the tao of fertility

I'm definitely a fan of trying alternative or holistic medicine. Earlier this week I was trying to convince my OB to write me a prescription for acupuncture to see if it could make a dent on this nausea. Which is horrid, by the way. Truly, truly horrid. But that is the subject for another post.

When Parent Bloggers asked if I'd like to review The Tao of Fertility, I jumped at the opportunity because I figured that Josh and I would start "trying" for a second child in the next 6 months or so, and everything helps. I'm a big fan of acquiring as much information as possible, and I've heard wonder stories about Chinese medicine, so I was fascinated to learn more.

Truthfully, though, I can't speak much to the validity of the methods in the book because before I'd finished the first chapter, I found out I was pregnant. I can, however, confirm that having the book in your house helps you get pregnant, so I'm happy to send the book along to anyone interested in having a good luck charm.

I did find the book interesting and informative, however. I don't know much about Chinese medicine, and although I've heard about its success with infertility, I haven't heard details. The Tao of Fertility assumes no prior knowledge, and lays out fertility advice in a straightforward, clear, and logical way. Dr. Daoshing Ni encourages readers to make serious changes in their lives, from diet and nutrition, to herbs, acupuncture and exercise, and even examining your readiness toward having a child. He discusses his methods in relation to Western medicine, and even provides a 28 day plan for readers to follow.

If you are at all interested in undertaking an alternative approach to fertility, or you'd like to try something before embarking on fertility treatments, I would definitely recommend The Tao of Fertility. Dr. Daoshing Ni keeps the book interesting with his clear tone, and touching vignettes sprinkled throughout.

As I mentioned, I'm happy to forward the book along to a worthy recipient. Email me if you're interested, and if I get more than one request, I'll draw names out of a hat. For more information, check out Parent Bloggers or Amazon to order.

a website for the less than organized

Gabe's grandparents have serious gripes with me. I take tons of pictures of Gabe, but I rarely upload them to the computer, and once I do, I very rarely forward them along to family and friends. At first, I claimed it was because I didn't want to be obnoxious and overload their inboxes with pictures of Gabe, but the truth is, I'm just kind of lazy. I'd really like to be able to share pictures of Gabe with my family, especially since the last time I went to my inlaws' house, I realized they have almost no pictures of Gabe around the house!

Enter Kinzin. Kinzin is a website for parents and families that allows you to connect with family and friends, communicate with your family and friends, and share pictures and stories - all in a secure environment. Kinzin allows you to create a family page, including sections for each of your children, and then you can invite family and friends to join your page and keep updated on everything going on in your family. By using Kinzin, you can share information with those people you'd like to keep updated, and maintain your privacy at the same time. In an age where so many of us live far away from our extended families, Kinzin can really help. Best of all, Kinzin is free!

Kinzin allows you to upload pictures and stories to your page. You can create memory books, journals, family newsletters, and even more, all on Kinzin! But my favorite feature of all, by far, and the one that has initiated a truce of sorts with the grandparents, is that you can sign up for an additional service that mails your best 10 photos from every month to the address/es of your choice. Each address to which you'd like photos mailed is $2.99, and every third address is free! $2.99! That's it! To have Kinzin automatically mail 10 photos one time per month to the grandparents or great aunts or cousins, and then no one yells at you anymore! No one has anymore excuses for why they don't have pictures of your children featured prominently on their mantle. Plus, it'll help out those non-computer literate members of your families (we all have 'em). Zero effort from you, and voila! You've kept everyone up to date!

Kinzin is easy to use. So far, I've found that the photos are easy to upload, and you can add titles and descriptions of each picture if you'd like. Kinzin also lets you enter short descriptions of what is new in your child's day or week or stage of development. When you invite family and friends to view your website, they don't have to sign up for anything either, your invitation is enough for them to see your page. Kinzin can even be linked up with your Facebook page, if you'd like the news and pictures about your kids to be more public. Kinzin also works with Flickr to pull photos from there instead of your hard drive, if you'd like.

The bottom line is that if you face the same difficulties I do- finding time to email, print, or mail out photos and then send them along to family and friends, or if you'd like a way to share information about your family through a secure network, Kinzin is for you. I've been using it for a couple of weeks now, the first shipment of photos of Gabe shipped out this week, and so far I've received rave reviews. Everyone has updated pictures, and I didn't have to do anything! It's a win-win situation! Plus, the grandparents are happy!

For more information, check out Kinzin or Parent Bloggers to learn more!