Mama Talks: Choosing a Quality OBGYN

Let's face it, your OBGYN gets access to your most sensitive and vulnerable information and medical care. So it is so important to find a great one. This is especially true for anyone who has any special medical concerns or conditions.

I recently had an awful OBGYN visit that led me to look for a new OBGYN. I am maybe overreacting, but I felt very disrespected and uncomfortable, which is not conducive to a good doctor/patient relationship. Essentially, I was left undressed on an exam table for an hour with no one coming in to the room to even check on me or let me know they were running behind. After this experience, I realized that there were a few things that I had not liked about this doctor and practice throughout the last couple of years I had been going, but I had ignored them because they were minor issues. I finally hit the point though where I no longer felt comfortable talking with the provider, and this led me to deciding to find a new OBGYN.

I will say I do have some medical concerns that make it very important to find a provider that I really like, who fits well with my personality, and has the qualifications needed to support my medical needs. While my husband and I were trying to conceive, I was diagnosed with PCOS. During my pregnancy, I had gestational diabetes and I went into pre-term labor, which means any future pregnancies are going to be at higher risk. So I want to find a doctor who I feel has the expertise to support these conditions and who I feel 100% comfortable talking to, so I can discuss issues I am having (wether pregnant or not!).

When I started looking into what I should look for in a new OBGYN, I realized that other women may have similar concerns (some of the statistics I read when doing some light research were alarming regarding women feeling comfortable with their OBGYN provider). So I want to share some of the information I found with you in hopes it helps your get the excellent medical you deserve.

Tips for Finding the Right Provider for You

According to Healthline and US News, you should consider the following when looking for an OBGYN.

1. Find doctors in your network, so your insurance will cover your visits.

2. Ask friends, families, and co-workers for recommendations

3. Consider how far you will have to drive

4. Consider their office hours and your schedule - do you need to try to find an office that offers hours outside of normal business hours?

5. What hospitals does the doctor have privileges at? -- After my experience with my son, I would now only choose a doctor who uses a hospital with a NICU because I want to avoid having my baby transferred to another hospital if they need NICU care.

6. Check what certifications your doctor has - you want a board-certified doctor (they have to stay up-to-date on the latest medical information in addition to extra education in that area). If you have certain risk factors or medical conditions, you want to find a doctor who specializes and has experience with it.

7. Check if your doctor is comfortable addressing mental health and wellness

8. Check to see if your doctor educates women in your community and is involved in the community.

9. Consider if you like the whole practice - if your doctor is not available, you may see another doctor in the practice. For annual checkups, you may see a nurse practitioner in the practice, not your doctor. Additionally, most of your interaction will likely be with the nurses and office staff, so you want to make sure they are pleasant, professional, and competent.

10. Consider if you feel comfortable talking with your doctor - you will have to discuss sensitive information so it is important to feel comfortable. This means finding a doctor whose personality and communication style work well with yours.

11. Some really important issues to consider when looking for an OBGYN who has similar views as you are:

    • Pain management

    • Holistic care

    • Access to reliable birth control

    • Would your doctor consider a vaginal birth after a c-section?

    • Your doctor's view on abortion

    • How sex-positive is your doctor?

      • What is a sex-positive doctor? Someone who encourages a healthy sex-life.

12. It is okay to change doctors if your doctor is not the right fit after you meet them.

I hope this helps you find a doctor who you love and provides excellent medical care.

Remember Mama, you are doing a great job! You got this!

Three Easy & Healthy(ish) Family Friendly Dinner Ideas

When I imagined being a parent, I always imagined cooking super healthy and yummy meals for my kids. But the reality is that most nights I am tired and I just want something easy that we all like and something that takes minimal amounts of cleanup. So today, I am sharing three of my go-to easy meals that my family enjoys regularly and are relatively healthy.

I hope these will give you an easy option or some inspiration for your family.

1. Turkey Chili & Cornbread

My husband loves my chili, it was actually the first meal I ever made for him when we were dating. My son is allergic to garlic, so I have to make his a little differently, but he enjoys it too. The best part though with this recipe is it's super easy, cheap, and it lasts a few days.

All you need:

• Ground meat

• Canned Kidney Beans

• Canned Black Beans

• Canned Diced Tomatoes

• Chili Seasoning (you can find packets of pre-made seasoning by other seasonings at the grocery store).

• Chili toppings of your choice (we use sour cream, cheese, and jalapenos at my house)

If you want to make cornbread:

• cornbread mix

• canned corn

• canned diced pickled jalapenos (optional)

• block of cheddar cheese - shredded (optional)

We generally have ground turkey in the freezer because we buy it at Costco or Sam's Club. I like ground turkey because it is a bit leaner than beef, but you could really use any ground meat for this recipe.

All of the other ingredients (other than toppings) are canned (so cheap and easy to store). I like to use black beans, kidney beans, and diced tomatoes in my chili. In addition, I generally go for store-bought chili seasoning - it makes it super easy.

Step 1: brown the meat

Step 2: drain the meat

Step 3: Add the chili seasoning (I like McCormick's or Kinder) and follow the directions on the packaging

Step 4: Add canned beans and tomatoes

Note: Since I buy ground turkey at Costco, it's a lot of meat (just under two pounds), so I add two cans of black beans, two cans of kidney beans, and two cans of diced tomatoes.

Step 5: stir and let simmer for 15 - 20 minutes

Step 6: Put in bowl and top with the toppings of your choice

See, super easy and yummy!

My family also loves cornbread of course. So if you want to add cornbread, I recommend buying a box of the mix at the store (I recently have been using the Trader Joe's cornbread mix, but the basic Jiffy mix is good too). But I like to add to my cornbread - I always add a can of corn (be careful how much liquid you add - I usually try to drain about half the liquid). I have also added jalapenos (1 can) and cheddar cheese (8 ounces or to taste) to the mix, which is delicious.

Here is the real trick to my cornbread that I learned from my mother-in-law. I cook it in a cast iron skillet by preheating the oven according to the directions, then put in my cast iron with enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the pan completely, and I heat the oil for about 20 minutes by itself. After the oil has heated for about 20 minutes, I add the cornbread mix and it starts cooking and sizzling immediately, I then follow the directions on the packaging. I highly recommend this - it makes the cornbread so much better!

2. Spaghetti & Chicken Meatballs

My son absolutely loves meatballs and I have learned from daycare that most kids seem to love meatballs. This is one of his favorite meals and it's pretty easy to incorporate veggies.

All you need for this recipe is:

• Pasta (spaghetti or whatever pasta your family prefers) - I often use Banzaa chickpea pasta because it provides extra protein

• Meatballs

• Spaghetti Sauce

• Veggies (if you want to mix some in with the meatballs and spaghetti sauce) - Squash, zucchini, mushrooms, and peas are all easy to mix in veggies I have mixed in before

• Shredded Mozzarella and/or Parmesan

Chicken meatballs are yummy and leaner (less saturated fat) than their beef counterparts, but any meatballs could be used for this recipe idea.

So I buy meatballs that are pre-made. I have used thawed from frozen and just pre-made in the refrigerated section meatballs (Trader Joe's has some good chicken meatballs in the refrigerated section!). I also use jarred spaghetti sauce - whichever brand your family prefers.

Since my son is allergic to garlic, it can be hard to find meatballs that don't have garlic, but I have found a couple of frozen brands that are garlic free. And Rao's makes a garlic-free marinara (but these are unique challenges for my family).

Step 1: Preheat oven to 425 degrees

Step 2: Put meatballs and spaghetti sauce in a cast iron skillet and bake for 20 (ish) minutes - I recommend keeping an eye on it - my husband and I both are big fans of using a meat thermometer (since every oven is slightly different) to make sure any meat we are cooking meet the recommended guidelines.

Step 3: While your meatballs are cooking, cook your pasta (use directions on the box)

So I have looked up cast iron meatballs on Google and most don't include veggies. But I try to make sure my son is getting veggies with every dinner. And they are so easy to add to spaghetti! You can use any leftover veggies you have or you can roast (or your chosen cooking method) veggies on a second rack in your oven and then mix them in at the end (or when you plate).

Step 4 (optional): cook veggies (directions would vary based on the veggies)

Step 5: Once the meatballs are almost done, grate cheese (or add slices of mozzarella) on top of meatballs and sauce to melt in the oven for the last three (ish) minutes.

Step 6: Combine ingredients in a bowl and serve.

I am lucky because my son likes most veggies. But I have found if it is covered in spaghetti sauce he doesn't really examine it before eating - he just dives in and usually likes it!

3. Tamale Bowls

So a little over a year ago my mom introduced me to frozen tamales from the Texas Tamale Company and my family has been eating them regularly ever since. I buy my tamales at Trader Joe's. You can find selling locations on the Texas Tamale Company website or use any tamale brand you prefer. I have found it pretty easy to find them in the frozen section of the grocery store.

Unfortunately, I have yet to find any tamales that do not include garlic. But my son did like these before we discovered the garlic allergy.

This meal is easy to make, easy to clean up, fast, and super yummy. All you need is:

• Tamales

• Rice or Riced Cauliflower

• Toppings of your choice

• Optional: chips

Step 1: Cook the Tamales according to the directions on the packaging. (I steam the ones we get for 15 - 20 minutes, and I can walk away during that time, which makes it even easier!)

Step 2: Meanwhile, cook the rice or riced cauliflower

We used riced cauliflower from Costco, which comes in one-pound microwavable packages and is really good. All I have to do is microwave it for seven minutes in the packaging. (The riced cauliflower at Trader Joe's is really good too). My mom likes to mix rice and riced cauliflower. If I use rice, I like microwavable in-packaging rice (also from Trader Joe's).

Step 3: Plate it - I make a bed of rice or riced cauliflower, then put the tamales on top, and then toppings. We use salsa, sour cream, guacamole or avocado, and pickled jalapenos as toppings.

It is good to just eat with a fork, but sometimes we like to mix all of the ingredients and use chips to dip in our bowl. (This is what I do at Chipotle too).

So I hope this list has given you a couple of ideas on relatively healthy meal ideas that the whole family will enjoy! I know I need easy options or it's too tempting to just get takeout.

Remember Mama, you are doing a great job! You got this!

These are the Best Sunglasses and They are Under $20!

I LOVE sunglasses. I live in the south and I have very sensitive eyes, so I almost always need sunglasses with me so I am not squinting constantly and uncomfortable. These sunglasses have over 47,000 reviews on Amazon with a 4.7 rating, so it's no secret they are amazing!

Click here to see them on Amazon and read the reviews

Reasons these sunglasses are the best for mamas:

• They are lightweight and super comfortable

Finding comfortable sunglasses is a must. I want to forget they are there.

• They are flexible

This might sound odd, but whenever my one-year-old picks up my sunglasses, he immediately takes the arms and pulls on them as he tries to put the glasses on his face. He has done this multiple times and the glasses are still in good shape. The flexibility of the arms seems to protect them from breaking.

• They are flattering

I think these would be flattering on most faces, but I have a round face and it can be tough to find sunglasses that are flattering. These ones are though!

• They cost less than $20

I am not constantly worried about them breaking, being scratched, or losing them because they are fairly affordable. I accidentally lost a pair on our last family trip and immediately reordered because I LOVE them so much.

• They come with a cloth case and a cleaning wipe

Since they are so affordable, I was surprised they came with a cloth case and cleaning cloth. I like this because I have toddler fingers touching them regularly and so they need to be cleaned regularly.

I would highly recommend these sunglasses to anyone. If you are looking for cute and affordable sunglasses, buy these!

Click here to buy these sunglasses on Amazon!

Note: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please know, I am super thankful for your support in purchasing through these links.

(Link: https://amzn.to/3RDrpaC)