New Information about swaddling your child

Leading Medical Experts and Researchers Agree

It is Important for Babies to Have Access to their Hands

Hand to Mouth is a Natural Reflex

• The normal infant has been observed post delivery 

 to get hands to his mouth within 30 min

• Infants are equipped with the hand-to-mouth reflex 

 also known as the Babkin reflex

• Many babies suck their thumbs or fingers inutero 

Baby able to Self-Soothe by Sucking

• Sucking is the most organizing behavior of the newborn

• Provides for state (sleep/wake) control

• Enhances the maturity of the baby including hand movements and gastrointestinal function

Early Communication

•Baby cues caregiver when hungry by rooting (sucking vigorously) on hands or fingers

An important baby friendly issue – hand position for the baby when swaddled. Leading researchers agree that it is in baby’s best interest to have access to his or her hands when swaddled.

Every baby is unique. Ask your pediatrician about swaddling your baby. Different techniques work for different babies. If your baby happens to get his or her arm(s) out of the swaddle and is unhappy that way (some babies are content with arms out), you may want to try another technique. You may want to try swaddling with one hand up by face and the other down across the tummy or down by leg with elbow flexed, alternating arms each time you swaddle. The third choice is to swaddle with both arms down, keeping the elbow joint flexed and allowing more time out of the swaddle.

Infant researchers state it’s in baby’s best interest to have the baby’s hands accessible to face, however it is your decision as a parent to choose how and if to swaddle your baby.

Our Friend Sophie Is Turning 50!

          
Our friend Sophie the Giraffe is having her 50th birthday next week!  She has made many children and especially their parents very happy for many years. Happy birthday!

Put on your cleats son and get in the game!

We sell allot of items at Real Baby.  These baby cleats will not be one of them. I just found these and had to share. I love them and find them completely ridiculous at the same time.  What do you think? If you have to have them you can find them at firstcleats.com.

Owls are Cool!

We Love owls. Who doesn't! Owls are the new black. I heard that squirrels are the new owls...Anyway, We love this bedding set from Skip Hop!  Bring a touch of nature into your nursery with this bold colored bedding set.  This set includes a 250 thread count cotton sateen comforter with embroidery and a cotton-linen applique, printed bumper, crib sheet, and a cotton-lenen crib skirt. It looks great on the Oeuf Sparrow crib!

Clementine Art

Springtime in Colorado is always unpredictable. The day may begin at 70 and sunny and turn windy and cold by noon. So, when a play date at the park is always threatened by a chance of a shower or even a snowstorm I find it imperative to my well being to always have a back up plan. Throw down a piece of paper on the kitchen floor with some paints and brushes and you’ve bought yourself at least a half hour of pure kid bliss. Better yet let them stick their toes in it and let them paint an entire piece with their feet! 

Clementine Studios based out of Boulder makes the most amazing eco friendly and non-toxic art supplies for kids. The hues in their paints and molding clay are incredible like those crayon colors I always gravitated towards as a child. Even their packaging is produced from recycled and reusable materials.  So, when your child decides to find out exactly what the paint tastes like you can feel better knowing that a little organic defoamer (aka vegetable oil) never hurt anyone.

This blog was posted by our friend Nicole at Mish+Mash Homemade. In keeping with the sprit of yesterdays blog about cooking with your child, Mish + Mash Homemade helps parents craft inspired homemade food for baby,toddler, and beyond.  Visit there site and get cooking!

Teaching Your Child to Cook

I spend allot of time in my kitchen.  Preparing, chopping, sauteing, broiling, pan searing, plating,  I love it all. I learned to cook at an early age,  mostly out of necessity. A single mother with two jobs and four children made for some hungry moments.  I believe the firs thing I cooked on my own was either a coffee cake with cinnamon walnut topping, or a fried bologna sandwich. Whichever came first I was extremely proud of my accomplishment.

I loved watching my mother cook.  She spent time showing me the basics, and let me help her prepare meals when ever I asked. My favorite experience was shopping with her at an outdoor market located downtown. An old world style open market with local vegetables piled high, fresh fish displayed in all their glory on beds of clean shaved ice, every cut of meat imaginable, including cured meats hanging high above for all to see. The sights, sounds and smells of the market were intoxicating to me, and created in me an appreciation for food and for cooking.

My Children hover around me in the kitchen while I cook and I love it. letting them get involved has opened their eyes to many different types of food, some of which I would not have even considered eating when I was a their age. I have found that my son and daughter's palate has  has grown since they started learning in the kitchen. If they help me wash the broccoli, put it in the steam basket, set the flame to it, and touch it with a bit of salt and butter, they take pride in the process and ownership of the meal they helped create. The best part is they eat it and enjoy it!  Fish, greens, whole grains and vegetables become and adventure and children become curious about how things taste when they help create it.

So many other benefits surround getting your children active in the kitchen. They learn self confidence, creativity, knowledge of where food comes from, time management, organization, and even basic science.   So take your child shopping, get them involved in the kitchen and teach them the joys of food!