Thread: Baby Tech Talk

Originally Posted by homeeey

In a week or two he'll be flipping through your IPad screens like a pro.

Ha, I wouldn't doubt it.

I was skiing with a bud yesterday who has the new baby at home, works a full time teaching job and still got 73 days in but the deal he made with moma is he has to ski

So Buddy sez moma ALWAYS gets breakfast in bed, buddy always does all the cooking and because of the POP ( local pregnacey out reach program) moma & baby are so happy that buddy can take off to ski and because things are pretty close around not much travel and he is home fast

x2 On the Amazon Mom's deal. My kid is 16 months old and we've basically always had diapers delivered straight to our house through them. Makes things really easy. When you have a baby, the thought of going to Costco or the grocery store and hauling a shopping cart isn't all that appealing (though it is good to get out of the house). The only time we buy diapers at a real store is when we're on vacation (packing a week's worth of diapers to check onto a plane would be dumb).

We were given both an audio only and a video monitor. Quickly ditched the audio monitor. A good video monitor is well worth it.

We tried following the whole happiest baby on the block philosophy. It worked great except that our son never did like the swing thing. Lesson: don't pay full retail for things your kid will quickly outgrow.

Best gift we got (and still use to this day): someone crafty gave us those plastic dividers you see on clothing racks at the stores... with different ages written out on each (six months, one year, etc). Makes organizing all the hand-me-downs you'll get super easy. And your kid will grow quickly.

Every mom (and kid) is different. You can plan to breastfeed for a year and then your well can dry up (happened to us). You may want to go natural but need a c-section. Parenting is stressful enough as-is... don't try to force yourself to some perfect ideal that sets you up for defeat. Roll with the punches. All will work out.

Get multiple car seat bases so that you have one in each car...

The Bob stroller gets way more use than any other stroller we had. Even when he was tiny we'd put the car seat in the Bob. Once you get used to the storage and cup holders (and suspension) of one of those Bobs, the umbrella strollers seem like a real pain. I gate check the Bob (they will fit through x-ray conveyor belts, but just barely) every time we fly.

We swaddled. Used a co-sleeper on the side of the bed until six months. Then we moved him to his crib in the nursery. That was hard/scary at first but we didn't want to start any bad habits. To this day, he continues to sleep through the night (literally sleeps from seven pm to six am every night). Maybe we just got lucky.

Get out of the house. When your baby is young, take him/her and get out of the house, go to a cafe, meet friends, etc. It's a lot harder to do all this after they turn one and start running around, learn how to scream, etc.

Have fun...do something you won't be able to do next year for yourself (a vacation, a class, whatever) ... you'll thank yourself later. Good luck.

Go the fuck to sleep

one thng i remmembered. don't freak out if they don't poop for like 3 days when you get home from the hospital. apparently its normal.

and pretty much any poop related thing is normal too, as long as it isn't a rock. its probably ok

Originally Posted by acinpdx

Go the fuck to sleep

Samuel L Jackson's reading of that book is stellar

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CseO1XRYs9I

We were in disposables for the first month or so, but soon realized that the local cloth diaper service was cheaper than buying disposables, and meant no diaper shopping. You'll go through 20+ a day for the first couple months. It's nuts. They're not the old school pins anymore, they're velcro and snaps, and imho they're easier to put on than disposables. Do keep a couple disposables on hand for going out, overnight, etc.

Don't be like my brother-in-law, and not teach your child how to sleep (or be ok by himself whatsoever). They need to learn everything, and you'll often have to teach them by giving them the experience of it. If they fall down and cry, they need to learn how to deal with that on their own instead of mommy or daddy swooping in to make it better. If they're afraid of the dark, a night-light is only delaying the conflict. Listening to them wail their head off is the hardest thing you'll ever do, but they need to learn. Crying and being upset is part of learning and growing up.

Engage your kid. Leave your laptop, phone, ipad, whatever behind when they're awake. If they're screaming and tugging at you, it's because they want to play with their parents. They don't give a shit about your facebook status, and you should enjoy the time now, because it will not last.

Originally Posted by DJSapp

...Listening to them wail their head off is the hardest thing you'll ever do, but they need to learn. ...
Engage your kid. ....

You seem to be a master of the opposing forces - what we have come to recognize as "good parenting". You gotta know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, know when to walk away, and know when to run... Who knew that song was about having kids right?

Kudos, sir!

this has been a useful blog: http://www.secretsofbabybehavior.com/

it's affiliated w/ UC Davis and is science-based, but from a developmental perspective. generally speaking, the developmental perspective is very different than the behavioral perspective. most pop culture parenting, advice books, and advise on this thread follow the behavioral perspective.

in terms of baby gear, my wife and i often follow dirtbag perspectives, buying used (or free) or just dealing without. that said, right before #2 and #3 came at the same time, we bought a minivan, mainly cuz #1 was (and still is - he's 6) very impulsive and we were concerned about the safety of the babies siting next to #1.

have fun being a parent. lots of fun stuff and new challenges await!

Thanks for all the good info guys. Got twins coming this june, stoked and scared in equal measure.

Twins june / july here.

good stuff bodywhomper...and everyone else for that matters. thanks all

Originally Posted by commonlaw

See my post above. Not sure if it was correlation or causation, but my wife's milk just wasn't coming in and she was getting pretty frantic. Our neighbor, a certified lactation specialist stopped by with a six pack midday. By 6pm, the milk arrived. And I went to the store to get more beer.

Our pediatrician recommended beer to help with milk production. we were also told it was ok to breast feed so long as you didn't feel buzzed.

beer needs to be made available at hospitals as a post birth beverage for new mammas....

exciting baby day for us.

this morning O got evaluated to see if he qualified for intervention since he had some gross motor delays. he technically was in the normal range but they recommended some therapy to get him moving faster and building tone since he is a big boy (21 lbs at 7 months)

then i discovered he has his first tooth breaking through

then we busted out our fancy sherpani baby backpack to give it a testrun and it was nice so we might take a trip to the lake this weekend for a first hike

Originally Posted by bodywhomper

beer needs to be made available at hospitals as a post birth beverage for new mammas....

Having just supported my wife through our first birth I concur.

It should really be made available for the papas too. So necessary.

Originally Posted by bodywhomper

generally speaking, the developmental perspective is very different than the behavioral perspective.

As a masters student in Behavior Analysis with a wife who is soon to be a Ph.D in Child Development I couldn't agree with you more.

Just wanted to throw it out there to anyone who may be interested, the details and differences between these two philosophies are my life... feel free to pm me with more specific questions.

loads of good info here. Little ones are stoked to go nordic skiing. Some folks go downhill with babies, but was not my style. Just bundle them up in a back carrier and hit the nordic trails. Every one's happy (including mom who's home taking a nap).

Originally Posted by DJSapp

Don't be like my brother-in-law, and not teach your child how to sleep (or be ok by himself whatsoever). They need to learn everything, and you'll often have to teach them by giving them the experience of it. If they fall down and cry, they need to learn how to deal with that on their own instead of mommy or daddy swooping in to make it better. If they're afraid of the dark, a night-light is only delaying the conflict. Listening to them wail their head off is the hardest thing you'll ever do, but they need to learn. Crying and being upset is part of learning and growing up.

There's some truth to this and some falsehood. It kind of depends on the kid and the parents.
Lots of shitty parents use "Crying and being upset is part of learning and growing up" as an excuse to be shitty parents. I've seen it close up. Doesn't mean DJ did, but lots do. There's a lot of overparenting too like he says.

We slept with both of ours for a long time since one of ours showed symptoms of Ausberger's Syndrome. It presents a whole different set of problems, especially when trying to have some adult time and getting back in our own bed, but hey things turned out great: the kid's happy, top of his class and definAtely does not get pushed around or shunned.

Engage your kid. Leave your laptop, phone, ipad, whatever behind when they're awake. If they're screaming and tugging at you, it's because they want to play with their parents. They don't give a shit about your facebook status, and you should enjoy the time now, because it will not last.

Yup. And bear in mind that the first part of the quote can be in conflict with the second.

Originally Posted by Buster Highmen

There's some truth to this and some falsehood. It kind of depends on the kid and the parents.
Lots of shitty parents use "Crying and being upset is part of learning and growing up" as an excuse to be shitty parents. I've seen it close up. Doesn't mean DJ did, but lots do. There's a lot of overparenting too like he says.

It is a fine line to walk between being a shitty parent, letting your child figure out things for themselves, and being an overprotective helicopter parent. Every kid and parent is different, and there are a thousand shades of grey here.

Sometimes the kid screaming and throwing a tantrum in walmart is learning that they need to do their chores to earn their allowance so they can buy a toy
Sometimes that kid is screaming because he is simply hungry
Sometimes that kid is screaming because they've been shopping for five hours and he's bored out of his mind.

Knowing the reason why your child is upset, and deciding the best course of action FOR THE CHILD is what separates shitty parents from good parents.

Bumping this... Thanks, this has been a great read as I am building up our registry...

What I learned, I registered for the onesie I'll dress baby girl in every chance I get (yankee jersey) in every size... thanks TGR!

In all seriousness, thanks everyone, can't wait for September to get here.

Any specific recommendations for the video monitor? Or anyone want to share a Consumer Reports password so I can read up on that.

Originally Posted by Onward

Thanks for all the good info guys. Got twins coming this june, stoked and scared in equal measure.

Originally Posted by XtrPickels

Twins june / july here.

Good luck to the both of you. Let me know if you figure out the secret to keeping one from waking up the other and/or how to conduct a dual feeding solo mission at 2 in the morning. Twins are expected here sometime in late December. Equally stoked and scared sounds about right.

Originally Posted by grskier

...
Any specific recommendations for the video monitor? Or anyone want to share a Consumer Reports password so I can read up on that.

$300 for a dual camera model so you can use it w/ multiple kiddos or set up a spy cam in the shower if you have an au'pair...

babies r us has more than enough choices!

we got this camera/monitor

you can add extra cameras for $95

range seems to be pretty amazing. monitors temp. sound is great. night vision. multiple friends recommended.

Thought about starting a new thread but I figured tech talk needed to retain a modicum of respect.

Anyone have tips on travelling with an infant? Mine will be nearly 10 months when I take her back to Hawaii for a business/vacation trip. The trip just materialized so I am just now thinking about all the stuff I need to do to prepare.

Flight suggestions (I REALLY don't want to be the guy with THAT kid.)?
Travel on the Island. Do rental companies have car seats?
Items that a newbie might normally forget to bring?

I know people do this all the time but it is kinda daunting.