Halloween is Coming!!!

My all time favorite holiday is Halloween. I love to dress up. I love to make my own costumes. This year I'm going as a wolfe in support of Team Jacob!! I'll post pics! I made everything out of a fur coat I found at the MCC. $13?! Awesome deal.
I've finished cleaning out my pumpkins and printing the designs to carve in them. I'm so excited.
For A's Spooky Halloween shoot I've got all kinds of awesome things planned. I got him a spider costume at the local MCC and a few cool props. Monday can't come soon enough.

In other news...
People still suck!! (not you...those other ones...) lol! peace out!

A's Head a Month Later

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone on the MTS High Speed Mobility Network

The Housewives of the Pembina Valley

Kerwin N Tracy Basler Anyone need a carseat for a couple months? I have one that says don't use after 2011. Free.

Top of Form

Rhonda Chornenki what age is it for?

Rhonda Chornenki could u post a pic?
Erica Blair Dueck i would like it depending on details as well. We need an extra carseat
Rhonda Chornenki Where could i come and see it?
Stacey Friesen Honestly, I would just destroy it. People will not regard the expiry date, and it's not worth it.
Kerwin N Tracy Basler Forward and backward facing not a booster blue and grey plaid . I could post a pic but not sure when I will get to it, maybe tonight. Eddie Bauer
Erica Blair Dueck I understand what youre saying Stacey Friesen but why would people disregard the date? Using a carseat past expiration puts your child at risk...I would hope people arent foolish enough to do that =(
Erica Blair Dueck I will take it if Rhonda passes
Stacey Friesen Tons of people do this ALL THE TIME!!
Erica Blair Dueck thats really really sad =( I assure you I am not one of those people
Rhonda Chornenki I am just looking at moving my daughter into a bigger car seat and would like to try before i purchase a new one. I guarantee i would not go past the expiry date!
Stacey Friesen I think a lot of parents really don't know. Same thing goes for not buying seats from other countries (US included). The seats may look the same, but you can get a fine for having a US seat. (I've seen it happen to friends).
Erica Blair Dueck I'm from the states and replaced all my carseats when i moved here because of that silly law lol
Carly-Alexis Sawatzky you can actually get a fine for using one from the us?
Erica Blair Dueck if it doesnt have the canada sticker on it yes but i believe you can take them somewhere to get certified to be used in canada
Stacey Friesen No, you cannot get a US seat certified. That's a rumor. The fine is over $200 I believe, so TOTALLY not worth risking it!
Carly-Alexis Sawatzky oh I did not know that, the carseat i had bought ended up not fitting in my car so I got a new one from the us because it was 1/3 of the price that they are in canada.
Stacey Friesen Yeah, it's unfortunate that our seats cost so much more, but Canada actually has stricter testing for their seats.
Rhonda Chornenki which is not a bad thing :)
Stacey Friesen Right, but like I said earlier, it's often a case of people not knowing the laws, or even how to properly use their car seats. It's all in the manual :)
Carly-Alexis Sawatzky arent they the exact same tho? like my friend had a carseat from the states and the exact same one but from canada and we checked them over and they were identical just one had the canada sticker.
Erica Blair Dueck Oh, thanks Stacey I didnt know that!
Shana Waldner Jänzen Carly-Alexis - Canada's safety standards are higher than those in the U.S. There may be internal differences or differences in materials that can't be seen. There are also differences in weight allowances between Canandian and U.S. seats.
Carly-Alexis Sawatzky true, but they wouldn't sell a car-seat if it wasn't safe. so i don't see why we cant use them.
Stacey Friesen Because we don't follow US laws in Canda ;) They don't follow Canadian laws in the US either. They can't go around making exceptions for certain things.
Ang L. Friesen but the american children are just as important as ours. Our baby seat is from the usa and no one ever told us we couldn't us it we took our baby home form the hospital and no problem.
Marj Sawatzky My sister in law uses car seats from the states and I told her last time it wad illegal and she could get a fine for it but she says if u go to autopac they inspect it and put the sticker on it... Is that true?
Carly-Alexis Sawatzky no they will not put a sticker on it i have asked to put a sticker on it they would have to put the seat though testing and it would be unusable after.
Carly-Alexis Sawatzky I agree with Ang L. Friesen how are canadain children any more important then amarican children.
Marj Sawatzky Yea thats what I thought... I dont care if I have to pay double im not going to the states to save money on a car seat just to get a huge fine when I get back... How much money do you really end up saving then? Instead of thinking about our wallets.we should think about our kids. I will do anything to make sure my precious babies are safe and if that means spending more on a seat so be it. End of story.
Stacey Friesen Nurses are not trained car seat techs. They just have to make sure that your baby is IN a car seat, and that the straps are tight.
Stacey Friesen And some don't even know to check that!
Stacey Friesen ‎@Ang, it's not a question of whether we care about American children! They have laws, we have laws. We are required to abide by them in our own country.
Marj Sawatzky Its not our fault if the Americans dont care as much about their future generation. Theres a difference between Canada & USA, at least here we get health coverage and family allowances, etc. what do the americans have? Besides being cheaper than Canada. I have nothing against Americans we are all Gods children. Im not gonna complain about having to spend more on a car seat cuz in the long run its worth.
Marj Sawatzky Its not fair to compare the countries to each other like that. US isnt gonna change their laws because of Canada and vice versa. Right?
Ang L. Friesen everyone has there own opinion :) i believe in christ and i believe he will protect my child whether i spend 200 or 100. my opinion :)
Stacey Friesen That's fine. But you did say you chose to spend big $$$ because it would keep you child safer. ????
Ang L. Friesen no i said i bought it used and so i didn't pay much but to get the same one would be big bucks
Ang L. Friesen yeah and i'm fine. i think if you can't use them in canada then they should tell you at the border or no let you bring them across. Like they do with the walker is all.
Carly-Alexis Sawatzky you could alway take the canada sticker off a canadian carseat and stick it on a us one if your worried about that im sure the police wouldn't know the difference.
Stacey Friesen Wow... I can't believe we are talking about ways to break the law, and trying to justify it. I'm pretty sure the Bible does talk about obeying the laws of the land. I'm out of this conversation.
Susie Friesen It's not illegal to use expired or out of country carseats. But if you do use them and get into an accident insurance won't cover you. E.g. you use an expired car seat from the US and have an accident. Your baby dies or is badly injured. Insurance won't give you anything for lost time at work due to bereavment or cover time & gas for specialized appts in Wpg. If you're not sure you're using a proper carseat go to a carseat clinic at the Morden Fire Hall from 6pm to 7pm the 2nd Tuesday of every month.
Stacey Friesen ‎Susie Friesen, yes it is illegal. Police can and do give fines for it. I've seen it done.
Susie Friesen Thank-you for attacking me Stacey Friesen "I'm out of this conversation." Lying is a SIN!!
Ang L. Friesen Im no saying to don't wanna follow the law but i bought a car seat in the states not knowing i couldn't us it and now i'm supposed to chuck it ? that's what i don't agree with.
Stacey Friesen Sorry, Susie Friesen. I didn't mean to attack. Just wanted to clear up a misunderstanding of the law. I couldn't let that one go, because it's such a big thing, and I want people to KNOW, so what happened to Ang dont' happen to more people. I know it's not fair. But it is the law.
Carly-Alexis Sawatzky that's exactly what i ment in the first place I bought mine in the us not knoing all this because it was 1/3 of the price and i wasnt wanting to buy a used one, so im not going to go spend the 300$ out here to get the same seat i just bought for 80$ in the us that would be a waste of money.
Susie Friesen ‎Ang L. Friesen I suggest you go to the carseat clinic in Morden the 2nd Tuesday of every month at the Morden Fire Hall. They can answer your questions & concerns.
Stacey Friesen Great idea, Susie Friesen.
Mari Jl winkler police have one officer who is trained to do car seat inspections. i dont care even if i would not have the money i would make sure my kids were in safe car seats! i cant believe ppl would knowingly go to the states to save money and risk your chiles life and a ticket. i actually heard it was about 600 dollars if u have an american car seat. and to compare car seat laws and go against one country does not make sense. we live in canada. we have to get car seats from here. end of story. what about countries where they dont even use car seats? they dont care about their children at all? and really u can go to wal mart and get a car seat for under 100 or buy a good used one. to talk about putting canadian stickers on us seats though.... that is going too far! what about the canadian seat where u removed the sticker?? i am sure there is ways the police have besides looking at the sticker! some car seats from the us we dont even have here.
Ang L. Friesen i'm sure it was just a joke
Mari Jl for those with american seats maybe u can sell them on an american site? stacey was not attacking anyone. she simply clarified the law. i dont see a problem with that. this is getting out of hand!
Ang L. Friesen i'm not angry at all it is a discussion. No hard feelings :)
Shawna Wolfe ‎Meghan Barkley, Jen Winters, Meredith Clark, Naomi Fehr, someone.. maybe this convo needs to be deleted.. it has gotten a little bit out of hand..AND is taking up ALOT of space...

Thanks For Nothing!

I needed you,

You were not there,

Thanks for nothing.

I helped you,

You didn't help me,

Thanks for nothing.

I supported you,

You didn't reciprocate,

Thanks for nothing.

I complimented you,

You did not respond,

Thanks for nothing.

I have finally realized,

That you are not worth it,

Thank you for that!

Formula Sucks!!

I understand not everyone is as educated as I am about the dangers of formula feeding.

What I don't understand is why people don't want to educate themselves.

Recently, on facebook, a woman suggested to my breast-feeding sister that she should formula feed. Why couldn't she just offer help instead of advice? Don't get me wrong. Advice is great but sometimes all you need is for someone to come help.

"Formula feeding increases the baby’s risk of a whole range of health issues: SIDS, childhood cancer, respiratory illnesses, digestive illnesses, obesity, high blood pressure, allergies, ear infections and more. Giving your baby formula also increases his risk of not reaching his potential in terms of intelligence and school achievement, of having dental problems and needing orthodontic treatment and of dying during his first year of life." taken from http://www.lllc.ca/what-if-breastfeeding-had-no-benefits

When doing a search for risks of formula, I get many results. Including one from the World Health Organization. These are just a few of the risks mentioned:
For baby, artificial feeding increases the risk of the following diseases (among others*):

- Otitis media (middle ear infection): 3 to 5 times more likely
- Gastroenteritis: 6 times more likely
- Diarrhea
- Respiratory diseases (bronchitis, pneumonia): 2 to 5 times more likely
- Allergies
- Asthma

- Obesity

- Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS): 3 to 5 times more likely
- Lymphomas: 6 to 8 times more likely
- Type-1 Diabetes: 2 to 7 times more likely

- Necrotising enterocolitis: 20 times more likely
- Inflammatory diseases of the intestine (ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease): 3 times more likely
- Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
- Breast Cancer in girls
- Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Hodgkin's disease

- Gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- Urinary tract infections

- Vision troubles
- Poor development of jaw muscles and malocclusion
- IQ up to 8-10 points lower
- Tooth decay (« bottle caries »)
- Less effective immunisations (vaccines)

- Premature death (in the first year of life): 26.5% increased risk
*Incidence of all diseases studied is higher in formula-fed babies than in breastfed babies.

For mother, NOT breastfeeding increases the risk for the following diseases (among others)

- Post-partum haemorrhage
- Pre-menopausal Breast Cancer: 2 times more likely
- Ovarian Cancer: 1.6 times more likely
- Endometrial Cancer
- The mother who has Gestational Diabetes is 2 times more at risk of developing type-2 Diabetes later on if she does not breastfeed
- Osteoporosis

Doing a search for "Risks of Breastfeeding" comes up with quite a different result. There are a few HIV or aids sites listed but the majority are things like "the risks of NOT breastfeeding", and the risks of smoking, taking drugs, consuming alchol while breastfeeding. The World Health Organization recommends that breastfeeding is still the best way to feed your baby. Even with breast implants! ;)

I also did a search for contaminants in formula. "Formula itself may have contaminants introduced in the manufacturing process. Recalls have been ordered because of contamination with substances such as broken glass, fragments of metal and salmonella and other bacteria. The fungal toxin aflatoxin has also been detected in some commercial formulas. Although detected levels were very low, this toxin is known to cause cancer and is not present in breast milk. Infant formulas also may contain excessive levels of metals, including aluminum, manganese, cadmium and lead. Soy formulas are a particular concern due to very high levels of plant-derived estrogens (phytoestrogens) in soy products. In fact, the concentrations of phytoestrogens detected in the blood of infants fed soy formula were 13,000 to 22,000 times greater than the concentrations of natural estrogens." http://www.nrdc.org/breastmilk/formula.asp

These are just a few of the results. Search it for yourself if you don't believe me. Do me a favor. If you know a breastfeeding mom, support her. Don't ask how much longer she'll be doing it for. Respect her decision that she is doing it for the well-being of her and her baby and she will stop breastfeeding when her child decides he's done. Ask him if you're really curious! :)