HOW TO CURE ITCHINESS DURING PREGNANCY

Several weeks ago, my belly started itching.  I didn't have a rash and my skin wasn't really stretched yet, so it wasn't just a normal itchy pregnant belly (if there is such a thing).  This was crazy itchy.  I couldn't stop itching.  Scratching was not offering relief.  I couldn't sleep for two days.  Two days of no sleep + itchy, itchy, itchy skin + wild toddler = slightly crazy mom.  On the second night of no sleep, I found myself googling my situation and realized it might actually be my liver causing this insane itchiness.  So, after waiting until a more respectable hour, I texted my midwife.  She sent me a magical recipe for a liver detox that changed. my. life.

Ingredients:

2 cups of white grape juice

2 cups of apple juice

2 cups of cranberry juice

1/4 cup of Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar with the 'Mother'

Make sure and use juice with NO ADDED SUGAR.

Directions:

1.  Mix ingredients together.

2.  Take 2-3 tablespoons every 3 hours, for a minimum of 4 times a day (ideally with meals).

Within a couple of days, the itchiness was completely gone.  Shut the front door!  After a couple of weeks, I stopped taking the detox.  If I noticed any itching starting up again, I resumed taking 3 tablespoons and it would again, quickly disappear.

I wanted to share this because a lot of pregnant women are prescribed medications, which always carry a risk.  Some women are even induced because the itchiness is so bad, which I totally get.  I probably would have started pulling my hair out if I had to go another night without sleep!

Hopefully this helps some other poor, itchy mamas out there desperate for relief!

Disclaimer:  This is not medical advice, just my personal experience.  You should still consult with your doctor or midwife about any pregnancy concerns.  

29 WEEK BUMP

ASOS Skater Dress in Leopard Print

How far along: 29 weeks

Due: Thanksgiving 2015

Gender: Don't know, won't know.  

Weight gain: about 25 lb.

Belly button in or out: Just flat

Sleep: Meh.  It definitely would be better if I wasn't waking up constantly to pee.  

Movement: Lots of partying is going on from bedtime until the early morning hours.  Hopefully this changes when the baby's born.   

Cravings: Pears.  I love pears.  And honey mustard, which is totally new because I've never been a fan.
Food aversion: None that I can think of.  

Feeling: Pretty good!

Fun fact: Baby Polk weighs a little over 3 pounds and is the size of a butternut squash!

Birth plan update: A couple of months ago I started having some spotting, which was nerve-racking, to say the least.  Though I'm still seeing my midwife regularly, I've also met with a high-risk OB (one who's natural birth friendly) to monitor things.  Turns out my placenta is low, but the good news is 90-95% of the time it moves where it's supposed to as the uterus grows.  If it moves where it's supposed to, I'm good to go with the home birth.  If it doesn't move, it's a total game changer.  I'll have to have a hospital birth, possibly even a C-section.  We'll know more in about a month, so in the meantime, prayers are appreciated.  

Violet update: Ever since Violet started talking a lot more, she hasn't been napping.  This is week three of mutiny no naps.  

Naps used to look like this----I'd lay her down and say, "I love you.  Night, night," and Violet would say, "Nigh, nighhhhhh," then fall asleep within about 15 minutes.  

Here's what naps look like now----I'll lay her down and say, "I love you.  Night, night," and Violet says, "Nigh, nighhhhh," then after about 3 minutes, she'll escape out of her sleep sack and and jump up ad down in her crib singing "Twinkle, Twinkle" or to her "Cinco, Cinco" for like an hour until she wants out and starts yelling, "Maaaammmmaaaaaa!"  

I've reached out to some other moms and it seems my chances are about 50/50 that she'll resume her naps.  I'm not really likin' those odds.   

22 MONTHS OLD

At 22 months old, my baby girl definitely isn't a baby anymore.  She is for real talking now.  I've said before how quickly she's been picking up new words.  Now it's like warp speed.  She is learning new words lightening fast.  In a matter of a couple of weeks, her vocabulary has quadrupled.  It's nuts.

Violet has shown an eagerness to learn new words.  She hands me things to tell her what they are and then she'll try her best to repeat it.  Some of my favorite learning tools that she also loves are her alphabet puzzle, number puzzle, her bath letters and numbers, and her learning flashcards.  (Right now, she's only using the alphabet, colors and shapes, first words, and numbers decks.)

Some of her other favorite things are:

Favorite activities: Jumping all over the house.  And every time she jumps, she says, "hop! hop! hop!"  Impromptu dance parties.  She also likes to chat on her play phone.  Whoever she talks to must be pretty funny too, because she is always laughing.  And she loves to read under blanket forts, but it's even better if Neil's in there, too.

Favorite song: "The Wheels On the Bus" and I'm almost positive it's because she especially likes the part where the "people go up and down, up and down, up and down" so she has another excuse to jump.

Favorite book: I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen.  Violet is sorta obsessed with this book.  It gets read probably a dozen times a day, at least.  She also has a slight obsession with hats, so she really, really likes to wear a hat while reading it.  And ideally, everyone else in the room is also wearing a hat or two.  (I should mention, most things can be hats----shorts, towels, tupperware, etc., so no one has an excuse to be hatless.)

Favorite foods: Pomegranate seeds, cantaloupe, and cheese.

Favorite toys: Her puzzles, and she really enjoys coloring and stickers.

We make her sing for her supper!  Now that she's a full swing talking toddler, she's gonna have to pull her weight!

This is such a fun age...definitely my favorite so far!  I love that we can be silly with her and she is just as silly back.  It's so much fun to see how excited she gets when she's learned something new.  I hope she always has this love for life and learning.