Circumcision?

So what are peoples thoughts about circumcision? In the hospital most nurses and doctors strongly recommended us against this. In most cases they scolded us for even thinking about it. We were more than frustrated. I have heard of a few cases where older men had to have this done and it was extremely painful and had major health implications. In the hospital they gave us very dated information that recommended against this procedure. In the last while I have heard information about why not to do this procedure but have never seen any data about health complications of males that do not have this done. Below is some reading that may help with your decision.

Circumcision - Wikipedia

Opponents of non-therapeutic circumcision claim infant circumcision infringes upon the individuals bodily rights, is medically unjustified and it adversely affects sexual pleasure.^[9] Circumcision advocates claim it is a worthwhile public health measure that has no substantial effects on sexual function and has a low complication rate when properly done.^[10]

The American Medical Association stated in 1999: "Virtually all current policy statements from specialty societies and medical organizations do not recommend routine neonatal circumcision, and support the provision of accurate and unbiased information to parents to inform their choice."^[11]

The World Health Organisation (WHO; 2007), the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS; 2007), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC; 2008) state that evidence indicates that male circumcision significantly reduces the risk of HIV acquisition by men during penile-vaginal sex, but also state that circumcision only provides partial protection and should not replace other interventions to prevent transmission of HIV.^[12][13]

The American Medical Association defines “non-therapeutic” circumcision as the non-religious, non-ritualistic, not medically necessary, elective circumcision of male newborns. It still advocates that medical associations in the US, Australia, and Canada do not recommend the routine non-therapeutic circumcision of newborns.^[36]

Circumcision advocates argue that circumcision prevents infections and slows down the spread of AIDS.^[37] Opponents of circumcision question the ethical validity of removing healthy, functioning genital tissue from a minor, arguing that infant circumcision infringes upon individual autonomy and represents a human rights violation.^[38][39]

^{Circumcision Benefits}

^{Circumcision - To Circumcise or Not Circumcise}

What do you think?

Clothes for a Newborn

So here is a list I found at Pregnancy Weekly that talks about what clothes you should have ready for a new baby. We have purchased a lot of items already and they are washed. Also, We are lucky to have some friends that have passed on a ton of clothes to us. I think we are ready to go. We just have to get our car seat installed. Is there anything else that you think we need to do? What else could be added to the list below?

Here are some of the things your new little one will need. It's probably best to get them together during your seventh month. Don't forget to wash everything before you put them on your baby.

3 Side-snap shirts
3 Pullover t-shirts
6 Onesies
3 Gowns
4 Terry cloth sleepers with feet
4 Snap-up rompers without feet
2 Blanket sleepers
1 Bunting/snowsuit (if needed)
4 Booties and/or socks
4 Bibs
2 Sweaters
1 Jacket

Chinese Lunar Calendar

I got the following information from Baby-Parenting.co.uk. It predicts the gender of a baby before it is born. It was correct for our first pregnancy that ended in a loss and using the chart it indicates that we will be having a girl. I guess we will see how well it works. I had not heard about the Chinese Lunar Calendar until my wife told me about this. A friend at work told her about this. Have you heard about this? If so, did this work for you?

"The Chinese pregnancy calendar was allegedly discovered about 700 years ago by a Chinese Scientist. Try it out and see if it works. Try it for other children and tell us if it was correct.

Find where the column with the month of conception meets the row which corresponds to your age at conception, this will tell you whether you had will have a boy or girl.

Click below on one of the sites to see a Chinese Lunar Calendar and other methods to predict the gender of an unborn baby.

Pregnancy Weekly
Baby Gender Prediction

Chinese lunar Month of Conception

Age Of Mother At Conception

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

18

F

M

F

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

19

M

F

M

F

F

M

M

F

M

M

F

F

20

F

M

F

M

M

M

M

M

M

F

M

M

21

M

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

22

F

M

M

F

M

F

F

M

F

F

F

F

23

M

M

M

F

M

M

F

F

F

M

M

F

24

M

F

F

M

M

F

M

F

M

M

F

M

25

F

M

F

M

F

M

F

M

F

M

M

M

26

M

M

M

M

M

F

M

F

F

M

F

F

27

F

F

M

M

F

M

F

F

M

F

M

M

28

M

M

M

F

F

M

F

M

F

F

M

F

29

F

M

F

F

M

F

M

M

F

M

F

F

30

M

M

F

M

F

M

M

M

M

M

M

M

31

M

M

M

M

F

F

M

F

M

F

F

F

32

M

F

F

M

F

M

M

F

M

M

F

M

33

F

M

M

F

F

M

F

M

F

M

M

F

34

M

M

F

F

M

F

M

M

F

M

F

F

35

M

F

M

F

M

F

M

F

M

M

F

M

36

M

F

M

M

M

F

M

M

F

F

F

F

37

F

F

M

F

F

F

M

F

F

M

M

M

38

M

M

F

F

M

F

F

M

F

F

M

F

39

F

F

M

F

F

F

M

F

M

M

F

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40

M

M

M

F

M

F

M

F

M

F

F

M

41

F

F

M

F

M

M

F

F

M

F

M

F

42

M

F

F

M

M

M

M

M

F

M

F

M

43

F

M

F

F

M

M

M

F

F

F

M

M

44

M

F

F

F

M

F

M

M

F

M

F

M

45

F

M

F

M

F

F

M

F

M

F

M

F

Week 17: Nothing to Wear?

Sorry about the long wait since my last post and today I have two. We recently went on a shopping trip south of the border to take advantage of the great Canadian Dollar. My wife sure did well. She is now all decked out and looking even more gorgeous than ever. I also get a daily email form What to Expect. I thought the post I got today sure matched with our shopping trip.

It's official — your belly is big and getting bigger! It's time to raid your partner's closet for oversize shirts and sweats, and your gal pals' attics for maternity clothes that are gently used and begging to be borrowed. Swapping maternity clothes is a time-honored bonding ritual, so go for it (you can return the favor by passing them on to someone else when you're done). Going shopping? Don't overdo it. A couple of pairs of good-quality maternity pants, skirts, and tops should see you through many a month (especially if you buy well-coordinated separates that can generate many an outfit).

Also a special thank you to the person that sent me the book in the mail. I got this book from someone that replies to posts on this site and I visit their blog as well. Thank you again! It is entitled The Expectant Father: Facts, Tips, and Advice for Dads-to Be by Armin A. Brott and Jennifer Ash. I will make sure to post what I am reading about in other posts. Are there any other books that you would recommend?

Your Nose Always Knows: Nasal Stuffiness

I got the information below from the What to Expect website. You can sign up and they will send you information about what is happening both to the mother and the little one. I find the information to be interesting.

"Popping out of your clothes yet? You're getting to the point (if you're not there already) where the bulge in your belly says "baby" and not "fat." If you haven't been able to feel the top of your uterus yet, try again this week. Feel for it about three inches below your belly button.

But your uterus is not the only thing that's starting to swell. The mucous membranes of your nose may also start to swell from all the pregnancy hormones circulating in your body, which are also increasing blood flow there. The result? Your nose probably already knows: congestion, and possibly even nosebleeds. Unfortunately, the stuffiness may only get worse as your pregnancy progresses, but your practitioner will probably not prescribe any medications or antihistamine nasal sprays to help clear things up (but do ask if he or she recommends something else instead). You can safely try saline sprays or nasal strips, especially if the congestion takes a turn for the truly uncomfortable. A humidifier in your room and a little petroleum jelly dabbed under your nose may also help overcome the dryness associated with any congestion."

How common are nosebleeds and congestion. I am just starting to notice that my wife is congested?

A Scare with a Happy Ending: Fetal Doppler

Monday started out as one of those days that you hope you never have. We had a scheduled appointment with a specialist that we have been seeing after we lost our first pregnancy. The doctor went over all of our tests and things looked like they were going well. He then decided to use the fetal doppler to check for the baby's heart beat. He was unable to find one. I felt our hearts drop and began to think about what happened last time. Not again, I kept thinking. The doctor called the Ultrasound clinic and unable to get us in for an appointment until Wednesday. He indicated that it was still early and that he did not like to use the fetal doppler. The look on his face did not make me feel any better.

I know that waiting until Wednesday was not going to work, so we went down to the ultrasound clinic to see if we could get in any earlier. The lady at the desk said there may be a cancellation. She new what happened last time and told us that she would call us if something opened up, but could not promise anything. She did call a few hours latter and we did get in, I guess I can not complain about our health care system. I still can't believe that we got in. We went into the clinic scared and not sure what to expect. Well........ as they say a picture is worth a million words:



As you can see things worked out. The baby positioning caused us not to be able to hear the heartbeat when using the fetal doppler. We were able to hear the heartbeat during the ultrasound (music to our ears) but do to the positioning they could not determine if we are having a boy or a girl, only time will tell. Life could not be any better. What are your experiences with fetal dopplers?

Acupuncture and Pregnancy

Acupuncture and pregnancy. That is something that we have never even thought about. Have you heard anything about this? Below is a video that talks about the benefits of acupuncture during pregnancy.

MEME Tag

I got memed (Thank you 4 Time Father) at the time we lost our first pregnancy, May 26.

We are very excited to be expecting again. I can not believe that we are at week 13 already. I have not been posting because of the loss and decided to start posting after we passed the first trimester.

Well back to this meme thing. I had no idea what it meant at the time but here it is. What happens is that I got tagged from Thank you 4 Time Father. I need to then follow these Eight Rules:

• Each player must post these rules to begin the meme.
• Each player starts with eight random facts or habits about themselves.
• People who get tagged must blog about their eight things and post these rules.
  
• At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
• Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

• We lost our first pregnancy at roughly 13 weeks. That is where we are at right now and everything is looking good so far.
  
• I love watching football, especially the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
• Both me and my wife are teachers.
  
• I was introduced to blogging last year and enjoy communicating with people about technology and the excitement about pregnancy.
• In my spare time I love to travel and spending time with family/friends.
• I consider myself to be a lifelong learner and am always searching for ways to expand my knowledge.
• I enjoy coaching and officiating. I like to give back all of the support that I was given as a child.
• In April we will be parents for the first time. It is a little scary but we are learning as much as we can. Feel free to leave any suggestions for us.

1 New Baby Blog
People I am tagging.

Beagles & Babies
Tortoise Tales
AskMeanMom
Blogtography
The Heidinger's
Mummy Yiau, Dillon
Pregnancy, Parenthood and Career
My Pregnancy

Decisions

When we first got pregnant we went to the doctor to make sure that everything was fine. He first got us to both do blood work. We did not hear anything back from the results of our blood work, so we assumed that everything was fine. Well, that was potentially a bad mistake. After we found out that our baby had no heart beat, after 13 weeks, we also found out that we had non-compatible blood types. We were told that this did not cause us to lose our baby but my wife was given WinRho right away as our blood types did not match. We did a lot of reading online and we were both scared that having two different blood types could have made her infertile. When we went back to the doctor he told us that everything is fine and that we should be able to get pregnant again. We are both hoping that his happens soon. Please make sure to share any stories similar to this with us.

Bad News

Yesterday was a day that was very stressful I am relieved that the day is behind us. My wife had a miscarriage. I believe that this was in Gods hands and that there is a reason for these things to happen. Thank you for all of your support and comments along the way. I will be taking some time from posting for the time being. We both need some time to digest what has happened. We will take some time to heal but we are planning to try again.

Cord Blood Saving

What does everyone think about Cord Blood Banking? I was talking to a friend and they asked me what I thought about this. I went to the Cord Blood Society of Canada website and found the following information. Cord Blood is collected after a baby is safely delivered and it contains a rich source of stem cells. These cells can be used for life-saving and regenerative applications for stem cells and new applications for stems cells are being discovered everyday. What do you think ethically or as a parent/parent to be? Do any of you know, from first hand knowledge or from others who have done this? If so, how did it work?

Living close to Alberta I also found a link to the Alberta Cord Blood Bank. You can find a great deal of information here including a pamphlet with great information.

Happy Mother's Day

According to Wikipedia the history of Mother's Day is the following:

People in different countries celebrate Mother's Day on different days of the year because the day has a number of different origins. One school of thought claims this day emerged from a custom of mother worship in ancient Greece. Mother worship — which kept a festival to Cybele, a great mother of gods and the wife of Cronus; was held around the Vernal Equinox around Asia Minor and eventually in Rome itself from the Ides of March (March 15 to March 18). The Romans also had another holiday, Matronalia, that was dedicated to Juno, though mothers were usually given gifts on this day.

In the United States, Mother's Day was copied from England by social activist Julia Ward Howe after the American Civil War. Howe wrote the Mother's Day Proclamation. In the UK, the day now simply celebrates motherhood and thanking mothers. According to the National Restaurant Association, Mother's Day is now the most popular day of the year to dine out at a restaurant in the United States.

Besides dining out what are the best gifts for Mother's Day?

Worth Thinking About

I got one of those chain emails today, the ones I normally get frustrated when receiving and delete with a click of the mouse. For some reason I decided to read it and it continued to put things into perspective for me. Earlier this week during our scare made me think about what I was doing in life. Things that seemed to be important did not seem so important. How many times in life are we told that it is the little things in life that mean so much. We need to settle down and enjoy every moment in life and not just look for the grass that is greener on the other side. I guess the list from the chain letter below was a reminder for me. I hope that this helps you out in your busy lives and puts things back into perspective. Any solutions for our busy lives?

• Just for this morning, I am going to step over the laundry, and pick you up and take you to the park to play.
• Just for this morning, I will leave the dishes in the sink, and let you teach me how to put that puzzle of yours together.
• Just for this afternoon, I will unplug the telephone and keep the computer off, and sit with you in the backyard and blow bubbles.
• Just for this afternoon, I will not yell once, not even a tiny grumble when you scream and whine for the ice cream truck and I will buy you one if he comes by.
• Just for this afternoon, I won't worry about what you are going to be when you grow up, or second guess every decision I have made where you are concerned.
• Just for this afternoon, I will let you help me bake cookies, and I won't stand over you trying to fix them.
• Just for this afternoon, I will take us to McDonald's and buy us both a Happy Meal so you can have both toys.
• Just for this evening, I will hold you in my arms and tell you a story about how you were born and how much I love you.
• Just for this evening, I will let you splash in the tub and not get angry.
• Just for this evening, I will let you stay up late while we sit on the porch and count all the stars.
• Just for this evening, I will snuggle beside you for hours, and miss my favorite TV shows.
• Just for this evening when I run my finger through your hair as you pray, I will simply be grateful that God has given me the greatest gift ever given.

• And when I kiss you good night I will hold you a little tighter, a little longer. It is then, that I will thank God for you, and ask Him for nothing, except one more day.............

Huggies Virtual Room Creator

Huggies Virtual Room Creator is a web based program that allows you to decorate your baby's or toddler's room with the click of a mouse. I especially like the floor plan decorator as I was able to build a room with the actual dimensions of the room we will be using. At this site you can also do things like create a mosaic of you and your baby, create an online story book, look at products and view special offers. I know that I am beginning to sound like and advertiser but this site is a lot of fun.

Decorating the Baby Room

We have been gone for the last couple of days but I am ready to start posting again. Today, we started talking about decorating a baby room. At first I thought we should not paint this room, as we just painted it roughly two years ago, but my wife really wants to change the colour.

She is thinking about a light green colour and I think that would be OK because the football team I love is green and white.

I decided to do some searching on the Internet to find out what others think about painting a baby room.

Painting Baby's Room - Creative Ideas for Painting a Baby Nursery by Rebecca Johnson

This article gives the following suggestions:

• Stencil a board around the room
• Decorate and put up a chair rail around the room
• Paint vertical stripes around the room
• Paint a mural on one of the walls

Ideas for Decorating Baby Rooms, General Baby Room Decor and Nursery Decoration

This article gives the following suggestions:

• Coordinate nursery bedding and window coverings
• Use a calm color scheme (ie. mint green, aqua)
• see also Color Meaning, Color Psychology & Color Therapy

So when is it the right time to start to Decorate a Baby Room? Any suggestions when painting or decorating the room?

Gifts During Pregnancy

I was thinking about how lucky I am to have such a great wife when I started to think about what sort of gift she would like while, she is expecting. I decided to decorate the house tonight as she went to sleep early and buy her a nice house coat that she can use to relax in the house. What other gifts do you think would be appreciated by a women to make their pregnancy more enjoyable?

Pregnancy and Flying

In a couple of weeks my wife will be going on a trip and will be flying. We were visiting some family over the weekend and my wife started to talk about her upcoming trip. One person indicated that pregnant women should not be flying, neither one of us had heard of this before. This post will focus on information I can find on this topic.

Flying While Pregnant
Indicates that healthy pregnant women before the 36th week should be able to fly but should consult their doctor. It also points out that during the first trimester flying can make morning sickness worse.

Pregnancy and Flying
This is a set of questions and answers on fling and pregnancy.

BBC Parenting: Flying During Pregnancy
Information from Dr. Gill Jenkins about problems arising from flying during any stage of pregnancy.

What have you heard about flying and pregnancy?

Pregnancy Community Chat

I am currently talking to a group of people online. I sure think it is a big support to talk to others about things we are going through. I have asked the people that I am talking to, to add a comment about the things they are going through (ie. tired, sore, hungry). I guess I will see how this works.