Soil Blocks

Soil Blocks

I have a tendency to call soil blocks seed pods, but the name 'soil blocks' suits them well. They are block in shape and form and made out of soil {duh}. I happen to want to call them seed pods because they are where we plant our seeds. Johnny's selected seeds sells this amazing tool that allows you to make soil blocks. I love this little tool and if you want to see it for yourself check out: Johnny's soil block maker. 

Today, I am writing about soil block makers because yesterday I made 150 soil blocks. I have been working in the green house making soil blocks with a soil we mixed particularly for soil blocks. For information about the recipe we used to make the soil check out:

 Soil Block Recipe. 

I have found that the only difficulty making these blocks has been getting the soil the correct consistency. I have found that it is easy to add to much or to little water which will determine the the form of your block. The above picture is the soil blocks with the broccoli  we planted a week ago. 

29 Weeks

                                   

Nap! 

All I want is a nap after I nap, 

and maybe even another nap before I take a nap. 

Apparently, 29 weeks of caring FOR a silent gnome makes me really sleepy. 

'The Bump' kindly reminds us pregos that 29 WEEKS only leads to more fun! 

I have also noticed, my attire is dwindling along with my energy.
I have a closet full of nothing to wear and a protruding belly underneath my
'I don't ever leave the house attire'. The comfort level of my clothes increases
with each week of this pregnancy.

Example:      Week 18: I looked at a pair of heels and thought: 'I could pull these off' 

                 Week 29: I look at a pair of shoes, laugh, and grab my slippers that are        equivalent to a sleeping bag for my feet 

As for my attempting to look human in the past couple of months I have been reading & 

scouting out more fashionably appropriate attire for this body o' mine. This little picture presents a great way to work that new body in style for when I do get out of my pajamas. 

Hope this picture is either helpful or at least makes you laugh. 

For as the great poet Jimmy Buffet once said, yes my parents are parrot heads making me a parrot keet, " If we couldn't laugh we would all go insane."

Changes in latitudes and attitudes is an understatement, for I am not one to deny that as my latitude has changed so has my attitude. Now for a moment with Jimmy as I pretend to be a beached whale with  a margarita! 

the true confessions of a Hula Hooping Mama

Happy 50th Birthday Hula Hoop Patent  
U.S. Patent Number 3,079,728)! 


Today marks 50 years since the Hula Hoop was patented! 

For this reason, I would like to celebrate by sharing my love for the hula hoop. 

I have been hula hooping adamantly for over two years. If you are reading this wondering if I was one of those hula hoop prodigies, I am going to splurge my confessions here. 

In the beginning, I was the type of girl that would not be caught dead in a hula hoop contest. The thought of being put on the spot, or in the circle if you so please, was horrifying to me. 

Then on one latin immersion weekend, a weekend spent speaking only in latin with college classmates (If you don't believe that my college did this; see video below), I bonded with the Hula Hoop! 

Now if you are wondering how Latin immersion and Hula Hooping have anything in common, let me explain myself: 

While hooping, a great realization dawned upon me; namely, no one really tries to communicate with someone that is swinging a large plastic pipe around their hips. 

Waa Laa, my love for the hula hoop was born out of my inability to respond in Latin. Personally, I loved listening to others talk in Latin, but responding was a bigger challenge. 

Today, I am proud to say that: I am 7 months pregnant and still hooping! 

In the following weeks I am going to adress the good, the bad, and the ugly about hooping throughout my last months pregnant and beyond. 

Week 26

Family

Mom & Nana sending me off 

  This week I would like to share with you the lessons I have learned regarding the value of Family.

   Saturday I headed down south to Florida to aid my grandparents. My grandfather had a spill and fractured his hip. My mother, the amazing woman she is, bought me tickets to come the same time as she was coming. I left Delaware around  2pm and officially arrived at my destination at 7pm. I was greeted by the smiling face of my grandmother, whom I call Nana, and we drove to the rehab center where my grandfather was staying. 

  
        The rehab center, known as "The Club", looked more like a four star hotel than a place for elderly patients. The walls were all brick and the outside area had a mini water fall complete with a statue of a young women with her hand directed towards the sunny sky. 
   
     In my grandfather's room, the tv lulled in the background, the hall sounded with a constant beeping to alert the nurses of other patients in need, & the shuffling of nurses preparing medications was all part of the environment. This environment in and of itself was overwhelming to me, but the most intense part was gazing upon a man that has embodied strength throughout my life sitting vulnerably in a wheelchair. 
   
      Vulnerability is something no human can avoid in one's life. From the moment we are greeted by the world to our last breath we are vulnerable. Babies and the elderly just so happen to be in a more constant state of vulnerability than those of us that are in the state of self-sufficiency. We are all  born into the world exposed, naked, and defenseless. I do not remember my first year of life, nor my second for that matter, but I do know that without my family I would not have made it to this day. 
   
       Strength & Safety, words that describe the opposite of vulnerability. We all strive to feel content with ourselves and our community, but it is not an easy task. As mortal beings we all know that hanging over our heads is the fact that our lives will come to an end, and we too will be vulnerable to our fates. 

But, how does all this relate to family? 
As a fellow member of a very strong Italian family, I can attest for the fact that the love I have received provides the strength & security I need to find peace within myself. Families are the foundation of society because they provide the love that is needed to sustain humanity. Without this unconditional love  we will self destruct. Ultimately, we need one another for we are not autonomous beings. Unconditional love is the glue that keeps families together, and when families stay together the society will follow their lead. 

   If you are wondering what the heck this has to do with being 26 weeks pregnant, let me tell you. This last week has taught me that as I enter the last trimester I am not just some girl who is not working a corporate position, but I am something much greater than a title, I am bearing the fruits of society with the graces of unconditional love. I am fulfilling what I feel to be my call from God, and I think it is about time people start speaking up about the true importance of family. We are all called to be apart of a family, whether it be blood related or not we must all take a step back and realize that we need to support The Family Unit above else with unconditional love!  

Week 25

                                                  Echo Cardio Ultrasound

All I have to say about this is 3 things:

1)Patience; 2 hours in the waiting room, and patience just so happens to not be my "thing".

2) Anxiety; the feeling a mother gets when the woman figuring out if all is ok makes crazy faces.

3) Relief; the moment the doctor came in to tell us he had nothing to say other than baby is healthy!

Week 23

Pregnancy Week 23:

                            Acrobatic baby movements are happening inside me!

Last night, while watching Netflix, I felt our baby doing what felt like a summersault.
I am happy to know that baby is enjoying himself, but man oh man does he make me nervous.
This week I would classify as circus training week for baby.


I was an active womb baby.
As a baby in the womb, my mother told me that I would often move around and she would get nervous
when I stopped moving. Thankfully my mother is an apprehensive woman, for if she had not paid close attention to my movements would not have been alarmed when I had quit moving and had tangled myself in my umbilical chord 4 x around my neck.

This little piece of information has me counting kicks, movements, and the full on acrobatic training schedule. As a Result,  this post is  a shout out to any mother who has or is neurotically counting their baby's movements!

God Bless Wiggly Babies!!

22 Weeks

I am officially feeling my little baby move about more than ever before.

The routine has consistently been: 

A) baby moving as I go to bed 

B) whenever baby hears his dad's voice 

C) Or whenever I put my laptop on my belly 

My appetite is growing as well as my baby. 

Prior to this week I had to remind myself to eat, but now, I am reminding myself to eat proportionally. 

My growing appetite has affected my morphing baby bump tremendously and I am now starting to round out and feeling like Violet, from Willy Wonka, turning into a blueberry! 

Here is what I am referencing; in case you wanted a more accurate visual. 

Violet Beauregarde turns into a Blueberry (FULL HD)  http://youtu.be/uQkDOs-EtdU