Brain Rules for Baby, by John Medina

I know that most new parents barely have the time to take a quick shower, much less read an entire book, but I would strongly, strongly encourage expecting parents and new parents to read this book. A lot of the information overlaps with another book I recommended, NurtureShock, but there's enough new information in here that can really change the way you parent your child. Medina's a scientist, first and foremost, but he makes the science incredibly accessible, and he's funny to boot. But instead of writing a tome here, I'll just let you read the product description on Amazon. Hope it proves titillating enough that you purchase (and read) the book ASAP!

• http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Baby-Raise-Smart/dp/0979777755

Hold the Lipstick

If I were ever to categorize my blog entries (which I really should, I know), this one would be filed under a "WTF?" tab.

So I think I'm a conscientious mama who tries my best to navigate a middle ground between neurotic obsession and complete laissez-faire, especially when it comes to steering C clear of toxins. For example, while I read all food packages religiously to avoid products with ingredients whose names I don't recognize, I cede control when it comes to C's diet at day care (thankfully, C's day care providers are usually very good about feeding the kids wholesome meals).

Another example: I spent a while researching all-natural nail polishes (yay, Piggy Paint!) to paint on C's precious little piggies, but when C decided a couple of days ago that she just had to try on some L'Oreal Infallible Plumping Lip Gloss, I thought, "Eh, what the heck?" And so I gave her the bright red lips she wanted. She was tickled silly and looked adorable with the lipstick smeared beyond the contours of her little lips, and I thought we had had a wonderful bonding moment...until a couple of hours later, when we removed the lipstick. "Owwie," she said, and I was stunned to see what looked like a burn along the right side of her mouth. The damn lipstick had given my baby a chemical burn! WTF? Since then, the burn has scabbed over, and it doesn't seem to bother her, but the whole incident has just freaked the bejesus out of me. How toxic is this makeup that we mommies have been applying on ourselves? I've since looked up the list of ingredients for this lipstick and other fine makeup products in my kit, and, suffice to say, I'm ready to chuck most of my conventional makeup and replace with organic makeup products. Better for mommy and a better example for C (eventually).

In the meantime, for playing grown-up with C, Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer will do just fine, thank you very much.

Sweet, Sweet Honey

I was reminded of this potential issue when another mommy in C's daycare told me that she had fed her 6-month old baby some honey. Normally, I'm one to flout restrictions on babies' diets (C was eating eggs and peanuts and shrimp early on in life), but, for some reason, not feeding C honey until she turned 1 was the one dietary rule I followed (perhaps so as to tempt fate or something?). So, if you're the parent of a baby and you didn't know about this rule and the reason for it, here it is:

• http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/infantbotulismhoney.htm

You can now make an informed decision on whether or not this issue is overblown! Bon appetit, babies!

The TRAVESTY that we call the FDA

If there were any doubt that the FDA's interests were aligned with Big Corp -- at the expense of the public it's supposed to protect -- well, here's your proof:

• http://gaia-health.com/articles201/000230-fda-says-walnuts-are-drugs-and-doritos-are-heart-healthy.shtml

Makes me sick to my stomach. Why don't we all just start shoving Doritos down our kids' throats?

"How to Talk to Little Girls" (a re-post)

About this article: part of me thinks, "Eh, lighten up!" The other part thinks, "Preach it, Sister!" But with C reaching maximal cuteness age (when does that end for parents???), it does make me think long and hard.

• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-bloom/how-to-talk-to-little-gir_b_882510.html?ref=fb&src=sp

Baby Registry Madness

So I'm at that age now when all of my friends are popping out kids, and a number of them have asked me for registry advice. I've had to warn them all that I'm of the "less is better" school (perhaps a function of living in a cramped NY apartment). Overwhelmed by the plethora of baby crap out there, we ended up registering for approximately three million items -- of which we ended up using around 5. Since then, I've come up with the list I wish I had had back when I could have used it. Of course, I welcome any feedback! It's been a while since I've had to deal with this, so I'm sure my memory has failed me in some places, but I think it's a good start.

Must haves:

1. Car seat (the kind that doubles as a stroller with the snap-on base, like the Graco SnugRide)
2. Stroller (for urban moms, the lighter the better)
3. Crib and crib accessories (like sheets and breathable bumpers, etc. Don’t need blankets just yet, since they’re suffocation hazards. Instead of blankets, you may initially want to try SleepSacks.)
4. Lots and lots of onesies -- lots and lots of them!
5. Little mittens (to keep kids from scratching themselves while sleeping)
6. Baby socks and caps (lots of air conditioning everywhere, so want to keep feet and head warm)
7. Pack-n-Play (important when travelling or when you want infants napping in the same room you’re working in)
8. Swaddling cloths/receiving blankets (usually given out by hospitals when leaving, though maybe it was just my hospital)
9. Baby monitor
10. Night lights
11. Breast pump (if breastfeeding, obviously)
12. Bottles (Dr. Brown’s are great, but since you'll most likely be experimenting with different types, wouldn't go crazy and get hundreds of them)
13. Bottle brush and drying rack
14. Baby bath tub
15. Would get lots of bottles of Burt’s Bees Shampoo on Body Wash (awesome product and makes fun bubbles!)
16. Hooded towels (actually, probably not a must have for most people, just for P and me)
17. Bumbo (little soft chairs that the kids will sit on when they can keep their heads up)
18. Activity mats
19. Exersaucer (lots of debate on this, as well as walkers, but we thought they were AWESOME, and they certainly didn’t hurt C)
20. Jumper (again, lots of debate on this, but hours of entertainment and relief for you)
21. Swingle cradle (we only used ours for a couple of months, but they did have the benefit of calming C down a number of times)
22. Rocking chair (which makes for a nice way to bond with the new kid while relaxing you as well)
23. Diapers (though I'm of the impression that you're going to be experimenting with diapers as well, so no need to go crazy just yet on these. If you're going to go the cloth diaper route, I'd highly recommend gDiapers!!!!)
24. Diaper bag
25. Portable diaper changing pads (for when you’re out and about and don’t want to put your kid on some nasty surface. Diaper bags may include this already, but check.)
26. Diaper changing table/pad (though, actually, P and I just plopped C on a towel on our bed and changed diapers that way, so wasn't really a necessity for us)
27. Bibs
28. Little utensils and bowls/plates
29. High chairs (or booster seats that you can strap on to chairs)
30. Ergo (or the equivalent — hated the Moby wrap)
31. Baby nail clipper (though a regular nail clipper worked just fine for C, even when she was a tiny infant)
32. Health/medical kit (thermometer, nose bulb, baby aspirin, etc.)

Would be nice to have:

1. Teethers (like Sophie the Giraffe)
2. Soft books
3. Soft toys
4. Developmental toys
5. Diaper pail/liners (though P and I just put pee diapers in the regular trash and poopy diapers in a separate plastic bag that we would just tie and untie and eventually throw out)

Little Piggies

So how excited am I to share this? I'd been racking my brain to come up with an activity that would be exclusively for C and me (to help ease her transition from being mama's only little girl to older sister), and I finally hit on mommy-daughter mani/pedis. But, being incredibly fearful of slathering C's poor little nails with toxic waste, I'd held off...until I came across this:

• http://www.piggypaint.com/

Not only do they have nail polish in the cutest colors imaginable, they have non-toxic nail polish remover! The polish goes on smoothly and dries really quickly, though I have to admit that it chips and peels pretty easily. But who cares? Gives mommy and daughter (or son, I guess) more time to bond. Enjoy pampering your little ladies, ladies!