What a Nursery Needs: The Walls

Next let’s take a look at the walls. Do you want to paint or do you need to paint? If your home was built before 1980 you might want to have the room tested for lead poisoning. Here is a great link that gives you information about lead poisoning, how to test your paint, and what to do if the paint has tested positive http://www.cpsc.gov/CPSCPUB/PUBS/5054.html


You can now buy paint that is environmentally friendly that don’t have chemicals and odors. Cool, especially for a baby’s room. Look for these three types of paints, Natural Paints, Low VOC and Zero VOC. Here is a link will give you a lot more information. http://www.eartheasy.com/live_nontoxic_paints.htm
Just to be on the safe side, don’t let the soon-to-be mommy paint. Make sure the room well vented but also the house.



Just a little advice. As cool as themes are for babies room, and there are lots of cool ideas out there, just make sure when you choose the theme for you babies room. Ask yourself these question?



1. Am I making this room for myself or for my child?



2. Is this a room theme that my child will like for at least a couple of years?



3. Am I going to get tired of this after a couple of months?



4. Will I be able to paint over the design or peel off the borders?



5. Can I clean crayons, markers or any other thing that might end up on the wall?



I love Classic Winnie the Pooh. I choose not to decorate my child's room in anything Pooh. I did have two things that were Pooh in the room, one was a gift and the other was a stuff Pooh Bear that I had before I got pregnant. When your child is around three they may want something different and you might have to change it. If you use a darker paint, wall paper or borders, keep in mind that one day you might have to paint over the darker paint and well, that takes a lot of primer and paint. Try and use a child friendly paint, that if you need to gentle clean the walls, the paint will not wear off or fade.



With all of that in mind, there is nothing wrong with keeping the nursery simple, plain or just an explosion of a theme. If it is what you reallly want, then do it.

What a Nursery Needs

Okay let’s start at the beginning. You finally decided what room at your place is going to be your baby’s room. Yeah! Not always an easy decision. First you need to clear everything out; you will need an empty room. That means everything in the closet too. Now you can really see the room. Take a look at everything. What needs to be and what you want to do are two different things.

First let’s look at the floor. Do you need new carpet? Are any of the tiles broke, chipped or dented? Is the linoleum so gross you wouldn’t want your baby to lick it? Do you have nails coming up from the hardwood floor? You should look into getting the floor fix or replacing what you have. There is nothing wrong with a tile, carpeted, hard-wood, or linoleum floor. Just make sure it meets your needs and your family’s budget. You might just need to have the floor cleaned, professionally or you might have to get down on your hands and knees for a good scrubbing. The only suggestion I have on flooring is, if you are getting carpet try and see if you can purchase vinyl-free, natural fiber carpet. Look at jute, sisal and wool carpets or other plant based carpets. They won’t be traces of PVC ingredients or harmful phthalates from adhesives. The other plus about vinyl-free, natural fiber carpet is they do not need adhesive, so you won’t need to air out the room after installation. If you can’t afford this type go with something other than shag and air out the room for a couple of days.

If you are choosing a hardwood, tile or linoleum floor, you might want to think about adding a rug, natural fiber is the best. This way your feet are not getting cold when you are in there in the middle of the night. Then when your child is older they can sit on the rug and play and not have a cold tushie.

Great books for parents to read.

Your One-Year-Old by Louis Bates Ames (this series runs up to Fourteen year old). These books are a quick and easy read around 200 pages. The books is broken up into sections and you can skip around to the chapter that you need. It also includes books for you to read and toys that your child should be playing with at that age.

The Disney Encyclopedia of Baby and Child Care. I think you would have to find this used. A basic book, not a lot of "junk" in it. There are two volumes. Volume 1 is about child care from birth to six year old. Volume 2 is A to Z Encyclopedia of Child Health & Illness, has tons of information about each illness, what to expect and what to do. A great first time parents book.


Your Growing Child by Penelope Leach A book I think every parent should have. Anything you need to know about your baby is in this book up to age through adolescents. The book is filled with information to help guide the parents to raise a wonderful child.

What to Expect the first year Most people are familiar with this series. I do like the book, but there are section that just don't apply to everyone. I do like the recipes in the book. I have made a few they can be good. However, I haven't met a child yet that likes the first birthday cake recipe. I thought it was pretty yucky myself.

I think it is a great idea to check some of these books out from your local library. Not every book holds the anwsers for each family. You might have to read several before you find the one that fits for you and your families need.

Dangerous Foods for Children Younger than One

There are certain foods you should never give your baby, especially before they are one. Honey and corn syrup should never be given to a child under the age of one. The reason being is because of the spores they contain can cause Botulism, food poisoning. After your child turns one the botulism risk will decrease. Here are the signs for Infant botulism: Constipation (often the first sign)
Floppy movements due to muscle weakness, and trouble controlling the head
Weak cry
Drooping eyelids
Tiredness
Difficulty sucking or feeding
Paralysis
Call your pediatrician if you have any questions or concerns that your baby may have eaten raw honey or corn syrup. Botulism is treatable, even though it is considered serious.

Foods to avoid during the first year are due to choking hazards.
Raw carrots, peas and apples.
Raisins
Grapes
Nuts
Popcorn
Hot dogs(no matter how you slice them)
Corn Kernels
Hard candy

Some foods to avoid during the first year due to food allergies are:
Strawberries
Egg whites
Cow's milk
Wheat
Seafood
Citrus fruits
Tomatoes
Ice cream
Chocolate

If someone in your family has allergies to the food listed above, you should talk with your child’s dr. and ask when to introduce and what symptoms to look for.

Homemade baby food warning!

Here is something I learned that I had never heard of before. Beets, Carrots, Collard Greens, Green beans, Squash, Turnips and Spinach can contain high levels of nitrates and should not be made at home. However the jarred versions of Beets Carrots, Collard Greens, Green beans, Squash, Turnips and Spinach are fine to eat. Baby food companies monitor the nitrates from these vegetable to make sure that they do not get to high. Please check with your pediatrician to find out more information on making homemade vegetables that are high in nitrates. I found that only one infant death has been reported on this type of poisoning. So be careful and talk with your child's doctor.

More on reading

Once you have started your reading routine with your child you will realize that it is not as hard as you thought it would be to get 20 minutes of reading in each day. Most infants love to look at books, whether it is with you or just them sitting on the floor alone looking at them.

Soon your infant will want to hold the book or help turn the pages. This is great. Let them. It is another way for them to enjoy reading time. When you notice that your infant has taken to turning pages, you will want to invest in some lift the flap books. Now, here is the one thing I do not like about the lift-the-flap books. You will have to be a kind and patient parent and have lots and lots of tape, because the flaps are not that sturdy. Remember, you child is learning too, and then sometimes don’t know their own strength. Flaps are easily fixed with tape.
Touch and Feel books are great too, for this age. It is a new sensation and it helps them learn and identify new words, like, soft, rough, smooth, etc. If you are worried about your child eating the books or you just can’t take it. They have cloth book and bath books, which are floatable, some are even non-toxic. I always carry several cloth and tub book in the car with me so that I don’t need to worry about my son eating or hurting himself with the book.

Here are some of my favorite books and authors for older babies.

Authors

Karen Katz (Where is baby’s….)
Sandra Boyton (Moo, Baa, La, La, La,)
Margaret Wise Brown (Goodnight Moon)
Helen Oxenbury (Clap Hands, Tickle, Tickle)
Eric Carle (Brown Bear, Brown Bear)

Books

Pat the Bunny by Dorothy Kunhardt
Sleep Bunny (Pat the Bunny Cloth book)
Peek-A-Who by Nina Laden
Guess How Much I love you by Sam McBratney
Time for Bed by Mem Fox
Jamberry by Bruce Degen
Big Little by Leslie Patricelli
I Love You Through and Through by Bernadette Rossetti-Shustak
One Yellow Lion by Matthew Van Fleet
Mole and the Baby Bird by Marjorie Newman
Global Babies
Usborne Books series That’s Not my…. (Car, teddy, dog etc.)
Usborne Baby Board Books 1 2 3
First Mighty Movers by Hinkler Books (www.hinklerbooks.com) they have great books on their website for little ones.

Books for Newborns

I love books. I love book for any age. I still read children’s books. They make me feel like a kid again. I have a lot of people ask me what books I recommend for newborns and infants.

Do babies this young enjoy books? Yes, it is the whole process and activity. Hearing your voice, at this very young age, is your baby's favorite thing. So when you grab a book, sit down and hold your baby and read, your baby is learning so much. She/he is hearing your voice, being held and snuggled close and being stimulated by the pictures in the book.

So what book should you read? Well, I suggest that you start very simple. Books with only one word and one picture per page are great books to start with. Hold the book about a foot awake from your baby. Why? Most doctors believe that this is where your baby can focus at when they are this young. Having read to many babies, I believe that this is true.

You should try and read several of these short board books to your child several times a day. Wait, what is a board book? Board books are published on hard cardboard, which makes them more durable for small children. The pages are thicker and easier for a small child to turn rather than paper pages. The best part of board books, you do not have to worry about your child ripping a page.

Here are some great newborn and infant books to begin with.

Begin Smart Books series for 0 - 6 months

White on Black, Black on White, Black and White by, Tana Hoban

DK Publishing books have several Baby Faces books

First Words by Bright Baby

Baby Faces Board Books by Roberta Grobel Intrater
(Smile, Sleep, Splash, etc)

Peek A Who by Nina Laden

Remember, babies love to hear you voice. You can read them anything; it is the interaction that your baby will love. You can read them the newspaper, Sports Illustrated, People, a Cookbook. Just include them in the conversation. Stop and ask them what they think. "Can you believe that they are going to build a new park?" Wait and give your baby a few seconds to answers. Then respond by saying "I know you think that is a good idea." Your baby will love this and it will encourage them to start making sounds early.


Happy Reading!!!