipe.  If not planning to eat left-over’s immediately, freeze in individual portions.  These make great “fast food” meals to pull out on a busy day.

Have fun with your meal planning!  Remember that sharing a meal with your significant other or a friend can make the meal that much more enjoyable.  It’s a simple pleasure that adds joy to the day.

One of the main ingredients in Mother’s Special Blend is coconut oil. In addition to providing an appealing and gentle scent, coconut oil heals, protects and beatifies the skin in a couple major ways.

• Protects against damage. Coconut oil both softens the skin and protects against damage. It does this by preventing free-radical formation and protection from free radicals. It aids in prevention of blemishes.

• Helps skin heal and repair. Coconut oil helps the skin heal and repair. It does this by aiding in removal of dead skin. As dead skin falls away, the coconut oil is better able to penetrate deeply to soften and strengthen the skin layers. Cracked skin, Athlete’s Foot, and scarring are all things that you may want to address as part of your skincare regime. Herbal-based topical products, like those from Quantum Health (https://quantumhealth.com/), may be able to help you fix these things, rejuvenate your skin, and achieve your skin goals. Nobody wants to endure the discomfort or pain of dry, cracked, and flaking skin and so working out a strategy to combat this can help you power through the day ahead with confidence.

• Keeps skin supple and strong for a youthful look. Coconut oil is absorbed into the cell structure of connective tissues. These connective tissues give our skin strength and elasticity. Coconut oil keeps them supple and prevents sagging or wrinkling. Through its use, skin can become more evenly textured and exhibit a healthy shine.

Coconut oil is absorbed into the skin and does not wash away when bathing like water or vegetable oil based lotions. It does not leave a greasy feeling. Mother’s Special blend has incorporated coconut oil into their products and mothers have been using and benefiting from these now for 35 years.

Breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day.  It revs up your metabolism and gives you the energy needed to get your day going.  Here’s a quick, easy and tasty recipe to put a smile on your face.

Coconut and Flaxseed Oatmeal:

• ½ C Oatmeal
• 1 T Flaxseed meal
• 1 T Coconut oil
• Dash of sea salt

Cook your oatmeal either in the microwave or stovetop depending on preference.  Add Coconut oil and Flaxseed meal.

For some flavor and texture variation, add one or a few of your favorite: fresh or frozen berries, banana, honey, jam, chopped nuts, raisins, agave syrup or coconut flakes.

To keep flaxseed fresh, store it in the refrigerator.  You may also consider buying whole flaxseeds and then grinding your own in a coffee grinder every several days to help preserve freshness.

Health Benefits for You and Baby:

• Flaxseed is a good source of fiber, lignans, and alpha linolenic acid (ALA).  It improves digestion, and offers a good source of energy.  It also helps fight “the Blues.”  Check out more benefits for flaxseed here: http://www.flaxhealth.com/howflaxhelps.htm

• Coconut oil contains medium chain fatty acids, or medium chain triglycerides (MCTs).  These are different from longer chain fatty acids which are found in other plant-based oils.  MCTs burn up quickly.  They help stoke the internal fire and raise the body’s metabolism.  Coconut oil also promotes good health.  One of the MCTs in coconut oil is lauric acid.  When lauric acid is consumed, it destroys several bacteria and viruses.

• Oats are a good source of many nutrients including vitamin E, zinc, selenium, copper, iron, manganese and magnesium.  They also provide some protein.  Oatmeal is a good source of fiber which helps regulate cholesterol and aids in digestion.

How do you choose a name for your baby?  You share the same body,  food, and sleep schedule, but you still haven’t met face to face!

This can be a very fun exercise for you and your partner.  There are so many options to consider.

• Traditional names.  Certain names are time tested and endure.  Here are a few ideas for Boys and Girls
• Popular names fit a particular time.  Check out some of the listings of most popular baby names here for Boys and Girls.
• Family names from grandma and grandpa, mom or dad, uncles or aunts.
• Unique or new spellings for more common names.

Keep handy a pencil and paper.  As you go about your day, jot down potential names that come to mind.  Have your partner do the same, and compare at the end of a day or week. Keep a journal of potential names.  Someday it could be fun to look back on names you considered and share these with your child.

For some quick name searches, go online.  Or – go to the library and browse name books.  You can even make a date out of the name game and take Dad to a Barnes and Noble, have some tea or hot chocolate, and spend an hour or two looking through names together.

You may choose to get feedback from family and friends.  If you feel that you might get toooooo much feedback, wait until your baby’s birth to share the name.  After baby is born and introduced to the world, everyone will think the name is perfect!

What ever name you decide on, know that the guidance, love, and strength you share with your child will ultimately contribute to their personality and this will be what defines the name you give them.