Strollerderby : new baby

Preschoolers with the Baby Blues

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 22:30:00 GMT

A while back, I was the nanny for a three-year-old boy whose mom had twins. When she first got home from the hospital with the babies, we were all amazed at how unreservedly sweet Thomas was to his new baby sisters.

On day three we learned the reason for his lack of jealousy. One of the newborns was squawking in the other room and he turned to me and announced, “I’m ready to take the babies back to the hospital now.”

A godmother on Babble’s Kids Say the Cutest Things has a hilarious new sibling story of her own: “My 4 year old goddaughter (who has a new baby at home) had the honor of opening the last door on the advent calendar at her preschool. Upon pulling out the baby Jesus sleeping in his manger she announced, 'UCK, the baby Jesus! I HATE BABIES!'"

You know your kids are at their wit's end when even an inanimate baby Jesus is intolerable.

Photo: eHow

Dad Dies 15 Hours After Daughter's Birth

Amy Kuras — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 17:29:00 GMT

This is one of those stories that made me want to grab my family and hug them hard. Drew Pearson, who was 27 years old and had just welcomed his baby daughter the day before, was killed in a car accident while running errands the morning after his daughter was born.

Most of us remember that first night in the hospital with your new baby. You are shellshocked with the new responsibility you have just taken on, not entirely sure what to do with this little person, and unable to stop staring at this beautiful little being you have created. One thing you’re likely not doing, is sleeping.

A sleep-deprived Pearson’s car slammed into the back of a slow-moving semi. His wife discovered something was wrong when she called his cell phone with an update from the morning pediatrician visit and finally got an answer from a staffer at another hospital. Finally the hospital social worker where she was came in to tell her her husband was dead. They had been married two years.

Before he left the hospital that morning, the new family got a few pictures of Pearson with his daughter. One of them is now blown up over the little girl’s crib, and his wife, Emily, says her daughter seems very drawn to them.

Family and friends held a fundraiser for Pearson’s wife and daughter. He was an instructor in the PGA golf management program at Florida Gulf Coast University and managed a nearby golf course. That’s why I am writing about this – not to bum everybody out, but to let people know. I know there are plenty of more tragic things in this world, but I think everyone who is a parent would feel their hearts torn out by this story.

They Say: Kids Might Not Doom a Marriage

JeanneSager — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 22:02:00 GMT

Good news parents! A new study says the old studies that blamed our marital discord on our decision to have kids were one parent hooey, one part truth.

In other words - twenty-five separate studies that said the quality of marriage drops significantly after "baby makes three," were too vague. They lumped us all together.

The hooey? University of California at Berkeley researchers Philip and Carolyn Cowan, will soon make a presentation to the Council on Contemporary Families asserting that never before did researchers account for the parents who had an accidental pregnancy or who had disagreed before conception about whether both spouses actually wanted children.

Think about it. If one parent wants kids and the other doesn't, shouldn't it stand to reason that the arrival of said kid is going to make one spouse unhappy? And one unhappy spouse generally makes for an unhappy marriage. Say the Cowans, "couples who planned or equally welcomed the conception were likely to maintain or even increase their marital satisfaction after the child was born."

The problem with most studies are the broad, sweeping generalizations, and parenting studies are no different. A rock-solid marriage will likely struggle after the birth of a child - parents are sleepless, therefore parents are stressed. Throw in say a sick child or a job loss (we have a lot of those these days), and who knows what might happen. But is that the fault of having kids? No. It might be kid-related, but not the fault of the decision to procreate or adopt.

In my personal experience, I know parents who had the "oops pregnancy" and rushed to get married who have now found the marriage is on the rocks. I also know a couple who were divorced within two years of their son's birth because they had an oops pregnancy during marriage - and he wasn't crazy about it. But my colleagues here on the 'derby say they know couples who were fine . . . until they had the second child. That's when life went haywire and the divorce man cometh.

So what to do, what to do? In her New York Times op-ed on the subject, Stephanie Coontz refers to psychologist Joshua Coleman suggestion: the airline warning to put on your own oxygen mask before you place one on your child also holds true for marriage.

I couldn't have said it better myself.

Image: ThePetitionSite

New Baby Scores Extra Fingers and Toes

Jen Chaney — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 19:58:00 GMT

We're supposed to wish for a healthy child with 10 working fingers and 10 working toes. But a family in San Francisco got something even better: A healthy child with 12 working fingers and 12 more working toes.

Kamani Hubbard was born a few weeks ago with polydactyly, a condition that means he's got some extra digits. And according to this story on www.ktvu.com, no one even noticed right away. That's a good thing, since it means the kid can reap all the benefits of having extra fingers and toes without blatantly looking like a freak show.

And just what would those benefits be?

For starters, he's going to kick everyone's butt at Guitar Hero! No, seriously, a doctor at St. Luke's, where Kamani was born, marvels at the potential skills the child could develop, including being a skilled pianist or guitarist. Other things he could be particularly good at:

-- Pitching, since having those extra fingers could help to put some added spin on the ball. (Worth noting: Antonio Alfonseca, a pitcher for the Florida Marlins, also has polydactyly.)

--Typing. And, on a related note, possibly texting.

--Remembering things -- extras fingers and toes mean more places on which to tie reminder-strings! You know, assuming that anyone still does that, as opposed to just sending themselves an e-mail alert.

--Massage therapist: More fingers = extra capacity to knead sore muscles.

--Cheating at math: He can take adding with his hands and feet to a whole other level.

--Inventing new obscene gestures: With six fingers to work with, there is no telling how many ways he can potentially flip people off.

No matter what the little guy decides to do or become, the important thing is that he's healthy. I would advise his parents to start babyproofing ASAP, if they haven't already. The odds that he could stick his finger into an open socket? Seems like they might be a bit higher than the average.

Image: Midwestrocklobster.com

Pregnant Mom Gives New Meaning to Mile High Club

JeanneSager — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 16:33:00 GMT

As if the New Year wasn't making the flight from Amsterdam to Boston merry enough! A Ugandan woman gave birth somewhere high over Canada with the help of a doctor who happened to be on board Northwest Flight 59.

The mom was eight months pregnant and traveling with her toddler and a friend when a passenger alerted the flight attendant that she was kneeling on the floor, wailing in obvious distress. The captain called for a doctor, and found out two were on board, a family physician and a radiation oncologist.

Dr. Paresh Thakker, the family doc, said Mom's contractions were already two to three minutes apart when he got to her, and the baby's head was crowning. There was no point in landing the plane, he told the crew, reaching into help six-pound Sasha make her way into the world. Dr. Natarajan Raman, the oncologist, hasn't delivered a baby in two decades, but he said the lack of a delivery room or the major medical supplies didn't matter - everything was "perfect."

Mom is a Ugandan citizen, but an American resident. Her daughter? She's technically a Canadian citizen now!

Image/Source: Boston Herald

New Babies Wrapped in Holiday Stockings

New to Birth Certificate: Does Mom Have Chlamydia?

Baby Born on Mom and Dad's Birthday

Police Coach Birth Via Cell Phone

New Year, New Mother -- Some Resolutions

Baby Born on Mom and Dad's Birthday

JeanneSager — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 17:26:00 GMT

I used to think I had it bad - birthdays in my family and my husband's crop up in nearly every month of the year. There's no time off from gift-buying and card-choosing.

Then I heard about Tyler Nash and fiancee Erika Cherry. They just welcomed home a new baby girl - born on Tyler's birthday. Erika's too. Every member of the Cherry/Nash family has the same birthday.

The parents are, of course, ecstatic - and they should be. They just had a baby (and she's a cutie too - check out the picture). But I've got to feel a teensy bit bad for little Faith Nash.

She's got to share Dec. 23 with Mom and Dad - one birthday cake, three names. AND she's got to share her birthday-week with the big J.C. Fortunately, her parents are well-schooled in how to keep Christmas from crimping your birthday-style. As they've been there, done that, they're planning a lot of half-birthday celebrations.

Image: Colorado Springs Gazette

Stop Sending Palin Baby Presents

Why They Shouldn't Eat the Snow

Police Coach Birth Via Cell Phone

New Risks Associated With Elective Deliveries

New Dad Forgives Guy Who Stole Camera With Birth Footage

JeanneSager — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:35:00 GMT

I'm not sure whether to say awwww or ewwww on this one.

A thief in Greenville, SC walked off with a video camera bag he found in the hallway at the local hospital. But when he saw on the news that the guy who'd forgotten the bag had used it hours before to record the birth of his second child, the thief went to police and turned himself in.

The new dad, identified by a South Carolina news station only as Darius, has opted not to press charges.

This despite Darius' need to hit up the pawn shops in the area to find and eventually buy back his wedding ring, which had been cutting into his skin when his wife was squeezing his hand during labor. The new dad had put the ring inside the camera bag, and the thief pawned it before turning the camera over to police. The camera itself was intact, and footage of the baby girl's birth and moments of the couple's son's life have been restored.

It's nice to know some people still have a little mercy, making this an "aww" moment for Darius and his family. It could be the holiday spirit. Then again, who isn't feeling benevolent when they have a little hand wrapped around theirs?

As for the thief, beyond the fact that stealing what doesn't belong to you is NEVER right, the fact that he apparently made the grab while walking with a woman and three kids (his own?) makes him that much more of a scumbucket. Who commits a crime with the kids in tow? And who doesn't know that a camera in a hospital was probably used to record some pretty intimate moments?

Would you be feeling this benevolent?

Image: Playmobil

Hunter Shoots Through Trailer Wall, Kills Toddler

Babywearing Moms New Pain in Motrin's Side

Baby Dies After a Game of Airplane

They Say: Lead Bullets Make Game Risk for Pregnant Women, Kids

Bride Goes Into Labor During Wedding, Still Hits Reception

Jen Chaney — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 12:02:00 GMT

I can only speak for myself. But I might consider postponing my nuptials if I were pregnant and my water broke before the wedding.

New British wife (and mummy) Emma Lowdon is clearly a heartier soul. As the Mirror reports, her water broke three days before she and her fiance, Sean, were due to tie the knot. Doctors gave her antibiotics and their blessing to proceed with the wedding as scheduled. So the couple stuck with their plan.

Shortly before she walked down the aisle, Lowdon apparently started to go into labor. She managed to fight through the contractions, say her vows and get a kiss from her groom.

Not only that, but she also swung by a reception before heading to the hospital. (I can almost imagine what she must have said: "I know the baby is crowning, but I paid for this @#!&ing caterer. And I am eating some of those crab puffs before I go to the maternity ward!")

The couple's son, Josh, was born the following day (that poor woman, as if the wedding wasn't tiring enough) and was five weeks' premature. But he is healthy. So we wish them congratulations and also offer our sympathies. Sympathies? Yeah. A new baby brings much joy, but I have to think he also makes for the lamest honeymoon ever.

Best of FameCrawler: Week of May 2nd

Whit Honea — Fri, 02 May 2008 20:00:00 GMT

Miley Cyrus Vanity Fair Photos: Annie Leibovitz Speaks

Oprah Reveals Scoop On Tom Cruise Interview

Jessica Alba- A Bra Would Only Slow Her Down

Lourdes Looks Like A Young Angelina Jolie?

Claudia Shiffer and Daughter Clementine

Melissa Joan Hart Has Her Pre-Baby Body Back

Kate Hudson Tops People's Most Beautiful People List

Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon Married...and Expecting?

Courteney Cox Getting Baby Help from Friend

More Halle Berry Post Baby Body Pics!

Best of FameCrawler: Week of April 25th

Whit Honea — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 20:00:00 GMT

Kat Moss Stands Up to Pee

Brad & Angelina's Quiet Wedding

Halle Berry Is No Couch Potato

Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz Are Like A Dog and His Owner

Jonas Bros Defend Miley's Bra-Baring Skank Pics, But Still No Word From Daddy

And The Most Embarassing Parent Award Goes To...

Lourdes Looks Like Mama Madonna

Bridget Moynihan Has Style Advice And So Do I

Mark Wahlberg Adding on to the Funky Bunch

Miley Cyrus' New Boyfriend Revealed!

Mom Brain Is Not Such a Bad Thing

Amy Kuras — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 15:03:00 GMT

Maybe this is a second kid kind of a thing or a new baby situation, but man, I miss having my act together. Two short months ago, I totally felt I was rocking the work-at-home mom thing. Then baby #2 arrived, and while he is delightful and wonderful and a much, much easier baby than I deserve, there is no longer a single, solitary aspect of my life I am not ragingly behind on. Thank you notes unwritten, blogs not maintained, friends not called, books, hell, magazines unread. And we'll not talk about the tumbleweeds of pet fur all over my house or the disorganized cluster-you-know-what that is my work life.
So I found this essay, from Parenting (my least favorite parenting mag), of all places, very reassuring. Writer Margaret Renki posits that the kind of thinking we tend to do as mothers is just as meaningful and important as the stuff we once thought, and sometimes still do, about politics or art or The Meaning of Life.
I especially loved this:
"Motherhood forces us to understand, if only so we can teach it to our children, what really matters in the small space we each have between birth and death. And the easiest way for me to learn this lesson is by living in deep, penetrating kinship with other human beings -- by living, in other words, in a family."
I needed that, that reminder that this stuff matters even when it feels so small and trivial that the best thing I got done today was to keep everyone alive and loved.

Best of FameCrawler: Week of April 4

Whit Honea — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 20:00:00 GMT

Kate Hudson Is a Strict Mom

Video of Celebrity Babies with Secret Super Nanny: The FameCrawler April Fools

Robin Williams and His New "Nanny"

Katie Holmes' New Haircut: Fug, Or Just Sorta Fug?

Courteney Cox Wants Another Child

Jamie Lynn Spears in Hustler!

Future Mother Of George Clooney's Children Skanks It Up

Piping Hot: Giada De Laurentiis Has a Baby Girl

Suri Sighting! Suri Sighting!

The Bonham-Carter-Burtons Talk a Walk With Baby

Hooray for Another Babble Baby!

editors — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 15:30:00 GMT

We are thrilled to announce the arrival of yet another new Babble family member! Editor Gwynne Watkins welcomed her beautiful baby boy (evidence of beauty seen above) on Monday, March 3rd at 1:01pm here in NYC. The stats:

Name: Anselm Thomas

Proportions: 8 pounds, 6 ounces and a respectable 20.5 inches

Great job Gwynne and Gabe! We can't wait to meet the little fella'.

Strollerderby : new baby

Preschoolers with the Baby Blues

Dad Dies 15 Hours After Daughter's Birth

They Say: Kids Might Not Doom a Marriage

Protect Children: Prohibit Divorce

Four Reasons Big Families Might Have it Better in This Economy

Is the Sitter Just There to Watch the Kids?

Does a Baby Fit Your Budget?

Kinder Language, Kinder Divorce?

New Baby Scores Extra Fingers and Toes

Pregnant Mom Gives New Meaning to Mile High Club

Male Blogger: Laboring Mom Not a 'True Emergency'

New Babies Wrapped in Holiday Stockings

New to Birth Certificate: Does Mom Have Chlamydia?

Baby Born on Mom and Dad's Birthday

Police Coach Birth Via Cell Phone

New Year, New Mother -- Some Resolutions

Baby Born on Mom and Dad's Birthday

Lost Dog Makes it Home For Christmas

Stop Sending Palin Baby Presents

Why They Shouldn't Eat the Snow

Police Coach Birth Via Cell Phone

New Risks Associated With Elective Deliveries

New Dad Forgives Guy Who Stole Camera With Birth Footage

Who's Watching the Kids at Chuck E. Cheese?

Hunter Shoots Through Trailer Wall, Kills Toddler

Babywearing Moms New Pain in Motrin's Side

Baby Dies After a Game of Airplane

They Say: Lead Bullets Make Game Risk for Pregnant Women, Kids

Bride Goes Into Labor During Wedding, Still Hits Reception

Best of FameCrawler: Week of May 2nd

Best of FameCrawler: Week of April 25th

Mom Brain Is Not Such a Bad Thing

Best of FameCrawler: Week of April 4

Video of Celebrity Babies with Secret Super Nanny: The FameCrawler April Fools

Katie Holmes' New Haircut: Fug, Or Just Sorta Fug?

Hooray for Another Babble Baby!