There is nothing harder on a new mother then listen to the cries of a baby who can’t get to sleep at night. Here are some tested and true ways to lull your child to sleep that you can try.

Try rocking your child in a rocking chair. Holding a child in your arms while rocking back and forth is one the most traditional and effective ways to get a child to sleep.

Consider taking your child for a ride in a car. Strap the child in his or her car seat and drive around the block. This automatically puts many babies immediately to sleep. Singing a little also seems to help, even if you are a bad singer. The lower the voice the better.

Relax your baby before it is time for bed by giving him or her a warm bath. This helps to naturally make the baby drowsy. Massage his or her muscles gently before laying the child in the cradle.

Breast feed or feed the baby warm milk just before it is time for the baby to go to bed. Warm milk contains tryptophan, which is a natural sedative. It’s the same stuff that makes us feel drowsy after we eat a big turkey dinner at Thanksgiving.

5Try holding the baby and humming. Place baby in the neck nestle position (nestle baby’s head against the front of your neck with your chin against the top of baby’s head. The vibration of a deep voice lulls baby) and rock your baby to sleep.

Make sure the baby’s bedroom is dark. Sometimes it is light from the windows or from an open door that is keeping the child fussy and awake.

Turn on a rhythmic sounding machine that makes a white noise of some kind. Machines like this include dehumidifiers, air conditioners or air cleaners.

Try perfuming your baby’s room with lavender. Lavender can have a sedating effect on infants. Vanilla and orange are also soothing scents. Don’t make the room smell like a brothel however as that could irritate the child even more. Use a light touch when using room sprays.

Make sure the baby’s diapers are changed and that his or her skin is not irritated by diaper rash. If diaper rash is a problem try taking the baby’s diaper off.

Make sure the room is neither too hot or too cold. Sometimes a baby is crying because he or she is too warm or shivering.

The key is to make the baby as comfortable as possible. If I find any more techniques I will be sure to print them in this blog. I am sure there are a lot of sleep-deprived parents out there who need all the help that they can get

Baby Sign Language was supposed to be invented by a company called Baby Sign. However the jury is out on that one as it seems many companies nowadays are laying claim to the science. However to be far, the company has published a best selling book on the topic teaching your baby sign language called The Baby Sign Dictionary. It also runs and franchises programs and classes out of Baby Sign Institutes.

This company put forth its theories about babies to help mothers raise healthier and happier babies. Signing to your baby gives him or her a way to communicate before their tongues, lips and vocal cords have developed the coordination to allow them to speak.

Baby signing is simple for most moms, dads and other family members to learn because it is based on traditional American Sign Language (also known as ASL) it is used to communicate with individuals who are deaf. The company interviewed a focus group of parents and asked them to come up with the 100 most popular things that their babies try to communicate to them and then designed sign language to fit those requests.

Since hand-eye coordination is possible in advance of the acquisition of verbal skills, infants can learn to express their needs using simple signs for common words such as “eat”, “sleep”, “more”, “hug”, “play”, “cookie”, and “milk”, etc., before they are able to produce understandable speech.

The great thing about Baby Signs is that you can start teaching it to your infants quite soon after they are born. Most children are ready to master it between seven and nine months. That is the age at which most infants have the eye and hand coordination to be able to sign a request to their parents.

Children who can sign have so far been show to have a higher intelligence quotient and a greater ability to learn a second language later in life.

Yet another benefit of Baby Signs is that it can help expand the vocabulary of a toddler. Once they have learned this simplified form of ASL most children continue to use it up until the ages of four and even five years old.

Studies done by Baby Sign also show that teaching your child sign language at an early age also stimulates brain development and gives your child of a head start when it comes to developing language and social skills.

Critics of Baby Sign say that it creates a reliance on non-verbal communication and therefore gives the baby no motivation as to how to learn how to speak. There have been no studies done to prove that this is true.

The benefits far outweigh the drawbacks when it comes to babies signing with the biggest benefit for a parent being able to enjoy a higher level of trust from your baby.

Although cats are adaptable and friendly creatures they do not make good pets for certain types of people or for people with certain health problems.

 For instance, don’t get a cat or kitten if you are pregnant. The cat’s exposed feces can cause a potentially fatal blood disease called toxemia.  

Another related health problem that cats can cause for both pregnant and ailing individuals (people with diseases and compromised immune systems) is caused by cat hair and dander. Kittens are not suitable companions for pregnant women, as being exposed their feces can cause a potentially fatally blood disease called toxemia in both mother and child.Cat hair and cat dander (skin flakes) in the air overstimulate the immune system and create respiratory problems not only for a mother and child but also for elderly individuals and those with diseases that cause the immune system to be overly stimulated such as AIDS. 

Cats are also not recommended as pets for people who suffer from respiratory problems such as bronchitis, asthma or emphysema.  Cat dander and cat hair is inhaled, irritating the human’s airways even further. People who have allergies to cats should also avoid owning a cat. If you are not sure if you have an allergy to cat hair, do both the cat and yourself a favor and get yourself tested before you got to the shelter or a pet store. Too many animals end up in shelters or humane societies simply because an inconsiderate potential pet owner did not take the time and expense to find out if they were allergic to the animal before taking it home. 

Kittens are not recommended as pets in households with infants or toddlers.  The old wives’ tale where a cat will kill a baby by “stealing its breath” has its roots in some truth. A cat will seek out a place of warmth and infants make good space heaters. It is quite easy for a large cat with even the snuggliest of intentions to accidentally smother a small infant.  

Don’t own a cat if you can’t afford it. Many selfish people think that nature takes its course or that a cat can just eat scraps from your plate. This is not true. A kitten is certainly less expensive to take care of than a puppy, but within the first year you can expect to spend an absolute minimum of $640 on a new cat.  This includes such expenses as a litter box, food, a collar, a carrier, toys, spaying, neutering and vaccination. If you do not have at least that amount in your bank account, then you cannot afford to own a cat. You should also not own a kitten if you or a member of your family suffers from schizophrenia, manic depression, alcoholism, and addiction. Unfortunately, one of the main traits of these diseases is irresponsibility. Like children, kittens need routine, responsible care and consistency in order to be happy and healthy. If you are a collector of fine art or rare furniture get a gold fish instead.  Kittens are naturally destructive at first and owning one will merely frustrate and anger you.

I love wind chimes. My kids love them too. There is nothing like the sound of wind chimes tinkling on your front porch to make your home seem like a real home. 

The best place to hang wind chimes indoors is where you think there will be a bit of a breeze. This is the best way to enjoy them, as wind chimes that just hang there and never have the opportunity to jangle are half as much fun as though that do. If there is not any bit of breeze or air where you intend to hang these chimes then you can be sure to hang them just low enough so that people can touch them with their fingers every now and then to make them tinkle. 

I love to hold my babies up to the wind chimes so they can play with them with their fingers. Hanging them outside a baby’s window can also help them fall asleep as it gives the infant something to focus on them. 

Although it is nice to hang the wind chimes in a way that makes them accessible to people (so they can brush their fingers across them and make them ring) it is also important not to hang them too low. You don’t want the tops of people’s heads hitting the wind chimes or obstructing their view in any way. A unique place to hang wind chimes is from the bottom of a light fixture or chandelier. This can add a new and musical dimension to your décor. 

Hanging wind chimes in the kitchen is a good idea especially if you get the cast iron kind that consists of many bells. This way you can also use them as a ringer for letting people know that dinner is ready. No matter what size or what material the wind chimes are made of you need to hang them in a way so that they have room to move. This means not hanging them in a corner or too close to a wall.

Wind chimes look very nice hanging from ceiling rafters and in front of windows. If you are planning to hang the wind chimes outside then one of the nicest places to hang them is from an eave or a beam on the front porch. They also look nice hanging in a tree as long as you don’t mind scaring away squirrels or birds.

If your kids are old enough you can make nice wind chimes out of old bottles, shells or even paper origami. It is a good crafts project that teaches them about sound as well as balance. 

Where you hang your wind chimes might also depend on how valuable they are. It is probably not a good idea to hang and expensive set of wind chimes made of jade, crystal and copper outside where it can be stolen.

You can get them at the Wind Chimes Store