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How to get your baby or toddler to sleep on vacation

First, let’s recognize that this can be incredibly difficult. Sleep – or lack thereof – can make or break your vacation. Here are a list of tips to help your little ones sleep in a new environment when they would much rather play, giggle, and dance the night away. 1. Try to stick with your routine – both the timing and the activities. If you usually have a nightly routine that includes a bath, book, song, or sip of water – make sure to keep it the same on vacation. Keeping your routine the same will make bedtime a more soothing…

We’re Moving!

We have big news to share with you – we’re moving! Our new address is 15 Farrar Farm Road in Norwell. We chose our new home because it is more convenient for families coming from both the north and south on Route 3 (exits 13, 14, and 15.) Our new center sits just off Route 53, on the side street to the left of The Fours Restaurant. Our new space is being completely built out to our specifications with 3200 square feet and plenty of parking! The last day at our current location will be Tuesday, August 15th. The official start date for the new…

Preparing For Siblings

The most important thing parents can do to prepare children for a new baby is ensure the older child feels safe and secure in love and importance in the family. Maintaining special one-on-one time with the older child after the birth is crucial to preventing insecurity, sadness, anger and jealousy, which can manifest in aggression towards the baby or regression in developmental areas. Planning ahead to register for a special class to take with your toddler, or hiring a babysitter to watch the new baby for an hour so you can play one-on-one with your older child can go a…

Road Trip Tips for Parents

Summer is here, gas prices are low, and road trip season is upon us. Here’s a list of tips to make the drive easier with small passengers. Plan for extra time. If you have to be at your destination by a certain time, add in some buffer so everyone is less stressed. Plan out the rest stops before you leave, and pack plenty of snacks and drinks. Consider driving at night or during nap time. Packing the night before means little hands, feet, and voices won’t get in the way of the job, and leaving the next morning is just a…

Celebrating Safely this 4th of July!

The 4th of July means parades, fireworks, BBQs, pool parties, and great family time! It also brings some safety hazards for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers. Here are some tips to keep your family safe this summer. Liberally apply SPF 30+ sunscreen early on children and babies over 6 months. Reapply every few hours and after swimming, running though the sprinklers, or any other water activity. For babies under 6 months, check with your pediatrician about their sunscreen recommendations and keep them out of the sun with a loose cover and a hat. Apply bug spray if you’ll be anywhere with mosquitos….

Baby and Toddler Sleep Schedules and Daylight Savings

Happy Spring Forward! Here are 6 ways to navigate your kiddos through daylight savings. Make gradual changes over the course of a week. Each night, put your child to bed 15 minutes earlier and every morning, wake them up 15 minutes earlier. This will help you reach your target bed and wake time without causing change too fast. “The biggest challenge of spring day light savings is bedtime resistance, so you need to adjust bedtime slowly. Trust me on this. If you don’t adjust bedtime slowly, you will have a baby or toddler who starts to cry, protest, get out…

Our New Over The Moon Parent and Child Enrichment Center Opens!

South Shore Toddler Playschool New Arrival Educators opened our new Over The Moon ~ Parent & Child Enrichment Center in the former Mamas Move location in Norwell. Our center is a special place for little ones and the grown-ups who love them, offering South Shore families expert education, support and fun from pregnancy to preschool! Over The Moon will offer prenatal education, prenatal fitness classes, new mom and baby groups, new mom and baby fitness, early development, art and music classes for caregivers and children age 6 months to 36 months, toddler play school for children 2-3 year olds, and…

How to Pump at Work

In 2013, 62% of mothers giving birth in the United States went back into the workforce, most likely within three to six months of the birth of their baby. The most common questions working and breastfeeding mothers have are, “How often do I need to pump?” and “How much will my baby drink while I’m gone?” How Often? – When returning to work with a baby at home who is 6 months or younger, I would encourage mom to express milk approximately every 3 hours. For example, if you are separated from baby for 10 hours, it is recommended that…

7 Habits for Car Safety in Hot Weather

Summer is here, bringing the promise of popsicles, fireworks and pretty awesome pedicure colors. It also brings the heat, turning your car into hot box in the scorching parking lot. New moms are, more often than not, overtired, distracted, and burdened with baby paraphernalia. Even the very best moms can forget a sleeping child in the backseat, and heatstroke can affect a baby within minutes. Here are a the top 7 tips to prevent it. Look before you lock. Before locking up, open the back door and make sure it’s empty. Bag with baby. Make a habit to put your…

Beautycounter Exclusive for NAE (with coupon code!)

Guest Post By Elise Macaluso-White, Beautycounter Manger Let’s Start at the Beginning and Do It Right The skin and body care industry in this country is not as regulated as you might think. During the last two decades, the EU has banned 1300 ingredients while the U.S. has only banned 11. There are about 10,000 chemicals commonly found in personal care products —only 10% of those chemicals have safety data. Even more troubling, chemicals linked to breast cancer, learning disabilities, infertility, and other health issues are allowed in the products we use every day. The ingredient selection process at Beautycounter…

Summer Baby Safety Tips

I am the mother of three summer babies and live by the ocean, so my babies went to the beach. It is usually cooler at the beach, especially at low tide, so it was a great place to spend part of the day amongst the soothing sounds of the sea. Here are my tips to keeping your babies safe at the seaside! Invest in a good quality beach tent with SPF protection. I like the three-sided ones with pouches along bottom that you fill with sand or rocks to hold it down, in addition to stakes that come with it….

Safe Sleep for Newborns

Every parent’s number one goal is to keep their baby safe! So, of course, many of you devoted parents of newborns were quite upset this week due to an overwhelming number of scary headlines that followed the publication of a new study “Swaddling and the Risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome: A Meta-analysis”. Pediatrics (May 2016). “Swaddling babies may increase risk of SIDS,” the headlines blared. Some readers latched on and panicked. But the analysis emphasizes a more nuanced conclusion that supports what many parents and pediatricians already know. To quote the study’s conclusion: “Despite the limitations, these analyses indicate…

How to Choose a Newborn Photographer

GUEST POST: Denise Carty, Photographer Your baby is the most beautiful thing you’ll ever create. You’ll probably take hundreds, if not thousands, of snapshots with your camera and phone. If you are looking for a professional photographer to capture your gorgeous bundle of joy, here are some tips! 1. Portfolio Ask to see their portfolio, or just take some time and go through their website. Every newborn photographer has a different style and vision. Photography is a very personal experience, and regardless of trends or what is in ‘style,’ make sure you choose a photographer that’s right for you. Choose…

How to Clean Cradle Cap

Your baby is born with several layers of skin, which were necessary when she was living in amniotic fluid for so many months. You may have noticed peeling skin on her tiny body already. This is normal as baby doesn’t require all those layers anymore. Do not feel as though you need to lather baby with moisturizing lotions. In fact, lotion may be irritating to newborn skin. When the skin peels on baby’s scalp it may not look very pleasing! The baby isn’t bothered by this but moms and dads can be! Some caregivers will gently rub an oil, such…

How to Use Cloth Diapers

There are many reasons to choose cloth diapers, and today’s options are incredibly easy-to-use. They save money. The savings will depend on what type of cloth diapers you choose, but whichever style you go with , there will be a savings with your first child and a huge savings with subsequent children as you can reuse the same diapers. The environment. By not contributing to the enormous amount of disposable diapers that end up in land fills each year, you are ensuring your little pumpkin will live in a cleaner world. Having natural products against your baby’s skin. Protecting my…

Hospital Visitors

By Cheryl Donahue, LCCE, IBCLC, Med, HBB, and Stacey Stratton, CCCE, CD(DONA) The birth of a newborn baby is exciting, scary, surreal, and can be overwhelming at times. You are trying to learn all about this new little person and your family and friends are excited and eager to welcome the baby. The anticipation is so tempting, when pregnancy is reaching the due date, to want to share your new baby with friends and family! However, stop and consider realistically what your immediate postpartum experience in the hospital will be like. Birth is hard and exhausting on both you and…

How to Choose a Carseat

By Saheeda Mohammed-Kelly RN, CCE, Certified Carseat Technician The best car seat is one that fits your child and car appropriately and you’ll use the best. Not all car seats fit all cars but finding car seat dimensions is easy, and you can pick one appropriate to your vehicle. A quick check on Consumer Reports can give you car seat safety ratings, as well as an indication on how well it will install into your car via the LATCH system or using the seat belt. Infant car seats feature removable bucket seats that clip in to a base that stays…

Starting Solids

Up to four to six months, your baby only needs breastmilk or formula to grow and thrive. When she’s ready for solids, she will tell you! Can she sit with support and hold her head up steady? Does she mouth her hands and toys? Does she look interested in what you’re eating? If your answers to the above questions are “yes,” and your pediatrician gives you the go-ahead, you can start introducing solids. How fun! Before you even start, you may want to enroll in an infant CPR class if you haven’t already taken one. That will make your baby’s…

What To Pack For The Hospital

The decision on what to pack for labor and birth can be exciting and confusing, especially if this is your first trip to Labor and Delivery. Which bag should you bring? What should you put in it? When should you pack? Remember: as long as the expectant mother is in the car to go to the hospital on the birth day, you are doing great! I’ve had three babies, in addition to teaching childbirth classes for over ten years, and am a birth doula. Honestly, many things you might want to pack will never see the walls of your delivery…

3 Breakfasts for New Moms

Today, we’ve got three healthy breakfasts you can pull together in under a minute with one hand tied behind your back (or holding a baby.) These recipes involve minimal dishes and cook time, but maximize nutrition. Eat up! Overnight oats. Combine equal parts rolled oats and milk, then refrigerate overnight. In the morning, heat it and top it with your favorite mix-ins. (Note: you can use any milk: cow’s milk, soy milk, or yogurt. If you make it for your baby, you can even use breast milk.) Waffles. Microwave a frozen multigrain waffle topped with frozen berries for 60 seconds,…

How to Store Breastmilk

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! We feel lucky to have YOU, so we put together a guide to pumping “liquid gold” for your wee ones. Enjoy! Remember: The more you take, the more you make! How to get started: 3-4 weeks after birth, incorporate pumping into your breastfeeding schedule and introduce a bottle once a day. Store breastmilk in the refrigerator or the freezer. The best time to pump is first thing in the morning or right before bedtime. Or, if the baby only feeds from one breast, you can pump the other side. Tips: Relax and make yourself comfortable. Get…

How to Choose a Daycare

Choosing a daycare for your baby can feel incredibly overwhelming. Finding someone you trust with your child is stressful enough without the added pressures of cost, pickup schedules and sick policies. We hope these steps streamline your process so you can feel good about your choice. 1. Research online the daycares around your home or work, depending on which might be more convenient for you and your partner. 2. Ask around. Do neighbors, friends or co-workers, have recommendations? Take suggestions graciously, but don’t feel cornered into picking based on those suggestions. This is your baby and your decision. 3. Create…

Interview Questions for Daycares

Visiting daycares can be daunting. Some expectant parents might feel the weight of the responsibility to choose The Best Daycare without knowing exactly what that looks like. We’re here to help, and composed a step-by-step guide to choosing a daycare , a printable Daycare Spreadsheet, and this set of interview questions to ask caregivers once you’ve narrowed your search. Day-to-Day Operations How does communication work? Do they use daily printouts of baby’s activities during the day? Will they email pictures? Do they produce a newsletter? What is the sick policy? Weak sick policies don’t necessarily mean you won’t have to…

Why Take A Childbirth Class?

You’re pregnant! Congratulations! With pregnancy come a lot of new feelings, sensations, and questions. There are so many ways to get information these days: books, the web, friends, and your healthcare provider. Many expecting women ask why they should take a childbirth class if they can just Google it or ask their best friend who just had a baby. There are great benefits to taking a childbirth class. 1. An actual, live person who is an expert in childbirth New Arrival Educators has certified childbirth educators leading their classes. Many of the educators have additional education and certifications as well….

Hands-Free Baby-Wearing

When most people hear the term “hands free,” they think of phones. Unless they are a parent. Like most babies, mine liked to be held – all the time. But, it made getting things done a challenge. Behold, an infant carrier, the device that got me through my children’s early years! Housework? No problem, with a child strapped to my chest. Grocery shopping? A breeze. Walking the dog? I could stroll the neighborhood with the leash in one hand, a coffee in the other, and the baby snuggled content and close in the carrier. They keep unwanted strangers from touching…

5 tips for nursing mamas

1.) Breastfeeding can HURT…but it shouldn’t. After your baby is born, and you and your baby are learning to breastfeed together. Sometimes it can be a little bit uncomfortable, and this is when you want to ask for help. When breastfeeding is painful, it typically means that something isn’t right with positioning, latch, engorgement, or even water retention or swelling. A Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) has knowledge and experience working in the field of maternal and child health and has specialized skills in breastfeeding management. IBCLC’s use a problem solving approach and provide evidence-based information to breastfeeding women and make…

Postpartum Depression

Congratulations! You have just given birth to a beautiful baby! Everyone around you is so happy and excited for you and your partner. You, however, are feeling a bit confused; you love your baby but still feel so, so sad. You are not alone. Childbirth and new parenthood can trigger a jumble of emotions from joy to extreme fear, as well as something unexpected: depression. About 9-16% of women experience Postpartum Depression (PPD) and up to 80% of women report having some degree of Baby Blues after delivery. Baby Blues may include symptoms of anxiety, mood swings and crying spells,…

Preparing for Motherhood

As soon as you discover you are pregnant, a whole new world opens up to you! It can be such an exciting time – but also very stressful. All the anticipation and joy of having a new baby also can cause anxiety as you are flooded with information related to pregnancy, hospitals, doctors, midwives, baby registries, birth, caring for your new baby, breastfeeding, daycare, and more. There is so much to learn! Many new moms wonder, “How will my body change during pregnancy? What can I do to help myself have a healthy pregnancy and baby? What will my labor…