[blparent] New parent questions

Thu Oct 28 16:27:30 UTC 2010

Hi Mary Jo,
First, congratulations on the baby! When are you due? My husband and I are
also expecting our first due in April so I am doing all the same research
you are. Here is what I've found out so far.

In terms of carseats and strollers, it is difficult to find a good
combination of lightweight and pulling behind you. I have not seen this
paritcular stroller in person yet but it was suggested I check out the Graco
Alano FlipIt reversible handle stroller. I believ you can find this at
Babies R Us. The reviews I've read online, however, say that this stroller
does not steer well when the handle is in the reversed position. So this
doesn't seem like a great option, but something to check out. This stroller
does accept the Graco Snugride carseats. I'd suggest checking out the
snugride carseats because most Graco strollers can accommodate the snugride
carseats as a snap-in feature. We haven't quite decided on which one we are
getting yet, but I've narrowed it down to Graco for sure.

In terms of baby carriers, I've checked out both the Baby Bjorn and the Ergo
baby carrier. They are good for different things and it was suggested to me
that we have one of each. The Ergo has better back support but the baby can
only face inward, as Bran mentioned. As they get older though, they can look
from side to side, so it is still stimulating for them. The ergo also has an
infant insert that you can use so you can carry very little babies which
normally would not fit inside the ergo. Make sure you get the heart to heart
insert for the ergo. The baby Bjorn is helpful because it allows the baby to
face outwards and can accommodate very little babies. The back support is
not as great so for long walks, it might not be ideal. We are planning on
getting both. I Know others on this list have used the Beco Butterfly II as
well, but I have not seen this one in person.

In terms of braille books, we found a seller on Ebay who sells braille books
that she has already adapted. She takes regular print books with pictures or
touch and feel books and puts labels on them. They aer very cheap, as she
buys them used and then brailles them. Each book is 10 dollars or less. Just
search for braille books on ebay and you should be able to find her. She
sells different books depending on what she happens to have made at the
time. We bought some already and they are very well done, and so cheap too!

Hope all this helps! I'd love to hear more as you do your own research too.
Take care,
Ronit

-----Original Message-----
From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Hartle, Mary Jo
Sent: Thursday, October 28, 2010 6:21 AM
To: blparent at nfbnet.org
Cc: Louise Walch; Cheralyn Braithwaite Creer; Cheralyn Creer; Hartle, Jesse
Subject: [blparent] New parent questions

Hi everyone,
    My husband and I are new to this listserv, but thought it might be a
great resource for us as parents-to-be.  some of you may know us, Jesse and
Mary Jo (Thorpe) Hartle.  We have been members of the NFB for several years,
but this is a whole new role for us as blind people.
Fortunately, because of the philosophy we've learned in the organization,
and great role models like some of you on this list, we know we can be great
parents even though we're blind.  But...there are a few questions that are
starting to pop into our minds as we prepare for the arrival of LBH (Little
Baby Hartle).  Any advice on the following you can give us would be greatly
appreciated.  

1. We've been looking at strollers and car seats and carriers (oh my) and
wondering which on the market are the best for a blind parent.  We know we
want a stroller that we can pull behind us easily and which will allow the
baby to face us rather than face out.  We also are looking for something
that can double as a carrier and car seat combo which is easy to get on and
off buses and trains and such.  Any of you have recommendations for us?
Brands?  Etc.? Another item we think would be very helpful to us are those
snuggly things so we can carry the baby in front of us or on our back while
using a cane.  Any recommendations of good brands or styles for this?  

2.  We are considering getting a set of baby monitors.  We've not looked too
closely at these yet, but I'm anticipating there might be some accessibility
issues as it sounds like many of them have some kind of visual display on
them now for you to set the controls, etc.  any suggestions on a good brand
for these that are accessible, or can be easily modified? 

3.  Are there any other great Braille-print book outlets besides Seedlings,
NBP, APH, Share Braille.org, and the Braille Institute we should know about?
Any Other ways to get free or really inexpensive print-Braille storybooks?
WE know too how to make our own, and are very familiar with most of the
mainstream Braille book sources, but want to see if any of you have other
less known ideas.  

4. Are there any accessible bottle thermometers out there, or do any of you
have other techniques for gauging the temperature of a bottle?  I know this
isn't quite a blindness issue, but if we use a thermometer, it becomes one.
:)Any thoughts?

5.  Any good books, websites, or other resources in general that you as
blind people have found helpful to you as a parent which we should know
about?  

Thanks so much and we look forward to any suggestions you can send our way
and to future postings on this list. 

Sincerely,
Mary Jo T. Hartle

Mary Jo Thorpe-Hartle, MEd, NOMC

Director of Education 

Jernigan Institute
NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND
200 East Wells Street
Baltimore, MD 21230
Phone: (410)659-9314 ext. 2407
Email: mhartle at nfb.org
Fax: (410) 659-5129
Visit www.nfb.org <http://www.nfb.org/>   

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