When I was in high school, I would visit a shop with my friends called Kent Natural Foods. They had interesting drinks in their cooler- kiwi flavored sodas, and rootbeer made with natural ingredients. We would head to the shop on warm saturday afternoons to look at the bins full of grains and granola and dried fruits, buy our drinks, and then head to the river to waste the day in ways that only teenagers can do.
Years before this, when I was in elementary school, my parents had told me that this was a special store. It was a co-op, and that meant that you had to join a membership to get lower prices, and you had to take turns working there. As I got older, my friends and I enjoyed taking in the smells and seeing the unique organic foods they had there. This was before Giant Eagle carried organic brands, and stores like Whole Foods and Trader Joes were non-existent. I made friends with a lot of the families who were co-owners, and I really grew to like the idea of a cooperative business. Whenever I'd ask my parents why we weren't members, they'd always tell me "because it's for hippies!"
Well now I am an adult, and I can say with quite a bit of pride that I AM a hippie. And the idea of a cooperative business still appeals to me. There are a lot of different co-op designs, but the one that appeals to me the most is this:
Everyone buys a share of the store for a pre-determined fee. That fee covers the working cost of the store (rent, bills, etc) The owners take turns volunteering work hours to the store, and in return can trade these work hours for a percentage off of their groceries, or for a share in the company. In addition, the company buys locally produced and manufactured goods whenever possible, and only carries "real" food, or food with no preservatives or chemicals.
This is the way that Kent Natural Foods works. This is how I grew up knowing co-ops. This cooperative business initiative really appeals to me, because I think it's important to work within the community to provide the best nutritious food possible for my family. Everyone has a vested interest in the company, because they are all share owners, and so they really care about the ethics of the business and the kinds of foods that are promoted. Theoretically, costs to the members should also be less because the co-op does not need to pay employees to run the store.
I suppose that part of me has always wanted to live on a sustainable commune, and a food co-op such as this is one way to get a step closer while still keeping both feet planted in "the real world." Now that we are setting up roots here in the Toledo area, I thought I'd look into joining a food co-op so that I could get locally grown foods at a lesser cost to my family. I am highly dissappointed in what I have found so far.
There is one co-op that runs the same way that I described above. However, the owners share is not $45, but is $200. Quite a difference. There is no option to trade work hours for the share, but it is possible to volunteer four hours a month to get an extra 5% off of bulk food purchases. Without the four hours a month, an owner gets 5% off of regular food purchases and 10% off of bulk. If we bought a share, we would have to spend $4,000 on groceries to get our $200 return. Since we barely spend $3600 a year on groceries as it is, this is hardly appealing. The co-op is open to the community, which means that the general public, not just co-owners, can shop in the store. This is good, because we can test drive it for a little while before deciding. But as it stands, the only thing that is appealing to me about it is that it supports small local farms and local businesses. I am not seeing, up front, the benefits that I said appeal to me earlier.
There are other co-ops, where you buy a small share of a farm, and get a percentage of each month's harvest. I have a friend who belongs to a co op where she pays a yearly fee and each month she gets a sack full of local organic produce. The problem with these kinds of co-ops, is that you don't know what you will be getting until it is delivered to you. One week you may get a pound of carrots and a few pounds of potatoes, and the next week maybe no carrots and three pounds of celery. Also, in Ohio this means that these kinds of co-ops only work summer-fall. There is a co-op run by nuns in the Tiffin area that works like this, and they have a delivery point in our town. So this is definitely an option for us once spring arrives.
If any readers have any suggestions or tips about food co-ops, please leave a comment! I am really just beginning to delve into all of the details of such businesses.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
"Mommy's Pregnant Carrot Soup"
The day after I told Daryl that we are expecting our second child, he said to me (in the most loving way possible) "If you're pregnant, does that mean you'll be making carrot soup again?"
When I was pregnant with Jonah, I bought a cookbook named The Well Rounded Pregnancy Cookbook by Karen Gurwitz. Some days, the only thing that I could stomach was soup, and so I really lived out of the "soups" section of this book. On days when I felt energetic, I would cook huge quantities of soup and freeze it in individual serving sizes. This way, the next time I felt sick or tired, I could just heat up some delicious soup. One soup in particular became our favorite very quickly: "Carrot Soup with Corriander, Curry, Ginger, and Chives." I shortened the name to Carrot Ginger soup, but it could also be called "Mommy is Pregnant! Carrot Soup" because I do seem to make and eat an awful lot of it while pregnant!The reason for this is: Ginger. The ginger in this recipe is often what I need to stop the nausea. When I am pregnant, I consume ginger in large amounts from ginger tea to ginger capsules to ginger cookies and ginger ale (canada dry has real ginger in it, and there are several local companies that brew and bottle true ginger ale!) Because ginger is such a key ingredient in this soup, I would like to talk about it for just a moment before giving you the much asked for recipe.
You can buy ginger in several forms. Each one tastes completely different and in general cannot be substituted for eachother. You can buy fresh ginger root (pictured above) in the produce section of your market. It usually hangs out by the garlic or the potatoes. This needs to be peeled and grated before use in most recipes. If you have one of those cheese graters that is like a cube that has all the different sides to it, wrap it in plastic wrap and use the side with the small bumps to grate it- all you have to do is remove the plastic wrap from the grater and scrape off the ginger. You could also buy pre-grated ginger. It works the same in a recipe as fresh, but might not be as potent. It is in tubes that look kind of like tooth paste, and it hangs out in the refridgerated section of the produce. There is also ginger powder, which you would find in the spices aisle. This is used mostly for baking and can NOT take the place of fresh ginger. It tastes completely different, and it is not as good for curing morning sickness moans. Candied or crystalized ginger can be found at natural foods stores and some bulk stores, or you could make it yourself. I carry this with me in car trips as I tend to get carsick, but I also usually have some in my purse or bag when I am pregnant to ward off any sudden nausea. It isn't really good for cooking with, but it really helps with motion sickness etc. I just chew on whole bits whenever I feel ill.
So now you know the scoop on ginger! The reason I threw that in here is because when I give this recipe to friends, they usually ask if such-and-such will do for the ginger. In short, no it will not. The way the ginger is prepared highly effects its taste and the way it interacts with the other ingredients. So here is the recipe the way that the book gives it, but I will add my own addendums in (...)
2 Tbl Olive Oil
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
1 yukon gold potato, peeled and chopped (I usually use up to three potatoes to make it nice and thick)
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 Tbl fresh ginger, peeled and grated (I use a LOT more than this! Add it to taste, and if you're feeling particularly sick that day add a little more than usual)
1 tsp ground corriander
1 tsp curry powder
1 1/2 lbs carrots, peeled and chopped
4 cups chicken stock, (vegetable stock or water if you're veg.)
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup heavy cream (optional)
1/2 cup chives (optional- I dont use them)
Heat the olive oil in a large sauce pan or soup pot, over medium heat until it begins to "shimmer." Add the onion, potatoes, garlic, ginger, curry powder, and corriander while stirring. Heat until the onions are transluscent, 5-8 minutes. Add the carrots and stock and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cover. Cook until the carrots are tender, about 20 minutes.
(I allow the soup to cool before putting it into my blender, because I've overheated blenders by making this soup before I learned my lesson! You can always re-heat the soup later if it gets too cold) Puree in a blender until smooth. Add the cream and salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with chives.
I usually will make about three times this recipe and pour it into the zip-loc storage containers. I divide some of it into single and double portions, for when it is just me eating the soup, and some of it into larger containers for family sized portions. Then I freeze it, and have a quick and easy, yet healthy, dinner when I am feeling nauseous and pregnant!
When I was pregnant with Jonah, I bought a cookbook named The Well Rounded Pregnancy Cookbook by Karen Gurwitz. Some days, the only thing that I could stomach was soup, and so I really lived out of the "soups" section of this book. On days when I felt energetic, I would cook huge quantities of soup and freeze it in individual serving sizes. This way, the next time I felt sick or tired, I could just heat up some delicious soup. One soup in particular became our favorite very quickly: "Carrot Soup with Corriander, Curry, Ginger, and Chives." I shortened the name to Carrot Ginger soup, but it could also be called "Mommy is Pregnant! Carrot Soup" because I do seem to make and eat an awful lot of it while pregnant!The reason for this is: Ginger. The ginger in this recipe is often what I need to stop the nausea. When I am pregnant, I consume ginger in large amounts from ginger tea to ginger capsules to ginger cookies and ginger ale (canada dry has real ginger in it, and there are several local companies that brew and bottle true ginger ale!) Because ginger is such a key ingredient in this soup, I would like to talk about it for just a moment before giving you the much asked for recipe.
You can buy ginger in several forms. Each one tastes completely different and in general cannot be substituted for eachother. You can buy fresh ginger root (pictured above) in the produce section of your market. It usually hangs out by the garlic or the potatoes. This needs to be peeled and grated before use in most recipes. If you have one of those cheese graters that is like a cube that has all the different sides to it, wrap it in plastic wrap and use the side with the small bumps to grate it- all you have to do is remove the plastic wrap from the grater and scrape off the ginger. You could also buy pre-grated ginger. It works the same in a recipe as fresh, but might not be as potent. It is in tubes that look kind of like tooth paste, and it hangs out in the refridgerated section of the produce. There is also ginger powder, which you would find in the spices aisle. This is used mostly for baking and can NOT take the place of fresh ginger. It tastes completely different, and it is not as good for curing morning sickness moans. Candied or crystalized ginger can be found at natural foods stores and some bulk stores, or you could make it yourself. I carry this with me in car trips as I tend to get carsick, but I also usually have some in my purse or bag when I am pregnant to ward off any sudden nausea. It isn't really good for cooking with, but it really helps with motion sickness etc. I just chew on whole bits whenever I feel ill.So now you know the scoop on ginger! The reason I threw that in here is because when I give this recipe to friends, they usually ask if such-and-such will do for the ginger. In short, no it will not. The way the ginger is prepared highly effects its taste and the way it interacts with the other ingredients. So here is the recipe the way that the book gives it, but I will add my own addendums in (...)
2 Tbl Olive Oil
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
1 yukon gold potato, peeled and chopped (I usually use up to three potatoes to make it nice and thick)
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 Tbl fresh ginger, peeled and grated (I use a LOT more than this! Add it to taste, and if you're feeling particularly sick that day add a little more than usual)
1 tsp ground corriander
1 tsp curry powder
1 1/2 lbs carrots, peeled and chopped
4 cups chicken stock, (vegetable stock or water if you're veg.)
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup heavy cream (optional)
1/2 cup chives (optional- I dont use them)
Heat the olive oil in a large sauce pan or soup pot, over medium heat until it begins to "shimmer." Add the onion, potatoes, garlic, ginger, curry powder, and corriander while stirring. Heat until the onions are transluscent, 5-8 minutes. Add the carrots and stock and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cover. Cook until the carrots are tender, about 20 minutes.
(I allow the soup to cool before putting it into my blender, because I've overheated blenders by making this soup before I learned my lesson! You can always re-heat the soup later if it gets too cold) Puree in a blender until smooth. Add the cream and salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with chives.
I usually will make about three times this recipe and pour it into the zip-loc storage containers. I divide some of it into single and double portions, for when it is just me eating the soup, and some of it into larger containers for family sized portions. Then I freeze it, and have a quick and easy, yet healthy, dinner when I am feeling nauseous and pregnant!
Friday, November 6, 2009
Rashes, Hives, and ear infections
Just when you think you know everything about a topic, you learn something new about it. Ear infections, for example. I thought I knew pretty much all there is to know about them. I've seen an incredible amount of ear infections in infants while working at nursery school. I actually alerted the parents when their child had an ear infection, that they should go to the doctor to have their ears looked at. Ear infections are just something that I can spot a mile away.
I took Jonah to the doctor last week because he had woken up covered in hives. But I was also 90% sure that we would also find out that he had an infection in his left ear. I had been planning on calling the doctor this day anyway because of the ears, as well as the return of the nastiest diaper rash ever (that just won't leave us alone!) but the hives kind of sealed the deal. The reason I suspected an ear infection was because he was very grumpy, refused to eat, and he's teething. He's had fevers off and on, and the biggest sign was that his left ear has been utterly disgusting. It's been a real chore to clean out his left ear. Without going into great detail, it suffices to say that it was gross.
We got to the doctor and found the same news about the "diaper" rash. It's a staph infection. I'm at my wits end over this infection. It first showed up when we went on vacation and used Luvs disposable diapers. The doctor said that it's common, because babies will get a raw rash from the perfumes in the diapers, and bacteria will get into the rash from sweat etc, and a staph infection incurrs. Unfortunately, once we unknowingly put his bacterial infected behind back into his cloth diapers, the bacteria decided to hang out there. I've used everything under the sun to try to disinfect them. My last option is a cleaning chemical called BacOut.
I've heard it's just the thing for this type of heavy duty sterilizing. Jonah doesn't use diapers very much anymore, but he does when I am working and Grandma is watching him. It only takes a few minutes of contact with one contaminated diaper to get the infection again. I'm really getting frustrated with it, and just want to put my baby back in his cloth diapers again! I feel like we are throwing our money away with every pack of disposables we buy.
Now the hives are another story. I suggested, for the third time, that maybe he is allergic to dairy. For the third time, the doctor disagreed. She began to examine him, and I mentioned to her about the ear and maybe it is infected. Remember, I had just cleaned Jonah's ears. She still needed a special tool to clear them enough that she could see inside. I was disgusted! I am a clean freak about things like ears and noses and belly buttons. I can't stand any kind of body gook. And here was my baby, having mounds of earwax extracted from his ears. She finally was able to get a good look and saw that indeed it was infected.
I wasn't surprised. I was expecting this. What I wasn't expecting was for her to say "and there's the cause of the hives!" What? What's the cause again, I missed it.
The ear infection! Yes, really. This is the new thing that I learned about ear infections: hives are a symptom of an ear infection. Who knew! Apparantly when the body tries to ward off infection of any kind, hives show up because it is a side effect of the immune system going into overdrive.
So Jonah and I were big spenders at the pharmacy this week. An antibiotic ointment for the staph infection, hydrocortizone cream and benadryl for the hives, more aquafor for the eczema on his face (which she confirmed once again is in fact eczema) and amoxicillin for the ear infection. It seems like sooo many medications, but Jonah is in a much better mood now that they have begun to take effect! If the hives and other rashes are not gone by our appointment next week, then he will be tested for food allergies.
I took Jonah to the doctor last week because he had woken up covered in hives. But I was also 90% sure that we would also find out that he had an infection in his left ear. I had been planning on calling the doctor this day anyway because of the ears, as well as the return of the nastiest diaper rash ever (that just won't leave us alone!) but the hives kind of sealed the deal. The reason I suspected an ear infection was because he was very grumpy, refused to eat, and he's teething. He's had fevers off and on, and the biggest sign was that his left ear has been utterly disgusting. It's been a real chore to clean out his left ear. Without going into great detail, it suffices to say that it was gross.
We got to the doctor and found the same news about the "diaper" rash. It's a staph infection. I'm at my wits end over this infection. It first showed up when we went on vacation and used Luvs disposable diapers. The doctor said that it's common, because babies will get a raw rash from the perfumes in the diapers, and bacteria will get into the rash from sweat etc, and a staph infection incurrs. Unfortunately, once we unknowingly put his bacterial infected behind back into his cloth diapers, the bacteria decided to hang out there. I've used everything under the sun to try to disinfect them. My last option is a cleaning chemical called BacOut.
I've heard it's just the thing for this type of heavy duty sterilizing. Jonah doesn't use diapers very much anymore, but he does when I am working and Grandma is watching him. It only takes a few minutes of contact with one contaminated diaper to get the infection again. I'm really getting frustrated with it, and just want to put my baby back in his cloth diapers again! I feel like we are throwing our money away with every pack of disposables we buy.
Now the hives are another story. I suggested, for the third time, that maybe he is allergic to dairy. For the third time, the doctor disagreed. She began to examine him, and I mentioned to her about the ear and maybe it is infected. Remember, I had just cleaned Jonah's ears. She still needed a special tool to clear them enough that she could see inside. I was disgusted! I am a clean freak about things like ears and noses and belly buttons. I can't stand any kind of body gook. And here was my baby, having mounds of earwax extracted from his ears. She finally was able to get a good look and saw that indeed it was infected.
I wasn't surprised. I was expecting this. What I wasn't expecting was for her to say "and there's the cause of the hives!" What? What's the cause again, I missed it.
The ear infection! Yes, really. This is the new thing that I learned about ear infections: hives are a symptom of an ear infection. Who knew! Apparantly when the body tries to ward off infection of any kind, hives show up because it is a side effect of the immune system going into overdrive.
So Jonah and I were big spenders at the pharmacy this week. An antibiotic ointment for the staph infection, hydrocortizone cream and benadryl for the hives, more aquafor for the eczema on his face (which she confirmed once again is in fact eczema) and amoxicillin for the ear infection. It seems like sooo many medications, but Jonah is in a much better mood now that they have begun to take effect! If the hives and other rashes are not gone by our appointment next week, then he will be tested for food allergies.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
My Little Monkey
So today, Halloween day, we dressed Jonah in his monkey outfit for a photoshoot in our yard, and then took him to dinner wearing is costume. We've been avoiding going out to eat during flu season, but we decided to make the exception and have a little treat on Halloween. Jonah really seemed to enjoy his costume! He was very interested in the feet and the tail, and he even wore the hat (he never lets us put a hat on him!) I think he knew just how cute he is in it!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Communicating "Potty"
For a little while, it was a bit difficult to tell when Jonah had to potty. He hadn't really picked up on very many signs or verbal words yet, and he was moving so much that his usual cues got lost in all of his running around. Recently, I was relieved when I went to get Jonah up from nap, and he was standing in his crib, wiggling his fist back and forth in the air. Ah, the sign for "potty." At last! A definite cue to say "I need to go now!"
At first, Jonah used it after he had already gone. If I missed his other cues because I was upstairs doing the laundry, or I took a little longer to get him from bed, he would sign as if to say "I pooped Mom, and it's in my pants. Where were you?"
Then one day while we were visiting my mother and grandmother, he signed "potty." We were in the car, driving home from having dinner out. When we got home, I expected there to be a load in his pants, but they were only a little wet. Jonah was still signing "potty" but I thought he must just be signing it because I'm changing his diaper. I shrugged my shoulders and went out to the car to get a clean diaper. Yes, leaving him diaperless in my mother's care. When I opened the door, clean diaper in hand, I heard the most hysterical laughter. I looked at Jonah, who was still signing "potty" to my laughing mother while he was going. I cleaned the mess up, put a diaper on Jonah, and laughed myself. That is what you get when you don't listen to your child! From then on, he has signed "potty" before he poops. He still hasn't done the sign for pee yet, but he will make the "sssss" noise as he's going.
Here is the video of Jonah signing "potty" (excuse the laundry that snuck into the shot!)
Jonah Signs Potty (youtube link)
At first, Jonah used it after he had already gone. If I missed his other cues because I was upstairs doing the laundry, or I took a little longer to get him from bed, he would sign as if to say "I pooped Mom, and it's in my pants. Where were you?"
Then one day while we were visiting my mother and grandmother, he signed "potty." We were in the car, driving home from having dinner out. When we got home, I expected there to be a load in his pants, but they were only a little wet. Jonah was still signing "potty" but I thought he must just be signing it because I'm changing his diaper. I shrugged my shoulders and went out to the car to get a clean diaper. Yes, leaving him diaperless in my mother's care. When I opened the door, clean diaper in hand, I heard the most hysterical laughter. I looked at Jonah, who was still signing "potty" to my laughing mother while he was going. I cleaned the mess up, put a diaper on Jonah, and laughed myself. That is what you get when you don't listen to your child! From then on, he has signed "potty" before he poops. He still hasn't done the sign for pee yet, but he will make the "sssss" noise as he's going.
Here is the video of Jonah signing "potty" (excuse the laundry that snuck into the shot!)
Jonah Signs Potty (youtube link)
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Pregnancy Dreams
So it seems in pregnancy, I have two different issues at night. Either I can't sleep at all (such as tonight, which is why I am blogging at 1:30 am when I knowingly have to get up for work in a few hours) or, I sleep and have crazy restless dreams.
While I don't usually share my dreams with others, I do find that people get a kick out of my pregnancy dreams. They are like those trippy movies from the sixties that just don't make any sense. So here is my latest and greatest sub-conscious brain child.
I was going to baby sit this little girl. I don't really know her, but she kept popping up in my dream at random times as this blonde thin girl who didn't talk but just smiled at me. Okay, creepy. As I was walking up to the family's house, which I don't recognize as any real-life house, all of the sudden my dog trainer was with me. We walked up the front steps, but it was like we couldn't ever make it to the house. Then suddenly, the family's pet alligator (yup, alligator- they had two, to be exact) came and bit my arm! My dog trainer started yelling, and the alligator was trying to rip my arm off, so true to the "Survivor's Guide" I hit him on the nose and he let go. So my trainer runs off and starts to yell at the father for not having his alligator properly trained.
The father and mother didnt care that their alligator had bitten me, and gave me instructions for their daughter's dinner, and started to leave. My arm was bleeding profusely at this point. Then my mother came and started to yell at the man for making me work when I obviously needed hospital care. My dog trainer had vanished by this point and no one seemed to be bothered by it. So my mom pulled me into my minivan and proceeded to drive to the store. Not the hospital, the store. We went in to get some food, because you know that is what you need if an alligator eats your arm, and I look down at my arm and can see, what in my dream represented bone (it didnt look like how real bone would probably look... at all) So I said "uh mom, I don't think I need bread, I think I need stitches and a skin graft." So then we run out of the store and get into my mini van. I get in to drive, but can't pull out of the parking spot. Then I realize that my mom had parked the van in the cart coral, and it was stuck!!!! She said if I was too much of a whimp to pull the car out, then she woudl do it. So I got out of the car through the window (because the doors were blocked by the rails of the cart coral- nevermind how we got in.) and watch her pull my extremely crumpled minivan out of the newly formed parking space.
I woke up without ever making it to the hospital, and thinking "Man, my mom owes me a new van!!!"
True story!
While I don't usually share my dreams with others, I do find that people get a kick out of my pregnancy dreams. They are like those trippy movies from the sixties that just don't make any sense. So here is my latest and greatest sub-conscious brain child.
I was going to baby sit this little girl. I don't really know her, but she kept popping up in my dream at random times as this blonde thin girl who didn't talk but just smiled at me. Okay, creepy. As I was walking up to the family's house, which I don't recognize as any real-life house, all of the sudden my dog trainer was with me. We walked up the front steps, but it was like we couldn't ever make it to the house. Then suddenly, the family's pet alligator (yup, alligator- they had two, to be exact) came and bit my arm! My dog trainer started yelling, and the alligator was trying to rip my arm off, so true to the "Survivor's Guide" I hit him on the nose and he let go. So my trainer runs off and starts to yell at the father for not having his alligator properly trained.
The father and mother didnt care that their alligator had bitten me, and gave me instructions for their daughter's dinner, and started to leave. My arm was bleeding profusely at this point. Then my mother came and started to yell at the man for making me work when I obviously needed hospital care. My dog trainer had vanished by this point and no one seemed to be bothered by it. So my mom pulled me into my minivan and proceeded to drive to the store. Not the hospital, the store. We went in to get some food, because you know that is what you need if an alligator eats your arm, and I look down at my arm and can see, what in my dream represented bone (it didnt look like how real bone would probably look... at all) So I said "uh mom, I don't think I need bread, I think I need stitches and a skin graft." So then we run out of the store and get into my mini van. I get in to drive, but can't pull out of the parking spot. Then I realize that my mom had parked the van in the cart coral, and it was stuck!!!! She said if I was too much of a whimp to pull the car out, then she woudl do it. So I got out of the car through the window (because the doors were blocked by the rails of the cart coral- nevermind how we got in.) and watch her pull my extremely crumpled minivan out of the newly formed parking space.
I woke up without ever making it to the hospital, and thinking "Man, my mom owes me a new van!!!"
True story!
Why?
A question I get asked a LOT about elimination communication (EC) is "why?"
I've been asked this question in the form of responses to my blog posts, emails, personal messages, and face to face with family members, and it is usually coupled with reasons that I shouldn't be doing this.
"Why are you taking him to the potty when you are busy? Why won't you just take care of it later" Well, here's my short and sweet smart alec answer: I have to deal with the poop at some point, so I might as well do it now before it's stuck all over his butt!
Yes, laziness has a lot to do with our choice to EC. Too lazy to get a new diaper, and too lazy to deal with poop that somehow gets spread all over everything during a diaper change because of a wiggley baby, and too lazy to wash the diapers every other day. For every catch that we make in the potty, that is one less diaper that I have to deal with.
But it runs a little deeper than that too. That is really my "shut up, I'm different, deal with it." answer. The true answer has to do with the level that it has brought Jonah's and my relationship to. As I have said before, there is no training involved in EC. At all. Period. At the heart of EC is the "C." Communication. Jonah communicates to me that his need at that moment is to eliminate. As one friend and fellow ECer put it, it is the same to me as other mothers can tell when their child needs food, or needs sleep, or needs comfort. Eliminating is a basic need that your child can communicate to you, if you nurture that communication and awareness of elimination. After Jonah communicates to me what his needs are, I communicate back that I understand, by giving him the "cue." Now I've come to dislike this word "cue" because in psychology this word has come to be synonymous with "stimulus." And that isn't at all how it works. When I say "cue" I simply mean that I give Jonah the signal that I have understood his need and he is now in a place where he can relieve himself. It's a two way communication.
So I agree with several readers when they say that I have not trained Jonah yet- a child who is potty trained doesn't need an adult to take him to the potty, and can go on his own. What I don't agree with is that these readers often suggested that it is the parent who is trained. I do not agree with this, because as I said, there is no training involved. No training for anyone. It is all about communicating and responding to needs, not training.
It is not a waste of time because it in fact saves me time. As said above, I don't need to wash as many diapers as often, I don't need to find a clean one to put on, I don't need to wipe the entire area of the derriere. It takes about half the time to put Jonah on the potty and let him go there than it does to change his diaper. One reader in particular asked me why I would choose to stop pumping breast milk but continue with EC. I want to address this particular question, because it upset me at first. So much that it has taken me months to even respond. It probably seems like I spend a LOT of time on EC because that is what this blog is devoted to. Practicing EC does not take up so much time that it impedes on other aspects of my parenting. Practicing EC does not mean spending hours away from my child with very little results. Trying to pump full time with breasts that are no longer producing more than an ounce of milk, does. I did not choose EC over breastfeeding, and that is a completely different chapter in my life.
So why do I do it? In a nutshell, because it is an extension of my family's lifestyle. It is listening to my child and his needs, and providing for them. It is not letting my son sit in his waste for any amount of time. Because it is the best thing that I know to do for my son.
I've been asked this question in the form of responses to my blog posts, emails, personal messages, and face to face with family members, and it is usually coupled with reasons that I shouldn't be doing this.
"Why are you taking him to the potty when you are busy? Why won't you just take care of it later" Well, here's my short and sweet smart alec answer: I have to deal with the poop at some point, so I might as well do it now before it's stuck all over his butt!
Yes, laziness has a lot to do with our choice to EC. Too lazy to get a new diaper, and too lazy to deal with poop that somehow gets spread all over everything during a diaper change because of a wiggley baby, and too lazy to wash the diapers every other day. For every catch that we make in the potty, that is one less diaper that I have to deal with.
But it runs a little deeper than that too. That is really my "shut up, I'm different, deal with it." answer. The true answer has to do with the level that it has brought Jonah's and my relationship to. As I have said before, there is no training involved in EC. At all. Period. At the heart of EC is the "C." Communication. Jonah communicates to me that his need at that moment is to eliminate. As one friend and fellow ECer put it, it is the same to me as other mothers can tell when their child needs food, or needs sleep, or needs comfort. Eliminating is a basic need that your child can communicate to you, if you nurture that communication and awareness of elimination. After Jonah communicates to me what his needs are, I communicate back that I understand, by giving him the "cue." Now I've come to dislike this word "cue" because in psychology this word has come to be synonymous with "stimulus." And that isn't at all how it works. When I say "cue" I simply mean that I give Jonah the signal that I have understood his need and he is now in a place where he can relieve himself. It's a two way communication.
So I agree with several readers when they say that I have not trained Jonah yet- a child who is potty trained doesn't need an adult to take him to the potty, and can go on his own. What I don't agree with is that these readers often suggested that it is the parent who is trained. I do not agree with this, because as I said, there is no training involved. No training for anyone. It is all about communicating and responding to needs, not training.
It is not a waste of time because it in fact saves me time. As said above, I don't need to wash as many diapers as often, I don't need to find a clean one to put on, I don't need to wipe the entire area of the derriere. It takes about half the time to put Jonah on the potty and let him go there than it does to change his diaper. One reader in particular asked me why I would choose to stop pumping breast milk but continue with EC. I want to address this particular question, because it upset me at first. So much that it has taken me months to even respond. It probably seems like I spend a LOT of time on EC because that is what this blog is devoted to. Practicing EC does not take up so much time that it impedes on other aspects of my parenting. Practicing EC does not mean spending hours away from my child with very little results. Trying to pump full time with breasts that are no longer producing more than an ounce of milk, does. I did not choose EC over breastfeeding, and that is a completely different chapter in my life.
So why do I do it? In a nutshell, because it is an extension of my family's lifestyle. It is listening to my child and his needs, and providing for them. It is not letting my son sit in his waste for any amount of time. Because it is the best thing that I know to do for my son.
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