Author: Erin

September 11, 2015

Want To Boost Your Family’s Immune System? Go With Your Gut!

Itʼs Monday morning, you are getting yourself ready for work, walking the dog, making breakfast, packing lunches, thinking about what to make for dinner that evening, as well as having at least 10 other thoughts running through your mind when one of your kids wakes up with a terrible cold. Thoughts change to, “Who will stay home from work to watch him or her?”, “What does my child need to feel better?”, “When will the next family member fall to this illness?”. Sound right? What if you could reduce the number of times this event occurs in your household? By strengthening your familyʼs immune system, the number of missed work and school days can be dramatically reduced. Save your paid time off and sick leave for something fun, like a vacation!

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Building the bodyʼs defense system is much easier than one may think. Here is an easy way to start:

Focus on Gut Health

At least 70% of the bodyʼs immune system lives in our digestive system. Because of this, it is of the utmost importance to keep our gut healthy if we want to experience less sick days. To do this, one has to focus on removing foods that donʼt agree with their body constitution, as well as any foods a person is sensitive or allergic to. Adding pre- and pro- biotic foods and supplements are a great way to feed the healthy gut flora we already have, as well as make more good bugs. Examples of these include:

• Non-dairy yogurt (no sugar added)
• Plain Yogurt (if you are not sensitive to dairy) • Kefir (non-dairy coconut is my favorite)
• Kombucha
• Raw, Unpasteurized sauerkraut
• Unpasteurized pickles!
• Probiotic supplements

Chinese Medicine also focuses on the importance of a healthy digestive system, as well as digestionʼs relationship to the lungs. Focusing on consuming a majority of your food cooked versus raw allows for the digestive system to not have to work as hard to break down food and turn it in to energy. This is especially important during the colder months of the year.

Reduce Stress

Stress has a huge impact on the immune system. Long-term stress causes more bad bugs to consume our digestive system leading to poor immunity.
When we are stressed the body releases a hormone called cortisol. An increase in bodily cortisol, over time, has been shown to decrease the bodyʼs defense system. Things that increase cortisol besides stress include, sleep deprivation, caffeine, alcohol, and refined sugar consumption.

While stressful situations are impossible to ignore completely, there are things you can do to help your body handle it more gracefully and reduce the number of times cortisol is being released. These things include:

• Mediation
• Breath work
• Mindfulness
• Acupuncture
• Massage Therapy
• Essential oils
• Homeopathy
• Yoga
• Light walks
• Dietary changes (i.e. reduce caffeine, sugar, alcohol, and refined carbohydrates)

With the never-ending “to do” list that can come with a busy life, taking care of yourself and family when sick with colds and flus shouldnʼt be one of them. Adopt healthy immune system habits now and impact your familyʼs health for life.

About the Author

View More: http://alycarroll.pass.us/stephanie Stephanie Braunwarth is a board-certified Licensed Acupuncturist with a special focus in womenʼs health, fertility and nutrition. Stephanieeducates her patients about the importance of treating the underlying cause of a health condition and encourages them to take an active role in their health.

Stephanie serves patients at Des Moines Acupuncture Clinic in Des Moines.

Des Moines Acupuncture Clinic

August 29, 2015

Expressing Motherhood Is Coming To Des Moines

As you’ve heard by now Expressing Motherhood is coming to Des Moines February 20, 2016 at the Stoner Theater (inside the Civic Center). Ashlen from The Kidsperts is the local producer and co-director of the play. We’re just two short months away from our submission date (October 19) and people have been asking a lot of questions about submissions and the play in general! Here are the need-to-knows of Expressing Motherhood:

Expressing Motherhood is a National play, founded in 2008 by two stay at home moms in Los Angeles. The play has traveled to Boston, New York, Chicago, and (this fall) San Francisco and Sioux Falls, SD. The show consists of around 10 people performing their stories about motherhood on stage. You don’t need experience to be in this play–it was made for the amateur performer (and really, there’s all a little amateur performer in all of us).
Submissions are accepted ONE DAY ONLY on October 19, 2015. Send submission pieces to desmoines@expressingmotherhood.com.
Submissions should be a specific story telling your experience with motherhood. That being said, you don’t need to be a mom to be cast, just have a story about motherhood. Monologues, skits, songs, and dances are all welcome to tell your story. Your story can be sad, funny, embarrassing, etc. as long as it captures the aspects of motherhood.
Submission pieces should be around 5 minutes long when read aloud.
Before you submit your work, make sure you are available for all rehearsals and shows. Rehearsals will be held Thursday February 18, 2016 from 10 – 2 and Friday February 19, 2016 from 10 – 2. Showtimes are Saturday February 20, 2016 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets will be on sale soon through Ticketmaster and/or at the Civic Center box office (221 Walnut St., Des Moines, IA 50309).

Read more about Expressing Motherhood on their website and find Expressing Motherhood on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (using the hashtag #exmoshow). Also be sure to check out creator Lindsay Kavet’s new Podcast on iTunes, where Lindsay speaks with creative moms about their projects and how they balance life.

If you have any additional questions regarding the Des Moines Expressing Motherhood shows, please email Ashlen at desmoines@expressingmotherhood.com or ashlen@thekidsperts.com. Keep up to date with the latest news regarding the Expressing Motherhood show in Des Moines, follow the Kidsperts on Facebook and/or sign up for our newsletter.

About the Author

Ashlen Sheaffer is a proud Des Moines resident who was born and raisedhere. Ashlen wears many hats: mom, wife, daycare provider at her in-home daycare, blogger and co-owner at The Kidsperts, children’s book aut
hor, and co-director and producer for the upcoming play Expressing Motherhood play. In her free time Ashlen enjoys exploring all DesMoines has to offer, road trips, and adventuring all with the kids in tow. Ashlen is super excited to be able to share some of her family’s adventuring with other Iowans and get other families out into the community.

Follow her:

Website: www.thekidsperts.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashlen.kidspert

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AshlenSheaffer

Instagram: https://instagram.com/ashlen_at_the_kidsperts/

August 21, 2015

Being in the Moment: Some Ideas to Help You Achieve It!

I recently have been working hard on being in the moment. Sounds easy, right? Everyone is in a moment, but are you really focusing and experiencing what is actually happening?

It seems like these days, everyone is taking a picture, checking their e-mail (on their phones), checking social media (on their phones), planning ahead (what’s for dinner tonight? Next week?, What are we doing tomorrow night, etc.). It is common that people are planning and stressing over things that are possibly going to happen in the future, and then they never do. You spent all that time stressing, when it never even happened!

I am the first to admit, I am guilty of this. I have been slowly working hard on to change this. Here are some things I am doing:

Turn off e-mail and Facebook (any social media) notifications.
Take Facebook (any social media) completely off your phone if needed.
Set certain times to check your e-mail and/or Facebook (any social media).
Check your e-mail and/or Facebook (any social media) once a day. That’s it.
Set a time you will put away your phone for the night. Leave it in a different room, so you are not tempted.

You may not even realize it, but if you work at doing the following things above, it will eliminate a lot of anxiety and stress. Electronics create so much anxiety, it’s crazy to think what our society was like without them. We need to remember that e-mails, messages, tweets, Instagram messages …. do not need to be responded to ASAP. We have all of a sudden decided it is necessary to respond to everything as quickly as possible. It’s an emergency, it will be known. People will pick up the phone and call.

As part of working to be in the moment, I have started to learn mindfulness and/or meditation. I take that back, I have taken a meditation class and tried hard to meditate daily and I didn’t follow through so well 🙁 I was introduced to some guided mindfulness exercises, which I have found to be much easier for me to use daily. These were the ones introduced to me:

My favorite is the UCLA. I downloaded it straight to my phone and can access it at anytime. I try to do it 2-3 times a day; morning, afternoon and evening. I like to be guided and some people do not. It definitely is a personal choice. I enjoy the guidance, because it keeps me focused on what I am doing. It’s important to remember, that your mind WILL wander to your laundry list of things to do and that is NORMAL.

I think it is important for every human, wife, mother, husband, father … to do this. Everyone gets caught up with life and we forget to enjoy what is happening NOW. I have discovered this to be even more important, after having two children, staying home, and blogging. It is a struggle to balance all these things. Following the suggestions above and practicing mindfulness, is making everything a bit better 🙂

August 11, 2015

Taking Care of Mama: Why Self-Care Isn’t Selfish

Self-care. Weʼve heard the phrase, but are we actually doing it? Are we letting go of the feelings of “mama-guilt” or thoughts such as “I donʼt have time”? Or, do we feel stressed, tired and maybe, at times, a little resentful of the things we donʼt get to do since we had our sweet little ones? I have felt all of these things and had all of these thoughts. So whatʼs a mama supposed to do?

After my son was born, I felt, to put it lightly, awful. I was so incredibly tired, hormonal and emotional. The newborn stage was the most trying time of my life. All of the focus was on taking care of this little human. I didnʼt even think about taking care of me.

Once we were past the newborn stage, I still felt guilt about leaving baby to do some self-care. I donʼt ever remember my mom getting “me-time”, so why should I? It wasnʼt until a friend described self-care using an analogy that I finally got it. When on an airplane, when the flight attendant is giving safety instruction, they always say “Put your air mask on before helping others with theirs”.

So, how does a busy mom fit in self-care? While Iʼm still learning Iʼd like to share some thoughts and ideas that have been helpful to me for the past 9 months. I have one child, so I know for moms with more than one at home this is a bit more of a challenge. Do your best.

1) Ask for Help

No, really, ask for help. This is something I still struggle with, but Iʼm getting better. I felt so much guilt leaving my baby with my husband to go to an hour Yoga class, or even a walk around the block for that matter. But after the conversation with my friend, I almost had to force myself. I always felt so good after I did, and I felt more present and patient with my son and husband. You donʼt have to leave the house to do self-care, but sometimes itʼs a good idea to get out by yourself for a bit. So, ask your partner, trusted friend, family member, etc. ahead of time if they wouldnʼt mind watching your little one(s) for a short-period of time while you step out. Again, when you are ready, or as ready as youʼll ever be.

2) Focus on Health

Being healthy while caring for your family can be a challenge, especially if the household budget allows only enough funds for health visits for your kiddos. These visits, however, are important, and by taking the time to get an acupuncture treatment, massage, or chiropractic adjustment or any other healing modality you love, you are not only reducing stress producing hormones in your body, but also boosting your immune system and eliminating aches and pains. This not only teaches your kids the importance of taking care of yourself, but also puts your body back in to balance, so time with your children is spent feeling your best.

Food and meal prep can be a challenge as well. However, anything you put in to your body feeds vitality, or feeds stress, anxiety and illness. I use about one to two hours on the weekend (usually a Sunday) to prep some food for the week to make healthy meals quicker to prepare. I have also become good friends with my slow cooker. You can include your kids and have them help, or if you have a baby, you can wear him or her while you prep. It also helps to make sure only healthy options are available for quick meals and snacks so one isnʼt tempted to eat something that wonʼt make you a healthy mama.

3) A Little Goes a Long Way

When it comes to self-care, for me, itʼs not something I have to do daily to feel itʼs effects. If you can make time for 1 acupuncture session a month, great! If you can spend 15 minutes taking a bath uninterrupted, fantastic! Itʼs all about balance.

4) Do Something You Enjoy

Do self-care that makes you feel rejuvenated. If it has been so long since youʼve included some self-care in to your life, here is a list of things you can try:

• Meditation
• Yoga
• A walk outside
• A bath
• Acupuncture
• Massage therapy
• Chiropractic adjustment • Energy work/Reiki
• Counseling
• Reflexology
• Aromatherapy
• Read
• Journaling

Letʼs banish the thought of self-care being selfish and understand that itʼs not a “treat” but a necessity. The love and care a mother gives her child is unlike anything else. How amazing would it be if our children were able to see their mom love and care for herself as well?

About the Author

Stephanie Braunwarth is a board-certified Licensed Acupuncturist with a special focus in womenʼs health, fertility and nutrition. Stephanieeducates her patients about the importance of treating the underlying cause of a health condition and encourages them to take an active role in their health.

Stephanie serves patients at Des Moines Acupuncture Clinic in Des Moines.

Des Moines Acupuncture Clinic

May 18, 2015

The Honest Toddler & Signed Book Giveaway!

One individual I was very excited to see at MommyCon Minneapolis was Bunmi Laditan aka The Honest Toddler. I had been following her on Facebook, Twitter and had subscribed to her hilarious blog. She was even more funny in person!

The Honest Toddler does NOT hold anything back. She lays it out just as it is. It is amazing how many things she describes and explains hit so close to home. It seriously is a relief knowing that you are not the only parent out there dealing with all the things, with a toddler. As she explains, toddlers are entirely another species!

The Honest Toddler just recently published a book called Toddlers are A**holes. “Toddler a**holery is a normal part of human development—not unlike puberty, except this stage involves throwing food on the floor and taking swings at people who pay your way in life.”

I just finished reading the book and loved it. I will give you a heads up … yes, you can relate to a LOT, but some of the things may be taken to an extreme. I have no doubt in my mind though, that there are parents out there that deal with these extremes! Honestly, any and every parent who has a toddler or has graduated out of the toddler stage (lucky you) can and will relate to this book!

I was able to get my hands on two signed books and am giving one away! All you need to do is …

Comment below one crazy thing your toddler has done!
“Like” Midwest Mom & Wife on Facebook

I am really excited to hear all your crazy toddler stories 🙂 I will announce a winner Saturday, May 23rd! Let the craziness begin …

May 15, 2015

Share the Love: Central Iowa

I am so excited to announce that I am officially a Share the Love host for Central Iowa! What is Share the Love? I have mentioned it a few times since I returned from MommyCon Minneapolis, but I wanted to wait to go into more detail.

Share the Love is a National Cloth Diaper Bank. In 2012, Share the Love was created and began in St. Louis, Missouri. The sole purpose of this program is to distribute and provide cloth diapers to low-income families. A study was done, that one in three American families were forced to choose between food, household items and diapers. Jennifer Labit, owner of Cotton Babies, wanted to help change this.

“It feels like yesterday that my family was in this situation,” Labit said.” Ten years ago, I had a $30 weekly grocery budget and a WIC check. My family had to choose between diapers and food. If it wasn’t for a friend who generously sent my family cloth diapers as a gift, I don’t know what we would have done. Her gift helped my family and changed our lives, and I hope Share the Love will do the same for others.”

Since 2012, there have been host sites created in all 50 states across America. Many states have several host sites. To receive diapers, eligible families must apply for assistance. All of the diapers that are donated to Share the Love sites, are donated from other families who no longer need or use their cloth diapers.

So, what can YOU do?

Donate! You can donate any cloth diapers you no longer use. If they need a little tending to, that is okay. We will make sure they get put back into working condition, before they are distributed to families. You can also donate cloth wipes and/or changing pads!
Be a drop site! Do you own a business or work within a business that would be a great place for people to leave their diapers for donation? We are looking for several places in Central Iowa to leave baskets and information about the program. We would provide the basket & materials and would pick-up as often as needed!
Help spread the word to low-income families! Do you know of a great place or organization that we can spread the word about Share the Love? Share the Love is new to Central Iowa and many low-income families may not know of this option. With your help, we can help ease the minds of these families by getting them cloth diapers!

If you can help in ANY of these areas or have questions about the program please contact me at SharetheLove@cottonbabies.com.

May 6, 2015

Five Reasons to Love Cottonbabies

While at MommyCon Minneapolis I learned a lot about the company Cottonbabies. I was familiar with the company, knew they sold some awesome cloth diapers, but learned that they are so much more! Not only do they sell amazing diapers, but they strive to help people less fortunate, support mothers, honest, and owner Jen Labit is amazing! Let me break down some awesome reasons to love and support this amazing company.

1. Jen Labit is a working mother and wife. When I attended her VIP session at MommyCon, I learned that she may own and run a very successful cloth diapering company, but she is a mother and wife first. She has the same struggles to “fit it all in” as we do. She is a very inspirational woman and believes that mothers should have the “permission to dream”.

2. Jen Labit supports working mothers. Not only does she support them, she allows the mothers who work for her, to bring their children to work. She recently wrote a blog post, that explains how important it was for her to have her babies with her, when trying to grow and make Cottonbabies successful and how they make it work now.

(Image Source)

3. Cottonbabies gives back to the community through Share the Love. I learned about this amazing program while at MommyCon! Share the Love is a National Cloth Diaper Bank. People are able to donate any cloth diapers, they no longer use to Share the Love. Hosts from all around the country, volunteer and help distribute the cloth diapers to families who are in need. Think about it … families who have little ones in disposable diapers and who are struggling, could save so much if they no longer had to buy disposable diapers all the time! Yes, it is an investment to start cloth diapering, but Share the Love is here to help those families do it! I was so inspired by this program, I am now a Share the Love Host for Central Iowa families! Keep your eyes and ears open for more details 🙂

4. They offer several types of cloth diapers. Cottonbabies has created four different brands including: Bumgenius, Flip System, Econobum and Hemp Babies. By offering four different brands, there is surely something you will find and fall in love with. It’s important to have options and when it comes to cloth diapering there are a LOT of options and systems out there. It’s important to find what works best for you and your family. I just recently fell in love with the Flip System!

5. The Genius Series is freaking adorable 🙂 I want and need all of these! I love how Cottonbabies got unique and created some fun diapers representing some genius people in history! Geniuses that are represented include: Albert Einstein, Nelle Harper Lee, Louis Armstrong, Alicia Boole Stott, Osa Johnson, Matin Johnson, Ada Lovelace, Wangari Maathai, Steve Irwin, Jules Verne, Lewis Carroll, Audrey Hepburn, Charlie Chaplin, Marie Tharp, and Dr. E. Lee Spence.

(Image Source)

Make sure you are following Cottonbabies and Jen Labit on Facebook!

April 28, 2015

MommyCon Minneapolis Re-Cap

I went to MommyCon Minneapolis a little over a week ago and had so much fun! I am so excited to share some awesome things I learned, new products I saw, and some amazing people I met. To give you an idea of what is to come, here is a little re-cap …

1. VIP Session with Jennifer Labit from Cottonbabies! She is an amazing mother and business woman! I learned so much from her AND because of her, I am now a Share the Love host! More details to come 🙂

2. Babyganics AWESOME products and I have a bunch to test out, share my thoughts and GIVEAWAY!

3. The Great Cloth Diaper Change was an awesome experience!

4. I learned lots about the Diva Cup, from who else? Dirty Diaper Laundry’s Kim Rosas.

5. I met The Honest Toddler!! Bummi Laditan is hilarious! I am excited to read her new book and give away a signed copy by her!

6. I listened to TheBabyGuyNYC talk about strollers and carseats AND Amelia got her picture taken with him.

I had so much fun meeting awesome people, learning about new baby products, and so much more. Please keep your eyes open for my reviews and some great giveaways coming your way!

April 21, 2015

Farm Baby Foods – Fresh & Local!

Amelia has sampled some awesome baby food from Farm Baby Foods. She loved it and I loved it because it was so easy to get it delivered to our doorstep.

After Julie Burroughs, owner of Farm Baby Foods, had her twin girls, she quickly learned that providing fresh and tasty baby food was not very easy. She learned she needed bigger equipment and her commitment to providing fresh, healthy baby food for her girls grew into Farm Baby Foods.

Farm Baby Foods provides Stage-1, Stage – 2, and pouches of baby food. Only all-natural, seasonal, organic produce and ingredients are used to make tasty combinations of baby food. Julie and the staff of Farm Baby Foods believe that every process of making their baby food is important. They make all the food in their licensed, commercial kitchen. They are Green Restaurant Association endorsed products, freezer safe, and all the food containers are BPA free.

If you have not been won over yet, the ordering and delivery WILL win you over!

Go to Farmbabyfoods.com and select “Store”
Select which baby food you would like to purchase. Amelia has tried the Apple/Pear and Squash/Carrot/Nutmeg. She has enjoyed both!
Select your delivery preferences (YES, it IS delivered to YOU!)
Select “Add to cart”
When you are finished adding food to your cart, click the cart symbol at the top of the page, and checkout.

That is it! Pretty simple, huh? If you have any questions at all, Julie provides you with a phone number you can call or an e-mail address. She is AWESOME at answering questions and making sure you are happy.

Some other things to know and remember:

On all foods, EVERY ingredient is listed
You must have a $20 minimum purchase, which is VERY easy to hit
You can store the baby food in your freezer for up to 6 months
Do not store the baby food in your refrigerator for more than 72 hours of production date
What is offered changes often due to what is in season and available

Of course, we are doing an great giveaway, to give you a chance to try Farm Baby Foods for yourself. Make sure you follow all 3 steps to be entered in to win a $50 certificate!!! That’s a lot of baby food!

I will announce a winner on Sunday, April 26th on my Facebook Page!

April 2, 2015

Exciting News!

I have been holding in some exciting news and it is finally official!

Midwest Mom & Wife now owns Des Moines Parent. Have you ever checked out Des Moines Parent? It is an awesome blog that was created and developed by Thomas Brogan, to keep parents up to date with fun events and activities in Central Iowa. I am so excited I get to take over and continue to do the same!

Midwest Mom & Wife will continue to have awesome information about pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding, babywearing, natural parenting, and more! While, Des Moines Parent will have all the fun events and activities to do an see in Central Iowa. There is an event calendar of Des Moines Parent, which is an awesome resource, that lists dates and times of fun things to do. Check it out!

During this transition and I learn to juggle TWO blogs … blog posts may slow down a bit for the next couple of weeks. Do NOT worry though, I will return with awesome posts and information for you.

Make sure you visit and subscribe to Des Moines Parent and also “like” Des Moines Parent on Facebook.