Pregnancy Knowledge | Skincare...fun in the sun.

Skincare is extremely important while pregnant, especially during this time of the year when the sun is bright in the sky.  Due to the hormones surging through the body during pregnancy, it makes skin much more susceptible to harm.  Although my skin is of a deeper complexion, I still burn, especially on my back, shoulders, and nose.  No one is exempt from the sun's damage to skin, so diligence is key.  Yesterday at my 20 week appointment my PA told me that there is an increased chance to develop brown spots during pregnancy because of the increased hormones in the body.  That means its that much more important to wear sunscreen and limit time in the sun.  Now, don't get me wrong I love the summer, the sun, and the hot weather, but fortunately I work inside all day long at my job, so I don't have to worry as much as someone whose job or lifestyle gives them more exposure.  However, I do love the beach and it will be even more vital that I slather sunscreen all over, especially on my bump this year. 

Important things to remember about sunscreen while pregnant is:

• Level of sunscreen you need for your skin type.  Typically 30 is good across the board, but if you are pale or ivory you may need a higher number.

• The type of swimsuit or summer clothing you are wearing.  Now I know we all like to show off those bumps, but it may be best to not have it exposed to long periods of time.

• How long you're in the sun.  This is important, because you will need to continuously reapply throughout the day if you are spending a long time outside.  These even applies on cloudy days.  Another note, it is easy to get dehydrated while out in the sun, so hydration is key for your insides and outsides.

• Don't forget your hands and feet.  This may seem like common sense, since you are using your hands to apply the lotion, but someone could very well be doing it for you and you miss both, and they burn too and can get harmed.

• Also, don't forget your ears...and eyes!  Of course you can't put sunscreen in your eyes, but make sure you have a nice pair of UVA/UBA block sunglasses.  Pregnancy can do a number on the eyes, from affecting vision to drying them out, and combo'd with the sun...its not a nice feeling.  When it comes to ears, well its easy to get the face, but the ears could easily get forgotten.  Make sure you apply sunscreen to them as well.

• If you have a daily moisturizer, its best to have one that contains an SPF.  I use the Aveeno Daily Essentials, which has SPF 30 in it.  Many foundations and BB creams on the market also have SPF in them, so its easy to ensure that the face in covered.

• Lips...now mines don't do very well with SPF laden chapstick, but this might be an option for you.  I will have to trial and error a few, but in the past they have dried out and chapped my lips.  I do know that Maybelline's Baby Lips has SPF in it, so I might try that out, because the traditional chapsticks just don't work for me.

I think I've covered all the bases, but this is not by any means an all inclusive list.  Use your own discretion and even that of your medical professional went it comes to skincare if need be.  We all have different skin types and the ways to cater to them might be different, but most importantly the end result is that we our skin healthy and unharmed.

Happy Bumping!

xxoo,

Tenns

                                                                                                                                                                                                       



Pregnancy Belly | Strawberry Sorbet and other delights

We went strawberry picking last weekend and unfortunately strawberries have a relatively short life span. They are good for about 5 days if kept cool, but after that they pretty start disintegrating and getting mushy. I noticed this more with the fresh picked strawberries we picked, but that could have been because they made a long 10-hr drive from Ga to Va the day after they got picked. I had some store bought strawberries in the fridge sense earlier last week and they were actually still pretty good looking. Nonetheless, I chopped up all of them and puréed them into a a sorbet this morning. I thought I'd share my recipe while I'm waiting for the sorbet to freeze solid. I will post picks once the sorbet is completely frozen and ready to eat.

I've always, always loved sorbet, my faves being strawberry and raspberry.  I've made strawberry sorbet in the past before, but never a raspberry so it's next on my agenda.  Who knows, I might even delve into a blackberry.  Anyhow for your viewing and reading pleasure here are some picks of the strawberries we picked and of hubs and I just having fun at the farm and the recipes.

Strawberries still on the plant.  I never knew they grew like this!

Variation in young/mature strawberries.  Notice the color variation from green, to yellowish-red tint, to bright red, to deep red.

Strawberries hubs & I picked.

Hubs & I being silly! ;-)

More silliness!

Strawberry shortcake that my mom had. It was made with the farms fresh picked strawberries and topped with their homemade strawberry ice cream. Hers is minus the quintessential whipped cream, because she doesn't like it. She loved the strawberry shortcake, and we even tempted to purchase one of the farm's homemade strawberry pound cakes, but figured she'd hold off and have a reason to try something different next time. The shortcake itself was the same strawberry pound cake, so she still got her fix.

Strawberry ice cream that is homemade at the farm. Hubs & I had one each, so yummy. Funny thing is that neither one of us are big strawberry ice cream people, even though I love strawberries, but this ice cream was delist. Baby liked it too!

Mom's strawberries that she picked. And yep those are my pink and khakis flats.

Strawberry Sorbet Recipe

2-3 lbs of fresh or frozen strawberries, cut in into halves

1/4 cup of OJ or lemon juice. I used OJ, because I didn't have any lemon juice on hand.

1/4 cup of sugar or honey. I used sugar, because I didn't think about honey until after the fact.

A splash of vanilla extract. Roughly a 1/2 tbsp to 1 tbsp, depends on how much flavor you prefer. I'm guesstimating I used about 1 tbsp.

Add all ingredients to a blender and purée. Once puréed transfer mixture to an ice cream maker, if you have one. Or you can freeze in a container, however I recommend the ice cream maker, because the sorbet will set up better.

*The pictured sorbet was not done in an ice cream maker, so it turned out more icy than previously made ice cream maker versions that I've made.

Happy bumping!

xxoo,

Tenns