newborn care

1st Bday: BestView Handheld Color Video Monitor

When we were pregnant with our first baby, we registered for and received an audio baby monitor. It served us well for the short time we had it, enabling us to hear our baby’s squeaks and squirms and cries from the adjacent room (***we co-slept for the majority of the first year, but our baby [...]

BEST OF 2009: Baby Products

Want to know what one of my favorite things is? Waking up right next to a super smiley baby. And it happens to me every single morning. I know – I’m lucky. What can I say?
I reviewed my fair share of baby-related products this past year and quite a few of them were really wonderful, [...]

BEST OF 2009: Pregnancy Posts

Here’s a look back at my five favorite pregnancy/birth-related posts from 2009:

5 Things To Do BEFORE You Have A Baby {October 16, 2009}
6 Pregnancy Products You Probably Want {May 11, 2009}
How much does it cost to have a baby? {September 7, 2009}
Birth Centers Versus Hospitals {April 5, 2009}
10 Things You Should Know About Birth {October [...]

Disposable or Cloth {it doesn’t have to be all or nothing}

I used all disposable diapers with my oldest daughter. They seemed easy, non-intimidating. I knew how to change them already and I knew how to throw them away (remove, toss in trash, done!).
The whole cloth diapering business seemed overwhelming. There were so many choices (and I’m not talkin’ just colors!). All-in-Ones. Pre-folds. Pocket. Fitted. Even [...]

How much does it cost to have a baby?

There’s quite a bit of talk about how expensive babies are. To be honest, I’m quite bewildered by that because a baby’s first year of life doesn’t have to be a big-ticket affair. Certainly, there are added expenses, but there are so many ways to drive down the cost.
Babies really need very little. Snuggles. Sweetness. [...]

5 More Weeks…and we’ll be witnessing a miracle

Our baby is due in 5 weeks. Soon – very soon – she will be here in my arms. I’ll be able to look into her eyes and smell that sweet baby scent on the top of her head and soak in the magic of the miracle of life.
I’ve been trying to mentally prepare myself [...]

Fevers Are Our Friends…Sometimes

If you’ve perused my “Favorites” page with all of my favorite blogs and websites, then you know that I’m a huge fan of the Sears family of pediatricians. They’re “naturally-inclined” and not afraid to question the status quo…and they dole out medical advice that I can feel good about taking to heart. 
In preparation for this [...]

Secure2Me: A Blanket that Stays Put

My daughter was a September baby and people often expressed sympathy for me, lamenting the fact that I would have to endure the long hot days of summer. I, on the other hand, felt quite fortunate to be blessed with an early fall baby because she arrived just as the harsh rays of sweaty sunshine [...]

Sweetpeace: The Lexus of Baby Swings

The newborn stage is a little bit foggy in my memory now that I have an active, adventurous, walking, talking little girl. I remember it with crisp clarity and yet it’s also somewhat vague and surreal. 
Although our daughter was generally a very content baby, there were nights when we weren’t sure how to soothe her. [...]

New Skill: Swaddling Baby When Half-Asleep!

One of the first “lessons” to be learned after childbirth is how to swaddle a baby. It’s amazing to watch nurses do the trick so gracefully. They do it instinctively – grab the blanket here, tuck it there, fold it in here – almost in one motion. 
I have to admit it took me much longer [...]

I’d give up a lot of baby gear before giving up…

My Baby Carriers!
Slings, Pouches, Wraps, Mai Tais, Front Carriers, Hip Carriers, Back Carriers. There are so many different names and styles, but all of them are designed with the same thing in mind: keeping baby nearby and close to mama’s heart, while allowing mama to have her hands-free.
I wore my daughter all of the time [...]

How to Treat (and avoid) Diaper Rash

Tonight I was just trying to think back and remember if our daughter has ever had diaper rash. Every once in a great while, she has the smallest amount of redness, but even that is rare. So I guess you could say she has experienced *very* mild diaper rash on limited occasions. 
While I feel extremely [...]