Balance not Boredom

I was recently asked by Rebecca Eckler about my thoughts on "this wave of mothers - mostly from Britain and America - that are coming out and writing about how difficult it is to be a mother, and how they rather go out with friends for drinks, to the gym, etc."

These mothers are writing about how difficult it is to be a mother. Is motherhood at times difficult? Of course, it is! Clean & straighten the house continually, get the groceries, cook dinner that appeals to all, read all the parenting books there are, keep in touch with prebaby friends, attend this mommy class and that one, fill out new child tax forms, make time for the gym, count your new grey hairs (grr!)...and then be a sexy mama at the same time? Something will inevitably go! We are under a lot of pressure. These writers have taken it to the extreme though and that's what gets the press...and the book deal.

Rebecca called these parents "uninvolved" but I would call it "unattached". "Attachment is the strong bond of affection and connection that develops between children and their parents or primary caretakers. The quality of this bond influences the child's physical, emotional, and intellectual development." You need to spend time with your children to be attached to them and for them to be attached to you.

Parenting is about balance. Parents bored of their children? Come on! What was my grandmother's best quote of all: "If you are bored, you are boring." Find a way to get involved with your children and spend time with them. Finds ways to make yourself happy as well.

As parents we need to spend time with our children, our spouses and as corny as it sounds...ourselves. But it's got to be a balance...some of each...not one over the other.

Do you find Barney boring...well, don't watch him! In Canada, there are so many great ways to go spend time with your babies. You can go to Movies for Mommies in Vancouver, Toronto, Waterloo, Ottawa and Montreal. Moms in the City organizes amazing events for parents in Toronto. Wee Welcome is holding "Mama Mingles" across the country. Babyvibe in Vancouver, and soon Calgary, has listings of wonderful events for families. Spas are creating baby days. The MommyClub in Calgary organizes events monthly for parents. There are Mom Meetups across the country. Some very smart spas are even offering stroller days, when mamas can get manicures in a baby welcoming settings - how cool is that! As well there are baby sign language classes, music classes, fitness classes, mom and baby yoga classes- there are so many fun things so much to do with your child.

Add to these some well deserved time with girlfriends (AKA, girls night out, nit and nag, etc). Go out have fun! Through in the regular "dates" with your partner and you've got balance, not boredom.

I like to potty, potty...

Okay, my family is approximately 1 year, 5 days and 7 hours past the potty training stage (but who's counting!) but this website that I just found has a very cute product:

http://www.pottysong.com/index.shtml

I was able to find the personalized version of their potty song for my son (J. went potty, J. went potty...), but couldn't find one for my daughter, but they would record one for her. Each personalized song would cost $9.95 (I'm assuming this is US) . I I would have bought these for my kids, considering what we've paid for diapers.

Another site that I did use when my daughter was toilet training was this Sign Language Potty Training Activity Book:

http://www.linton-entertainment.com/ASL/toilet%20gifs/Pottybook.htm

It was great to personalize the storybook (hmmm, there's a theme here) and read it to her a few times a day. The vocabulary/story really helped all adults in her life follow the same steps and use the same words as well.

We did think of "starting" to toilet train S. when she got close to 2 years, but I thought I could toilet train her for a year and she'll be using the potty by age 3 OR I could not work at it for a year and she'll be using the potty by age 3! :) I choose not to "train" her for a year and she was using the potty on her own about 3-4 weeks past her 3rd birthday. Yeah!

Actually, she didn't really care about it one way or another (her brother was sooo much easier!), when she had an accident she'd just say "it's okay, mommy, you can clean it up"...in a kind of "whatever" kind a tone...sigh! This is so much her laid back personality! What I ended up doing is just telling her we ran out of diapers and we only had a few to use a night time. She thought about it for a bit and came up with, "Hmmm, I better use the potty all the time now." Aaaahh!

Lord, help me when she's a teenager! I wonder if there will be a personalized "S. will be home by 10:00 pm, S. will be home by 10:00 pm" song by then? Anyone?? Please...

Gripes!

I was recently asked where to buy gripe water in Vancouver - :) what did you think I was writing about this time!

Most drug stores/pharmacies should have it in the baby section. I’m pretty sure all have no alcohol now but check just in case. Some have different flavours (though not stated on the bottle), e.g., a licorice or dill flavour (!)

I've been doing some searching online for "gripe water" and I'm surprised that what I'm finding for the most part are sites that sell it but not a whole lot of information on it! Even my trusted Dr. Sears has nothing on the topic. Maybe this is a sign?

Other remedies for colicy (don't like the term!) babies are infant massage and wearing your baby. I found the latter out when my son was 4 months old and as soon as I put him in a sling he was asleep in 2 minutes! Grrr!

If anyone else has any hints to share, please do so!

"Mommy Milk" T-Shirts

I’ve create a toddler/children's t-shirts for breastfeeding challenge this fall, on September 30, 2006 at 11am. They are very cute! Text on the t-shirts reads "My WeeHands Can Sign...Mommy Milk".

Profits from the sale of these 100% cotton infant and toddler t-shirts will be donated to La Leche League. For more information about the Breastfeeding Challenge please visit this website: http://www.babyfriendly.ca/

You can have a look at them at this website:

https://www.cafepress.com/weehands.25768269

Please share with all the families with wee babies you know!

Universal Child Care Benefit

Recently, I shared information in our newsletters about the governments new Universal Child Care Benefit. There has been a bit in the media about this. Parents with children under the age of 6 years will be getting $1,200 annually per child, broken down into 12 monthly installments of $100 for each preschool-age child in every family Unfortunately, this benefit is taxable so it will actually turn out to be $80.00/child per month. Read more about this "benefit" and it's intricacies on another blog I've been following lately!

From nibble trays to brussel sprouts

A new mom wrote me today and asked about feeding her 10 month old...or not feeding him...well, not NOT feeding him but he wasn't interested in eated because he had just learned to walk and was too busy exploring the world.

As a mom, I can completely relate to what she was saying! Been there! I told her that Dr. Sears' site would be helpful. I would not have gotten through babyhood with my little ones without Dr. Sears’ (okay a slight exaggeration!) As well the idea of a nibble tray (with appropriate 10 month old food) may be helpful as well.

Believe me I had to do a song and dance to get my first born to eat. Picture me putting a load of laundry in our front loading washing machine just so he could watch the water and bubbles while I fed him – he did NOT want to eat. At almost 6 years now he eats almost as much as my husband at times and loves almost any and all green vegetables – go figure!

If only Ann Douglas had written her book, Mealtime Solutions for Your Baby, Toddler And Preschooler, when my wee ones were, well, wee! Okay, they are 5 years and 3 year old - they're not ancient. Ann was most likely starting to write her new sleep and food books while I was pacing the floors at 2 am and putting on a floor show for Joshua!

Typical Canadian Mom?

I consider myself a typical Canadian mom...I have my quirks...some of my friends parent the way I do...others, well they don't! Still I think many Canadian moms have asked themselves these important questions...

• Is it okay to put Kahlua in a Tim Horton's Iced Cappucino?
• Is there any residential cleaning services out there that will fold and put away laundry?

Inquiring minds want...no, NEED to know! I think I'll try the Kahlua thing tomorrow night! Meet me on the front porch!

Dear Andre

Fantastic article! Thank you Infact Canada for fowarding it.

This stood out for me, “Yet, in hospitals (where, sadly, most births still occur), nurses and physicians are often too busy to help.” Both of my children were born to midwives at home (both were also nursed until about 22 months). I remember after my firstborn's birth that the midwives helping me/him right away get latched on. I had a great support network but still had moments of am I doing this right? I heard too many stories of friends who had gone to nurses who told them to supplement because they were not producing enough milk. These friends soon gave up on breastfeeding their little ones.

Education or re-education has to be there for the frontline staff – the OB, the family doctors, public health and visiting nurses…even some midwives. As well, post-partum support and doulas is a necessity, especially for first time moms.

What to Expect When your Surfing!

I do remember when I found out I was pregnant for the first thing time...the first thing I did was head to Indigo Books and purchased "What to Expect When You are Expecting". I was so nervous and a little embarrassed (?) when I paid for it...would the 20 year old cashier know that I was pregnant (duh!)? what would his reaction be? ... turns out it looked like he didn't care!

I read little snippets of it every night in bed and was amazed at the pictures of what your little one looked at at every week and month.

The creators of the book, and the whole series, have now come up with a matching website, http://www.whattoexpect.com, complete with the same pictures (yeah!), tips, advice, pregnancy calendards, recipes, etc.

This site wasn't around for my two pregnancies (I don't think!) but I used similar sites: from IVillage (lots of ads) and BabyCenter. There are others that are similar, but nothing uniquely Canadian yet...hmmm!

My New Favourite Lullaby

The Dixie Chicks have been in the news quite a bit lately. I just bought their new album (love shopping on iTunes!. My new favourite lullaby is the Dixie Chicks' Lullaby. It's one of the longest tracks on their album at 5:51 minutes - how smart is that! A slow, loooong lullaby - wise mammas!

With lyrics like "How long do you want to be loved? Is forever enough?"... I just love this song. Gotta go check on my napping wee ones now!

Travel with Baby!

I've recently received an email from a mom travelling from the Caribbean back home to Canada for a visit...First of all...sigh! How exciting! It started me thinking about travels with my little ones...actually with our first little one since we haven't really gone any where since Sabrina was born!

I remember travelling with Joshua when he was an infant...we had to put a blanket over the window on his side because any transport truck whizzing by on his side would just terrify him. I travelled a lot around Ontario in the back seat next to him and mini-gos are great travel food for babies!

When we travelled by air, we made sure that we tried for an evening or night flight and that we reserved the bulkhead (?) and a bassinet for our little one. If you are bringing a stroller, they'll take the stroller from you at the gate and stow it for you and it'll be waiting for you at the gate when you arrive - nice! If you're bringing an infant car seat I think getting a "snap and go stroller" would be great for the trip. You can find a picture of one here:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00007M4JT/002-5478505-1867201?v=glance

As well, a soft baby carrier for the trip is an almost must! I LOVE the Ergo Baby Carrier and the Hip Hammock. I just sigh when I think about carrying my babies in them! I actually think I could still carry Sabrina, she's 3 years old, in the Ergo...must try that some day - she'd love it!

As well, you may want to try the following companies to see if they'll be able to help you in your journey:

Borrow Til Tomorrow
Serving - Niagara Falls, The Greater Niagara Region, Lake Ontario and Lake Erie shorelines
Fenwick, Ontario
Phone: 1-800-924-4914 U.S & Canada only
905-892-6960 local - Niagara Area (Canada)
Web site: http://www.borrowtiltomorrow.com/

Travel-Buggy
Serving - Montreal and surrounding area
Phone: (514) 659-2323
Web site: (English) http://www.travel-buggy.com/ / (French) www.bebes-en-voyage.com

gogoBaby
Serving - Toronto
Phone: 647-895-BABY (2229)
Web site: http://www.gogobaby.ca/

V.I.P. Child Car Seat Rentals Inc.
29 Steckley Street
Aurora, Ontario
L4G 7K6
Phone: 905-713-0326
Web site: http://www.vipchildcarseat.com/

Away WEE Travel
Serving - Toronto & Vancouver
Phone: 416-737-1622 / 604-222-4722
Web site: http://www.weetravel.ca/

Globe Toddlers - Baby Equipment Rentals
Serving - Fernie
Phone: 250-423-0355
email: reservations@globetoddlers.ca

Baby's On The Go
1410 Alpha Lake Rd., Suite 204A,
Function Junction, Whistler, B.C. Canada
Phone: 604-905-0002 Toll Free:1-866-905-0002
Web site: www.babysonthego.com

Let me know if any of this is helpful and please share what you've found useful!

Itty Bitty Links on Sale!

Ok, I've had too much coffee or too little sleep - maybe both!

We’ve had an amazing response to our link offer! More than 65 additional companies are now linking to our site and our unique visits per day have increased by 24%! Special thanks go to http://www.ninepounddictator.blogspot.com/ and http://www.elephant-shoe.ca/!

We’re working to get all enhanced listings requests (free for June, July and August) ready for the first week of June. If you haven’t already done so, please forward the URL of the page that contains your link to http://www.canadianbabies.ca/ and the following:

• your company name & logo;
• your company' phone number;
• your company' street address;
• your company' web address;
• a 40-word description.

Have a great evening!

Thank Goodness for Brooklin!

Our neighbours just had a baby a few weeks...has it been months!...ago now. We're luck because the 2 little ones they already have are the same age as our kids, 5 and 3 years old.

Yesterday we were doing a little bit of spring cleaning (trust me this is not something that we typically do!)...and found in our bathroom cupboard an unopened package of diapers. Sabrina, our youngest has been potty trained for a year now, and we never got around to this package and we're not sure what to do with it.

I voiced this when we saw it and my son, he's almost six, said "Don't worry mom. We can use them when our baby comes". I stopped, backed up and said, "What?". He replied, "You know Anthony and Natassia next door just got a baby, so when our baby comes, we can just use those diapers for her". Okay, I want to hear a collective "aaaawwww" now! :)

I had to break it to my poor little one that we won't be getting a new baby. It's just mom, dad, brother, sister and the dog. He thought of it for a while again and thoughtfully said "Oh, and don't forget Brooklin" - our fish. Quick recovery!

One Big Community!

So it's post-BabyTime! now...the baby show that is! I think I slept all day on Monday! My apologies to any one driving in Brooklin that day!

What a huge number of families came out - it's that 4th time I've 'worked' the show but the number of people there always amazes me. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera so I didn't get a chance to snap a photo of our booth. We had our fantastic new banner (thank you Sherri!) and two wonderful gliders from Dear-Born Baby (thank you Kelly!). At one point, there were two friends lounging in our booth - one nursing her little one and the other resting her 8-month belly - if you read this, pulleeaase, email me the picture we took!

I'm also having fun with our new stats program for the Canadian Babies sites (how nerdy is that!). It's great to see so many companies connecting/linking with our site! That's one of the main goals for CanadianBabies - to directly connect all things baby in Canada...and we're well on our way (and our sites just over 2 months old!). Have a look at this Kindermusik program in Vancouver; one of my favourite blogs; this service offering so much for moms in Toronto; a great new Canadian baby magazine; an adorable online baby store; these parenting classes in Calgary; a wonderful yoga studio in Halifax; a belly casting services in Toronto; and this party store in Edmonton! I LOVE that all this is connected!

Fantastic! Thank you for linking to our site: www.canadianbabies.ca

my first post!

How exciting! Canadian Babies was created to link all things baby in Canada...and I'm blown away by what there is to offer Canadian familes!

I'm off to set up for the Baby Time! show in Mississauga ... it's going to be a busy weekend!

See you there!