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• Pregcellent: Babies Do Come With (Hilarious) Instructions!

  As a new parent, the whole baby thing can be overwhelming, to say the least. There's this idea we should just know how to do stuff naturally, like breastfeeding or interpreting the baby's cries correctly with little or no instruction. But of course, it isn't that instinctive. The lucky moms and dads have good relatives and friends to share parenting pearls with, and of course there's tons of books on the subject as well. But other people can get annoying with the constant advice, and the books are by and large dull as bleaugh.  That's why I think nothing is quite as good at breaking down what to do and... Read More... Posted Mar 26 2008, 09:31 AM by Kelly Mills with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: parenting, newborn, websites, babies, internet, diapers, infants, funny, humor, instructions, pictures, advice, bonding, pregcellent, help, resources, care, feeding

• One Bathroom Provides Life Lessons

  Want to bring your family closer together? The path to bonding isn't through elaborate vacations or structured playdates. No, all you need to do is move into a house with only one bathroom.   Read More... Posted Mar 06 2008, 01:28 PM by Adrienne Martini with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: potty training, bonding, pee, one bathroom, small house

• Do Some Moms Love More Than Others?

  You know how the love your feel for your child, especially the newborns, is inexplicable, other-worldly, spiritual, so incredibly unfamiliar that you catch yourself describing it as “magical”? Well, get over yourself. That love is chemical, plain and simple. At least that’s what scientists concluded from this study on oxytocin “the hormone of love” and the mother-child bond. Oh, great. They have not only taken the mystery out of love, they’ve quantified it. No I love you more! No I love you more! Quit arguing and submit blood samples! Read More... Posted Oct 16 2007, 07:52 AM by Madeline Holler with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: research study, hormones, Madeline Holler, bonding, oxytocin

• Do Unplanned Pregnancies Mean Trouble Bonding?

  Recent studies indicate that acceptance of pregnancy is predictive of later parental attachment.  Not surprisingly, "The relation between mothers' pregnancy acceptance and toddler attachment security is noteworthy because if attachment problems continue into the later years, the child could have self-esteem problems." In other words, negative feelings toward pregnancy can predict later feelings that parenting is burdensome. Social supports in place to lower the stress of parenting, such as high quality child care, health care, and sufficient resources can go a long way to allaying the practical struggles of childrearing.  Given that a good portion of pregnancies are unplanned (in my state,  56% are reportedly unplanned, which means the real number is more like 75%), one can assume the ability to a woman to adjust to her state would have a great deal to do with the conditions in which she finds herself. Loving and caring for children is made drastically easier when one has the time, resources, and support to do a good job. Posted Jul 24 2007, 03:24 PM by Rachael Brownell (Redsy) with | with no comments Filed under: pregnancy, bonding, pregcellent, maternal child bonding, loving parents

• Geeky Robot-Building Dads Are the Best

  Who needs a dad who will teach you how to throw a curveball or play horsie when you have a dad like this? Geekdad, one of our very favorite resources for all things great, pointed us towards the interview with their hero of the week from Robot magazine. Nao Maru spends quality time with his kids by building robots. Kickass, award-winning robots. In fact, "In less that two years Maru and his two young sons went from complete novices to winning the ROBO-ONE 10 championship against the best humanoid robot builders Japan has to offer." Now that sounds like bonding, and thank god they didn't try to build a baby. Maru isn't one of those parents who takes over and just lets the kids hold the welder for a second. In the interview, he says about building one cool custom robot, "We wanted it to have an original character, but with some similarity to traditional anime robots. More than anything, it had to be something that would excite and inspire all of us, especially the boys, otherwise it wouldn't be worth doing." Excuse me, I think I have a nanoparticle in my eye... Yeah, I know, that wouldn't account for the watering. It's just the sweet geeky thing gets me right here, every time.   Posted Jun 14 2007, 10:01 AM by Kelly Mills with | with no comments Filed under: dads, robots, geekdad, geek toys, bonding