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Musings

Natural teether for babies

I could never understand on one hand we insist on sterilized feeding bottles and boiled water for our kids, then on the other hand we hand them unsanitary teethers & chew toys.
Most of them are reused without properly disinfecting them. Often they touch unclean surfaces & hands and the babies tend to drop them multiple times. Some of the chew toys are filled with water to provide chilled soothing touch to the 4-8 month old who in pain due to fresh set of teeth. These fluid filled toys cannot be even boiled and wiping them with alcohol often ruins their colorful design patterns.
What I do is give fruits as chew toys. It could be a small piece of peeled carrot or a slice of apple. These are clean, healthy and nutritious for the baby and I can replace them with a fresh set every 5-10 minutes (which is the average attention span of most toddlers). I would be worried if any plastic or chemicals leached out of the commercial chew toys, but fruit juices from the natural toys are always welcome.
However care needs to be taken before preparing a chew toy from fruits:
1.  the fruit/vegetable selected should be hard, smooth and consistent. So that you don’t have to worry about the toy damaging the tender mouth of the baby also its is hard enough that it does not disintegrate in the mouth (and pose a choking risk)
2.  The seeds, splinters (esp of the apple core) needs to be manually removed, these pieces might get dislodged and choke
3. Clean the fruit and peel its outer surface
4. Ensure that the fruit is big enough that the baby cannot choke on it, yet it is small enough that the baby can play with it.
5. Adult supervision esp. till the day that your kid is old enough to eat
6. Choose tasty fruits which are easy to digest. Even though your kid has not developed teeth, his jaws will be able to squeeze some juice out of the fruit.
7. Consult with your doctor (I am not a certified medical practitioner)
8. There are some commercially available mesh that you can use for the fruits (optional). Otherwise the the peel around the slice of an orange is also safe enough (natural and economical)
For a kid who is fed on milk only, a fruit can be a refreshing change.

Categories
Musings

Babies & travelling light

Flying with the infant is always a challenge. With the stroller, baby bags, diapers, food and supplies for the trip etc. always make me end up paying baggage allowance. We as adults can switch brands & are flexible about what and when we eat. However our kids are not.
Solution: I order baby supplies (diapers, formulae feed, wipes, some clothes and toys) online and get it shipped to my travel destination.
This way I don’t have to carry them in the flight and pay excess baggage. Also I don’t have to face the inconvenience of trying to find a store nearby and hunt for these products. Also many of the products (even from reputed companies) have a localization factor. As a result, the flavor, color and texture might change a little bit. And with kids the closest substitutes often does not work and my worst nightmare would be that it worked so well that my kid would only want that flavor (even after coming back home)
Fortunately for me most E-commerce sites are ready to deliver for free.(or cost less than what airline company charge) Also concierges of reputed hotels are kind enough to hold the parcel for me.
Hopefully this Diwali, I can travel & enjoy for a week without turning into a porter carrying the provisions & supplies.
PS: Please share your tips for baby gear as well (bathing tubs, stroller & bouncer)
 

Categories
Musings

Babycenter

In the past 1 year, my journey from an expecting parent to a proud father has been filled with anxiety. Each and every symptom, which might be as little as a sneeze, had to be exhaustively researched online, in books or even through a doctor’s consultation.
Through my research I found that babycenter.com has been one of the most trusted resource & research partner for me. Please use it also if you are a parent (or in the journey of becoming one). They have a weekly news-letter which even educates & illustrates the child’s progress & growth. This way the first time parent is prepared both physically & psychologically for the changes they are going to witness.