Typical Toddler Schedule

If you are one of the many poeple who have come to this site after googling “Typical Toddler Schedule”, please leave a comment to let me know what you are hoping to find. I don’t currently have any posts on this subject but could ask members of my “toddler network” to write one. Before doing that, I thought it might be helpful to survey my audience and see what question they would like answered.

M. Kate

Does Your Mommy Know …?

“Does your mommy know that you are going to hurt your back in that stroller?” is the question my ‘well-meaning’ neighbor asked my 7 month daughter on Saturday afternoon. My daughter looked blankly back at my neighbor unsure of how to respond. Her typical ‘da da’ or ‘ta ta’ didn’t seem to fit the situation but the neighbor was looking at her expectently for a response.

I was standing behind my daughter quickly sifting through my possible retorts. Here are some of the options:

• “Actually I bought this stoller specifically to harm my child’s back. I want to support the chiropractic industry.”
• Bursting into tears and sobbing, “Am I a bad mommy? Have I scarred her for life?”
• Slapping her

Since my neighbor was not addressing me (and was avoiding eye contact), I decided to ignore her remark. As we continued the conversation, I was still overwhelmed with the passive-aggressiveness of the statement. She obviously had an opinion about my stroller choice but she didn’t have the nerve to address me directly.

A few minutes later I decided to address her directly and just asked, “So do you really think this stroller is going to permanently damage Becca’s back?” At this point, my neighbor started back pedeling pretty quickly. From what I could piece together (between her stuttering explanation and apologetic statements), the stroller I was using wasn’t ‘meant’ to be used for long periods of time and that a neighbor once criticized her for using a similar stroller. I explained that I wasn’t using the stroller for long periods of time and wondered why people felt the need to criticize others (my neighbor wholeheartedly agreed!).

As I write this post, I am still wondering about the rampant need to give unsolicited and judgemental advice to other parents. Or even feel the need to make very odd comments. It is really amazing!

I have had a woman yell at me to put a coat on my daughter because it was cold outside (I was going from one office to another in a building- no need for a coat). In one afternoon, I was told that my daughter was either dressed too warmly or not warmly enough — can I at least get a consensus? I have been told that she is “too big”, “Are you feeding her too much?” or “too tiny”, “Is she getting enough to eat?” I have been told that she has “thunder thighs” and that she has “jowls” (what?!?!).

Most of the remarks are silly and downright idiotic but some of them hit the “mommy nerve”. This is the part of me that worries that I am making the “right” choices for my daughter.

• Am I feeding her enough or too much?
• Should I have invested in a more expensive stroller?
• Did she spend too much time in the Jolly Jumper?
• Is she outside too much or not enough?

When I am out with Becca, she definitely receives a lot of attention. She is at a very interactive stage and people enjoy talking to her (I know her smile melts my heart) and overall the attention is positive. But once in awhile, I am astonished by the comments people make.

I would love to hear about other crazy comments people have heard.

M. Kate

Questions to Ask When Choosing a Pediatrician

Like many new parents, I was very concerned about choosing the right pediatrician for my daughter.  So I surveyed my family and friends and complied this list of helpful questions:

 

Questions about the baby’s care in the hospital:

·        Do they have privileges at the hospital I am delivering at?

·        If so, which doctor will visit? When?

·        If not, what is the procedure for transferring information and records to the practice?

·        What is the timing for the first visit after the hospital?

 

General questions about the practice:

·        Do they have board certification in pediatrics? What are there credentials?

·        How many years are they in practice?

·        Where are their hospital privileges?

·        What distinguishes their practice from other pediatric groups?

 

·        What are the office hours?

·        What is the procedure for after hours’ questions?

·        Do they have a question line?

 

·        Will we be seeing the pediatrician or nurse practitioner for routine visits?

·        Is it possible to see the same pediatrician routinely for well child visits?

·        What is the ability of getting seen in the same day?

·        Do they have “well child and sick child” waiting room segregation?

 

 

·        What are their antibiotics and immunization practices, preferences or theories?

·        What are their views in regards to breastfeeding?

 

Question to ask if you have twins:

·        Can both children be seen at the same time?

 

Questions to ask your insurance:

·        Is the pediatrician I have chosen covered?  Are the other pediatricians in the practice also covered?

·        Is there a co-pay for well-visits or sick visits?

 

M. Kate

Latest List of Recalled Products

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission provides e-mail alerts of the latest recalled products.

Thanks to this service, I realized that the following products were recalled:

Here’s the link to sign up for your alerts:

US Consumer Product Safety Commission

I am sometimes amazed at the products that need to be recalled. I have seen a 1/2 dozen teething rings that were recalled! I was shocked to see that I was given one of the recalled teethers as a gift (the ironic part is I thought the ring seemed a little hard for Becca to ‘chew’ on). I have found this e-mail alert to be unobtrusive and helpful. I also occasionally search the site for items.

M. Kate

Has your baby mixed-up night with day?

If your baby has taken this bib to heart, the following advice might help you.*

 

• When you get up in the morning, bring your baby outside for a few minutes to experience the daylight (dress them appropriately of course). Then try to get them out one or two more times during the day.

• At night, keep the light in your baby’s room to a minimum and keep your interactions with him or her minimal and quiet.

• Pick a time at night (7 or 8 p.m.) to change your baby into his or her pajamas.

• Pick a time in the morning to change him or her back into day clothes.

• This feels silly at first (after all they are sleeping 16 hours a day). However, it helps to set a routine which differentiates day from night.

These tips were submitted by Sarah C. , mother of two.

M. Kate

*These tips are even more effective when you use them before your baby has flipped day with night. Thanks to Sarah C. I avoided this issue.