SPUD: Organic Grocery Delivery Service

Last week we decided to order from SPUD, a local organic grocery delivery service. We are getting another delivery again tomorrow. I am super excited about it and I wish we started doing this earlier!

Since I started on as a case study volunteer with a dear friend of mine, Rae-lynn, who is studying to become a nutritionist, we as a family have been trying to mostly eat unprocessed and organic. She is particularly interested in nutrition during pregnancy and post postpartum and one of my biggest complaints during pregnancy is how tired I am. Rae-lynn explained to me how when we are eating food with additives, pesticides, preservatives, you name it, our bodies have to work really hard to break down these chemicals or will even be confused about what to do with them. Our bodies are being overrun. Many of these chemicals will stay in the body being shuffled around from organ to organ because the body just doesn't know what to do with them. Sounds tiring.

Our family was already eating "happy meat" at home, since we stopped being vegetarians (I could write a whole other post about this), that's hormone free and organically raised, so it wasn't a big jump for us to start looking for organic everything else too.

The biggest reason we weren't eating organic everything already, was the price... We are willing to pay more for organic meat because we only eat meat up to twice a week at home. When I see cheap meat on sale that seems "too good to be true" my thoughts are: someone had to pay... meaning the poor animal, and probably the workers at the farm, processing/slaughterhouse, and grocery store. When I saw cheap produce I didn't care so much, but as Rae-lynn intelligently pointed out, you won't have to buy as much because organic food is REAL food: it is more nutritional and more satisfying.

After a week of eating about 80% organic all of the time I really noticed a difference with my energy levels. Also, I wasn't having any notorious pregnant lady uncontrollable cravings... no cravings at all actually. I was feeling very satisfied and my mood was even more controllable. YAY! So I'm definitely a believer. Organic makes a big difference.

We live in North Delta, so we don't have any big organic grocers like Choices, Capers, or Whole Foods (we lovingly call "Whole Paycheck") nearby. We have a small organic grocery store about 25 minutes from here and then a small selection of organic veggies and fruit at the regular old Save-on Foods and Superstore. I need to go to all three of these grocery stores to get enough organic groceries to last us for the week. It is time consuming, uneconomical (there is lots of driving) and really annoying to say the least.

One night, a couple weeks ago now, I started to look into getting a CSA share (Community Supported Agriculture). We really wanted to get one last year, but we were to late on the draw and couldn't find any farms who had shares left. There are lots available now though for this year! But, we couldn't find any that had a pick up location that was closer to us than White Rock... drive out to White rock every Sunday? No thanks... the other option was to become a "pick-up location" for other share holders of the program. This idea was tempting, but then I had visions of having to answer the door in my nighty with a new baby at my breast and Ezra running around naked when someone wanted to pick up their produce... no thank-you. Maybe we will look into this again when the kids are a bit older.

Then, I remembered about SPUD (Sustainable Produce Urban Delivery): a service that my employers at Pyrrha used to use. Pyrrha ordered fresh fruit for us, who worked in the studio, and I remembered really enjoying it. Pretty awesome employers, right? I checked out SPUD's website and found out that when they started, they were actually inspired by a CSA program. They only stock organic groceries, they concentrate and value supporting local farmers and other types of food suppliers which we do too! PLUS they offer free delivery on most orders (for us we need to order at least $50 worth from them to qualify).

I was able to order everything organic from SPUD that we need for the week, including milk, meat, snacks, bread alongside fresh fruits and veggies. Not only do I not have to haul my very pregnant self and toddler out to go to three different stores now, but we got everything delivered to our door packaged carefully in a reusable Rubbermaid bin. 

Back to my biggest original concern about buying organic... it can be pricey. At SPUD, their prices are fairly competitive. I've compared and found that their meat is the same, if not a little cheaper than the closest local organic grocery store by our house. Their produce is priced similar to what I've found and the store, but I am assuming that once our local farmers are in growing season again this will get better since we plan on buying and eating produce that is in season to our area. I should also say, that the produce I got from SPUD was much nicer! It was fresher! Its probably because not as many people value organic in the area we live, but the produce in the stores here is always withered, and small.

This weeks order

There are other ways we can plan to save time and money using SPUD besides the obvious one being saving money on gas such as: buying in case lots, shopping their weekly specials, creating a standing order (which they offer 5% off of many items when you do this), and taking advantage of their referral program.

Why didn't I do this sooner? Is all I have to ask.

Enjoy!
Gabrielle

3rd Trimester Buddies

I'm full term now, well in my thirst trimester with baby #2. Since I wrote about what got me through my first and second trimesters, I thought I might as well share what has helped with the last! As I look at this collage I notice they all have to do with getting sleep in one way or the other. Good sleep is so so so important at this stage! I don't want to be tired when I go into labor. Its getting harder to fall asleep and stay asleep these days.

Here are some items I have found helpful during this time: 

1. A good lip balm! I've been enjoying Burt Bee's Lip Balm Tube on my lips. I'm sure it has as much to do with the fact that its winter, more than the fact that I'm in my third trimester... but I've been definitely been needing a moisture barrier at night. I've read that it is common, but I can't breathe through my nose as well now (due to the increase of blood) and breathe through my mouth when I am sleeping. I wake up and my mouth is super dry and lips are too if I forget to apply some balm before I fall asleep.

2. On my iphone, I've downloaded this marvelous little app called Relax Melodies by Ipnos Soft. It's been a real life saver/ sleep saver. It's 20 steps up from the sound machine Ezra had in his room. I use the app for the same idea we used Ezra's when he was a baby: it drowns out other noises that might keep you up or wake you from your slumber. It features 94 high quality sounds, including 6 binaural beats frequencies that will help your brain do things like concentrate, have a dreamless sleep, or relax. The sounds can be custom mixed at different volume levels and then saved as "favorites".

It's $2.99 for the premium version and worth every penny. I first stared with the free version, which is also amazing and includes my favourite relaxing sounds and the ability to save your mixes. One of the reasons why I bought it was because I felt like I really wanted to support such an amazing app... Like a way to say thank-you, but you get even more!

I use it every time I take a nap on the weekend when other people are awake. I don't think I would be able to sleep at this time without it. Instead of setting an alarm to wake me up, I set the sounds on a timer, then when they stop, the world just wakes me up.

I also plan on using this app during labour. I'm sure it's go into be awesome because for my first experience I wanted the same song on the whole time. I was fine with it, but it drove everyone else nuts. There are sound options on this app that are ambient enough to not get annoying after 10 hours, but with enough interest tho them that I think I will be able to focus on with helping me breathe through contractions. We will see... I'll try to remember to post an update after labor.

3. Brita Water Bottle - Is another repeat item from my 1st trimester collage, and second. It is so important to stay hydrated through the entire pregnancy and with this water bottle, I can have filtered water anywhere. I also keep it on my nightstand now so that I don't have to sit up in bed so that I don't spill all over myself.

4. I don't need no fancy wedge shaped or body shaped pillows... give me three plain old pillows and they do the job fine! One under my head, one between my knees and one to hold onto against my chest to keep my shoulders open for breathing easy. I've tried the wedge shaped ones and they don't conform as well to the body's curves, I've also tried the long body ones, and they are just ridiculous to me, plus they are hard to adjust if you want to flip over onto your other side (which I do at least 10 times a night now).

5. Stretch Mark Prevention Oil - By Escents. Prevention is the best treatment. This is a repeat from my 2nd Trimester Collage as well. It didn't work for me with my first pregnancy, probably because I gain way way too much weight. This time my weight is on target and no new stretch marks! Woohoo! I like to put this oil on after an evening shower/bath. This massage oil contains some amazing ingredients to help keep the tummy from marking plus the lavender essential oil in it also promotes sleep!

6. Sports Cross-over Bra is another repeat from my 2nd Trimester. The ladies grow, get heavier and need support at night. I got both my two cotton bras for $20 at the Bay. I will probably use them all through the nursing stage too.

7. A bowl of nuts is the perfect night table companion. They are full of essential nutrients and are filling enough to help beat night time hangry attacks in a jiffy so you can go back to sleeping.

8. There is nothing worse than keeping yourself awake, thinking about all of the things you need to get done before baby arrives. I've found that the best thing to do is write it down and tell myself, "The most important thing for me to do right now is to rest. The things I'm thinking about getting done will be here, on this list, when I wake up. They won't get done if I don't rest now because I won't have the energy later." Plain logic, I know, but sometimes things get a bit crazy!

I should say, the most important thing during this last trimester has been my support people. My family, my husband, my friends, my amazing midwife and my nutritionist. I don't think I'm the only pregnant lady to say this, but I've felt really vulnerable, emotionally and physically. Its important to have people that will protect you and build you up: people that will take the time to listen to you and try and understand how you are doing, especially if the answer is, "not very well."

Take care!
Enjoy your day.

Happy New Year?

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Year! We definitely fell of the map these last couple weeks, but with a good excuse... WE WERE SO SICK!

Jesse and I agree that neither one of us had EVER been so sick before. It was really rough and I still haven't recovered, energy wise, from it. All three of us were sick for about 10 days. Our first born got sick first, then Jesse, then me. It is not fun to be 8.5 months pregnant and sick, even if its just a cold, never mind the Norovirus (we are fairly certain this was what it was, or at least we had the same symptoms as this).

It has took me a while to change my bad attitude, because I felt like all of my hopes for the holidays have been dashed... but now I can see all of the things that I am really thankful for.

1. Mom and Dad - We were so super sick, that we couldn't get out to get the stuff we needed like Gatorade and Children's Tylenol. My parents gladly delivered these items and other items to our door.

2. Timing - Although it was terrible being sick and pregnant, I am SO SO thankful that Jesse happened to have the week off for the Christmas Holidays. We took turns taking turns and taking care of our first born  and when the three of us were super sick, we kept each other company in bed.

3. BC's Nurses hot line 8-1-1 - I'm no nurse... and I was so thankful that we could call a nurse from home to help us confidently access our situation. The last place I want to be is in the hospital, but if you need to go, you need to go right?

4. Disposable Diapers -  We have been cloth diapering our first born since he was a month old, and I really like to and am a huge believer in it, but boy was I thankful for disposables when we were sick. We could barely get out of bed at times so we set up a change station just outside of our room. I really don't have a problem dealing with the #2 diapers, especially since we have a Bum Genius Diaper Sprayer, but our first born had diarrhea every hour once day, and those diapers are much trickier to clean. Never mind the smell, and being sick yourself.

5. My Midwife! - Being pregnant, and sick, can be scary. I wasn't scared for myself, but I was concerned about the little one growing inside of me. Our midwife lets us text her with questions, and when I let her know how sick I was she called me right away. She suggested that I drink very weak tea, and to try and eat bananas and plain rice to help rehydrate and get some energy back. It worked and I was able to avoid going to the hospital (like Jesse and our first born had to) since I started to feel much better after following her instructions.

And now, its time to move on, with a heart FULL of gratitude and thankfulness in anticipation for a great new year! Hello 2013!!

It's just not happening

So, I feel like an explanation is in order. I haven't given into the "frumpy dumps" but I also haven't been taking photos of any outfits. My dear husband, Jesse usually takes my tummy photos for me, but he has been working late these last few weeks so we haven't been able to get any photos before the sun goes down.

We did get one yesterday though! It's a bit blurry but its the best we could do.

Enjoy the craziness of the last week before Christmas everyone!!

27 weeks Mama Style

 
This weeks photos are special since they are part of a family photo shoot my dear talented friend Andrea did for us. Her and I go way back to our elementary school days; fighting on the playground and chasing boys. We have watched each other grow up, get married and have babies! There are few friends that I have been able to keep in touch with as long as I have with her, and I am truly thankful to God to have a friend like her. Its a friendship that is as "good as gold" as they say.

I didn't even know that she started to do wedding/ special event photos until a couple weeks ago while our sons were enjoying a play date. Her site with her work is here: http://anestephotography.carbonmade.com and is definitely worth checking out.

Outfit Details:
- ivory silk blouse - was my grandma's
- red cardigan - Target
- skirt - thrifted
- vintage brass locket - my mother gave it to me when I was a tiny little girl.

26 weeks Mama Style

 

I'm only 26 weeks pregnant?! I'm definitely starting to feel larger. The great part is though, is feeling the baby move around. I am so thankful for this little one and its movements are a great reminder that all of the discomfort isn't for nothing.

 Up until now, in this 2nd trimester, I have had energy to get stuff done in preparation for the third trimester like deep cleaning our home, making and packing away food in the deep freezer and reorganizing spaces to make space. It feels really good. Today, when Jesse came home, I just looked at him and said, "I think I'm done." I meant, the crazy "get things done" nights. I still have lots on my to do list before the baby comes, but they will have to wait for the weekends.

Outfit Details:
- vintage dress - thrifted
- sweater - Target
- boots - urban outfitters
- belt - Old Navy
- focal necklace - handmade by me PiecesIEnjoy

24 weeks Mama Style

Its been super rainy here in the Lower Mainland, which is why I had to skip out on week 23! Here is week 24 though. All bundled up at the park.

Might have been just me, but when I was a little girl I had a pretty good appetite. Some people would even comment on it, "She's a growing girl." I kind of feel like that again since I am hungry almost all of the time right now.

I have also been nesting this week! Its kind of crazy because its seems really early to be baking, cooking and cleaning more than normal. It makes sense though. With my first pregnancy I felt like I couldn't do ANYTHING for the last couple month so maybe I'm just preparing for that happening again. Hopefully not. Hoping for the best this time around as the third trimester approaches.

Outfit Details:
- vintage coral coat - thrifted
- striped cream cami - Romy
- ultra light pink cardigan - Plenty
- spotted scarf - Esprit
- black rubber boots - Joe Fresh
- white belt - second hand

22 weeks Mama style

This is week 22. The time is just flying by! I have hardly had a chance to even start thinking about getting stuff we might need for baby #2. I guess we pretty much have everything we really need though from baby #1 still, unless its a girl? I really couldn't say if I 'felt' like it was one way or the other. It kind of seems unreal to me still...

Outfit Details:
- stripey vintage sweater - thrifted
- denim button up - Dex
- black skinny maternity jeans - Zara
- brown hiking boots - Thinsulate
- vintage anchor pin - my mom gave it to me. she bought it when she went to Hawaii when she was a teen!

21 Weeks Mama Style

 

21 weeks here after a sushi feast. I stuck to the artificial Cali rolls and the cooked stuff. I am feeling the baby's kicks get stronger now, and feeling more and more tired and hungry during the day. Its all part of it though and I'm glad!

We got to go for an ultrasound this week too! We aren't going to find out the gender of the baby this time like we did with baby #1. All we know is this baby has the right amount of everything. YAY!

Outfit Details:
- beige blouse - thrifted
- tweed full skirt - thrifted
- chocolate knee highs - Jacob
- boots - Urban Outfitters
- red cardigan - Winners
- belt - Old Navy

Enjoy!
Gabrielle

1st Trimester Nausea Buster Buddies

During my first trimester with both pregnancies, my biggest problem was with nausea. I don't claim to be an expert, and every pregnancy is different, but here are a few items that helped me get through my first trimester this pregnancy that I wish I knew about when I was pregnant with our first baby.

 

1. Strong Hair Elastics - Mine are the Goody Extra thick Ouchless ones. I kept my hair back for almost the entire first trimester because I had a lot of vomiting, so this is an obvious one. 

2. Brita Water Bottle - This has been a life saver. If I drank too much water at a time I would throw up, so if I sipped all day long whenever I could I stayed hydrated enough not to land myself in the hospital. Also, wherever I went I could fill it because there is a filter right inside the bottle. I don't know if this is TMI, but if I was out and happened to throw up, I really wanted to have something to wash my mouth out with.

3. Lip Stain - By Benefit. When I did go out, I chose a lip stain instead of a lipstick. With a lip stain, I could drink my water without having to worry about smudging and reapplying. I also liked it because I can't even tell that I am wearing it whereas lipstick I can. 

4. Rejuvenating Aroma blend by Escents -  I am a big fan of this company since I used to work for them and fell in love with the product. I carried this little bottle around with me in case I encountered an offsetting triggering smell like cooked onions, garlic, or bad BO. I suppose this smell might not work for someone else and they could try others, but I would always consult an aromatherapist or sales associate to make sure that the essential oils are safe for pregnancy.

5. Rejuvenating Body Lotion by Escents - In preparation for some major skin stretching, but too early for the heavy duty stuff. Plus, the heavy duty stuff I use had an offsetting smell. Grapefruit oil is good for promoting circulation too (it is a lymphatic stimulant), in addition to rubbing the cream on the skin as well. Circulation in the skin helps cellular repair, decreases varicose vein development and helps with cellulite.

6. Ginger Candy - I buy mine from Chinese grocery stores, but I've seen a very similar candy sold at health food stores. The candy is soft and sweet with a very strong ginger taste. Ginger helps ward off nausea and I found helped me get a bit of an appetite. 

7. Brown Paper Bags - They are cheap, they can be folded into your purse or tucked into your pocket for emergency up chucks. I also breathed inside them if there was a bad smell around me. 

8. Stone Wheat Thins - Sometimes a dry cracker is all I could eat. Tasteless, dry crackers. They really helped settle my stomach. 

There are lots of other things that I've heard helped women through their first trimesters and they didn't work for either of mine. The one I most commonly hear is peppermint tea. I tried it during my first pregnancy and I still to this day can't drink peppermint tea because I threw up so badly after drinking it. Maybe it was too late? Who knows. 

The first trimester is so exciting and it should be! Any little thing that helps should be used and abused. Especially if you are trying to keep the pregnancy on the down low. I was not able to keep either one of my pregnancies a secret from my family because I was so nauseous. I tried taking Diclectin (prescribed by my doctor), but it didn't work unfortunately. 

In the grand scheme of things though, the first trimester of pregnancy is just a fraction of the rest of your life. It is temporary and well worth it. It helped having the support of my mom and husband. It helped especially when they reminded me of the sweet little baby that comes at the end of all of this. The second time around, it was also incredible to have Ezra with me every day, distracting me, needing me, and pretending to throw up with me even. His very existence reminded me that all of the sickness is for a wonderful reason. Its so important to try and stay as positive as possible in all stages through pregnancy and postpartum and to surround one's self with things and people that can help one achieve a positive and thankful outlook. 

Have you or are you pregnant right now? What little things did you find helpful or find are helping you through the day if you are feeling sick?

A Formal Evening Mama Style

Last Weekend we attended Ezra's first wedding! He was pretty good for being 19 months old and having a short attention span. We sat in the back row just in case :)
I had an outfit in mind that I was going to wear, but I popped out more that week so it didn't fit right anymore. Instead of panicking, I looked in my closet to problem solve. I have this full black skirt that I thought wouldn't work, but I tried it on and it did! Its supposed to sit lower on your waist, but I pulled it up over the baby bump and it worked! I paired it with a non maternity top since I didn't need to worry about the tummy showing with the skirt on top and here is what I had! I also had a little light brown sweater but I didn't get a chance to get a good picture if me wearing it. Oh well.
In my humble opinion, the accessories and the hair really pulled this look off.

Outfit details:
- dark blue tank - soaked in luxury
- full black skirt - Jacob (from 9 years ago!)
- navy shoes - Hand me downs from my sister in law
- tapestry bag - a gift from my Auntie Brenda
- jewellery - my own handmade, some from school and some from PiecesIEnjoy
Enjoy
Gabrielle

20 weeks Mama style

This is week 20! I'm half way there. It is really true that the time seems to fly when it is your second pregnancy. I am feeling the baby move finally. I was surprised because I felt Ezra move at 17 weeks when I was a first time mom. It is usually supposed to be the other way around: second time moms are supposed to feel their babies move sooner than first time moms. Either way, its an exciting time to be pregnant! 

There are these beautiful sunflowers that have finally bloomed in front of out kitchen window. I hope that I will have a chance to harvest them before the frost comes. 

  

 

 

 

Outfit Details: 

- coral and lace top - thrifted

- maternity indigo jeggings - Thyme 

- moccasins - Winners

- brown belt - Old Navy

- jewellery - Pieces I Enjoy  and the locket is a retro one from my mom. 

Enjoy! 

Gabrielle

Birthday Date!

Friday night, we celebrated my 28th birthday. These pictures were taken behind Jesse's work's building in yale town before we hit the town.

19 week baby bump!

Outfit details
- black and white striped cami - Winners
- mustard sweater - Target
- floral screenprinted scarf - thrifted
- maternity pants - Zara
- sandals - Urban Outfitters
- black square cocktail ring and earrings - PiecesIEnjoy 
- silk purse - my auntie gave it to me when I was little