Archive for May, 2009

A short while ago, we wrote an article examining some tips for signing with your baby. In this article, we cover more tips for signing with your baby to ensure you have a successful and rewarding experience teaching your baby to sign.

Pay Attention to Baby’s Perception

A baby is constantly seeing new things. For better success in teaching your baby to sign, be alert to what your child is perceiving. If you are aware of what your child is perceiving, you will know what to sign when. By the time your baby’s eyes and gazes start to connect with yours, he is ready to start learning to sign. Get down on your baby’s level, literally and figuratively. When we are cognizant of what our children perceive, we are better communicators and teachers. Read the rest of this entry »

There are few things that are scarier to new parents than the prospect of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). SIDS is defined  as the “sudden death of an infant under one year of age that remains unexplained after a complete investigation, which includes an autopsy, examination of the death scene, and review of the symptoms or illnesses the infant had prior to dying and any other pertinent medical history.” Sounds pretty terrifying, right?

While there is no way to absolutely eliminate the risk of SIDS, there are several practices that you can do to reduce your baby’s risk. SIDS most often affects babies between the ages of 1 and 4 months. The most important thing you can do to reduce the risk of SIDS for your baby is to ALWAYS put your baby to sleep on his or her back and never on his stomach or sides. You should  also be sure not to ever put your infant down alone in a bean bag, waterbed, or blanket that can cover the baby’s face. Read the rest of this entry »

 It’s a safe bet that you’re not the only person right now wondering about tips for coping with stress    Anxiety, tension, frustration, and stress are facts of life for probably everyone and anyone these days, no matter what you do for a living and no matter what your personal situation.  Even fun and enjoyable situations bring stress, from holiday dinners to pregnancy, weddings, retirement, new jobs, and moving.  So even when you have something fun and enjoyable coming up, you still need some pointers on how to deal with stress While sometimes big changes need to be made in order for you to adequately deal with the stress in your life, such as finding a new job if you’re unemployed or getting adequate treatment if you have a health concern, very often it’s just a few minor changes. Read the rest of this entry »

There are so many questions on what is best for your new bundle of  joy when you first come home from the hospital.  Making sure you properly groom your baby is so important when they are new to the world.  There are numerous products today to make this easier on parents. 

A couple important items to have are small scissors and baby clippers to give your baby mini-manicures.  Your baby’s fingernails grow so fast that they can actually be a danger to her.   Having the task of cutting those tiny nails can be very nerve racking to a new parent.  The best time to trim your baby’s nails is after a bath when her nails are soft or when she is sleeping.  When your baby is sleeping she won’t even realize you are cutting her nails and she is more apt to not move which makes it easier on you.  You can also use a soft emery board to smooth rough edges between trims.  Keeping her nails short will help prevent those scratches on her face that you hate to see!  There are also small mittens available to put on their hand to help prevent your baby from harming herself. Read the rest of this entry »