Anyone who started reading the blog at the wee beginning knows that we practice EC: Elimination Communication or IPT: Infant Potty Training, at least on a part-time basis. So I wanted to do a quick update.

We had what I guess to be about 50-60% “success” rate of catching potties. And we were only having to change a dirty diaper about every 2-3 days, since Twilli does most of her poops in the toilet, first thing in the a.m.

While we were out of town, we really relied mostly on the diaper. But I still took Twilli to the potty in the morning to do her daily “business”. Since the schedule was wacky, she wasn’t as regular as usual. So we were having at least one dirty diaper about 5 out of 7 days.

Since we’ve been home, I’m proud to say that Twilli is doing really well with it again! I think we’ve only had 1 or 2 dirty diapers in the 6 days we’ve been back!

We’re also happy to be starting the transition to cloth diapers! We picked up a small, 1 day supply of 6 unbleached Indian cotton prefolds and 3 covers. I decided to scrounge up enough funds to do that in order to support a lovely mama of triplets, who decided to amp her efforts from an online store to a p/t brick & mortar store.

Cutie Tooties - CLOTH DIAPERS and more

Sunny was SOOOO helpful about making it possible for us to get the BARE BONES minimum “starter” set. Her store is lovely! I wish her the best of luck and hope all of the natural parents in Knoxville support her!

Those prefolds are SOOOOOO soft!!! And I truly believe that wearing the cloth diapers is going to accelerate the EC, since Twilli definitely feels the effect of the wet diaper and definitely TELLS US about it! (She’s always been very laid back about the wet disposables. At least they do their job of pulling the moisture off baby’s bum.)

I somehow feel like we’ve taken an inside out approach to all of this! Everything I read recommended combining EC w/cloth diapering. But my Westernized “modern” ways sometimes hang on with a vengeance! lol

Please leave a comment and let us know if you have any experience with EC or CLOTH DIAPERS.

I would like to thank you all for your patience lately. I have not been writing nearly as much as I should be. Ideally, I would post 3-4 times per week. But these are crazy times. Our economy is severely bent! Everyone is feeling the crunch. But some are more effected than others.

I’ve been providing moral, social, and logistical support to a dear friend who is living in a condo that is deep in foreclosure. My friend “Joe” has been dealing with this stress for some time. His parents, who live out of state, actually own the property but let him live there while he was in college. But they have not discussed ANY of the financial matters with him. Personally, I think they are doing a disservice to him AND themselves by not sharing these vital matters with such a willing and fast learner. Instead, they tried to handle things on their own and told him “it is being taken care of”.

Anyway, to make a long story short, I am like family to him and none of our relatives live in Florida. So we’ve been trying to scramble and find resources, advocacy, etc. Unfortunately, Joe’s parents are not very internet savvy and he doesn’t have internet access. So I have been doing a lot of legwork.

While the information is very sobering and disconcerting, I am learning a lot. It seems like there are soooooo many people facing foreclosure or other financial crisis. But there are legitimate agencies that can help. The MOST IMPORTANT thing is to NOT WAIT to seek help!!! A real estate attorney told me, “These things are like cancer. If they are caught early, often they can be stopped.”

I am grateful that I have been able to be there for my friend. I pray that everything works out. And I would like to “pay it forward” by sharing some of these resources.

• HUD Approved Housing Counseling Agencies - There are so many scams happening now. Find a reputable agency through HUD: U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department website.
• NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING SERVICES - This is the local Miami, Florida agency we are dealing with. (It is HUD approved.)
• Broken Credit Blog - This blog has some interesting information about consumer rights and foreclosure.
• Aging and Disability Resource Center of Broward County, FL - Here is an agency for senior citizens and disabled people in Broward County (Greater Fort Lauderdale).
• Legal Aid of Broward County, FL - Provides service provides legal advice and representation to low income residents. They have a department specializing in housing.
• National Consumer Law Center - This agency claims to defend the rights of low-income consumers. I haven’t fully browsed the site, but wanted to include it just in case.

Please share by LEAVING A COMMENT and let us know if you have found any other good resources or have experience with these matters.

It’s Dad’s turn to write “Wears The Baby Wednesday” this week. I’m between daytime gigs right now, so my schedule opened up to attend a Broward Babywearing Meeting this past Monday, where Renee attends regularly.

Mothers of varying experience levels gather to share tips, and allow each other to try out the myriad baby carriers available today. You can try out ring slings, soft structured carriers, mei tais and other Asian-inspired carriers, and mobi wraps.

Due to the large turnout (yay!), Kimberley decided that we would do introductions then have a few demonstrations. The back carry was demonstrated with a few different carriers. After the formal demonstrations of the back carry, the curious to paired up with the experienced for some one-on-one instruction.

The next meeting is tentative for this Saturday, April 26th, at Volunteer Park, in Plantation. Check in with the Broward Babywearing site to find out more.

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Check out the FORT LAUDERDALE/MIAMI CHANGING TABLES MAP here. This will have to be a community effort. So PLEASE COMMENT about your favorite places to hang out, in the Greater Miami and Fort Lauderdale area, and how they fare on the changing table scale. And I’ll add the places (and your link, if you like) to our new changing tables Google map.

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Last week I noticed that Ariana’s hands have found her mouth. I thought this was mainly a way to explore the hands. But now I’m convinced it is more… much more.

Yesterday we had some friends over for a very unconventional Thanksgiving feast. (We did turkey burgers on the grill!) And the little princess was very clingy and fussy. I fed her. Burped her. Changed diaper. But nothing helped. Usually, nursing is the magic bullet. But yesterday, that didn’t even do the trick. She seemed to be in pain. And the situation quickly degraded.

Soon she was screaming at the top of her lungs! My anxiety levels were rising fast. (Remember, I can usually calm baby down easily by nursing.) AND we had guests. AND I was trying to finish making thecreamed spinach, whose recipe had 17 steps! (I ended up burning the butter that I had put into the skillet before the onions were even chopped.) AND my husband was tending to the fire on the charcoal grill. I was frazzled. One of our friends (who I lovingly refer to as the “new age version of my mom”) asked if she was teething.

We had noticed her putting her hands in her mouth. And she has been drooling an awful lot. When she tried to suck on my arm, and the baby carrier straps, and everything else, it began to be clear.

At 3 1/2 months, our baby has shown these symptoms, leading me to believe she is indeed teething:

• Excessive drooling
• Gumming/sucking on hands
• Random, unexplained crying that seems to come out of nowhere
• Nap/sleep schedule disturbance
• Did I mention drooling?
• Sucking on baby carrier strap and bib
• Newfound interest in the pacifier
• Irritability
• Increased frequency of nursing
• Sputtering cough (from drool)

It is such a helpless feeling to see your beloved baby in pain. But here are some remedies that have proven to be helpful so far:

• Munchkin Teething Blanket With Pacifier Attachment
• Sassy Teething Wing Butterfly - after the initial shock, she LOVED it!
• Nursing
• Rocking in the swing (helps her drift off to sleep)
• Being held in a sling/baby carrier

Even though people typically recommend topical gels, I am hesitant to try these. Especially since my daughter is still quite young. I am curious to learn more about the homeopathic pellets or tablets. I am open to infant Tylenol or Motrin, if all else fails.

Someone on ParentHacks recommended HEARING PROTECTION (for the parents, of course). I may just have to try that! I know it will be easier for baby to “keep it together” if mom isn’t throwing her anxiety into the mix!

***Please share your teething advice with us. Leave a comment.***

Wow! I just stumbled onto ParentHacks.com. My husband and I were just discussing the notion of parenting hacks. (I call him “MacGyver”.) But instead of being upset that someone beat us to it, I’m thrilled at the synchronicity.

This is a site I’ll definitely spend some time at! (And I will shamelessly steal one of their means of starting conversations with the readers. By posing a question at the end of each post for our cherished readers to reply to. )

Here is a hack I read from one of the comments on the site (I haven’t tried it yet. But I’m confident that my hubby will!):

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Homemade Baby Wipes

16 oz. water
1/4 cup of baby shampoo
1/4 cup of baby oil

Cut a roll of paper towels in half, put them in a tupperware container and pour mix over the roll.

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***What’s your favorite PARENTING HACK?*** (If you don’t have any of your own, reference one from ParentHacks.com.)

Birthing Centers in South Florida

A Birth Center
This is where our baby was born! The staff is excellent. We highly recommend A BIRTH CENTER to those in the greater Miami/Fort Lauderdale area.
www.abirthcenter.com

Hollywood Birth Center
Another local birthing center. (I do not have personal experience with this one. But it’s another option in South Florida.)
www.hollywoodbirthcenter.com

Miami Maternity Center
Another local birthing center. (I do not have personal experience with this one. But it’s another option in South Florida.)
www.miamibirth.com

Natural Childbirth Resources

Birth Centers Online
The website of the National Association of Childbearing Centers (NACC). A great multi-media site with a wealth of information on birth centers, midwifery, pregnancy, birth and early parenting.
www.BirthCenters.org

Birthing Naturally
Website explaining the benefits of natural childbirth and comparing various options of childbirth.
www.birthingnaturally.net

BabyCenter.com - Natural Childbirth
Excellent site for information about pregnancy, birth and beyond — Natural Childbirth is reviewed by the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board.
www.babycenter.com

Doulas of North America
Website of Doulas of North America. Information on locating doulas, certification, and training.
www.dona.org

Midwives Alliance of North America
The website of MANA - a professional organization for midwives.
www.mana.org

Waterbirth International
A comprehensive website on waterbirth for consumers and practitioners.
www.waterbirth.org

Marg Stark’s What No One Tells The Mom is an entertaining read for dad too! I haven’t made my way through it cover-to-cover yet, but I do enjoy it every time I read a random passage.

At the end of chapter 9, there is a sidebar titled, “Mommy Experts Tell You How to Get Your Spouse to Lift a Finger.” Renee will agree that it’s not applicable to me, but I read it anyway. Just a few bullet points in, it dawned on me that these tactics would be effective on your older children!

In the past, I have remarked that our teenage son is behaving a lot like the classic father figure from generations past. He prefers his usual distractions, adamantly refuses to change diapers, and requires reminders to do the few chores he has. Maybe this suggests that many men don’t progress beyond adolescence.

Here are Marg Stark’s tips for getting your spouse more involved:

• Make lists of all the specifics you handle. Highlight the highest priorities. Renegotiate.
• Write a plan and post it prominently in the house. Revisit priorities often.
• Leave the baby with him for several hours at a time, from the earliest age possible.
• Acknowledge his breadwinning. Catch him doing something good and compliment him.
• Give him a job, say being in charge of bedtime - baths, teeth, stories, and all.
• Try not to interfere, no matter how poorly he’s doing something.
• Drop your standards dramatically. Expect him to leave tasks somewhat undone, and less than perfectly done.
• Reward help with sex.
• Get kids involved in housework too.

If you are here, you are probably an intelligent and enlightened individual interested in being a better parent. Being the intelligent person you are, it is obvious which modifications you will need to make to a few of the tactics above. You don’t need a warning label on your coffee to avoid burning yourself. You can figure out how to adapt Ms. Stark’s advice for your older children without doing anything inappropriate.

We’ve employed some of these suggestions, and our teenage son is making progress. I can’t stress enough the importance of positive reinforcement. If you follow only one suggestion, then make it this one. You will see what you’re looking for. If you look for a lazy bum, that’s what you’ll find. If you’re looking to catch him doing something good, chances are, you’ll find it. Now that our teen lifts a finger, I’m less inclined to lift one of mine.

If you found this information helpful, feel free to help us continue helping everyone.

How do you select a pediatrician for your newborn?

Among the dozens of “the most important decisions you’ll ever make” about your child, this one deserves your careful attention. Most doctors will want to see the child at 2 days, 2 weeks, 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 9 months and 12 months. You and your child will be spending a lot of time with the doctor the first year, and will hopefully continue the relationship through adolescence.

Get referrals from trusted sources, narrow down a list of candidates, and carefully evaluate them. There are solo practitioners, and group practices. There are family doctors and pediatricians. No pediatrician or family doctor is inherently bad. However, you will need to find one that fits your child, your lifestyle, and your beliefs.

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