At a time of the year when the holidays bring magic to your child’s world, the gift of a special book can take them on a trip of magical fantasy. “Books stimulate a child’s sense of curiosity, creativity and imagination and validate their feelings,” said Dr. Donna Housman, founder of Beginnings School in Weston, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. Choose just the right book as a gift to stir your child’s imagination this holiday season.
Category: Feature Stories
Tips for Babyproofing Your Kitchen and Bathrooms
As your baby becomes mobile through rolling, crawling or walking, it’s likely he will want to explore every inch of your home. The kitchen and bathroom especially pose dangers for your curious George. Secure your child’s health and security with simple babyproofing that will keep him from exploring unsafe areas of your home.
Tips for Creating a Baby Growth Chart
It’s no secret that children grow like weeds when you least expect it. If your little one is sprouting up the growth chart or steadily gaining height, you won’t want to miss these milestones. Create a baby growth chart at home to document not only height and weight, but also the precious, creative moments that are happening daily.
Creating a Morning Routine: New Mom 101
As a new mom, it can be overwhelming to juggle feedings and diaper changes for your infant with household responsibilities and family life. Don’t let the stress of your new responsibilities override the joy of cuddling and caring for your new baby. Instead, jump-start each morning with a structured routine that benefits both of you.
How Baby Games Can Enhance Intellectual Growth
From patty cake to peek-a-boo, the more interactive activities your child engages in with others, the more potential she has to expand her intellectual growth. From developing motor skills to enhancing brain power, games are a fun way to keep her mind sharp. Expose your little one to new information and discover how games not only keep her giggling, but also intellectually stimulated on a day-to-day basis.
How Pregnancy Can Affect Your Relationship
Pregnancy is a time of growth and change — for both mom- and dad-to-be. Pregnancy also provides a period of adjustment for your relationship, as you and your partner prepare for the arrival of a new family member. This is "the real training for parenthood," says Alicia Clark, Washington-based clinical psychologist. "And nowhere is this more evident than in your intimate relationship, where — perhaps for the first time — the needs of a child have to be balanced with your own."
Tips for Keeping the House Clean With a New Baby
When you bring home your newborn from the hospital, the responsibilities of caring for him while keeping your house tidy can be overwhelming. From feedings and diaper changes to laundry and scrubbing, your to-do list may be overflowing. Finding a balance with your time to ensure your home is clean and safe for your infant is crucial for the health and well-being of your family. A few creative strategies to clean up when your plate is full can help smooth the transition of raising a baby while keeping your home in tip-top shape.
Pregnancy Beauty: Best Foods For Your Skin
During pregnancy, a woman’s body has one priority and that is supplying nutrients to the baby. Therefore, Mom may suffer, including her skin, if her nutritional supplies are not stocked up or always replenished with excellent nutrition, says Birgitta Lauren, a pre and postnatal fitness and nutrition expert and author of “Expecting Fitness.” Consuming the best foods for your skin may not only help keep you glowing during pregnancy, but also provide you and your unborn child with energy and needed nutrients when you both need it the most.
Tips for Keeping Your Husband Calm During Labor and Delivery
Pregnancy is a stressful time for a woman – and for an expecting father as well. Becoming a father is a time of great change for a man, with added strain pertaining to financial planning and the changing dynamic of the relationship between himself and his partner, says OB/GYN Kecia Gaither, Director of Maternal Fetal Medicine in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Brookdale University Hospital in Brooklyn, New York. The tenseness of labor and delivery can heighten these fears. But with a few creative strategies, you can help keep Dad calm and relaxed during labor and delivery.
Multiples? Things to Consider
As a mom of twins with a total of four kids, Melissa Perry Moraja knows firsthand that having twins is more tiring than having a singleton. Moraja, a North Carolina-based children’s author and illustrator, found that she slept more and ate more when pregnant with multiples. The weight gain was taxing as well, she says. “I was a 125-pound person who couldn’t even fit into my husband’s extra large clothes at 32 weeks pregnant,” says Moraja. Preparing for and parenting multiples includes considering self-care, baby care and support systems.
Shannon Philpott-Sanders 