Babiease, LLC

Sleep, Glorious Sleep!

Yes, my girls are wonderful!  They are sleeping through the night!!!  I've almost have them sleeping without their dreamfeed.  They go down at night between 6:30-7 and I feed them 2-3 ounces at 10 and they sleep until 6-6:30.  I'm hoping this week to totally drop their dreamfeed but not too quickly as they are just getting over a cold.  All said, it's so nice to have sleeping babies at night!

FACTS:  The Twins are 13.5 pounds born at 33.5 gestation, now 4.5 months old.  They have been sleeping through for about 5 weeks.  We still use the Miracles Blankets and white noise machine!

The dreaded tummy

Yes, that tummy!  So often we forget (or mean to!) how important tummy time is.  You lay your baby down like you are told and they just fussy and scream like it's torture.  Well it may not be fun for them but it is important that they get time to strengthen their upper body, neck and shoulder muscles.  This time on their tummy also helps prevents their head from flattening.

There are many ways to "enjoy" tummy time.  To start, the earlier you start adding tummy time to your routine the better.  Place the baby on a mat on the floor with arms close to their chest.  They may complain but they are do.ing just fine.  Actually when they do start complaining you will see them at work! 

Here are a few ideas to encourage a happy time:

*Roll a receiving blanket under their arms/chest.  The same idea is with a Boppy but not as high and they are able to use their arms to push up.

*Talk to them!  We all need encouragement!

*Place a mirror in front of them.  It will be a good distration.

*Though not as helpful in strengthening those muscles, lie the baby on your chest.  There is nothing like cuddling with a little one.

*Though out the day keep offering little bits of time, 5 minutes here and 5 minutes there will add up.  

Enjoy the fun! 

Sweet Sense- You've heard it before but was it really true?

Babies can recongnize their mother's sent.  Researcher, Natalie Goubet, Ph.D., a developement phsychologist at Gettysburg college in Pennsylvania, studied of a group of babies.  The babies were exposed to 18 hours of the vanilla sent before their PKU screening; the babies smelled the vanilla during and after were calmed down faster than those who weren't exposed to the vanilla sent.

baby reading

I often get asked what my favorite books are.  Well here they are!

Your Baby’s First Year, week by week , By Glad B Curtis, M.D.    

Your Newborn Head to Toe , By Cara Familian Natterson, M.D.

The Secrets of the Baby Whisperer, by Tracy Hogg

Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, by Marc Weissbluth, M.D.

Good Night, Sleep Tight , By Kim West

The Self-Calmed Baby, By William Sammons, M.D.

Sleep...

"For so he giveth his beloved sleep."—Psalm 127:2.

The sleep of the body is the gift of God. So said Homer of old, when he described it as descending from the clouds and resting on the tents of the warriors around old Troy. And so sang Virgil, when he spoke of Palinurus falling asleep upon the prow of his ship. Sleep is the gift of God. We think that we lay our heads upon our pillows, and compose our bodies in a peaceful posture, and that, therefore we naturally and necessarily sleep. But it is not so. Sleep is the gift of God; and not a man would close his eyes, did not God put his fingers on his eyelids; did not the Almighty send a soft and balmy influence over his frame which lulled his thoughts into quiescence, making him enter into that blissful state of rest which we call sleep. --C. H. Spurgeon

Babies are a blessing!

A baby is a blessing-

It’s a joy to watch it grow,

To see it’s little toothless smile

And count each tiny toe.

A baby is a blessing,

For it’s new life is bright and new;

Just by being here it gives

Our lives new purpose, too.

A baby is a blessing,

For when faith or hope is gone,

A baby clearly signifies

God’s wish that life go on.

—by Jill Wolf