Care @ MindSay

It is commonly believed that women instinctively know when they are pregnant. That's only part of the truth. The onset of pregnancy is marked by a series of changes in their bodies. Women who are sensitive to these symptoms-especially if they have been pregnant before-correctly interpret them as signs of pregnancy.

# 1. Nausea. Symptoms of nausea are a very common sign of pregnancy. Popularly termed 'morning sickness,' the symptoms may be felt at all times of the day. Many women also develop an intense aversion to certain smells or tastes, of food items for instance, that they liked earlier. Symptoms of nausea may continue to be felt even into the second semester.

# 2. Abdominal bloat. Soon after conception, hormonal changes cause the abdomen to feel distended. Your spouse may complain that her clothes are getting tighter. This pregnancy sign is similar to the feeling of bloat she experiences when she has her periods.

# 3. Tender breasts. If your spouse complains that her breasts pain when you touch them, you may have reason to rejoice. Tenderness or soreness of the breasts is another obvious sign of pregnancy. The pain is similar to, but usually more intense than, what women experience during periods. A related pregnancy symptom is a feeling of fullness in the breasts. The appearance of the breasts may also change with veins becoming visible under the skin.

# 4. Montgomery's tubercules. Somber as the phrase sounds, it simply refers to the wart like projections that form around the areolas-the dark area surrounding the nipples- of the breasts.

# 5. Missed periods. A very likely sign of pregnancy is when your spouse misses a period. The scanty menstrual-like flow that sometimes appears at the time of implantation-around ten days after conception-is not a period, and, in fact, indicates a pregnancy.

Because sometimes i feel like i do. When I love someone....family, friend, significant other, dog.......doesn't matter who.....when I decide you are a special person in my life, you have a huge chunk of my heart. And with that comes my concern for your well-being. And I will worry myself sick if I haven't heard from you or have a feeling that things might not be ok.

Some people don't seem to understand this, thinking I am silly for worrying about them.....maybe because they are slightly more care-free? Or maybe I'm just slightly less care-free because I've dealt with some dear losses and near tragedies in my recent past? I don't know.

But I love and care deeply. Too much? I know I dont feel that way....

I just don't care anymore.

No one else does. People don't get it, I don't even get it I suppose. I have three people you could call friends, and I tried talking to all of them( I have to call them because they wouldn't be caught dead calling me), they just blame me or change the subject.

I tried reaching out and I was turned down. Can't say I didn't try.

One of them says I'm just not trying hard enough. How can he say that? I have been trying my ass off. So he says maybe I've been trying the same thing over. Well I have been trying a list of different things. I just don't have social skills, I was made fun of all my life, I was and am the loner. He just says to try harder and I say I've given up. He said that's the problem, you just give up. It goes on like that until he says he doesn't know what to do, that I just shoot down everything he says. I say, now you get it. When you try so hard and so much and get shot down every time, you get worn out and you feel like quitting. Eventually after so much failure you begin to not care anymore.

For two years I have been growing moss on the north patio to my house. today I finally harvested it and  draped it over rocks and the stone lantern top and around the pitcher plant. It involves putting on industrial grade knee pads, taking a kitchen scraper and  on hands and knees slowly lifting off sections of it in sheets. the parts that crumble can be put in an old blender  ( I have one I use for paper making) with a tab of buttermilk or yogurt and poured over the places you hope it to take hold.


Now moss very much has a mind of it's own and it will either take or not take and obviously you need a damp shady spot for it. But to me it is one of nature's wonders and I have loved cultivating it and then using it to "age" the water area I built near the front door. I can't understand that people buy herbicides to kill this stuff. After I get most of the stuff up I will power wash the front patio and it will be spiffy and ready for a new crop of moss in a few years.

Safety/First Aid:

• Make sure that the babysitter knows infant/child CPR and Rescue Breathing.

• Remind the babysitter that infants should definitely not be placed on an adult bed of any kind.

• Remind the babysitter that the baby should be placed on her/his back to sleep.

• Make sure that the babysitter knows the signs of illness in an infant including: changes in skin color, sweating, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea.

• The babysitter must know where the fire extinguishers are kept, and explain how they are used.

• Be sure to show the babysitter where the first aid supplies are kept.

• Remind the babysitter to keep all balloons or plastic items away from the baby.

• Instruct the babysitter that children should never be unsupervised in the bathtub. He/she should take them with him/her if they must answer the telephone or the door bell.

• Remind the babysitter to keep the bathroom door closed, and the toilet seat and lid down when not in use.


Familiarity with your House:

• Before leaving, be sure to give the babysitter a tour of the house.

• Ensure that all windows have been closed, and that the babysitter knows to keep them closed.

• Show the babysitter how to operate your child safety gates, and indicate where they need to be kept.

• Also show the babysitter where the flashlights are located.

• Make sure that you have put away all sharp items including scissors, knives, and any other objects that can cause injury.