House of Nair

Last night, Senia was crying every time we laid her down and fine when we would hold her upright.  We tried everything to solve the issue including changing her clothes, diaper, taking her temperature, placing her in the bed (as opposed to the crib) and came to the conclusion that nothing external was causing the problem.

So this morning we finally called the doc who told us that more than likely it was more than likely acid reflux.  She said that since this was the first time, it’s not yet a chronic issue (cross our fingers), but something we need to be careful about.  The solution, keep her upright after feedings and for as long as she is uncomfortable on her back.  Placing a few pillows strategially to keep her sleeping on an angle solved the issue and she is once again, sleeping like a baby.

For more info on acid reflux, when it comes to babies, click here for an overview and click here for more detail (ignore that the site is also promoting a product, the solutions are well written.)

No matte where you are in the world, if you have a baby, you should sign up for this federal government list.  Its easy, free, convenient, and saves lives.   If you don’t sign up for this list, you hate your baby.  Just kidding.  No I’m not.  Yes I am.

https://www.cpsc.gov/cpsclist.aspx
Note: Select the radio button next to the words “Only those recalls involving infant/child products”

This slide was recently recalled…go figure.

Toy slides recalled

This tip may apply to our hospital only, but it’s worth taking it into account just in case your delivery quarter is an icebox. Our hospital was tolerable during the day, but at night, they teleport the facility to an undisclosed location in the middle of the siberian wilderness.  And there aren’t enough blankets to go around.  Pragya was cold, the baby was miserable, and each one of my exhales was creating snow.  In the mean time all the nurses who are essentially doing laps at night between the nursery and the rooms in their hospital sweats were very comfortable.  So if you’re like me and prefer to sleep in a balmy southern Mediteranean climate, pack a space heater and and extra blanket in your go to hospital bag.  You’ll be warm you did.

No one knows what causes SIDS – Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, but there are a number of actions that parents can take to dramatically lower the chances of your kid being victim to it.

#1 The first is to lay them on their back. Studies have show that the risk of SIDS decreases by more than 50% by just using this simple technique.

#2 Don’t place anything close to their face that could restrict their breathing

#3 Keep a fan circulating air around the room.  According to a recent report by Dr. De-Kun Li, a reproductive and perinatal epidemiologist that appeared in the October 2008 issue of the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, a fan that keeps air circulating in the room cuts the risk by 72%. There’s an article about it here.

This has led to a new hypothesis that suggests that one of the primary causes of SIDS may be tied to the CO2 emission of an infant.  Lying on their belly,  having things placed in front of or near their face, and poor air circulation could cause a CO2 build-up around them.  An adults exhale is strong enough to push the CO2 away, but a child’s may not be.  Until they do find the cause, play it safe, keep them on their back, unobstructed, and keep a fan circulating in the room.

We point the fan up towards the ceiling above the crib and not directly at the baby, this is sufficient to create a breeze around not only the crib, but the entire room.

No matter how long you hold a baby, they still can catch you by surprise with a little upchuck here and there.  The number one rule to remember when they do this is to make sure they are not on their back, since they could choke on their own vomit.  It’s easy to avoid by just turning their head a bit to the side when you are changing them.  If we put Senia down to sleep just after a feeding, we’ll prop something up behind her so that she isn’t completely on her back, but at a slight angle or even pointed sideways to avoid this.

Sahana hates brushing her teeth, but what she hates even more is not being able to choose her destiny.  So when 9pm rolls around (yes, she really goes to bed then), we give her a choice:

“Do you want me to pick you up and drag you to the bathroom to brush your teeth (harsh voice)? Or do you want to walk yourself to the bathroom and brush your teeth? (nice voice).”

Making the choice makes it so much easier to get this done.  She appreciates being involved in the decision making, and I appreciate not having to drag her to the bathroom kicking and screaming.  Well, most of the time anyway…

Babies like to be swaddled. Research indicates that they sleep longer, are less likely to experience SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, are more likely to stay asleep on their backs, and feel more soothed.  This doesn’t mean that your baby will need to be swaddled forever.  Sahana liked being swaddled for the first three months, Senia, barely lasted until now (we swaddle, but she doesn’t like her arms constricted.).

There are a lot of great techniques for swaddling babies, here’s the best one we found:

Of course, as a new parent, you’re convinced that you need one of those fancy diaper bags with all the special pockets and gizmo’s designed to make carrying your babies goods convenient and efficient.   We’ve literally “shouldered” at least 3 of these bags at a total cost of over $150 and we don’t use any of them.    Believe me when I say that there is NOTHING convenient about those stupid diaper bags.  They are a pain to carry, I can never remember what is in what pocket, and their carrying capacity is nill.   On top of that, as a proper DUDE,  you will positively look like a pansy carrying around one of those bags that scream “over the hill wash out”, and “when are you buying that minivan, dude”.

Save your money, time, and lower your aggravation, and most importantly, look cool, by doing the smart thing: buy a backpack.   They are much more convenient to carry around if you’re travelling, have better pockets, have have much more capacity, which will allow you to carry other things in addition to the babies needs – like umbrella’s, snacks, and things you buy along the way.

If you want to look totally sweet, take a look at this one.

Both Senia and Sahana had a little acne a few weeks after they were born.  It’s very common in new borns and usually starts a few weeks after they are born and lasts about a month.  Researchers think that it may be caused by the mother’s hormone’s entering through the breast milk, but there is no confirmed answer.  So make sure you get plenty of photos in the first week, then get ready to photoshop their pimples for the next month as your family requests those important photos.

Baby Center is simply the best resource you could ever hope for in terms of providing you helpful advice and tips for your baby (other than maybe a team of grandmothers and physicians that were dedicated to looking after your baby, or the houseofnair.com).  If you’re not familiar with it, then you can solve that problem right now.