Monday, May 31, 2010

baby bottles 2

i hadn't realized how much info goes into bottles, so here we go again. last time we talked about regular bottles. now we come to specialty bottles. there are some bottles out there that allow you to be handsfree. there are some bottles that are made special forbaby cereal. there are even bottle that help you transistion from breast feeding to bottle feeding. storage bottles are also in abundance so now what you are looking for.



bottles for storage are exactly what they sound like. they store milk ( formula or breast). when it comes to these bottles, really any bottle will do. when it comes down to it, wether you're using a bottle warmer or the microwave you're going to use that bottle to feed so why switch bottle to bottle. now if you are using bottles to store breastmilk in the freezer, freezing milk in a bootle is a bad idea. the reasons it is a bad idea is because you can't but breast milk into a MICROWAVE. the microwaves kill all the good stuff in breastmilk, so don't do it. second problem comes in the thawing process. when you heat up the bottle in hot water, you heat up the outer ring of milk but the inner ring is all slushie so the baby won't like it and spit it out. best idea is to store and freeze in bags lying down.



handsfree bottles sound kind of cool huh? for the most part they work. however, i have heard by a lot of parents that the tubes are ultra hard to clean and that they sometimes kink up. if this happens then baby isn't getting anything to eat and spends sometime sucking in air. not good for preventing colic. now the one bottle that doesn't have those problems, according to parents is the PODEE. look for it if hands free is what you're looking for.



transistion bottles are very difficult to come by although you could manage with a bit of patience with regular bottles. most bottle companies will tell you that its product is a transistion bottle. they just want you to buy their products. the best bottle that i have ever seen for transistion is the ADIRI. the reason it is so good , is that it is shaped more like the breast than any other bottle out there. another really great feature of the ADIRI is that it only has three parts to clean. now the problem with the ADIRI bottle is that people don't know how to store it. upside down is thew way to go with this particular bottle. storing it right side up will cause it to leak, a lot. it was designed to be stored upside down so help yourself out oif you get one.



bottles that are used for baby cereal are out there as well. this makes feeding your baby cereal easier. however it makes it harder for baby to learn to use a spoon. if cereal from a bottle is something you want to do, i would suggest once a day. almost every bottle system has a nipple for feeding cereal. it is usually the " x or y" cut nipples. especially for baby has a spring loaded bottle that helps to push the cereal out. now i know we are talking about bottles here, but BOON makes a spoon that is great. you mix the cereal in the spoon and spueeze out the food onto a spoon. it is simple and easy and makes very little mess. drop me a line or 2 to let me know how i'm doing. as always, love your kids and they will love you.

diaperchangindad

Friday, May 28, 2010

disipline

unfortunately, in every household where kids are involved, there has to be rules that have to be followed and disipline when those rules aren't followed. now, myself, coming up in a very violent home, know the difference between a spank and a beating. time outs are a parent favorite as well as taking things away. i only know about the disipline of younger kids as i don't have teens yet.

i, myself am not opposed to a soft smack on the behind, but i favor the time out. there are several ways to do the time out. in the corner is the one that takes the fight out of kids for a while. the standing in front of you time out, is for younger children, toddlers really. however the one that my children hate the most is a time out on the bed. take away all there toys, turn off the tv, and turn off the light. they think that it is bedtime and they behave for a good long time.

yelling at your children, hardly ever works. all it does is make your children afraid of you. that is the last thing you want. you want your kids to love and respect you, not loathe and fear you. i know its hard not to pull your hair and yell. i know i slip every once in a while but try and control the voice. you can make your point talking with a controlled voice rather than a loud one.

disiplining children in public is not great either. probably one of the worst ideas you can think of. children have feelings just like everyone else, but they're harder to control. your children's feelings will get hurt faster and easier than we, as parents, sometimes think. with starangers aroung it is even worse. worse than that are the people that are around. some might think you are being a little to hard on your own child a call the police. to be totally honest, i have done it myself, but the little girl was getting her hair pulled and yanked by her mother. still, it was a situation that i did not want to be in as the caller and it would probably be worse as the one one who was called because of.

remember that when you are around family, you are the ones to hand out disipline. no one else should be handling that part of parenting. if someone in the family tries handing out justice, stand up for yourself and your kids. i think your feelings should be known, that nobody shall disipline your kids but you. now, when you are not there, you should designate someone to hand out the punishments. that's about all i have on this subject. please leave me some messages as to what has worked for you. unless you are a cruel hateful person like my step father was, your kids will see that the punishment you hand out is and was for their own good.

diaperchangindad

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

baby bottles

lets talk bottles people. it is something every parent use for there babies. now if you happen to go to a baby store you'll probably see a whole wall of them. you will see different sizes, shapes and brands. there are even different use for some types of bottles.

lets start with the standard type of bottles. those are the bottles use for everyday milk or formula. there is a lot of advertisements on the packages themselves about reducing colic. for those of you that don't know, colic is the amount of air a baby swallows while eating. this causes them to be gassy and fussy. from experience, you don't want a colicy baby. they cry and srceam all day. now i used four different types of bottles: playtex ventaire, born free, avent, and dr. browns. they all reduce colic, but some are better than others. me personally, love the avent bottle because there are less parts to clean then the other three. however, and it never happened to me, some parents i talked to said that they leaked a lot. the other three bottles all have at least four parts to clean. out of all the bottles the playtex was the worst at reducing colic. ninja monkey was using them and got sick bad. the born free is a good bottle but it just sat weird in my hand. which leaves dr. browns for last. i like these bottles the best because they reduce colic the most, in my opinion, and make feeding baby a cinch.

now, for all the bottles out there, there are standard and widemouth bottles. now standard bottles are great if you are not going to breast feed. they get use to a smaller nipple and a bit easier flow. the widemouth is great if you are going to breastfeed and bottle feed as well. the reason is that it is a larger nipple and makes the baby open their mouths a little wider. this feels more like the breast than a standard nipple and it makes them suckle just a little bit harder, just like when they are at the breast.

in the past year, there has been a lot of talk about bottles amde with BPA. BPA is a chemical that they put in a lot of plastics that make the bottle clear. there are studies out there that say that BPA causes learning disabilities, among other symptoms. the chemical is suppose to leak out into milk and other liquids when you heat the bottle up. i'm not sure about the exact tempurature but washing your bottles in the dishwasher is a no no. most if not all bottle companies now have glass bottles or BPA free bottles. personally, i'd go with BPA free so as not to break anything but i'll leave that up to you. now there are a lot more bottles to talk about but that will be in part 2 of baby bottles. until then, here is a little tip to give you some extra time. keep ahead of your bottle cleaning. as soon as the baby is asleep, wash your bottles so you are not rushing to get a bottle ready.

diaperchangindad

Sunday, May 23, 2010

play time

you know, yesterday i went to a birthday party with all the kids and my mom. making playtime with the kids is a must. i love to play with my kids and it makes for good exercise. i don't care who says its not exercise, the more running around you do with the kids the more exercise you get.

i don't get to the gym ever so i do things that seem silly to the kids but your moving and jumping and getting your heart rate up. for instance, i play lightsabers with the hboys all the time. i run, jump, fall and swing all the time. excellent cardio workout and the boys love it. other times i pick them up and lift them like free weights. three sets of 10 with boys and girls that weigh anything from 19 to 35 pounds is a workout. i call it babyrobics. all the things you do that tire you out while playing is a workout. the best part of this is what you call a workout, your kids call playtime and fun.

i'm off the subject a little here, but yesterday at the party my little silent monkey did somethings that just lifted my heart. you see silent monkey doesn't talk much but yesterday he walked a to a lady at the party and started talking to her. he was saying colors and numbers that he really doesn't say at home all the time. he also climbed up a ramp by himself to slide down an inflatable slide. its things, be they big or little, that you have to be proud of and let them know you are proud of them. remember, babyrobics is a great weigh to get yourself in shape and a great way to see your kids laugh and smile. with them doing that, won;t your day just light up. all kids are a treasure, so every time you see yours be thankful.

diaperchangindad

Thursday, May 20, 2010

making time

as important as keeping your family happy , healthy and safe there is a need of one's self that also needs looking after. it is vital to all parents, that they make just a little time for themselves. why? well i'll tell you. after a long day of watching the kids. you hear them laugh which brings happiness to your heart, you get to hear them cry, which makes you want to cry, and once they start talking you get to hear NO about a 1000 times, which makes you want to pull your hair out. this is just in one day, now imagine a whole week of this. all the emotions that go into one person throughout a whole week can get bottled up. so try to make some time for you to relax.

here's the tricky part, how to do it? it is not as hard as you think. your kids have grandparents, aunts, uncles, relatives or friends that can watch the kids for a couple of hours while you go out to dinner, or a movie. whatever you plan on doing, make sure you are not gone to long. your friends and family love your kids but sooner or later they are gonna feel like you do, so keep it short and sweet but enjoy. now if you have a loving spouse or partner, like i do, they will send you out with your friends and they will take care of the kids. chances are they miss the kids as much as you miss getting out. my wife always sends me out with my best friend to go to book stores or out for drinks.

don't forget to pay your help, be it with a promise of a good meal in the near future or looking after their children one evening. and if you hire a babysistter always get references first and pay them well if they do a good job. i'm very lucky in the fact that my sister-in-laws love to watch the kids, at least every once in a while. and they do it for free. if you do get your relatives to watch your kids, don't guilt them into it with things like, "they're your family, you should do it" , it makes them almost resent you and your children. remember, you stay at home parents, you can't do it without your partner, so a nice dinner for them, or just a word of appreciation can go a long way to letting them know how much you mean to them and the family.

as always this is thediaperchangindad

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

a little more about me

well, is a little more about the diaperchangindad. i am 32 years old this year. i am a father to 3 wonderful children, 2 boys and 1 girl. their nick names are ninja monkey because is is super quiet when enter our room, the silent money because he doesn't talk much but shows all his emotions in his face, and the bug for no other reason than just cause.

you know i am not an expert when it comes to parenting and anyone that claims they , well wow i'd like to introduce them to ninja monkey, but i have learned somethings. for instance, i know its hard sometimes, but never argue in front of your children. they see it and no matter how yound they are it hurts them. even just playing around with an arguement can hurt little ones because they can't distinguish between real and fake. so any yelling and screaming and talking in a loud voice, do quieter or in a room a couple of rooms away.

kids are pretty smart and feed on the emoitions that you are putting out, so what i try to do is be calm. i figure once a fight or arguemnet is over, its over. win or lose, walk out of the room calm, like you won so the kiddos don't pick up on your emoitions. its not good if your goods see you fuming when you leave the room and fuming when you get back.

now, some tips on how to keep the place clean. if your kids are anything like mine they have their favorite toys and the ones they play with every once in a while. here's what i do. i have 2 toy boxes, 1 for what they play with all the time and 1 for toys that they play with sometimes. so instead of going through the big toy box and pulling out toys they don't like and leaving them til the end of the day, or putting them back and cutting into playtime, they go through a little one and find what they are looking for. it also helps you to not get frustated at having to pick up all toys not played with. another thing this does is help you to figure out what toys you can get rid of. if at the end of a month or two you see a toy that hasn't been played with, get rid of it b/c your kids don't really care for it.

net hammocks are great for getting all of those stuffed animals that your children get every holiday off the floor and out of the toy box. you know and i know that they are annoying (stuffed animals) but you and i also know that your kids love them. they never play with them but try to give them away and your kids go bonkers. so put them in the air, space you rarely use anyway. remember, your kids are precious so treat them as such. cherish their sweet innocence b/c you can't get this time back.

diaperchangindad

Sunday, May 16, 2010

breastpumps

alright, this one is for moms who are going to breast feed. i think breastfeeding is one of the best things a mom can do for their baby. breast milk is better for the baby and it is free. now, i have come across moms who say they are breastfeeding so they don't need a breastpump. that just isn't true. if you don't pump out the exess milk you could get engorged or get an infection, both of which i'm told, from my wife, hurt a whole lot. so get one just to ease the pain.

there are a bunch of different brands out there, and unfortunately in this case most expensive is best. that right moms, medela is the best brand of breast pump there is. why you ask, because they have the most models to choose from and they have the best features to choose from. other brands offer some of the same things that medela does but not all. believe me i understand if you have to choose a different brand pump because of the price, i know, i've been there and am still there. if you happen to choose a different pump make sure to read all instruction on usage and cleaning. all parts have to be sterilized after every use no matter the pump.

now if a medela is what you get, there are somethings to know. first is sterilize every part after use. i can't stress that enough because sometimes it doesn't get done and babies get sick. second remember you can always get replacement parts at BRU stores all the time.last is this, the tubes for the medela pumps are not, i repeat are not interchangable. the tubes themselves are all the same but the conectors to the pump are different. the connectors have differengt size wholes for air intake. putting the wrong tubes/connectors on a medela can literally have explosive results. if yuo have a bloom maternity in your town go there, for tubes. if yopu don't remember what model your pump is, just take it in. thanks for listening and remember the more patience you show your kids, the more patient they're willing to be.

diaperchangindad

Friday, May 14, 2010

so here we go

there are lots of things that people do when choosing strollers for there babies. let me tel you there are several differrent types, so know what you're looking for and know what you need for the baby. for instance, putting a new born baby in an umbrella stroller is a no no. it is unsafe for your little one because there is no bar across as a safety precaution. always check to make sure, at least for the first year, that your stroller has a 5 point harness. 5 point harnesses keep baby secure in the seat at all times. if your stroller has a 3 point harness there is always the danger of baby standing up and tipping the stroller over.

also important to know when picking a stroller is how strong you are. some strollers, mainly travel systems, are very heavy and come with an array of features but if you can't get it in and out of the car it doesn't help you. what i recomend if getting a travel system is also getting a light weight stroller that your carseat connects to. light weight strollers can be a life saver for s@hm and s@hd if you are doing a lot of errands with babies. lugging something in and out of the car that weighs up to 30lbs is not fun, as opposed to something that weighs 11 lbs.

here is a list of things to think about:
price
weight
harness
look
travel system or not
strap adjustment
but most all safety
as i'm not being paid by anyone to say yay or nay about products i will say that Graco and Chicco are great products when choosing a travel system and have ok prices. i really love our combi double stroller though because it is light weight and easy to fold. always above everything else, with any product you buy for your child, think safety!!!

diaperchangindad

Thursday, May 13, 2010

all about the diaper changin dad

hi everybody, my name is danny and i'm writing to give a unique perspective on parenting. i am a stay at home dad. i know i'm not the first but you don't hear much about us. i have three young children and when i say young, i mean all are under five. what makes me a little differrent than most (s@hd) stay at home dads is that i have a lot of knowledge about baby products. i use to work for (BRU) babies r us until the economy went a little crazy. now i don't hold a grudge against the company, but there customer service skills have gone to the gutter. i was a products expert and a supervisor there so i had to know a lot. my time at BRU was spent helping soon to be parents or parents with any questions that they had about products. i write this blog to help any parents or soon to be's that have ?'s about baby products. since i also have a combined total of about 8 years parenting i also have little suggestions on how to make staying at home woith the kids a little smoother than normal. if you have any ?'s , drop me a line and i will get back with you . until tomorrow, remember your children need love and support to grow and live for them not through them.

diaperchangindad