The December List

Resources:

Family This is a list of most of the URLs that have been mentioned on the December list. You'll need to make your own judgement about what's useful and what is not — I post everything. The comments next to the links are mostly whatever was posted on the list, not my own words. This has turned into an amazing resource list. -Valerie

Back to the main December List page.

Index:

  • Pages with pointers to other resources:
  • Alcohol During Pregnancy:
  • Allergies:
  • Asthma:
  • Baby Names:
  • Baby Slings:
  • Baby's Gender:
  • Babywise:
  • Birth Balls:
  • Birth Plans:
  • Birth Stories:
  • Books:
  • Breastfeeding:
  • Breech Babies:
  • Car Seats:
  • Cesareans:
  • Childbirth:
  • Childcare:
  • Circumcision:
  • Coxsackievirus:
  • Co-Sleeping:
  • Colic:
  • Cord Blood Donation:
  • Delivery Buddies:
  • Diapers:
  • Down Syndrome:
  • Ear Infections:
    		•
  • Epidurals:
  • Exercise:
  • The Ezzos:
  • Family Bed:
  • Fertility:
  • Food Safety & Nutrition:
  • Free Offers:
  • Grief:
  • Group B Strep:
  • Growth Charts:
  • Home Businesses:
  • Home Schooling:
  • Deciding How Many Kids To Have & When:
  • Humor/Heartwarming:
  • Immunizations:
  • Infertility:
  • Medical Links:
  • Midwifery:
  • Misc. Studies:
  • Music, Lyrics, etc:
  • Off Topic:
  • Online Chat:
  • Parenting Groups/Playgroups:
  • Parenting Skills:
  • Pets and Children:
  • Predictions:
  • Pregnancy Calendars:
    		•
  • Pregnancy Nutrition, Food Safety, & Vegetarian Pregnancies:
  • Premature Babies:
  • Product Recalls:
  • Quilts:
  • Recalls:
  • Recipes:
  • Regional:
  • Relaxation:
  • Religion:
  • RSV (a virus that affects babies):
  • Scrapbooking:
  • Shopping:
  • Sleep:
  • Shaken Baby Syndrome:
  • Stay At Home Moms:
  • Toddler Activities:
  • Toilet Training:
  • Twins:
  • Vaccinations:
  • VBAC: (Vaginal Birth After Caesarian)
  • Vitamin A:
  • Vitamin K and Childhood Leukemia:
  • Water Birth:
  • Weird News:
  • Writing Web Pages:
  • Yoga:
    		•

    Pages with pointers to other resources:

  • The misc.kids FAQ - a very comprehensive list of pointers to everything about parenting and kids.
  • Pregnancy Today - The site that hosts our mailing list. It has lots of good resources.
  • Sabrina's Pregnancy Page - Lots of info about pregnancy, breastfeeding, parenting, womens' health, etc.
  • Yahoo's Parenting page - Seriously comprehensive. A good place to start looking for info about anything related to parenting.
  • The Babies Planet - Message boards to talk about hundreds of baby-related topics, from Lamaze to crack babies to bedtime stories to baby pageants.
  • Kim's Natural Mothering Pages.
  • The Mining Co. guide to pregnancy and birth, and The Mining Co. guide to parenting babies & toddlers
  • Liszt is a list of tens of thousands of Internet mailing lists.
  • BabyBag - parenting information and links.
  • ParentsPlace
  • Parenting Q & A
  • Online Birth Center - categories include High Risk Situations and Complications, Nutrition and Pregnancy, and Newsgroups and Mailing Lists that offer support.
  • Myria - the magazine for mothers. This is the creation of one of the moms who created the pregnancytoday site that runs our mailing list.
  • Learn2.com 2torials - has info about how to burp a baby, cope with a crying child, change a diaper, childproof your home, and x x improvise a diaper when one isn't available &emdash; among other topics.
  • December 1998 Playgroup - a web page for another December 1998 group.

    Alcohol During Pregnancy:

  • Life Before Birth - The Fetal Senses - For a discussion of an effect of alcohol on fetal breathing movements, look in the section called "The Senses in Action" at the end of the second paragraph.
  • Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists, UK - Guideline on Alcohol Consumption in Pregnancy

    Allergies:

  • Here's a page from the American Peanut Council about peanut allergies. Scroll most of the way down the page to find a discussion of avoiding peanuts while pregnant.
  • LLL's Allergies and the Breastfeeding Family
  • Women can pass peanut allergy to their children (by eating peanut products during pregnancy).
  • Women warned to avoid peanuts during pregnancy and lactation

    Asthma:

  • A ParentsPlace bulletin board for parents of kids with asthma
  • gazoontite.com - a store that sells lots of allergy-control products.
  • alt.support.asthma is a Usenet news group about asthma.

    Baby Names:

  • babynames.com - Baby names given in the US in 1997, listed in order of popularity.
  • 1996 Illinois Selected Vital Statistics - Interesting reading, includes most popular baby names, ages of youngest and oldest parents in the state, sizes of largest and smallest babies, etc. Illinois most popular names for boys and girls from 1990 to 1999, listed by year.
  • Baby Names in Michigan, various years
  • babycenter.com's list of the top 100 baby names of the year 2000 in the US
  • 1990 US Census most popular names of females and males in the USA. The other baby name lists only cover babies born in one particular year. This list is unique because it covers popularity of names in the entire US population. That is, it includes both adults and children. Did you know that Patricia is the second most popular female name in the US?
  • Irish Names.
  • Persian baby names - look under names.
  • Behind The Name - The Etymology of First Names
  • Babyzone - has loads of info about baby names. They have categories like Shakespearean and Chinese and celebrity baby names, cool baby names, and lists of name popularity. Their logical names for twins page is really cool -- it suggests sets of names like Deborah and Melissa. Both names mean "bee", but Deborah is Hebrew and Melissa is Greek.
  • Mango Mama's Unique and Unusual Baby Names
  • Top 100 baby names in the UK, for each year from 1999 through 2003: Girls and Boys
  • Eponym - a huge site with lots of information about names from all over the planet.

    Baby Slings:

  • A list of baby sling sites
  • Jeri's page about wearing your baby
  • The Sling Page has articles, links, and even info about how to make your own baby sling.
  • Or ask Jeri by e-mail.
  • Elizabeth Lee Designs - Patterns for the Breastfeeding Mother and her Child - has a design for a sling carrier.
  • Mother & Child Reunion - Baby Slings offering Blissful Security and Peace of Mind - You can get an unpadded sling for $21.74 per sling here.
  • The Plomp Family's Sling Pictures - pictures and links.

    Baby's Gender:

  • The Mining Co.'s link to holodeck.com's Chinese Birth Calendar.
  • And another Chinese Birth Chart.
  • Will it be a Girl or a Boy? - This quiz at childbirth.org asks about all sorts of ways of predicting baby's gender.
  • Sex, Heart Rate, and Age - Results of a study that shows that fetal heart rate doesn't correlate to the baby's gender.
  • parentsoup's Pink or Blue baby gender predictor. (Requires Shockwave plug-in.)

    Birth Balls:

  • Using the Gymnastik Ball in Pregnancy, Labor, Birth and Postpartum -- If you click on the bottom for the pictures of it in use, there will be a link on the next page on how to order it.
  • Ball Dynamics - I called them initially to ask why they suggested a 55cm ball for my height when at least one midwife had said 65. The woman I spoke to said the 55cm recommendation is for when it's fully inflated, used as a physical therapy or exercise device. She said most women who use them during late pregnancy, labor, or just after the baby is born prefer to go one up in size, and not inflate the ball fully. She also said that if I wanted one of their balls, I should get one of the "burst resistant" ones--the gymnic plus or the fitball--because the air lets out of them slowly if a sharp object punctures them. I thought that was a good idea. She also said I didn't need to buy a base, and that one of the $5 rings they sell (for some hand strengthening thing) would serve to stabilize it if it was close to round. My husband was concerned that I'd sit on it then roll over backwards; I didn't and still don't think this will be a problem. Anyway, I thought I'd share in case anyone else wants one. Oh, they shipped it the day after I called; I called Tuesday and it arrived the next Monday. Their prices are very reasonable and the phone people are nice.

    Birth Plans:

  • Anna's Pregnancy and Childcare Experiences has some info about how to write a birth plan.

    Birth Stories:

  • childbirth.org - Great source of birth stories. Has a discussion of what to do about pregnancy complications. Lots of other resources too.
  • Pregnancy Stories
  • The Freebirth Webring
  • Unassisted Homebirth - One Family's Adventures In Do-It-Yourself Homebirth.
  • The TV show "A Baby's Story" shows births. It is shown in the U.S. every day Mon-Fri from 2-3pm Eastern time on The Learning Channel. You can find the schedule at TLC program schedule -- click on "TLC" to see it.

    Books:
    The book list has moved to its own page.

    Breastfeeding:
    General Breastfeeding:

  • misc.kids.breastfeeding newsgroup. If that link doesn't work for you, you can also get the newsgroup at www.dejanews.com
  • Jeri's My Breastfeeding Story--The first week or so
  • breastisbest.com is a great Breastfeeding website.
  • La Leche League International is, of course, the classic breastfeeding group. Here's a page you can use to find a La Leche League leader near you. Here's a page that tells you how to become a La Leche League Leader. And here's a page that discusses La Leche League philosophy.
  • Australian Breastfeeding Association (formerly the Nursing Mothers' Association of Australia)
  • ProMoM - Promotion of Mother's Milk, Inc.
  • American Academy of Pediatrics Policy Statement on Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk
  • World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action
    Pumps:
  • Exclusively Pumping - is an entire board devoted to the topic of pumping breastmilk as many moms pump and bottle feed because of preemies, going back to work after a few weeks, or just being uncomfortable with breastfeeding.
  • Parent's Place also has boards on Exclusively Pumping, Breastfeeding and Working, Pregnant and Nursing, Adoption and Nursing, Nursing and Toddlers, and a few others. Click on the link and go to the Breastfeeding section.
  • Mother's Nature has info on pumps and supplies.
    Breastfeeding as Birth Control:
  • Breastfeeding: Does it Really Space Babies?
    Weaning:
  • Why Delay Solids?
  • Is My Baby Ready For Solids
    Poop:
  • A La Leche League article called The Importance of Newborn Stool Counts talks about what to expect of babies' stools.
    Nursing Clothes: (you don't need nursing clothes for breastfeeding, but sometimes it's fun to have them)
  • Motherwear - has a very good reputation for making good clothes. Note that sizes tend to run big, so if you're not sure whether to order something in medium or a large, go for the size medium.
  • Laura's Closet
  • Mommy Gear - nursing wear and pumps
  • Mama T's - has sizes from extra small to 2X, and also baby slings.
  • Also see listings in the shopping section of this web page.
    Misc.:
  • Article Smoking ruins breast milk - Equivalent of 20 cigarettes can be passed on to infants - more encouragement not to smoke.
  • Jeri's Demand or Schedule Feeding?, her Breast is Best page, and her Nursing Code Words page.
  • Help Me! Image Collection - Latch On - gives instructions on latching on, and it has pictures, too. Has links to other photo collections to help with other breastfeeding questions.
  • The La Leche League FAQ on Getting Enough Milk
  • Here's a page about Plugged Ducts and Breast Infections
  • There are 8 breastmilk banks in North America, and they are lifesaving for some babies. There's 1 in Canada, 1 in Mexico, and 6 in the US (CA, CO, DE, DC, KY, MA, and NC). For information about services or donations, you can call The Human Milk Banking Association of North America at 888-232-8809.
  • LLL: Is Baby Weaning or Is It a Nursing Strike?
  • LLL FAQ on Nursing Strikes

    Breech Babies:

  • One Midwife's Collection of Breech Turning Techniques

    Car Seats:

  • See the Child Passenger Safety page from the NHTSA. It has lots of good information about how to install a car seat safely.
  • Also, see the Product Recalls section of this page.
  • The American Academy of Pediatrics Shopping Guide to Car Seats
  • The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Child Seat Safety Recall Listings
  • Fit For A Kid is Daimler-Chrysler's car seat safety inspection program. They will inspect your car seat's installation for free. Look toward the bottom middle of the page and enter your zip code, or call toll-free 1-877-FIT-4-AKID to find a car seat fitting station near you.
  • Does My Child Need a Booster Seat?, from the very wonderful carseat.org.

    Cesareans: (Also see the vbac section of this page)

  • The Facts About Cesareans - short article from parentsoup.com.

    Childbirth:

  • Jeri's birth story.
  • The Bradley® Method
  • Doulas Of North America
  • Non-Pharmaceutical Induction
  • Prodromal Labor (labor with a really long, slow, start — sometimes days long).
  • Emergency Home Birth - What happens if it looks like my baby will arrive before I get to the hospital? - Might be worth printing out and hanging on the refrigerator, just in case.

    Childcare:

  • Choices for Children - This website has a ton of information on how to find daycare in general. They also sent us [Beate] a big binder of material when we called them that had printed questionnaires for child care centers etc.
  • The Child Care Resource Center - Under Publications for families they have a number of possibly interesting brochures. However, there is a charge for everything.
  • It's definitely a good idea to get started on finding quality childcare early.
  • Learn2 Find and Hire a Nanny - step-by-step instructions from learnto.com
  • Babycenter has lots of childcare info.
  • FindCareNow has childcare info. Site has lots of info.
  • NAEYC is the well-respected organization that accredits daycare centers.
  • National Association for Family Child Care

    Circumcision:

  • The Circumcision Information and Resource Pages
  • Mothers Against Circumcision
  • A discussion about circumcision on Grex - Valerie polled a bunch of guys to ask if they are happy with the choices their parents made.
  • Penile cancer, cervical cancer, and circumcision
  • Circumcision study halted due to trauma

    Coxsackievirus:

  • Hand-foot-and-mouth disease
  • Coxsackieviruses

    Colic:

  • Dr. Greene's answer to the question: Would switching to lactose-free milk in my diet improve my baby's colic?

    Cord Blood Donation:

  • A hard sell to bank your baby's blood - Discusses how these cord blood banking companies try to capitalize on a pregnant woman's state of mind in that she wants only the best for her child.
  • The Chicago Community Cord Blood Bank - the University of Chicago's cord blood donor program for hospitals in their area. 773-702-2871 or 847-803-7962.
  • Cord Blood Donor Foundation (formerly known as the International Cord Blood Foundation) - 650-635-1456
  • Umbilical Cord Blood - A Life-Saving Gift -- readable quick summary on the pregnancytoday website.
  • There is apparently at the moment only one central place in the US that is collecting cord blood DONATION (as opposed to the many private companies who are offering to store your baby's cord blood for a fee). It is the US Center for Cord Blood Donation -- reachable at 800-869-8608. FYI, In case you don't know, cord blood has stem cells in it which can be used for bone marrow transplants for patients with leukemia. There are other applications under study (or in use??? -- breast cancer and other forms of cancer). Perhaps someone knows the medical details better than I do. I called today and, while they prefer to begin the process before 34 weeks, they were happy to hear from me. They are faxing me the forms and have asked me to fill them out asap, given the time constraints. Then they will send me a collection kit, which I bring to the hospital when I go to give birth. I need to inform my midwives that I am doing this (so they can collect the blood after birth) -- and the people at the donor center told me they'd welcome the opportunity to have my practice learn about their program. As a regular blood donor and a registrant on the national bone marrow registry (and an organ donor), I am delighted to find that I may be able to help someone with my baby's cord blood. Even if you can't, or don't want to, participate in this program, please consider passing along the information to your obstetricians and midwives -- this is a new program, but one with great promise.
  • Granny Barb and Art's Cord Blood Transplant Resources - a very comprehensive site about cord blood.

    Delivery Buddies:
    The "expecting clubs" at ParentsPlace.com seem to have a delivery buddy system that many month groups use. Groups of 3-5 families keep closer track of each other, so if one stops posting, others might send email or call to see if everything is okay. They try to spread out the due dates of members in each small group, so they don't all go into delivery (and go silent online) at once.

  • Delivery Buddy Program - How the December 98 moms at parentsplace.com are doing it.

    Diapers: (Also see the Shopping section of this page for information about where to buy diapers for preemies and other babies)

  • Malini's diapering tips - funny and also useful.
  • "It's a Girl! Now What? - The Tao of Diapering - a Dad talks about diapering a daughter. Very cute; not really all that informative about diapering.
  • World-Wide Cloth Diapering Resources - has an amazing number of links to everything about cloth diapering, including reviews of places that sell diapers on the web.
  • Misc.Kids Cloth Diaper FAQ - very informative!
  • Wee Bees has a diagram and other info about how to diaper a baby.
  • Here's a photo of Jeri's son Calvin wearing a a Mother-ease velcro diaper cover, and here is Jeri's Cloth Diapering page.
  • Dr. Greene on diaper rash - a good discussion of the different types of diaper rash and their causes.

    Exercise:
    During Pregnancy:

  • explanation and instructions for kegel and perineal exercises on the pregnancytoday.com website. Discusses methods for protecting the perineum during delivery.
    After Delivery:
  • Tae-Bo 1-800-637-6632 - Also available from a catalog called Collage. It has the 4 TaeBo tapes in it, sold as a set for $59.95 with $7.50 S&H, so, you would only save $1 (unless you have to pay tax on the site). But you could buy other exercise videos for no extra shipping. Call 1-800-433-6769 for the Collage catalog. The catalog is great for exercise videos that you can't find in stores and it tells you a lot of information on each tape. Also, they deliver much faster than the Tae-Bo website does. The Tae-Bo video has also been spotted at Costco for $25, Sports Authority for $40, and Target for $30-$40. However, one person's husband says that a kickboxing class would be a much better workout than Tae-Bo.

    Down Syndrome:

  • Incidence of Down Syndrome with Increasing Maternal Age

    Ear Infections:

  • Dr. Greene talks about ear tubes and how ear tubes work and how to recognize an ear infection and what causes ear infections

    Epidurals:

  • Ask the Midwife - Advantages/Disadvantages of Epidural?
  • Epidural Anesthesia for Labor"
  • Reported Side Effects of Epidural Anesthesia

    Babywise / The Ezzos: - a very controversial book.

  • Ezzo Parenting - criticisizes the Ezzo method
  • Wisdom of 'Babywise' child-rearing method questioned - Seattle Times article.
  • EZZO-FIED!
  • The Ezzo Menace - Breaking Infants for "Lifetime Obedience" - has links to several other anti-Ezzo articles.
  • "Babywise" Alert!
  • Ezzo Info - has lots of links to other articles

    Family Bed:

  • The Family Bed - Jeri's info about family beds, plus links to lots of family bed resources.
  • CPSC Warns Against Placing Babies in Adult Beds
  • Rebuttal to above article, from the Sears and Dr. Brazelton

    Fertility:

  • Luna Fertility Tester - analyzes your saliva to see if you are fertile.
  • Home Pregnancy Test hCG Levels and FAQ - lists the sensitivity levels of various pregnancy tests. Sensitivity levels vary widely between brands. If you plan to test early, it's important to get a highly sensitive brand.
  • Craig Medical sells cheap highly-sensitive home pregnancy tests for something like 6 for $24 (including postage). Last time I checked, these are the cheapest and most sensitive pregnancy test kits that you can buy anywhere.

    Free Offers:
    Special thanks to Sara Kaminsky, who found most the offers listed here.

  • If you have State Farm insurance (any type...auto, homeowner's etc.) there is a 800 # you can call. You tell them your due date and they send you a free book. I was expecting a little booklet but it came yesterday and it's the hardcover, 750 page Mayo Clinic Book of Pregnancy and Baby's First Year and it's FREE!!!! The number is 1-888-SF-EVENT.
  • 1-800-241-1030 Free Newborn Kit - Baby Soap, Skin Cream, Rash Cream and Baby Oil
  • You can download a free font called Baby's World.To download it to a Windows 95 computer, go to that web page and right-click on the words "TELECHARGEZ BABY'S WORLD (21ko)!". If you're in Netscape, choose "Save Link As"; if you're in Internet Explorer choose "Save Target As". Save the file on your computer. Then unzip it (you'll need an unzip program such as Stuffit, which is free at aladdinsys.com). Finally, copy the downloaded, unzipped, font to your \windows\fonts directory. Then you can use the font in documents. It's a dingbat font, so each letter of the alphabet turns into a different baby-related item (booties, pacifier, etc).
  • Free Stuff: Baby Stuff lists some old offers for free baby stuff.
  • Introducing Enfamil offers a free gift if you fill out their form.
  • Pediatricians Library - not much here.
  • Baby Freebies - links to more baby free stuff.
  • BabyNet has a link to other free stuff.
  • Sears Portrait Studio is offering a free 10x13 photo from now until 10/31/98.
  • While "surfing the net," I found
  • Page 3 of the Baby Freebies
  • Orajel - You fill out a short survey and they will send you coupons. There is also another link there (Professional Products) where if you are a dentist or pediatrician they will send you free samples and literature.
  • At pampers.com there is a free email newsletter that you can subscribe to that is about parenting. You can also enter to win free diapers.
  • At gerber.com under special offers, you can sign up to receive special offers.
  • evenflo.com has a contest to win free stuff. It also has a lot of other useful information.
  • The Free Site

    Grief:

  • Stillbirth - a discussion forum at parentsplace.
  • There is an Infant Loss/Grieving site at StorkNet.

    Group B Strep:

  • March of Dimes - Group B Strep Infection - has an excellent description of what group B strep is and about the risks to the baby.
  • Vaccine for Group B Strep - article about a potential new vaccine to prevent group B strep.
  • Group B Strep - is an entire website created by parents whose babies have died of group B strep, who want to help prevent this from happening to other people.
  • Alternative treatments for group B strep. This is part of a page that is a huge resource, with lots of other information about group B strep.
  • What is GBS (Group B Strep)? - a very readable summary.

    Growth Charts:

  • Height & Weight Averages for Children
  • Growth Charts for Breastfed Babies, and, if you need it, here's a Javascript calculator to convert between metric and English measurements. ....or use a low tech calculator: pounds divided by 2.2 = kg, and inches x 2.54 = cm.
  • Here's another set of Growth Charts,this one from Pampers. We don't know if it's for a variety of babies or the classic American growth chart for white middle-class formula-fed midwestern babies that was the standard from the 1950s until recently. If the links on that page don't work for you, try these:
  • CDC Growth Charts: United States

    Home Businesses:

  • Valerie's Guide To The Web Page Writing Business
  • Discovery Toys

    Home Schooling:

  • A discussion of home schooling on Grex. An ongoing low-traffic discussion forum that includes parents who home school their kids, some teens who are currently being home schooled and can answer questions about what they think of home schooling, and a lot of people who are curious about how home schooling works.
  • Timberdoodle Company - Christian company that sells homeschooling supplies and has articles about homeschooling.

    Deciding How Many Kids to Have & When:

  • Waiting 2.5 years between births found to be best
  • World population hits 6 billion - has lots of good discussion of population growth trends

    Humor:

  • It's Just Another Baby - A dad's observations about the whole process.
  • Bringing Home the Baby
  • Fathers of Breastfed Babies - a fun-to-read site with some useful baby tips.

    Medical Links:
    General Medical:

  • AMA Physician Select - If you're in the US, look up your physician on-line or search for a pediatrician. (Part of the AMA website.)
  • Best Hospitals Finder - Site that rates hospitals in the US. No explanation is given for how they came up with the ratings.
  • Dr. Greene on Homeopathic Medicine
  • Dr. Greene answers questions that you e-mail him and has an extensive library of answers to various medical questions about children.
  • The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention - Travel Information - lists vaccinations needed for various countries, etc.
    Pregnancy Health:
  • The Mayo Clinic's Pregnancy Page - has an illustrated calendar of baby development, a quiz, an "ask the doctor" area, and reference articles.
  • Kaiser Permanente's Health Reference: Pregnancy and Prenatal Care - handouts they give to their pregnant patients to tell them what to expect at each monthly prenatal appointment.
  • Gestational Diabetes
    Baby Health:
  • A glossary entry explaining what Apgar Scores are.
  • Pampers's has a very comprehensive site of baby care information, including health and other information.
  • Balloons cause more childhood deaths than any other toy
  • Modern Hygiene's Dirty Tricks - The clean life may throw off a delicate balance in the immune system - discusses the theory that keeping babies too well shielded from germs may stop their immune systems from getting enough practice at dealing with germs, causing the immune system to produce more allergies and other medical problems.

    Midwifery:

  • sci.med.midwifery newsgroup. If that link doesn't work for you, you can also get the newsgroup at www.dejanews.com
  • Fen's Ende Midwife Archives - an amazingly wonderful source of information about all aspects of pregnancy, with an emphasis on low-tech natural remedies.

    Misc. Studies:

  • Immunology may be key to pregnancy loss article. This URL was posted on the list during a discussion of what is a "high ANA" and why it can cause miscarriages.

    Music, Song Lyrics, etc.:

  • Kididdles has lyrics to lots of songs &emdash; useful for entertaining baby or putting baby to sleep.

    Off Topic:

  • Maps: mapblast and mapquest — both will show maps of practically anyplace. MapQuest is more global; MapBlast is easier to make links to from other websites but it only includes the US and Canada.

    Online Chat:

  • The DALnet mIRC Resource Center
  • Xcalibre mIRC & Eggdrop Archives
  • What is IRC? Why is it fun to use it?
  • ICQ
  • Internet Acronyms for Beginners. Want to know what YMMV or IMHO or ROTFL means? Then click on this link! Or this one: E-mail shortcuts, or this one: misc.kids acronyms, which includes lots of Usenet terms and things you may see in e-mail subject lines.

    Parenting Groups/Playgroups:

  • Mothers & More - is a national non-profit organization for women who have left the full-time paid work force to raise their children at home. This page has links to chapters all over.
  • Chicago and Suburban Mommies
  • MOPS stands for "Mothers of Preschoolers". It is a Christian organization that has local playgroups, and newsletters, cassettes, etc.

    Parenting Skills:

  • Learn2.com 2torials - has info about how to burp a baby, cope with a crying child, change a diaper, childproof your home, and improvise a diaper when one isn't available &emdash; among other topics.
  • Caring for an Infant
  • Attachment Parenting... What's That??
  • Jeri's Encouragement for New Parents

    Pets and Children:

  • American Kennel Club online
  • Also, see the book "How to Childproof Your Dog"
  • Cat Fancy Magazine - links to several articles about topics such as helping kids and cats live together peacefully, toxoplasmosis, and about old wives tales about cats being dangerous to babies.

    Predictions: (growth charts, personality quizzes, etc.)

  • The Preventive Ounce has a quiz you can use to create a profile of what your child is like and what kind of person your child may grow to be.

    Pregnancy Calendars:

  • pregnancycalendar.com - Use this site to generate a calendar that lists events for your pregnancy.
  • Dawn Software - Fertility and Pregnancy Software - has countdown programs, stork screen savers, fertility charting programs, baby names, etc.
  • The Miracle Of Life - The Miracle of Life series.
  • The Weeks and The Months - some ways to calculate how far along you are.

    Pregnancy Nutrition, Food Safety, Vegetarian Pregnancies:
    (Also see the recipes section of this page)
    General Info:

  • Nutrient Analysis Tool - type in what you ate today and find out its nutritional contents. This will tell you if you're getting enough protein, vitamins, etc.
  • The March of Dimes - Eating for Two: Nutrition During Pregnancy - a fairly standard overview of pregnancy nutrition.
  • US RDAs (for people of all ages - includes numbers for pregnant, lactating, non-pregnant adults, and children).
  • Shaklee vitamins - Look under ShakleeLink to find a local distributor.
  • Fantastic Fruit - Nutrition Action Healthletter's ratings of various fruits to determine which ones are the healthiest. (1. Guava 2. Watermelon 3. Grapefruit 4. Kiwifruit 5. Papaya 6. Cantaloupe 7. Apricots, dried 8. Orange 9. Strawberries 10. Apricots - and the article lists lots more.)
    Food Safety (Listeria, Feta cheese, Honey, etc.):
  • FDA, FSIS Statement on CDC Listeria Study,
  • Dr. Greene on why it is dangerous to feed honey to babies.
  • Hazardous Foods for Pregnant Moms and Young Children
  • Protect Your Unborn Baby: Important Food Safety Information to Help Avoid Miscarriage
    Vegetarian Pregnancy:
  • The Vegetarian Society Pregnancy Information Sheet,
  • Position of The American Dietetic Association: Vegetarian diets
  • Veggies Unite - A wealth of of on line vegan information. (Not sure if it has info about pregnancy in particular.)
    Baby Food:
  • Baby Food Cookbook - A Practical Mother's Guide - a free online baby food cookbook.
  • Finger Foods that some nine-month-old babies were eating Misc. Food:
  • You Are What Mom Eats - a discussion of how a pregnant mom's eating may affect the baby's tastes.
  • Weight Watchers
  • WIC - the U.S. government's program for low-cost food for pregnant women, infants, and small children.

    Premature Babies:

  • Chances for Survival
  • The Nursery has lots of preemie links -- if you scroll down far enough.
  • Daddy's Library, featuring other sites of Preemie, Pregnancy and Parenting interest on the Internet

    Product Recalls:

  • Also, see the Car Seats section of this page.
  • The site recalls.gov has an incredibly comprehensive search engine for finding recalled items.
  • The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission - has an incredible archive of product recalls.
  • Pregnancy Today - The Newsline - Has info about the recall of the Evenflo On My Way car seat.
  • [US] National Highway Traffic Safety Administration - the article on "Buying Safer Cars for Child Passengers" is under "Child Safety Seats" in the side listings. Good info!! Has an article available entitled "Buying a safer car for child passengers", which includes how to make sure a car seat fits in your car, and some known incompatibilities. It's available at AAA or the NHTSA website or from 888-DASH-2DOT.
  • BabyBag Online's list of U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Recalls And Alerts - very comprehensive!
  • The Consumer Product Safety Commission's list of Infant/Child Product Recalls (not including toys)
  • 10 million playpens recalled - Exterior rivets linked to 8 deaths
  • CPSC Study on Phthalates in Teethers, Rattles and Other Children's Products - Phthalates are possibly toxic chemicals found in soft plastic children's items. They may be dangerous if sucked on for an extended time.
  • Health Canada advises parents and caregivers of very young children to dispose of soft vinyl (PVC) teethers and soft vinyl (PVC) rattles - more about phthalates. Includes lists of some brands that are known to be safe.
  • Baby Bjorn Infant Carriers were recalled because babies up to two months old can slip out the leg openings and fall.
  • Recall of one lot of DPT vaccine because it was too weak.
  • The Cosco Geoby Two Ways has been recalled due to the fact that it can collapse. The number that was posted on the news to call is 1-800-221-6736. All I have ever gotten is a busy signal though.
  • CPSC Test Results on Crayons - some brands contain traces of asbestos. Also, here's snopes.com's take on that.
  • Children's Products and Risk - an eye-opening article from The Atlantic about why there are so many dangerous baby products in use.

    Quilts:

  • See the December List quilt page.
  • Ambigram.Matic - A possible quilt square design idea. Ambigrams are words or phrases that can be read in more than one way, most commonly right-side-up and upside-down. Ambigram.Matic is an online Ambigram Generator. Flip any word, different words of the same length, or even an entire (symmetrically spaced) sentence on its head, and read it both ways.

    Recipes:
    (Also see the Pregnancy Nutrition, Food Safety, Vegetarian Pregnancies section of this page)

  • The Zen of Macaroni and Cheese
  • Quiltropolis - has a cooking e-mail list, and it's not a snooty gourmet list.
  • Cook for a Day/Eat for a Month - has info about an email list called "frozen-assets" that discusses recipes, techniques, etc. for "Once a Month Cooking," and an online bulletin board. You can even search the email list archives for the recipes that have been posted on the list.
  • OAMC has a downloadable cookbook with 30 recipes for a month of cooking and it includes shopping lists, etc.
  • The Freezer Cooking Manual from 30 Day Gourmet is one more cookbook (not free download, though).
  • Cook for a day / eat for a month! - a message board with recipes.
  • What's In Your Kitchen? - Kraft website where you can enter three ingredients in your kitchen and it shows you suggested recipes. (Not very useful for vegetarians.)

    Regional:

  • Chicago and Suburban Mommies
  • Minnesota Mom
  • PACES is the Parent and Child Education Society. Centered in Chicago's suburbs, PACES serves as a resource for a variety of approaches to child-rearing and family life. PACES supports educated parenting, from newborns to preschoolers, without advocating specific theories or philosophies.
  • Expectant Mother's Guide - lists local organizations in several cities. Also has several articles.

    Relaxation:

  • Chicken Soup For The Soul - will e-mail you a daily helping of love, laughter, hope and inspiration.
  • You Have Received an Internet Rose
  • The Fathers of Breastfed Babies website suggested for baby entertainment you can download the MIDI Art program for your Windows computer from www.midiworks.com (it generates art from recorded MIDI music) and then using it to play free MIDI music that you can get from midiworld.com and www.midifarm.com. I've tried this, and it really does work -- it grabs my baby's attention and you can kind of dance with him and look at it together, even if he's feeling fussy. His favorite setting is "04 - Musical Grid". I'm sure the inventor of the MIDI Art program never thought his program would be used as a baby soother, but it does indeed work for us.

    Religion:

  • Unitarian Universalist Association

    RSV:

  • Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) - a description of RSV from drkoop.com.

    Scrapbooking:

  • Creative Memories

    Shopping:
    Tips:

  • Baby Gadgets: Love 'em or Hate 'em - This is a summary of responses to a question regarding which baby items parents found most or least useful.
  • Tip: Looking for maternity tights? Some people report buying queen sized non-maternity tights when they were pregnant--that they were cheaper, easier to find, and worked just as well.
  • Tip: Some hospitals have a "breastfeeding boutique" where you can buy nursing bras in a very wide range of sizes, sometimes for prices as low as $25.
  • Beware the "Motherhood" chain of maternity stores. Two people on the list, at different branches of this store, bought outfits that shrank too much to wear, but the store refused to exchange them!!!
  • You may be able to buy a dog gate instead of a baby gate, at a much lower price.
  • You can find tons of coupons to save money on other websites at: flamingoworld.com, and coolsavings.com. Also ebates.com gives you rebates on your purchases at a huge number of on-line stores. (There have been some complaints that they make you divulge nosy personal information to get your money, but if you can live with that then it's worthwhile.)
  • You can find price comparison engines that compare prices for practically any product, at many different on-line stores at: dealpilot.com, bizrate.com, mysimon.com, and dealtime.com.
  • Consumersearch.com is a huge website of reviews of hundreds of different products. I'm not sure who writes them or if they're unbiased. You can also sometimes find reviews of various products on amazon.com, written by real people who have really used the products.
  • The Crib Sheet Catastrophe is Good Housekeeping's site that talks about the results of tests of 23 brands of crib sheets. Top 5: Land's End, The Company Store, Eddie Bauer flannel, Eddie Bauer, and Dormisett.
    Stores:
  • Also see the breastfeeding section of this page for a list of stores that sell nursing clothes.
  • Albertson's has preemie diapers.
  • B.Coole Designs - cotton baby clothes designed to stay useful as the baby grows. Mostly bright-colored; some pastels too.
  • Babe in Arms: Tee shirts for the breastfeeding mother - very affordable nursing shirts made by a stay-at-home-mom.
  • Babies R Us has preemie diapers. They will ship to you if you don't have a store near you. Toys R Us might have preemie diapers too.
  • Baby Bag Boutique - Diaper Bags
  • Baby Bargains (??)
  • Baby Catalog of America - They sell the Britax Roundabout Car seat for $179 plus $8 shipping for members. A 1 year membership costs $25 and a 3 year is $50. Membership gives you a 10% discount on all their items. - 800-PLAYPEN. Also, they have net panties (for holding pads comfortably after delivery) and the chemical cold peripacks made by Medela. Someone who ordered from here reports that products arrived quickly and in good shape. On the other hand, there are three reports of vastly delayed or otherwise messed-up orders from here.
  • Babycenter - has lots of baby equipment and info.
  • The Baby Lane - This page has Mother Ease one size diapers and snap covers, which Jeri recommends. The snap covers are $9.95 each. She can't advertise the name of them on the Internet because of Mother Ease's company policy, but Jeri says that's what brand they are, and Jeri says they are worth every penny.
  • Baby Love Products, Inc. - this site is located in Canada: if you pay US dollars, the exchange rate gets you a lot for your money. Has the Medela Pump-in-Style for $225 Canadian, which makes it only $153 USD!!!! That's about $120 savings over retail. Look on page 27. Drawback: This company can be very slow to ship what you ordered (Valerie's bras took over a month to arrive).
  • Babytoes - handpainted cotton baby clothing.
  • Baby Trend - has Sit-N-stand stroller that has a seat up front for the baby, and a place in the back for an older child to stand. There's also a little seat in the back for the child to sit instead of stand.
  • "Babyworks" (1-800-422-2910) - mostly diapers, but some other neat stuff, like the Baby Cape on page 24
  • Biobottoms. E-mail: children@biobottoms.com or 800.766.1254
  • Bosom Buddies 888-860-0041 - Breastfeeding information, products, and services. Sells a nursing bra called "Bravado" that is reported to be very comfortable. Nice touch: They didn't charge for shipping during the holiday season because they felt they couldn't guarantee fast arrival (but then the bras arrived very quickly anyway). Even their regular non-overnight delivery is very fast. They also carry Leading Lady, Mary Jane and Medela bras. One person on the list says, "I like the design of the Medela bras, but they don't come in my size :-(." The web site also has a lot of good information about breastfeeding, and lots of links to other related information.
  • Burlington Coat Factory Direct - Prima Pappa high chair for $154.99, which is phenomenal; Sit 'n Stand stroller for $99.99; good price on Combi stroller.
  • Carter's - call 1-888-STAY-LITTLE to find a Carter's outlet store near you.
  • childrensplace.com
  • Craig Medical sells cheap highly-sensitive home pregnancy tests for something like 6 for $22. The descriptions of their pregnancy tests are here, and the order form is here.
  • Comparisons of various strollers and car seats are at babybargains.
  • Dorling Kindersley and Discovery have good books/games/toys. You can find some DK stuff in bookstores, but both of these companies have home representatives that market their things.
  • Dressler Stencils has stencils you could use to decorate a baby's room (or some other room).
  • eBay.com - a large on-line auction community. One person has gotten some great computer things and toys there. One person reports getting a good deal on several items here, with no trouble with sending the money and recieving the merchandise.
  • Ecobaby - has organic cotton baby clothes.
  • Eddie Bauer has crib sheets that did well in the crib sheet test. 1-800-426-8020
  • Feral Cheryl Not your typical girly Barbie doll! An Australian doll with a realistic body and an alternative lifestyle. (Cheryl costs $49 in US dollars.)
  • Fit Pregnancy magazine may have some workout clothes advertised in the back of the magazine.
  • Fred Meyer stores carry baby clothes. Look for sales!
  • The Gap and GapKids, BabyGap, and GapMaternity are on-line.
  • gazoontite.com - a store that sells lots of allergy-control products.
  • Gymboree is a good source of colorful baby clothes for boys and girls. Durable, 100% cotton, not cheap. They carry newborn sizes. Their clothing is reported not to fade even after years of washing. One person reports that they have excellent cotton receiving blankets; another reports that their fleece blankets pilled like crazy.
  • Hanes/L'eggs/Bali has a special maternity catalog with tons of stuff; it doesn't carry the larger size maternity bras. If you call the 1-800 Hanes line they can send the maternity catalog.
  • Hanna Anderson 1-800-222-0544 Like Gymboree, their clothes are colorful for boys and girls, durable 100% cotton, not cheap; they carry newborn sizes.
  • Healthtex.
  • IKEA - furniture and all sort of other stuff.
  • Japanese Weekend maternity clothes.
  • JC Penney (1-800-222-6161) - has a maternity catalog, including larger sizes. If you get the wrong size or return etc they pay both ways s&h so you don't lose it. if you order from Penney's, ask for your "maternity discount" and they'll give you 15% off!
  • The Keeper - a menstrual alternative to tampons and pads.
  • Kid's Club (membership discount, but catalog is free) 1-800-363-0500
  • Kmart has a line of maternity wear designed by Kathy Ireland.
  • LL Bean has baby clothes, including some nice-looking fleece buntings.
  • Land's End 800-356-4444 (really good quality clothes) - They have a separate kids' catalogue. 800.734.KIDS (5437). Also has a great diaper bag that many people adore.
  • Little Angel has a cute combo happy holidays/birth announcement card. Call 800-940-1099 to request a catalog.
  • Little Koala Mother and Baby Catalog has the pump-in-style breast pump for $249.30, no shipping costs and they will let you stretch out the payment over a few months. For info, look at the very top of the website and click on "Special Payment Plans for Breastpumps". They need 1/2 down and and then you can pay the rest over 3 months with no interest.
  • Mimi Maternity
  • Mother's Nature - auction site with a large selection of cloth diapers, nursing clothes, baby slings, breast pumps, nursing bras, and breastfeeding accessories. You can buy and sell things here. Has a few of the popular breast pumps at some great prices - has (had?) a few of the Medela Pump in Style for $150!! Has a page about the Avent Isis breast pump.
  • Mothertime - If you're looking for larger maternity clothes, mothertime carries them in the store, motherhood through their catalog (18004mom2be).
  • Motherwear has excellent nursing clothes. They advertise in almost any parenting magazine you would pick up. Check the classifieds in a parents' magazine or something like that. They also carry nursing bras up to size "J", and ones in hard-to-find colors. 1-800-950-2500
  • In Australia, check out Myer/Grace Bros baby department, they have some bold coloured what the States ladies call onesies; they are in gorgeous vibrant colours, orange, lime, red, yellow, etc. They may be Bonds. They also have separates, t-shirts, pants too, from newborn sizes up. And brightly colored nappies by the brand name Actil. You can get great singlets to match. The Myer web page says they now deliver all over the world!
  • Natural Baby 800-388-BABY (organic cotton clothes, diapers, toys, homeopathic remedies.....) - (wonderful cotton and wood products -- clothes, toys, and other baby items, including toxic free baby shampoos etc.)
  • New Arrivals also has buntings. They are in Canada, so people in the US get a great currency exchange rate.
  • The catalog of the Nursing Mothers Association of Australia has lots of products for lactation, babies and children.
  • Old Navy is a great place for cute, relatively inexpensive baby clothes.
  • One Step Ahead - 1-800-274-8440 - Their catalog has some diaper bags that are backpacks. They have compartments like the normal diaper bags for bottles, food, diapers etc. but are backpack style. Also has strollers, etc. Someone particularly liked their Personalized Puzzle Stepstool that you can get personalized with the name of your child.
  • You may be able to order diapers from pampers.com
  • Parenting Concepts. Among other things, they have assorted sizes and patterns of slings. Also AP books, equipment (like a bedside co-sleeper), and nursing supplies. 800-727-3683
  • Pea in the Pod - has maternity clothes, including some nice very formal outfits.
  • Perfectly Safe (owned by same people as Kid's Club) 1-800-837-KIDS
  • Pine Creek Mercantile has baby buntings similar to the LL Bean ones.
  • QJ Cloth Baby Diapers - sells adjustable one-size-fits-all cloth baby diapers that "grow with your baby".
  • The Right Start 800-LITTLE-1 (1-800-548-8531), and other baby stuff, from bedding to high chairs to gear to baby gates in hard-to-find shapes....
  • Sam's Club has good prices on diapers and diaper wipes.
  • Sears has maternity clothes.
  • Special Addition has an underwire bra made by Olga which is fantastic for large breasted women.
  • "Soothie" brand pacifiers: 1-888-SOOTHIE
  • step2.com has an interesting toy kitchen set.
  • Successories sells a photo frame with a quote on it that several people liked. 1-800-535-2773
  • Target has a checklist of items to have for baby. (Note that this list was written by people who want to sell you stuff — you don't need it all.) They also offer a page of helpful hints on planning a shower. Target stores are reported to have good prices on a wide variety of maternity clothes in many sizes. And they are reported to have nursing bras for $10.99, all cotton, easy to undo and redo with one hand. They also sell maternity bras, gowns, and panties. You have to hunt for them in the lingerie section. They also have maternity pantyhose for about $3.
  • The unique Teddytoes bunting
  • Timberdoodle Company - Christian company that sells homeschooling supplies and has articles about homeschooling.
  • Title 9 Sports has maternity exercise clothes - a great catalog for sports clothes for women in general. They have both pants and shorts with a wide band (4") that 'cradles' the tummy. I am doing fine right now with huge shorts, but will probably order the pants/leggings soon. Their phone number is: 1-800-609-0092. I just noticed that they also have an email address: thefolks@title9sports.com
  • Transitions Inc. has products for nursing and expecting mothers, lactation consultants, etc. They sell something called "mother's milk storage bags" for $7 per 25.
  • Wal-Mart is reported to carry preemie diapers, at least in some areas.
  • Warm Belly Wetsuits has child-sized wetsuits. Or call 1-888 WARM KID (1-888-927-6543).
  • Wee Bees has cloth diapers and some other baby products. Excellent diapering site.

    Sleep:

  • Jeri's Sleep page.

    Shaken Baby Syndrome:

  • Shaken Baby Alliance - Prevention
  • The National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome - explains what it is.

    Stay At Home Moms:

  • One Income Living in a Two Income World
  • Can I or my spouse afford to stop working?
  • Should my spouse work too? -- this is the worksheet.

    Toddler Activities:

  • 101 Activities To Do With Your Toddler - mostly things you can do at home with little or no expense.
  • The Treasure Chest - 92 More Activities
  • ABClassroom is a free computer game you can download for your toddler. Nice feature: When it is running, the program totally takes over the computer, so that your child can't mess with any of your other programs.

    Toilet Training:

  • What do I do when my child won't poop in the potty?

    Twins:

  • There's a birth story for a woman (I think this is someone who is on our December list) who gave birth to twins on 9/13, at 25.5 weeks. The babies were due on 12/24/98. To see it, go to www.storksite.com click on BBS, then again on December Babies.

    Vaccinations:

  • Six Common Misconceptions about Vaccination - A document from the US Center for Disease Control, written for doctors to discuss with their patients who are concerned about getting vaccinations.
  • Be Informed About Vaccinations - a page of links to anti-vaccination resources.
  • Why We Don't Vaccinate - Jeri's page about vaccination; brings up lots of the same issues discussed in the "Six Common Misconceptions" article above, but from the other side.
  • National Vaccine Information Center - an anti-vaccination website.
  • Dr. Greene talks about DPT Vaccine and chicken pox vaccine
  • The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention - Travel Information - lists vaccinations needed for various countries.
  • Recall of one lot of DPT vaccine because it was too weak.
  • Rotavirus On-Line - oodles of data about rotavirus.
  • Dr. Bill and Martha Sears Answer: What vaccinations do you recommend for a baby? Do we have to get them all?
  • Dr. Greene on the new pneumococcal vaccine
  • Consumer Reports looks at vaccinations in their article Vaccines: An issue of trust.

    VBAC: (Vaginal Birth After Caesarian)
    Also see listings on the Books page, and also the cesareans section of this page).

  • VBAC Resources

    Vitamin A:

  • The FDA's paper on Vitamin A and Birth Defects.

    Vitamin K and Childhood Leukemia:

  • Healthy Beginnings: Nutrition's Role in Preventing Birth Defects
  • Treatise on Vitamin K - has lots of info about why Vitamin K is given to newborns.
  • Gastroenterology - Hemorrhagic Disease of the Newborn - Still more info about why Vitamin K is given to newborns.
  • General Discussion of Oral Vitamin K instead of Injected Vitamin K - has a discussion of the merits of oral vs. injected vitamin K, and a variety of opinions about the question.
  • Controversies Concerning Vitamin K and the Newborn from the American Academy of Pediatrics. They have fairly well-thought-out recommendations in favor of the Vitamin K shot.
  • Administration of Vitamin K to Newborns - has more discussion of the question, and also links to even more info on the topic.

    Water Birth:

  • Abigail Suzanne - A Water Birth
  • The Waterbirth Website
  • waterbirth.org - has a midwife finder to find a midwife who does waterbirths, a store for waterbirth supplies, and other info.

    Weird News:

  • They're linked by parenthood - Seattle Times article about when the August '96 list held a get-together in person. (Not actually weird news, but it fits better in this category than any other that is here.)
  • Here's the latest news about those December '98 octuplets.
  • The New U.S. Dollar Coin - Sketches of designs, and up until December 28 you could vote for your favorite.
  • Newsweek article Are We Getting Smarter? - IQ scores rose steadily in the 20th century. As scientists search for the reasons, they are shedding new light on the dance between genes and life experience that determines intelligence.

    Writing Web Pages:

  • NCSA's HTML writing primer - learn HTML in an afternoon.
  • Valerie's Guide To The Web Page Writing Business
  • Rachel's husband's HTML Help Pages For Beginners
  • Douglas Gray's Preparing Graphics for the Web - excellent explanations!

    Yoga:

  • The prenatal yoga video offered by Carole's yoga group is available by calling 1-888-547-4493 to order w/ a credit card, or, mail a check to: Holistic Life Production, 4649 Sunnyside Ave. N #300, Seattle WA 98103. The instructor on the video is Colette Crawford.
    Back to the main December List page.