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A new recommendation from the World Health Organization (WHO) says that nursing and bottle-feeding moms need to take iodine capsules to provide a year’s dose of iodine for herself and baby. Iodine is essential for the human body (which makes it a really, really big deal!) and without it, growth habits are stunted and an iodine deficiency could damage your nervous system. Though most newborns generally receive enough iodine through breast milk and baby food (which contains added iodine), there are parts of the world (like iodine-low and developing countries) where the population doesn’t have enough to voluntarily pass on to baby....

Sweets and treats are the way to any girl’s heart, especially one that’s about to be a new mommy. Incorporate her favorite candies into the decor as well as the favors, cake, and anything else you can think of! The Invite: A die-cut invite covered in candy jars or shaped like a lollipop from Traylor Papers is a sure way to give guests the hint that this shower will be a sweet time....

As a new parent, you may feel like you’re perpetually chasing sleep. The first few months are punctuated by blurry nights spent feeding, changing and comforting a helpless, almost-nocturnal creature. And then one day—typically around 3 or 4 months of age—they find their groove and settle into a more predictable cycle with longer stretches of sleep. And then, just as you’re starting to feel like yourself again, baby begins developing and growing so quickly that their sleep can be negatively impacted....

Once baby emerges from mom’s womb and into the world, there’s no need for the umbilical cord anymore—but it takes a little bit of time before baby’s body sheds the umbilical cord stump and fully heals. So when does the umbilical cord fall off, and how should you go about cleaning and caring for the umbilical cord stump in the meantime? Read on to learn everything you need to know about baby umbilical cord care....

They say the newborn period is the “fourth trimester,” and for good reason—coming into this world can be a rough transition, and babies often pine for the good old days of warm, cozy comfort inside the womb. When baby can’t seem to settle down at night, swaddling can be just the thing: It tightly snuggles baby, helping to soothe, prevent startle-reflex and ultimately get baby to sleep longer and sounder. Aden + anais has bundled up all those benefits in their muslin swaddle blanket—and topped it off with swoon-worthy prints....

It’s absolutely safe to go to the eye doctor while you’re pregnant—and probably a pretty good idea too. “Pregnancy does have an effect on certain women’s visual acuity,” says Michael P. Nageotte, MD, medical director of the MemorialCare Center for Women at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center and Miller Children’s Hospital Long Beach. “Some women note that their ability to read or see things close up is affected by pregnancy.” Most often, these visual changes are caused by pregnancy-related swelling of the cornea and resolve soon after delivery....

At your first prenatal appointment, your OB will take blood for a long list of screenings. One of them will be to determine your blood type. You may already know if you’re type A or O, but what’s important during pregnancy is whether or not you’re “positive” or ”negative.” Your OB will test your blood for Rh, a protein present in about 85% of the population. If you’re Rh-negative and the father is Rh-positive, the fetus can inherit the Rh factor from the father....

Barring any sensitive skin issues you might have, it’s generally considered safe for pregnant women to get waxed during pregnancy. Thanks to your hormones, your hair is probably growing at a much faster rate now, which means you might find yourself more fixated on hair removal than ever before. While some mamas simply prefer shaving, others find it much more convenient (especially as their belly grows) to get waxed instead. But if you find your skin is more sensitive these days, try using a soothing lotion before and after waxing sessions to reduce any additional redness or swelling....

No. There are certainly circumstances where supplementation is necessary, but this is not normal or common when breastfeeding is properly established from the very beginning. Make sure you start off on the right foot by giving your body the chance to increase your milk supply in response to your baby’s feeding cues and growth patterns. This means allowing your baby to breastfeed whenever he shows hunger cues. In the early days, this is typically between eight to 12 times per day (and, yup, sometimes more)....

Possibly, yes. When baby is teething, his gums will be sore, and they’ll hurt even more when he’s nursing. Babies with hurting gums like to gnaw on things. The good news: He can’t actually bite you while he’s breastfeeding — his tongue will be covering the bottom teeth, and the top half of his jaw (including the teeth up there) won’t move — they’ll just rest against the breast while the bottom jaw moves up and down....

It’s a possibility, but probably not. Yes, it can be strange for some husbands when body parts once reserved for sexy time suddenly are used to bring baby into the world. Sure, once he sees some blood and eventually a whole human pop out of your body, his perception of it could shift—temporarily. But we don’t think you have anything to worry about, since we know plenty of dads who witnessed their babies’ birth, and their libidos haven’t slowed....

_Every mom has a different perspective on breastfeeding, and we had to share this essay, a chapter from _ Making Babies: Stumbling Into Motherhood , by Anne Enright. What do you think of Enright’s musings on breastfeeding? Tell us in the comments! by Anne Enright The milk surprises me. It does not disgust me as much as I thought it would, unless it is not fresh. It is disturbing that a piece of you should go off so quickly....

Baby having trouble sleeping? Crazy as it sounds to new parents, putting baby to bed in a burrito-style wrap—also known as swaddling—just might do the trick. Swaddling has been around for thousands of years. Parents have wrapped up babies in a swaddle to not only help them sleep but also simply to hold them, protect them and calm them down. It fell out of favor in the 18th century, but interest in its soothing powers returned around the 1970s....

Hey, nobody ever said giving birth was easy. And with so many different possible scenarios that could take place, chances are you’ll be in for a few surprises no matter how much you plan for the big day. So it’s only natural to be a little scared-whether this baby’s your first or your third. But don’t worry; we’re here to help you breathe a little more easily. Read on as real moms (and some of our favorite bloggers) share what had them totally freaked out about giving birth....

The Stats: Name: Ali Landry Age: 37 Occupation: Model/Actress Children: Estela, 3 years-old TB: What was your breastfeeding experience like when you first started? AL: I think my biggest fear when I was pregnant was that I wasn’t going to be able to breastfeed. I was literally praying every single day that I would be successful. After I had the baby, I put her on the breast and I can remember the first few weeks it was so painful....

Sport Utility Stroller : 12362 - 35107, AA00001 – AA025490 Sport Utility Stroller D’Lux : 12362 – 35107, AB000001 – AB007940 Ironman : 800000 – 803700, AC000001- AC027923 Sport Utility Duallie : 002001 - 008068, AD000001 – AD011252 Ironman® Duallie : AE000001 – AE008909 Revolution : AF000001 – AF189112 Revolution 12" : AK000001 – AK024149 Stroller Strides : AG000001 – AG011163 Revolution Duallie : AH000001 – AH072921 Revolution Duallie 12" : AL000001 – AL012657 Stroller Strides Duallie : AM000001 – AM003229 If you currently own one of these strollers, you should remove the drawstring (get instructions here) and stop using it immediately....

You know you have the cutest baby ever, right? The almost exceeded storage limit on your phone proves it. Everyone tells you that your baby has the best smile and is photogenic. That’s when you have an “ah-ha” moment, “Maybe my sweet pea can be a baby model?” But, when it comes to baby modeling, it’s a little more involved than just snapping a few pics before naptime. Modeling for babies is not child’s play; it’s a business, and just like any other business, you need to know the ins and outs if you want your experience to be successful....

So you’ve registered for everything under the sun, read up on all the do’s and don’ts of pregnancy, and mapped out your birth plan to a T. Congrats! Now it’s time to read up on some other must-know parts of having a baby: How to keep the little guy safe. Lucky for you, we’ve rounded up the top 20 safety questions mamas ask in baby’s first year. Read on (and take some notes)....

No one is going to deny it: Parenting is hard work. You’re expected to know how to soothe a newborn baby, navigate the playground scene and handle a toddler tantrum with the calmness of the Dalai Lama. Raising kids is lifelong job that requires you to have a deep understanding of child development, the ability to react quickly and effectively and the patience to manage both your emotions and your child’s....

Your sleep-starved mom friends might think you’re crazy for worrying about baby oversleeping, but it’s common for new parents to be surprised by just how much their newborn babies snooze. Here’s the deal: It’s totally normal for a newborn to sleep a lot. After all, growing is tiring work! But sometimes all that napping can get in the way of baby’s healthy growth. Read on to learn how many hours of shut-eye infants typically get, and when you may need to wake baby for a feeding....