The baby shower. A time to prepare the friend in your life with all they will need to raise a small person. But, what do they really need? I remember my mother and her friends laughing at my baby shower about all the "stuff" and commenting and sarcastically questioning how they ever raised my friends and I without a wipe warmer!? As much as I love new baby gear, I agree that some of it in probably unnecessary.  If you fill up a home with gadgets, gear, and too many toys to count, how will you have time or space to fully appreciate the incredible miracle that is a tiny newborn baby?

As early intervention therapists and mothers, we are often asked for recommendations for gifts for new babies and growing families.  So we decided to share some of those suggestions with you in our blog today. These, of course aren't inclusive (there are others that we love), but here is our Top 10 Baby Shower Gifts:


1) Nesting Blocks: An awesome "grow with me" toy, these can be progressed from early gazing, to hide and seek games, to stacking, counting, and sorting by color, to kicking, to pretend play homes! A great bang for your buck!



2) Basket of Classic Books: With a personal message to the child from you, a basket of classic books will foster bonding and literacy.  I love reading books given to me at my baby shower to my daughters. And at 6 and 7 years old now, they enjoy reading the messages written to them from family and friends!



3) A Simple Ball: It shocks me how many houses I work in don't have a ball for play!  A simple and inexpensive gift, a toy ball can be used early on to help babies gain postural strength and later on for turn taking and coordination. Every child needs a ball.




4) Baby Carrier: I remember an early realization as a new mom. The baby carrier (otherwise known as my new best friend) was the only way I could grocery shop (ummm, the car seat fills the entire shopping cart!), get anything done around the house, or calm a fussy baby suffering from acid reflux. As a mom, I couldn't have lived without it. As a physical therapist, I love the chest to chest bonding, neutral growth fostered by the close, warm contact, and postural strengthening these provide.



5) Black And White/Geometric Mobile: My initial response when armed with the powerful "registry gun"was to go for the matchy cute pastel mobile. I'm glad my "therapy brain" overpowered that urge and we went for an awesome black and white geometric option.  Simply put, new babies see and recognize these colors and shapes easily and they enjoy them much more.

6) Baby Mirror: So many functional purposes for the baby mirror! These encourage early head control, body awareness, and social and language development and keep baby occupied gazing at their amazing selves!



7) Bumbo Seat: I'm generally not a fan of what I like to call "the baby container." You've heard it over and over - floor time is best! But, I also understand that sometimes the floor just doesn't cut it! When that's the case, and when the baby is strong enough, The Bumbo Seat is my favorite as it supports while allowing movement and strengthening.

8) Links: Cheap. Easy to clean. Easy to transport. And most importantly, easy to hold. These are my first choice of an object to place in an infants hand.  A great choice for encouraging early fine motor and hand-eye coordination. And there are so many uses for these -- dangling as a mobile on the go, counting or sorting by color as baby turns into toddler... And if you are better and not losing things than I, you could even keep these for early addition practice with an older toddler.


9) Gift Certificate for Photography: Baby comes. Money is short, but memories are precious.  Especially, with a second, third, or fourth child, a gift of photography will be a much appreciated gift.  The darling newborn photo below is graciously shared on our website by Bellies To Earth Photography (http://www.bellies2earthphotography.com/).



10) 1-2-3 Just Play With Me!    At Milestones & Miracles, we believe the most important thing your baby needs is YOU! With over 22 combines years of home based intervention, we have lots of practice being creative with what is in each family's home.  We combined those creative ideas with what we know about early development and authored a product that is perfect as a shower gift for new families.  75 beautiful cards and housed in a boutique style box and are easily sorted by color (one for each developmental domain) and placed in order from birth to three.  The front of each card lists milestones for specific ages and the back pairs each with suggestions for simple play using simple objects like those listed above along with household items (Tupperware, egg cartons, and the shiniest spoon in your kitchen among a few). Gift a friend or yourself with 3 years worth of knowledge and fun today. Check out milestonesandmiracles.com to view a sample pdf card or purchase today! We ship for FREE! Happy shopping!

Today, April 2nd, is World Autism Awareness Day.  In an effort to raise awareness of this growing public health concern, Autism Speaks is asking all of us to "Light It Up Blue".  The Empire State Building will shine blue lights around its top, the Great Buddha at Hyogo in Kobe, Japan will be lit up blue and the Sydney Opera House, among many other global landmarks, will shine blue. The CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) just recently updated its estimate for autism prevalence to 1 in 88 children (1 in 54 boys and 1 in 252 girls).  That is a 78% increase in 6 years (2002-2008).  The president of Autism Speaks, the nation's largest autism science and advocacy organization, is now calling autism an epidemic in the US and calling our nation to action.


Autism, also termed Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), on the Autism Speaks website is described as "...a group of complex disorders of brain development. These disorders are characterized, in varying degrees, by difficulties in social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication and repetitive behaviors. They include autistic disorder, Rett syndrome, childhood disintegrative disorder, pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS) and Asperger syndrome."  


Symptoms of autism typically emerge between the ages of 2 and 3.  Some "red flags" to look for are:

• No big smiles or other warm, joyful expressions by six months
• No back-and-forth sharing of sounds, smiles, or other facial expressions by nine months
• No babbling by 12 months
• No back-and-forth gestures, such as pointing, showing, reaching, or waving by 12 months
• No words by 16 months
• No two-word meaningful phrases (without imitating or repeating) by 24 months
• Any loss of speech or babbling or social skills at any age

Your pediatrician can help you identify these behaviors in your child and refer you to a specialist.  But it is also important that you, as a parent, be aware of the signs and symptoms and express any concerns to your pediatrician should you suspect that your child is at risk.  Awareness of typical development between the ages of 2 and 3 is critical so that you can identify any delays in your child.  1-2-3 Just Play With Me can provide you with a guide to follow, tracking your child's development in not only language and social skills, but motor, cognitive and self-help skills as well.  Let's face it, our pediatricians are busy people and care for our children in so many ways.  Unless we express concerns to them specific to autism, your doctor may miss some signs that you could help them identify.  Early detection, intervention and proven behavior therapies improve the prognosis for children with autism.  Know the signs, familiarize yourself with typical child development and be ready to advocate for your child should you need to.  For more information on Autism visit www.autismspeaks.org.o

Schedules. Sometimes we yearn for them to make the day seem normal. Sometimes we despise them and long for freedom. Families are busy and children are expected to follow "the schedule." But for all kids, this is not that simple.  Every day as early intervention therapists, we are asked questions just like this one, "How can I help my child transition between activities more easily?"

It's questions like this, that encouraged us to create 1-2-3 Just Play With Me.  This product, a  card set is a unique product as it combines milestones associated and each stage and in each developmental domain with simple, fun, and interactive play strategies that match each milestone.  As mothers, my business partner and I feel it is unique as it it is a quick, all in one easy reference that allows a parent to enjoy each stage and not feel overwhelmed.  We were unable to find such a reference that gave milestones AND activities in a simple format when our children were infants and toddlers.  As therapists, we believe in the idea that developmental and interactive play is crucial for child development.  We also feel the product helps to supplement developmental screens at regular pediatrician check up visits. 

Here it is! Perfect gift for yourself or others!

So today, we are blogging to show you just how this card set can work practically in your day.  If you had the same question listed above for your own child, the card set would help you understand WHEN difficulty with transitions is actually typical with children and WHAT are some SIMPLE WAYS to work through the stage and make day more enjoyable for your family.


Our cards are in order from birth to three and each color represents a different developmental domain (gross and fine motor, social-emotional, speech and language, and cognitive skills).  For the challenge of transition troubles a parent could pull out card number 56 (a blue card representing social emotional development) and read that transition trouble (along with other skills) are typical at this age.  Flipping the card around will reveal a pairing of play ideas and education to coordinate with this stage.


Here's some practical ideas that are shared on the back of card 56.  Tactile or visual representations of the day can be helpful in a child understanding what comes next.  Toddlers usually don't understand units of time, but they can learn to understand what is first, next, and last.  These are easy ways to reinforce a schedule.


THE START FINISH BIN: Place items representing the child's day (plastic food, toothbrush, car, small blanket) in the start bin and the beginning of each day.  When an activity has been completed, let the child move the item representing that activity (block for play time) in the finish bin.

START FINISH BIN

BEGINNING OF THE DAY - LOTS TO DO!

BANANAS! BREAKFAST IS OVER!

TIME TO GO BYE-BYE!

If you child likes books, a simple photo album with pictures of your child doing daily activities.  You can "read" the story of the day to prepare your child for what lies ahead.

This simple Velcro schedule (made on a piece of card board from the recycling bin) allows you to change the order of your day as your routines change.

Another option to accommodate changing schedules is using a simple plastic pocket sheet. This one was purchased at an office supply store as an insert meant to hold business cards in a binder.  Printed pictures were placed in each pocket and placed on the side of the refrigerator to mark the main activities of the day.


A fun way to get your child engaged in their daily routine is to let them move a picture of themselves from activity to activity. How cute is that?!


Whether you use these ideas or your own, remember that empowering your child with knowledge of what to expect in their day helps them to become more effective at regulating their emotions and preparing himself for changes which equate to a more peaceful day for you!!

Like these suggestions? 1-2-3 Just Play With Me is filled with 75 cards that will educate you on what's happening with your child and encourage you to jump in and play with relevant, simple, and creative ideas just like these. Order three years worth of knowledge and ideas today at milestonesandmiracles.com (click shop and play).  Our website also has a pdf example of one of our cards.  Want more information? Feel free to contact us on Face book (Milestones & Miracles) or email us today: milestonesandmiracles@gmail.com.

We believe that the better you understand your child at each stage, the more you can enjoy and cherish each moment of those precious early years! They sure pass quickly! Enjoy!

This weekend my kids took part in a sibling class at our local hospital.  My 6 year old daughter was in her glory, as I suspected she would be!  She could answer most of the instructor's questions, she diapered and swaddled her doll like a pro and hogged most of the time in front of the nursery window "oohhhing" and "aahhing" at the newborn babies.  I wasn't sure what to expect from my 3 1/2 year old...but he did surprisingly well too!  He participated in the activities and was excited to hold, diaper and swaddle his doll (even though it was girl!).
In about a month, our family of four is going to become a family of 5.  Or as some would say, my husband and I are moving from man to man defense to zone!  And as most parents do, I am already feeling guilty about how having another child will rock the worlds of my daughter and son.  I am confident my daughter will adjust well; she has already been through this once when her brother was born and was so excited about him and helping me take care of him she didn't have time to be jealous.  And now that she is older and more able to help out, I will be sure to give her some responsibilities in helping to take care of the baby so that she feels even more important as a second time big sister.  I do worry about my son, though.  I admit I have babied him for longer than I should've; carrying him whenever he asks, excusing some of his behavior that should be disciplined and conceding when he kicks and screams when I should stand firm.  It wasn't until recently that he started acknowledging to others that there even is a baby in my tummy.  Up until then he would tell them there was a puppy in there!  I do think it was difficult for him to grasp the idea of me pregnant.  It was an abstract thing to him until until my tummy got so big it was in his way when he sat in my lap!  I also think the pregnancy clicked more with him after I showed him pictures of when he was in my tummy and the day he was born.
So to prepare both of the kids for what lies ahead I have been reading up on the do's and don'ts when it comes to welcoming a new sibling into the family.  I'm hoping to ease this transition for all of us, and hope that these tips help your family in the same way too!

Before the New Baby arrives:

*Visit the hospital where the baby will be delivered to help ease your child's anxiety about where you will be when you are gone.
*Enroll your child(ren) in a sibling preparation class.  Ours was offered by the Wellness program through our local hospital...totally worth the registration costs, in my opinion!
*Read age-appropriate books or watch videos about becoming a big brother/sister.  Check out your local library for this.
*Allow the older sibling(s) to help prepare for the baby:  make a list of what the baby will need, let them help you decorate the nursery (hanging a picture drawn by the big sibling in the baby's room really helps them feel involved), help mommy pack her suitcase for the hospital.
*Share photos with your older child(ren) of when they were born.
*Help the older child(ren) create or pick out a special gift to give to the new baby.

After the Baby arrives:

*Try to keep your old routine up for the older child(ren) as much as you can.  The familiarity and predictability of the "old routine" will help ease any anxiety your older child(ren) may be experiencing about the change in your family after the new baby's arrival.
*  Provide your child(ren) with a baby doll and props (diaper bag, diapers, blanket, etc.) so that they may care for their baby while you care for your new baby.
*Include the older sibling(s) in the routine of caring for the new baby.
*Don't "blame the baby" ( example: say you have to leave somewhere because the baby has to eat).  This may cause your older child(ren) to resent the baby.
*Attach emotions to the baby's cries; she's crying because she's hungry or tired.
*Encourage friends and family to greet your older child(ren) before greeting the baby and to ask the older child(ren) about the new baby.  Older siblings will take pride in sharing the news of their new sibling and want to be considered the baby expert by others!
*And lastly, try to schedule some one on one time with your older child(ren) daily.  Just 15 minutes a day to play and engage with them will reassure them that are loved and not forgotten about.


                                           My son, hard at work, diapering his baby.
                                          My daughter, proud of her "Official Big Sister" certificate.

This is a great article we wanted to share from the National Association for the Educaiton of Young Children.  The article explains how simiple, everyday household items can be interesting and beneficial toys for little ones.  It reminds us to choose our kids' toys based upon the basic principles of child development and the role of play, not popularity or price.  Toy companies want us to think the most expensive toy that sings the most songs and has the most lights is going to be what's best for our child's development.  But that is not so.  Children often find more basic toys, often homemade ones, more intriguing because their minds are challenged.  So read on, and rethink what is in your child's toy box.