Crying It Out vs Crying To Sleep

Crying it out and crying to sleep: is there a difference? To me, there is. My interpretation of these phrases probably won’t match every other parent’s interpretation, but I’m going to tell you about it all the same. To begin with, I am not a supporter of the “cry it out” method. I never have been, and I don’t think I ever will be. Sure, there are times when I am really tired, feel like I have no patience left, and put my daughter in her crib, thinking, “I don’t care how long she cries – she’s staying in there … Continue reading

A New Obesity Risk for Your Baby

We all want our babies to be healthy. Getting your little one off on the road to healthy living starts right from the beginning in babyhood. An overweight baby often leads to an overweight child which leads to an overweight adult. And now scientists have discovered a new obesity risk that may affect your baby. I’ll talk about what that risk is and how you can reduce the chances that your baby will become overweight. First let me say that I absolutely love chubby babies. It must be the Italian American in me, but extra rolls of fat in a … Continue reading

Sleep Issues In Adopted Children, Part Two

In Part One of this blog, I talked about sleep issues in adopted children. This blog will focus on the ways parents try to manage sleep issues, and why some of these approaches may be either more or less appropriate for an adopted child. First of all, keep expectations realistic. It takes time to adjust to new schedules and new time zones. If you are a new parent, read up on how much babies typically sleep. There is a lot of variation, and many books consider a five-hour sleep stretch to be “sleeping through the night” for a young infant. … Continue reading