BABYWEARING RESOURCE PAGE. Let's get our babies out of buckets and up 'close enough to kiss.' Babywearing does so much good for our little ones - and for us as parents as well! Wearing your baby: * Increases neurological development and brain activity* Increases calm alertness* Increases oxygen flow* Increases the flow of oxytocin and other 'feel good/love' hormones (for BOTH Dad/Mom and baby)* Improves sleep at night and naptimes* Improves and regulates cardiovascular health * Improves and regulates respiratory health* Improves breastfeeding (and Mom's milk supply when she babywears)* Improves gross and fine motor development, strength and ability* Regulates body temperature especially in small babies (when baby has a fever, babywearing skin-to-skin with Mom/Dad will lower his temp; if baby is too cold, skin-to-skin will raise baby's temp)* Decreases fussiness, colic and gastrointestinal problems* Decreases cortisol and other stress hormones (for BOTH Mom/Dad and baby!)
Babywearing Resources: Babywearing with Dr. FUN AT HOME WITH KIDS. Until I was a blogger, I honestly didn't know that that many kid activity blogs existed (prior to becoming a blogger, I did know about a few big blogs, like The Imagination Tree, The Artful Parent). Discovering all these new fabulous blogs and bloggers over the last four months inspired me to write a post profiling a set of them all at once. I hope you all will find it helpful and that it introduces you to several amazing blogs you didn't previously know about! It was incredibly hard to narrow the list down to just 15 - so please, if you are a kid activity blogger or you have a favorite kid activity blog not mentioned, add their link to the comments on this post!
:) And now, I present to you fifteen amazing kid activity blogs (in no particular order other than I put myself first - ha! It feels weird to label my own blog amazing. Hi, I'm Asia! One of my favorite posts is about our DIY Sensory Boards. Hi, I'm Tammy! Hi, I'm Jen! Hi, I'm Jackie!
Hi, I'm Cathy! Hi, I'm Shaunna! Finding joy: treading water motherhood days. Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. Those were the words my swimming teacher would shout from the pool deck at me, the lanky kid in the blue swimcap with too much hair stuffed in, as I attempted to keep my head above water. I was shown how to move my arms and kick my feet and was told to tread for two minutes to pass to the next level.
I’d kick and move my arms and sputter in this as they called it buttering the bread motion and I’d wonder when it would ever be done. I wanted to do the diving, or doing the crawl stroke races, and here we spent so much time just working on the skill of treading water. Two minutes felt like forever as I bobbed in the middle of that always way too cold water during those mid winter swimming lessons. Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. And so it is often with motherhood. When the kids were all littles the days would smoosh together in this gigantic treading water blur. Are you there right now? Being brave. Motherhood. Playtime Activities for Babies and Older Siblings. Readers frequently write me wondering how they can still connect with their older child once they have a new baby.
Today we welcome Rachael to talk about the solutions she’s found for including the baby in big sister’s activities. ~Alissa I have two girls. My oldest is 2 ½. Right around the time she turned two, we started to find our playtime sweet spot. Nature walks, science experiments, pretend play, puzzles, painting, baking, building—it was glorious and messy and fun. Then along came Baby Sister. Luckily, including the baby (now eight months) has been easier than I imagined! Make Some Noise You don’t have to wait until the baby is old enough to bang on pots and pans to include him or her in your musical play. Imaginative Play Does your future doctor need a patient? Sensational Fun While it’s true that a lot of toddler toys are inappropriate for babies, activities can often be modified to include multiple ages.
60 Nature Play Ideas for Kids! Here are 60 amazing ideas for exploring nature with your child through play, art and investigation! I recently gave a talk at a nature play group, in the middle of the woods, about activities to do with your child that involve natural resources and that encourage interaction with the natural world. Here are those ideas that I gave in that talk, plus many more, with links to some fabulous articles from some talented writers around the web! MudUse it to make a birds nest The Chocolate Muffin Tree Concoct with it in a mud pie kitchen Paint with it The Chocolate Muffin Tree Have a princess mud tea party The Golden Gleam Simply play with it Sun Hats and Wellie Boots SticksPaint stick creatures Growling a Jeweled Rose Make instruments, weave material, and play games with them The Good Long Road Create a sistrum instrument from a branch Daria MusicMake your own blocks from driftwood Let the Children Play Push them into play dough Mummy Musings and Mayhem Simply sort and play with them Pine Cones.
How to Clear Diaper Rash Naturally. Paul Hocksenar via Compfight Diaper rash is a subject I get asked about a lot. Why does it happen? How do you clear it up? What methods are safe for little skin…and with cloth diapers? Diaper Rash: Why Does It Happen? My oldest experienced nearly constant diaper rashes from 2 months old until she potty trained. There are a number of reasons why babies may experience diaper rash: Too long between changings — Babies, especially smaller ones or those with sensitive skin, should be changed every 1 – 2 hours while they are awake. The occasional diaper rash from the top few reasons is normal.
Chronic, frequent diaper rashes are not normal. Treating Diaper Rash If your baby’s diaper rash is chronic/frequent, see above. For the occasional, minor rash that crops up, though, there are several ways to handle it. Traditional Diaper Rash Cream I can’t recommend any mainstream brand out there. Healing Diaper Rash Cream Naked Time A lot of times, rashes benefit from having air circulating around them. Powder. Help for a Teething Baby. Jacob’s teething. Or so I think, given that he’s 7 1/2 months old and has yet to pop one through. Bekah got her first at 5 1/2 months, and Daniel, at 6 months. So this whole “no teeth past 7 months” thing is new to me. He loves to gum on big chunks of frozen fruit (really the only food he’s yet enthusiastic for…and he doesn’t actually eat much of it anyway), of course he likes to bite me. But that’s the age, too — he also likes to pinch me and pull my hair and give me kisses, and screeches if anyone else is holding him and I walk by and don’t immediately pick him up.
But I digress. Teething’s not so fun, for moms or babies. OTC Drugs for Teethers? I’ll be honest. Anyway, OTC drugs of any kind are not benign, even if they are marketed to babies. All of these pain relieving drugs come with a side effect of depleting glutathione and lowering immune function. Skip the OTC drugs. Teething Tablets Last week, Jacob was waking every 15 minutes, crying, and there was no obvious reason for it.
Crappy Pictures - Illustrated with Crappy Pictures. 15+ Spring Activities for Kids! Here are over 20 ideas for keeping the kids busy this Easter time, from sensory play to art activities, planting gardens to discovery eggs! Hopefully you will find something new to try. Enjoy! Mindful Momma — Adventures in Living a Green and Healthy Life. 105 Ways to Enjoy Nature With Kids. Enjoying the natural beauty of the world is something I do every single day. The more time I spend admiring nature, the more satisfaction and joy I get out of it. It helps me slow down. It helps me to be present. And it’s always there. I find myself, not only wanting to spend time outdoors, I have a desire to protect our natural resources too.
I see this happening in my children too. Value It starts by the way we value nature as a family. Enjoy The more you enjoy nature, the more you want to look after it. Educate One of the ways we place value on nature is by educating ourselves about how to take care of it and then making slow sustainable changes to this effect. Notice We notice nature as we live life and get excited about it. Live Like most things, once you start noticing a particular thing, it quickly becomes a natural part of the framework for living and opportunities arise effortlessly as you live life. 105 Ways to Enjoy Nature With Kids Print the List – Lou Holtz More Links. Ntentedly Crunchy: Coconut Oil vs. the Diaper Rash. Last week, I wrote a guest post on dealing with yeast in cloth diapers over at the The Green Nursery'sblog. One of the commenters suggested treating a yeast rash with coconut oil for its natural antifungal properties.
Brilliant! Yet another use for the stuff. Squeak has been suffering with a recurring rash that is not yeast. I've been to the pediatrician, and she said it is now contact dermatitis, but I can't figure out what is itis-ing his derm (inflaming his skin). Based on the location, it appears to be his own pee. So our solution for the last couple weeks has been to put Squeak in just a prefold with no cover and change the diaper as soon as it was wet.
Friday morning I opened Squeak's diaper to find the rash back and looking painful. Came home a few hours later and changed his diaper - the rash was gone! Squeak just seems to have really sensitive skin. Yet another use for coconut oil! I'm now using it for the following: I Only Want Things To Make Sense… | Gianelloni Family. It’s been 7 long years since I started this journey of researching vaccines. This journey has taken me through many different stages. I went through a stage where I was a human sponge. I couldn’t stop researching and learning. I soaked it up and loved staying drenched. Then I went through a stage when I wanted to shout everything I learned from the rooftops. I started writing a book. I started writing a blog. I knew my vaccine research as a mom had been fulfilled through the decisions I made for my children, so why wasn’t I done? The more I got to know these mommas, the more I loved with them.These are mommas just like me & you.
In their own words: ”I didn’t ask for this fight. So I keep fighting for truth. “A false polarity is perpetuated that positions deaths and injuries from disease as somehow more tragic than deaths and injuries from vaccines. Where I’m at today feels like a lifetime away from where I was 7 years ago. What I do wish for is Answers. Two main points of the article: Day to Day: Holiday activity - puff paint in the microwave. This is really cool and super quick/easy. Combine the following in a little bowl: 1 tablespoon self-raising flour a few little drops of food colouring1 tablespoon salt Then add some water to make a nice smooth paste. Paint away on a nice thick sheet of cardboard (if you don't have enough paint brushes use cotton buds - they work really well). Microwave the design on high for 10 - 30 seconds until the paint puffs and it's all nice and dry.
We did ours for 30 seconds. Also, does anybody have a really nice, low fat ice cream recipe (using powdered milk) that is suitable to make in an ice cream maker?? Modern Alphabet Game. We went to the beach last weekend, and I picked up a bunch of smooth flat rocks with the idea of painting them. Then I thought it would be interesting to come up with a way of using the rocks in a game. The kids have been starting to show interest in recognizing letters in the alphabet, so I came up with this game which provides a nice blend of learning, creating art, and organized social activity (waiting to take turns, etc). First you need to get a bag of letters (from a scrabble game or similar). Each player gets a board (I cut two pieces of plywood and painted them).
It was a big hit! Another variation with older kids could be that each child gets 8 letters. If you want to give it a try, I highly recommend finding some rocks and painting them and making some design boards. This game is intended for personal use only and cannot be reproduced for sale. © 2010. Meeting an Extroverted Child’s Needs « Parenting From Scratch. As a follow up to my post last week about raising introverted kids, here is its counterpart on what you need to know about raising extroverted kids. By nature, extroverts are stimulating and outgoing.
Extra = outward, Versio = a turning/ to turn. They turn outwardly for thinking, processing, feeling, sensing, and experiencing, which means extroverted kids are chatty, sensory-seeking and naturally expressive. Here are 4 things to know about parenting extroverted children: 1. DO: Provide opportunities for social interaction, preferably in groups or with a wide variety of people.
DON’T: Always make social time structured. 2. DO: Accept their feelings. DON’T: Try to make a child’s feelings go away, however exuberant they may be. 3. DO: Ensure that your extroverted child is able to learn in an environment that suits her needs. Also take advantage of groups, clubs, and other extra curricular activities to help extroverted kids meet their sensory needs. Hands-on density An experiment in physics. 13 Wonderful Ways to Use Epsom Salts (Page 2) Oh, Epsom salt—who knew that such an uninspiring ingredient could inspire such devotion? Epsom salts have amazing health benefits–here are 13 ways to use Epsom salts, including a relaxing bath, a face scrub and a hair volumizer. It’s also a miracle cure-all, helping to remove splinters and reduce swelling of sprains and bruises. One ingredient really does fit all! I always knew that soaking in a tub full of hot water with a few cups of Epsom salts was good for relaxing muscles and drawing toxins from the body, but I could never figure out why.
And it wasn’t until I spent some time at the Epsom Salt Industry Council web site that I learned that epsom salts—made of the mineral magnesium sulfate—are also a sedative for the nervous system. When magnesium sulfate is absorbed through the skin, such as in a bath, it draws toxins from the body, sedates the nervous system, reduces swelling, relaxes muscles, is a natural emollient, exfoliator, and much more. Love feeling healthy and living well? How to Miss a Childhood | Hands Free Mama. Toxic Bullet Given To Babies Targets Brain « WAKE UP GET HEALTHY.
Regarding Caroline | More than Autism :: journey to recovery. February 25, 2009: The Day that Changed My Life Forever | Gianelloni Family.