Rachel - My Blog
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Rachel says
Saturday 18th February
I so agree with Dr Julie Wray of the school of nursing and midwifery. She says in todays Daily Telegraph that many new mums are turned out of hospital too soon after the birth of their baby and left to cope on their own. Many mums I speak to feel the same and say they have given up breast feeding as there was very little help in hospital and they were sent home so soon. Also many mums are sent home with their babies who havent even been bathed! I know mums dont want to be in hospital for longer than is necessary but it would be good if their was some system whereby new mums were taught how to care for and feed their babies when they get home. The midwives do a brilliant job but just have too much to do.
Friday 17th February
What do I give him? Baby rice and pureed fruit or vegetables is a good start. Just a little baby rice, a teaspoon full, then mix in some fruit or veg that has been cooked and pureed and some breast or bottle milk to make it a custard like consistency. Give this in the morning at his 10-11 a.m feed and after about a week give some more at around 5 pm.
Tuesday 14th February
How do I know my baby is ready for solid food.......when he starts waking early for feeds and is not satisfied. He may start waking in the night or around 4 a.m when he has been sleeping well. When he is opening his mouth like a little bird when he see you feeding! Also when he around about 14lbs in weight, usually a baby will be ready for some solids in his diet.
Friday 10th February
Rachel says
Have you seen a brilliant article written by Judith woods this week in the Daily Telegraph on wednesday 8th feb. It is called Knickers to the nappy curriculum and is about pushy parents and their children. It is so true that there are parents who fill their childrens days with activities that these little ones are often not ready for. Huge pressure seems to be on for under school age children to excel in things that not many years ago little ones had not even heard of! Yes, please let our children be children while they can be, there is enough pressure on them when they get to school anyway. Thank you Judith for your common sense article hopefully many parents will read it and take note!
Tuesday 31st January
Hello to all my friends and supporters of Rachels Babies! These winter months can be tough so to cheer you up I am offering a free ½ hour telephone consultation for one lucky person - giving them advice/help with their baby/toddler. All you need to do is ‘Like’ my page and then ‘Share’ it with your ‘Friends’. Find the 'Like' button on my homepage. I will then randomly select a winner from the ‘Likes’! Winner to be announced at the end of February. Rachel xx
Tuesday 17th January;
Here is the link to the interview I did on Premier Radio, www.premier.org.uk/ingoodcompany hope you enjoy!
Saturday 24th December
Rachel says,
A very happy christmas to you all and I hope you all have a lovely time with your children and families. As from today we are told it is perfectly ok to swaddle our babies, apparently this is the first time this advice has been given since the 1950's !!!! What a surprise ! We all know how much better babies sleep if they are swaddled, but now it is official! Will be in touch again in the new year
Sunday 18th December
Rachel says,
I am a great believer in swaddling, to swaddle baby and tuck her down flat in her pram or cot.
Thursday 15th December,
Rachel says,
It is important for baby to lay flat on her back to get the best sleep, rather than sitting up in a car seat, which can be bad for her back
Wednesday 14th December,
Rachel says,
A newborn baby won't sleep if they are hungry! so how do you know if they are? If breast feeding it's a little harder to tell, however make sure you feed baby on both breasts and check if baby is routing or moving head from side to side, or putting hands in mouth after a feed, this is a sign she is looking for more! if baby is bottle fed you can see how much she has had.
Tuesday 13th December,
Rachels says,
I will be giving some useful bitesize points on 'sleep' with newborn babies over the next few days.... if you would like more information please refer to The Baby Book.
For a newborn baby it is vital that she has 16 hours sleep in a 24 hour period, during the first few weeks.
Thursday 8th December,
Rachels says....
In the Telegraph on Saturday last week there was a good article by Rose Prince about food allergies in children. A study has been done at Kings College London on the benifits of giving children small amounts of food that may cause an allergy in order to build up their immune system against the particular allergy. This makes great sense as it seems we have become paranoid about not giving our young children certain foods, therefore so many children don’t have any immunity against allergies. Of course I know there are children who have very real reactions to certain foods, and these need to be taken seriously. Rose also goes on to say how fashions change so quickly ,one moment you are told to breast feed for 6 months, the next told to wean at 3 months. Is it any wonder that mums are lost in the muddle of advice they are given. Sadly it is often advice that has lost the ability to stick to common sense
Tuesday 29th November,
Date for your diary!
Sunday December 18th at 8pm on PREMIER RADIO.
Rachel is interviewed by Jeff Lucus and Ruth Dearnley and will be talking about her work and giving general advice on parenting. Not to be missed!!!
Rachel says,
Tuesday 22nd November.
This is the time of year when Bronchiolitis is prevelant in babies and young children. I have seen this in babies aged from about 1 month old over the past few years. It is a horrid condition and babies can deteriorate quickly. The signs are; baby has a cold and maybe a cough, she doesnt want to feed, she can become listless and just wants to sleep. Her breathing can become heavy and her body can become a blueish colour. Often the first sign will be a nasty cough that sounds like croup. You do need to see a Doctor quickly , as sometimes babies are hospitalised and given oxygen. This condition affects babies and young children from November to March.
Rachel says
Monday 7th November
I see a study has been done in South Africa about the stress to newborn babies when taken from their mother at birth and put in a cot. I understand that all babies are given straight to mother after she has delivered, and put to the breast to feed, unless they are premature and needing special care, so not sure how this report has been done. It is interesting that this study has been done in South Africa where I guess many babies naturally stay with their mothers as this is culturally acceptable. As we in the west in the main, dont sleep with our babies and children, I hope this report wont bring more guilt and worry to parents who in my view are already overloaded with things to worry about! Dont let this report make you go into a spin and feel you need to have all your children sleeping in bed with you!
Rachel says
Wednesday November 2nd
At the weekend there was a very interesting article in the Daily Telegrah newspaper on smacking, written by Christopher Wakling. On thursday evening a new BBC tv series starts called The Slap. I wonder how much negative reaction there will be to this as we as a nation now live in a culture where there are little or no boundaries found in parenting. I wonder if some of the reasons for the riots in August came about because those who were resposible, had never had firm but loving boundaries given to them as they were growing up.
Rachel says
Friday 28th october
Hi everyone, sorry Ive not been in touch for a while, guess lots of you have been busy with 1/2 term this week. I have seen quite a bit in the press recently about parenting for families. I can do ante natal classes in your area to help you with baby, feeding,breast and bottle, and the big one Sleep! Do let me know if I can help in any way
Rachel says
Monday, 10th October
Interesting article in yesterday's Observer entitled 'Breastfeeding can boost social mobility, experts tell ministers'. Apparently the government is urged to act on new research that shows the importance of a baby's early weeks to success in later life. Dr Emilia Del Bono, an economist at the Institute of Social & Economic Research said "There seems to be evidence of benefits of breastfeeding in relation not just to health - which are already widely known - but also, and perhaps more controversially, in the cognitive, emotional and behavioural domains. There is a strong argument that the government should include breastfeeding on its list of social mobility indicators." Interesting stuff! Del Bono also commented that whilst it is good that hospitals promote breastfeeding, mothers need continued encouragement to carry on breastfeeding in the longer term.
Rachel says
Saturday 8th October
This past couple of weeks I have spoken to lots of mothers feeling very upset about their childs behaviour now he/she has started at school. They are dealing with tantrums and bad behaviour, and children not sleeping well at night. It is very normal for young children to be very good at school and come home and go into meltdown ! It is often related to being very tired. Do call me if you are having problems such as these.
Rachel says
Friday 7th October
Well this week I have started writing my book on sleep.....what a subject.....and how vital sleep is to us all! Do let me know if you have any stories on your babies or childrens sleep patterns.....I would love to hear from you. Just get in touch with Lucy
Have a lovely wknd.
Rachel says:
Tuesday, 27th September 2011
You will have seen the recent news articles about 'The Erosion of Childhood' which made some pretty sad reading. I agree with much of what was said that our children have too much too soon in terms of consumerism, media gadgets and not enough family time and outdoor activities. It seems we have perhaps lost our way with regards to parenting in the UK. This is an area I am passionate about and desperately keen to help families with. How important it is that the boundaries which we give in parenting are laid down in the early months of a child's life in order to establish a stable, loving and secure family environment where children can thrive and flourish.
Don't forget you can get in touch with me if you are having problems with any issues relating to your babies and children - for example, bad behaviour, eating problems, sleep issues, breast-feeding, maintaining a routine, I am here to help!
Sleep Issues
Rachel says:
This is such a big problem area for many families today who struggle with broken nights due to children not sleeping. Being a childcare expert I spend so much time advising parents on how to get their babies and children to sleep through the night. Lack of sleep is so destructive to family life - so please do contact me if you need some help.
Rachel says:
Saturday 13th August 2011
"Why won't my baby sleep at night?" is so often the cry from new exhausted parents. A baby who won't settle at night seems to disrupt family life much more than if he won't sleep in the day. Sleep is so important to us all and we can't operate and function properly without it. The most important thing for a new baby is feeding and sleeping, a baby who is hungry or over-tired will not sleep. So, firstly make sure baby has been fed really well, as I say, tanked right! Change his nappy at some stage during the feed, then when he has been up for long enough, about an hour, then he needs to be tucked down in his cot or pram. Very often babies will be fretful and a little unsettled while they are dropping off to sleep, this is quite normal, and if left to settle themselves they should then sleep well until the next feed.
This is just a rough guide, do get in touch with me through Lucy whose details are here on my website (lucybinns@bigapemedia.com) if you have any problems with your baby or child not sleeping.
My consultancy service works very well and I will try and get in touch with you immediately. My service is very personal and we aim to respond within 24-48 hours.
Rachel says:
Thursday 11th August
I just want to reassure those of you who have given your babies cows milk before they are a year old that this is perfectly ok. A report has come out to say that cows milk is too salty, but if your baby has been breast fed and you are weaning him/her and he/she wont take formula, cows milk is perfectly ok for him/her. So rest assurred !
Rachel says
Monday 1st August
I have just seen a report on demand feeding, carried out in Australia that babies who are demand fed end up with healthier weights. I have found that babies who feed regularly put on weight well and also are very settled and sleep well. Surely this is what we all need!
Rachel says July 2011
On monday 4th July afternoon come and ask me questions on facebook on this address from 3pm till 3-45. http://www.facebook.com/askamum.
Dont forget you can contact me through my consultancy service if you have any questions you wish to ask. I speak to lots of parents with babies and young children with sleeping issues.
Rachel says June 2011
Good for Tilly Beazeley who has patented a food masher called a weanie . Tilly has apparently sold 120.000 of these `wean machine’s`. This is a plastic gadget that you take with you when you go out for meals, and either mash the food you are having or take your prepacked food with you and mash it for baby there and then. Mashing does’nt destroy the fibres like blending does. How good to see some sense with feeding baby the food we have, like we always used to do! So good for baby to have different flavours and textures, from the age of six months they can eat most things within reason that we as adults eat. Apparently the makers of convenience baby food are worried as they think this may take on and they will loose out!
Rachel says May 2011
Hope you like my new look website, hopefully more info and lots of blogs !
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