Here is the thing, it’s all about how the statistics are being presented.  The people that side with the no-vaccination route state statistics in numbers, like so many hundreds of people have been alternately affected by the vaccines.  That seems like a large number and makes you really think. But the people that side with the vaccination route, give statistics in percentages, like the possibility of being alternately affected by the vaccine is 100^th of a percent, which is same as one in a million. So, the statistics are the same, the difference is how they’re being reported.  By the way these are fictitious numbers, I’m presenting them as an example.

Being that it’s such a hard subject to argue, we have our own philosophy on the vaccinations. We permit our kids receive whatever is being required by state in order for kids to stay in daycare or school. We opt out of all of the new or the optional vaccines. My opinion is as follows, if the vaccine is established, it’s more likely been tried for many years and the number of lawsuits regarding that particular vaccine is so small that it may not be worth worrying about.

When a doctor offers me a new vaccine for some virus or flu of the day, I politely refuse. This is more likely a new type of vaccine that may not have been around for enough time for people to notice its alternate effects. The lawsuits usually don’t start until 5 or more years after the new thing is introduced, so it’s hard to tell how safe the vaccine is if it hadn’t been tried for some time.

How about you? What’s your opinion on this matter?

First, we decided to eliminate as much sugar as possible from Nathan’s diet, since sugar breeds bacteria if not fully metabolized. I started with the snacks he gets at the daycare. Three times a day, he’s being provided snacks, in the form or crackers, sugary cereal, a cereal bar or cookies. Though most crackers, such as Goldfish or Ritz may not be bad on sugar from the first glance, they still easily metabolize to sugar.  Plus they contain a bunch of other crap (check out the ingredients list) that’s really not helping. And the crazy thing is, the daycare would not let me bring my own snacks unless I provide the slip from Nathan’s doctor that he has allergies. Well, that’s just what I had to do.  Now I pack very plain snacks for him in form of fruits, like the bananas and grapes and either plain pretzels or rice crackers.  By the way, we did not cut his intake of fruits, since they actually have favorable nutritional value, like the vitamins which strengthen the immune system and help fight sicknesses.

Second, we bought powdered vitamin C and started adding just a tad to his juice in the morning. You really don’t need much. The type that we bought contains 5 grams, which is the same as 5,000 milligrams in one steaspoon.  We only add about one third of the quarter of a teaspoon, which is approximately 400 mg. Vitamin C is a water soluble vitamin, so one can’t really overdose on it unless they’re taking insane quantities of it.

Third, we started putting few drops of half white vinegar (5% acidity) and half water solution in each of his ears about three times per day. If we see that he’s starting to develop snot or cough, we increase the frequency to 5-6 times per day.  When I do the drops, I put him flat on his side and after I’m done administering drops, I lightly move my finger around the area of his ear and lightly tug on his ear to help the liquid go down. I weight for at least 30 seconds for him to get back up.

And this is it!

So far it’s been 0ver two months without the ear infection. We just had a well visit with the doctor. At the time of the check up Nathan had a cold with runny nose and some cough, but no fever. I asked the doc to check his ears for possible ear infection. She said she hadn’t seen his ears to be this clear in quite a while.  Yay!!

For the longest time the only sound he’s been making was “A-Daaaa” and different variations of it like the French version “A-Duaaaa-a-a-a” and the casual version “A-du” and the other version “A-doe”.  Also, since “A-doe” sounds almost like “All Done”, my motherly brain’s, been telling me that that’s exactly what he’s been saying all these months at the end of his meals. And you won’t convince me otherwise!

Anyways, today he graduated to saying “E-ka Ba,” almost every time after I would say “Take a Bath”. Now this I didn’t make up!  And he kept repeating it even after he was done with the bath. He’s so enjoying his new abilities.

He also likes to sing ABCs song. It usually starts in the middle and  doesn’t go till the end, but who cares, right?

That’s my boy

It seemed like she developed a phobia of going into the potty. She’s been perfectly ready for the potty for at least 6 months. She’s been able to go without a diaper without an accident for a while. As she needed to go, she would request a diaper. And if we tried to make her go into the potty instead of a diaper, she would put up the biggest stink. It involved lots of screaming, crying, resenting sitting on the potty, until she had no choice but to go on the floor!

Finally a few days ago I decided to enforce the “no diaper” policy. Basically, I wasn’t willing to give up no matter how much stink she puts up. The goal was to make her go into the potty versus the diaper or the floor. I even sweetened up the deal by promising ice cream if she goes into the potty.

First couple of times we had to force her to sit on the potty while she was peeing. It came to the point where she would cry, scream and shake from trying to hold it in. But eventually, she just had to let it loose. There was quite a bit of spillage, but some of it made into the potty. After much praising she got her ice cream.

Now she seems to enjoy peeing into the potty. She gets really excited when she does, she runs around clapping and proudly showing everybody her full potty.

But our work is far from over. Our next step is to make her go #2 into the potty. The ice cream deal didn’t seem to work tonight. We’ll see what happens tomorrow!

Baby Nathan is now 7 weeks old and is doing well.  Alas, last couple of nights I went to bed before midnight for the first time since he was born. Usually he needs attendance until 1-2 in the morning before going down for the night. I’m hoping that the pattern of him falling asleep at a normal time continues, since I have to be up for my oldest at 7:30.

He’s been smiling for couple of weeks already. Best time to catch him greening is in the mornings or while changing his diaper. He loves attention. His fussy time is at night, starting around dinner and ending with his last feeding for the day, at around 10. Often we have to move him to his crib during dinner for the sake of our sanity. Though having two-year old around kind of defeats the purpose.

Elyana is still going to daycare twice a week and seems to enjoy it. I enjoy a little break from her as well. She learns a lot there and constantly shows off new words and skills she learned there! Her language skills and awareness of her surroundings are improving a mile a minute. Just yesterday I missed a turn to the library and as soon as I did that, she yelled: “Mommy go where? Mommy go where?”. That caught my attention and I made a U-turn before I drove too far. Elyana is quite a dancer and a singer. She’s more likely going to be artistic and I can’t wait to get her into something that involves dancing or music of some sort.

I’m fully recovered from delivery and working at establishing a realistic exercise routine for myself. Breastfeeding is taking up a good chunk of my day, though it’s getting easier as the time passes by. Lack of sleep and possibly other things are starting to affect my ability to remember things. Sometimes I feel like a complete cluts! I’ve given up at keeping my house “perfect” and my face made-up, as I simply don’t have the time! As long as I manage to clean the kitchen, pick up loose toys around the house, brush my teeth, wash my face and conceal the dark circles under my eyes, I feel pretty good! At the end of the day, I’m not going to remember how clean my carpet was or whether I made up my bed.

On a different note, I’ve been accepted back into graduate school at USF for Masters in Environmental and Water Resources Engineering. I took a break after my daughter was born in December of ’07. Not sure if I will be attending this summer, since only couple of courses are offered by a different engineering department. Though it would be nice, since they are being offered online!

Furnishing a Nursery

Choosing a Stroller and a Car Seat

Choosing a Jogging Stroller

In this post I am going to focus on other baby gear that I personally found important to have and why. If you’re about to have a baby shower for your first child, walking through the baby store’s isles can be overwhelming. So many articles, they all seem important and possibly necessary. Monitors, crib mobiles, swings, playpens, bath tubs, changing table pads, diaper disposals etc, etc… I think it’s important to separate these items into three categories, “not needed”, “I could possibly use that” and “I definitely need it”! From that point you can make a decision for what you need to purchase based on the necessity level and the budget.

Even with my first one, I used careful judgment at picking baby items (yep, I’m a minimalista!).  I evaluated how long I would be using the item, how much it costs and what is its necessity level. And since I knew ahead of time that we were planning on two kids, I picked the colors to cover either gender.

This is a list of items that I’m glad I got, since they were well worth getting.

Playpen/bassinet combination with changing pad is a definite necessity and will serve your child from birth until 2 or 3 years old. I decided not to purchase changing table, see why in my previous article and started using playpen from the time my daughter was born. I didn’t use it as a bassinet, since it’s bulky and not easily movable. When my daughter grew up a little, I got rid of the changing pad and started using it as an actual playpen. It’s definitely a lifesaver when you need to leave the room to take a shower or if you’re cleaning the house or when they simply misbehave! Since it can be folded into a compact bag, it served as a bed for her when we went to visit relatives overnight. She outgrew its bed purpose at around two, when she got too tall for it.

Bassinet is a very convenient item to have, but not worth buying brand new. It’s only great for the first 3 months of your baby’s life. It’s small and portable. I used to wheel it around the house everywhere I went. At night the bassinet was next to my bed for the convenience of breastfeeding. During the day it sat next to me in the family room. When I went on the porch, I brought it along as well. Since its use is limited to only first three months, I saw no point of getting a brand new bassinet. I borrowed it from a friend. If it’s not an option, look for a used one. Just make sure it’s stable, the base is not missing any screws and the wheels are in working condition.

Baby swing is a definite necessity. I used it from almost time she was born until about a year from then. The motion kept her quiet while I was able to get other things done.  She would often dose off in it.

Shopping cart cover got its use for the ten bucs I spent on it. I used it from the time my daughter was about 6 months until she was a little over a year. You can definitely use it longer than that, I just didn’t seem to have a necessity for it.

Baby carrier/sling (0-3 months) for newborns. We used it quite a bit to walk around the neighborhood for the first 3+ months of her life. I left it up to my husband to carry her around in it. The weight was a little too much for my back for the whole stretch of the walk.

Baby gym is a little on the pricey side for a brand new, but it had a good run with my first one and will be with my 2nd as well. She started to interact with it at about 2-3 months of age until we decided to pack it up around the time she started walking. She enjoyed the lights going on and off with the sound of the music. She didn’t start grabbing the toys until few months later, but it kept her entertained overall. Even now, at two years old, she sneaks into her closet (that’s where we store it), closes the door from the inside and turns on the music with blinking lights. It’s like she’s having her own little party in there, no parents invited .

Baby intercom is a definite necessity if your baby is sleeping in a separate room. I would recommend purchasing the one that is running on high frequency, the kind that the cordless phones use, rather than the low radio frequency. At first we got the low frequency one, and it drove us nuts at night. It was making all kinds of static noises, and we were just having a hard time sleeping. Also, if your neighbors happen to come across the radio frequency you’re using, they can listen in on your conversation in the nursery. After a few days I bought the high frequency intercom and had no problems with it. No static noises, just the baby! Some people complain that they’re having a hard time hearing the baby, but I didn’t find it to be a problem at all.

Crib Mobile/Crib Aquarium are not the “can’t live without” type items, but they are nice to have. My daughter was enjoying them since infant until we moved her to the big girl’s room at 2. Even then she couldn’t part with her musical aquarium.

Infant bath tub (0-6 mo) I found to be very useful. You could definitely use other means to wash the baby, like the sink or a regular bathtub, but it can be a bit tricky in the early months, having to support his head and washing him at the same time. So with my first one I played it safe by getting a special bathtub, and it worked out very well.

There is no way to cover absolutely every baby item. This is just my take on the things that I consider important and  personally use to make my life easier. If you have something to add, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment. I love to learn from others how they do things.

In my next post I’ll focus on the items that I consider unnecessary based on my personal experience and judgment.

• How often are you planning to use the stroller? Once or more per week, once a month, when the opportunity comes up? This could decide the quality of the stroller you want, besides just the features. You know the saying, you get what you pay for! The more you use it, the higher quality stroller you would want. (always check reviews!) If you’re not planning on using it much at all, maybe going with a used one is a better option!
• Are you planning on having a second child and when? This can decide whether to invest your money in a new or used, top of the line or a less expensive version. If you’re planning on the second one pretty soon, then buying the top of the line single jogging stroller may not be the best option financially. With the second child, you would probably want to upgrade to the double stroller.
• What activities are you planning on doing with the stroller? Are you mostly a walker or runner, what type of surfaces are you planning on covering with it? Again, this decides the durability you would want to expect from the stroller. Many people use their jogging stroller to walk on the paved path in their neighborhood or at the mall. Well, then you don’t need a top of the line, highest quality stroller. If you’re planning on running on the beach or over uneven surfaces, like the wooded paths, grass, rocks…, then you would want something sturdier, with quality wheels that won’t twist or pop and would deliver according to your expectations.

Like I was saying in my previous post, before purchasing I would strongly recommend to physically check out the item at the store, if available. You will get to try it out, see how it works and get a good idea of what it would be like to own it.

If this option is not available or even if it is, second best thing is to look at the product’s reviews. This will give you a good estimate of stroller’s durability and expected problems that might come down the road. Amazon.com and Babies’r'us are couple of popular sites to check out. I usually go with a product that has at least 15 reviews. This way I know that the product is not brand new, it’s been tried by others, and I get to find out how well it works from real people. Even if a product has a good rating, still browse through some poor reviews. If you see that a certain complaint repeats itself, you know what to expect, and whether that particular feature is important enough to you to make a “move on” or “no big deal” decision.

So with this in mind, here is my take on it. I actually bought a used running stroller with my first for the cost reasons, I wasn’t sure how often I would actually use it, and I also knew that we were planning on a second one in a near future. It’s made by Expedition and has a fixed front wheel rather than the swivel type. It was already pretty beat up, the back wheels were a little twisted, making it wobbly. I also was not excited about the fixed front wheel. Fixed wheel will only go straight. If you have any sort of a turn or a curve in your path, you have to lift the front of the stroller to elevate the front wheel, while making the turn, so the stroller can stay on the path. Not very convenient! Because of such poor maneuverability, I can’t take it for shopping or a casual walk in smaller spaces. One of the benefits of the locked wheel is it does go well over rough or uneven surfaces, like grass or sand.

Now that we’re expecting a second one, I am looking into a double stroller with a swivel wheel that can also be locked in place. I actually purchased one from Baby Jogger, but was disappointed and returned it. I wrote a blog post about it if you’re interested.  My next choice is either Schwinn Free Wheeler 2 Double Swivel Wheel Jogging Stroller or InStep Safari Swivel Double Jogging Stroller. Both stroller are similarly priced and both have some issues. Now I’m trying to negotiate with myself which flows I’m okay to put up with, and which I would rather walk away from. By reading some average reviews, 3 out of 5 stars, I found that Schwinn stroller has seats that are too deep and too reclined. In the InStep Stroller, the seats are apparently too close together and the older kid ends up occasionally wacking the younger one. Apparently there is also not enough support between the seats, making kids slide toward the middle.

With this in mind, I still can’t justify spending nearly $600 on a BOB stroller that appears to have a perfect 5 out of 5 rating.

If you do choose to get a jugging stroller as an every day stroller, I would recommend following:

• Going with a swivel wheel stroller that locks in the place for jogging or rough terrain.
• Look into a stroller that is car seat compatible.
• If above is not an option, make sure you can use this stroller for a newborn without the car seat.

This is it for now. In my next post I’m planning on talking about the rest of the baby gear and its usability. So stay tuned!

Related Articles:

Preparing for a New Baby Minimalista Way, Stroller and Car Seat Selection

Preparing for a New Baby Minimalista Way, Furnishing Nursery

How I Decorated My Nursery Cheaply

In my opinion, an every day stroller is not a thing to buy at the garage sale. Since it has a few nuts and bolts, moving parts, folding mechanism, you want these things to be sturdy, last a while and work well. If you’re anything like me, you’ll be using your stroller a lot. I use it to go on the walks in the neighborhood, shopping, play dates, adventure parks, etc.

Before purchasing I would strongly recommend to physically check out the item at the store, if available. You will get to try it out, see how it works and get a good idea of what it would be like to own it.

If this option or is not available or even if it is, second best thing is to look at the product’s reviews. This will give you an overview of its durability and expected problems down the road. Amazon.com and Babies’r'us are couple of popular sites to check out. I usually go with a product that has at least 15 reviews. This way I know that the product is not brand new, it’s been tried by others, and I get to find out how well it works from real people. Even if a product has a good rating, still browse through some poor reviews. If you see a certain complaint repeats itself, you know what to expect, and whether that particular feature is important enough to you to make a “move on” or “no big deal” decision.

If you’re planning on more than one child, going with neutral colors is one of the way to economize.

We chose to go with Graco Passage Travel System that included the car seat and the stroller together. This type of set up can be used from the time they’re newborn and up to about 5 years of age or 50 pounds in weight. Even though this stroller is on the less expensive side, under $200, it’s surprisingly sturdy. My kid is over 2 years old now, but the stroller barely has a scratch on it. I am not exactly the most smooth operator either, I do tend to bump it into things at times and it seems to take the “abuse” fairly well. Here are some other features that I like:

• The folding mechanism, I can do with one hand.
• The fabric is spill proof. Spills can be wiped off easily without having to throw the whole thing into the wash. I actually haven’t washed anything yet (besides the car seat cover) and it looks just like new!
• It has a generous size canopy, perfect for Florida’s glaring sun.
• It’s fairly easy to maneuver.
• Big storage basket underneath. It easily fits a diaper bag, my purse and the jackets for me, husband and baby.
• The price is under $200.
• 4.5 out 5 stars rating on Amazon.com, which is not bad compared to other strollers.

Here are couple of cons for me:

• I wish the stroller were a little lighter (it’s about 27 pounds). Even though I don’t ever think about it when I’m actually using it, I do feel it when I have to get it in and out of the car.
• The car seat is heavy as well. Not sure how much it weighs, but I do feel it when I get it in and out of the car.

Overall though, it’s a good stroller for the money.

In the travel system, car seat usually comes with the base for the car and also fits comfortably on top of the stroller. Another advantage of the travel system is the portability of the car seat. You can take it with you anywhere without disturbing your baby, if he happens to be napping at the time. And babies nap a lot! This way you don’t have to worry about how you’re planning on carrying your baby around without the car seat. For example, if you’re going shopping, you can place the car seat over the front part of most shopping carts, leaving you hands-free from carrying your baby.

One of the disadvantages of buying travel system is that you can only use the car seat for up for to about 12-14 months of age or 20 pounds. Then you have to invest in a new car seat. Usually they will accommodate a child starting from the newborn to up to 40-50 pounds. They are also bulky and non-portable. Even though I call myself a minimalista, I decided to invest in a more expensive (for me) Evenflo Symphony 65 with Surelatch All In One Car Seat.

Here are some of the positives of this car seat that I care about:

• It reclines into four different positions. If we happen to travel during her nap time, I recline the seat into the least steep angle position ahead of time. This way her head doesn’t drop on her chest and she doesn’t look like she’s getting a big pain in the neck, LOL!
• This seat comes with additional head support and protection on the sides. So in case of an accident, the head doesn’t jerk too much to either side.
• The straps are very easy to adjust from up front. I use this feature all the time, because of what she’s wearing or when I get her in and out of the car.
• The head support adjusts easily, without having to unbuckle the seat. I don’t use this feature much, but it’s still convenient.
• It comes with an optional cup holder for the child.
• The seat seems to be extremely comfortable, lots of padding!
• It’s rating is 4 out of 5 stars on Amazon.com.

Honestly, I haven’t found any negatives about this car sit yet. And I had for over a year now.

You can get a child’s car seat as inexpensively as $40 and the most expensive ones that I’ve seen are almost $300. As a tip, if you’re planning on purchasing from Babies-R-Us, you can usually find a coupon for $20 off travel system ether online or in their flier.

Some of you might want to purchase a stroller, which is a combination between an every day stroller and a jogging stroller. In my next post I’m planning to talk about jogging strollers, so stay tuned!