Nathan & Fiona, Kaisa & Everett – Family Blog

Yesterday for Family Night we decided to put together a 72-hour Emergency Kit for our little family. Our ward has been pushing preparedness for some time and will be having an emergency drill on September 8th. I felt strongly that Nathan and I should follow the counsel of our Bishopric and of the Prophet and get this kit together so we could be sufficiently prepared in the event of a disaster. I went to this site to get an idea of what we needed, and added a few other things that I thought would come in handy in case of a disaster. In thinking about what we would need, I reflected on Hurricane Katrina and realized that if those families had prepared emergency kits like this one, they would have been in a much better situation when that disaster hit. I had a dream a while back that a disaster happened near our home, and in my dream I was not afraid, I just knew that we needed to get our kit and go, and we would be safe. Since that dream I have really wanted to get a kit together and knowing that we now have one, I have that same feeling of peace.

Here is what we put in our kit:

A change of clothing (including underwear) for each member of the family. Long pants and long-sleeved shirts

Fleece blankets and solar emergency blankets

Rain ponchos

Hand warmers (these are a gel packed in a plastic bag that you squish and they produce 18 hours of heat)

Emergency stoves (one for each day, you pop the lid off, light, and can use as a heat source for food)

Matches in a waterproof containter

Utility knife and can opener

Mess kit and “sporks” (we got them for $2.75 each at Out N’ Back)

Travel sized hygiene items, including folding toothbrushes, waschloth, comb, toothpaste, soap, etc.

Travel sized bottle of Tylenol, infant Tylenol, and Ibuprofen

Small First Aid Kit with manual

Cloth diapers, pins, vinyl pants, wipes

Feminine hygiene needs

Bleach in a small container and medicine droppers to disinfect and clean drinking water

Wind-up flashlight

72-hour food kits (We made these as a Relief Society activity using those vacuum sealers. I’ll put up the menu later.)

We packed all of these items in a large backpack so that when disaster strikes, we can just grab it and go.  In total, I think we spent around $60 or $70.  Not a large price to pay for a little security!  I remember making a kit like this with my family growing up, and it was such a neat feeling to know that we were doing something to be better prepared and follow the Prophet’s counsel. It was neat to have that feeling again as I did it with my own family.

I have decided that Glue Dots are one of the best inventions…ever…period!  Not only do they make scrapbooking so much easier, but they have dozens of other uses as well!  I just found a new one!

Kaisa is…well…to put it bluntly…bald.  I mean, she’s got a little fuzz up top, but not much more!  So barrettes are out of the question, and sometimes I hate to put those elastic headbands on her because I know they must bother her.  I bought these cute paper flowers at Walmart and wanted to stick one to her head somehow…suddenly, I remembered my trusty glue dots downstairs and ran down and stuck one to the back of a flower.  Then I stuck it to Kaisa’s head.  It stayed put the whole evening, and when I took it off of her before bed, it didn’t rip off her hair…she didn’t even notice it!  And I bet it still has enough stick in it for one or two more rounds!  I think I am going to make a bunch of cute bows and just stick them to her head with glue dots from now on…so simple and adorable!!

I have a couple more baby products to review on today. We finally installed some things in our car to make it more baby friendly, and here is my opinion of what we got:

Baby View Mirror-I purchased the Eddie Bauer Baby View Mirror from Target because it was only $10 and looked easy to install. Big mistake! As you can see from the reviews on Amazon, it is cheaply made and causes more trouble than it’s worth. The mirror hooks into the support with a ball and socket type of attachment, which is a good idea, except they didn’t use high quality materials or construction to do it. The mirror falls down on its own and is very easily moved when bumped, which happens every time I put Kaisa in her car seat. I always have to reach back and adjust it after I put her in. One time it fell completely off and in order to re-insert the mirror part, we had to take the whole thing out and it hasn’t gone back in since. I will probably end up trashing this one and getting something better soon, if not for the next baby. Spend a little more and get something worth using!

Sun Shades-We received these Sun Shades by The First Years as a shower gift and so far I really like them! They were easy to install, and seem very durable so far. They retract easily for those times when you don’t need them. There are two ways to secure them on the bottom…you can either use the suction cups or stick the included Velcro to the inside of the car door. We prefer the suction cups so we don’t have to worry about ruining the interior of the car, but they do pop off more easily so you want to make sure they are secured every now and then. It’s nice not to have to worry about the sun in Kaisa’s eyes, and it keeps the car a bit cooler when it’s parked in the hot summer sun.

In my last post I forgot to discuss another type of script that we used in our Hypnobirthing class. This one is often overlooked, but I think it is especially important to having a good birthing experience. It is called “fear release.” One of the Hypnobirthing concepts is that our birthing experience is largely affected by what we have heard and seen…which, unfortunately, comes largely from the media. Since birth is a very private experience, we don’t get a very realistic picture of what it is really like. Media portrays it as painful, traumatic, even comical. Often we hear stories from friends and family about how horrible their birth was as they try to “one up” each other. If we are constantly bombarded with these stories and pictures, of course we are going to go into it with some fear and false ideas! This is why we go through at least one fear release session during the four week class.

The script for this session was very effective. We were prompted by Monica to picture our fears, one by one, thank them for what they had done for us, and erase them from a “screen” on which we had placed them. After they were “erased,” we were to no longer have that fear. I was very fortunate in that I had a very vivid dream later in my pregnancy about my birth that helped me define exactly what my fears about birth were. For me, I was afraid of having an episiotomy, having to switch care providers due to complications, and slow labor. I was able to use my fear release session to get rid of these fears and thankfully I was not worried about them at all after that. I went into my birth having no fear and ready to accept whatever came and trust in my body. Those things I was most afraid of were not a part of my birth. However, had one of them happened, I feel that I would have been able to accept it without fear or disappointment.

What I would most desire for women reading this who struggle with fears and apprehensions about birthing is to ELIMINATE your fears! They have no place in birthing and only serve to stress you out and may even become self-fulfilling prophecies! If you have a lot of fear, try to find someone who can help you release those fears through hypnosis or some other means. You will be glad you did!

Sorry it’s taken me so long to get to this second post! You know how life goes…

Anyway, I have given a lot of thought as to what to write this next post on, and I’ve decided to just dispel common myths about hypnobirthing. I too thought that it was for wierdo-hippie type women who want to have all their babies at home in their bathtubs. Boy was I wrong! So here’s what hypnobirthing is really like–or my version, anyway. I think everyone kinda makes it their own.

Let’s start with Hypnosis-or, rather, self-hypnosis. The “self” part is important, because it clears up a very common misunderstanding about the word “hypnosis.” When most people hear that word, they think of someone watching a pendulum go back and forth with their eyes until they are in a trance-like state, after which the person hypnotizing them makes them do all sorts of weird things they aren’t aware of. How untrue! Hypnosis is actually a self-induced state of deep relaxation. Many tools can be used to reach this state, but it is always reached because someone has allowed themselves to reach it, not because someone forced it upon them.

In our hypnobirthing classes, we practiced this hypnosis frequently. I was amazed at how well it worked and how I was able to achieve it with very little effort. Our teacher used imagery, music, and sometimes physical prompts to aid us in reaching our deeply relaxed state. The scripts that we listened to talked of a beautiful waterfall, a rainbow with different colored mists, or a comfortable room with all of our favorite things…as we concentrated on these comforting, relaxing images, our bodies became totally relaxed and limp and we were not aware of many of the things going on around us. During one hypnosis session, our instructor actually came around and pinched the skin of each women’s hand with one of those tight metal alligator clips. I am not kidding when I tell you that I barely felt it. Had I not been in the relaxed state I was in, I am certain I would have yelped in pain! This technique really does work!

For many women, like myself, it does take practice. You are kidding yourself if you think that going into this state while having intense second-stage contractions is easy!!! It was actually quite difficult for me to achieve that same state during labor, and I’m not sure I ever really did. However, since I had practiced at home by listening to the music and scripts and creating my own version of the powerful imagery used, I was able to handle labor surges MUCH more easily than I think I could have without. Yes, I still felt pain. Sometimes it was almost more than I thought I could handle. But with the soothing music and my sweet husband performing the relaxation and counter pressure techniques we had learned, I made it through and had the most wonderful, beautiful birthing experience I could have ever wanted. I am being COMPLETELY honest when I say that I would change NOTHING about it!

Let me end by discussing briefly some of the hypnobirthing techniques. First, as I mentioned, we used “scripts” to create a calm, relaxing place that I could go to in my mind to help achieve hypnosis. These scripts are usually a couple pages long and are like a story that you are picturing yourself in. Someone, like your spouse or a doula, reads them to you while you are birthing (or practicing) or you can also listen to them on an ipod. I even had Nathan record some of them onto my ipod so he wouldn’t have to read them in the hospital. Our instructor, Monica, provided several for us. You can pick and choose the ones that work best for you, and cross out any lines that don’t apply or that you find distracting.

Scripts are even more effective when read over music. I went with the recommendation from Monica and purchased two relaxation CD’s that I absolutely LOVE–Liquid Mind and Comfort Zone. Once I had practiced with the scripts enough, I could pop in one of these CD’s alone and just go with my own imagery. Not only is the music beautiful, it provides a soothing, calming atmosphere in the hospital room for your baby to enter when he/she finally arrives!

We also learned several quicker relaxation techniques for when labor has started and those surges start coming strong. These included eye tiring (keeping your eyes open until you can’t stand it and finally letting them close), the depthometer (imagining a relaxing liquid filling your body, starting from head down to toes), and the light imagery (like depthometer, but a warm light instead of liquid). These can be very effective if you practice them often, especially with distractions.

A couple of other images we used had to do with uterine surges, the cervix opening, and breathing through contractions. We had to be careful with these as they have been known to start labor and you don’t want to do that too soon. I did use these a LOT when I was overdue, but I don’t think it worked! LOL! Anyway, one is to picture the muscles of your uterus expanding like blue ribbons as the surge carries the baby downward. The other is to picture the cervix opening like a rose (cheesy, I know, but it’s actually quite effective to speed up labor).

Finally, we were taught several physical relaxation techniques that can be performed by a spouse or doula. First, light touch massage. This was wonderful and really helped me focus on something besides the contractions! This is where the companion lightly runs his/her fingers up and down your back and shoulders. Next is counterpressure. There are a few different kinds; the one that worked best for me was to have Nathan apply direct, firm pressure with his hands on my hips and push my hip bones together while I sat on the birth ball (exercise ball). This relieved a lot of the pressure. There is also the knee press, which is amazing when you are lying in the bed on your back, and one where the companion puts pressure on your tailbone. Sounds strange, but they really work!! There are also lots of different labor positions to experiment with, and it’s good to practice these while practicing your hypnosis before baby comes. Then you have a lot of options ready for when the time comes.

I hope that this has helped clear up misunderstandings about Hypnobirthing and that those of you who were questioning it will reconsider! It’s not weird, I promise! It’s a beautiful way to welcome your baby and give him/her the gift of a calm, easy, drug-free entrance into the world!