The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep by Harvey Karp, M.D. Book Review

I received The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep by Harvey Karp, M.D. for free to facilitate this review.

The author, Harvey Karp, M.D., is a pediatrician, child development specialist, and children's environmental health advocate. Besides this book, he is also the author of The Happiest Baby on the Block and The Happiest Toddler on the Block. This book, The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep gives simple solutions for parents to use with their kids that are ages birth to 5 years old. This book delves more into getting and keeping your child asleep during the night so you can also get better sleep too.

Everyone needs a good amount of sleep so that you don't feel sleep deprived and exhausted. Most new parents have trouble knowing what to do and are plagued with having little to no sleep at night. Dr. Karp's simple and straight forward techniques might just help you keep your sanity. Although people parent differently and so these techniques might not work for everyone because of this. I also know that every one of my kids and your kids are individuals and something that might work for one might not work for the other. Keep this in mind.

This book is broken up into parts and chapters. These offer tips on how to help your newborn, infant, or toddler get the rest they need, while debunking some of the most widely held myths about babies and sleep. There is Acknowledgments, an Introduction and then chapter 1 goes into the Science of Sleep. Then Part 1 talks about little babies sleep from birth to 3 months spanning from chapter 2-5. Part 2 is on babies 3-12 months of age spanning chapters 6-9. Then Part 3 is about toddler and preschool sleep from 1-5 years of age spanning chapters 10-13. Part 4 is all about tips on special situations and problems. Then there is an Appendix, Sample Sleep Schedules, Glossary, References, Resources, and an Index.

I found that most of Dr. Karp's methods were things that I had heard before, just not in sequence like the 5 S's approach the author teaches to turn on the calming reflex for babies. I am seasoned and fairly experienced in the field of motherhood since having 5 kids now. I totally agree with him where he says that it is wrong to assume that: babies need to sleep in total quiet and that the cry it out method works. I know that my kids sleep through the night now because I didn't tip toe or whisper to make sure they didn't wake up when they were younger. I understood that the stillness of our homes at night is so different compared to the sounds and movement in the womb. Like the author, I also don't believe that kids or babies that have too much love and attention can get spoiled.

However, I was not quite sold on the notion that a parent should always wake a sleeping baby, the wake-and-sleep technique. Although most of my children self soothed themselves after I placed them back in their beds/cribs after breastfeeding, changing and/or rocking them in my arms. Usually the jolt of being placed back into bed was enough to wake them for a moment and then they usually lulled themselves back to sleep. But I do believe that self-soothing is something that needs to be learned for good sleep. Also, it goes into the correct method of swaddling your baby safely and the importance of powering down (turning off TV, computers, cell phones, and other bright screens to not interrupt sleep with light). In the toddler section it goes into easy "no-cry" tips that end infant and toddler bedtime struggles in just days in which I thought were invaluable.

I don't believe what he says about colicky babies. I know for a fact that when my babies were screaming and they had all their other needs met it was from gas, indigestion, and/or stomach pain...I would have to burp them better or rub their little bellies and I could hear the loud noises their tummies were making. I also never used pacifiers with any of my kids and the author says to use them to protect against SIDS. I don't see how a pacifier would help, although I know a lot of parents that swear by them.

The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep does cover some interesting topics which I did not know. I did not know what the best and worst white noise to play while sleeping was until this book. I did not know that you can sleep train babies to sleep at least one extra hour from the first weeks of life.

All in all I have mixed feelings about this book and what it teaches. Overall it teaches things that probably would help and wouldn't hurt anyone to try. I cannot guarantee these techniques will help YOU specifically though. Like any parenting book that one might read throughout their parenting years this book's techniques might or might not help you and your children. As a parent I can say that going with my best gut feeling and my good instinct always helped me through tough spots.

If you would like to know more about the author's promotional tour click HERE.

DISCLOSURE/DISCLAIMER: I am participating in this book review campaign with One2One Network. I received this book free from Harper Collins for the purposes of reviewing it. I have not received any other compensation. My participation in the campaign enters me into a drawing for a gift card. My thoughts are mine and my family's own opinion and have not been altered by anyone else.

Costume Supercenter Disney's Infant Snow White Ballerina Costume Review

Halloween is coming up really soon and the hunt for great costumes is on. The Costume Supercenter is a great website to find a wide assortment of costumes. They have everything from silly to scary to pretty to anything else imaginable. They have baby costumes all the way to adult in a wide range of sizes to try to accommodate just about everyone. These costumes aren't just great for Halloween. They are also great for: dress up, pretend play, other costume parties, etc.

My daughter Zari was needing a costume this year because the hand-me-down baby bee costume had been overdone in my family and I didn't have any other good ones in her size. I went searching for a cute costume to go with my other daughter, Teela's Belle from Beauty and the Beast costume that we had already. Teela decided she was going to wear it this year because she had now grown into it and because she loves the Disney Princesses. So I stumbled upon the Disney's Infant Snow White Ballerina Costume at Costume Supercenter that was so adorable that I had to have it for Zari! I got a size 12-18 months. When the costume came in the mail one of the bows and flowers had fallen off the sleeve, but all I did was sew it back on...good as new. If something like this happens to you with one of their costumes don't forget that they have free shipping on all exchanges! In the pictures you can see I forgot to flip the collar up like Snow White's actually was. The Snow White jewel in the center of the bodice kept pulling the neck down too and I kept on having to fix it for the pictures. The ric rac and red roses are so cute and set the bodice off gorgeously. I love the sparkling yellow glitter tulle on the ballerina skirt part of the gown. I also liked the fact that the skirt wasn't see through because of an under layer of yellow satiny material. The blue ribbons on the sleeves are a nice touch too. In my opinion it is the cutest of all the Disney Princess costumes for babies that they have. All in all this costume is sure to please anyone who wants their little one to look like a pretty princess.

BUY IT:
The prices for costumes range from $9.99 on up and they have free shipping on exchanges. Their shipping prices are also fairly reasonable. The Disney's Infant Snow White Ballerina Costume is $24.99 on the Costume Supercenter website. They have a number of great Snow White Halloween costumes to choose from along with all sorts of others.

DISCLOSURE/DISCLAIMER: Thanks to Costume Supercenter for providing me with the Disney's Infant Snow White Ballerina Costume for free to test and review. My thoughts are mine and my family's own opinion and have not been altered by anyone else. I did not receive any other compensation for doing this review.

Wordless Wednesday It's A Girl! Meet Zari Katana!

My not so Wordless Wednesday Post:

Zari Katana came into this world October 19th, 2010 at 11:23 am. We now have another girl to even the score again :) She currently has dark brown hair and grayish-blue eyes. She was 7 pounds, 4 ounces and 20 inches long.

My contractions started to be more regular and closer together in the morning of the 19th. My mother had come to help out the night before. I was admitted to the hospital at 5:25 am, contracting every 1-2 minutes with them lasting 50-60 seconds, dilated to a 6, effacement 100% and station -1. My mom stayed with me acting as my labor coach. My husband watched the kids and the dog at home while I delivered.

The doctor broke my water at 6:30 am and checked my progress some time after that. I was dilated a 7 at that point and the doctor said the baby had her hand sticking out above her head so he could shake it. He said that if he didn't get it back below the baby's chin that I would have to have a c-section. I was in a lot of pain already, but was doing OK with just the medication they gave me and without an epidural at this point. The doctor told me that an epidural would make my pain a whole lot better while he adjusted the baby, so I agreed to have one. He got the baby adjusted better, but the baby's face was positioned the wrong way too until the doctor checked the baby later and determined it was in the correct position finally. I seemed to be stuck at 7 dilation though, so they started Pitocin to speed things along. I hate Pitocin because it makes the contractions a whole lot worse.

My labor started to speed up and I was actually glad I had the epidural this time although afterwords my back ached from the catheter being there. When I finally got to push (Oh my gosh, I so wanted to push earlier than they told me I could!) the baby's head started to emerge and I touched the crown. Then when the baby's head emerged more the doctor said that both her fists were tucked under her chin and that he would have to make a small episiotomy incision. Finally I got to meet my new baby girl! I held her for the first time and was so glad that the labor and delivery was over!

A day after birth her daddy and her siblings came to visit us in the hospital. They each got to hold her and admired how little she was. Teela, my youngest daughter who is 2 and a half says, "I like my new baby." and "I am petting the baby." (when she pats Zari gently). My recovery has been good and my precious little baby girl is breastfeeding well. I am so thankful to have a great family and friends who have been so very helpful to me throughout my pregnancy, delivery and afterwords.

If you are participating in Wordless Wednesdays, click on the Mister Linky image, enter your name and URL in the form, and press Enter. Please also leave comments on this post! I love reading them!

Babywearing is Beautiful

International Babywearing Week is Oct. 6th-12th, 2010. You may have heard about the warning the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recently issued about the dangers of using baby slings. Unfortunately they are placing all slings in the same category of danger and a lot of my favorite sling making mommy businesses (like Hotslings) have gone out of business because of it. The "bag sling" type is the sling in question here, not all slings! Here is a post about "bag slings" that all should read if unaware of the difference. Since the CPSC has issued their warning it has unfortunately caused unwarranted widespread panic and misinformation to circulate and now rumors are that they might actually try to do a mass recall of all sling carriers!

Safety of the sling is all in the positioning of the baby in it. There are correct ways of positioning and there are wrong ways of positioning. Here is a great PDF article about the positioning in different slings and holds. Here is more about the subject to read about.

I am a big advocate of babywearing. I have carried all of my children in various carriers, slings and wraps until they got too big for me to. I am petite so it is difficult for me to carry them after a certain point, but my husband has also enjoyed the benefits to babywearing and since he is more robust than I he can carry the child for longer.

I love the bond I get with my babies and children when I carry them. I also love how easy and convenient it is to breastfeed on the go while babywearing. I am very fortunate that I can give my baby the best nutrition around and babywearing also lets me do this discreetly and modestly. I also can give my other children the one on one time they need with me and be hands free to do my multi-tasking.

Babywearing reminds the infant of the womb and soothes them. The rhythmic motion of the mother's walk and heartbeat is a familiarity that the baby knows. Baby is also more involved in the mother or father's world, cries less, and can take in more of the new world around them in a comfortable state of quiet awareness.

I believe that babywearing is beautiful! What more can I say? Please tell me of your favorite carrier, sling, or wrap and how you like to babywear your baby.

Dr. Bloom's Chewable Jewelry Review

Ok, I must admit I had only heard of Smart Mom Jewelry and had already bought their jewelry before I went searching for more great products for teething babies. I came across this website called Dr. Bloom's Chewable Jewels. They have a line of teething jewelry and keychains similar to Smart Mom Jewelry's. This jewelry line is conceptualized and manufactured by Dr. Helen Bloom Smith, a dentist and loving mom from Birmingham, Alabama.

These jewels are also made from plastic that is food-safe, non-toxic, phthalate, BPA, latex, lead, and PVC free. They are also dishwasher-friendly. Dr. Bloom's Chewable Jewels are made of food grade silicone that has FDA approved materials and colorings. Not only did Dr. Bloom make sure the material and colorings on her products were safe for your baby, she made sure the product was the perfect thickness/hardness. If a product is too hard it can damage the tooth buds. She apparently has done her research to find the perfect durometer for a teething baby. She should know her stuff, being a dentist and all! The pendants have a latex free cording that has elasticity to allow for stretching instead of the breakaway clasp. The jewels for the necklaces come in a rectangle pendant, circle pendant, or hexagon pendant. They also carry bracelets and keychains.

I was sent a Emerald Bracelet and Circle Slide Necklace for free from Dr. Bloom to test and review.

They are giving $1 to the Starlight Children's Foundation for every Plum jewelry item sold from their website.

Smart Mom Jewelry Review

Here is my littlest one, Teela, enjoying some Teething Bling from Smart Mom Jewelry. She is also pictured on their website.

What a great product they have! I love the fact that they are safe for babies to chew on and so stylish to wear. As many moms know that when you wear your jewelry while holding small children they are always enthralled by it and want to either pull on it or chew on it. I can say that most of my jewelry is not safe to chew on. Most have small parts and some even have lead in them! The Teething Bling is made from plastic that is food-safe, non-toxic, phthalate, BPA, latex, lead, and PVC free. They are also dishwasher-friendly and all pendants come with a breakaway clasp. As you already know I love bangles...so when I heard about this fabulous product on some other mom blogs out there I had to buy one to see for myself. I bought the Lapis Lazuli donut shaped pendant and the bangle to match.

A percentage of all retail sales goes to these worthy organizations:

CureSearch
Dress for Success
(in special memory of Maria Jankowski Maurer)

Also, you can use coupon code S-MWS to receive $12 off with every pendant purchase, expires September 2008. Save yourself. Check it out.

This October 2008, Smart Mom Jewelry supports breast cancer awareness month with a special online offer. Purchase anything from their "Think Pink" line and they'll donate 20% of every sale to the National Breast Cancer Foundation.

November is time for their pre-holiday sale! All month long, everything is 20% off.

Learning Curve - The First Years - Kickin Coaster Review

Because I am a Learning Curve Community Member and a member of the LearningCurve.com Parents Council I am periodically informed of wonderful opportunities to test some of Learning Curve's products or products by their many wonderful brands like The First Years. If you have not heard about the Learning Curve they have an vast array of different baby, toddler, and child products. They carry developmental toys, safety and care products, and feeding and soothing products. I love their developmental toys for all of my children.

The product that I tested out is called a Kickin' Coaster by The First Years. It looks a little like a baby bouncer chair. Looks; however, can be deceiving! This thing is the coolest baby seat I have ever seen! My 4 month old daughter, Teela, loved it from the start. That is her in the picture :) Instead of bouncing a little when the baby moves or kicks its legs it has a kick plate that when kicked makes the seat glide backwards in a smooth movement. Teela had a bit of trouble getting her legs to push the seat all the way back back, but she got it to move a little. I think babies that are a bit older than her would be able to push it the whole distance without any trouble at all. Below the fabric seat it has a switch that locks the seat into position so that it cannot be pushed backwards. It has three musical settings with lights that go with the music. The settings are: happy playful music all the time, soothing music all the time, and happy playful music when kick plate is kicked. It also has three settings: off, low, and high for vibration and the same for volume. The music is nice and not annoying like some toys. It also has a cute little monkey and kangaroo that seem to wiggle when the kick plate is kicked. Teela loved the rattle that is attached and the infant headrest to lay her head on while in the chair. These two items are both detachable. The fabric seat is easily removed and machine washable. This is a great product and I thank Learning Curve for letting Teela and I test it out!