Alaskan Mama chat January- Happy New Year! - Page 2

[roadfamily6now]

Originally Posted by mtn.mama

We feed raw frozen salmon to our chickens, goats and dogs with no trouble.

Yeah, I'm guessing that frozen or previously frozen is okay since the freeze does kill the parasites.

[mamatoni]

I thought I remembered reading from one of you ladies some way to TTC a girl. I have a friend who has 3 boys and is about to TTC#4 and would love any advice on how to get a little more estrogen in the house

Thoughts? Input?

Thanks!

[mckittre]

YEA yurts! Amazing how warm they can be in the winter. The limited light would bother me but then again, the more windows, the less heat, etc.

Actually, with a skylight and 4 relatively large windows, the yurt is better lit than almost any standard house I've been in. Something about the shape helps too - even after dark I can light the place well with just a couple bulbs. It isn't as well-insulated as a house - probably the only major drawback. But cozy warm with the fire going.

[treetop]

I have 10 Kushies diapers for sale. They are brand new and prepped. We have only used 2 of the diapers once. They are gender neutral and are estimated to fit 10-22 lbs. PM me if you are interested. I really do not like them but I know that there are a few people out there that like this brand. I have no set price so any offer is better then none! I can also send pics!
With that out of the way I am happy to announce that we are moving to Petersburg! Are there any PSG Mama's out there? I thought we were headed back to Anchorage but plans have changed and we are spending the next 3 years there! Hopefully we can find a rental by the end of the month!

[Pinoikoi]

OMG!

I just found out there is a diaper service in Anchorage now. Where have I been?

http://www.happybottomsdiaperservice.com/index.html

[Pinoikoi]

Originally Posted by mamatoni

I thought I remembered reading from one of you ladies some way to TTC a girl. I have a friend who has 3 boys and is about to TTC#4 and would love any advice on how to get a little more estrogen in the house

Thoughts? Input?

Thanks!

All I can tell you is that the tricks only SWAY the odds.. and only slightly.. but essentially the factors that one can alter are acidity and timing..

First, one must have some charts done. Ovulation has to be tracked. I use fertilityfriend.com to help me keep my data, (I think my username still links to my last chart), but Taking Charge of Your Fertility is a really good book to get started on charting, and How to Choose the Sex of your Baby talks about timing through charts.. essentially sperm can live about 5 or 6 days in the human body so for a girl the book (the second one) suggests timing sex to occur about 4 days prior to ovulation as the theory is that male sperm swim faster but die off easier, but female sperm are slower and hardier.. so 4 days ahead would give the males time to die off essentially.

The other factor is acidity. Women who take additional calcium (no idea what kind) and cranberry tablets statistically have more girls. There is another supplement.. I can't remember the name Ms. Something or other's tincture or something? that also seems to push for girls- it probably has a lot of Vit C in it, but i couldn't find anyone in Alaska that sells it anymore.. ETA: Lydia Pinkham- you can get it on ebay...

I took my dp off of bananas and coffee as well. He ate a lot of pineapples (again, pushing the acidity).. I TRIED to time it well, but wouldn't ya know it I O'd early the month I got pregnant? Well, I was taking the cranberry tablets as well, though, so there's still hope

[onyxravnos]

Originally Posted by mckittre

Happy New Yer!

Hi. I'm the one from the article. And of course, there are many yurts in Alaska -

Ooooooooo i thought i reconized you from somewhere... mind if i hit you up via PM? me and DH were thinking maybe a yurt but we were unsure of the insulating factor.

[Danidama]

Hi, I'm sorry I only have a minute and haven't read this thread yet, but I was wondering if I could get any help or advice on something. My husband, dd and I live in Va (I'm from Seattle). We really want to move to Fairbanks, because it is our dream, and there is a cabin for sale in rural Fairbanks that we really love the look of.

But I'm looking up everything I can, trying to figure out how we'd make this move. Not necessarily to that cabin of course, but to Fairbanks in general. The apartment reviews in Fairbanks are terrible, and I'm just not at all sure how we would go about getting this done. Any ideas at all? We can't just go willy nilly style or anything. Yurts are an option too.. just had to throw that out there, in case anyone has an opinion on them.

Thank you so, so much for any ideas or anything at all you guys might have to offer me.

I'm really hoping I'll be able to join you guys sometime soon!

[brightonwoman]

Originally Posted by treetop

With that out of the way I am happy to announce that we are moving to Petersburg! Are there any PSG Mama's out there? I thought we were headed back to Anchorage but plans have changed and we are spending the next 3 years there! Hopefully we can find a rental by the end of the month!

We thought about Petersburg when we were preparing to leave Pelican, but after two years in a tiny SE town we decided we needed something on the road...I want to visit Petersburg at some point though, ideally for the "15 Mai" Norwegian celebration (unfortunately that clashes with DH being a school teacher ) Dh lived in Norway for a couple of years and it's in my ancestry. I have no idea when I'll be able to actually travel to Norway though, so I want to get to PSG...it feels reachable.

Originally Posted by mckittre

Hi. I'm the one from the article. And of course, there are many yurts in Alaska - Nomad Shelter in Homer made ours, and they're all over Homer.

Yep, I'm in Homer. There's a whole little 'village' of yurts on the edge of town, I think it's a store/visitor's center type of place (or series of them would be more accurate I guess!)

Originally Posted by mckittre

I guess it shows you what the rest of the country thinks of us crazy Alaskans!

Originally Posted by alaskaberry

Haha. We're not the crazy ones...They are. Who wants to live in a stinky city with too many people? Not me...

We need an icon for yurt-love.

I'd love to live in a yurt, but convincing dp of that would fly about as well as the time I tried to convince him to build me an octagonal house.

I'm not quite up for a yurt--I like having my own bedroom where I can close the door and I REALLY like having indoor plumbing Our dream is more like a hobbit hole...partially (even mostly) underground, grass and flowers growing on the roof... Hubby hasn't talked me into the round door though



Here's a funny that happened just moments ago as I was typing: DS is almost 3 (in a couple weeks). He's got the potty thing down, and can get his pants down, but can't get them back up himself...so he'll go do his business but then come waddling out to wherever I am--with his pants around his ankles--asking for my help. Just now he waddled up to me and said "mom, can you remember how to pull my pants up?!"

[roadfamily6now]

Originally Posted by Danidama

Hi, I'm sorry I only have a minute and haven't read this thread yet, but I was wondering if I could get any help or advice on something. My husband, dd and I live in Va (I'm from Seattle). We really want to move to Fairbanks, because it is our dream, and there is a cabin for sale in rural Fairbanks that we really love the look of.

But I'm looking up everything I can, trying to figure out how we'd make this move. Not necessarily to that cabin of course, but to Fairbanks in general. The apartment reviews in Fairbanks are terrible, and I'm just not at all sure how we would go about getting this done. Any ideas at all? We can't just go willy nilly style or anything. Yurts are an option too.. just had to throw that out there, in case anyone has an opinion on them.

Thank you so, so much for any ideas or anything at all you guys might have to offer me.

I'm really hoping I'll be able to join you guys sometime soon!

fairbanks is pretty awesome! The thing I would worry about being so far from home would be WORK. Apartments and cabins are a dime a dozen in Fairbanks. You can get just about anything in any price range but jobs are not so easy.

[1stimestar]

Originally Posted by roadfamily6now

Apartments and cabins are a dime a dozen in Fairbanks. You can get just about anything in any price range but jobs are not so easy.

Lol well, not the cheap price range...

[roadfamily6now]

Originally Posted by 1stimestar

Lol well, not the cheap price range...

that's true! all the cheap ones are probably taken.

I'd take a dry cabin over a house in Anchorage anyway. (shhhh. Don't tell DH that!)

[mamatoni]

Originally Posted by Pinoikoi

All I can tell you is that the tricks only SWAY the odds.. and only slightly.. but essentially the factors that one can alter are acidity and timing..

First, one must have some charts done. Ovulation has to be tracked. I use fertilityfriend.com to help me keep my data, (I think my username still links to my last chart), but Taking Charge of Your Fertility is a really good book to get started on charting, and How to Choose the Sex of your Baby talks about timing through charts.. essentially sperm can live about 5 or 6 days in the human body so for a girl the book (the second one) suggests timing sex to occur about 4 days prior to ovulation as the theory is that male sperm swim faster but die off easier, but female sperm are slower and hardier.. so 4 days ahead would give the males time to die off essentially.

The other factor is acidity. Women who take additional calcium (no idea what kind) and cranberry tablets statistically have more girls. There is another supplement.. I can't remember the name Ms. Something or other's tincture or something? that also seems to push for girls- it probably has a lot of Vit C in it, but i couldn't find anyone in Alaska that sells it anymore.. ETA: Lydia Pinkham- you can get it on ebay...

I took my dp off of bananas and coffee as well. He ate a lot of pineapples (again, pushing the acidity).. I TRIED to time it well, but wouldn't ya know it I O'd early the month I got pregnant? Well, I was taking the cranberry tablets as well, though, so there's still hope

Thanks!! I will pass this along to my friend. She knows nothing is for sure, but will take any help swaying things in her favor that she can get!

[Pinoikoi]

Do you guys think it is "normal" to cook outside in the winter? I think it's normal, we don't do it every day, but not infrequently most years.. this is a spin off from a thread in nutrition/meal planning.. and I am wondering if it's an Alaskan thing or if it really is more common than that?

[katiesk]

we have always cooked outside during the winter if we felt like it. my brother does, like every day. but thats weird!

[tallanvor]

Originally Posted by Pinoikoi

Do you guys think it is "normal" to cook outside in the winter? I think it's normal, we don't do it every day, but not infrequently most years.. this is a spin off from a thread in nutrition/meal planning.. and I am wondering if it's an Alaskan thing or if it really is more common than that?

Other places I have lived where it snows, people really don't cook outside. Warmer places, such as Florida, Texas, or Nevada people will grill in the winter. I think the cooking outside when it's snowy is an Alaskan thing, though. I've never heard of anyone else doing it.

[Icequeen_in_ak]

Originally Posted by Pinoikoi

Do you guys think it is "normal" to cook outside in the winter? I think it's normal, we don't do it every day, but not infrequently most years.. this is a spin off from a thread in nutrition/meal planning.. and I am wondering if it's an Alaskan thing or if it really is more common than that?

I don't cook outside often in the winter, but when I want to grill... I GRILL and I don't care what the temp is.

[roadfamily6now]

we grill all year round! In Fairbanks, it was tradition to have a BBQ at winter's first -20F.

We have both propane and charcoal for this very reason. Propane runs too slow at -30F

[BusyMommy]

We grill a lot. + we have lots of bonfires it seems.

[RoViMama]

Hi new ak mom here! We will be at the zoo tomorrow for the storytime. Maybe we will some of you there. I be the one with one over dressed and one under dressed child! Goodnight, Sue