If you’re anything like me, bedtime doesn’t always go smoothly. Some days all is great and those last few minutes with the little ones snuggled up in bed listening to you finish the bedtime story are just perfect.
But there are many nights when the baby won’t go to sleep or your toddler asks for a drink for the 5th time, you’re frazzled from a long day and you just want the kids to GO TO SLEEP! On evenings like this, I can say for certain that I’m not exactly “emotionally available”.
Yet new infant sleep research suggests that parents who are “emotionally available” to their babies and toddlers at bedtime help their children to sleep better at night. Researchers videotaped mothers in 39 families as they put their babies to bed, and also had them fill out questionnaires and sleep diaries. Dads were recruited to participate in the research but not enough of them interacted with their little ones long enough and so the study focused on mothers. (more…)
Noun 1. lie-in – a long stay in bed in the morning. A much coveted event in the world of parenting small children.
Before babies, you may have dreamed about exotic holidays or romantic weekend getaways. After babies, a proper lie-in is probably the ultimate luxury. Two or three extra hours of undisturbed, blissful sleep to make you human again, to give you a little extra energy for the week ahead.
Which is why we have a great rule in our house. My husband and I get one lie-in each per week. Of course, the reality of a lie-in for each of us is just a touch different. (more…)
In another life, before children, I worked in Human Resources, so I’m always interested in the changes to employment law that come through in April each year.
The legislation to introduce additional paternity leave and pay will be effective for children born after 3 April 2011. This new law will mean dads can take off three months’ paid leave at the end of mum’s nine months so that she can return to work. He can also then take a further 3 months’ unpaid paternity leave.
I can see this legislation is a good thing for families. Especially since it increases the time that mum and dad can spend with their new baby – although the statutory maternity/paternity pay is unlikely to come close to the income most parents earn when going out to work.
When I left work in January 2006, a naive mother to be, I’d already filled in my maternity plan. I was going back to work six months after my baby was born on a full time basis. I was even viewing the six months off as a bit of a holiday! (more…)
I love Easter. It was an important day in our house when I was growing up. The Easter Bunny would bring a little basket for my sister, my brother, and me, filled with pocket money size gifts and a chocolate egg.
We always had an Easter egg hunt in the garden, and had a big family lunch. Do people still do this?
This year, for my four year old, Laurie, I’ve bought a bucket and trowel for the garden and filled it with: (more…)
Remember the exciting days of your first pregnancy when (let’s be honest) you had no idea what it would feel like to have a real life baby? You spent your lunch break surfing the net for all the things you wanted for your precious newborn? The weekends were spent planning dreamily, shopping excitedly and chattering to anyone who would listen about your pregnancy and the future?
Looking back on all the baby stuff you bought or had given to you from friends and family, how much of it did you use? Were all the products recommended to you by the Mother and Baby magazines any good? (more…)
Last week I found out that my eldest son, Laurie, who is nearly four, has asthma.
Since then I’ve learned that over 1.1 million children in the UK have asthma. It often happens in response to a trigger – most commonly colds, smoke, house dust mites, pets (especially cats and dogs), molds, fumes and fragrances, cold air and pollen but there are many more. (more…)
Parents of small children have to make a lot of decisions. Issues like breast or bottle feeding, whether to let your under two watch Cbeebies, should you stay at home or work, what school should kiddo go to…. Every step along the way involves parents deciding what they feel is best for their child.
I find the bigger stuff easier than the day to day issues. Hubby and I are pretty much agreed on nutrition, schooling, TV watching, activities and so on… But the day to day decision making is harder. My little people test the boundaries of my decision making hourly. From my nearly four old who wants, wants, wants NOW, to my nearly one year old who’s happiest stuffing toilet paper down the loo when I’m not looking, I am constantly checking my reactions, deciding how to respond.
I have a rule I follow when making decisions, which I learned from Suzy Welch’s book, 10-10-10 and it works. Basically, whenever I have a decision to make, I ask myself what the consequences of my decision will be in ten minutes time, in ten months time and in ten years. Hence the title, 10-10-10. (more…)
