[blparent] baby wearing cautions - was New parent questions

Fri Oct 29 00:35:50 UTC 2010

I absolutely do not recommend the bjorn. if you read the articles on
www.thebabywearer.com
they will explain why this is a very bad choice for the development of your 
baby's hips and back.
particularly if you have a boy, the bjorn puts tremendous pressure on the 
groin, which could not possibly be comfortable or healthy for a little guy.
I have used about 7 carriers. my favorites have been the ergo and the 
kangaroo korner pouch sling. the sling is not a great option if you're 
working on a limited budget, as it gets kind of uncomfortable once the baby 
tops about 12-15 pounds, but if you have a generous gift-giver in your life, 
it is a wonderful option for when your baby is very small. they even make a 
mesh one for warmer weather, which can also get wet. you may wonder why that 
would matter... unless you get a baby with colic who is only happy in warm 
water. I know someone who took about 5 showers a day for the first 3 months 
of her son's life, because it was the only time he was happy.

finally, a caution for anyone who plans to use a sling. because of a few 
extremely horrible incidents that have taken place (one of which a friend of 
mine was unfortunate enough to see first hand) it is no longer recommended 
that babies be placed in the cradle position when in slings. the cradle 
position is the way you would hold an infant in your arms - with him on his 
back - his head resting on one of your arms, and your other arm under his 
knees. if using a sling, an infant should be placed in an upright position - 
his stomach against your stomach/chest, and his head directly under your 
chin. the reason for this new recommendation is that several infants have 
died while being cradled in slings. their chins have come forward against 
their chests - cutting off their air supply and preventing them from 
breathing. they have literally suffocated to death under their mother's 
noses.

Dena

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ronit Ovadia Mazzoni" <rovadia82 at gmail.com>
To: "'NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List'" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, October 28, 2010 11:27 AM
Subject: Re: [blparent] New parent questions

> 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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