Wednesday, October 31, 2007

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

We hope everyone had a happy and safe Halloween. You still have time to send in pictures of your babies, kids and families in costume. We'd love to see decorated pregnant bellies too. We'll post our faves along with first names only. Submit to babyblogaddict@yahoo.com by tomorrow, Thursday, November 1st at 6 PM ET.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

More Recalls...












>> Fisher-Price Medical Kit May Contain Harmful Levels of Lead

>> Family Dollar Stores Recalls Halloween Pails Due to Violation of Lead Paint Standard

>> Wyeth recalls Robitussin and Dimetapp on a dosage cup issue. The cup does not have a half-teaspoon mark, which is the recommended dose for children age two to under six.

Check out the advice below: Reducing Lead Exposure in Your Home and Home Lead-Testing Kits.

Reduce Lead Exposure in Your Home

Here's some advice for consumers from consumersunion.org, the independent, nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports.

Given lead’s potential for harm, Consumers Union believes that manufacturers should eliminate its use or reduce it to the smallest trace amounts. But for consumers who are looking to minimize their lead risks, Consumer Reports advises the following:

  • Reduce lead exposure in the home – Consumers who live in pre-1978 housing should evaluate lead risks in their home. The main concerns are deteriorating paint, dust, soil, and water. Have children tested for lead – The EPA recommends all children be tested at ages 1 and 2. Some pediatricians also recommend testing at annual checkups under age 6.

  • Check recall lists – Consumers should go to http://www.cpsc.gov/ for photos and descriptions of toys and other products recalled due to lead contamination.

  • Consume adequate calcium and iron – People whose diets don’t contain sufficient amounts absorb more lead.

  • You can also try home lead-testing kits. More on the home kits in our next post below....

Home Lead-Testing Kits

Consumer Reports recently tested five home lead-testing kits and concluded that three of the five kits tested were useful though limited screening tools for consumers concerned about lead levels in the products in their homes.

In Consumer Reports tests, the Homax Lead Check ($8) and the Lead Check Household Lead Test Kit ($18.45) were the easiest to use and identified accessible lead in toys, ceramic dishware, and vinyl or plastic. Consumer Reports notes that the Lead Inspector ($13) test kit might be superior for pink or red items, because if those shades of paint bled onto a Lead Check swab, it might falsely appear to be positive.

In the Consumer Reports tests, the First Alert ($13) kit indicated some false negatives for accessible lead and the Pro-Lab Lead Surface ($10) test kit was less sensitive and more difficult to use than the others.

Consumerunion.org goes into more detail about the testing of these kits about 2/3 of the way down on the link here.

Monday, October 29, 2007

Send Us Your Halloween Photos

Send us pictures of your babies, kids and families in costume. We'd love to see bellies too...decorated pregnant bellies that is. We'll post our faves along with first names only. Submit to babyblogaddict@yahoo.com.

Also check out the following for Halloween Costume Contests:

  • Woman's Day Magazine - win a Canon Photo Printer
  • Disney Family - Costumes must consist of homemade elements. Win a howling good time at the Walt Disney World Resort.
  • PBS Kid's Sprout - Enter a photo of your Sproutlet dressed up like Chica and you could win a basket of goodies. Your photos may also be on The Sunny Side Up Show!
  • Contests for Moms - Enter by Halloween. Winners will be featured on the main page of their website.
  • The Today Show
  • Regis and Kelly
  • And quite possibly the most creative contest is from The Poop - The costumes can't be store-bought and the costumes don't have to be good. If you poke a couple of holes in a sheet for your kid at the last minute, you may find yourself with a "really awesome DVD set."

Some of these contests end on Halloween, some later, so hurry up and send in those adorable pictures.

Contact BBA

We've tweaked a few things and our new email address is babyblogaddict@yahoo.com. Feel free to email us with your baby blog addiction stories, parenting tips, holiday ideas, toddler recipes and activities, favorite websites, blog tips, etc.

We'd love to hear from you.

Sunday, October 28, 2007

Modern Baby Bedding

Looking for nursery decorating ideas? Check out this cute modern baby boy and girl bedding by Brandee Danielle. It's $159 for a four-piece crib bedding set and matching accessories are moderately priced too at babymania.com.

For a limited time, babymania.com is offering free shipping on all baby bedding set orders over $99. Just use Coupon Code: BAB3409.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

New Blogger Feature

Did you notice that there is a new feature on blogger comments? Now you can subscribe to comments by email making it much easier to stay in the conversational loop after you’ve commented on a post somewhere. Thanks, Blogger!

Thursday, October 25, 2007

One Million Bumbo Seats Recalled

On September 25th, BBA announced that the Bumbo Baby Seat was under government investigation.

Today, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with Bumbo, announced a voluntary recall of 1 million Bumbo “Baby Sitter” Seats.

The CPSC and Bumbo are voluntarily making available free downloads of updated instructional leaflets and safety warning labels. In the meantime, Bumbo has temporarily stopped selling the Bumbo Baby Seat until the packaging can be updated to ensure there is no confusion about the safe, proper use of the Bumbo Baby Seat. They expect to resume sales of the Bumbo Baby Seat in the next several days.

From the comments I read, it sounds like a similar warning is already included with the Bumbo seat. This "recall" is more of an addition of information/warnings rather than a true recall. So as long as you do not put the seat on a high surface and do not leave your child unattended, you are ok!

Today's Headlines...

>> Someone Might Be Sleeping in Your Bed...
>> Baby Borat Named Olive!...
>> The Path to a Healthy Pregnancy...
>> Becoming Aware Of First Pregnancy Symptoms...
>> What's in a (Celebrity) Baby Name?...

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Picky Eaters...They Get It From You

Researchers examined the eating habits of 5,390 pairs of twins between 8 and 11 years old and found children’s aversions to trying new foods are mostly inherited. The message to parents: It’s not your cooking, it’s your genes. According to the report, 78 percent is genetic and the other 22 percent environmental.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Picky Eaters...The Experts Suggest

Check out these strategies for getting a picky child to try new foods, collected from child nutrition experts.

My favorite is to adapt dishes to child-friendly shapes and sizes. I think that has been one of our most successful ways to get Jack to eat things he would not touch otherwise.

More on picky eaters tomorrow...

Monday, October 22, 2007

Website Spotlight: tiny*prints

tiny*prints offers fresh, modern holiday cards, announcements and invitations. They have sooooo much cute stuff that I don't even know where to start.

They sent us some samples of their most popular baby announcements, baby shower invites and their holiday collection and everything is adorable. The quality is great too. The print and images are crisp and the card stock is sturdy. I love photo cards best, but tiny*prints also offers cute non-photo cards too.

The only negative I see is that they have so much cute stuff that I would have a hard time deciding exactly what card to customize!

Here are some of my favorites:











A special offer for Baby Blog Addict readers...use code FRIEND1 to get 15% off your total purchase from tiny*prints. (Expires: December 31, 2007.)

My Favorite Parenting Tips

Yesterday, we featured the Top 10 Parenting Tips submitted by fellow baby blog addicts. Well, here are two of my favorite parenting tips to pass along as well.

1. Watch the DVD or read the book, Happiest Baby on the Block. I already posted about this back in May. Dr. Harvey Karp is a genius.

2. Have your baby's foot sized before you put on their first pair of real shoes and then every three months after that. My son had gone barefoot his whole life and learned to walk barefoot, so when I finally decided to try out some shoes that he recieved as a gift, he couldn't walk. I thought he was just having problems walking in shoes, but they were just too small. They were a size 3 1/2 shoe, but later that week, he was sized at a 5 1/2! Poor thing. He was a pro once he was wearing the right size.

Unfortunately, I didn't pass the advice on to my sister quickly enough and she did the same thing with her daughter four months later.

It's our mission now to pass on this parenting tip to others, so their kids don't have to suffer through mis-sized shoes too!

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Top 10 Parenting Tips...According to YOU!

You submitted your best parenting tips for a chance to win a free DVD and we picked the best. Here are the Top 10 Parenting Tips from fellow baby blog addicts.

1. Communicate with your spouse about how discipline and scheduling should be handled. We determined a schedule of who would get up with the baby on what nights. It made a world of a difference when it came to our relationship. Now we are working through how we will handle discipline situations and I feel it goes hand in hand. - Mary Katherine (Mississippi)

2. Enjoy as much time as possible with your baby. Even if the clothes don't get folded right away or the dishes don't get washed immediately after dinner, spend quality time with them whenever possible. - Jamie (Mississippi)

3. Invest in a good camera with a fast shutter speed to catch all those "first moments" and all those other moments you don't want to forget. Also take pictures outside as often as you can or near windows for natural lighting. - Nikki (Louisiana)

4. Do what works best for you and your baby regardless of what any book or other parent says! - Stacey (Mississippi)

5. Trust your gut. God gave us those instincts and we should use them. It is always better to be safe than sorry. - Kerri (Texas)

6. Have a routine. It has always been said that children thrive on routines because it is reassuring and they know what to expect. I am not saying that one size fits all when it comes to this. Do what works best for you and your child and in the end you and your child will be much happier. - Laura (Tennesse)

7. Pretend with your child. When my daughter doesn't want to leave the park or a playdate, I "fly" her to the car. She loves pretending she is flying and it takes her mind off of the fact that she was about to throw a temper tantrum for leaving. - Jennifer (Colorado)

8. Use the plastic bags that the daily newspapers come in for soiled diapers. It is just a small way that we can recycle and “go green.” - Kelley (Virginia)

9. Always park by the cart return at the store. It makes getting in and out of the store a piece of cake. - Tiffany (Texas)

10. Mean what you say and say what you mean! - Katrice (Mississippi)

Today's Headlines...

>> Alternatives For Treating Baby Sniffles...
>> Michigan ‘Miracle Baby’ Survives Tornado...
>> Tips to Help Toddler Stop Hitting...
>> Pregnancy Myths Busted...
>> Pregnancy Massage Can Provide Relief...

Saturday, October 20, 2007

The Busy Body Book

I haven't upgraded to a PDA yet and don't plan on getting one anytime soon. Call me old-fashioned, but I still like to keep track of my schedule on paper. I came across the Busy Body Book and thought, this is my kind of planner! It's a fashionable planner that reminds me of the ones I had in high school. Instead of separate columns for different subjects, you get separate columns for each family member...up to 5.

I registered to win this Busy Body Book over at Stef's blog, Triple-Take, and said I would spread the word to all of you Baby Blog Addicts. To win your own copy, simply leave a comment on her post and link back to her contest on your own blog. Don't have a blog? You can still enter! She'll take entries until Sunday night 10/21/2007 @ 10:00 PM CST.

Good Luck!

Friday, October 19, 2007

Won't You 'Boo' My Neighbor? ("Boo Grams")

Here's a Halloween activity for you and your family. Your kids will have so much fun with this tradition (and you will too!).

We were BOO'd in our previous neighborhood and we had so much fun with it. My friends and coworkers took the idea to their neighborhoods too. We recently moved out of state and I was shocked and excited to be BOO'd in our new neighborhood too!

Our new BOO-gram even included a website to printout the saying and BOO flyer. My favorite is the BOO pumpkin.

Check it out and start a new tradition in your neighborhood. Hurry up. Only 12 days until Halloween!

Recipe: Baked Ziti

Here's an easy recipe that we love. It's a lot like lasagna, except you don't have to deal with difficult lasagna noodles. I like to freeze some of the leftovers in individual serving ziploc bags for easy hot meals on busy days.

16 ounces ziti pasta (you can substitute rigatoni or penne)
1 pound ground beef
32 oz. jar chunky garden-style pasta sauce
1 Tablespoon dried Italian seasoning, divided
8 ounces shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese, divided
16 oz. container low-fat cottage cheese
2 egg whites
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9"x13" baking dish with cooking spray.

2. Cook pasta according to directions; drain. Cook beef 6 minutes or until no longer pink; drain. Combine beef, pasta sauce and 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning.

3. Stir cooked pasta into meat sauce. Spread half of mixture evenly in dish. Top with half the mozzarella cheese.

4. Combine cottage cheese, egg whites, 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese and remaining Italian seasoning. Spread over mozzarella in pan.

5. Spread remaining pasta mixture over cottage cheese mixture. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan.

6. Bake 35-40 minutes or until hot and cheese is golden. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Click the recipe label below for more Baby Blog Addict recipes.

Top 10 Parenting Tips Coming Soon...

The Phonics 4 Babies DVD contest has ended. We received some great Parenting Tips and will announce the Top 10 Parenting Tips and email the winners on Sunday. Stay tuned to Baby Blog Addict to see if your parenting tip made the Top 10...

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Website Spotlight: Windmill Kids

WindmillKids manufactures and sells smocked dresses, smocked dress clothes, hand smocked shortall sets and smocked and embroidered bathing suits for girls and boys ages 6 months to 7 years. They have good prices ranging from about $30-$46 per dress or shortall. Check out their cute holiday selections.

You can use the code star-star-star to get $5 off your order. The code doesn't expire until 2010 (**update - expired 2007).

Thanks for the link and coupon info, Nikki.

**We've been informed that the coupon expired in 2007, not 2010 as originally posted. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Today's Headlines...

>> Berry goes green for baby...
>> Birth of baby carrier came after new son arrived...
>> Spelling sheds baby weight eating pre-packaged meals...
>> China quality regulator promises safe toys for Christmas...
>> Pregnancy myths uncovered...
>> Toddler survives four-story fall...

Just For Fun...

Nothing to do with babies, but found this one while blog-hopping. I have a Southern accent which is accurate since I was born in the South and have lived in the South my whole life. How about you?

What American accent do you have?
Your Result: The South

That's a Southern accent you've got there. You may love it, you may hate it, you may swear you don't have it, but whatever the case, we can hear it.

Philadelphia
The Midland
The Northeast
The Inland North
The West
Boston
North Central
What American accent do you have?
Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Last Chance...

...to enter the Phonics 4 Babies DVD contest. Just send your favorite parenting tip along with your name and mailing address to jennifer@babyblogaddict.com to enter the contest. The deadline is Wednesday, October 17th and the Top 10 Tips will be announced soon after.

Flu Clinic Locator

With the flu season coming up, now's the best time to get vaccinated. There have been vaccine shortages and delays in recent years, but supplies should be plentiful this year.

Finding a clinic is easy with the American Lung Association's Flu Clinic Locator. Just enter your zip code to get started. You will get the date, times, address, and phone number of the clinics offering flu shots near you.

The government recommends the flu vaccine for people at high risk for flu complications. They include:

• Kids aged six months to their fifth birthday
• Pregnant women
• People 50 and older or living in nursing homes
• People with certain chronic conditions

Monday, October 15, 2007

Fertility Treatments: Clomid

On our forum millersmommy asks, "just wondering if any of you used clomid to conceive your children. if so, how many months did it take and did you get multiples? i'm about to start using it in the next month or so and was just wondering."

Do you have an experience you want to share with millersmommy on the Baby Blog Addict forum? I'm sure she would appreciate all of the support you can give.

According to about.com, Clomid is often the first fertility drug that couples come in contact with. It is (relatively) inexpensive as fertility drugs go, is easily taken (orally rather than by injection) and is the first line drug used for ovulation induction in patients with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) and other ovulatory disorders.

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Numbers

Our son loves to draw and color, so each morning I print out a number coloring page from ColoringCastle.com.

They also offer coloring pages for the alphabet, shapes, maps, etc. Check it out.

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Dealing With Stupidity

Don't you hate when people offer unsolicited advice? Check out this great article about coping with the mindlessness of strangers--from outrageous parenting advice to people who just butt in too much.

Drugmakers Recall Infant Cough & Cold Medicine

Last month the FDA tentatively recommended adding the words "do not use in children under two years" to product labeling.

Today, Johnson & Johnson, Wyeth and other makers of infants' non-prescription cough and cold products are voluntarily pulling certain medicines off store shelves in the United States because of the danger of overdose.

Novartis and Prestige Brands Holdings are also recalling their oral infant cough and cold medicines, as well, because data show that when the medicines are misused, it can lead to overdose, especially in children under the age of 2 years. CVS also said that it would remove the affected products as well as CVS-brand equivalents from store shelves.

Check out the brands of cough and cold medicines that are being voluntarily withdrawn in the left column on the article.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Study: Beware of Bumpers

Crib bumpers do more harm than good, a new study finds. Using publicly available databases of the Consumer Product Safety Commission for 1985 through 2005, researchers found that 27 infants ages 1 month to 2 years had suffocated when they became wedged against the padded bumpers or were strangled by a bumper tie around the neck.

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

Website Spotlight: Go City Kids

We just moved to a new city and were introduced to a really cool site - GoCityKids.com. It has a calendar of family-friendly activities for about 50 big cities.

Even if you've lived somewhere your whole life, you may be surprised at everything that is available to you. It's also a great site to check out when planning a vacation to a new city. You might be able to find activities that are off the beaten tourist path. Check it out.

Monday, October 8, 2007

Win 1 of 10 DVDs!

You still have time to send in your favorite parenting tips for the Phonics for Babies DVD contest. Check out the original post from September 20th and drop an email with your name, address and best parenting tip to jennifer@babyblogaddict.com. The contest ends October 17th.

Today's Headlines...

>> J. Lo Dances Around Baby News During Concert...
>> Dad delivers own baby in bathroom...
>> Baby allergy to cow’s milk often missed...
>> Fish: Healthy to Eat During Pregnancy?...
>> Low Pregnancy Weight Gain OK for Obese...

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Potty Training

My son is almost two and has shown some interest in the potty. We already have one of those seats that fits on top of a real toilet, but I'm considering getting a small training potty for him.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what works best?

I've heard that the Fisher Price Laugh and Learn Potty can be overwhelming, but I've also heard of some kids who love it. What about the more streamlined Baby Bjorn Potty?

Please share your suggestions on our forum or in the comments section on this post.

Friday, October 5, 2007

More Chinese-Made Products Recalled

More than a half-million Chinese-made products were recalled Thursday, including Pirates of the Caribbean and Baby Einstein toys, because they contain dangerous levels of lead.

The recalls include:

• Baby Einstein Discover & Play Color Blocks sold between June and September. http://recall.kidsii.com/default.aspx.

• Pirates of the Caribbean medallion squeeze lights sold between September 2006 and October 2007. http://www.energizer.com/company/recall.html.

• Totally Me! Funky Room Decor Sets sold at Toys R Us stores and online between May and September 2007. http://www2.toysrus.com/guest/prodRecalls/624621.cfm?source=0.

• Wooden Pull-Along Alphabet & Math Blocks wagons, Pull-Along Learning Blocks wagons, 10-in-1 Activity Learning Carts and Flip-Flop alphabet blocks sold at KB Toys stores between August 2005 and September 2007. http://www.recall.kbtinfo.com/default.htm.

• Green plastic cups shaped like Frankenstein's head sold at Dollar General stores in September. http://www.dollargeneral.com/merchandise/recall.aspx.

• Key chains featuring a metal charm engraved with "wisdom," "truth," "believe," "love," "hope" or "dream," sold at Dollar General stores between June 2005 and August 2007. http://www.dollargeneral.com/merchandise/recall.aspx.

• Bookmarks and journals, imported by Antioch Publishing, featuring a variety of decorations including breast cancer awareness and Winnie the Pooh. They were sold at book, card and gift stores around the country between March 2005 and October 2007. Some of the bookmarks were sold with bracelets. http://www.antioch.com/cat-189-1-227/Product-Recall.htm.

Thursday, October 4, 2007

Website Spotlight: Food Allergy Aid

Did you know that eight percent of children and two percent of all Americans have at least one food allergy?

Food Allergy Aid.com was launched this week by registered nurse Sherry Langston to provide a meaningful resource for these people and their loved ones to keep potentially life-threatening allergies manageable. Sherry is no stranger to food allergies herself having dealt with them practically her whole life and having personal experience with a child with food allergies; her four-year-old son has seven food allergies.

Food Allergy Aid.com is an evolving site that will continue to provide tips, recipes and up-to-date information about resources, recalls, etc. Check out the Food Allergy Aid Blog too.

Gap Casting Call

From October 1 through October 24, 2007, submit your favorite photo of your child(ren) for a chance for them to be featured in an upcoming babyGap or GapKids campaign.

The contest is open to babies ages four and under and kids ages five to twelve. Finalists and winners will receive prize packages including special gifts from babyGap, GapKids, KODAK Gallery and O, The Oprah Magazine.

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

The Great Delurk 2007

The Great Mofo Delurk 2007
I came across "The Great Delurk" post while blog hopping and can't for the life of me retrace my steps to figure out what blog linked to it. Oh well, I thought it was an interesting personal take on the recent drop in blog comments across the board and a request to stop lurking and make a comment today, October 3rd, 2007. I got a good laugh out of it, because I've noticed the comment decline too on lots of the blogs that I check. I personally think the reason is that there are too many blogs to keep up with now. A year ago, you could comment on the five or six blogs you checked every day. Now, you're lucky if you get through your list of favorites once a week and don't have time to devote to comments on the ones that started it all.

Here's the beginning of the post from "Milk Money or Not Here I Come". Click here for the complete post. (Please excuse the mofo reference. I chose to leave it out of my post.)

While twittering a couple of days ago, Sweetney, Jenandtonic, and I lamented the recent drop in comments we have each had on our respective websites, and it seems that we are not the only ones who have noticed this. I have been up and down this internet over the last few weeks and found that there seems to be a drop in comments everywhere.

And I do mean everywhere. From small twenty-hits-a-day weblogs to ones that receive thousands of visitors before noon, people are falling silent when it comes to entering text into the small, white comment boxes, and quite frankly, no matter how many hits you get on any given day, it is a little disheartening to have your comments drop from three to one or from 500 to 250...

C is for Cure












October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I'm sure our little ones would love to start out early by going pink in support for the cure.

Check out Tee Wit's Breast Cancer Awareness shirts and onesies for just a few ways they (and you) can show support.

Lush Laundry also offers some great designs supporting specific family members - grandma, sister, aunt...

Monday, October 1, 2007

Vacation With the Kids - Rent the Baby Gear







A few months ago, I wrote about my "What to Pack" list. It's unbelievable how much stuff such a small person needs.

My list has been a life saver for weekend trips. But what if you are taking a vacation by plane or your car is too small or your luggage too big for a driving trip? Do you rent a U-haul to transport the pack 'n play, stroller, exersaucer, bouncy seat and all of the other items on your "what to pack" list? Or can you and your baby live without them?

What if you could skip packing the essentials and just have them delivered to you once you arrive at your destination. Check out these two companies that rent baby essentials when you travel.

  • Baby's Away, more than 70 locations nationwide, charges $12 a day for a full-size crib or $6 a day for an Exersaucer.

  • The Traveling Baby Company, limited locations in a few states but adding to list, charges $8 a day for a car seat or $18 for a high-end Bugaboo stroller.

So for your next vacation, you may want to save yourself a headache and a backache. Let Baby's Away or The Traveling Baby Company assist with making your vacation to the beaches of Destin or the city of San Francisco actual vacations for you and your little ones.