Dr. Seuss 1st Birthday Party

Wow, I can’t believe it’s been 8 months since we celebrated my son’s first birthday. (I know I am so late with this post – sorry!) I am really excited to share all of the details with you. I had a ton of fun planning my son’s first birthday, even though it was a ton of work. But it’s a first birthday and I wanted it to be celebrated BIG!

Here are a bunch of photos and details of his Dr. Seuss themed birthday party:  

The Invitation 

I created this invitation myself using Microsoft PowerPoint by incorporating several various Dr. Seuss invitation ideas online. The photo taken was during a fun cake smash session we did at home. 

The Birthday Boy

Cairo is wearing a custom made onesie that I had ordered off of Etsy. 

The Guest Book

I loved this Pinterest idea of using the  "Happy Birthday To You" book as a guestbook with a framed rhyme that asked guests to write a message anywhere in the book. Now my son has a great keepsake from his very first birthday. 

The Kid Party Favours 

 Each child got to take home a famous Dr. Seuss book. The little note on the book said: "Oh me, oh my! Thanks for stopping by!"

The Adult Party Favours

Of course, the adults got to take home a little something too. A little baggie filled with gold fish crackers. The little tag said: "One fish, two fish, red fish, thank you fish".

The Birthday Boy's Table Seating

The Cake

My very talented sister Jennifer did an incredible job making the cake and cupcakes for her nephew’s special day.  To see more of Jennifer’s work please visit her Facebook page called: Diaper Cakes &Goodies by Jen. The banner displayed behind the cake are my son's adorable month-by-month photos.  

 

                         

                              The Play Zone

I hope that enjoyed this post and that some of the ideas may have inspired you to plan a Dr. Seuss birthday party too! Stayed tuned for birthday # 2!

The Return Back to Work

Returning back to work after maternity leave was a difficult transition that I am still struggling with (8 months later). Growing up I had always dreamt of being a teacher, when I got hired as one I found so much satisfaction and passion of this career. I had never imagined that once I had a child the thought of returning back to work would have been so difficult for me. The thought of leaving my “whole world” in the care of someone else just absolutely, devastated me. I know everyone tells you that returning back to work gets easier as time goes on, but I am not sure when or if that will happen.

After much anticipation and contemplation I finally bottled up some courage to go look at some child care centres.  We had recently moved into a small community and child care was limited. As a first-time time mom looking for childcare is already stressful enough now only having the option of choosing from a select few was much more stressful. After touring the handful of them I got into my car and just cried. There I was just sitting in my car with my 10 month old sobbing. I immediately called my husband and told him that I was quitting my teaching job and staying home. We contemplated the idea for a bit but after thinking about how hard I have worked to become a teacher it was something I just couldn’t give up that easily. our temporary solution was to ask my grandmother to move in with us to watch our son while I went back to my teaching job part-time. I knew that this wasn't going to be our forever solution and needed to figure out a way to ultimately stay at home full time with my son.

My friend then joined Arbonne and inspired me to dig deeper into the business opportunity. Arbonne is a network marketing profession. I honestly never thought that this was something I was going to do because I knew nothing about the industy. After doing my research I knew that this would be my ticket to becoming a full time stay at home mom. I am so grateful that I have been able to work part-time and now have some extra money coming in each month to help support that decision. My whole vision for my future and my family has drastically changed. I am super excited to see what is in store for me in the very near future.

I'm Done With Ultrasounds

During my first pregnancy my husband and I decided to do the two routine ultrasounds offered in Canada, IPS (integrated prenatal screening) and the anatomy scan. We were beyond excited to see our little baby and find out the gender so that mommy could begin her shopping.

Our IPS can back with a low risk score; however, the anatomy scan done at 19 weeks demonstrated an echogenic intracardiac focus. In other words, a small bright spot seen in the baby’s heart. My midwife called me a few days later to share the news with me. She mentioned that this finding could be a sign of a chromosome abnormality (Down Syndrome). I was advised that another ultrasound was recommended along with genetic counseling. After our conversation I immediately called my husband and just balled hysterically. He quickly calmed me down and reassured me that only a soft marker was shown and the likelihood of Down Syndrome was still extremely low.  I then spoke to my second midwife and she backed up my husband. We decided to opt out of getting a 3rd ultrasound and genetic counseling. We knew in our hearts that everything was fine with our son and we were right!

Then came along our second pregnancy. Again we decided to do the two standard ultrasounds. We contemplated this idea for a while. We did some research into the safety of ultrasounds and weren't quite sure if the risks outweighed the benefits. We did feel as though we knew a little bit more about ultrasounds and felt like we knew what to expect. So we went ahead and decided to go ahead with it. Again our IPS results came back with a low score and our anatomy scan showed another echogenic intracardiac focus. However, that's not all it showed. Our scan also demonstrated a cleft lip. I called my husband yet again balling hysterically. He still stayed positive and tried to calm me down but was a little scared himself. I immediately told him that I wanted another ultrasound and the genetic counseling. He agreed with my decision. All that was left to do was wait for our next test and pray. Two days later we were sent to a better-equipped hospital. Here we find out that our baby did not have a cleft lip and that our previous ultrasound tech had thankfully made an error.

Based on our experiences and research we have decided that we are officially done with ultrasounds. All of this could have been avoided if we choose to do the Non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) instead. This is a new way to screen your pregnancy to see if your baby has an increased chance of having a few specific chromosome disorders. This test also determines your baby's gender too. All this test requires is a simple blood sample done at 10 weeks of pregnancy. The test isn't covered by OHIP but you can apply for it to be covered. I just think for my own peace of mind the money would be well spent if it means no sleepless nights and anxiety.

I hope that my story can help other parents feel more at ease about their ultrasound results.