Jen Desmarais

Cait Gordon

We attended Renaissance Press’s multi-author book launch recently, and brought the TARDIS for photo-ops with the authors and their brand new books.

What I *should* have done was ask the author which (if any) of their characters would run off with the Doctor. Hopefully they’ll answer in the comments!

Learn about Cait and buy her book here!

Su J. Sukol

We attended Renaissance Press’s multi-author book launch recently, and brought the TARDIS for photo-ops with the authors and their brand new books.

What I *should* have done was ask the author which (if any) of their characters would run off with the Doctor. Hopefully they’ll answer in the comments!

Learn about Su and buy her book here!

Solo Car Trip with an Infant

We’re going to depart from the standard “fandom” article today because I’m tired and this is relevant to my life.

Last week, I drove with Pegasus to Kitchener from Ottawa. Granted, there was another adult (my dad) with me on the way to Toronto, but we were by ourselves for the entire return trip.

Recommendations for travelling with a four month old:

  • hope that the infant sleeps well for long periods of time in a moving vehicle
  • feed baby and change baby right before you leave (in our case, Pegasus usually has 2-3 giant poops right after waking up in the morning. I didn’t leave the house until after these were done)
  • wait until baby is drowsy before leaving
  • bring more diapers than you think you’ll need
  • wipes, too
  • ask in advance if you have access to a washer and dryer at the other end of your trip; if not, bring 2x as many clothes for both of you than you think you’ll need (I did have access, thankfully!)
  • bring a change mat that wipes clean, not a cloth one

Things that I did that worked when driving solo:

  • got gas when arriving at the onroutes – baby was still sleeping and didn’t get upset at the prolonged wait for food/change/removal from car seat (if he’d been awake, I would have gotten it afterwards)
  • changed baby immediately after arriving – and used the toilet myself because I knew I’d forget otherwise
  • got food for myself right after that – meant that I didn’t have to spread stuff out to feed him, pack it all up to get food for myself, and then spread it all out again
  • found a comfy chair (thank you Port Hope onroute for having comfy chairs!!) and spread my stuff out, fed baby right away
  • changed baby on my lap because packing up stuff seemed like way too much work
  • fed myself while baby played with a toy (chairs are big enough to squeeze baby beside myself!)
  • fed baby again
  • changed baby again
  • baby was getting drowsy so I left right away
  • plan for multiple stops every 2/2.5 hours and hope you don’t need stops in between (I had to make an extra stop at the Mallorytown onroute because Pegasus had a nightmare and woke up – thankfully it was before the onroute; there is nowhere to stop after that other than on the side of the road, and I didn’t want to do that in the dark)
  • do not stop for yourself unless you absolutely have to – taking the baby out of the car means that you have to feed and change them and let them play for a bit before getting back in the car – it extends any trip by at least an hour for every stop you make

You can contact Jennifer Desmarais through Orleans Travel. jennifer.desmarais@orleanstravel.ca

Stephen Graham King

We attended Renaissance Press’s multi-author book launch recently, and brought the TARDIS for photo-ops with the authors and their brand new books.

What I *should* have done was ask the author which (if any) of their characters would run off with the Doctor. Hopefully they’ll answer in the comments!

Learn about Stephen and buy his book here!

Blush: HPV and You

My friends and I are getting to the age when our kids are getting shots that were not available when we were young.

The chicken pox vaccine, for one. (Varicella)

I, personally, had a very severe case of chicken pox over Christmas when I was 7 years old. My dad (and his mother) weren’t sure if he had had it as a kid, so I wasn’t allowed to go near him OR my 3 year old baby sister. Not a great Christmas.

Now, there’s a vaccine that prevents the horrible, full-body-and-sometimes-inside-the-mouth-and-on-the-eyelids, itchy rash. I’m ALL FOR IT. The vaccine, I mean.

But there’s another vaccine that wasn’t around when I was young: HPV9.

Giant Microbe of HPV (Human Papillomavirus). Image from giantmicrobes.com

I heard about it in University. I was still under the age limit to get it for free, and chose not to. I think that was a mistake. I was not very well informed about it and I regret not looking into it better.

Because the HPV9 vaccine protects against 7 types of HPV that cause types of cervical cancer, anal cancer, and genital warts.

And, more importantly, you can get HPV without having had sex.

Because HPV is transmitted via skin-to-skin contact, if someone with HPV touches their genitals (say, wiping after going to the bathroom), doesn’t wash their hands (ew), and then touches you….you have a pretty good chance of catching it.

So if you have the chance, please get the HPV9 vaccine. It is super safe and will protect you for the rest of your life.

References

Immunize BC
Healthlink BC
CDC
Live Science

If you’re enjoying the Blush blogs, consider learning more with Blush: The Card Game from Renaissance Press.

Statues of Versailles

I couldn’t zoom in on the statues and still have the TARDIS in the shot, but LOOK AT THEM?!

Can you imagine being in one of those rooms and glancing out the window and thinking that there’s a person outside the window? Eeek!

Happy Halloween (soon)!