Knocked Up – Knocked Over

my journey through pregnancy and hyperemesis gravidarum

Monthly Archives: September 2011


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“Old Wives’ Tales” to Induce Labor

I love old wives’ tales.

Sure, some are a little silly.  For example, you shouldn’t lift your arms over your head or you’ll strangle the baby with the umbilical cord.  Or another favorite is, if you take a bath your baby will drown in your belly!  Those are quaint, amusing, and completely untrue.

But for every very silly old wives’ tale, you can find one with a grain of truth.  Old wives’ have been making and having babies for thousands of years.  It stands to reason that they’d have some pretty decent ideas.

For fun, I thought I’d come up a list of old wives’ tales for inducing labor.  No, I’m not trying to induce labor.  I’m doing my best to remain lovingly patient and let my baby choose her own birthday just like the Hypnobabies program coaches me to do.  But it sure is fun to look at this stuff, isn’t it?  As an added incentive to avoid trying these, we tried just about every natural method we could to get Gabi to come out, and she stubornly stayed in there until she was darn well ready to come out.  Two weeks after her due date!  So again, this is just for fun.

So here are some natural, old wives’ tales for ways to induce labor:

  • Walking – This is actually really good for you and can help the baby move into position and begin to descend.  Just don’t wear yourself out walking.  Take it from me, if the baby’s not ready, no amount of walking will make her come out, and if you overdo it your body will punish you for it later.
  • Walking up and down stairs – same as walking!
  • Driving over a bumpy road – I had zero luck with this with Gabi despite my mom driving me up and down a cobblestone road in Old Town.  This gets a big meh.
  • Eating eggplant parmigiana – Something about the oregano?  Eggplant does not agree with my stomach.  I skipped this one.
  • Eating this special salad from a place in LA – I am so trying this!  Apparently, the salad is actually really yummy, so I plan to try to sweet-talk my sister-in-law into driving us down for lunch next week.  A friend of mine tried it with no luck, but still.  Just for fun, eh?
  • Sex – Okay, now this one is something that my OB with Gabi recommended and something that my midwives are recommending as well.  Apparently semen contains proglastins which help trigger the cervix to begin soften.  Additionally, the female orgasm can trigger uterine contractions.  More info here.
  • Bouncing on a birth ball – Kind of like walking.  The birth ball can also help open the pelvis to allow the baby to settle comfortably in position.  Birth balls rock.  Maybe not so much for inducing labor, but for getting comfy and getting the baby positioned correctly.
  • Castor Oil – This is a huge one that a lot of people try.  Here’s why I think it’s a terrible idea: think horrifying diarrhea and nausea and puking and stomach cramps and just generally feeling awful.  Is this really how you want to start your birthing time?  No thanks!  I’ve had enough of that with the HG!  Plus, you’ve got the very real risks of dehydration from the diarrhea and vomiting and fetal distress!  Just say no!  That’s my opinion on this one!
  • Nipple Stimulation – Nipple stimulation causes a release of oxytocin which, in turn, causes uterine contractions.  I tried this a bit with Gabi, and yes, it did cause some contractions, but they weren’t terribly productive.  My OB at the time actually recommended against this tactic cautioning that in his experience it will cause contractions but those contractions are hard and not very productive.
  • Herbal supplements – This is something to approach with caution.  Herbs can carry some very real risks.  I am currently taking an herbal supplement that contains several of these “inducing” herbs (black cohosh, red raspberry leaf, etc), but I am doing so under the guidance of experienced midwives and taking them in very specific and careful amounts designed to tone the uterus, not bring on labor.  I’m not just glugging cohosh tea or pills.  So if you are interested in some of the herbal remedies, do your research and only take them under experienced guidance.  It’s really not worth the risk otherwise.
  • Evening Primrose Oil – Evening primrose oil (EPO), is not going to induce labor.  It will, however, soften and ripen the cervix.  Again, like any kind of supplement, talk to your healthcare professional about this.  EPO is pretty benign, but only you and your doctor know your medical history.
So what old wives’ tales have you heard of for inducing labor?  Did you try them?  Was it successful for you?


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In Defense of Dads

You know, ever since the whole EvenFlo thing, I’ve been thinking about how dads get treated in the media.

If we believed what we see on TV, we’d know that dads are at best incompetent buffoons and at worst maliciously lazy.

Have a look at the EvenFlo ad called “How To Survive 3 AM Feedings.”  It is so bad that I actually had to try a few times to get through it.  I just kept getting angry and having to turn it off.

Aside from the various breastfeeding myths that this video promotes (which I won’t get into in this post), Jack, the dad in this series, not only manages to spill his wife’s hard-won breastmilk all over the counter in the very finest traditions of as-seen-on-TV incompetence* but he actually leaves it all out for his wife to clean up.  Then, he ignores the crying baby who has very briefly settled and sneaks back into bed pretending that he’s already fed the baby.  His wife is woken up a few seconds later to the cries of the still hungry baby and he informs her that it’s her turn.

*You know, like the folks that can’t get the toothpaste on the toothbrush without the automatic toothpaste dispenser for only $19.99?

Here’s another goldie from EvenFlo called “Repair Your Husband’s Bruised Ego.”

Apparently, according to the commercial, it’s better to preserve a man’s ego by allowing him to install a carseat incorrectly (it should be rear-facing for a child that age) rather than going ahead and asking for help from carseat installation experts.  Something about penis size I think.

Now it’s not just EvenFlo putting out commercials with idiot dads.

Here’s one from AT&T.  At the end, the dad tries to put the diaper on the baby’s head.  Really?

Here’s a huggies one with another dad who can’t seem to change a diaper:

The list goes on and on and on.  Start looking for it as you watch TV.  You will notice it particularly with kid/baby products and cleaning supplies.

“Aw, geez, Molly.  It’s just a joke.  Can’t you take a joke?”

Well, yeah.  I can take a joke.  I like jokes.  I laugh at jokes.  But quite honestly, when “just a joke” marginalizes an entire segment of the population, I just don’t find it particularly funny.  And these ads do marginalize dads.  These ads tell parents that it’s okay for Dad to be an idiot.  It’s okay for him to be the butt of the jokes.  Who cares if he can’t change a diaper?  Mom will swoop in and do it better anyway (and often with a condescending leer).

This just isn’t fair.  Dads deserve better.  They deserve for companies to treat them as equal partners in raising their children.  More and more dads are becoming stay-at-home dads.  Dads cook.  Dads clean.  Dads do laundry.

Moms deserve better, too.  This played out joke gives permission to some men to behave in incompetent and maliciously lazy ways.  It reinforces the notion that the mom is the primary parent and the dad is just window dressing.  It leaves her with the brunt of the child-rearing, and in families where both parents work full-time, this kind of pressure can push moms past their breaking point.

It’s not fair to dads, moms, or kids.

So advertising companies, please.  I’m begging you.  Let this tired joke die.  It’s old.  It’s played out.  Let’s show some commercials with the kinds of dads I’m familiar with: dads who are actively engaged in their childrens’ lives, who are intelligent, who carry an equal (or in my husbands case all) share of the housekeeping responsibilities, and who partner equally with their wives to keep the family together.  Let’s leave off with the stupid and lazy stereotype.  We all deserve better.


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HG Studies! Even if you haven’t had HG, please consider participating.

I wanted to spend today’s post letting you know about  a couple of HG studies that are going on right now.  I would ask that you please consider participating in these studies.  Even if you haven’t had HG, you can still participate.  The research group actually really needs control subjects who did not have HG to help understand the information gathered from the participants with HG.

Here are the studies:

Current 2007-2015 Study: Genetics of Hyperemesis Gravidarum (HG)

This study is designed to identify individuals affected with HG, to study epidemiologic factors via an online survey, to collect DNA samples from saliva through the mail at no cost or travel for you, and to search for genes and risk factors that may be potentially associated with this condition. To be eligible, you must have suffered from HG and had treatment for your HG that includes i.v. hydration, TPN or other form of non-oral feeding (ie nasogastric feeding), OR both, and are able to recruit a friend with at least 2 pregnancies who has NOT suffered from HG to serve as a control.

You can learn more about the study and register here.  The study itself is very easy and painless.  After you take a detailed online survey, they will mail you a cheek swab kit so that they can register and analyze your DNA.  That’s it.  No doctor’s visits.  Just a little cheek swab that you take yourself.

2011 HG Survey: survey to determine the effectiveness of medications/treatments for HG

We have also begun a new study to determine medication effectiveness.  If you are trying to conceive or newly pregnant and have had HG in a past pregnancy, please consider participating in this study by filling out this short survey as close to your first positive pregnancy test as possible and thereafter to let us know how medications effect your intake and nausea.

You can learn more about the survey and register here.

 

These kinds of studies are so critical.  The more we know about the root causes of HG, the better treatment we can find.  Even though this won’t affect my childbearing years or decisions, I hope that the results of these studies will help my daughters.  There’s a strong chance, due to the genetic nature of HG, that one or both of my girls will suffer from this disease.  If I can protect them even a little bit from this.  I want to.  Please consider helping.

Here is a selection of the articles they’ve been able to publish as a result of their studies:


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A Healing Article from an HG Sister

Just this past week I learned that Jessica from The Leaky B@@b is a fellow HGer.

I had no idea!

And, in a fortuitous twist, she published a fantastic article that struck to the core of some of the emotions I’ve been feeling about my HG pregnancies: Tone, filters, and information.

It seems like every time I turn around, there is some article that gets published about how if you have a great diet during pregnancy or exercise during pregnancy, your baby will be healthier and have a number of advantages.  Since good eating and exercise aren’t really options for those of us with HG, these articles usually cause me to roll my eyes, feel guilty, and sometimes even angry that I can’t have just a normal pregnancy like everyone else.

Oddly enough, I feel very strongly that we shouldn’t take on guilt simply because of our circumstances.  We should be able to share information to mothers be it about childbirth interventions and risk management or breastfeeding.  We should be able to discuss these issues openly and honestly without the knee-jerk defensive reaction.

And yet…

And yet, when I see the information out there about pregnancy diet and exercise, I experience that same feeling of defensiveness that makes me crazy when talking about non-HG-related issues.

Jessica writes:

Do those articles set out to make me feel guilty that I barely eat during my pregnancies?  No, they are just sharing information and sometimes aim to encourage and inspire moms.  Do the moms celebrating their beautiful pregnancy experience do so to punch me in the gut and knock me down?  I’m pretty sure they are just excited about their own experience.  Does the fact that I have very little physical activity during the prenatal stage of my mothering make me a bad mom?  I don’t think so but it doesn’t mean I don’t wonder from time to time or that it doesn’t hurt a little when I’m faced with the reality that it really isn’t a good thing and could be putting my children at risk.  Blaming the information though doesn’t help me or make my reality better.  Hiding it, or worse denying it, doesn’t help anyone else either.

…

We should still share information, we should still read information and we hopefully do this in a safe community where processing the information can happen through trusting and supportive dialogue.  I hope that by keeping in mind the fact that we do not know everything there is to a person’s back story and why they make the choices they do we can remember to be more sensitive in how we share information.  I hope that by keeping in mind the fact that we all bring our own baggage to any topic we can remember to try not to take information sharing as personal jabs.  It is through these steps that we can support one another and make a difference for others.

Reading this article really gave me a sense of healing.  It helped me build a bridge from one aspect of my life, writing, and personal views to another.

Thank you Jessica.  You gave me a lot to think about.


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Evenflo Ad Campaign Wrap-Up

It was a busy week last week with the Evenflo kerfuffle.  For those who missed it, here’s a quick run-down of what happened last week:

Evenflo took down their video later on Tuesday, and made the following statement:

Hmm…  Still not an apology.

For those who didn’t see the ad before Evenflo took it down, PhD in Parenting posted a blow-by-blow of what happened in the video.

On Thursday Bettina from Best for Babes held a call with Evenflo to discuss the issue, and EvenfloBaby issued an apology on their Facebook page:

We had a productive call today with Danielle and Bettina at Best for Babes Foundation, an advocacy organization. We have taken all your feedback to heart and realize we completely missed the mark with our video. We are truly sorry to have created such bad feelings within the community; that was never our intent. We will work with the breastfeeding community to ensure that the messaging in our next advertising campaign remains positive and supportive. Stay tuned!

(Check out PhD in Parenting’s summary here: Evenflo Update)

On the one hand, I think it’s positive that they took the time to actually speak directly to Best for Babes and discuss the issue.  I also think it’s positive that they have issued a genuine apology and admitted that they were so off-base with their marketing campaign.  I think it’s good that they have promised to work with the breastfeeding community next time they put out a campaign.

On the other hand…

It sounds trite to say, “But that’s not enough!”  It seems cliché to say, “Talk is cheap!”  But at this point, all we have are words.  Words from a company who continues to undermine breastfeeding moms by not adhering to the WHO Code.

So what do I want from Evenflo?

I think this apology and promise is a positive first step from Evenflo, but what I would like to see is for them to continue the forward motion and once again become compliant with the WHO Code.

Breastfeeding moms don’t need to be undermined by bottle companies and formula manufacturers with the promotion of breastfeeding myths disguised as support.  You know who does deserve support though?  Bottle-feeding and formula-feeding moms.  Instead of targeting breastfeeding moms with “support,” how about big companies like Evenflo actually reach out to their true audience and support them.  Instead of being a force for negativity, these companies need to start providing positive support.  Market to the people who will buy your products. 

Tell the mom who feeds formula why you believe your bottles will help her baby have less gas and why they really will be easier than others to prepare in the night.  Tell the mom who already pumps why your pumps are superior to others on the market.

Just please stop talking about breastfeeding as if you have any place there.  Your place is not between a mom’s breast and her baby, so respectfully, please butt out of that relationship.

Thankfully, we’ve got folks like PhD in Parenting and Best for Babes fighting for us.  A huge thank you to them for all that they do.


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My Current Medicine/Vitamin Regimen and the Finalized Birth Preferences

The Med/Vitamin Regimen

It’s been a while since I’ve updated you all on what I’m currently taking med-wise.  The good news is that right now the vitamins are outnumbering the drugs.  Hooray!  This means I can keep down vitamins!

Remember: I am taking all of these under the very specific guidance and direction of my midwives.  With any vitamin or medicine you need to consult your medical care team before starting.  Some of these interact with each other and must be taken on a specific timetable.  Always ask before taking a medicine, vitamin, or herb.  Especially if you are pregnant or nursing!

So, without further ado, here is what I’m on:

Drugs:

  • Nexium 20 mg – 1 tablet at night
  • Zofran 8 mg ODT – 1 tablet before rising in the morning

Vitamins/Herbs:

It’s a lot of pills and tablets to swallow, and I’ve really had a hard time remembering to take everything.  I noticed, though, that when I miss doses my body lets me know.  When I forget the cal/mag/pot I get horrible leg cramps at night.  When I miss the multivitamin and the iron I feel dizzy and out of breath.  Or at least more dizzy and more out of breath than usual.

To help me remember to take these, even when I’m out and about, I’ve started putting the day’s worth of vitamins into a little plastic gladware cup.  I toss the cup into my purse, and wherever I happen to be at vitamin time, I can break out my little plastic cup-o-vitamins and start swallowing pills.

Taking my meds and vitamins every day at the correct time has really helped improve the way I feel both physically and emotionally.

 

The Finalized Birth Preferences

In other news, we got the results back from my group B strep test which allowed us to finalize the loose ends of the birth preferences.

The test came back… NEGATIVE!!!!!!!!

I could not be more thrilled.  This makes things so much simpler.  No needles, no IVs, no extra stuff to fiddle with, and no need to put the gunk in the baby’s eyes.  We did find out that we did have a relative with a clotting disorder, so the vitamin K shot for her is back on.

I provided individual explanations in my original post on the subject: Writing My Birth Preferences, so if there’s something you wonder about, click on over to that post for the reasoning behind each item.

So, with that, here is the finalized version of our birth preferences:

  • I don’t want to know baby size until after she’s born.  
  • I don’t want to have internal checks until I am ready to push.  
  • Please feel free to suggest position changes! 
  • Please avoid using the word pain.  
  • Please no AROM.
  • I would like to birth my baby in the water.
  • Please no purple pushing.  
  • For the baby:  Yes to the Vit K shot.  No to the eye drops.
  • Please delay cord clamping.
  • I would like an unmanaged 3rd stage if at all possible and deliver the placenta on my own.  Would also like to avoid the shot of pitocin unless it’s really and truly necessary.

We’re ready to go.  Aside from a few general items like converting the crib into a cosleeper, installing the carseats, and remembering that I will need shirts and pants in the bin I’m packing to go to the birth center, we could have this baby tomorrow and we would be just fine!

So close!


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Evenflo “Apologizes” and a I Kick Off a New Game!

Yesterday, in response to tweets, Facebook messages, and general ire that stemmed from Evenflo’s new ad campaign, Evenflo posted the following response:

 Way to go Evenflo for trying to bring up the spectre of the Mommy Wars.  But they’re right.  This is about choice.  In fact, that’s the entire crux of this issue: Choice. 

The mom in the video has made the choice to breastfeed her baby, but rather than passionately and fully supporting her choice as Evenflo claims to do, they actively undermine that choice.  Whether a woman breastfeeds, bottle feeds pumped milk, or feeds formula, that choice is hers to make and should be respected and supported. 

The message that Evenflo gives this woman, and all women who watch the video, is that they should cave to a bullying relative and submit to that person’s desires as opposed to following her heart and standing up to her own choices.

That is not how you passionately and fully support “all moms and the personal choices they make.”

The video is full of booby traps and breastfeeding myths some more subtle than others:

  • Breastfeeding is shameful
  • Breastfeeding is selfish and prevents other people from bonding with the baby
  • Moms with small breasts can’t produce enough milk to satisfy a baby
  • Breastmilk is “2%” or not fatty enough to provide adequate nutrition
  • Breastmilk is disgusting
  • It’s normal for a pumping mom to be able to fill a huge bottle in only a few minutes
  • It’s normal for a pumping mom to be able to pump more than 1-2 oz

In what ways does any of that support a mom’s choice?

Evenflo, you need to do better.  You need to issue a real apology.  Admit that this was a terrible marketing blunder, and make amends.  You can start by pulling this ad campaign.  You can continue by stopping issuing damaging advice disguised as “savvy parenting tips.”  You can finish by becoming WHO Code compliant.

Update: Evenflo has since removed this video. This is a first step, but it can’t be the only first step if Evenflo truly does intend to, as they say, passionately support the choices of all women.  For those who didn’t see the ad before Evenflo took it down, PhD in Parenting posted a blow-by-blow of what happened in the video.

Real Savvy Tips from Real Savvy Parents

Evenflo has begun tweeting “Savvy Tips” for parents as a part of this marketing campaign using the following hashtag: #SavvyTip.

Here’s one of their savvy tips:

In light of the video they just put out, that’s really not a very savvy tip at all!

Now I know that we here really are savvy parents, and I know we’ve got much better tips than Evenflo is providing.  Let’s take back this hashtag.  Let’s post some truly savvy tips for parents.  Some tips that are helpful and not hurtful.  Let’s turn this negative ad campaign into something positive. 

Be sure to tweet @Evenflobaby, and if you want @knockedup_over.  I’ll retweet all the ones I see.

Here’s an example of one I just tweeted:

If you don’t have a twitter account, that’s okay!  You can comment here or on Facebook and I’ll tweet your awesome tip for you!

Update: Evenflo has removed one of the offensive advertisements, but there have been so many awesome and truly savvy tips being tweeted on this hashtag, that I think it would be great to keep this going!  We’re turning this negative ad campaign into a force for good!  You guys are amazing!


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The New Evenflo Ad Campaign

I usually don’t post on Mondays but I need to make an exception this time.  Not only did Evenflo ditch the WHO Code a while back, but now they’re running an ad campaign that can seriously undermine breastfeeding women.

Here is PhD in Parenting’s take on it:  When a Company Goes from Good to Very, Very Bad: The Evenflo Story

Do we really need companies like Evenflo to reinforce the myths about breastfeeding and make moms feel like it is uncomfortable or inconvenient? What if we lived in a world where we weren’t taught to expect society (and our in-laws) to criticize us for feeding our babies?

While the video is also posted on PhD in Parenting, I’ll post it here, too.

Update: Evenflo has since removed this video. This is a first step, but it can’t be the only first step if Evenflo truly does intend to, as they say, passionately support the choices of all women.   For those who didn’t see the ad before Evenflo took it down, PhD in Parenting posted a blow-by-blow of what happened in the video.

I’ve currently got a game going over on my Facebook page to see if we can spot everything that’s wrong with this video.  What breastfeeding myths can you spot?  In what ways are the people around this woman undermining her breastfeeding relationship?  Feel free to come over and play!

There’s a whole series of these ads.  I’m looking forward to taking them apart piece by piece.

(For the record, Evenflo’s pumps are often nicknamed “Evilflo” pumps because they hurt like heck to use, chew your nipples to pieces, and don’t remove milk efficiently.)

Update!  The Results of the Game

 Well, I got a lot of responses to my “Let’s tear apart this ad brick-by-brick” game over on Facebook.  Here are the answers I got.  I’m going to summarize instead of direct-quoting because a few people had the same ideas about where Evenflo went wrong.  I’ll credit these by posting first initials of the people who came up with them.

  • The husband didn’t stick up for the wife when his parents were berating her. – K, W
  • Having the Father-in-Law’s discomfort being a reason to not breastfeed your child in your own home. – T, K
  • The Mother-in-Law pushing and pushing to feed the baby herself in an obnoxious and malicious way.  – K, Me  There are plenty of ways to bond with a baby that don’t involve feeding.
  • The Mother-in-Law commenting that the wife’s small breasts wouldn’t produce enough milk – K  This is a MYTH that destroys a lot of breastfeeding relationships!  Breast size has nothing to do with production.
  • The Mother-in-Law thinking it is in any way appropriate to comment on the wife’s body size/shape at all. – K
  • The wife for not telling her husband to kick those overbearing people out of her house. – T
  • The Father-in-Law pouring milk from a baby bottle into his coffee.  Who does this? – S, J, E
  • They depict this mom pumping an entire huge bottle of milk in just a few minutes. – K, T   This is not realistic and may lead moms to think that they aren’t producing enough milk.  This is a MYTH that destroys a lot of breastfeeding relationships!  Normal pumping output for a nursing mom is 1-2 oz total!  Also, pump output should never, ever be used as an indicator of supply
  • The looks of disgust on everyone’s faces when the Father-in-Law drinks the coffee with the breastmilk in it. – K, E  It’s breastmilk people.  It’s not poison.  It’s not toilet bowl cleaner.
  • The comment the Father-in-Law makes about the breastmilk being 2%. – K, Me  This is a MYTH that destroys a lot of breastfeeding relationships!   So many women are told that their milk isn’t fatty enough or is “skim” or whatever. I actually threw some of my precious milk away in favor of formula for a few days because I thought my milk wasn’t good enough for Gabi yet. Saying that the milk is 2% completely reinforces that horrible myth and the insecurity that so many women feel that their milk isn’t good enough. It’s subtle, but really nasty
  • Instead of helping out around the house, all the In-Laws do is traipse around making obnoxious comments and demanding the husband and wife bend over backwards for them.  These are some of the worst house guests in the history of house guests. – Me

And the gold star of the day goes to both E and K jointly for bringing up what I think is the most important aspect of this:

Whether or not a mom breastfeeds, bottle feeds pumped milk, or feeds formula, the decision is hers to make and she should never, ever feel forced to make that decision to appease anyone else.

Thanks for playing everyone!  I’ll announce a new game here and on my Facebook page later this morning.  It involves Twitter and hashtags, so if you aren’t following me yet over there, now might be a fun time to start.  I am @knockedup_over.

See you later!


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Definitely Nesting

This weekend is all about getting ready for the baby.

We’re picking up the components to convert the crib into a cosleeper.  This involves bed lifts, high density foam, and bungee cords.  Expect a full post later.

We’re washing and sorting through all of the newborn and 0-3 month sized clothes that we have leftover from when Gabi was a baby.  We’re determining if we need to purchase any additional small items.  I think that aside from a few packs of onesies, we’ve got plenty.

I am trying to convince Juan to please go ahead and install the carseats already in case we run into a situation where they don’t both fit.  If that happens, I’m not sure what we’ll do.  He doesn’t seem to understand that getting this done is, for me, a biological imperative at this point.

I’m gathering the odds and ends that we’ll be packing into the bin to take to the birth center: the birth kit, clothing for the baby and me, and various other items like depends, dermaplast, aromatherapy kit, etc.

The nursing pillow covers are clean and I’ve put them on their pillows.  The drawers in my bedroom that I will be dedicating to the baby have been emptied and are ready to receive clothes, diapers, and blankets.  My nightstand has been emptied and is ready to become a temporary changing table.

And I’m feeling very satisfied sitting here listening to the washer wash its load of baby sheets, swaddling blankets, and breast pads, and the dryer dry its load of prefold diaper inserts for me to use as heavy-flow pads for my postpartum bleeding.

Happy Labor Day weekend everyone!

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