The Mommypotamus

Giveaway!!! Cuisinart Immersion Blender ($30 Value)

Heather — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:41:49 +0000

This month, as sort of a reverse housewarming gift . . .

In celebration of the big move, I’m giving away some of my favorite kitchen, beauty and household items. This week's prize - a Cuisinart Smartstick immersion blender - was chosen by your votes on Facebook. Great choice, y'all! I use mine every. single. day.

How To Enter To Win

1. Click here to read about the prize 2. Click here to sign up for my newsletter. I have back-to-back giveaways planned for the next few weeks, but to be eligible to win you must be subscribed at the time the winner is drawn. You can unsubscribe at any time. Your email address will only be used for Mommypotamus email updates and will not be sold or shared with anyone. Use the Rafflecopter widget below to enter the giveaway. This giveaway is open to everyone, but the immersion blender will be shipped to U.S. residents only. Winners who are residents outside of the U.S. will receive a $30 gift card to Amazon. a Rafflecopter giveaway Disclosure: cmp.ly/4 and cmp.ly/5

Winner of the Water Kefir Set

Heather — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 22:24:59 +0000

Are you ready to break open the bubbly?

Well, if your name is Marcie C (mc . . 6608@ . . .) and you entered on June 11 by checking out these gorgeous Bormioli Rocco Giara swing top bottles along with water kefir grains and a mesh strainer that will be happening soon enough! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Congratulations, Marcie!!

Please contact me within 7 days via email (support at mommypotamus dot com) so I can send you your prize.

Didn’t win?

Don’t worry, I'll be giving away a new prize tomorrow!

How To Make Water Kefir

Heather — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 17:39:05 +0000

Do You Miss Cherry Limeades?

Or are you looking for a healthy alternative to soft drinks for your kids? Homemade soda pop to the rescue! Not only is it delicious, water kefir pop is rich in beneficial bacteria that boost immunity and help with digestive function. The best part? It's sooooo easy to make. Here's how . . .

Homemade Kefir Soda

Ingredients

1/3 cup rapadura/sucanat or organic white sugar (avoid honey because it does not have the right composition of sugars to feed the kefir grains)
1 quart purified water - no fluoride or chlorine - these will kill the grains. I've used water from my Berkey, spring water and reverse osmosis water with minerals added back in
2 tablespoons kefir grains (Hydrated, not dried. Follow the instructions for hydrating that come with your grains)
1 squirt Concentrace minerals or molasses - optional (Water kefir tends to do better in mineral rich water. Both of these are good sources of minerals, but I'm not a fan of the flavor of molasses in my kefir)

Optional flavoring ideas:

A few slices of ginger - I've found this makes my kefir extra fizzy for some reason
1/2 lime and fresh mint - so refreshing!
2-3 teaspoons vanilla extract for a creamy soda experience
You can find recipes for cherry limeade, mango colada, blackberry lavender and more here

Supplies Needed

1 quart jar
mesh strainer (plastic because metal will harm the grains)
cloth with rubber band to cover jar
measuring cup or bowl with pouring spout
swing top bottles - like these or these

Step 1: Dissolve Sugar In A Small Amount Of Hot Water

If you're making a quart, ladel out a small portion of your measured water and heat it to almost boiling. Add it to your jar along with the sugar and stir with a wooden/plastic spoon. Once the sugar is dissolved add the rest of your water. Make sure the water is cooled to room temp before continuing to the next step. .

Step 2: Strain Kefir Grains

Whether your gathering your grains from a previous batch (as shown in the photo above) or using new grains recently hydrated in sugar water, you're going to need to strain them. My favorite method is to place my mesh strainer over a measuring cup and pour. As the cup fills I pour it into swing top bottles for the second fermentation, which I'll cover later in this tutorial. Make sure to use a plastic mesh strainer as metal can harm the kefir grains. Here's what they look like up close.

Step 3: Add Grains To Your Sugar Water Mixture

Boy do these things love converting sugar into probiotic goodness! Pictured on the left is a brand new batch of kefir that hasn't fermented yet. On the right is a finished batch - the color tends to lighten when they've done their magic.

Step 4: Add Flavorings (Optional)

Now is the time to make your soda a cherry limeade, mango colada, or strawberry twist.

Step 5: Pour In Swing Top Bottles For Extra Fizziness (Optional)

Technically you can stop with step 3, but in order for your water kefir to become carbonated you need to ferment a second time in tightly sealed bottles. As the beneficial bacteria and yeasts continue to consume the sugar they release gases which carbonate the drink. As a side benefit, this kind of carbonation benefits digestion! I let mine sit for 1-3 days, depending on the temperature of my kitchen. Personally, I like to allow most of the sugar to be converted before serving, but you can pour a glass whenever the flavor develops to your preference!

Special Notes

Make sure to check on them often while you're getting a feel for how quickly the fermentation process goes in your environment, because if the pressure builds up you may end up spraying fizz all over yourself and your kitchen. Not that I would know that from personal experience or anything. Ahem. Also, it is possible to ferment with freshly pressed juices, but they yield a higher alcohol content than regular kefir, which contains a tiny amount. Please use caution when serving them to children, perhaps by fermenting them for a shorter amount of time. Also, second ferments are not recommended with juice kefir - pressure may build up very quickly, causing the bottle to burst.

Why You Need To Pee In The Shower

Heather — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 17:31:40 +0000

Sometimes I laugh so hard tears run down my leg

~ Just about every mama who has given birth

Okay, folks, I have only admitted to wetting my pants one time publicly, and I say without shame that it was a glorious experience. However, I'm not exactly hoping to make a habit of it, you know?

And yet, after becoming a mother I suddenly developed a fear of trampolines, Super Bowl commercials, and sneezing. If Ryan Gosling memes had been around back then I'd have been a goner - seriously, have you seen these?

Anyway, back to the subject-at-hand, which I'm sure is #1 on your list of conversation topics for dinner soirees, backyard BBQ's, and baby showers - INCONTINENCE! After Katie was born I sought the help of a specialist to help me rehabilitate my pelvic floor. Like 99.99% of the experts out there, she recommended kegels.

Chances are you have tried them, too - but what if the kegel instructions you find online, and in most medical offices, childbirth classes and magazines can actually MAKE MATTERS WORSE? Did you almost fall out of your chair just now? Stay put and I'll explain.

Incontinence Hotline: Can You Hold, Please?

Most of us think of childbirth as the cause of incontinence, but really it just accelerates a process that most people in our culture experience. The primary cause goes back to modern factors, so over time women who have not given birth - and even men - find that they cannot "hold it" anymore. What modern factors, you ask? The main culprits are the way we use the toilet, the shoes we wear, the way we sit and how we exercise. Here's why: The pelvic floor is made up of the muscles, ligaments and tissue which attach to our pubic bone and sacrum. Basically, it's what holds up our organs so they don't fall out. According to Katy Bowman of Aligned and Well, we want the pelvic floor to be like a trampoline - taut yet supple. To get this taut characteristic, it's important that the pelvic floor be kept firmly in place on both sides. Unfortunately, these days many of us have weak gluteal muscles due to lack of use. Instead of squatting to pee, we sit on toilets that flush. We sit on big, overstuffed chairs that cause us to tuck our sacrum under rather than push it out. We don't do as much walking as we used to. Collectively, all of these things contribute to Booty Collapse Disorder - a weak behind. When the bum is weak it doesn't hold up it's end of the trampoline well, and we end up with something that looks like this: The trampoline has turned into a hammock! In this state, the pelvic floor cannot properly support your organs and maintain the functions it was designed to. Interestingly, Kegel exercises can tighten the area temporarily, but without strong glutes they'll actually just pull the sacrum closer to the pubic bone and cause more dysfunction over time, says Katy Bowman.

"A kegel attempts to strengthen the PF [pelvic floor], but it really only continues to pull the sacrum inward promoting even more weakness, and more PF gripping. The muscles that balance out the anterior pull on the sacrum are the glutes. A lack of glutes (having no butt) is what makes this group so much more susceptible to PFD. Zero lumbar curvature (missing the little curve at the small of the back) is the most telling sign that the PF is beginning to weaken. Deep, regular squats (pictured in hunter-gathering mama) create the posterior pull on the sacrum. Peeing like this in the shower is a great daily practice, as is relaxing the PF muscles to make sure that you're not squeezing the bathroom muscle closers too tight. Just close them enough...An easier way to say this is: Weak glutes + too many Kegels = PFD."
Pelvic Floor Party: Kegels Are NOT Invited

There it is, y'all! Squatting to pee in the shower is GOOD for you because it allows you to engage your pelvic floor in the way it is optimally designed for. Of course, you CAN just do squats, but for best results you'll need to make sure that you practice relaxing your pelvic floor muscles, stopping just shy of urinating. Or you can just pee in the shower.

Are Kegels Always Bad?

So here's the deal: Kegels - if done by themselves - can make matters worse by making the muscle shorter/tighter and pulling the sacrum in. If you have strong glutes this is probably not an issue, but there are other things to keep in mind. Most kegel advice is bogus, says Alyce Adams, RN - aka The Kegel Queen. According to Alyce, here are some top kegel "don'ts."

Kegel Dont's:

Don't do hundreds per day "Here’s why we don’t do 200 kegels a day. Kegels work by increasing your control of the pelvic floor muscles, and by building mass and tone in the pelvic floor. How would you build mass and tone in any other muscle in your body? As anyone who does weight training knows, you’d do a small number of strong, sustained reps. Not 200 “quick flicks,” or 200 anything! Your pelvic floor is no different. We have decades of research to tell us what types of kegel programs work. Why aren’t more people using it?" The Kegel Queen, R.N. Don't do little squeezes "Just like any other strength training, Kegels should consist of several strong and sustained reps." says The Kegel Queen. You need a strong squeeze and a full release. According to Katy Bowman, not fully releasing is like doing arm curls and then leaving your arm curled up. You've contracted your muscle but you can't properly use it. (source) Don't do them while driving It's hard to focus on doing a STRONG squeeze and full release while handing snacks to the kids in the back seat, flipping on your turn signal and trying to remember if you're supposed to take the first or second left. "1. To do a strong and sustained contraction requires focus. Could you dead lift your max weight while driving? Impossible, of course, but even if you could do this move in a car, you wouldn't because it requires too much concentration. 2. Having a routine is what makes any exercise program succeed. Saying you can do Kegels anytime doesn't mean you will. 3. A proper Kegel includes fully relaxing; letting the muscles go completely soft, and letting your mind go with it. Not something you want to do behind the wheel." - The Kegel Queen Don't move the wrong muscles "Kegel Queen says that the pelvic floor and only the pelvic floor--not your butt, your abs, your hip flexors--should contract during a Kegel." (source) Don't make the wrong movement "A Kegel, says the Queen, is a contraction that lifts the pelvic floor up and forward" (source) Don't make kegels complicated "Devices that require you to take off your pants will eventually collect dust in the back of your underwear drawer, says The Queen." (source) Theoretically, kegels wouldn't be necessary if we'd grown up squatting more often and not tucking our sacrum's while we sit. However, in some cases they may be appropriate. If I were going to go this route, I'd consult an expert or check out The Kegel's Queen's materials to make sure I'm engaging the right muscles. Personally, though, I'm going with squats!

Other Ways To ♥ Your Pelvic Floor

Ditch the high heels - here's why Don't tuck your sacrum under when you sit - try this instead! Squat - This post is specifically written for mamas preparing for childbirth, but it applies to everyone

Bottom Line (No Pun Intended!)

If you want to jump on trampolines, snort with laughter over Ryan Gosling memes and, um, sneeze, make sure that your glutes are strong enough to hold up their end of the pelvic floor. For more info check out "Down There For Women" by Katy Bowman.

Will you change your approach to kegels after reading this? Why or why not?

Giveaway!! Water Kefir Grain Set ($63 Value)

Heather — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 14:51:05 +0000

Orange Creamsicle, Strawberry Twist & Cherry Lime . . .

If you think the fun ended when you gave up toxic sodas, I have good news for you! Water kefir is a delightfully bubbly, probiotic rich drink that kids - even grown-up kids like you- will LOVE. The best part? It's so easy to make. I'll be posting a tutorial later this week to prove it! In the meantime, you can enter to win the supplies you'll need:

Bormioli Rocco Giara swing top bottles - Because they're the secret to lots of fizz
Water kefir grains
And a mesh strainer

How To Enter To Win

1. Pick one of the 3 prizes to read up on! Click here to read about the Bormioli Rocco Giara swing top bottles (Set of 6) Click here to read about the water kefir grains Click here to read about the mesh strainer 2. Click here to sign up for my newsletter. I have back-to-back giveaways planned for the next few weeks, but to be eligible to win you must be subscribed at the time the winner is drawn. You can unsubscribe at any time. Your email address will only be used for Mommypotamus email updates and will not be sold or shared with anyone. Use the Rafflecopter widget below to enter the giveaway. This giveaway is open to everyone, but the kefir set will be shipped to U.S. residents only. Winners who are residents outside of the U.S. will receive a $63 gift card to Amazon. a Rafflecopter giveaway Disclosure: cmp.ly/4 and cmp.ly/5