happy birthday to us!! baby manual is all grown up....

baby manual was born one year ago today, on labor day 2009!  are we walking yet?  are we sleeping through the night? are we still on the boob?....who cares?!

it's been a fun run with 207 posts and counting!  thank you so much for the loving and wonderful support of our amazing readers all over the world.  please keep sharing and continuing to help us build a community for conscious, crunchy parenting from the heart....

not sure i can ever get a dog from a breeder again...

what in the heck does that have to do with what i normally post about?

well, a friend recently got 2 sibling puppies from a breeder.  she was talking about how they cried all night the first couple of nights, and it made me realize something that i had never really thought about before.

puppies are taken away from their mothers usually around 6-10 weeks of age.  they are removed from their frolicking pack of siblings, sometimes a present father, and a mother who nurses and keeps them warm.   their new human family typically puts them in a cage, feeds them dry, unhealthy dog food, and leaves them alone for long periods of time.

this goes against everything i now believe as a mother.   don't you think if people choose to breed their dogs, or buy from a breeder, they should consider how traumatic this separation is?

photo via here.

i've been reading up on weaning *sniff sniff*

i'm not positive why, but ever since my son turned one (9 months ago), i planned on nursing him until he was 2.  well, his 2nd birthday is approaching in a few months, so i've started reading some books on weaning.  i had always hoped that, by some miracle, maybe he would start to wean himself around this time.  yeah, i apparently totally pulled that one out of my ass.   here is one of many quotes (all in the same vain) about self-weaning that i have come across:

"Children allowed to wean themselves--that is, to end breastfeeding without hints, bribes, bottles, or other encouragements--seem to do so usually between ages four and six."

that's right ladies and gentlemen, ages FOUR and SIX....hmmm....

ugh, sometimes i wish i lived in mongolia or among the sioux indians, so i didn't even have to think about this weaning stuff.  not sure of my decision yet...

this one, from the nursing mother's guide to weaning, slayed me:

"But pressure to wean may come from people outside the immediate family. 'I really should quit,' said a four-year-old, like an addict nearly ready to kick the habit. 'You know, Bill quit.'  Another child, a four-and-a-half-year-old whose friends had teased her for nursing, couldn't openly discuss her confused feelings at first.  'I don't want to nurse...I hate you,' she told her mother, starting to cry.  When questioned, however, she explained the problem: 'I want to stop and I have to hate you so I won't want to nurse anymore.  I hate your breasts.' "

UPDATE: so a little more than a year after i wrote this post, as my son approached his 3rd birthday, i weaned him.   i was SO ready.   we had gotten nursing sessions down to once a day--upon waking in the morning.   in the previous months, we had narrowed down to 3 sessions, then 2, then just the one in the morning that i mentioned.   he finds comfort in his paci and still wants to cuddle and hold my boob at times, so i'm ok with that for now.   though i try to keep the boob holding to a minimum.   i was able to talk to him and explain all of this weaning to him in advance, so it wasn't super emotional for him.   he is still very cuddly with me.  we hold hands a lot while cuddling.

some books if you're pondering weaning...

when looking into buying parenting books, i tend to check out the reviews on amazon, and i also peruse our fabulous pediatrician, jay gordon's, newest addition to his website--"recommended reading"!

i must say that when i recently purchased the 2 books below, i expected pages upon pages of information of HOW to wean. strangely, each has only about 10 pages on actual weaning techniques.  the books mostly explain all angles of weaning--emotional, hormonal, logistical, causes, historical weaning....

though i expected the books to have more info on technique, i was not disappointed.  i am happy that i learned so much about such an important area of parenthood...did you notice how i didn't say motherhood?  although, weaning is ultimately under a mother's control, dad should have input too---and both books have sections for dads.

the books are:

the nursing mother's guide to weaning by kathleen huggins, r.n., m.s. (2007)

mothering your nursing toddler by norma jane bumgarner (2009)

anyone interested in learning about nutrition?

after speaking with a friend yesterday about our toddlers' nutrition, i became inspired to write this post.  i'm not going to launch into a whole campaign here, but if you're interested in learning about what the best things to do for your body are, stick around.  these are the token books that changed my life and opened my eyes to what the body needs to stay healthy:

1.  ten years ago i read dr. nicolas perricone m.d.'s book the perricone prescription.  i instantly wanted to become a doctor....yeah, that didn't happen (i'm sure you hadn't noticed).  anywhoo, perricone is on the forefront of science and nutrition.  whereas i would recommend that you read the perricone prescription, i would probably moreso recommend that you get his recent 2007 book or even pre-order his september 2010 book.   this of course, because these newer books will no doubt have the most up-to-date information.  p.s. do not be scared by the over-abundance of [his own facial] plastic surgery, focus on skin-care, or his titles about weight-loss...you gotta trust me here.  his books are about your entire body and are extremely informative and eye-opening.

2.  after reading in perricone's books about the damage that a high-glycemic diet (SUGAR!) can have on the body, i read the zone by barry sears.  did you know that eating a baked potato has the same effect on your blood sugar levels as downing 8 spoons of sugar? again, try not to be deterred by the book's mention of weight-loss, etc. these guys gotta sell books, and god knows americans want to know the secrets of weight-loss, so....

3.  now after all of this, if you are curious about the quality and sources of food in america, you will definitely want to read the omnivore's dilemma by michael pollan.  this book is a bit of a bible to us organic hippies.  it left me talking about corn corn corn to everyone i came into contact with for days.  weeks....

if you would like to stay in the loop on up-to-date nutrition, check out mercola.com and sign up for his email newsletter.

finally a hooter hider that's subtle, sophisticated, and doesn't cook the baby in this heat.

as any of my friends can tell you, i am no hooter hider.

that came out wrong.

what i'm trying to say is that when i nurse my son, i do not feel compelled to hide my breast.  i'm not sure if it's my breastfeeding-activist-in-training side coming out or just a lack of embarrassment since my breasts can hardly been seen by the naked eye anyway.

if you ARE a hooter hider, rejoice!   there is finally a hooter hider cover up that does not resemble a tent with a print that lady miss kier would've worn in the "groove is in the heart" video....that all the while traps heat like a locked car in the summer.

baby bond has created a beautiful, minimal cotton jersey hooter hider in chic solids (charcoal, chocolate, black, navy $35) that comfortably crosses your chest like a simple baby sling with a small opening for your breast.   they have 3 different styles, one of which (see photo above) can cover your breasts for top of shirt nursing or can cover your post baby belly for those who prefer to lift their shirt to nurse (see photo below. your own shirt covers your breasts in this set up).

check them all out here.

tres chic custom co-sleeping!

i love love love this little custom co-sleeping roll-away bed that interior designer david kaihoi made for his daughter.  it is so genius!  i recently stumbled across it in house beautiful's "is small the new big?" issue this summer.  what i love most is that kaihoi proudly displayed that his daughter co-sleeps with him and his wife.  ok, fine, they live in a postage stamp-sized (yet fabulous) new york city apartment and would not be able to actually wear clothes from the closet next to the bed if it didn't roll away, but at least he showed it in the photo---so kudos to him!!

my 200th post...woohoo!!

i am only a couple of weeks away from my one-year-old birthday here at baby manual and now have 200 posts under my belt...phew!!

what if your kid asks if you smoked pot?

ask them to define when exactly that they're talking about?

have you asked your pediatrician about this one yet?  we have, and our son is only 20-months-old.  have you tossed this one around at a dinner party?  the last time we did, we learned that our friend was mixing a perfect dry martini by the age of 12 every night to serve his doctor father when he walked in the door.  the same father that busted him for smoking cigarettes and said," if you want to smoke, then you can only do it if you do it in front of me."  his father smoked.  that took care of that.

i always figured that i was never interested in pot, because i knew that my parents smoked it.  i'm seeing a pattern here.  should we parents just all partake in booze and drugs and then our kids won't think it's cool?....they will rebel by not doing drugs instead of doing them. hmmm...it's a thought.

should i be more concerned in the future about walking by "the green easy" marijuana dispensary shop around the corner with my 5-year-old and him asking me what they sell?

if you're curious how in the heck you'll handle this one with your kids, you may wanna check out this quick-read new york times article.

photos via here and here.

"good" plastic snack cup

i have tried my fair share of small metal mugs, and sometimes small glass mason jars, full of snacks for my son.  as you might imagine, most of the food ends up on the floor, since there is no lid in this scenario.  so it's time for plastic.  bummer.  these are the best snack cups ---sorry, snack traps--- i could find and wanted to share.  they are bpa, phthalate, pvc, latex free.   but of course!

mason jar sippy cup

i have dailycandy to thank for this one.  the email newsletter they sent today had a great sippy cup called eio glass kids cup ($15) that is a glass mason jar with silicon sleeve (non-bpa, etc) and top.  it's cool too, because new-drinkers can learn how to properly drink from a cup instead of sucking a built-in straw or other device like some other sippy cups.  purchase it here.

reuse it on your own 8 oz mason jar.  all parts are dishwasher safe.

beau-tee-ful organic fashion for mom.

just when i thought i might have to gag myself with a spoon at the sight of all the current barfarama 80's inspired fashion, a lovely friend (thanks, melissa!) shared the most refreshing and amazing organic line of clothing with me recently.   it's called mika organic, and you can gaze upon it here.

natural birth control

ever since getting off the pill just prior to getting pregnant, i have been contemplating never going back on.  not because i aspire to be michelle duggar, but because what was i thinking taking synthetic hormones for so long?!  there are many health risks associated with the pill and the patch.

the question at hand is, what are the best natural birth control options? well, dr. mercola sent me a lovely little email with an article just this week and answered all my questions....i love when he does that.  ok, the email wasn't just to me, but he did read my mind.

an excerpt from the "natural family planning techniques" portion of the article:

"Ovu-Tech Method: The Ovu-Tech is an inexpensive hand-held mini-magnification lens about the size and shape of a lipstick holder that allows you to monitor your saliva for hormonal changes that indicate fertility."

read this previous post of mine for more info on the ovulation product mentioned above.

study : kids who spend time with dad are happier...

a recent new york times article excerpt:

"Dads may not have as many meaningful conversations with their kids, but they tend to roughhouse with them more than moms do, and research indicates that's important for kids’ development, too.

Mothers help children feel connected, anticipated and wanted.  Fathers teach them how to interact with others and how to control themselves when they feel their needs aren’t being met.”

breastfeeding site on milk donation, induction for adoption, and more...

someone who means a whole heckuvalot to me, has had more challenges as a new mom than anyone i know personally.   i will not go into detail, but you'll have to trust me here.  one of her challenges, which we moms all have to some degree, has to do with breastfeeding.  she recently shared an amazing site with me called milk share.

it is a place that mothers who need, or want to give, donated breast milk can go to connect.  this site does not sell breast milk, but they help connect people in need.  in addition, they have extremely current and unique info (some of which i have not come across before) on the following breastfeeding topics and more:

supplemental nursing devices (photo above)
induction for adoption
nursing after surgery
building supply
freezing guidelines
choosing the right storage container
formula vs. breastmillk

if you have a toddler, you're gonna need these...

speaking from experience here...

this past week in our house included a 3-hour visit to the er where my 20-month-old got stitches a 1/2 inch from his eye---and a few days later included a goose-egg bruise on the side of his head.

each incident happened in a flash with 1-6 adults around watching him. after 3 weeks away from home traveling, apparently it's time for childproofing round 2 (ding! ding!)....

anyway, my point here is that --- well there is more than one, but i'll focus on 2...

1. have a good first aid kit for your kid.  you may want one for the car too.

2. consider purchasing these reusable ice cubes today (i got mine at world market)...they are a god send for treating a small injury!!  they are hard and stay cold like an ice cube.  give your kid a couple to hold on to to busy his hands and distract him from the one that you're holding on his head.  trust me, when your child is scared, hurt and wailing, he will not let you hold a huge regular ice pack on a bump or cut... especially right next to his eye.

tylenol recall expanded--includes children's tylenol

read here for more info.

feed baby breast milk bottle at the same time of day it was pumped.

that's right, recent studies show that nucleotides (structural units of dna), and other ingredients in breast milk, perform an important role in regulating a baby's sleep.  they suggest that you if you pump at night, label the stored milk with the time, and feed it to the baby at the same time of night on a later date.  read more here.

an excerpt:

"You wouldn't give anyone a coffee at night, and the same is true of milk – it has day-specific ingredients that stimulate activity in the infant, and other night-time components that help the baby to rest", explains Sánchez.

photo via here.

summer travels

sorry i've been m.i.a....i had hoped to write more while we were traveling these last couple weeks, but it didn't always happen.  i should be back on track this week!  i've missed you...

the best gift for someone that's having a baby soon...

if you know someone that's having a baby and planning on breast feeding, then i have a recommendation for the most important gift you can give them.  so far, nearly every new mother i know would have needed and appreciated this gift.  the gift is a local lactation specialist.

when you're sleep deprived and in new-motherhood haze and need guidance with breast feeding, then having a local lactation specialist's number is priceless.  even if breast feeding goes smoothly in the beginning, a new mom needs to know that baby's latch is correct and she needs info on how to avoid infections, deal with pumping, advice on weaning, and much more.  breast feeding does not always come naturally.  mothers need help.

i know i have posted on this before, but i feel really strongly about the subject.

if you need a local lactation specialist, please contact the la leche league (click on "find local support") and as a local leader for a reference.  they can guide you to specialists that do home visits.  your pediatrician may also be able to refer a lactation specialist.  ideally, a mother would need help in the first week.  usually, a specialist will meet with mom for 2-3 hours.  some charge hourly ($60+/hr) and some do a flat fee that puts them on call until weaning ($200+).  if you're in the los angeles area, i highly recommend jennifer goodson (818 400 9525).  she is a nurse and amazing lactation specialist at dr. jay gordon's office and does home visits.

photo via here.