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Babies
Protect your newborn from the flu
It’s that time of year again: flu season. Each year, millions of people hunker down in the fall to prepare for the annual onset of influenza outbreaks. With the season comes an onslaught of visits to, at best, pediatricians’ offices and, at worst, hospital emergency departments by worried parents and their ailing children. Now that you’ve got a newborn, you want to be prepared.
So how do you keep your new baby healthy this winter?
While you cannot inoculate your baby, there are steps you can take to keep him healthy during flu season – many of them common sense.
What is the flu?
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the flu is a contagious respiratory ailment caused by a group of viruses known as influenza. It strikes an average of five to 20 percent of the U.S. population each year, causing symptoms that range from fever, headache, dry cough, sore throat, runny nose, and muscle aches to nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Complications associated with the illness include bacterial pneumonia, ear infections, sinus infections, dehydration, and worsening of chronic medical conditions.
Young children, the elderly, and people with chronic health conditions are at particular risk for serious flu-related complications.
How do I avoid getting the flu?
The CDC recommends getting a flu shot as the number one way to avoid getting the flu. If possible, get a flu shot in October or November, although you can still be vaccinated into December.
Parents, siblings, and caretakers of young children should be vaccinated. The American Academy of Pediatrics revised its recommendation in 2006 to include flu shots for children as young as six months and up to age five years. The CDC also recommends that pregnant women be vaccinated. Studies suggest that maternal immunization may help prevent the flu in young infants.
While your newborn is too young to safely receive the vaccine, and whether you were or weren’t vaccinated while pregnant, he can’t catch the flu, if he does not come into contact with the virus.
Other simple preventatives include covering your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze, washing your hands with soap and water – often, avoiding close contact with those who are sick, and keeping your baby out of crowded public places. The flu is spread through contact with the respiratory droplets of an infect person, primarily from coughing and sneezing, so be alert and act accordingly.
What to do if you or your baby get sick?
If you think you have the flu, minimize contact with your baby as much as possible. Drink plenty of fluids and rest. Take fever-reducing medications, as necessary, and contact your physician if your condition worsens. If your baby becomes ill, ensure that he continues to nurse often to prevent dehydration. Call your pediatrician immediately if your baby has trouble breathing, is not feeding adequately, seems less responsive than usual, or his rectal temperature rises above 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit.
Influenza is a serious concern, especially for parents of newborns. But simple, common sense strategies can help you keep your baby healthy throughout the flu season.
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How to Save Money on Baby Care, From Juice to Food to Diapers
The myth that babies cost money tends to keep the local grocery or department store management very happy. Retailers love the parents that want things the *convenient* way, rather than the economical way. If parents were to wise up and take just an extra few moments a day, retailers would see a huge drop in profits and parents would see a significant change in savings. It doesn’t cost much to raise a baby. Little changes can save you a bundle!
In a recent trip to the grocery store, I was in the checkout line behind a new young mom and dad, holding an adorable infant. In their buggy was at least three dozen tiny little juice bottles, the smallest jars of baby food, and regular size jars of baby food. The clerk proceeded to ask the young mom what the difference was between baby juice and regular frozen juice. The young mom said that the baby juice was more diluted and was better for the baby. Hard as it was, I kept myself from laughing and kept my mouth shut.
We’ll start with the juice first. Baby juice is the same thing as concentrated frozen juice in a can, only more diluted. Both are fortified with Vitamin C. The frozen concentrate is MUCH cheaper than the baby juice, as it makes MUCH more for MUCH less. Simply mix it up according to the can’s directions, then if you are using a small baby bottle, pour it 1/4 full of the juice and finish filling the baby bottle up with water. If you are using a large baby bottle, fill it 1/3 or half full of the juice and the rest with water.
Baby food costs a lot of money. While I can understand buying the regular size jars of baby food, buying those tiny small ones is a huge waste of money. Buying the regular size ones is a better buy for your dollar. NEVER feed the baby from the jar, as the saliva really wreaks havoc on the food in a few moments time. Put out a portion on a saucer or in a bowl, and save the other part of the jar for later that day in the refrigerator. Some parents opt to make their own baby food. While I think this is great, it is more time consuming, but saves even more money for the family. If you make your own baby food, be sure it is the right consistency for Baby, and that Baby doesn’t get a lot of spices, etc.
Baby diapers must be the one thing, other than child care, that costs parents the most money. You can count on a baby being in diapers for about two years. Most parents today abhor the idea of a cloth diaper. Disposable diapers are great, and I’ll be the first one to admit that. But they can eat you out of house and home! So what’s the young parents to do? One idea is to use disposable diapers only when you go someplace, such as the grocery store. If you baby wets a lot at night, you might even want to use them at night too. During the day, around the house, put the baby in cloth diapers. You will have to change the baby every hour or two, maybe more or less, but using cloth just part of the day will result in a nice savings.
Baby clothes and such can be found used for just a fraction of the cost. Why spend all that money on something Baby will only use for a few weeks? Take the cradle, for example. Why buy a new one, when baby will outgrow it in maybe a couple of months? Baby clothes are quickly outgrown, but new ones are expensive. Again, you can save a bundle by shopping thrift stores, yard sales, and store sales.
When my children were babies, I stayed home with them. I might have worked an entire year in the past twelve years. My family has never made a lot of money. As a matter of fact, most people would consider us on the poor side. How have I been able to stay home with my kids?
I believe in saving money where it can be saved. I used cloth diapers part of the time, I use coupons when I did buy disposables, and those were the store brand rather than name brand. I diluted juices instead of buying the baby juice, shopped yard sales and thrift stores for used baby clothes and baby items, etc. And I didn’t work outside the home and pay ridiculous child care costs.
The main thing to remember when raising your baby is that *you* control what you spend. If you just want to give your money to the retailers, it is after all your money. But know that you don’t have to give away your hard earned money, if you’ll just take the extra few moments and make a few tiny changes. The money you save now, while Baby is a baby, will make a nice nest egg for special things later in life.
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Save and Smile – Baby Starter Kit
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There are a lot of things to think about when there’s a baby on the way. You’ve got to come up with the perfect name for your little bundle of joy. You have to line up childcare when it’s time to go back to work, or make plans to stay home with the baby. There are clothes, diapers and supplies to buy. And there’s a nursery to decorate.
Decorating the nursery is a favorite part of new baby preparations for many parents. Until it’s done, you just don’t feel like you’re ready to welcome your child into the world. So many moms- and dads-to-be go all out, buying expensive designer cribs, bedding and décor. But if you’re on a tight budget, that’s money that could be better spent on more practical things.
That doesn’t mean that you can’t decorate your baby’s room in style, though. It just means you’ll need to go about it a little differently.
Here are some frugal tips for decorating your baby nursery:
* If there’s a certain motif you want to use in the nursery, create a baby registry and make sure that your shower organizer lets invitees know where you’re registered. That way guests will be likely to purchase the items you’ve selected in that motif. But keep in mind that if you choose a lot of expensive items, you might not get them, because your guests may be on a budget too.
* Don’t get your heart set on doing everything in a certain motif. If you don’t get all of the things you want at your shower, you might have to go with something else. If you get some of the items you wanted, however, perhaps you can buy the rest in a color that co-ordinates with them.
* Make some of the items for the nursery yourself. You could buy some fabric featuring the characters you want to feature in the nursery and make all sorts of things out of it. Curtains and blankets are easy if you have a sewing machine. You could also make decoupage wall hangings by cutting the characters out of the fabric and using Mod Podge to adhere them to a piece of wood, then top with another coat of it. And framed pages from children’s books or calendars also make lovely wall art.
* Visit consignment shops, flea markets and yard sales. You can often find great deals on gently used nursery items at these places.
* Go to outlet stores, or shop from the outlet section of your favorite online baby store. There are spectacular deals on new items to be found here. Some might have minor flaws, but in many cases they’ve simply been discontinued by the manufacturer.
Decorating your nursery on the cheap doesn’t mean it won’t be beautiful. With a little creativity, you can make it look just as wonderful as it would if you had spared no expense. And best of all, you’ll have more money to spend on diapers, formula, and those adorable baby clothes!
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