Written on January 24, 2008 by admin
The best natural diapers
By
Reija from
Huntington Beach, CA on
1/24/2008
5out of 5
Pros: No Leaks, Comforting, Absorbant, Easily Cleaned, Portable, Convenient
Cons: None
Best Uses: Diaper Changing
Describe Yourself: Parent of Two or More Children
These are the best natural diapers I have used. I’ve tried several brands of disposable and this brand is the best. They don’t leak and are very comfortable. Our babies are on the heavy side and these diapers work great for them, they are perfectly comfortable in the waist due to the elastic band. No leaks.
(legalese)
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Written on January 22, 2008 by admin
In the awake of the recalls happening with toys made in China, I’m glad to have replaced a lot of our children’s toys with non-toxic wooden toys. It can sometimes be a challenge to find good quality wooden and non-toxic toys that hold the child’s attention like the plastic junk counter parts. I’ve found some websites that really help with shopping for a good quality heirloom toys that hold the child’s attention and grow with the child.  Websites like oompa, moolka and Nova sell brands from all around the world and the toys are really neat. Also FAO has a good search tool to search for toys based on their country of origin. I’ve studied about the different standards in toy manufacturing and have found that the European Union is a lot more strict with their standards than the US standards are. Since I’m originally from Europe I tend to search there for answers. Toy brands that I can highly recommend are HABA, Bajo, Kettler, Brio, Kathe Kruse and my new favorite Plan Toys.
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Written on January 17, 2008 by admin
This is a topic that comes up frequently with newborns. Almost every newborn has a case of jaundice and the decree can very a lot from baby to baby. Our firstborn had a mild jaundice but out second baby have a severe jaundice due to she would not breastfeed enough to help with the elimination process of the extra red blood cells. We had to do the billirubin blankets which worked out great actually. They are a great treatment option for high bilirubin levels to assure the baby can come home from the hospital and the treatment can continue. The unfortunate fact about jaundice is that some pediatricians aren’t aware of the fact that unrestricted breastfeedings really help with the condition. Some doctors are quick to tell the mom to stop breastfeeding and switch to formula which is completely wrong advise. The reason for the formula push is many times the fact that the most “education” new pediatricians get regards to newborn feedings is from the formula manufactures and they are brain washed to think that formula is better for a baby than the mother’s breastmilk. Â Besides restricted feedings, indirect sunlight is a great treatment. Put the baby by a window to get some sunlight but be sure to keep an eye on the time. I also put our babies to direct sunlight just with their diaper on for 5 minutes both sides (front and back), no longer than that due to sunburn risk which is way worse than the jaundice. Now they have actually studied jaundice and come to find out that it can be a powerful antioxidant and prevent childhood cancers like leukemia. So it’s not as bad as originally thought. If your newborn gets jaundice be sure to continue breastfeeding as often as possible and if the baby is sleepy, which is typical with jaundice, be sure to wake the baby up to feed every 1 1/2 to 2 hours.Â
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Written on January 11, 2008 by admin
As a new parent, I had no idea what to expect about babies prior to our son being born other than what I had seen on TV or read in the books. I thought that babies sleep in their cribs and wake up to eat every once in a while but that’s about it. My husband and I went out and bought a crib before our son was born for him to sleep in. We put it in our bedroom instead of the nursery because I didn’t want to be so far from the baby. My idea of baby sleeping in a crib came to a halt very soon when 2 weeks into parenthood, I hadn’t slept more than an hour or 2 consecutively and I was completely out of it. I needed sleep badly. I took a friend’s suggestion and brought our son in the bed with us. For the first time, I could sleep! Our son was so peaceful there sleeping next to us. He would wake up to nurse but then go right back to sleep. I was still up many times a night because our son loved nursing but it didn’t affect me us much anymore because I still got more sleep and I didn’t even have to get out of bed to feed him. Gradually our son started to sleep longer but he really didn’t sleep through the night until he was about 3 years old and I was ok with that. I soon realized how important the night time was for our bonding and how I could share those special moments with him nursing in the quiet darkness. Now he is 6 years old and nothing wakes him up. It’s funny to think back of all the sleepless nights and how fast it went by. During that time it didn’t feel like fast but now looking back it does.Â
My advise to all new parents out there is to be prepared to be up several times a night with your baby. Babies have tiny stomachs so they do get up frequently to eat. Also breastmilk goes through the body quickly because it’s the best natural source of food therefore many breastfed baby’s nurse frequently. Another advantage of baby waking up several times a night is the prevention of SIDS. You don’t want  a newborn who barely can manage their breathing patterns to be sleeping soundly through the night. Co-sleeping can help to prevent SIDS as well because it’s been studied that the parents’ breathing helps to regulate the baby’s immature breathing patterns while sleeping. Next time a good friend of yours asks if your 3 month old is sleeping through the night, just smile and think how much more you get to bond and share with your baby when you get the privilege of being a parent both day and night. Once you become a parent, you are a parent 24/7 so getting a full night of sleep, should be last on your list. You’ll have plenty of time to sleep when your child is older and regardless of what grandma or any other good meaning relative says, babies don’t sleep through the night and yours is no different and it’s not your fault. Now there are the magical 1% of babies that might sleep almost through the night naturally but that’s such a rare occasion that don’t count on your baby being one of them. I did soon find out that some babies truly are “easier” with night time sleeping patterns because our breastfed daughter at 18 mos does sleep through the night sometimes on her own even when she is sleeping next to me.Â
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Written on January 6, 2008 by admin
PLEASE STEER CLEAR OF THIS BOOK!
This book has been associated with failure to thrive in infants. Orange County Child Abuse Prevention Center is concerned that this book might lead to child abuse. There shouldn’t be a book published these days that promotes feeding on schedule since this method has been proven wrong by all studies years ago. The AAP says babies need to be fed on demand NOT ON SCHEDULE. This book has finally being taken off the market. The publisher stopped publishing the book after getting letters from doctors and even the AAP has announced that they are strongly against this book. If you are trying to get more sleep as I’m sure allot of parents are, there are other ways to do it than sleep training (cry-it-out method). All babies will eventually sleep through the night (5 hours is considered through the night for a baby not 8-10). If you are trying to change your child’s sleeping habits and need help please read the following books Dr. Sears Nightime Parenting and The No-Cry Sleep Solution: Gentle Ways to Help Your Baby Sleep Through the Night by Elizabeth Pantley, William Sears (Foreword) or check out http://www.askdrsears.com. Both books are against the cry-it-out method and talk about finding alternative sleep associations for your child to help them fall asleep and stay asleep better.
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Written on January 5, 2008 by admin
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Written on January 5, 2008 by admin
What do you do if your toddler or baby for that matter wants to constantly pinch you while nursing??? Buy or make a nursing necklace! I have no idea why I didn’t think about this before. Our daughter (18 mos) has always been a pincher during nursing since she was a little baby. It’s very annoying and try to hold her hand etc but it just doesn’t work very well. Now that she is a toddler she can “demand” her way such as pushing my hand out of the way etc. I purchased a few different nursing necklaces on the web and they seem to be the answer. Not only are the nursing necklaces good for nursing but they will last a long time as regular jewelry beyond the nursing years. I highly recommend either making your own necklace or buying one if you have a baby with a similar nursing personality as our daughter. Our son was so a very different nurser, he just liked to make sure that the other side was still there and then he would be content. It’s very common for babies to have different nursing personalities such as a patting the other side, touching mom’s hair, moving a leg etc.Â
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Written on January 3, 2008 by admin
Finally someone is exposing the fact that Americans have a lot to learn from other countries when it comes to child birth. The USA has the 2nd highest infant mortality rate amongst the developing nations and yet we are suppose to be so medically advanced. I think the over medical advancement place a major part in what is wrong today in so many hospitals when child birth is concerned. Since I’m European (born and raised in Finland), I come from a different culture where child birth is looked at as natural as can be. Midwifes play a huge part and natural births are encouraged. Women bodies were made to deliver babies the natural way as long as you let nature do it’s work. Once you start disrupting the natural process with medication etc, things start to go wrong. I delivered both of my children here in the US without pain medication because I wanted to have a natural birth, and I was looked at like I was from Mars. I delivered both times at the hospital and the staff was amazed that I didn’t want any pain medication and kept offering it. They did the typical pitocin type of birthing to speed up the process to keep the assembly line going but I was still able to deliver without pain medication. I’m so glad I did! The only mistake I made was not to have a midwife present at the birth and letting them give me pitocin. If I would ever do it again, I would definitely have a midwife and I might also consider home birth so that I wouldn’t have to deal with the hospital bullying.
Ricki Lake has made this amazing documentary, exposing the whole problem of current birthing process in the US. I can’t wait to see the whole movie. All women should see this so that they can be more educated about what really goes on when you go to deliver a baby. Here is the website address to his document.
www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com
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Written on January 3, 2008 by admin
Our daughter is 18 mos old and her hair has been growing like crazy. I chose not to cut her bangs because I wanted to grow her hair out. It has been difficult at times since her bangs are getting long. I’ve done the pony tail on the top of the hair for a while now because it’s the only thing she will let me do without pulling out constantly. Now that she is older, I wanted to find something pretty for her hair. I order a few hair clips and bands from a couple of websites and I received them today. Everything was packaged so nicely and everything looked so pretty. When Carissa (our daughter) saw them, she was in awe. She wanted to wear them in her hair too which was great. I can highly recommend these accessories if you are looking for something pretty for your daughter or for a gift. I ordered from www.lilsugarplum.com and www.out-to-tea.com.
Out-To-Tea Picture
LilSugarplum Picture
I also ordered matching hair bands for her and I and they looked so cute!
Â
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Written on January 2, 2008 by admin
I just finished writing the About page and I wrote a lot about this subject because it’s something I’m very passionately against. No baby should be subject to this type of parenting and yet there are so many out there who are. It just breaks my heart that anyone could do this to their child. The result of CIO method being used are detrimental to a child to his emotional and physical development. Every time a baby cries, the stress hormone levels in the bloodstream go up and the longer the baby is allowed to cry, the more the stress hormones affect the child and his health negatively. Not only is CIO the most cruel way to treat your baby but also the most unhealthy for the child. The emotional scars left from CIO can last a life time and can show in adulthood with inability to trust others and form healthy relationships. The quickest way the negative affects of cry it out start to show when the child is diagnosed failure to thrive. Some people don’t understand that it’s not the nutrition that makes the babies grow, it’s emotional feeding as well which for a baby means responding to his cries promptly. The way you take care of a baby in the first 2 years of their life affects their whole life time. Next time a “good” friend of yours tells you to ignore your baby and his needs, you might want to think about what you are doing and the long lasting negative affects of it. We are suppose to be the smartest species on earth but at times I doubt that because it seems that animals can take care of their babies better than some humans can. I can’t imagine an animal abandoning their child just for the heck of it like humans do. The only time an animal might ignore their baby and leave it behind to cry is because it knows the baby will die or will not survive in the wilderness. Children’s rights are very close to my heart because children can’t defend themselves, especially newborn babies can’t, and if I can save just one baby from being subject to the CIO method by educating people about the detrimental affects of it, I will.Â
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