Friday, June 29, 2007

Success

Updates:

The boys are still fishing almost everyday, at the creek behind the house. When they are not fishing they are swimming.

No new pictures, of anything, due to my digital camera being broken, you can read about that here.

I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of two of my dear friends babies, one of which I have been asked to (possibly) catch (yeah!!!!!!) Please pray that both births go perfectly.

I am completely recovered from pink-eye. (I missed a birth last Saturday because of it)

Savannah is not walking yet, but she is close. It would be fine with me if she just stayed a crawler forever, she is growing way too fast.

Jeremy is working lots and lots of over-time.

Have I mentioned how much I LOVE summer?

Thursday, June 14, 2007

10 Homebirth Facts No One's Telling You

If you're newly pregnant, chances are you have never heard the truth about why homebirth is a safer choice for low-risk pregnancies. And if you're not newly pregnant, it is never to late to consider your options and give birth to your baby at home.
"The first intervention in natural childbirth is the one that a healthy woman does herself when she walks out the front door of her own home in labour."— Michael Rosenthal, OB/GYN (from Midwifery Today E-news 7:24)
1. In studies comparing home vs. hospital births. homebirths supervised by a “trained attendant” indicate fewer deaths, injuries and infections. Respiratory distress in newborns was 17 times higher in the hospital than at home. (1)
2. The US has the highest obstetrical intervention rates of any country. (1) The US is currently ranked 28th for infant mortality (that means 27 other countries have a better rate of infant survival than we do). (5, 33)
3. The superior outcomes seen in homebirths are not because the women are at lower risk or in any way special or different from women planning hospital births. (2)
4. You are very likely to have a c-section if you chose a hospital birth. The WHO concluded that there is no reason for any region of the world to have a cesarean rate of more than 10-15%. As of 2004, the US has a 29.1% c-section rate. This rate is up from 27.6% in 2003. (2, 20) (3)C-section infants also are four times more likely to die than those born vaginally. (5, 31)
5. The newest study, done in 2005 and published in the British Medical Journal showed homebirth with a CPM (Certified Professional Midwife) to be as safe as hospital birth. The rates of medical intervention at home were lower, and the study showed a high satisfaction rate for mothers. (4)
6. The vast majority of woman are 2 to 6 more times likely to die if their babies are delivered in the hospital. (5, 25)
7. If your baby is born at home with a midwife, instead of in a hospital with an OB, he is six times more likely to survive his first year. (5, 29)
8. The longer your second stage of labor, the more likely you are in to receive a c-section when at the hospital. At home, there will likely be no time limit on your pushing stage unless there is a real problem. (5, 46)
9. When your birth is attended by a midwife, your chances of hemorrhaging and/or continuing to hemorrhage are significantly reduced. (5, 58)
10. A study published in the November 2003 of The Lancet found that c-sections double the rate of stillbirth before labor begins, in women who have had a previous c-section (and most likely a hospital birth). (5, 105)
Sources:1. From Is Homebirth for you? 6 Myths about Childbirth Exposedhttp://www.gentlebirth.org/format/myths.html
2. Goer, Henci. The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth.
3. ICAN (International Cesarean Awareness Network)http://www.ican-online.org/
4. http://www.mana.org/CPM2000.html5. Doubleday, Jock. Spontaneous Creation: 101 Reasons Not to Have Your Baby In the Hospital (e-book available at spontaneouscreation.org)

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Operation : Rescue

I've done it again.

I'm afraid my animal-lover, do-gooder self is showing through again. This is the 2nd animal in 2 years that I have rescued from abusive/neglectful homes. It makes me crazy when people have an animal...then starve it, ignore it, beat it, chain it, etc... not saying that all of that was done to this one, but the pic kinda speaks for itself.

Believe it or not this is a Shih Tzu. No, I didn't steal her, I talked them into giving her to me.

We tried (the night we got her home) to shave her ourselves...bad idea. Very bad idea. So I took her the following day to the groomer. Interesting side note: this dog did not even recognize dog food. So for the first week I fed her brown rice, mixed with tuna fish. Slowly introducing her to dog food. :)

Turns out, this is a very well-behaved, spayed, house-broken, 4 year old female Shih Tzu. BUT, this would be dog #5 for us...and aside from the fact we DO have the room (2 acres), I really don't need/want another dog.

So my quest is to find a forever home for Lily.

Oh yeah, after taking these pictures, I set my digital camera down on a flower planter...and it got rained on....all night.

Groomer: $30

Digital camera: $150.00

Knowing I saved this dog from a SECOND winter outdoors: Priceless.

So, be patient, her "after" pictures will be up, as soon as I can figure out how to get pictures from my camera phone..to email...to blogger. Help.

Oh yeah. Dog anyone?