After a child scoops with a spoon and pierces food with a fork, time seems to stand still. No one wants to hand a young child a knife. But they should (sort of). Here are some ideas to safely explore knife skills without holding your breath or end up still buttering their toast when they…… Continue reading How to Teach Your Child to Cut Food With a Knife…Safely!
Category: child safety
Help Your Newborn Adjust to Daycare By Using Happiest Baby on the Block Strategies
Returning to work soon after delivery can mean putting your 3-month old in daycare. As challenging as this can be emotionally, it can also be a struggle for your baby, especially if her only self-calming strategy has been nursing. Should you (or could you) quit your job or just tough it out? There is another…… Continue reading Help Your Newborn Adjust to Daycare By Using Happiest Baby on the Block Strategies
Low Tone In The Summer: Why The Heat Affects Your Child’s Safety
If you have a child with low muscle tone, you may have seen them wilt like flowers in the sun. Even if they are well-hydrated, even if they are having fun, they just can’t run as fast or sit as steadily when they are warm. Add a SPIO vest or other compression garment, and…… Continue reading Low Tone In The Summer: Why The Heat Affects Your Child’s Safety
Low Tone and Toilet Training: How Your Child’s Therapists Can Help You
Over the years as an occupational therapist, I have been giving parents hints here and there. Writing my e-book this fall, and preparing an e-course (coming soon) to support families makes me realize that some clients did not ask me very many questions while they were toilet training their child. So….Are there aspects of therapy…… Continue reading Low Tone and Toilet Training: How Your Child’s Therapists Can Help You
Vestibular Fun For Infants With Motor Delays
Picture this: a dad swings his 6 month-old upside down, and she giggles and smiles from ear to ear. What doesn’t daddy know? He is stimulating her developing balance system and teaching her to love movement while they play. When babies have motor delays, whether due to prematurity, illness, or a brain injury such as…… Continue reading Vestibular Fun For Infants With Motor Delays
Why Some Newborns Look Like They Hate To Be Swaddled
Yes, I said it. Some babies scream louder after you swaddle them, and parents assume that this means that they are horrified of being restricted. This is usually far from the truth, but you have to know a little bit about newborn neurology to understand why this is likely not to be a case of…… Continue reading Why Some Newborns Look Like They Hate To Be Swaddled
Sleep Training at 2 Months? Beyond Cry-It-Out
The Wall Street Journal’s writers are known for great reporting, but they clearly didn’t do a lot of research when they wrote today’s article Can You Sleep Train Your Baby at 2 Months? Lots of agonizing parent reports of the cry-it-out method, and professional agreement that babies 8 weeks old don’t sleep through the night…… Continue reading Sleep Training at 2 Months? Beyond Cry-It-Out
Toe Walker? Why The Problem Usually Isn’t Touch Sensitivity
Kids that toe-walk after they have fully mastered walking and running (usually 24-30 months) are often accused of avoiding the feeling of their feet on the floor. It certainly looks that way. The truth is usually not so simple, and the solution not so easy to achieve. Getting a toe-walker to use a heel-toe gait…… Continue reading Toe Walker? Why The Problem Usually Isn’t Touch Sensitivity
Is Low Muscle Tone A Sensory Processing Issue?
Only if you think that sensing your body’s position and being able to perceive the degree/quality of your movement is sensory-based. I’m being silly; of course low tone creates sensory processing issues. It isn’t the same sensory profile as the child who can’t pay attention when long sleeves brush his skin, nor the child who cannot…… Continue reading Is Low Muscle Tone A Sensory Processing Issue?
Baby Wearing For Better Infant Sleep
Most parents use carriers/wraps for two reasons: practical and personal. But did you know that wearing your baby can also help your newborn sleep better? Being able to carry your baby allows you to have both hands available. Baby wearing is an intimate connection that parents usually enjoy. Babies feel their parent’s heartbeat and listen…… Continue reading Baby Wearing For Better Infant Sleep
Safe Sleep Guidelines Don’t Give Parents Enough Support
I just downloaded the entire American Academy of Pediatrics’ Technical Report-SIDS and Other Sleep-Related Infant Deaths: Expansion of Recommendations for a Safe Infant Sleeping Environment. It was a large file to read, but the bottom line for me was this: they must not have any sense what it is like to be a new parent, and…… Continue reading Safe Sleep Guidelines Don’t Give Parents Enough Support
Are Babies Addicted to White Noise? Yes….and No
White noise helps colicky newborns calm and sleep. It can help newborns develop essential self-calming skills in the first 3 months of life. It can help older babies tolerate teething and their first colds. It can even help babies transition to a shared bedroom with a toddler sibling. The magic of white noise is not…… Continue reading Are Babies Addicted to White Noise? Yes….and No
Another Baby Lost to Crying
There was a news story here in NY about another newborn allegedly choked to death by a father that couldn’t take all the crying. This is a recurring story that has to end. If that family knew how easily The Happiest Baby on the Block techniques could have calmed down their baby, he would still…… Continue reading Another Baby Lost to Crying
Good Posture for Kids With Feeding Issues Matters
Feeding challenges are a huge source of concern for parents of children with low tone, autism, and a host of other issues. Improving how a child sits when eating isn’t magically going to solve every problem for every child, but ignoring the benefits of good positioning will make most feeding problems worse. Even problems not…… Continue reading Good Posture for Kids With Feeding Issues Matters
The Safest Crib Bumper Might Be Deeper Sleep
Most pediatricians will tell you to avoid all crib bumpers. The American Academy of Pediatrics feels that no bumper is 100% safe. They discourage parents from using even the most breathable mesh fabric, tied onto your child’s crib. I totally believe parent reports that a baby that isn’t swaddled can get a limb caught over…… Continue reading The Safest Crib Bumper Might Be Deeper Sleep
Toddlers and Holiday Decorations: Another Approach to “Don’t Touch That!”
I watched a toddler laugh in unbridled glee yesterday, amazed at the garland and lights draped on his staircase. You don’t get more holiday cheer than that sound! He wanted to touch every nutcracker and every candle. I had to think on my feet when answering his grandmother’s question: “How do I get him to…… Continue reading Toddlers and Holiday Decorations: Another Approach to “Don’t Touch That!”
Safe Winter Swaddling Strategies
When the weather gets colder, some parents think that they need to run out and buy a thick fleecy swaddle blanket or swaddle garment right away. Being too warm is a risk factor for SIDS, so it is worth making a thoughtful plan to swaddle safely in the winter months. Here are some ideas about…… Continue reading Safe Winter Swaddling Strategies
Low Tone At Preschool: How Tone Affects Safety and Play
Low muscle tone can create safety issues and difficulty using toys at school. Here are some reasons why things can fall apart (literally, sometimes!) and how small changes make the difference between success and failure at school. First, there are good reasons that children with low tone struggle to sit, stand or move around the…… Continue reading Low Tone At Preschool: How Tone Affects Safety and Play
When to Stop Using the Infant Swing with Your Newborn
Weaning the swing can happen earlier than weaning swaddling. Somewhere about 2.5 months old (adjust for prematurity if needed), many newborns no longer get more peaceful while swinging. There will always be babies that prefer to be jiggled on your shoulder or in your lap from the beginning. There will also be babies a bit…… Continue reading When to Stop Using the Infant Swing with Your Newborn
Why Head Banging Doesn’t Mean Your Toddler Is Autistic
I have worked with so many toddlers who terrify their parents with a tendency to bang their heads on the floor when frustrated. Their parent’s first question is almost always “Do you think he could be autistic?”. Sometimes the answer is yes, but it isn’t because of the head banging. It turns out that head…… Continue reading Why Head Banging Doesn’t Mean Your Toddler Is Autistic