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Swaddling Your Baby

My grandma, who was a pediatric RN, scolded me one day when my oldest child was just a couple of weeks old.  He was very fussy and rarely settled, even after a nursing.  "You need to wrap him!  Snug!" She explained that babies, especially large babies, love to be swaddled.  "They feel at home that way, just like in the womb.  Otherwise, they will feel insecure and bonk themselves in the head with their own arms."  I had noticed him hitting himself,  often waking himself from sleep.

She then proceeded to show me how to swaddle a baby.  Grandma had no use for the modern day receiving blankets.  "Too small!", she exclaimed.   She found some soft flannel and made a couple of large blankets for me to use for my big baby.  "Swaddle him for the first nine months and you will have a happy baby.", she said.   "But what about learning to crawl?", I asked her.  "When he wants to crawl or be removed from the swaddling blanket, he will let you know." 

I took Grandma's advice to heart and my baby became much less fussy by the next day.  After that, I swaddled him regularly to combat the overstimulation that he often expressed.

Grandma was also a big fan of what she called "fanny pats".  :) She would put the swaddled baby on her shoulder and pat his bottom gently like a cadence.  Usually this brought forth any excess gas in the form of a burp and the rhythm helped the little one to sleep.

Here is our own little Annie swaddled in a toasty blanket.

Aussie Annie, has posted a wonderful tutorial on how to swaddle your baby.  It takes some practice but is a great way to keep a calm baby happy and help an unhappy baby to settle in. 

Homemade Baby Wipes

If you use cloth diapers, you might want to see Suzanne's lovely batch of flannel baby wipes. She also posted her "recipe" for natural wipe solution (in the comment section).  I have cut up soft diapers for this purpose in the past but I love the idea of making them out of pretty colored flannel. 

Maria Lactans: Mary as Nursing Mother

Fisheaters has a lovely gallery of images of Our Lady as a Nursing Mother.

Baby Wrap Tutorials

Lisa at Joyful Chaos details, in very helpful photos,  how to wear your baby safely and comfortably in a front wrap.  Here is the back wrap as well.   I have used ring slings exclusively but always wanted to try this type of carrier.  Lisa makes it look so easy doesn't she?  :)

Welcome Back to Babylove!

I'm so glad you are here!  For those of you who are new to this site, welcome!  I hope you will join us here often to discuss and celebrate all things BABY!

If you have a topic you'd like to discuss, please post your idea, question or recommendation in the comment box or email me at agypsycaravan AT gmail dot com. 

Have a beautiful day!

She's a Doll!

Our dollhouse has a new resident living upstairs. :)

Breastfeeding World Record

Read the article here.

Cloth Diapers…

...sound heavenly after reading Elizabeth's post entitled Dappled Diapers. Doesn't it make you want to clothe those little baby buns in soft cotton instead of paper and plastic?

A Sweet Perspective on Babywearing

Soule Mama writes lovingly about her fondness of slinging babies and toddlers.  Read it here.