A million questions and so little time. Inspiration and support for the first year.
(Photo courtesy of http://katelyndemidow.blogspot.com/) I am going to commit a huge natural parenting faux pas and admit something…. I kind of hate co-sleeping. I don’t actually 100% hate it. There are lots of beautiful things about sleeping with your kids. But, since I am complaining (I will get back to the good stuff later) I should mention some things that make me think I won’t miss this stage. ~Being squished ~Waking up numerous... read more
Thank you to Angela Rau of Infant Massage USA for this guest post. Parenting is part natural and part learned. All mammals have the natural presence of the bonding hormone (oxytocin) responsible for motivating caregiving of the young for survival. Research confirms that father’s increase their bonding hormone levels through physical contact with their baby. A mother has a bonding jumpstart on a father. After all she has had physical contact with their baby 24/7 during pregnancy. Valuable attachment moments continue through breastfeeding. Fathers, require... read more
Our then four-months-old discovering new books and songs on an eleven hour car ride. When hearing of our travel plans this summer, friends and family always ask whether I’m nervous about the long flight with a baby. Truth be told, I’m much more nervous about the long car ride taking us to our first destination on our trip. Eleven hours in the car with a baby that’s just learned to crawl, stand, move, and explore has me losing a tad more sleep than the idea of a flight abroad. The problem with car rides (as opposed to train or air... read more
By Aletha Solter Issue 122 January/February 2004 The term “cry it out” refers to the practice of leaving babies in their cribs without picking them up, and letting them cry themselves to sleep. A modified version of this approach is to go to the baby every few minutes to pat her on the back or reassure her verbally (but not pick the baby up), and to increase the length of time gradually so that the baby eventually “learns” to fall asleep alone. But there is no doubt that repeated lack of responsiveness to a baby’s cries—even for only five minutes at a time—is... read more
I’ve become an accidental expert of traveling with a baby. With family spread over many states along with our habit of house swapping in interesting places, I’ve travelled on 35 airplanes in the last two years with my daughter, Zinnia. Last week, in Part One of Babies, Toddler and Planes. Oh my! I began sharing my experiences of travelling with a little one. Let’s pick up where we left off. Once on the plane… Keep it fun. The week before we travel I hide a few of Zinnia’s favorite books and small toys. When she sees them again... read more
Before I gave birth to my first baby I was overwhelmed by the various babycare products I thought I would need. A crib or cot, a moses basket or bassinette– what’s the difference? Why would a baby need so many different places to sleep (in the end, my baby’s bassinette became our laundry basket!)? Bouncy chairs, fancy applique bedding, matching curtains and trash cans, pumps, sterilizers, blankets, blankets and more blankets… Looking at babycare catalogues boggled my mind as I tried to piece together a list of what we would really need for our little... read more
The Center for Environmental Health has filed a lawsuit against more than two dozen personal care companies citing misleading use of the term “organic” on their labels. The CEH reports that “Dozens of shampoos, lotions, toothpastes,and other personal care products sold by national retailers including Target, Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, Whole Foods and other stores are mislabeled as organic, in violation of California law…Several of the products, including products intended for children, contain potentially toxic ingredients, including chemicals suspected of... read more
Thank you to Marija Mikolajczak for this guest post. It seems like more and more people are hearing about elimination communication. Maybe this is part of an overall trend of eco-friendly living, or due to an increase in interest in attachment parenting. Who wouldn’t want to wash (or buy) fewer diapers? And having a closer relationship with your baby sounds great! Sometimes parents get stuck on how to get started with EC, since they may not personally know anyone else who has ever done this, in contrast to those countries where “holding baby out to... read more
In the past 4 years since becoming a mother and an enthusiastic breastfeeding supporter, I have learned that myths about breastfeeding and formula are running rampant. I am left frustrated and concerned that our formula culture has won, that our mothering instincts have been trampled by the corporations that would prefer a dollar over a healthy child. Most significantly, I have seen many, many mothers state that their breast milk never came in, or that it dried up after a couple months. I know that some women genuinely do not produce milk due to... read more
By Lorrie Leigh Eight years ago my first hospital born set of twins taught me everything about how I want to give birth. So, naturally, I had a homebirth the next time around. Over several years, I also became a childbirth teacher, birth and breastfeeding political activist, and apprenticed midwife's assistant with lots of experience under my belt. Twenty-eight weeks into my third pregnancy, a preterm labor episode led to the discovery that another set of twins was in our future. My midwife and I stopped labor a la Spiritual Midwifery (vodka shots) and I set... read more
