Mobiles optimize the total sensory motor integration. They include sound, movement, and bright and/or contrasting colors. Since infants do not see clearly, your baby sees contrasting colors best.

Mobiles that are black and white offer the best contrast. Throw something red in the mix for a bit more [...]]]>

Mobiles Shopping Guidelines

Mobiles optimize the total sensory motor integration. They include sound, movement, and bright and/or contrasting colors. Since infants do not see clearly, your baby sees contrasting colors best.

Mobiles that are black and white offer the best contrast. Throw something red in the mix for a bit more color. Add movement and sound to catch her attention and you have a toy sure to enhance you infant’s learning.

In addition to the sensory motor aspect, you are concerned about safety and ease of installation. The best source of information about safety and recalls is the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Tiny Love Sweet Island Dreams Mobile With multidimensional movement and tranquil music, the TINY LOVE Sweet Island Dreams Mobile entertains your baby and encourages important developmental skills. The green mobile arm ... read more

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	Tiny Love Sweet Island Dreams Mobile With multidimensional movement and tranquil music, the TINY LOVE Sweet Island Dreams Mobile entertains your more...		$54.95
	Tiny Love Take Along Mobile, Animal Friends more...		$22.30
	Wimmer-Ferguson Infant Stim-Mobile Birth & up. This mobile is eye catching with high contrast graphic pictures in bright more...		$26.99
	Fisher-Price Rainforest Peek-A-Boo Leaves Musical Mobile more...		$31.68
	Fisher-Price Precious Planet 2-in-1 Projection Mobile Designed for use from birth up to five months, the Fisher-Price Precious Planet Two-in-One Projection more...		$49.50
	Tiny Love Tiny Princess Mobile more...		$39.00
	Animals Wooden Ceiling Mobile Colorful and fun mobile with animals and a warm bright sun. Will keep your baby more...		$22.95
	Tiny Love Classic Mobile more...		$39.95

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Related Products You May Like

	Tiny Love Take Along Mobile, Animal Friends
	Tiny Love Take-Along Arch, Sunny Stroll
	Baby Einstein Take Along Tunes
	Fisher-Price Ocean Wonders Soothe and Glow Seahorse Blue
	Fisher-Price Rainforest Melodies and Lights Deluxe Gym

General safety guidelines for mobiles include:

• Manufactured later than 2007
• Follow manufacturers directions for installation
• Check fastening elements (screws, etc.) for security and proper position
• String securely fastened and no longer than 7 inches
• Be SURE to register the mobile with the manufacturer
• MAKE SURE the child cannot grasp or pull it.

There was a massive recall of many baby and children’s products in 2007. That’s the reason for the first guideline above. So one manufactured after that year is best.

Mobiles to Enhance

However, if you find a mobile you like and it fits your criteria as an excellent way to enhance your baby’s sensory motor development, log onto the CPSC web site and search by manufacturer or product to verify there is no recall.

Safety is the first concern for any toy you purchase. For valuable free information on toy safety and proper toy cleaning, please visit the Ultimate Toy Safety resource, MadeSafeToys.org

Once your baby sits by himself,  just put it away. He’s on to other toys.

I’ll be adding more information and giving several suggestions for mobiles that enhances her initial learning experience.

You won’t want to miss when the information when it’s available. To insure you get it “hot off the press,” just click on the Orange RSS button, you’ll be notified when additional information is added.

Yes! As a teacher of the visually impaired, I learned much about how important this is. But, you say, my child isn’t visually impaired so what difference does it make? What I learned in working with the visually impaired actually enhances the development of normally sighted children.

That’s what I thought, too. In fact I hesitated to tackle these two senses because, frankly, I didn’t think there were many toys that could [...]]]> Smell And Taste In The Newborn?

Gifts to enrich the smell and taste in the newborn?! You’ve got to be kidding. You even ask, “How can you even know this?”

That’s what I thought, too. In fact I hesitated to tackle these two senses because, frankly, I didn’t think there were many toys that could enhance their development. Well, there aren’t, but there are lots of activities. Maybe not so many activities for the newborn, but definitely as they get older.

But was I ever surprised by just how much odors and tastes DO affect the child! As I did more research, I learned that they are even affected before they’re born.

SMELL

According to David B. Chamberlain, Ph.D. in The Fetal Senses: A Classical View, research now shows that the baby’s system for smelling in utero is much more complex than originally thought.

How can they detect odor in utero? They do so in two ways: through the amniotic fluid and through the placenta.

Again referring to Dr. Chamberlain, the nose develops between 11 and 15 weeks of gestation. So the amniotic fluid, in which the baby lives, bathes not only the baby’s olfactory cavity, the area responsible for smell, but also the oral and pharyngeal cavities, the areas responsible for swallowing. Thus the baby smells and swallow it.

The placenta carries products of the mother’s diet. That may explain why your baby reacts to certain foods you eat.

All of this before he is even born!!

So what odors do they detect after birth?

• They distinguish their own mother’s scent, as opposed to other women’s, and prefer it. It also has a soothing effect after a stressful situation…like shots.
• Vanilla also seems to have a soothing effect, according to an article by Dr. Maureen Williams. And in a scientific study published in Pediatrics, vanilla had a beneficial effect in premature infants.
• Sweet and non-sweet odors. They prefer sweet ones.
• Strong odors—they turn away from those.

TASTE

Just as babies are able to smell and taste before birth, they can do the same in utero. Taste buds appear on the baby’s tongue by the 12th week of pregnancy. Tests in utero show that they seem to prefer sweet ones to bitter and sour ones by swallowing more with sweet ones. So they really are born with a pretty well-developed sense of taste and definitely have preferences.

Generally, pediatricians don’t begin solid food until about four to six months.

HOWEVER, the first indication of food allergies DOES appear in these first three months.

Food Allergies

For whatever reason, some newborns do not receive enough nourishment from breast milk so they may have to supplement with formula. Some newborns cannot tolerate regular formula, mainly due to the cows’ milk ingredient of lactose.

One of our twins had to use a soy formula. And our granddaughter also developed an intolerance for cows’ milk. She was placed on soy, but before she turned two, she had developed a moderate allergy toward that. She now drinks rice milk.

When she kept getting colds and throwing up, her pediatrician did a blood test and discovered she had moderate allergies for milk, eggs, wheat (not gluten per se) and soy.

Your pediatrician will be able to help you determine whether this is the case or not. Note any signs of lactose sensitivity and relate them to the baby’s doctor.

Signs of Lactose Sensitivity:

• Family history of lactose sensitivity
• Skin manifestations of rash, hives, eczema around forehead.
• Vomiting.
• Gassiness, fussiness, or colicky.
• Changes in stools.
• Fluctuating weight.
• Stuffy nose.

We’d just barely gotten back home from a trip to Alaska when we got the call that our granddaughter had arrived. We frantically caught up on a week’s worth of laundry, and struck out for [...]]]> It All Began With A Burp Cloth…

Well, no, actually it all began with the birth of my first grandchild.

We’d just barely gotten back home from a trip to Alaska when we got the call that our granddaughter had arrived. We frantically caught up on a week’s worth of laundry, and struck out for Fort Worth to see our precious girl.

I’d packed up several items to take for the little one, including a personalized burp cloth my sister-in law had made for her great niece. Then we drove 12 hours from our home near Nashville, Tennessee.

Since my daughter-in-law’s mother was still teaching, you can imagine the thrill I had when they asked me if I could be the one to help during those first weeks! Was I ever blessed…even with the sleep deprivation. To tell the truth, I’d actually forgotten what that was like…but it was well worth it!

We had plenty of chances to use the burp cloths they’d received AND the one my sister-in-law had made. Had a chance to compare the two types, and my sister-in-law’s won hands down…it absorbed those spit ups remarkably. Well, it should have…a three ply diaper should!

It looked pretty simple to make…

Yep, on closer inspection, I discovered that a ribbon on either side of the well-padded central portion of the diaper surely dressed it up. Check this out and see if you don’t agree.

Why, that’s a cinch to make…just straight line sewing!

As soon as I got back home I was on a mission. I searched the discount store for the diapers…It took me awhile, but I did locate the ones I wanted.

Next stop…a craft store, for the ribbon…where it’s usually on sale for half price! One thing I learned…get the gros grain type. It launders better than the satin kind.

Back home…Now, it’s time to prove it’s simple. I whipped out three in no time. Three was all I did because I didn’t know if that’s what they preferred.

Last stop…post office.

Was it worth it? You make the call. A couple of weeks later, my son called and asked where I got them. His wife had looked everywhere for them but couldn’t find them.

My response, “I made them. Would you like some more?”

I eventually made all 12 (that’s how many diapers come in a package.) then bought some more to have on hand to make as baby gifts.

Boy- or girl-appropriate ribbon personalizes them. Having the name embroidered helps even more…but I don’t have an embroidery machine. So I called my friend who does. She wouldn’t accept payment, but slipping a fabric store gift card in the bag is a win-win for both of us.

You don’t have an embroidery machine, or a friend who has one? Don’t worry, alternatives to creating snazzy burp cloths exist.

Here are some unique ones that I eventually made.

Here are some other creative fabric options for creating unique burp cloths to make for your child or give at a gift.

Vision is the child’s window to his mind. That’s because the optic nerve, which enters the back of the [...]]]> Vision-Enhancing Gifts Aid Visual Development

Selecting newborn vision-enhancing gifts begins with understanding the visual development of your child. As you might expect, the development actually begins during pregnancy. That’s why nutrition is such an important issue.

Vision is the child’s window to his mind. That’s because the optic nerve, which enters the back of the eye, is an extension of the brain. What he sees travels along this pathway to the part of the brain responsible for vision.

It is there he organizes, interprets and makes sense of his world. Just think about how much you learn by looking and observing.

Just what does your child see during these first months?

• Initially she sees black, white, and shades of gray; but she will see red, green, orange and yellow shortly. It takes a bit longer to see blue and violet.
• At birth, visual acuity (how clearly he sees details) is about 20/400
• Her eyes do not work together well, so they tend to cross. This is normal. However, it would be a good idea to tell your doctor if, by the time he’s 4 to 6 months old, the eye crossing is pronounced or apparent for long periods of time.
• He likes to look at faces, especially Mom’s.
• She begins to following moving objects and reaches for things she sees between 2 and 3 months.
• He begins to shift his gaze from one object to another by 3 months. This is an important skill for learning to read.

So what gifts will stimulate his visual development?

He’s asleep more than when he’s awake, but when he’s awake…expose him to…

Bold, Contrasting Colors, Lights and Movement…that’s because his acuity, or how clearly he sees, will not be in the normal range until about 6-7 months.

His eyes will follow slow movement as it crosses his line of vision…so get his attention and by shaking a toy with bold or contrasting colors, then move it slowly in front of him.

Many of the gifts selected will be practical ones that you can even make yourself … or ask his grandmother to. If she likes to sew, she’d probably be thrilled you asked her…I was.

Books…at this age?! Yes! Browse the ‘net for soft books or board books. Illustrations should be simple with bold lines and colors. They don’t even need to have words…just pictures. This gives you more information on what to look for when selecting books.

Select a book with finger puppets, and the movement of the puppets will delight him as you read.
Mobiles…hang one with attention-capturing animals over his crib or on a swing. This  is a vision enhancing gift that keeps him entertained during his wakeful times. You can find tips on selecting mobiles here.

Rattles—you’ve watch her progression from fascination with her hands to intently examining an object he holds. Place a rattle in the palm of her hand and watch it curl around a rattle. Again, bold colors help stimulate visual development.

Simple…except that there is SO much to choose from.

Your child must first become aware of sounds and then understand that some of these are words…language in its infancy. She strings those words together to form sentences…language in [...]]]> Selecting Gifts to Enrich Language Development

To select newborn language enrichment gifts it helps to have an idea about language development in the first 3 months.

Your child must first become aware of sounds and then understand that some of these are words…language in its infancy. She strings those words together to form sentences…language in toddlerhood.

You see now just how important it is to strengthen this skill through gifts from birth. But it’s not just toys that assist, scores of activities may play an even more important in this aspect of her development.

Your child heard and responded to noise before birth. That’s easily verified. You felt the different movements she made in response to the sounds and rhythms she heard and experienced.

So…how does she respond to sound during the first 3 months?

• She responds to the tone of your voice by looking at you through unfocused eyes.
• Arms and legs jerk in response to loud, sudden noises, oftentimes cause her to cry. As much as you don’t like to hear him cry, he really needs to. Why? It’s necessary for speech. Well, maybe he doesn’t need to cry that much.
• He quiets to soothing sounds and enjoys music.

So what toys and gifts enhance this part of his development?

Talking to her is the best gift. She hears and sees you using language. This gift is free, and the pay is great…She’ll reward you with a smile!

Musical CDs–Most babies respond favorably to music…all kinds and tempos. These provide ample opportunities to expose her to music. Numerous Baby Einstein CDs are excellent choices. Here’s just one example: Baby Einstein: Lullaby Classics.

Sound-producing toys…baby swings…bouncers…mobiles…stuffed toys activated with a button or switch. Our granddaughter enjoyed the Fisher-Price Hoppy Days Bouncer.

Access handy tips on what to look for when you go shopping for Swings and bouncers here.

Rattles come in all shapes and sizes. This is one she can activate. Just place a rattle in the palm of her hand and watch her fingers curl around it. The natural movement of her arms will eventually make it rattle. This Wiggly Giggler Rattle fits nicely in the palm.

Books—Read to him. By the time he’s 4 to 6 months old you can point out characters in the pictures and talk about what they are doing. Name body parts.

Vision also plays an important part because your child needs [...]]]> Gifts And Toys That Enrich Fine Motor Skills

To know what gifts enrich fine motor skills, we need to define what we mean by that. Those are the muscles of the fingers, wrist, and toes. We address only those that involve the fingers and wrist.

Vision also plays an important part because your child needs to have good eye-hand coordination to accomplish many tasks.

Those tasks include not only paper-pencil skills, such as legible handwriting, but the important tasks of personal care…toileting, bathing, dressing, eating…just to name a few.

So what should you expect for the next three months? Let’s find out.

You’ve noticed that initially his fist is always clenched…No he’s not looking for a fight, that’s just a natural reflexive action. If you place an object in his hand, his fingers automatically curl around it. That Peekaboo Baby Toy is a perfect gift choice.

Next, she swipes at a toy that she only sees dimly. Sometimes she even accidentally contact with it. Make it one that rattles, jingles or has texture and watch her eyes respond in wonderment.

As his eyesight improves, his vision directs his hand movements to purposefully reach for and grasp a toy. Oftentimes he’ll bring it to midline to play—and then probably to his mouth.

Pretty impressive when you think about it, in just three short months her fine motor skills have gone from just reflexively making a fist to intentionally grabbing a favorite toy.

Side-to-side it’s like you rock her [...]]]> Is This Cradle Swing You are Looking for?

Well, let’s just check this Fisher Price My Little Lamb swing. It gets its name because of its side-to-side (cradle) and back-and-forth (swing) action.

Side-to-side it’s like you rock her in your arms. The plush fabrics and soothing tunes provide the security that promotes sleep.

He’s not sleepy? Then try the back-and-forth motion. Let him gaze at the mobile featuring a mirror, floating clouds and little lambs while he listens to the 8 nature sounds. Or reach out and touch the plush animal attached to the removable tray. There’s also a bead bar.

The neat thing about this swing is that it is multi-sensory. Her visual tracking skills are stimulated as she watches the movement of the lambs and clouds.

The textures of the fabrics enrich his tactile sense.

Her auditory sense is heightened as she listens to the 8 nature sound tracks.

Three seat positions and six speeds allow you to choose the most comfortable one for your little one.

One drawback is that it does not plug in to an outlet. Rather it requires 4 D-size batteries.

It does fold for storage or to easily take it to another room or Grandma’s house.

It comes in four colors or styles: Butterfly Garden, Mocha Butterfly, My Little Lamb and Starlight.