Labor Day is an excellent excuse to drag out the grill and invite friends over. But don’t let this traditional party exclude your little one. It’s simple to make your Labor Day full of family fun.

Plan Around Naps and Bedtime
If you’re going to have guests over, you should invite them over with an eye to naptime. Your baby needs rest, especially if she’s about to have so much outside fun. Since Labor Day celebrations can last for hours, you’ll want to disrupt her as little as possible. Perhaps arrange for guests to immediately after her nap and help things wind down or at least move outside when it’s time to put her bed.

Invite Families
Rather than just inviting couples and adult friends to your party, invite other families with young children. Even if your baby isn’t old enough to play, she will love to watch the other children crawl, toddle and run around. And simply being outside with a bottle of bubbles is enough to entertain the youngsters.

Skip the Hard Stuff
Although it’s hard to imagine a barbeque without beer and other alcoholic beverages, their presence automatically makes a party less appropriate for children. Unless you’re in complete control of everyone’s behavior after a few drinks, you’d do best to serve ice tea and soft drinks to avoid any behavior or words you’d prefer your child not hear.

Too often parents become the last priority in a household, especially if you work or have a spouse who works long hours. Being on duty all day, every day is exhausting, and even the most patient and diligent parent needs a break sometimes. Well before you feel yourself reaching a breaking point, seek out time for yourself.

Cancel Your Evening Plans
Nights should be yours. Get your children to bed at an early hour and take some time to yourself to hang out around the house. If you must do chores, do them in your own way – sip a margarita while you clean the kitchen. Cry over the latest drama series while you fold laundry. Practice salsa dancing while you pick up toys. And as soon as you’re done, kick back and do your own thing exclusively.

Throw in a Movie
The hardest time for many parents is when their child stops napping during the day. Going without this break in the action can be tough. Enforce a quiet time after lunch, regardless of whether he naps, and then pop in a video to give yourself a bit more time to sit down and relax – you’ll just be doing it with your child.

Investigate Day Schools
Many churches and community centers offer day schools or Mothers-Day-Out programs for children younger than preschoolers. Look around in your area to see if your children can play with friends for a few hours a couple times a week so you can go to the grocery store in peace.

The warm months of summer are perfect for travel – especially to the beach. Or perhaps you’d rather travel somewhere a bit cooler than home. Regardless, traveling with a little one can be a bit challenging. If you’re packing up your young family this summer, be sure you know the best ways to survive the trip so you can enjoy your vacation.

Better Too Early Than Too Late
It’s far better to spend an extra hour at the airport than push yourself on timing. Everything takes longer with a baby, and if you’re running late your toddler will most certainly have an accident and your infant will need to nurse. Leave yourself plenty of time to accommodate the unexpected as well as the expected.

Check Your Bags
It might seem simpler to bring bags onboard a plane to save time, but you’re not going to save much time and you’ll need your hands. So check as much as you can and leave out just the essentials – this makes your load through the airport lighter and gives you more freedom of movement when your little one dashes away into a crowd.

Bring Your Stroller to the Gate
You can roll your stroller right up to the gate, so why wouldn’t you? Even if your baby is fine walking or being held getting on the plane, she might be sleeping when you get off – having your stroller waiting for you might be a life (or back) saver.

Looking to start (or finish) potty training? Most toddlers are motivated by nice, tangible rewards no matter how much you were hoping to get by on praise and loving support. If you’re in need of cheap, easy rewards, look no further:

Stickers
Toddlers love stickers and you can get so many for so little money. Give your child a sticker to wear each time she uses the potty or put one on a special chart to keep track of her successes. (There is no need to track her failures, of course.)

Candy
If you’re okay with the idea, a small piece of candy such as a Skittle or M&M makes a nice reward for a job well done. A toddler doesn’t exist who doesn’t salivate after some kind of candy.

Toys
If you make a chart and check off a certain number of boxes, you might reward your child with a small toy at the end of the day. Visit the local dollar store or look in the “junk” section of the toy store to find toys less than a dollar that will help keep everyone motivated.

Special Treats
Much like candy, you can use anything for a motivation if it is special enough. Junior sized popsicles might be a good idea during the summer, especially sugar free ones. You can also use popcorn, fruit snacks or any other item that is a special treat to your child.

It happens to every new mom. You are so excited about the pregnancy you go a bit overboard with your planning and buying. Of course you should plan and prepare for the newborn, but many of the large baby stores seem to insist you need everything the moment your first contraction hits. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Newborn Essentials
There are most definitely newborn essentials such as a place to sleep, blankets, diapers, bottles, formula (if necessary), a breast pump, and much more. There are even some items that aren’t necessary, but still nice to have around such as stroller travel systems and swings. Other items, however, can easily wait until you actually know what parenting is all about. You might be surprised how your preferences change.

Skip This (For Now)
The Exesaucer – Your baby doesn’t need it until she’s at least four months old and has great head control. Skip it for now or leave it in the box to save on storage space until you need it.

The High Chair – Even reclining highchairs swallow up newborns. Keep the highchair in the garage or just put off buying one for a few months. Your baby won’t start eating solids until close to six months, although she might like the high view a bit earlier than that.

Baby Proofing – Baby gates, outlet covers and cabinet locks are completely essential – once your baby can move, that is.

Convertible Carseat – Unless you’ve opted to skip the bucket carseat, which is a great idea for some families, you can put this one off for almost six months to a year. It will just collect dust in the garage until then.

Jogging Stroller – You’re not allowed to jog for at least a few weeks, and most jogging strollers are for babies who can sit with assistance. Unless yours has a space for a newborn carrier, skip it until your baby’s neck can handle the pace.

When new babies come home, many new parents are clueless as to how they will survive the feedings around the clock and the constant needs of that new baby. Sleepless nights and incessant demands from a seven pound child can be exhausting, but you can survive.

Take Turns
If baby is waking every two hours, take turns feeding the baby so the other parent can get some sleep. If mom is breastfeeding, dad can feed a bottle of expressed milk during one feeding or just bring the baby to mom and change the diaper after the feeding letting more stay in bed at least.

Nap
New babies sleep around the clock, and so should you. Dishes and vacuuming will wait. When baby naps, you nap, too. Then when baby is awake take care of chores while wearing her close to your chest or letting her watch you in action.

Stay Comfortable
Nobody expects you to be dressed and primped for the day with a young baby. Invest in some good loungewear and wear it to bed and up around the house. Stay comfortable so you don’t waste any time changing clothes to nap. Loungewear is also easy to wash following exploding diapers or spit-up.

Taking baby out often means feeding baby while on the go. Depending on the stage and age of your baby, the way you feed your baby might be as simple as pulling out a bottle or as complicated as a four course meal.

Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding moms have the easiest means of feeding baby on the go. A few minutes in a car or nursing room or a quiet bench away from the action can give baby a chance to fill up, often followed by a little nap.

Bottle Feeding
When bottle feeding, you can bring cold bottles with ready made formula that may have to be heated or one you made right before leaving the house. Bottles that are already prepared should be used in less than 1-2 hours, however. A can of ready-made formula poured into a waiting bottle can create a meal or a formula dispenser with pre-measured formula shaken into a bottle with water is an easy way to make a meal on the run.

Solids
Once a child starts eating solids, you’ll need a bit more than a bottle or breast. Every outing that will span a meal will include jars or containers of baby food, a spoon, a bib and a change of clothes. You might also bring a highchair cover or wipes to keep eating conditions sanitary.

Finger Foods
Life becomes a bit easier once a baby is comfortably eating finger foods. Tear off or cut small pieces of your own meal for baby and supplement with foods brought from home. In a matter of months your little one will be capable of grabbing and chewing a real meal (so long as you cut it up for him first.)

Childhood vaccines have been under speculation by some parenting groups for years. In more recent years, many fingers have been pointed at vaccines as the cause or instigating factor in the high numbers of autism cases identified each year. Parents are becoming concerned about vaccines and the health of their child, but waiting or choosing not to vaccinate may be just as dangerous.

The Vaccination Schedule

The many vaccines required for children today are scheduled to be administered beginning at birth and routinely at almost every doctor’s appointment for the remainder of childhood. The sheer number of vaccines is baffling to many parents who remember only a handful from their own childhood.

Pediatricians will inform you of when your child is due for each vaccine, and will give you information about the shot and common side effects. Parents may elect to skip or delay vaccines, but schools and daycares will require a completed shot record with enrollment or a qualified waiver.

Concerns about Vaccines

In the past, many vaccines were made using live strands of the disease the shot was designed to prevent. In some cases, the vaccinated child actually developed the disease or experienced severe, sometimes life threatening side effects. Over time, live viruses were removed from vaccinations, and today all vaccines are available without live cultures – but be sure to check with your doctor that your child is receiving the safer version.

Many strongly believe that autism is caused or brought forth more prominently by the MMR (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella) vaccine. For many years mercury was used as a component of the shot, and mercury was believed to have harmful effects in children. Today, mercury has been removed from the vaccine, but many parents still delay the vaccine.

Delaying Vaccines

There is a middle path between getting all vaccines on time, even if you’re not sure your child is ready, and skipping them all together. Most of your child’s first doctor’s appointments will include four or five shots. Rather than getting all the vaccines so early, you can delay them over a few years giving your child’s immune system time to develop more properly should he have an adverse reaction to the immunization.

The MMR is often delayed. The correct time frame for the MMR is between twelve and twenty-four months. Most doctors give it at one year, but you may simply be more comfortable waiting until your child is two. Vaccines are important to prevent the spread of highly contagious diseases, but there is no rule that you have to immunize your child on someone else’s schedule.

When your child gets sick, often you can’t ease their discomfort until you know what you are facing. During the colder months of the year, your child can come down with any number of bugs and viruses, but the worst bug of all is the flu. Unfortunately, even cold symptoms in children can be pronounced, so it can be challenging to determine if your child is suffering from a common cold or if she does in fact have the flu.

Cold Symptoms

In children the most common symptoms of a cold are a runny nose, cough, and irritability. Of course, these can also be signs of teething, so the best way to check for a cold is to determine the color of the nasal discharge. Green or yellow mucus is indicative of a cold, but clear discharge is likely allergies or teething related. Other cold symptoms include:

There is no cure for colds, and young children should not be given any cold medicines as they have been shown to be dangerous. Instead treat the symptoms as best you can with a little extra love and attention. Push fluids and food, and elevate the crib mattress and encourage older children to sleep with their head on the pillow to help drain fluids away from the nose and ears.

Flu Symptoms

The flu is a much more intense disease that might be prevented by getting a flu vaccine each year. Children six months and up are encouraged to get a flu vaccine annually. If your child has the flu, the first symptoms might appear similar to a cold, but symptoms will quickly become more severe. Symptoms of the flu include:

• High fever lasting 3-4 days
• Severe headache
• Severe body aches and pains
• Lingering fatigue and weakness
• Extreme exhaustion
• Chest discomfort and cough
• Occasional stuffy nose, sore throat and sneezing

The flu can be shortened considerably by administering antiviral drugs within twenty-four to forty-eight hours of the start of the disease, but you’ll need to discuss this with your pediatrician. The flu must be monitored carefully as it can develop into other more serious conditions such as pneumonia and bronchitis.

There has long been a debate about the presence of television in a child’s life. Is it necessary for his growth and development? No. Is it dangerous? It might be. Is it all bad? Certainly not. Television can be compared to sweets. A daily treat isn’t great for you, but a small serving won’t hurt you, either. Of course, too many sweets will cause problems – much like too much television.

Educational Television

There are many television programs and videos that tout their educational benefits. While some shows are definitely more appropriate than others, educational television is a misnomer. Television can’t educate – but you can use television to facilitate education. If you sit your child in front of the television while you throw dinner together, don’t expect her to learn more than Elmo’s favorite song.

But if you sit down with her after dinner is finished and point out objects, count along, and talk about what the show discusses, your child can use what she sees on the television as a basis for future learning. This is truly the only way television can be educational – if parents, or someday teachers, use it to show examples and help students see a topic in action. It can also help a child practice skills they have already learned, such as counting, but young children will not learn the skill from the television.

Too Much Television

There is such a thing as too much television. As it is not necessary for a child’s development in any way, there is no problem if you ban television all together in your home. Granted, most parents are willing to let their child watch a show in the morning to give the parents time to get ready for the day, and many children watch another show before dinner or as a family before bed.

Experts state that infants have no need for any television, and that toddlers should watch thirty minutes or less per day. Older children can watch a bit more, but anything over 1-2 hours can be damaging to their health.

The Dangers of Television

When a child sits in front of the television, he isn’t running and playing. The television lets a child’s brain rest. This means the brain is not working on learning new things or creating imaginative games. Television is entertainment, so while the TV is entertaining your child, she is also not learning to entertain herself.

There are also physical repercussions to too much television. Watching hours of television each day can lead to poor eating habits and overweight and under active children. Sitting on the couch is no substitute for riding a bike or playing in the backyard. A short break is perfectly natural, but in a perfect world, you should be watching a show together or skipping television entirely and reading a book.

The only thing more stressful than moving is moving with kids. When you have young children, any disruption to their normal routine and environment can trigger meltdowns, tantrums and anxiety. Moving to a new home is one of the most dramatic changes you can make, so while you hope the move will go smoothly; anticipate up to six weeks of adjustments once you arrive. To ease the transition, prepare your child in advance, make it new and exciting, and accommodate their needs.

Preparing in Advance

Very young children won’t understand the discussion of moving, but preschoolers can understand that they will be getting a new room in a new house or apartment. If possible, take your child to see the new home a few weeks before the move and explain that this is going to be their new home. Refer to the new house often, but avoid talking about the home you’re leaving behind. Pack his room discreetly and stay focused on the positives of the new home, not leaving his old room behind.

New and Exciting

When you move, your destination is always new, but you want to be sure the move is new and exciting. If you were able to take your child to see the property in advance, help him pick out his new room and talk about how you should decorate it. It will be a bit extra to pack, but let your child pick out new linens and wall decorations for his room before you move. This way he has something physical, even if they are still in the packaging, to remind him how great his new room is going to be. Be upbeat and rave about the new house in his presence. Save the stress and bickering for after he’s in bed.

Accommodate His Needs

Your child can live anywhere, but he needs your help to adjust. If you have to leave the unpacking until after he’s in bed every night - do it. It’s far better to spend all day with your child helping him feel at ease in the new home than it is to get the pictures on the wall in a matter of days.

Unpack his room first - if you have new decorations, put them up, but be sure to leave the old and comfortable aspects of his prior room in place as well. Favorite pillows or stuffed animals can make a new room less intimidating at night.

Expect a few rough nights as he settles into his new surroundings, especially if he is young. See to his needs and even spend the first night together as a family camping out in your bed or in sleeping bags to make it more exciting as well as to ease the initial trepidation your child might be feeling. You may not get much sleep that night, but you will doze knowing your child feels safe and secure in his new home.

Taking your first trip by air with a baby is intimidating. After all, you don’t want to be the parent with the screaming baby and you’re not sure what you can bring and if you can handle luggage, car seats and a stroller. Never fear – parents have been flying with babies for decades. It might not be easy, but it doesn’t need to be impossible either.

Airline Regulations

Since 9/11, airlines and airports have tightened security and added procedures that should help keep us safe. Of course these procedures also make travel more complicated – especially for parents trying to bring little ones through crowded airports.

Gear

Baby gear makes up most of what is stressful about traveling with babies. You usually bring a stroller, a pack-n-play, clothing, diapers, bottles, carriers, and a carseat. Fortunately, you are allowed extra baggage by major airlines for babies. In addition to the standard bags, babies are also allowed a checked carseat and another bag for diapers and gear. Checking the pack-n-play is permitted as well.

Check as much as possible upon arriving at the airport. The less you have to take through security the better. Take the stroller to the gate, even if you’re not using it at the moment. You’ll appreciate having it when the plan lands and they attendants will check it for you and have it set up when you exit the plane. Also be sure to wear shoes that slip on and off. There is nothing worse than trying to hurry and get your own shoes back on while your toddler races away.

Food

You are now allowed to bring stored breastmilk, juice and formula on the plane, even if your baby is not with you. You must present it right away at the security checkpoint, however. It is best to store the liquids in containers of less than three ounces if possible as this is the magic cutoff for the TSA. Bring enough for the plane ride (with a bit extra for security) and check the rest in your luggage. Consider feeding your baby during take off and landing to help with pressure in his ears.

Airplane Safety

Airlines allow children under two to fly free as lap babies. While this is economical, it is not as safe as paying for a child’s fare and bringing a carseat. The seat will keep your child comfortable and safe in case of turbulence. It will also allow you to have your hands free to make bottles, fix snacks and do all the entertaining you must do to survive the flight in one piece.

Parents with small children are allowed to board a flight early. This helps them get all of the gear stored and the children settled. Take advantage of this perk, but bring extra toys and snacks for the waiting you’ll be doing while everyone else is boarding. Buy your tickets far in advance to get the front seats with extra leg room. You will not be allowed to sit on the exit aisles. Pack your bag with exciting toys, snacks and maybe a portable DVD player to keep your little one distracted and entertained for the entire flight.

Parents are busy people. They are constantly pulled in many directions trying to meet the needs of their children, their home and their jobs. Too often they fail to meet their own needs or those of their marriage. Maybe it’s time for you to take a time-out, too.

Relax

Taking time away from the family and pressures of the home allows parents to relax and work off stress. Taking care of children is innately stressful with so many constant worries and demands. It is also a job that you can’t drive away from at the end of the work day. Parenting combined with the stress of the office means that parents rarely have a chance to kick back and relax.

Taking a break from the family, even for one afternoon or evening if not a full vacation can have a tremendous impact on your stress level and outlook. Exercise or being completely away from distractions like the computer or phone can help you reach a state of well-being much faster.

Reconnect

The two partners in a relationship often spend the days and nights passing each other heading in opposite directions. There is little time to sit down together for a long conversation or a bit of romance. Marriages become more functional than romantic and this can lead to a loss of communication and affection.

Heading out on a date every few weeks, or even scheduling a date night at home after the kids are in bed can make a world of difference. Parents should be a team, but it can be challenging to present a unified parenting front and enjoy your family as a whole if your marriage is suffering or you don’t have time or energy to demonstrate affection for the person who helped create those wonderful children.

Appreciation

It’s hard to appreciate something that you are constantly working on. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” is an apt clique for parenting. Taking a walk or heading out for an evening makes you miss your children a bit and that absence may help you focus on the great qualities your child processes and, at least temporarily, forget about the tantrums and colic you deal with throughout the rest of the day.

One of the most overwhelming aspects of parenting is helping children go from diapers to the full-time use of the potty. There are so many different methods and ideas behind potty training an entire section may be devoted to it at the local bookstore. Some of the most popular methods follow.

Infant Potty Training

Not for the faint of heart, some parents swear by infant potty training. Theory states if a parent is tuned into a child’s natural rhythms she can anticipate when a baby is ready to go and get them over the potty in time. Obviously this is not an overnight method, but some claim that children can be trained by twelve or fifteen months with consistent parental involvement.

The One Day Method

Other experts claim children can be trained in one day. This method is very appealing to frantic and busy parents. You simply devote a single day to potty training. You don’t leave the house or do anything that might take you away from the potty. Feed your little one plenty of liquids and sit them on the potty regularly (usually every hour.) Eventually all those liquids should come out and the huge amount of positive feedback will convince the child that the potty is the place to go all the time. A variation of this method is to let the child run around naked. Being naked will make them more aware of when they need to go and will speed the process along.

The Reward System

Another parental favorite is the reward system. M&Ms and stickers are given as rewards for a successful trip to the bathroom. Every time your child uses the potty correctly she receives a small award and this motivates her to keep up the good work. This method generally assumes the entire process will take a little while.

The Readiness System

At the opposite end of the spectrum from the infant training is the “wait until he’s ready” system. Rather than being highly motivational and almost forcing your child to use the potty when you feel they are ready, you simply wait for them to tell you they are ready.

Gradually introduce the vocabulary and model the procedures and over time a comfort level will be built up. One day your child will decide that he can probably sit on the potty, too and he will. Experts claim that not forcing the issue will actually make the training easier as it is not emotionally charged.

Most experts strongly advise waiting until a baby is four to six months to introduce solid foods. “Solid food” is somewhat of a misnomer since the pureed baby foods we consider solids are more liquid still than anything else. Babies may be interested in trying out the foods they see on Mom and Dad’s plate, but introducing solid foods gradually is the best method to avoid overwhelming baby and to make the process more successful.

Stage One – Smooth and Simple

The first foods for your baby should be so smooth they resemble a liquid. The most common first food is a cereal, usually rice, to avoid potential allergies, but can be a fruit or vegetable. The first few feedings will be more amusement than substance, but over time everyone will catch on.

Early foods involve very finely pureed fruits, vegetables and cereals. Introduce the foods one at a time to detect any allergies waiting four days between introductions. Many experts feel bland foods should be given first to introduce baby to the texture of a product that doesn’t come in a bottle.

Then vegetables should be added slowly as they don’t have the sweet taste of the fruits. Others find that introducing fruits first makes baby more enthusiastic about the whole idea. So long as you introduce each food slowly and keep the texture ultra smooth, order is not crucial.

Stage Two – Lumps and Bumps

After all the basics have been introduced, although possibly not meats, it is time to move into textures. Babies must work up to solids and this is the in between step. Foods should now be prepared more mashed than pureed and mixing things a bit is fine so long as baby has not shown any bad reactions to anything you’re mixing.

It may take a little while for your baby to decide that little lumps and bumps in their favorite item is okay, and this is perfectly normal. This is also the stage where many parents begin to introduce meat items.

Stage Three – Finger Foods

Somewhere between nine months and a year, babies are ready for a new challenge. They have worked to develop the concept of picking up items and may actually begin to refuse being spoon-fed. They simply want to do it themselves. Humor your baby with finely cut finger foods. Also realize it will take while to get the hand to mouth action down.

Finger foods can be scary for parents as they produce more choking hazards and are usually pretty messy. Babies eat everything with their hands, sometimes well into their toddler years. Keep pieces very small and make sure your baby’s diet is as varied as possible. Also, be aware of highly allergenic foods such as chocolate, egg whites and nut products which should be avoided until your little one is turns one.