The Mom Crowd

As many of you know, our family is adopting a child through Reece’s Rainbow and a while ago, The Mom Crowd hosted a raffle to help bring another child from Reece’s Rainbow home.  You can catch up with this beautiful family and their new daughter, Addison {AKA: Nika} at their family blog.  Is that enough “hyperlinking” for ya?

I wanted to take a moment to share with you about Reece’s Rainbow and their mission.  Reece’s Rainbow is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to raise awareness regarding the plight of children with Down syndrome in foreign orphanages and their availability to be adopted, to raise adoption grants for waiting children, to seek out adoptive families for these children, to help adopting families during their adoption process with fund raising opportunities and paperwork assistance {and emotional support-I threw that one in!}, to provide humanitarian aid to foreign orphanages, to facilitate support groups for birth parents of children with Down syndrome to help decrease the number of children placed in orphanages, and to enact social change abroad about children with Down syndrome and other special needs through the testimony of adoption.

In 2006, Reece’s Rainbow expanded from an outreach program for families with children with Down syndrome in Atlanta to an organization promoting international adoption of children with Down syndrome.   In the short two years since beginning this new focus, over 120 children with Down syndrome and other special needs have found forever families with the help of Reece’s Rainbow. As of June 2008, they have dispersed over $86,000 to adopting families and have waiting children with substantial grants ready for their prospective parents.  Many orphans around the world are not receiving adequate nutrition and health care.  In Eastern European and other countries, orphans with Down syndrome are commonly transferred to mental institutions if they are not adopted by the age of four. After they are transferred, most die within the first year from lack of basic care.

There is a special way you can help Reece’s Rainbow fulfill their mission.  Every year, Reece’s Rainbow hosts a Christmas Angel Tree Project.  Right now, you can see every child with Down syndrome waiting for a family through Reece’s Rainbow and sponsor one or more of them for Christmas.  With every $35 donation, you will receive a special ornament with a picture of the child you are sponsoring for Christmas.  Will you consider sponsoring an orphan with Down syndrome this Christmas?  In order to receive an ornament, donations must be received by December 15th.  Please visit their site today and help bring an orphan home for Christmas!

When I had my daughter I knew I would be traveling to the Philippines 7 months later and breastfeeding would be the easiest way to travel with her. So in those first few months I had to become proficient at breastfeeding in public places, because I didn’t know where I would be when I had to nurse Annabelle.

I am an incredibly modest person and I didn’t necessarily want to nurse in front of other men on a mission trip, but I had to learn how to nurse modestly. After the research I had done, I was surprised to find breastfeeding really common in the Philippines and some women would nurse while sitting in the church sanctuary. I wasn’t quite that brave.

Here is what I learned about nursing in public in the 14 months I nursed my daughter.

1. Be Confident. If you aren’t ashamed, then every one else will pick up on that vibe and they won’t be weirded out either. Besides, there is nothing to be ashamed about anyway!  I never made a big deal about it and I tried to be as discreet as possible.

2. Wear the right clothes. I never wanted to show my tummy gleaming with silvery lines on my stomach, so I would strategically wear clothes that I wouldn’t have to pull up my shirt. I would often wear a nursing bra or a nursing camisole under a shirt I could button down or had a large V-neck. Or I would wear a nursing camisole under a t-shirt and I could lift up the t-shirt without exposing my belly.

3. Use a nursing cover. I don’t think I ever nursed in public without one. I always felt confident that I was covered up and if my boob was out no one could see it. I used a cover that had a wire on top that bent to create a u-shape that I could look down into and make sure that my baby was doing alright. I bought mine here, but you can also buy some beautiful ones at Tot-to-Go.

4. Find a chair in a nursing room, restroom, or a changing room while traveling around town. I would sometimes plan my outings around Babies R Us, because they have a comfortable nursing room with a rocking chair. No one ever noticed that I wouldn’t buy anything. I would also scope out and make mental notes of restrooms that had a chair or couch in the ladies room. Sometimes I would just find an out of the way bench or nursed in the car. I think the more I nursed the more bold I became about where I nursed.

5. Practice! It took me a few times to practice holding my baby, putting the nursing cover on, and getting my boob out of my clothes. I would practice at parties or at homes with men around, so I could become more comfortable with it. I remember practicing at Ikea and it was one of the first times I had used my cover and I flashed my boob to Ikea somehow in the process.  I don’t think anyone cared.

Here is a very blurry photo of me nursing on a Jeepney…

…with about 20 other people on board. I think this is the weirdest place I ever nursed.

Need more information? Check out this awesome video by Susanne Carvin. I watched it when I first started nursing and I found it really helpful!

Did you (do you) nurse in public? Are you shy about it or was it not a big deal? Where is the weirdest place you ever nursed?

Earlier this week, I was discussing with my hubby the definition of “preppy“.  It all started because I called our son “Mr. Preppy” – he was wearing a polo-shirt style onesie and the collar was “popped” for a second.  So cute.  In fact, it was his outfit for fall pictures at pre-school a few weeks ago.

It got me thinking about all the different fashion statements we like to make with our children.   For the first several years, they are definitely wearing what we choose for them.  In a way, we make them little reflections of ourselves.  Have you ever dressed your child in clothing that:

• represents a favorite sports team/alma mater/band or musical act?
• makes some kind of political statement?
• matches your own outfit to a tee?

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with this; it’s part of the fun of having a child, in my opinion.  We’ve all done this in some form or another, either by choice or because the clothing was a gift from family members, right?  (My children have been wearing more than their fair share of Philadelphia sports teams gear for the past 2 years, that’s for sure. ) 

I’m curious: do you think about what style you want your baby to wear?  Do you seek out certain plaid, button-down styles?  Do you gravitate toward the frilly stuff for your daughter?  Are you prone to stocking up on shirts that have the latest Disney characters screened on them? 

I work in our church nursery each Sunday, so I glimpse a little bit of everything: kids in hand-me-downs, kids in linen overalls and white-collared shirts, kids in Baby Gap from hat to socks, kids in cartoon-related clothes, kids in garage sale clothes.   

The picture above is one that I took of my daughter’s closet when she was first born: stocked with precious dresses and outfits that were ultimately only useful one or two times.  I loved dressing her in them and I miss all that frilliness.  But she’s going on 3 now.  She’s in pre-school two days a week.  It’s all practical, all the time for her.  Jeans, tees, sneakers, and a jacket.  We can’t afford much more than this.  We get everything at Target and Wal-Mart, and we’ve become huge garage sale fans, scoring scads of good clothing at a fraction of the cost.   

Other moms’ thoughts on this subject:

• Junior High, Revisited 
• How to Dress Up Your Kids In Style
• Do  You Have a Problem Dressing Your Children In Wal-Mart Clothes?
• Dress  Your Child For Success: 5 Steps to Building Confidence Through Appearance

What do you think? What habits have you formed in acquiring your kids’ wardrobes?How important is your child’s clothing to you?  Is this irrelevant in our troubling economic times?  Weigh in below.

I finally figured out how to keep all the baby socks organized.  I think I read somewhere that you can make your own non-slip socks by getting some puffy or slick fabric paint and putting some on the bottom of the socks.  I even found a site where you can make your own puffy paint but I thought it might peel off quicker than store bought paint.  The homemade puffy paint was made with glue and shaving cream–didn’t seem like it would last through several washes.

I had an “AHA!” moment when I figured out that I could use the slick paint to not only make socks non-skid, but I could also put what age range they are for. Some stores (Baby Gap, Old Navy) label their sock size by age range on the bottom with non-slip paint which comes in handy–but I have a lot of socks that aren’t labeled.

I have been somewhat organized by putting them in labeled ziplock bags so I can keep track of the sizes.  But often when I am switching over from one sock size to another the socks get mixed up into the wrong bag. If I label my socks with fabric paint, then I will be killing two birds with one stone.

My inspiration came from my desire for Graham to have warm feet in our chilly house AND for him to gain confidence in his walking abilities.  I thought if he felt like he was slipping all the time it might discourage him from walking.  No slipping=Less falling=More walking.  Graham is 14.5 months old and still prefers to crawl although he does take several steps throughout the day.  I added a picture to show you my little sock creation.

When we found out Darah most likely had Down syndrome during my pregnancy, I immediately started my quest of finding out anything and everything there was to Down syndrome.  I am a research junkie and I have purchased more than a few books about Down syndrome.  I would love to share with you  my most favorite books about Down syndrome.  I strongly recommend any new or expectant parent of a baby with Down syndrome add these books to their library or at the very least check them out from their library.  Our local Down Syndrome Association has a library for parents to borrow books from; yours may have the same!  These books also make great gifts for grandparents,  extended family members, child care providers, etc… of babies born with Down syndrome.

Common Threads

• I have the coffee table version of this beautiful book, and I can’t wait until my children are old enough for me to actually keep it out without being destroyed.  This book was given to me after Darah was born and I was immediately encouraged by the beautiful pictures and stories.  I did not learn a whole lot about the medical issues or the developmental delays in my daughter from this book.  I learned the more important things. I learned how beautiful the life of a person with Down syndrome is and this book helped me so much during my early days of grieving.

Roadmap to Holland

• I wish I would have had this book when Darah was first born!  Jennifer Graf Gronberg writes about the first two years of raising her son with Down syndrome.  It is honest, insightful, and encouraging!  Every new parent needs to read this book! This book’s title is inspired by the incredibly well written depiction of having a child with special needs, “Welcome to Holland.“  I met Jennifer at a conference and she is such a genuine person.  My children stole me away from her, but I would have loved to have talked with her longer than our quick introductions!

Babies with Down Syndrome

• My wonderful local Down Syndrome Association mails this book to all new or expectant parents and I got my copy before Darah was born.  This book helped me learn everything there was to know about Down syndrome!  It clarifies common myths, explains in detail what Down syndrome is and how it occurs,  explains the different medical issues sometimes associated with Down syndrome, has adjusted weight and height charts for children with Down syndrome, talks about what medical exams a child with Down syndrome needs and when, and was basically my go-to book for a while with anything concerning Darah.

Early Communication Skills for Children with Down Syndrome

• The speech pathology student in me has to declare that this book is a must have!  I had the pleasure of attending Libby Kumin’s conference in Atlanta and again in Kansas City at the National Down Syndrome Congress Convention and she is the most knowledgeable, insightful Speech Pathologist I have ever met.  She seriously knows her stuff!  This book will really help you understand your child’s speech development and the best way to help them achieve speech and language milestones.  There are a lot of pre-speech activities in this book and it really is incredibly informative for parents of newborns all the way up to teenagers with Down syndrome!

Gross Motor Skills in Children with Down Syndrome

• This book has awesome milestone charts that tell you when you can expect your child with Down syndrome to achieve different milestones.  Even though you should not compare your child to any child, it is helpful to know an average age that you can expect certain milestones.  At this point in our Down syndrome journey, I am pretty laid back about developmental milestones, but during Darah’s first three years I was all about achieving the next milestone as quickly as possible.   This book kept me focused on what step came next as we got closer and closer to Darah learning to walk and postwalking skills.  It gives practical exercises to do with your child to strengthen his or her core muscles and help their gross motor development.

Fine Motor Skills in Children with Down Syndrome

• This is another great book to add to your library early.  I don’t like the layout as much as Gross Motor Skills in Children with Down syndrome, but it is still incredibly informative.  I have used this as my go-to resource for exercises, activities, and ideas to help Darah’s fine motor development.

I Can, Can You? 

• I love this book because it is a board book for Darah with children who all had Down syndrome like her!   All of Darah’s board books had children with the standard 46 chromosomes and it made me happy to have her chewing and reading a book that had kids who had 47 chromosomes like her!

We’ll Paint the Octopus Red

• I checked this book out at the library.  Since Darah was our first child, we did not have to introduce “Down syndrome” to her siblings when she was born.  However, I love this book and think any parent who has older children needs to give this to them after finding out their younger sibling has Down syndrome. It is endearing and encouraging for siblings of a child with Down syndrome.

Do you have any favorite books about Down syndrome? What do you love about them?