Cool Baby PlayMats (Foam Tiles)

Trendy Playmat from SofttilesNow that I have two kids under the age of 3, I have about 7 playmats in my apartment.  I have even considered foaming up the entire floor.  Softtiles.com has some nice looking tiles with which you could custom create your own playroom or even portion of your living room in a small apartment.  I am loving their design ideas for this modern playroom.  I also am a proud owner of this trendy little wood tile playmat from Tadpoles, for hip parents who don't want to sacrifice style and could get foam flooring to match their wood floor.  Cool Baby Playmat from Tadpole These retail for $24.99 and really do look like wood flooring from a few feet back.  I haven't been able to find any of the latest geometric patterns so big in home decor nowadays but that would make a great quick business idea.  Trellis, ZigZag, or Diamond pattern playmats would be pretty awesome for parents who care about home design.  You could put it down in the living room instead of a throw rug.  

When Baby Sleeps Sitting Up...Leave Her Alone

This is my pseudo lame attempt at parenting advice for those poor lost souls who have yet to shoulder the mind warping exhaustion that stems from lost sleep way beyond those first 3 months when society seems to accept it as a new parent's lot in life.  My second daughter was actually a great sleeper, at first.  She would go for 5-6 hour stretches at 3-4 weeks old.  Then when she was around 7 months old we moved across the country.  She quickly turned into a neurotic, clingy up 7-8 times a night sleeper and my desire to sell her on ebay set in.  It took 2 months of sleepless hell to get through the "transition" of the move, and then Emmersen hit a milestone (sitting up from laying down).  She was 9 months old but spent most of that time laying like a lump on her back, rocking in her baby seat or just sitting with a pillow behind her.  She never spent any time on her tummy due to reflux so when she mastered her new trick, she did it with the core strength of a gymnist using a fluid crunch-like motion and folding over which I'm sure will win her a gold medal one day.  We applauded this until she began practicing her new skill in the crib all night.  She didn't know how to lay back down.  Still doesn't.  And so she sits and cries and finally slumps over fully like a bent pretzle to fall asleep.  Her legs are limber so sometimes she is in a full split when this happens.  You can imagine how mortifying it is to view on a baby monitor.  

Here is how I nipped it in the bud.  I just left her alone.  It took 3 nights of screaming for me to realize I just riled her up more by going in every 10-15 minutes, so I let her sit there and slump for 2-3 nights.  Admittedly I was pissed enough and tired of being so unbearabley tired so I didn't feel much guilt about it.  And now she is over it.  Sometimes she'll still wake up and sit up, but she rarely cries now and though she doesn't know how to actively lay back down, once she is slumped she occasionally rolls to her side and flips.   In a few weeks when she starts crawling I'm hoping this becomes a distant memory, until standing sets in...       

How Long Should a Child Stay in a Stroller?

Boy on Bugaboo Standing BoardMany moms, especially those with an infant and a toddler often wonder at what age their kids should spend more time walking and less time confined to a stroller.  I've seen parents wheel their 4-5 year olds around city streets and at the time I was carefree and childless so I found myself appalled.  I thought by the age of 3 certainly, kids need to learn how to use their own two feet.  But convenience often outweighs lesson teaching, boundaries and effort when you are working or have more than one to think about.  My first stroller was a Bugaboo Chameleon so I was pretty pissed off when the Donkey was unleashed earlier this year.  Bugaboo Standing BoardI was not about to spend $1200 on a new stroller.  I did some research and settled on the City Select because I loved the multiple configurations and flexibility it offered.  And I vowed to list my Chameleon on Craig's List and get at least $400 for it.  But, even the City Select is a beast.  It's long, heavy and just doesn't handle in that great way the Bugaboo does.  So I have debated keeping the Bugaboo and adding a standing board.  But before I spend $99 I wonder if I am setting my expectations too high for my almost 2 year old.  She loves to walk but if pushed to the limit will likely want to be picked up.  Will a standing board be the answer?  Take a look at this boy in the picture, seems like he is uncomfortable on the board, maybe too tall for it?...I am going to do some more research on this one.  Let me know if you have any experience with the standing board.