VancouverMom.ca launched!

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to let you know that I've just launched VancouverMom.ca and this blog is no longer active. Be sure to check us out!



Thanks,
Christine

Ravelry

Having kids has re-awakened my love of knitting. I learned how to knit when I was about seven years old and burned myself out after knitting a sleeveless, shapeless sweater for myself. I had cast-off so tightly that I could barely get my little arms through the armholes.

When I was about 18, I picked up the knitting spirit again when I met Jesse and thought I should create the obligatory boyfriend sweater. I knit the thing way too loose and long, so it really should fit a guy who is about a foot taller and about 100 pounds heavier. Bless him, he still has it tucked away in the back corner of his closet (albeit with some shaming after he asked me if he should donate it to Goodwill).

Then in my early twenties, I decided that I would knit "more seriously". Using the same pattern for Jesse's sweater, I made a new and improved sweater for my sister. By then, I found out how to control the tension on the yarn. I also made my mom a cabled cardigan for her birthday.

And then my knitting laid dormant until I was pregnant with Audrey. By the time she was born, I had knit her a baby blanket and two sweaters. I went on to knit her another hooded sweater.

At six months old, Grace has one sweater and I'm working on another for when she turns one.

In this new era of knitting, I've come across this great knitting site: www.ravelry.com. It's still in beta, but it takes only a few days to get your invite to join. Awesome site. I'm obsessed in finding other examples of projects that use the yarn that I'm using.

gDiapers

My sister sent me this link to a really cool product for those of you who are wondering if they should go with cloth or disposable diapers:

http://www.gdiapers.com/

The diaper consists of a reusable outer pant, and an internal flushable liner. Pretty cool!

Here in Toronto we are fortunate to have the green bin recycling program, which allows us to "recycle" our disposable diapers. The program turns organic materials (including diapers and kitty litter!) into high-quality commercial grade compost that can be sold to farmlands. It's pretty amazing. I'm not sure why ALL cities haven't jumped on board this program, but really it's something to have your city look into.

I found this article that provides some good links about the cloth vs. disposable debate. Really, why aren't the diaper companies more accountable? In our world where going green is getting super trendy, they really need to get with the program. Five-hundred years to biodegrade a diaper is not just unacceptable - it's irresponsible.

Follow the links in that article and contact Pampers and Huggies if you want to let them know how you think. Better yet, just click on these links, below:

Pampers:

http://pgcanadaen.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/pgcanadaen.cfg/php/enduser/ask.php

Huggies:

http://www.huggieshappybaby.com/utility/contactus.aspx

The Business of Being Born

People are often dumbfounded when I tell them I had Grace at home. They ask me, "You mean, on purpose? Or was it by accident?" The straight-up answer is, YES, I meant to have her at home. I'll probably blog about my reasons why sometime.

For now, I wanted to share an invitation sent to me by my midwife.

The Association of Ryerson Midwifery Students (ARMS) invites you to an exclusive screening of the Business of Being Born: A new documentary produced by Ricki Lake.

Monday February 11 2008
TIme: 730pm
Place: Lib 72, 350 Victoria St. Ryerson University

Birth: it's a miracle. A rite of passage. A natural part of life. But more than anything, birth is a business. Compelled to find answers after a disappointing birth experience with her first child, actress Ricki Lake recruits filmmaker Abby Epstein to examine and question the way American women have babies.

The film interlaces intimate birth stories with surprising historical, political and scientific insights and shocking statistics about the current maternity care system. When director Epstein discovers she is pregnant during the making of the film, the journey becomes even more personal.

Should most births be viewed as a natural life process, or should every delivery be treated as a potentially catastrophic medical emergency?"

$2 for students and $4 general admission

For more information on the movie:
http://www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com/

First and Best '07

The Toronto Public Library has put together their First and Best Kids Books of 2007. You can find it here:
http://kidsspace.torontopubliclibrary.ca/genCategory17398.html