Esty Awesomeness

Beaded Socks, $6.50 per pair

Spiral Market Dyeworks, snapsuits and ts in subtle tye-dye patterns

Preventing Food Allergies

From The Mayo Clinic:

Can food allergies be prevented?

Although there is no surefire way to prevent your child from developing a food allergy, introducing foods at the right age may help. Experts still need to do more studies to find out exactly what works best, but here are some steps you can take:

• Avoid peanuts during pregnancy and while nursing. Eating peanuts during pregnancy and while breast feeding may increase your child’s risk for developing a peanut allergy and other allergies — especially if you have a family history of allergies.
• Give your child only breast milk for the first 6 months, if possible. This is the best source of nutrition for your infant — and it may help prevent your child from developing food allergies that can last well into childhood or even adulthood.
• Wait until your child is 6 months old to introduce solid foods. Especially if you have a family history of food allergies, taking steps to prevent early exposure to foods that can cause allergies is a good idea. As a child grows older and the digestive system matures, the body is less likely to absorb food or food components that trigger allergies. Experts believe that waiting to introduce solid foods until your child is 6 months old may help prevent allergies to those foods.
• Introduce cow’s milk after one year. Studies show that waiting to introduce cow’s milk until your child reaches age 1 reduces the chance your child will develop a milk allergy.
• Introduce eggs at age 2. This may help prevent your child from developing an egg allergy.
• Introduce nuts and seafood at age 3. This may help prevent your child from developing an allergy to these foods. (Do not give your child whole nuts until he or she has molars and can chew them well.)
• Introduce all new foods gradually and one at a time. Before introducing mixed foods that could cause an allergic reaction, introduce each new food on its own. Don’t mix foods until you’re sure each individual food is tolerated.
• Give your child cooked or homogenized foods. Many foods are less likely to cause an allergic reaction after they are cooked. (However, be careful. A few foods — such as cod and celery — still contain allergy-causing proteins after cooking.)

Timers

Timers are great for children: Blanket time is 10 minutes, we’ll clean up for five minutes, Sesame Street starts in 15 minutes.

This lovely wood egg timer is just $5.95 at A Toy Garden. 

Sewing Project

How to make a shirred dress or smock for a toddler.

The Polkadot Platypus

This store has lots of gear I’ve never seen, including UPPAbaby and Mia Moda strollers. These well-priced (as in $100-$150) strollers look well-made, but don’t seem to have height-adjustable handles.

They also have shopping cart/high chair covers in cool prints (like skulls, dots, and stripes) and lots of fun apparel.

iPod Lullaby Playlist

1. Take an iPod (We’ve gotten several freebies from work, but any working iPod you can dig up on Ebay — hello, Gen. 1 Shuffle — will work),

2. Load it up with lullaby tunage, and

3. Find a way to play it through speakers. We’re using a tiny plug-in thing that was a $4.99 stocking stuffer at Bed, Bath, and Beyond last Christmas, but there are plenty of more elegant solutions.

Playlists will be according to your taste, of course, but the key is mellow.

LadySmith Black Muzambo

Simon and Garfunkel

Enya

The less exciting works of Mozart, Bach, Mendelsson

Assorted hymns

Etc.

Baby Laundry

No need for Dreft Syndrome, but you might want to buy some Oxyclean (for stains) and All Free and Clear.

Otherwise, wash stuff before the baby arrives (but not everything, as the baby will outgrow some things you’ll want to return) , and buy a mesh bag for teeny baby socks (Old Navy socks stay put the best).

Drown-Proofing Your Baby

The American Academy of  Pediatrics says not to teach kids younger than 3 to swim, because you and they will get overconfident and the kid might ingest too much water. Hmm.

The American Red Cross, on the other hand, does parent-and-child Aquatics classes for kids as young as 6 months, but recommends waiting until age 5-6 for real swimming lessons.
This Slate article recommends dumping water over your kid’s head and putting them on their stomach in the bathtub.

Here’s two contrary-thinking books, How To Teach Your Baby To Swim and Waterbabies.

An infant lifevest may be the best solution of all.