I took my two year old to my most recent prenatal doctor visit.  He was very interested to watch her weigh me, take my blood pressure, and listen to the baby’s heartbeat.

Since we aren’t finding out the sex of our baby until he or she is born, my doctor asked my son if he knew if he was having a brother or a sister.  “A sister.  It’s a girl and her name is Goldilocks.”  He very positively responded.

She turned to me and said, “well, he might know!”  and recounted a story about a patient of hers.   She was very pregnant and playing with her three year old daughter when the daughter suddenly turned to her and said, “Mommy, the baby is all done growing.”  She immediately went into labor and had the baby later that evening.

Another very cool thing my doctor told us that day was that we should get some sun!  This is the very reason I go to a holistic ob/gyn…a doctor telling me to catch some rays!  I love it.

Of course the reason behind her recommendation is for the vitamin d3 that we all need more of, since so many people avoid the sun and slather on sunscreen.

Vitamin d3 is not actually a vitamin but a hormone that our bodies manufacture when sunlight touches our skin.  It is now known to protect us from cancer, reduce inflammation, protect the body from microbial invaders, regulate proper mineral balance in the bloodstream, etc. etc. etc.

It is especially important during pregnancy for the formation of healthy bones and teeth, and for the immune system, and also because breastmilk is naturally low in vitamin d.  So the baby stores up what it can from the mother during the last months of pregnancy and depends on this store (and sun exposure) until solid foods are introduced.

Well, I had to take my doctor’s advice.  I’ve spent 4 of the last 5 afternoons lounging by the pool with my son!