Understanding and caring babies at all stages: Baby tips

Showing posts with label Baby tips. Show all posts

Money Saving Tips for Baby Shopping

Posted on 1:19 PM comments (1)
Labels: Baby tips

The new little addition to the family not only doubles the joy for the parents but also their expenses. With the long baby shopping list of diapers, furniture, clothing, health care, etc..Sometimes it might be difficult trying to make ends meet on one income.

Here are a few saving tips for new parents wondering how to save and where to start.

Coupons :

Baby Coupons are available in many manufacturer's website including gerber, pampers, huggies etc. All you have to do is to sign up in the each and every website giving your baby's information like date of birth or due date, name, address etc. You get printable coupons or coupons in your mailbox whichever option you choose.

Also, sign up your mom or a friend so that you have extra coupons using which you can save more.

Baby Formula Savings :
For Baby formulas, make sure you register in all manufacturer's website like similac, enfamil, nestle good start etc. They send you baby checks which you can avail in any of your favorite store on your formula purchase.

Baby Samples:
Many manufacturers offer free samples of baby items including diapers, baby bathing products, formula samples, etc. Do an internet search for free baby samples and try to make use of them.

Baby Shopping :
Every store sends out a weekly flyer which lists out all the products which is on sale for that week. Once you shop the sale items along with the manufacturer coupons , you get the lowest possible price which we can call a good 'deal'.

Baby Clothing :
Thrift stores are the best place to buy baby dresses. Children don't wear clothes for very long as they grow fast, So, try to save a bundle by buying clothes in thrift store or even Walmart. Walmart offers the best for the lowest price.

'Babies R us', the one stop Baby Shop and the 'Toys R us'that offers variety of toys for kids , Both the stores maintain a mailing list and send out coupon books on a regular time intervals. Once you add your address to the mailing list, You start receiving the coupon books which has a good number of coupons which amounts to your savings.

Whole Sale Shopping:
There are 3 main whole sale stores, Costco, BJ's and Sam's Club. Buying wholesale definitely saves you a bunch of dollars. All the whole sale stores send out their coupon book once a month, try to use those coupons along with the wholesale price to get the best deal.

Online Shopping
The best option for new parents whose hands are packed with baby chores can do the online shopping for baby products. Ebay works out really cheap and the best for some baby items like diapers.

Having a baby should be the joyous time for new parents, Don't let the excitement diminish by calculating the annual costs of raising a baby. Whatever you shop, look for the best deal you can get. Best deal is nothing but the lowest price for the item. By digging a little using clearance and Sale tags, you can save a few cents here and there , Even that can make a big difference at the end of the month.

Post a Comment

Your Ad Here

Baby Shower Tips

Posted on 9:57 AM No Comments
Labels: Baby tips

While it was once traditional to have a baby shower party for the first baby, nowadays we have baby shower for every baby. After all every baby is very special. Baby shower party is usually held in the final trimester say in the last few months of pregnancy. Sometimes if the baby shower party is planned too late, the babies would be lucky to attend their own showers. So, the best time would be 2-3 months before the due date.

Baby Shower - Showering the mom with baby gifts.

For any couple, the most exciting news to hear would be that they are going to become parents, especially for the mom-to-be. For expecting mothers, it's a difficult task to search and shop for all right stuffs and the things that a newborn will need. Moms-to-be have to list down a big shopping list and it's pretty challenging to go for shopping as they near the due date. So, the easiest way would be to arrange a baby shower party for friends and families. Just prepare a menu of food for the party and pass on the burden of searching and looking for baby stuff to the invitees. You have the option of registering for the baby in most of the stores, especially babies r us. Once you add the list and send them to invitees, you make sure the presents don't get repeated and you get all the items needed for the baby based on your taste.

Who are the invitees of the baby shower?

This depends on how you plan the party, sometimes it's a surprise baby shower for the mom, and in that case you can invite people very close to mom and surprise her. In some cases, it can be a family or couple baby shower or a workplace baby shower. Whatever the case, the main purpose is to make the mom happy and welcome the little one to the world. It's important to add here that it's good to be mindful while inviting friends or relatives who have experienced recent baby losses or facing infertility problems. They might either feel left out if not invited, or feel bad if invited. So, the best solution would be to ask them personally if they would like to attend the party.

What to do in a baby shower?

Once you had sent out invitations for the baby shower, you can establish a theme for the party. Sometimes the theme can be with colors if you know the gender of the baby, or it can be nursery decor themes. You can also organize some games taking in mind the audience and the mother-to-be. Be careful you don't play "girly" games, if you invite lots of guys. If the mom-to-be feels awkward with the 'weight-guessing' or 'waist-guessing' game, you can leave that too. You can have games like drawing pregnant women, tasting the baby food, guessing the baby names etc. There are some ideas for baby shower games here.The baby shower differs from each and every culture. Some people believe the baby shower brings bad luck and do it after the baby is born. In Indian Culture, they have the bangle ceremony as the main event for baby shower where the mom-to-be wears lots of bangles and do some pooja for the God that the baby should be born in a normal and safe way. The belief is that the baby will enjoy the sound of bangles when the mom-to-be does the household chores.

However you do the baby shower, having a baby shower party is fun and creates sweet memories for the mom-to-be and to share it with their kids later.

Post a Comment

Your Ad Here

Breastfeeding Positions

Posted on 7:21 PM comments (3)
Labels: Baby tips

When it comes to breastfeeding, being comfortable and being able to get your baby to breast easily are the two things that really count. Learning to breastfeed takes time and practice

for both you and your baby.

Make sure that you are comfortable and relaxed and the baby is correctly latched on. This makes your feeding more enjoyable and easy. Try to feed in a chair or bed with a good back support, using cushions or pillows if necessary. Rest your feet on a ottoman or a footstool.

At first, you should experiment with different feeding positions, until you find the one that works for you and your baby. Here are the three most common positions you may want to give it a try.

"Cradle" Hold :
Place your baby across your stomach with face and knees close-in facing your body. Babies head should be in the bend of your elbow; mouth in front of your nipple. Tuck babies lower arm around your waist.

"Cross Cradle" Hold :
Cross Cradle hold is similar to cradle hold except that your baby is lying in the opposite direction, with head in your hand, rather than in crook of your arm. This is a good position when first learning to breastfeed because it gives you good control of your baby's head, which really helps when you are trying to get your nipple in baby's mouth.

"Football " Hold :
This position is easier if you had a C-section delivery as this doesn't put pressure on your incision. Place pillows on your side to support your elbow and your baby's bottom. Tuck the baby into the side of your waist, cradled under your arm. Place baby's head in the palm of your hand at the level of your breast. Support the base of baby's head between your thumb and forefinger.

Lying down Position :
This is also particulary good for moms who had a caesarean devliery or if your bottom is sore after birth. Lie on your side, using a pillow to support your head and neck, and another along your back. You may also want to put a small rolled blanket behind your baby's back. Lay your baby next to you so that the baby's mouth is opposite your nipple. When the baby opens the mouth wide, the baby is ready to latch on.

Hope these breat feeding tips were helpful.

Post a Comment

Your Ad Here

Storing Breast Milk

Posted on 6:52 PM comments (1)
Labels: Baby tips

I have always had this question in my mind when I started breastfeeding my baby ; How long can I store my pumped breastmilk in the refrigerator ? Whoever I ask this question gives varied answers which led to a confusion. Here is a clear fact on storing your freshly expressed Breast Milk . Have this in mind, No more confusions :)

IN REFRIGERATOR :

Use within 24 hours if possible
Discard after 72 hours

IN FREEZER :

Upto 1 month in freezer compartment of refrigerator
3-6 months in deep freezer (0 degrees or less)
Store in the back of freezer.
Label and use oldest first.
Best if used within 3 months.

Previously frozen breast milk can be stored in refrigerator for 24 hours. But NEVER refreeze it.

Post a Comment

Your Ad Here

Breastfeeding tips

Posted on 5:44 PM comments (4)
Labels: Baby tips

A few breastfeeding tips for a new mom :

Nurse as soon as possible after your baby's birth.
Establish proper latchon. This will eliminate much of the pain and soreness associated with breastfeeding.
Avoid artificial nipples.
Donot restrict the frequency or length of breastfeeding.
Sleep when your baby sleeps.
Have a glass of cold water or juice everytime you site down to nurse, this will make sure you drink enough fluids.
Avoid bras and tight-fitting clothing in the first few weeks of birth if you have sore nipples.
Shop for a good nursing pillow to support you and your baby while breastfeeding.
If you experience pain during breastfeeding, don't hesitate to seek help from your doctor or a lactation consultant.

Post a Comment

Your Ad Here

Healthy eating

Posted on 12:17 PM No Comments
Labels: Baby tips

Fast food is a big part of modern life these days, making it very hard to teach a child how he or she should eat healthy. The cheapest and easiest foods are those that are normally the least healthy. If you give your child the choice between healthy food and junk food, you normally won't like the results.

Even though it isn't possible to get a child to like all nutritous foods, there are some ways to get your child to try and hopefully like at least a few of them. You can be as creative as you like, as getting kids to eat healthy foods can be a little harder than you may think. Sneak the healthy food in. Even though it would be great if your kid understood the importance of fruits and vegetables, this isn't always possible.If you can't get them to eat good food willingly, there are ways to sneak them in, such as making muffins out of bananas or apples, or pizza with spinach on it.

Call fruits and vegetables by funny names. You can refer to broccoli as "trees", making them more fun to eat. There are many different names you can call fruits and vegetables, even making up your own if you prefer. Most kids prefer to eat foods that sound fun.

Make the foods taste better. Ranch dressing is great for broccoli, while peanut butter is a great topping for celery. There are several combinations for vegetables that can make them taste much better. You can let your child pick a topping for a vegetable, even if it's something you wouldn't normally like yourself.

Dress the vegetables up. Just as much as calling them names help kids eat healthy foods, making them look funny also helps. You can do this by making funny designs on the plate, or setting them up to look like people. Although some parents don't like their kids playing with their food, sometimes it helps to get them to eat healthier.

Finally, we need to eat healthy food. A house where you get a fruit as a snack will no doubt have kids eating healthy foods. Kids don't do what you say, they do what you do. So, make sure you eat lots of veggies and fruits especially while they notice.

There are several ways to make your kids eat healthier, but to make them enjoy it while they are at it, has to be a hard task. It can however, be done with a bit of creativity.Hopefully, doing this will help your child develop a love of healthy foods for the rest of their lives.

Post a Comment

Your Ad Here

Baby Talk

Posted on 6:37 PM No Comments
Labels: Baby tips

At a young age your baby will start to talk by producing babbling sounds or even sentences. Although they are not able to pronounce real sounding words, your baby is trying to communicate with you. Talk back and answer them as you would an older child.

Most of the adults are not comfortable talking to babies , they don't know what to say. Babies love interaction , The fact is babies do not need baby talk,it is better for them to be talked like adults. This paves the way for their future language skills.

For people who don't know what to say to babies - here are few suggestions :

Interact with your baby giving a detailed account of what you are doing, while you are doing it. ( say for eg: "when you are going for a walk with the baby, point out things you see on the way like flowers, leaves to them and tell them what they are. e.g. look at the pretty flowers - as you show them the flowers.) Even if you think that they are too young to understand what you are saying - they will start to associate words with situations and things & will soon start trying to pronounce them.

Recite him the nursery rhymes you remember from your childhood or sing a song. Babies don't know the mistakes you make while singing but definitely loves the sing tone of your voice.

If you are busy cooking in the kitchen, you can tell out the recipes of the dish you are making , you might look like a fool to others but does'nt matter. Your baby is enjoying, that's what you want.

If you are away from the baby during the day, share him the events of your day , read him a story in the night.

Talk anything but keep talking. That's your goal .

Post a Comment

Your Ad Here

Jaundice in newborns

Posted on 5:08 PM No Comments
Labels: Baby tips

When our daughter was born, i was alarmed seeing her cute little eyes turning yellow the day after she was born. After the doctor's checkup, I came to know that she had jaundice and the doctor advised me to feed as often as possible. He even said they can't send the baby home with me as she has to be exposed to ultraviolet light rays in the form of phototherapy to bring down the bilirubin levels.

I was so disappointed like any other mom, I was not willing to go home without my baby. By God's grace, the day i was discharged, her bilirubin levels came down and the doctor gave consent to take our baby home with us, but advised us to expose her to indirect sunlight for 3 days and come back for checkup.

About 6 out of 10 babies have jaundice in varying degrees. It is a condition caused because your baby's liver is not mature enough to remove a pigment called bilirubin from blood. It usually clears up after a few days or a week and this can be aided by exposing your baby to indirect sunlight through a window.

Post a Comment

Your Ad Here

Trimming Baby Nails

Posted on 11:21 AM comments (2)
Labels: Baby tips

Though trimming those tiny little baby nails is a bit unnerving especially at first, it's important to keep your baby nails short for their safety.

Cut your baby nails :

With baby nail clipper which comes with rounded tips for safety.
When your baby is asleep.
After a bath as the nails become softer
If you are a bit hesitant to use nail clippers, you can use Emery boards to remove the sharpness of the nails.

Post a Comment