Becoming a parent for the first time is a bit like somebody picking up your whole life, giving it a good shake and then tipping it out onto the floor. You know everything should still be there but can’t quite find the things you need. It’s life changing and will take you quite some time to adjust to. Becoming a parent doesn’t have to completely change you, though, it’s possible to be a good mama and still be you. Here are five things you should keep doing as a parent:

1. Date night

Now that you’re parents, your relationship is more important than ever before. You have probably already noticed you have less time and energy to spend together and that can quickly start to impact your relationship. To keep things good between you, it’s important to prioritize your time together. A weekly date night is a good way of keeping the magic alive. In the early days, you don’t even have to leave the house on date night. Enjoy a nice meal together (takeaway will do) and snuggle up in front of a movie, just the two of you. Of course, your date night is likely to get interrupted for the first few months, but in time, you’ll be able to use a sitter and head out of the house to escape the demands of family life.

2. Your hobbies

Everybody has things they do that make them feel at home. It might be a weekly sewing club, a political blog or morning yoga. Whatever it is, you should give yourself permission to still enjoy it. You don’t have to give up the things that make you ‘you’ just because you’re a mama. In fact, it could be argued that these things are now more important than ever – they’re the sanity savers that will come in useful when you’re sleep deprived and touched out.

3. Putting yourself first

Babies are pretty dependent on their parents and that means that, at least for a little while, you’ll be coming in second. Some days you won’t even get to pee or eat when you want to because you’ll be so busy looking after that gorgeous little baby. It’s rewarding but exhausting and sometimes you need to take a little something for yourself. To be the best mama you can be, you need to have all of your needs met sometimes too. When you can feel yourself getting burnt out, hand the baby over to your partner and take some time for yourself. You’ve earned it.

4. Exploring

Some people seem to think that having a baby means your life is over, but it’s definitely not true. Having a baby may change your life, but it doesn’t have to restrict you. You can still travel the world and explore places you’ve never been. Sure, you might pick out different destinations or consider different transport options with a baby in tow, but you can still travel the world with a baby. And what a lucky baby, how many babies can say they’ve been to the far side of the world just to explore with their parents?

5. Investing in your friendships

Friendships come so easily to children, but they can be hard to maintain when you get into adulthood. When you’re busy with work commitments, family life and have to think twice before agreeing to a night out of city break, it becomes harder to maintain those friendships. They are, however, important. Your friends are the people who will listen to you moan without judgement, help you out when they can and always be there to cheer you up. Make time for them and make sure they know you love them, even when you don’t have time to spare.

Written by Fiona (@Fiona_Peacock), mother, writer and lover of all things baby related.

This information is not intended to replace the advice of a trained medical doctor. Health & Parenting Ltd disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information, which is provided to you on a general information basis only and not as a substitute for personalized medical advice. All contents copyright © Health & Parenting Ltd 2016. All rights reserved.

Toys are often split by gender. Pink building blocks for girls and brightly colored building blocks for boys, for example. Doctors, superhero and police officer outfits for boys and an array of princess dresses for little girls. How can a toy be gendered, you may wonder, surely you can just buy whichever toy you want? Well, yes, but if that toy comes in bright pink packaging, your school-aged son is likely to say “it’s for girls.” If that toy is situated in the boys’ section of the toy store, your daughter is unlikely to notice it never mind want it.

What are the benefits of gender neutral toys?

The difference between boys and girls lurks in their diapers. And that’s it. Your daughter can climb, solve and build just as well as any of the boys she knows. And your son can care for dollies, dance and show empathy as well as any of the girls. If you stick to traditional boy/girl toys, you’re limiting the resources and learning opportunities your child has access to. Don’t let toy store marketers tell you what your child can play with or who they can dream of becoming (doctor or princess, depending on gender).

5 fun gender neutral toys

If you’d love to avoid gender stereotyping, think carefully about the toys you have in your home. This will become more important as your child grows older, but even baby toys are often categorized according to gender. Here are five fun gender neutral toys for your child:

1. Building blocks

Contrary to what toy marketers may try to tell you, building blocks are great toys for all babies. And, brace yourself because this may come as a surprise, the blocks don’t need to be pink for your daughter to play with. Your baby will have hours of fun stacking bricks and watching them tumble over.

2. Toys with wheels

Yep, that’s right, girls are allowed to like things with wheels too. Revolutionary, isn’t it? A wheeled toy can encourage your baby to become mobile. There are plenty of options for wheeled toys for babies from hand held cards to wheeled bunnies on sticks that can be pushed along.

3. Musical toys

All babies love music and especially when they’re the ones in control of the beat. There are lots of different options of gender neutral instrument toys for babies from shakers to drums and beyond.

4. Dolls

This one is pretty controversial, but little boys can play with dolls too. After all, they might grow up to be fathers one day. Wouldn’t it be great if they were raised understanding how to love and take care of babies? Your baby will enjoy tucking the doll under a blanket, giving kisses and even pushing the baby around in a pram. And guess what? You don’t have to be a girl to enjoy all those things.

5. Balls

Balls are great for developing coordination, encourage mobility and getting your baby moving. Your baby will enjoy rolling the ball along the floor, throwing it and chasing after it. Why should girls miss out on all these great opportunities for skills development?

What are your baby’s favorite gender neutral toys?

Written by Fiona (@Fiona_Peacock), mother, writer and lover of all things baby related.

This information is not intended to replace the advice of a trained medical doctor. Health & Parenting Ltd disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information, which is provided to you on a general information basis only and not as a substitute for personalized medical advice. All contents copyright © Health & Parenting Ltd 2016. All rights reserved.

Growing up in a mixed race family isn’t always the easiest. Mixed race people are often asked to explain who they are by strangers and this can be pretty stressful, especially for those still working out their cultural identity. Parents of mixed race children often get asked whether they are the babysitter, apparently the general public still struggles with the idea of family members not looking identical even in 2016. There may be a few negatives, but on the whole, growing up in a mixed race family is pretty awesome. Here are just five of the amazing things about growing up in a mixed race family:

1. Twice the traditions

Children in mixed race families are often lucky enough to enjoy traditions from two different cultures as part of their family life. These cultural rituals and family traditions can be strongly linked to our childhood memories, sense of family and even our sense of identity. A child with parents from two very different cultures gets to enjoy more culturally significant traditions and that can be a pretty special thing.

2. A world view

You know that school project where you had to ask your grandparents about what life was like when they were younger? Well, when your grandparents have different heritages, the project becomes a lot more interesting. Instead of just finding out what your village was like 60 years ago, you can find out about a slice of history in a different country and that’s pretty damn interesting.

3. Biology

The less closely related your parents are, the better this is thought to be for your genetics. Two people of different races are thought to be less closely related than two people of the same race, thus allowing for a better mix of genes. Researchers found that genetic diversity was linked not only with improved cognitive ability but also with a higher level of education.

4. Identity

We all struggle with our individual identity and many people look to their cultural heritage as a way of seeking answers about who we are and where we fit in. For mixed race children, this allows for a deeper web of cultural understanding. Having parents of mixed heritage gives children the opportunity to learn more about each culture and to determine which aspects of each culture they strongly identify with.

5. Vacations

When you have family on opposite sides of the globe, you simply must go to visit them sometimes. And yeah, that makes for some pretty amazing vacations. If you have family across the globe, you may be provided with more opportunity for travel and that can only ever be a good thing.

What do you think the best thing about growing up in a mixed race family is?

Written by Fiona (@Fiona_Peacock), mother, writer and lover of all things baby related.

This information is not intended to replace the advice of a trained medical doctor. Health & Parenting Ltd disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information, which is provided to you on a general information basis only and not as a substitute for personalized medical advice. All contents copyright © Health & Parenting Ltd 2016. All rights reserved.

A lot of people go into family building with a plan in mind of their perfect family size, and exactly how that will all pan out. They know how many kids they want, and what age difference they are hoping for in between.

Of course, once you actually become parents, those plans may go out the door. That’s because a lot of things can change once you realize what all is involved in child rearing, so that the family who once wanted 3 kids all close together, may no longer feel the same way. Or the family who once believed they would have only one, suddenly finds themselves thinking they might like one or two more.

There is only so much you can plan for in this life, and family building often has a lot of hurdles you might never have expected before you began your family. But if you are here now, with your first little one over 6 months old, and you find yourself yearning for another baby—what do you need to consider?

Baby bunching is the term used for having two children under the age of 2—it’s what happens when you add to your family while you still have a first in diapers. And for a lot of families, it’s the ideal way to go. But there are pros and cons to keep in mind.

First, the pros:

• Siblings closer in age may have a better chance of growing up as friends and playing happily alongside each other.
• The similar age of development will also mean your kids are into a lot of the same things at the same time—which means the toys in the playroom will suit both your kids, and the movies or activities you plan later in life will be at age level for each of them.
• If you started family building later in life, baby bunching may be your best option for having more than one.

Of course, there are also cons to think about:

• In terms of the health of your pregnancy (and being able to go full term) most doctors recommend waiting at least 12 months after the birth of one child before trying for the next.
• Ideally, you would also want to be done breastfeeding before trying for your second—while some women do still breastfeed while pregnant, this can be hard on your body and could result in less nutrients for you or your unborn baby.
• Having two little ones at the same time, still in diapers and still pretty reliant upon you, can be a lot of work—sometimes it is easier if you wait until the first is at least mobile and potty trained.

Of course, ultimately, how you build your family is a very personal decision, and only you can know what is best for yours. So weigh the pros and cons, and then make the family building choices that feel right to you!

Written by Leah Campbell, infertility advocate, adoptive mama, writer and editor. Find me @sifinalaska on Twitter.

 This information is not intended to replace the advice of a trained medical doctor. Health & Parenting Ltd disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information, which is provided to you on a general informational basis only and not as a substitute for personalized medical advice. All contents copyright Health & Parenting Ltd 2016. All rights reserved.

Finger feeding involves giving your baby small pieces of food he can pick up and feed himself. Babies may be ready to feed themselves at different ages. But in general, you may want to introduce finger feeding when you baby is anywhere from seven to nine months.

As your baby grows, so does her desire to do things for herself. While it may be a bit messier than feeding her yourself, finger feeding is good for your baby in a few different ways. For instance, picking up food and feeding herself helps your baby with her coordination. Picking up bits of food also gives your baby a chance to work on her fine motor skills. Using her thumb and forefinger to pick things up is known as the pincer grasp and is a development skill.

Finger feeding is also a step towards independence. While you may not be ready for your baby to do things on her own, it builds her self-confidence. It’s also an opportunity to explore food through touch and smell, and your baby may find finger feeding fun.

Don’t expect finger foods to be the main part of your baby’s meal at first. In the beginning, finger feeding is just a supplement to his diet. He might just eat a few pieces, hold food in his hand or throw it on the floor.

It’s always best to finger feed your baby when he is sitting up in a highchair, and never leave him alone while he’s eating. Try to offer a variety of foods, but don’t be surprised if he does not want to give certain foods a try. Babies have different likes and dislikes when it comes to food textures, colors and taste.

Make sure pieces of food are very small. If your baby does not have any teeth yet, make sure she can gum the food you offer. While you want pieces of food to be small enough to prevent choking, they should be big enough for your baby to pick up. If you cut food into pieces the size of half a pea, your baby may not be able to grasp the food.

Some good finger feeding choices include small pieces of banana, well-cooked carrots (cut lengthways in small strips) or peas and low sugar cereal that is easy to grasp. You may also want to try cooked pasta shapes cut into small bites and pea size pieces of soft meat, such as chicken. Veggies should be mushy and easy to chew. Pieces of fruit should be small enough that they don’t present a choking hazard.

Don’t overwhelm your baby with too many choices. Consider picking one food at a time and placing four or five small pieces on her highchair tray. If she eats those, you can add a bit more.

Avoid raisins, nuts, popcorn and anything that you think would be easy for your baby to choke on. You have plenty of time to add different foods as she develops her finger feeding skills.

Written by MaryAnn DePietro @ writerlady34

This information is not intended to replace the advice of a trained medical doctor. Health & Parenting Ltd disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information, which is provided to you on a general information basis only and not as a substitute for personalized medical advice. All contents copyright © Health & Parenting Ltd 2016. All rights reserved.

For the first several months, your baby’s menu was limited to breastmilk, formula or a bit of both. But as your baby grows up, you can gradually add food and expand what she eats.

It’s often fun to offer your baby new food choices and learn what she likes and what makes her turn her nose up. But it’s also important to know which foods you should avoid giving to your baby.

There are certain foods that present a choking risk or have a chance of getting your baby sick. Keep in mind, if you have any doubts about whether a certain food is safe for your baby, hold off. Talk to your pediatrician before adding it to your baby’s diet. Below are some foods that you should wait to offer until your baby is older.

Honey: Honey is a no-no for babies since it occasionally can contain clostridium botulinum spores. The spores are usually not harmful to adults since their intestinal tract can prevent the spores from growing and causing illness. But your baby’s intestinal tract is still maturing, and the spores can cause your baby to get sick with botulism. Botulism can cause poor appetite, dehydration and possibly pneumonia. Wait until your little one is at least a year old to give her honey.

Cow’s milk: Cow’s milk can be hard for babies under a year old to digest. Plus, cow’s milk does not have all the nutrients that your baby needs during his first year of life. Until your baby reaches his first birthday, breastmilk or formula are the best sources of milk.

Whole grapes: Although they are good for your baby, whole grapes and other chunky foods can be a choking hazard. Keep in mind, your baby is still getting the hang of chewing and eating solids foods. If you want to give chunky foods, such as grapes, cut them lengthways or into very tiny pieces.

Oranges: Oranges are full of vitamins, but they are also acidic and can make your baby sick to his stomach. Acidic fruits can also cause a rash on your baby’s diaper areas, which is no fun. Skip the oranges until your baby is at least a year.

Peanut butter: Certain foods that are sticky, such as peanut butter, are also easy for your baby to choke on and should be avoided. Peanuts are also a common cause of allergies in kids. Many pediatricians recommended waiting on certain foods until you figure out if your little one has food sensitivities.

Certain veggies: Although vegetables, such as squash and carrots, are good for your baby, certain vegetables including lettuce, beets and spinach contain nitrates that your baby can not yet process. Although you may not have been planning on serving spinach to your baby, it’s helpful to be aware of which vegetables you should avoid.

Salt: Don’t add salt to any of your baby’s foods. Too much salt is not good for anyone, but your baby’s kidneys are not developed enough to handle the added salt.

Written by MaryAnn DePietro @ writerlady34

This information is not intended to replace the advice of a trained medical doctor. Health & Parenting Ltd disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information, which is provided to you on a general information basis only and not as a substitute for personalized medical advice. All contents copyright © Health & Parenting Ltd 2016. All rights reserved.

Looking after a baby can be exhausting work. It’s a fulltime job that requires you to be awake, alert and patient at pretty much all times. Your baby is amazing, beautiful and perfect, but he’s also probably demanding, frustrating and, dare you think it, selfish too. All your baby cares about are his own needs. He wants to be fed now, he wants his diaper changing now and he wants a cuddle this very minute. He doesn’t care that you’re in the shower or asleep (or both, if it’s been a particularly bad night).

It’s not uncommon to feel a little lost during your first year of motherhood. After all, when was the last time you got to do something just for you? You spend all of your time rushing around to make sure everyone else is ok and barely spare a second thought to your own well being.

Your well being is the most important

To take the best possible care of your baby, you need to take care of yourself first. It’s like on a plane how you have to fit your own oxygen mask first. If you can’t breathe, you won’t have the energy or ability to help your baby breathe. Not that your parenting is like a plane crash, but the same theory applies here. How can you look after another’s well being and health when your own stores are depleted?

‘Me time’ isn’t selfish, and it’s certainly not something you should feel guilty about. It plays an important role in allowing you to be the best parent you can be, so don’t be afraid to demand some time to yourself every now and again. Make sure that you and your partner are each able to enjoy some regular ‘me time’ to allow you to relax, recharge and regroup.

‘Me time’ inspiration

The great thing about ‘me time’ is that even a little bit will go a long way. You don’t need a week abroad by yourself to unwind (though, actually, that would be nice), even just an hour or so will do the trick. The key is to have a little patch of time that is all yours, free from interruptions and stress, to do with as you please. And no, the weekly shop doesn’t count. Neither does a trip to the dentist. You deserve some high quality ‘me time’.

Even something as simple as a bath (with the door locked, luxury!) all by yourself, with a good book and some relaxing music could leave you feeling loads better. If you can, treat yourself to a massage or beauty treatment at your favorite salon. Maybe a shopping trip would lighten your mood? Or signing up for an evening class to learn a new skill or throw yourself into a new hobby? Even just a short solitary walk after dinner could be enough to help you de-stress and prepare you for another day of parenting.

What are your go to ‘me time’ activities?

Written by Fiona (@Fiona_Peacock), mother, writer and lover of all things baby related.

This information is not intended to replace the advice of a trained medical doctor. Health & Parenting Ltd disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information, which is provided to you on a general information basis only and not as a substitute for personalized medical advice. All contents copyright © Health & Parenting Ltd 2016. All rights reserved.