Photos become irreplaceable memories as the years pass.
It is important to capture every moment that you can as your children grow.
Coming soon. A collection of Christmas photos from the Settle Petal community. Here is a few of mine to start.
If you have ever felt a wave of panic when you drop your children off at family day care; you are not alone.
Many parents are concerned about how happy their children are throughout the day and their associated behaviour. Did you know that how parents manage their children at home has a direct influence on their behaviour at family day care? Here are three of the top influences that could be affecting your child’s behaviour.
Influence One: Sending your child off for the day without a suitable breakfast or no breakfast. Food is fuel to a child’s body. What they eat determines the capacity of their output. If your child has no food or unsuitable nutrition at breakfast, it can lead to them having poor concentration with emotional outbursts of frustration or an inability to cope in challenging situations. They can also be uncoordinated and clumsy leaving them more at risk of falls.
What to do instead: Avoid giving your child milk throughout the night. This will allow them to be hungrier in the morning. Ensure the foods you offer for breakfast include protein, complex carbohydrates, fruit, essential fats and iron. Avoid simple sugars and processed cereals containing preservatives.
Influence Two: Putting your child to bed too late in the evening. Being overtired before going to bed makes it hard for your child to settle to sleep. When they eventually fall asleep their sleep is often restless and fitful with waking. Their activities before a late bedtime often include watching TV and mischievous behaviour, both causing unsettled sleep.
What to do instead: Introduce an age appropriate evening routine. This will include a suitable meal time, bath time and play time before a pre bed time routine of books. Encourage family time with no TV distractions during the one and a half hours before bed.
Influence Three: Eating foods that provide an unsuitable and adverse effect on a child’s body. Research shows obesity now affects 1:4 children in Australia and allergies and intolerances have increased 500% over the last 6 years. These preventable health issues are rapidly becoming the number one focus for our health industry’s funding.
What to do instead: Go back to basics. Avoid or at least reduce the amount of pre packaged food that your child consumes. Buy a lunchbox suitable for presenting natural foods in. Understand your child will not starve and you can create new habits with their eating behaviour. It is important to know; it is not up to your child to choose what to eat, only whether to eat. It is up to responsible adults to show children how to build a strong and healthy body for their future.
Jan’s book ‘taste it’ is available online. It is specifically helpful for parents wishing to address the influences discussed in this article.
If you would like to include this article in your newsletter or website; you can, providing you include the following blurb with it:
This article was brought to you by Jan Murray, Private Child Health Consultant who is an internationally renowned expert in her field. Jan encourages parents in the area of infant sleep, nutrition, activities and family balance. She publishes regular ezine and blog articles to provide free parenting tips, tools and resources to educate and support those caring for young babies and children. For more online resources visit http://www.settlepetal.com
Children learn about life and its surroundings through play. Play is essential for brain development, sensual awareness (taste, touch, hearing, sight and smell) and muscle tone.An environment rich in experiences of touch, taste, smell, sight and sound will stimulate a young child’s natural desire to discover and learn, leaving the brain to do the rest.
Babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers need to taste, touch, hear, smell and view the world from many different angles in order to get a balanced and broad perspective.
Roll, sway, push, tickle and rock your baby every day. Play with music and musical instruments (or anything that makes a sound) to enhance the development of the inner ear, essential for balance.
General play gives toddlers and pre-schoolers the opportunity to release any thoughts that may be worrying them. Give them opportunities of expression.
This could be talking, painting, drawing, tumbling, swinging, climbing, running and general safe activities. Enjoy the sunshine which is known to enhance feel good hormones and vitamin D essential for strong bones and immune development.
Learn more about toddler play in ‘Being a Toddler‘ eBook
If you would like to include this article in your newsletter or website; you can, providing you include the following blurb with it:
This article was brought to you by Jan Murray, Private Child Health Consultant who is an internationally renowned expert in her field. Jan encourages parents in the area of infant sleep, nutrition, activities and family balance. She publishes regular ezine and blog articles to provide free parenting tips, tools and resources to educate and support those caring for young babies and children. For more online resources visit http://www.settlepetal.com
Toddlers are at an age (1-3 years old) where they are extremely inquisitive and fascinated by the world around them and the reactions of the people in it.
Toddlers are developing and growing the neural pathways in their brain at a rapid rate and require a varied range of sensory stimulation to achieve this.
They are not only growing and developing in ways that are obvious to see but also in the not so obvious such as:
1.The five senses of sight, touch, taste, smell and hearing
2.Immune system (helping to fight illness)
3.Digestive system (aids in good absorption of nutrients from foods)
4.Skeletal system (strong bones)
5.Muscular system (for strength and a protective barrier for bones and internal organs)
6.Nervous system (allowing for optimal sensations and reactions)
7.Circulatory System (healthy heart to pump blood around the body)
8.Urinary System (to filter toxins and waste products from the body)
9.Emotional control
With so much to experience and discover, is it any wonder that toddlers are forever getting in trouble for doing an unacceptable thing or being in an inappropriate place. They have a lot going on in their heads, so again, is it any wonder that they don’t remember to always do what you have asked them to do 5 minutes before or to not arrive where you asked them to be because they were distracted by something fascinating along the way.
Help your toddler to learn things in the quiet with you, as well as when it is busy in the company of others. They are learning new and different skills in each situation.
Toddlers need to walk with you and know about holding your hand but they also need to explore and run, therefore, try to not always hold toddlers back unless you know it is something that you do not want them to learn!
Enjoy their excited spirit as it will pass soon enough.
You can read more of what I have to say about toddlers in my ‘Being a Toddler’ eBook.
No socio-economic group is immune to intestinal worm and parasite infestations. Children still get worms even if they bathe daily. There is no point blaming the day care centre or the crèche at the gym for poor cleaning practices. Children get worms and it is thought to effect 1:5 children between 2 and 10 years old at some time. Many children have worms and are unaware of their residence before they clear themselves without treatment.
Worldwide the most common worm is the roundworm but the threadworm (also known as pinworm) is the most common intestinal worm found in Australian children. More rare varieties are the tapeworm found in sheep farming areas, hookworm and whipworm. Ringworm is not an intestinal parasite but a relatively common and contagious fungal skin infection.
Threadworms live in the human digestive tract and are seen in poo. They are ivory in colour and 2 -13 mm long. The female adult worm crawls out the anus to lay eggs and dies when her duty is done. The cycle would end here if eggs hatched and young worms died before entering the human digestive system, however, eggs can live for days and even weeks in favourable conditions on toilet seats, baths, benches, bed sheets, pyjamas, under fingernails and eating utensils. They are ingested when contaminated fingers enter the mouth. They hatch in the small intestine and travel down the bowel as they mature and the cycle continues.
Signs and symptoms of threadworms include itchy bottom (when worms are crawling around the anus), visible worms in poo or around the anal area (seen at night using a torch or first thing in the morning) restless sleep, teeth grinding, hyperactivity, irritability, bedwetting (irritated urethra), stomach aches, nausea and vomiting. Childhood habits like itching bottoms and putting fingers in mouths, sucking thumbs and chewing fingernails and toys, playing in dirt and sandpits, sharing lunch tables and benches and generally playing close to other children make it easy to spread eggs no matter how often hands are washed. Day Care environments are ideal for rapid spreading of worms as children play, eat and toilet in close proximity.
Thankfully, treatment is an easy over the counter medication that is taken once. ‘Merbendozole’ and ‘Pyrantel’ are the active ingredients that either kill or paralysis and purge the adult worms. A second dose may be required after two weeks if new eggs hatch. ‘Pyrantel’ can be used for 1 year olds but most treatments are for 2 year olds and above. If heavy infestations are left untreated it can lead to urinary tract infections, weight loss and other infections. Treat the whole family at the same time and wash the family dog to prevent reinfestation. Dogs cannot pass on threadworms to humans unless their fur had been contaminated by eggs from someone patting them. Prevent reinfestation with good personal and family hygiene – regularly cleaning toilet seats, baths and benches, regularly washing children’s bed linen, pyjamas and undies, encouraging effective hand washing after play, before meals and after toileting, keeping fingernails short and discouraging thumb sucking and nail biting.
Roundworms are not passed on from human to human but are picked up from contaminated soil, food and water. Commonly found in densely populated underdeveloped countries with inefficient sanitary methods of disposing of human waste.
Signs and symptoms of round worm infestation include bloody diarrhoea, upper abdominal discomfort, visible worms in poo, nose or mouth. In severe cases worms travel to lungs and other organs causing wheezing, coughing and difficulty breathing.
Treatment is over the counter ‘merbendozole’ and ‘pyrantel’ preparations but if symptoms are severe or you have been travelling to underdeveloped countries professional advice is recommended.
If you would like to include this article in your newsletter or website; you can, providing you include the following blurb with it:
This article was brought to you by Jan Murray, Private Child Health Consultant who is an internationally renowned expert in her field. Jan encourages parents in the area of infant sleep, nutrition, activities and family balance. She publishes regular ezine and blog articles to provide free parenting tips, tools and resources to educate and support those caring for young babies and children. For more online resources visit http://www.settlepetal.com
By Sonya Wildgrace - VBAC expert consultant
Caesarean can be a taboo subject for many women and their partners. Some parents have elected to have a caesarean by choice, some women due to medical reasons and some women have had them after labouring and not really understanding why they ended up having a caesarean.
They were given medical explanations but sometimes the evidence and the “Why’s “don’t match up.
So as the dust settles and these women begin to gather their birth memories they start to piece together a very different birth story.
I ended in a caesarean because I had a stalled labour. I had a student Dr, a student midwife, my partner and my midwife. I was on my back with a monitor on the whole time.
Interwoven throughout this picture was an underlying question. “Did I miss something?”
We are taught by our mothers and our care providers, that we have to be happy, after all we have a healthy baby to be thankful for and that is all that matters.
Deep inside there is a stirring that triggers a heavy sadness. We try to make sense of our emotions searching desperately for an answer.
In truth when most of us went to the hospital to birth our baby we went under the assumption that we were in the safest place to birth. We went to the hospital antenatal classes we read copious amounts of books, learned all about the drugs, epidurals and caesareans and about natural birth.
We didn’t get taught about natural undisturbed birth and how, being watched and monitored continuously by strangers could have a detrimental effect on our birthing process. There mere fact of knowing that someone was coming to check your cervix in a pelvic exam could make your cervix stop dilating and your uterus stop contracting. Each time someone enters your birth space (room) you are pulled out of your natural rhythm and they (the midwife/Dr/friend) become an intervention in your birth.
This can happen in birth I have witnessed it from both sides.
Could our cesarean have been avoided is the question. We go to battle in our minds debating that very question. We are told by our care providers and our Ob’s that it was all necessary.
“For the safety of the mother and her unborn child the cesarean was absolutely necessary”
Yet, there is no mention that interventions like the routine augmentation of contractions to induce labour actually increases your chances of more medical intervention which increases your chance of your birth ending in a cesarean.
We can try to blame the system for this floor in communication and get on our soap boxes about how upset we are that we have been hood winked .” How can they possibly get away with it?”
They can get away with it because we don’t know enough about it. We don’t ask the questions and they don’t say. They could argue that they had all the handouts on file detailing the risks of such procedures; they may even have given them to you. Yet for some reason you didn’t read them to even know if they had a fine print.
Why, would we be so careless not to read the dreaded fine print? What would be so alluring to us that we would sell ourselves out for?
The answer is easy; its emotion that drives us for the easier, quicker option. We commit to procedures because we are tired, we are big and swollen, uncomfortable, we are impatient, we are fearful and we want our babies in our arms. We don’t want to feel any pain or discomfort and if we have to, we want to minimise it as much as possible. What we don’t bother to really find out, is that there are payoff’s and from those payoff’s there is also repercussions that can affect our children’s health and wellbeing in the long term.
The very trait that makes us human can be used against us; we even use it against ourselves and each other.
The only way to become your own advocate is to assign your birth a new level of importance. Become your own expert and seek the knowledge from many sources. Research your birth options with the same inspiration and determinism you would searching for a new car or planning a wedding.
We have to assume some responsibility if we are ever going to make the necessary changes in the hospital system. We have to become the fierce guardians of our birth space and educate our partners to stand in the fire and guard our door.
Could there be a better way to educate women before they enter the birth suite. I believe the answer is YES.
On the cusp of a changing world the challenge has been set for mankind to take at good honest look at our standard model of care for our newborns. Humanity cannot sustain a cesarean born generation. Like the birth of a new butterfly, there are intricate details in the natural birthing process that have to be allowed to unfold naturally in order for optimal survival of the species.
Unnecessary cesareans, without any labour or birth canal squeeze and the introduction of formula into the tiny immature gut of a newborn before the first colostrum breast feed are two of the most common and disruptive interventions to occur at the beginning of a newborns life.
Repeat cesareans in subsequent births can be avoided through proper debriefing and understanding of the circumstances, shortfalls and unfoldment of their previous cesarean birth. The new pregnancy and birth is supported best by a better informed vbac approach.
The first colostrum breast milk feeds can be arranged for women who don’t intend or want to breast feed their baby but want their baby to have the best possible start in life.
For better natural birth outcomes we as birthing women and men, must be willing to understand the true nature of birth, what we have in our own bodies to cope with the process as it unfolds, and what is detrimental to its success.
Until we take back that responsibility we will remain disempowered and victimised by a system that we created. It is time that we made it work for us.
Question: Is it possible to have a natural birth after caesarean?
Answer: Sonya Wildgrace, says YES!
Here are Sonya’s 5 tips to a successful VBAC (vaginal birth after a caesarean):
1. Know your full range of choices- a lot of couples are given biased, information that may be generalised. Your reasons for the first caesarean may be different from other women. Do your best to find out what the circumstances were that lead to your caesarean, then discusses them in detail with an independent midwife or childbirth educator and together you can discover the choices available to you.
2. Make peace with your surgical birth- some women who have had a surgical birth may have unresolved thoughts and feelings around the circumstances that lead to their caesarean. It is vitally important that you can share your unique birth story and be heard with compassion in an environment free from judgement.
3. Take care of your supporters- some fathers may have experienced feelings of helplessness as they watched their partner and baby’s life hang in the balance during a problematic birth ending in a caesarean. In order for him to feel safe to support a vbac he needs to talk about how your surgical birth affected him.
4. Know how natural birth works- It is vitally important as a woman wanting a natural birth after a caesarean to find out what disturbed her birth process. To do this she needs to understand how a women’s body works in labour. In Sarah J.Buckley MD’s book Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering, she explains this beautifully in chapter 6-Undisturbed Birth-Mother Nature’s Blueprint for Safety, Ease, and Ecstasy and if you would like to learn how to support the process for a greater chance of a successful VBAC book in for our VBAC workshop at Yin Health.
5. Take personal responsibility- If you find yourself feeling disempowered by a lack of support from your caregiver for a vbac, seek support from another caregiver who is willing to offer you the support that you deserve. We assume that there is a lot of support for vbac, in truth we have to be proactive and find it for ourselves. Misinformation is a large factor in the number of repeat caesareans. There are some helpful websites such as www.canaustralia.net & www.ican.online.org for the latest accurate information and current statistics.
Sonya Wildgrace is an independent childbirth educator and birth doula with over 17 years experience in the industry with a passion for Vbac (vaginal birth after caesarean) counselling & education. Sonya has combined her years of experience as a childbirth educator and counsellor to provide her VBAC Counselling Services and VBAC Workshops at Yin Health Birtinya. If you live on the Sunshine Coast, call Yin Health on 54388387 to make an appointment today.
If you would like to include this article in your newsletter or website; you can, providing you include the following blurb with it:
This article was brought to you by Jan Murray, Private Child Health Consultant who is an internationally renowned expert in her field. Jan encourages parents in the area of infant sleep, nutrition, activities and family balance. She publishes regular ezine and blog articles to provide free parenting tips, tools and resources to educate and support those caring for young babies and children. For more online resources visit http://www.settlepetal.com
As one mother to another I would like to encourage you in your role of Mum. I
know how hard it can be and what little thanks you often get. I have been there.
Years ago it was the simple words of encouragement from both my mother and
mother-in-law that were immeasurably valuable for my self esteem as a new
Mum. I needed to know I was doing ok. I have written this book to cheer you on
and encourage you in your journey of motherhood.
Often when you read ‘how-to’ books about parenting and babies, you are left
feeling overwhelmed, confused and even guilty. This book is different. It uses
a holistic view designed to help parents see what the early years of parenting
are all about — it does not outline the ‘dos and don’ts’ of raising babies and
toddlers. Instead, it gives an inside view of a real parent with some of the many
challenges they face, and an insight into how parents can formulate their own
answers of what to do in a variety of situations.
This book was written with the new, busy, tired and confused parent in mind.
It reveals snapshots of my journey raising five babies interwoven with my
experience-based professional knowledge and expertise as a Registered Nurse,
Midwife and Child and Family Health Nurse. It is written to encourage and equip
new parents for their important journey of nurturing a young family. It focuses
on young families and the basics of feeding, playing, sleeping, health and
lifestyle balance. When a parent understands this balance and what can cause
imbalance their confidence and problem solving abilities as a parent soar.
After a baby enters the world, a new parent can be left searching for the icon
button to press or a parenting manual that is totally correct for their precious
baby. However, some babies do not fall into any of the categories that are
discussed. What do parents do then?
Instinctively and with the help and support of extended family and local village
dwellers, mothers have been raising babies for thousands of years. Sadly, this
maternal instinct, support and encouragement are being replaced by politically
and professionally correct knowledge found largely on the internet and in
books. This unceasing knowledge often leaves parents confused and takes them
away from the heart of parenting where their instincts are the guide.
I believe that everyone is a unique and complex individual who has the
opportunity to grow and develop for a given purpose. It is a parent’s job to love
their children and start them off in the best way possible in order for them to
prosper and excel towards the destiny for their life. Building strong foundations
in children through love and relationship attachments will equip them with
sustainable resilience to face the many challenges that will come their way.
I see this as a privilege to be involved with and one that I have never taken
lightly, even if I never always got it professionally correct with my own children.
“Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible”.
Marion C Garetty
It is now as my children are older and begin to leave home, that I wish to
encourage parents in the often arduous and exhausting years of raising babies
and young children. The difficult times that parents experience are really only
a moment in the journey of life, but how they are handled can make an impact
for a lifetime.
My story highlights how I never got it all professionally and politically
correct with the decisions I made, but I believe I did the best I could with the
information and insight I had at the time, and I believe you can too. This book
exposes my mothering, and I know from experience that you may feel how I felt
in similar situations, but you can make more appropriate decisions as you learn
from my mistakes.
Even though each generation has a different way of parenting, I always enjoyed
hearing how ‘veteran’ mothers handled situations with their babies and young
children. At the end of the day, no matter how professionally out of line some
of my decisions may have been, I rested in the fact that I had been there for my
babies and that was what really mattered.
When I made the decision to write this book I found it hard to know where
to begin and end. There was so much information that could be covered in a
book on babies but I was conscious of keeping it on a focal point. I find clear
and concise messages get through to sleep deprived parents more effectively!
After compiling information from a survey shared with over five hundred
new parents, I decided to embrace the most common concerns that they
experienced.
I hope to reach different types of parents with this book. Group one would not
have had their first baby yet. These parents soak themselves with information
while they eagerly await their baby’s arrival. They desire to feel equipped and
ready.
Group two plan to just take parenthood as it comes after their baby is born.
They plan to take advice from others and learn as they go. I guess as a new
parent, I fitted into this category but I know I would have been much more
relaxed, confident and less confused had I realized what to expect from babies
at certain ages of their lives. It would have been beneficial to have understood
more about allergies and intolerances, communication cues, and how early
babies start to subtly get you to do things their way, even when their way isn’t
always the most appropriate.
Group three have entered into the role of parenting feeling well prepared, but
their little one is not doing what parenting books say they should be doing.
Over the years with my own family I have learnt how to listen and take care of
babies, toddlers and preschoolers, and today I am discovering the complexities
of teenagers and young adults. Having now reached this stage in my own
family, I can honestly say that the first seven years of your child’s life is vital for
their character development, building of relationships and the ability to make
responsible choices in later years. For this reason I would like to share with you
my parenting thoughts, professional knowledge, child health experiences and
encouragement – mother to mother.
I have four beautiful teenage and young adults today, but if I had of known
then (when they were babies) what I know now, it would have reduced a lot of
my struggles and heart ache, as well as decreased some of their discomforts.
My children never cease to amaze me with how unique and beautiful they are.
As they continue to develop, I love watching how each is bringing their own
unique and valuable contribution to the world, and it humbles me to think that I
have played a key role in getting each of their lives started. It has been through
my experiences and challenges in life that has brought me to this place today
where I am able to confidently impart into the lives of parents with babies and
young children.
I hope you will join with me as I endeavour to keep families sane in the quest to
shape a magnificent future generation.
Exclusive blog reader discount at the checkout when you enter this code: Z0569O6X3
Enjoy parenting
It is such an achievement when babies and toddlers manage to get to bed at a reasonable hour and they sleep through the night. But what do you do when they start waking early, or are they really waking early?
There are a few significant things to consider when figuring out what to do to help babies and toddlers sleep longer or whether you have to get used to getting up earlier!
· Ensure a calm and comforting pre-bedtime ritual with no media to encourage a more settled sleep throughout the night
· Consider if they have slept the expected requirement of sleep in the previous 24 hours? Babies Sleep Patterns . Cut back on a toddler’s day sleeps if necessary or at least ensure they are up by 2.30pm
· Could intestinal worms be causing restless sleep and hunger? If so, treat with suitable medication from your Pharmacy
· If babies wake at the same time every morning around 4 or 5am, it may be a habit that has formed or from a drop in the room temperature. Try setting the alarm an hour before they are due to wake. Go into the room and stir but do not totally wake them. Do this for four mornings in a row. This can have the effect of breaking the body clock cycle which can give them an extra 30 to 45 minutes sleep. In winter use a heater with a timer set to come on at 3am to prevent the temperature drop or if you are up, place another blanket on them
· If babies are over four months old encourage them to have a teddy or comforter to sleep with and reach out for in the morning
· A Master or Miss Sensitive or Fusspot personality may be disturbed by early light or noise. Ensure the room is dark by having heavy curtains, blinds or blankets on the windows. This makes a difference for some but not all
· Perhaps it is hunger? Babies over four months old have a greater nutrient need to fuel their increased activity and growth. Breast milk supply may not be adequate for their growing needs. You may need to increase your milk supply or if you are using infant formula, the amount they are having in each bottle may need to be increased during the day. It may also be appropriate to start solids if they are over 17 weeks old and developmentally ready. If they are already on solids, the amount, type or frequency may need to be increased during the day to sustain them overnight
· Try holding off feeding babies when they first wake. Over time, this will make the time they wake for hunger occur later or if they are not established on solids during the day allow a feed from 4.30am and put them straight back to bed
· Maybe you could allow them into your bed for a special early morning cuddle and nap.
· If you think you have a Master or Miss Alert and Active toddler they may naturally wake at 5am happy and eager to get into the day. In this situation it may be you who has to change and therefore do what you can to make this situation enjoyable. Before you go to bed, (when they are already asleep) leave a snack or box of appropriate toys out where toddlers can reach them in the morning. During the day role play what you expect them to do in the morning; explaining the toys are there to play with before calling out or coming into you
· For toddlers under 18 months, you could try playing soft classical music to dull any sharp sudden noises. This could be an instrumental CD on repeat overnight, or a classical radio station that is set to come on quietly at 4am, or one hour before they would usually stir
· For toddlers over 18 months, set a soft music alarm to go on at an acceptable waking time and teach them to come to you only when the music is playing
· For preschoolers you could draw a clock with an acceptable waking time and hang it alongside a real clock. Teach them to only come out of their room when the clocks look the same
· Maybe you could allow them into your bed for a special early morning cuddle and nap
· If nothing is working make sure the house is safe for a toddler to be wondering in.
Need help to get your baby or toddler to sleep? ‘Putting them to Sleep’
If you would like to include this article in your newsletter or website; you can, providing you include the following blurb with it:
This article was brought to you by Jan Murray, Private Child Health Consultant who is an internationally renowned expert in her field. Jan encourages parents in the area of infant sleep, nutrition, activities and family balance. She publishes regular ezine and blog articles to provide free parenting tips, tools and resources to educate and support those caring for young babies and children. For more online resources visit http://www.settlepetal.com
Are you sick of feeling tired and seeing those unwanted rolls left from your pregnancy?
It is possible to gain more energy and interest in life but first you need to decide it is time to start looking after yourself. Then before you throw yourself into an exercise program put yourself in the best position to succeed by following these proven steps:
1. Freshen up your diet. Include more fresh and natural foods and limit your intake of processed and pre-packaged foods which have poor nutrient value.
2. Don’t skip meals, instead keep your metabolism firing by eating every three hours. This will give you the added energy required for a successful workout.
3. Drink eight glasses of water a day.
4. Reduce your stress levels. Identify what makes you stressed then take action to eliminate or deal with them in a more productive way.
Is it your toddler giving you added stress?
Here is some ideas that will help you deal with them being a toddler better.
5. Find a picture of what you would like to look like. Make it realistic and hang it up as a focused reminder for those days when you need extra motivation.
6. Aim for at least eight to nine hours of sleep each 24 hours. Sounds like I don’t understand that you are a mum living on broken sleep but trust me I do. I advise mum’s with babies who don’t want to sleep to keep them resting (not playing or being active). That means for eight to nine hours a day have your body in sleep or rest mode (put your feet up and sit and enjoy watching your children play).
7. Get organised. Have a plan and lock in times for both cardio and strength exercises. Just like you take your baby or toddler to their activities but this time it is your activity. There is a variety of options you can choose - home based (using an instructional DVD, book or personal trainer), group instructors or gym based.
8. Just get started. Don’t worry if it is slow to begin with. Exercise promotes energy to promote more exercise.
If you would like to include this article in your newsletter or website; you can, providing you include the following blurb with it:
This article was brought to you by Jan Murray, Private Child Health Consultant who is an internationally renowned expert in her field. Jan encourages parents in the area of infant sleep, nutrition, activities and family balance. She publishes regular ezine and blog articles to provide free parenting tips, tools and resources to educate and support those caring for young babies and children. For more online resources visit http://www.settlepetal.com
You and I have spoken regarding the donated clothing and others items that you have sent for the Flood Victims. The items have been all sorted out by the volunteering ladies and the victims have just come and help themselves to it according to their immediate needs. Some are still in the process of repairing of their house and make them liveable before they move in to live and continue on with the repair.
They came into the Centre on the days that are open for more supplies of clothes and other needs.
The Centre is now only open for 3 days for them to get their supplies. It will continue open for at least 6 months. The community and in particularly the victims voice their sincere thanks and appreciation of the work and the valuable donation that every one has made for them.
Jan as the president of the TOFA MAMAO A SAMOA Samoan Community Advisory Council of Qld Inc I will like to express our deep appreciation FOR the love and personal sacrifices, that you and the generous community in your area has done for Ipswich. You have definitely make life easy for some people. May our good God reward you. There is much more to be done, to bring the damage community back. However, the support and care from people like you speaks volume to these in need.
So again WE thank you.
Kind Regards
Filipo LUAFUTU
Senior Police Liaison Officer
Ipswich Police Station
Ph: 34372777 Ex 765
PLO Mob: 0409648169
Personal Mob: 0412154236
Email:Luafutu.FilipoP@police.qld.gov.au
