[blParent] pregnant with my first baby and wondering about helpful resources?

[Judy Jones]

Hi, Stephanie, welcome to the list.

My husband and I are both blind, raised two successful daughters who now
have their own kids.  We enjoyed raising them, was quite an adventure with
lots of good memories.

The biggest thing about parenting is, with any parents, letting them know
they  are loved through encouragement, discipline, and taking time to build
the relationship.

American Action fund, I believe, still puts out the Twin Vision books.  I
like them best, as they have picture captions in them.

I'm sure I'm behind on the latest equipment and innovations, but we did a
lot of common sense things that worked for us.  As toddlers, we had bells on
their shoes.  In an unfamiliar area, instead of watching from across a room,
we would be with them if they wanted to explore.

If we asked them to "come here," and they did not, we wouldn't say anything
more, but unobtrusively go to where they were and be nonchalant about it.

We used colors in our vocabulary a lot, so this meant we had to color label
some things, and learn the colors of others.  Since I sew, I made a cloth
booklet of material scraps on the machine and braille labeled them.  A quiet
pastime to work on colors.

Feeding when they are learning solids?  I used my index finger on the top of
the spoon as a guide, and had my other hand behind their head to aim for the
mouth.  It doesn't take long for the practice to become seamless, although
somewhat messy as all babies will be.

I found my best support system as a new mom was La Leche League.  We both
made many wonderful friends and wonderful tips and advice.

Those are some things I can think of off the top of my head.

When reading on this list, it is so fun to rejoice with new parents, enjoy
hearing about today's equipment, and wish some of it had been around when we
were raising ours hahaha.

Oh yes, there may be better devices now, but we carried our girls in frame
packs everywhere, and when we used a stroller, it was the umbrella kind you
can pull behind you as you use the cane or dog guide.

Best wishes, and glad you found this list.

Judy

"Embrace each day with His mercies and blessings."

-----Original Message-----
From: BlParent <blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Stephanie Campbell
via BlParent
Sent: Monday, November 14, 2022 10:22 AM
To: blparent at nfbnet.org
Cc: Stephanie Campbell <stephanie.m.zundel at gmail.com>
Subject: [blParent] pregnant with my first baby and wondering about helpful
resources?

Hi,

I am new to this mailing list. I am pregnant with my first baby and due in
early May. I am fully blind (only see light and dark). My blindness is not
genetic so my baby will be sighted. I am making my baby registry and was
wondering if anyone has items that are must haves for blind parents? Does
anyone know if the evenflo stroller works to be both pulled and pushed? Any
tips that I should know to be a successful blind parent? Any programs where
I can get free books that are print braille, and picture books? I know
seedlings has a good selection and national braille press has some too, but
I was wondering if there is a program to get some for free since the cost
adds up very quickly. I am very excited to be a parent, but would love any
advice or guidance.

Thank you,

--
Stephanie Campbell, M.Ed.
School Counselor
Soaring Hawk Elementary

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