The Birth Lounge Blog

(This is a two part series! Check last week for Part One: birth to 6 months!) Toys have so many great benefits! They bring joy, concentration, and education for children of all ages. Even adults can’t resist a good toy, like a new high-tech blender for the kitchen or a cool solar powered lawn mower for the yard. But when it comes time to build that baby registry and fill that nursery with toys for your expected baby, parents find it so difficult to choose the “right” ones from the thousands of toys out there on the market today. But it really doesn’t need to be that hard! You don’t need the newest addition of baby toys. Knowing what stage of development your baby is in and how to use the toys you have is the key to success when playing with your child during their first year. We are going to help you navigate that! I am going to break down the major developmental milestones of your baby’s first year of life and a few toys that can help foster that development. Playtime is going t...

(This is a two part series! Check back for part two 6 months to 12 months next week!) Toys have so many great benefits! They bring joy, concentration, and education for children of all ages. Even adults can’t resist a good toy, like a new high-tech blender for the kitchen or a cool solar powered lawn mower for the yard. But when it comes time to build that baby registry and fill that nursery with toys for your expected baby, parents find it so difficult to choose the “right” ones from the thousands of toys out there on the market today. But it really doesn’t need to be that hard! You don’t need the newest addition of baby toys. Knowing what stage of development your baby is in and how to use the toys you have is the key to success when playing with your child during their first year. We are going to help you navigate that! I am going to break down the major developmental milestones of your baby’s first year of life and a few toys that can help foster that development. Playtime i...

(HeHe's article is published for Birch Baby  HERE  in its entirety.) When someone says something is bigger than you, a natural instinct is to be bigger than whatever is bigger than you, right? Wrong. That will only lead to a vicious and very unhealthy cycle. However, there are a few things you can do. I wish I could say, "take this magic pill and all your troubles will go away." (*cue my wanting to save the whole world complex*) I don't have a special pill, but I do have a few words of advice about what I've learned to do.  Remind Yourself. Constantly remind yourself of what you have learned and why this is bigger than you. Whether that look like, "They are not a good person and no matter how nice I am to them, they won't change," or "This person needs more help than I can provide them and they aren't open to speaking with anyone new," or maybe even a little self-preservation of "I just can't continue to support t...

Our TOP Nutrition Posts You've requested it - here is our TBH round up for all things nutrition! Eating for the Trimesters with Lainey Younkin  - Lainey Younkin, whose nickname is “the dietician who doesn’t put people on diets”, is a nutritionist in Boston who takes an honest and realistic approach to helping her clients live a healthy lifestyle. Rather than putting clients on diets that often only yield the desired results in the short-term and can make you feel guilty about eating, Lainey helps her clients make gradual, more sustainable adjustments that allow them to live healthier lives in the long-term. Sugar Detox and Fueling Your Body with Food  - Hehe talks to sisters and business partners, Erika and Tiffany Brown, about their passion for food and the major impacts that what you eat can have on your life.The foods that you eat can affect countless aspects of your life, from your weight to your energy level to your skin and even your susceptibility ...

 (HeHe's article is published for Birch Baby HERE in its entirety.) The time immediately following your birth is crucial to the well being of your child. Research says that respecting what is called “The Golden Hour” can help give your child the best possible start.  If it is possible, requesting that your medical staff and birth team respect this time can help your baby adjust to life on the outside before they are poked and prodded with newborn test and passed from person to person for birth stats.  The way in which the golden hour mentality is carried out varies from culture to culture. In some cultures an extended golden hour called “lying in” is a practice in which women are waited upon and only allowed to do minimal tasks such as getting up to use the bathroom, but not to shower.  It is said to be supportive of postpartum healing and mother-child attachment. However, in some cultures, parents aren’t afforded any paid time off of work to re...

(This post is a piece HeHe wrote for JDEducational.  This article can be read in it's entirety by clicking HERE .) Bringing home a baby can be an exciting time for the whole family. However, it can also be challenging to navigate. Introducing Child #1 to Child #2 can cause new emotions to arise for your older child and disrupt any sense of normalcy you may have. Keeping these helpful hints in mind when preparing this transition can help for a smoother change in family dynamics . Tip #1: Prepare in Advance with Language, Books, Songs, Pretend Play Tip #2: Help your child settle into their new role. Tip #3: Involve your older child(ren) Tip #4: Routines (vs schedules) Tip #5: Carve out alone time for each child. Tip #6: Capture casual snapshots Tip #7: Ask for help (Read more about these tips by clicking HERE to read the full article!) The relationship between siblings is an unbreakable bond. However, your interaction and support as a parent is...

Hey Tranquility Tribe! There seems to be about a million and one decisions that the world throws at you when you’re becoming a parent, and if you’re expecting a baby boy, there’s yet another one to add to the list: to circumcise or not to circumcise? This week, we’re going to learn all about circumcision and the pros and cons of the procedure to help you out with making the best informed decision that you can! As always, let’s get started with the basics - what exactly is circumcision? It’s a surgical procedure to remove the foreskin (the hood of skin that covers the head of the penis), done typically within a few days after birth. The procedure itself is relatively quick and simple. The penis is numbed via injection or topical cream, a clamp is attached to the penis and the foreskin is removed - all in the span of about ten minutes. It then takes about seven to ten days to heal, during which the bandage should be changed upon every d...