Playdates for Mom

A blog entry by celebrity mom Brooke Burke recently talked about how moms need playdates, too. I couldn't agree more! Time with girlfriends, mama friends, even your own mother is so important to us as women. If you don't agree, check out this friendship study from UCLA on how friendships even help improve women's health.

According to the head of psychiatry at Standford University, "Among other things, one of the best things that a man could do for his health is to be married to a woman whereas for a woman, one of the best things she could do for her health was to nurture her relationships with her girlfriends."

Funny, but kind of true, eh? Agree or disagree? Sound off in the comments section below.

Great Lengths...Great Scott!

If you have ever reached your due date (I did twice), you know how maddening it can be that you haven't gone into labor yet. Pregnant moms get desperate to meet their little one and spur themselves into labor with all kinds of crazy techniques. But how far is too far?

Here's an interesting article from IVillage on how far some women will go to try to induce labor themselves. (Herbal supplements and Castor oil and hot peppers, oh my!)

Pregnant Women May Go to Great Lengths to Induce Labor

What did you try to do to get the (labor) party started? And did it work? Leave it in the comments section below.

So Advanced....

My friends and I always joke that our kids are "so advanced!" Of course, most parents think their kids are geniuses, but how do you know if your child is truly gifted? Check out this article from Lil Sugar for signs of a gifted child!

Word Explosion!

My husband often jokes with me that I am now being punished for worrying about my daughter’s speech when she was a toddler because as an almost five year-old, she never stops talking!

I often tell people that my sweet little girl has a paragraph in her head when she wakes in the morning, just waiting to come out! Just this past weekend, when she woke up one morning, she told us she had "five things she needed to tell us."

Now that my son is at the age that I used to worry about my daughter’s speech and vocabulary, I have noticed he is way more verbal at 22 months than she was…and I often wonder why? I know that every child develops differently and at their own pace, but I also think my son's verbal ability has to do with the fact that my son hears me and my daughter talking all day long to one another.

There are many things you can do to help build your toddler’s vocabulary and encourage and enhance his or her language development. Here are just a few ways you can help build a vast vocabulary in your little one below.

- Talk, talk and more talk!
Talk to your child all day long. Narrate what you are doing, what you see, and what you hear. There is no better way to teach your child words and how to have a back-and-forth conversation than to talk to your child. According to www.babyzone.com, a 1991 University of Chicago study documented the vocabulary growth of 22 children from the age of 16 months to 2 years. Half of the mothers of the children were considered "very talkative" mothers and the other half were considered "least talkative" mothers. Children with the “very talkative” mothers learned 295 more words by the age of 2 years than their counterparts, proving that exposure to speech is critical to building a child's vocabulary.

- Read to your child every day.
A child’s vocabulary is built tremendously by reading books to them every day. There are so many benefits to just 20 minutes of reading a day. For one, reading books aloud to your children builds a stronger relationship between parent and child. Children are also more likely to express themselves and relate to others in a healthy way when they relate to characters in a book. Make it part of your daily routine and your kids will be learning new words and gaining self-confidence and a healthy self-esteem in no time!

- Correct the cute-ness!
You are doing your child no favors when you let them incorrectly label something with the wrong word…so correct the “cute-ness!” I am the world’s worst at this. My daughter used to “be-cide” she wanted to do something, instead of “decide,” and I thought it was precious! My son calls his sippy cup his “doddle” (aka- bottle) and I don’t correct him because it melts my heart. Carol Garhart Mooney, author of Use Your Words, says parents need to correct improper word usage because the correction and clarification is essential to help children make sense of the word around them.

- Talk to your children, not at them.
Be sure to engage your kids in conversation, rather than just barking orders or giving instructions. Just talk to them, and let them express how they are feeling and what they are thinking. Ask your kids questions to engage them in conversation make sure the questions require a more in-depth answer than just one word. (Example: Instead of asking a question that can be answered in one word, such as, “Do you want milk or water with dinner,” ask your child, “Which is your favorite drink with dinner, milk or water, and why do you like it the best?” The more a child has the opportunity to use his or her words, the more adept he or she will become at holding a conversation and speaking to friends and adults as they grow.

Remember, you are your little one’s first and most important teacher, so start building their vocabulary today!

How do you help build your child’s vocabulary? Leave your ideas in the comments section below.

Seriously?!?!

Seriously, where was this product when my kids were infants? There is now a self-warming baby bottle system available to parents. This baby product, made by Yoomi, safely and conveniently heats up breast milk or formula in just 60 seconds!

Designed by a husband and wife team, this revolutionary technology warms breast milk or formula to the ideal temperature (86 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit.)

What I would have given to have a mechanism such as this to warm bottles when I was out and about with my oldest while she was still nursing! She would not drink cold milk from bottles, so bottle feeding was tough while away from the house.

To boot, Yoomi’s bottles are BPA-free and ergonomically designed so they’re easy for babies to hold. The wide, soft silicone nipple mimics a woman’s breast and it also has well-placed vents that prevent air from bubbling, which helps to reduce colic. It is also lightweight and easy to transport.

The Yoomi bottle system kind of makes me want to have another kid just so I can buy this product. Okay, maybe I don't like the bottle warming system that much, but I definitely will be telling all my expecting friends about this product!

Sound off in the comments section if you or someone you know has tried the Yoomi bottle warming system. Give us the scoop!

How To Prepare a Child for Outpatient Surgery

Recently I learned my four and-a-half year old has sleep apnea! Crazy, huh? For a while now, we have noticed she holds her breath in her sleep and somewhat during the day as well. A trip to the ENT showed us that her tonsils and adenoids are both enlarged and need to be removed. We have scheduled surgery for our daughter in t-minus two weeks. Aggggghhhh!

My husband and I know we need to broach the subject with her before the surgery to let her know (in terms she can understand) what is going to occur. But when is the right time? We don’t want to tell her too early because of the undue worry she will have about going to the hospital, but we also don’t want to spring it on her either!
We know she needs some time to prepare psychologically for her surgery.

After some research, here are some tips from the experts on how to prepare your child for outpatient surgery.

- Kids of all ages cope better when they understand what type of surgery is going to occur and why it is necessary. Explain in children’s terminology why the surgery must happen and what she is going to experience.

- Allow your child to ask questions and answer them in a way that they can understand. Don’t over explain!

- Most children fear the surgery itself will hurt and this is their main concern. Explain to your child that there is a special doctor- an anesthesiologist- that will help your child go to sleep so they won’t feel a thing during the surgery. Reiterate that mommy and daddy will be with her as soon as she wakes up.

- However, do not lie about the discomfort she may feel after she awakens from anesthesia. Say, “It may be a little uncomfortable when you wake up, but mommy and daddy will make sure you get plenty of medicine to make any uncomfortable feeling you have go away and feel better.”

- Find books about hospital experiences (that are appropriate for your child’s level) that explain surgery and hospital visits. Children often learn best through examples and books are a wonderful way to help explain the difficult concept of surgery, anesthesia, and other hospital procedures.

- Have your child practice surgery on his or her stuffed animals with a toy doctor kit. This will help them become more comfortable with blood pressure, temperature taking, and other routine hospital procedures that must occur before surgery.

- Consider setting up a pre-surgery visit to the hospital so your child can become acquainted with the hospital. This will make it seem like a less scary place.

- Remind your child that having this surgery will make their bodies healthier and stronger. Keep reminding them it will make them feel better.

- On the day of the surgery, pack your child special stuffed animals, toys and books that will make them more comfortable while they wait for surgery.

Have you had any hospital experiences with your child? What helped them (and you) relax before the surgery? Leave any tips you have in the comments section below.

Crib Climber...What To Do?

My 20 month-old decided to make an already stressful week (we move in four days) even more eventful by climbing out of his crib this weekend. This occurrence has pushed this already on edge mama over the brink.

Why so anxiety-ridden about my boy taking the plunge, you ask? Here is the background: My son is such a good sleeper…he still takes two naps a day at 20 months old (each one averaging 1.5-2 hours, sometimes longer.) And to boot, he still goes down for bed at 7 p.m. and sleeps until 7 a.m. (Do you hate me yet? Don’t worry…my first child was not a sleeper, so I was due for one!) When my daughter started climbing out of her crib (at 22 months), that was the end of naps for us. The freedom of roaming her room was too much for her, and from there on out, naps were a struggle. By two-and-a-half years of age, my daughter stopped napping completely. This CANNOT happen again. I don’t think it will since my son loves to sleep, but I can’t risk it. Naptime is too precious!

However, I know that it is much safer to have a toddler walking around a baby-proofed room than it is climbing out of a crib and possibly falling. What to do, what to do? While researching online, here is some advice I found that was a good refresher for me and helpful on deciding what to do:

- If your child is old enough to understand “you must stay in your bed,” then explain this concept to your child. Every time he gets out of his bed, put him right back in it. This may make for some long nights at first, or some challenging naptimes, but your consistency will pay off.

- Try not to speak or interact with your child as you put them back in their bed. Sometimes children even appreciate negative attention, so minimum contact is essential.

- If you know your child is not ready for a big bed or toddler, then consider a crib tent. A crib tent is mesh and attaches to the crib rails with Velcro, to keep your little one safe and unable to climb out of the crib and fall.

- Again, if you feel your child is not ready to move out of the crib, then buy yourself some more time by lowering your crib to the lowest setting possible. Remove the bumper pad so your baby cannot use it to boost herself up over the rails.

My favorite piece of advice I found when researching tonight was from Jodi Mithchell, Pediatric Sleep Expert, found on the popular website, Baby Center. She said, “It's best not to react to climbing out of the crib with a sense of crisis. First, assess the situation and see if you and your child are truly ready for a change.”

Amen! I think I rushed too fast to put my daughter in a big girl bed when she climbed out the crib for the first time. I am going to access the situation this week and decide what we need to do to keep our boy both safe and sleeping.

So go with your gut, parents! You know your child best and you will know if it is time for him or her to move to a toddler bed or big girl/big boy bed.

Oh, and FYI: when we put our baby to bed for nap today, he tried a few times to climb out of his crib, and we went in and firmly put him back in the crib, and he finally went to sleep, sleeping for over two hours. Tonight at bedtime, we didn’t hear a peep out of him. He didn’t even try to climb out! I am sure the saga will continue this week, but for now, we are going to try to keep him (safely) in his crib.