Last weekend we had our two year old in the emergency room for ingestion of methyl alcohol which can be fatal or cause life long blindness. It was very scary! Thankfully, he was okay after they checked his blood for toxicity and watched him for several hours.

I had purchased a product for my daughters. They love to have their nails painted, but I wanted something that would not be harmful to them. The product I purchased is advertised as non-toxic and natural as mud. It also says that it is not harmful to children and hypoallergetic. I purchased both the nail polish and remover for them.

Apparently, the girls had the remover out of the closet and my little guy thought it was a bottle of water. It had no odor to it. I neglected to ever read the ingredients. I went by what the label told me - non-toxic and natural as mud. The poison control center as well as the doctor was stunned by such a label. It actually had a high concentration of fatal methyl alcohol in it!

As a parent, we must always read our labels. Never go by what is advertised! I am a mom that reads every food label and trusted the label of this product that it was safe for our little children. I came out with my organic moses baskets (100% certified organic) just for this reason. Many companies (and there is one in particular that sells a lot of them) advertise organic moses baskets and use polyester in their bedding. It’s ahsame that they do this to parents! In addition, this company recently took some of my original ideas for their own and are now selling them to other companies. It’s terrible that this happens. In addition to selling things that are cheaply made (and without organic materials), they are now also taking ideas of mine (but making cheapened products) and put a picture up of an organic moses basket that looks almost identical to mine.

Always know your ingredients and be on the lookout for cheaply made imitations as well. Unfortunately, many companies are out there to make money and not as interested in the safety of our children.

Are you suffering from infertility?  Look at the foods you are eating!  I recently became aware (since my son’s diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes and my thyroid disease) that gluten is a suspect!  Gluten (from wheat) can really do a lot of damage if you have any allergy or sensitivity to it and it is in soooo many foods we eat daily from dressings to tomato sauce, soups etc..! I was never aware that it was hidden in so many foods until recently! There is even a correlation to Celiac disease if you have autoimmune thyroid disease.  Simply removing gluten from your diet can make you better!  Having taken my son off of wheat gluten, he no longer has awful tummy aches. It’s really amazing!

We were recently interviewed in a book called The Green Parent by Jenn Savedge put out by Kedzie Press.  Jenn gives a wealth of information in her book on how to be a green parent.  She will also be visiting our showroom in the near future if you are in the Lehigh Valley area and speaking on Natural Parenting.  We also plan to do a few other presentations that day. More information coming soon (We will probably also have some yummy organic treats for you that day!)

For more information on her book, please see the following link:

http://www.kedziepress.com/Details.cfm?ProdID=152&category=49&CFID=448644&CFTOKEN=23861685

Jenn also has a great blog:

http://thegreenparent.blogspot.com/

I recently read an article that explained the danger or using a cell phone during pregnancy and also while holding your baby.  Even while holding your baby, the EMF exposure can go to your little one.  This was very upsetting to me as I read this. The same goes for cordless phones.  You must be very careful.

We personally do not use a cell phone unless it is an emergency.  I know so many people do today and I am one of the few that does not.

EMF’s are transmitted and there is a potential for risks to your health and to your babies health.  In general, many items in your house do have EMF’s (even an alram clock in the bedroom if it is digital).  The best thing to do is reduce your exposure to them as much s possible and definitely avoid them during pregnancy and with your baby. 

Many parents are concerned with what the nursery will look like, what design they will use, the paint, the furniture etc.., but the most critical thing for your baby is having a healthy home/nursery.  Of course moms want it to look nice also and be ready for the new bundle, but before spending a fortune in choosing the items, think about what will be the healthiest. You can still have a beautiful nursery, but a healthy one as well.

New rugs and paint are some of the worst items you can put in before the baby arrives unless you are choosing non-synthetic rugs as well as healthy paints.  Furniture should also be non-toxic and organic if possible. 

 http://www.mommasbaby.com/cat–Furniture–Furniture.html

Only healthy paints should be used on your furniture. Fabric should be organic in nature as much as possible.  The bedding as well as the baby clothing should all be the healthiest possible.

http://www.mommasbaby.com/cat–Crib-Sheets-Bumpers-Skirts–112.html

Bedding for your baby is one of the most critical of all decisions other than the food we provide for them.  They will spend countless hours sleeping in the beginning. Having an organic crib mattress (and organic futon for a moses basket) as well as organic blankets and sheets is very important. 

 http://www.mommasbaby.com/cat–Crib-Mattress-Futons–250.html

 They will be breathing this in and you want the air they breathe to be the healthiest possible for them.  There are also stuides out that I will write about that will discuss SIDS and the bedding we choose for our children.

If you’re pregnant, definitely do not use teflon!  By the year 2015, teflon will be eliminated from all products.  It’s causing such health and environmental problems.  I would rather it be eliminated right away, but apparently, patents also protect products.

I was searching for the best diaper bag to carry for my store and another retailer suggested a particular brand diaper bag.  In looking into it further, I found that they use teflon for the waterproofing.  It is not making me wonder how many other companies are using the same chemical.  I knew that heating teflon (in cooking) was very detrimental to our health, but after looking into it further, teflon in general is something we definitely want to avoid.

For further information, please read the following article:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/25/AR2006012502041.html

It really upsets me to think that though they are aware of how harmful this is, they are still allowing it to be used.

Well, I did find a diaper bag that I love and it’s all natural!  Lots of pockets and great for both mom and dad - You will see it listed soon - the manufacturer is Ecolution and the bags are just beautiful! 

Research has shown the link between a mom eating sufficient Omega 3’s during prengnancy and a baby having better problem-solving skills in infancy.  Experts recommend that a pregnant mom get 300 milligrams of DHA daily, but many American women are not meeting this goal according to research out of New York (Reuters).

For the full article, see the following link:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070622/hl_nm/prenatal_omega_dc

During pregnancy, I’ve always used Omega 3 oil.  I’ve taken flax oil and have also taken fish oil as well.  I truly do believe that this helps a baby.

Be careful in eating fish.  Many contain high amounts of mercury today, but a pure fish oil such as Carlson’s is a wonderful source for moms.  

Fat is essential in a baby’s brain development.  Even as a baby begins solid foods, do not hold back on the fat.  It is essential as their brain continues to develop.  As you nurse, also continue to include the Omega 3 essential fatty acids in your diet.

Many children are exposed to television, videos and DVD’s even before three months of age and by the time they are two years, 90% of children are watching screens!

Children should be active and play.  So many times children are even becoming “bored” as they grow older thinking there is nothing else for them to do.  In addition, children who watch television at a young age (before two) often end up with learning disorders according to research.  I believe the brain is not ready for the images they are watching.

Play with your baby and get him/her outdoors for fresh air daily.  Take him/her for walks. The same goes for older children.  Have them read books, work on puzzles, do imaginatvie play and play outdoors.  It is much healthier for them and they won’t be bored!

In the year 2006, the following were the most popular baby names (I know everyone likes to read this - I decided to post it for you):

1. Jacob and Emily (our fourth little blessing is named Jacob! I love the name).

2. Michael and Emma

3. Joshua and Madison

To read more on popular baby names, please see:

http://babyparenting.about.com/b/a/216631.htm

The article includes some popular celebrity baby names as well such as Addison and Tristan from a popular show, Grey’s Anatomy

For additional celebrity baby names see:

http://www.babyzone.com/babynames/celebritynames.asp

A new report on how much the average stay at home mom would receive if she were to be paid for all the jobs she does shows her worth to be $138,095.  If you think of all the different jobs a mom does throughout the day, she would need to be paid for jobs such as cook, housekeeper, laundry machine operator, computer operator, chief executive officer, janitor, van driver, day care center teacher (not to mention elementary school teacher such as home schooling moms like myself) and psychologist.  The days are long and the typical moms puts in a 92 hour work week!  She would receive 40 hours at base pay and 52 hours overtime. Moms working full time outside of the home would receive an additional $85,939.00 for the work she does at home according to the study (I wonder if that goes for moms such as myself who also work in the home?)!

Moms definitely have one of the most difficult jobs, but also one of the most rewarding jobs (if not the most rewarding) job in the world!  Without a mom, we would never have some of the great men/women who have led our country.  They attribute a lot to what their mom did for them and taught them growing up. Hug your mom today and wish her a wonderful Happy Mothers Day and if you are a mom, I wish you a wonderful Mothers Day!

To read the full article, please see the following link:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18466753/