Why it’s important for every parent to spend quality time with their new-born

Parenting is a fun, emotional and yet a tough journey; one needs a lot of patience to raise children. Parents have to understand babies and handle them with care in a friendly and patient manner, no matter what age they are.

Every parent intends to raise a happy, smart and well-adjusted child. Children from birth to adulthood need time and attention from their parents. Parents are often anxious to raise a “successful” child and they overlook the importance of spending time with them or interacting personally with the child. Quality time is the time when both child and parents are fully engaged in an activity together and enjoy the same.

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The ultimate motive behind spending quality time with the new-born is to love, understand, and develop your child as a happy, well-adjusted, and contributing member of society. If the relationship between parent and child is unhealthy, there are several negative outcomes when the child or adolescent does not receive the right love, attention, and guidance from the parents.

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There’s no particular way to build a strong relationship with the child – every family has to figure it out for themselves. There will be times when the parents don’t or can’t do what they would like to do for the child, but if proper quality time is spent it would lead to positive relationship between the newborn and the parent.

The relationship can be built by:

1] Playing with the Baby – It’s really very important for new parents to play with their babies as much as they can. Parents should engage playing games like peekaboo, playing soft toys etc. with their newborn as it helps to develop a bond with them and it also makes the newborn explore other things.

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2] Baby Bathing – Give a bath to your baby every day is a great way to develop a bond with your child. It is helpful in developing the ability to recognize their parent’s touch and also it helps them to get familiar with a particular surrounding

43] Taking your baby for a stroll – Taking your baby out for rounds from a very young age helps in making the baby adjusted to the surroundings out there and also during this period there are chances for the baby to develop a close bond with their parents

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4] Being in the moment with the newborn – Being in the moment would be giving attention to the new-born so that the child feels valued and loved. This kind of attention doesn’t have to be a big deal – the parent just needs to be in that moment mentally, physically and emotionally with the new-born.

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Taking some time out every day for the baby. Also scheduling a time exclusively for you and your child. Be sure that you do not get interrupted and disturbed. This exclusive time can be anytime during the day, just before bedtime and lead to giving bedtime story lessons to the child or right after coming from your office or after some time. Keeping in mind that the child will be waiting at that time and there should not be any distractions.

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If you’re expecting a baby and thinking what best you can do to strengthen the bond with your upcoming baby you must think about preserving your baby’s umbilical cord blood and strengthen the cord of love.

Preserving this eternal bond not only helps you secure a healthy future for your child but also builds a connection right from the time of birth!

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Basics of Postnatal Care

Whether you’re expecting or have just delivered your bundle of joy, you need to take special care of yourself. Mothers face a lot of emotional and physical changes that last anywhere from six to eight months. It ranges from hormonal changes, emotional highs and lows, uterus contractions, post-partum depression, breast problems, vaginal discharge and more.

While most mothers are often lost when it comes to dealing with these issues, the article below will enlighten you with the basics of postnatal care. Here are some tips that you should keep in mind.

Postnatal Check-ups:

You endured the nine months of pain, survived labour and brought your beautiful baby into this world, make sure all that was not for nothing. Make it a mandate to do a postnatal check-up and ensure your wellbeing as well as that of your baby.

You can consider opting for a postnatal care package that guarantees to provide extensive personalized care. A good package will ensure the following:

  • Tracking your healing progress
  • Removing sutures if present
  • Checking your blood pressure
  • Breastfeeding support, education, and much more.

Diet and Exercise:

Every women wants to look her best and the same can be said for mothers after childbirth. What new mums should keep in mind, is that losing weight immediately after is a big no-no. It can affect the quality of breast milk supply and in turn affect your baby during their crucial stages of development. Have plenty of fluids and consume a balanced diet consisting of fruits, vegetables, grains and protein food is a must, to keep yourself healthy.

There are some substances like alcohol (wine, beer), caffeine (tea, coffee, and chocolate) that need to be completely avoided.

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Post-partum depression:

Monday blues have a cure, it’s called any other day. Baby blues? Well, if you ever face anxiety, crying spells, mood swings and the likes for more than two weeks in more severe forms than normal, that’s post-partum depression. Consulting a doctor for assistance can do wonders, also you must spend quality time with your loved ones to overcome any stress or emotional imbalances.

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Breastfeeding:

Mothers are a source of a child’s strength. That statement holds true especially considering that breastfeeding your newborn provides the essential nutrients and vital elements for its development. It goes without saying, proper hygiene during breastfeeding should be maintained.

In case you are facing over lactation and your baby is not consuming, you can store the milk. Use sterilised containers. Label and date your containers. Keep your breast pump clean and wash your hands before expressing and handling breast milk for storage.

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Vaginal Care

There are always few complications after childbirth. If you happen to have a vaginal tear during delivery, you are likely to experience pain for a few weeks. Extensive tears might take longer to heal and scheduling a check-up with your doctor is highly advised. Besides that, it is advisable to abstain from sexual intercourse for four to six weeks after delivery, giving your vagina time to properly heal.

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Urination problems:

The swelling or bruising of the tissues surrounding the bladder and urethra may lead to difficulty while urinating. With time, this difficulty usually resolves on its own. However, in the meantime, pouring water across your vulva while sitting on the toilet might help. Practicing Kegel exercises can help tighten your pelvic muscles.

In case you experience a strong, persistent urge to urinate, burning sensation when urinating or pass frequent but small amounts of urine, contact your doctor immediately.

The Takeaway:

Every mother should try to stay healthy before, during and after pregnancy. Staying on top of your healthcare appointments and following your doctor’s instructions ensures you and your baby are healthy, happy and safe.

5 DIY Ideas To Decorate Your Baby’s Room

Looking for DIY craft ideas to personalize your baby’s room? Look no further, we have a pool of ideas to help you!

  1. Graphic Wall Decals

Make your own wall decals with fabric, a pair of scissors and spray starch. Cut the fabric into whatever shapes you want, and attach them to the walls using the spray as an adhesive — don’t freak out about that fresh paint job; they’re easy to remove! From Positively Splendid

Picture3Photo courtesy: Positively Splendid 

  1. Picture Frames

This one’s easy and the most personalized idea, we swear. Pick up some picture frames at a craft store and put your favorite artwork, drawings or family photos inside them. Arrange them in a big cluster on one of your baby room walls — they’ll create a sophisticated yet cute look you can switch up as baby’s tastes change and add new photos.

jjPhoto: Baby Room Ideas 

  1. Homemade Mobile

Yep, you can even DIY baby’s mobile. All you need is a wooden hoop, wooden stars or cardboard stars (you can pick these up at the craft store), paint, some ribbon and a key ring. Paint the stars, attach strips of ribbon to the key ring and glue them to the wooden hoop, glue the stars to the ribbon, and hang. From LoveLifeBaby.Blogspot.com

Picture5Photo: lovebabylife.blogspot.com 

  1. Alphabet Wall Art

Make a cute ABC display. Head to the craft store (again) for some assorted sizes of wooden letters and paint them in different colors and designs. Then put them up on baby’s wall in lines. From Jessica-Kindergartenteacher.blogspot.com                 

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Picture4Photo: Jessica-kindergartenteacher.blogspot.com

  1. Swatch Portraits

To make these fabric circles, you need embroidery hoops, fabric, scissors and Elmer’s glue. Place the fabric in the embroidery hoop and glue it along the edge. Then hang the hoops on the wall. Super easy! From Aedriel’s Originals

Picture1Photo: Aedriel Originals

 

Nurture Your New Born

You’ve experienced 9 months of pregnancy, made it through the excitement of labour and delivery and now you’re ready to embark upon a new life with your little sweetheart. You bring your little bundle of joy home and finally get some peaceful time with your baby and only one thought crosses your mind – “You are my new world from now on, I will do anything and everything to take care of you!”.

Taking care of your newborn is one of the most special and rewarding experiences of your life. You may initially feel anxious about what to do in order to give your child constant attention and care.

There is so much information to take in when you become a parent. Sometimes when we look at the bigger picture of family planning, we miss out on small and simple things that a newborn would need from a parent.

Here are some tips that will help first-time parents feel confident about caring for a new-born in no time.

  • Feeding your baby

You will have to feed your baby at least 8 to 12 times per day during the initial weeks. You may want to wake your baby if he/she has not been fed for more than 4 hours. In the beginning, mothers may want to try feeding 10-15 minutes on each breast and then adjust the time as needed. Breastfeeding should be ‘on demand’ (when your baby is hungry), which is generally every 1-3 hours. The right time to feed your baby milk and solid foods is when he/she is sitting upright and can hold his/her head up straight

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  • Baby skin care

The skin of your newborn is very sensitive and is prone to rashes. Don’t panic if you see red rashes on your baby’s body in the first few months.  Keep your baby’s skin hydrated by bathing in warm water for only three to five minutes.

Avoid letting your baby sit or play or soak for long in soapy water. Apply baby lotion or moisturizer immediately after bath while the skin is still wet, and then pat dry instead of rubbing.

  • Picture4Baby’s Learning Process

Babies in this age spend more time awake and become more curious about their parents and about objects that they see. They have a special skill called imagination!

Design the nursery full of colours with lots of space to give them an outlet to express their creativity. Give them a room that has alphabets, games, toys and plain canvas space so that they can channelize their imagination and discover themselves. A child’s imagination runs wild, and parents must encourage them to express it!

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  • Getting Dads Involved

Dads, grab the chance to bond with your little bunny. A newborn gets used to being soothed by the mother when they are sulking. If Dads take the responsibility to rock their babies to sleep and soothe their tears, they will start bonding with their babies in no time!

Besides pacifying your baby, you can also be the fun parent. Get involved with the baby by playing games and teaching them how to walk. Let your baby come closer to you with these fond gestures.

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  •  Baby Sleep

It takes a few months for your little one to adjust to his/her sleeping cycles. Give them some time to understand the difference between dawn and sunset.

When the baby is awake during the day, interact and play with him/her as much as you can. Keep the house and his room light and bright. At night keep the lights and noise level low, and don’t spend too much time talking to him/her.  An infant’s sleep pattern settles down between the 3-6 months’ mark.

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Healthy Diet for a Breastfeeding Mom

Being a mother is a beautiful experience, but it comes with a lot of responsibility- not only towards your child, but towards your own health.

Your baby’s health depends on your breast milk and its nutrients. However, every woman’s breast milk is composed differently to suit her child, hence it is important for every woman to pay special attention to her diet. Here are some tips you could use when you are pregnant.

Maintaining a well-balanced diet

Enough nutrition during pregnancy is necessary for your baby to grow and develop. Vomiting and nausea are pretty common during the first few months of pregnancy, and can make this difficult. Try to have a well-balanced diet and take prenatal vitamins to assist with this.

Lactating mothers feel hungrier, which makes sense since your body is working extra to produce milk for your baby. Consuming small meals along with healthy snacks in between is an excellent way to keep your hunger pangs at bay and your energy levels on the higher side.

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Stop counting the number of calories!

Mothers who are Breastfeeding require 500 calories more than regular moms. That is 2,000 to 2,500 calories per day.

You should listen to your body and eat what it demands. That is usually all the calories your body actually needs. Counting calories does not help unless you are trying to watch your weight. Too much dieting can decrease the milk supply to the milk ducts. However, if you are well planned and diet sensibly, it should not pose any problems.

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Go for slow and steady weight loss

Many new moms discover that the weight they gain is very hard to lose; while others feel that it is easily lost. But the truth about weight loss remains that it depends largely on your body’s metabolism rate, how much physical activity you are getting in a day and the type of food you prefer to eat. Therefore one must always remember to lose the pregnancy weight very gradually. Ideally, take a year to get back to your pre-pregnancy self.

Never try to lose weight by dieting until at least two months after your baby is born. A reduced calorie intake in these first couple of months could leave you feeling a loss of energy and can possibly reduce/ diminish your milk supply.

But if you are way above your average/ideal weight, you could start shedding those extra pounds earlier. Remember to take your doctor’s advice before starting the weight loss process; and remember to drink plenty of water, to always stay hydrated!

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Avoid alcohol

In general alcohol should not be consumed while a mother is breastfeeding as it enters the milk and alters its composition. Having a small amount of alcohol will also affect your milk letdown reflex.

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Stay hydrated and cut down on your caffeine

16 cups of fluid is required by your body when you are breastfeeding and this includes the fluid from the food you consume. But there’s no need for you to keep track of the amount of water you consume a day. Your urine colour is also an indicator of how well hydrated your body is (light yellow or clear urine is a good sign).

It’s totally fine to have your morning cup of tea/ coffee but remember not to overdo it. Small traces of this caffeine will end up in your breast milk and your baby’s body is not fully equipped to break it down and expel it out.

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