Know This Trend Of Baby Names For Your Next Baby
June 11, 2010 by Edie Mindell
Filed under Pregnancy
This year, the hottest trends for baby naming are quite a bit unusual. From biblical names with a twist to foreign names, 2010 sets a whole new pattern for naming babies. Name meanings and history are important to consider when naming a baby, since that name will be something that will be with them for the rest of their lives. Although name definitions are the first things one usually looks at when choosing the perfect name for a baby, following name trends has become very common in todays society. Year 2009 keeps a little bit of the traditional element in popular baby names, but also integrates modern style, a retro factor, and an unusual touch.
As it has been established for the past few years, biblical traditional names are some of the most popular. Jacob, Joshua, Abigail, Daniel, and Gabriel are some names that have been prevalent in recent times. A few uncommon additions to these common biblical names are those such as Caleb, Ethan, Zachary, and Elijah. The name “Elijah” is actually one of the most popular names this year. Many people hold true to biblical names because they are classic, and they usually have a beautiful, deep meaning that professes great things for your babys life.
An interesting trend this year is for Western parents to give their children foreign names. Spanish, Asian, Italian, Irish, and Arab names have become quite popular amongst North Americans and the English. Carlos, a Spanish name meaning “free man,” Connor, an Irish name that stands for “much wanted,” and Lian, a Chinese name whose meaning is a “lotus flower,” are some of the most widespread foreign names that have gone global.
Another cool and trendy practice in 2009 is giving your name a classic, traditional name with a twist in the spelling. For instance, instead of naming your baby girl “Natalie,” come up with a different and creative way to spell the name, such as “Natelly.” Alterations to common names should be well planned and thought out. Place an emphasis on the part of the name, or a sound in the name that you like the most. This is a fabulous way to make your baby stand out from the rest. Uniquely spelled names are ranked at the top this year.
A continuing pattern that began last year and has continued throughout this year is to give your baby the name of a place. Australia, Athena, London, Ireland, and Paris are common place names that have become popular baby names this year. Some believe that this trend is a result of the popularity of Paris Hilton, a famous heiress and style icon. Naming babies after a location on the map is probably the top trend for 2010.
Lastly, giving children weird and unusual names is a common trend today among celebrities. From “Apple” to “Shiloh,” these names are sure to stand out from the crowd. When choosing the right name for your little one, remember consider all aspects of the name, from sound and spelling to meaning and significance.
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Follow These Recipes For Easy To Prepare And Great To Serve Foods On A Baby Shower
June 8, 2010 by Edie Mindell
Filed under Pregnancy
One of the components that guests look forward to the most is, of course, the food! Contrary to popular belief, baby shower food does not have to be pricey or expensive to make. This article will provide some easy-to-follow baby shower menu recipes that are sure to awe all your guests. These recipes will make people believe that you spent a fortune on the menu, yet they will cost a fraction of what people generally spend on catering for events like showers.
Some of the easiest appetizers and snacks come already pre-made! Buy refrigerated croissant dough, biscuit dough, and cookie dough. Use baby-themed cookie cutters like diaper and baby bottle shapes, and roll croissant dough in the shape of diapers. You can also use pastel-colored sprinkles for the cookies to add a cute touch. These snacks are easy, inexpensive, and delicious!
Another idea is to make adorable, little baby-themed cupcakes. Buy cake mix and add the other ingredients as directed on the box. Bake in cake cups and decorate with frosting and sprinkles. A couple of drops of food coloring can be added to plain, white frosting to create light, pastel colors. Heart-shaped cupcakes stand out a bit more and look beautiful, but the size and shape of the cupcakes are entirely up to you.
The next recipe is a delicious and colorful salad recipe. This recipe is nutritious yet very appetizing, and will definitely be loved by all the ladies! In one or two large salad bowls, mix 2 to 4 bags of spring mix lettuce (depending on the size of your shower and the number of guests), 1 to two small packages of baby tomatoes, 1 to 2 cups of diced cucumber, ” to 1 cup of shredded carrots, 1 to 2 cans of canned, sweetened tangerine slices, ” to 1 cup of raisins, and ” to 1 cup of caramelized pecans. Serve chilled with honey mustard or a sweet style vinaigrette.
An amazing fruit salad, popular in parts of Latin America is made using strawberries, mango, melon, sliced bananas, grapes, sliced oranges, sliced apple, and sliced pear. You can adjust the types and variety of fruits to fit your taste. Mix all the fruit pieces in a large decorative bowl and generously drizzle with sweetened condensed milk. Add caramelized almonds if desired.
A fabulous spinach dip that can be served with both corn chips and crackers calls for 1 ” cups of real mayo (you can use light mayo if preferred), ” cup of softened cream cheese, 1 package of frozen spinach (cooked and drained), ” cup chopped green onion, ” teaspoon of salt, ” teaspoon of pepper, and parsley to taste. Combine all ingredients and serve warm. If desired, you can melt Mozzarella or Parmesan cheese over the dip before serving. Provide an assortment of crackers and crunchy corn chips to eat the spinach dip with.
These easy to follow, pre-made recipes will take up almost none of your time, and are guaranteed to bring compliments!
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Select From These Unique Baby Gifts For Your Friend’s Baby Shower
June 7, 2010 by Edie Mindell
Filed under Pregnancy
When it comes to baby showers, one of the moments most anticipated is the gift giving segment of the event. There are no words that can describe the feeling when you are watching the mommy-to-be reach for the present you gave and begin to open it. The excitement is overwhelming, and your heart fills with joy as you watch her eyes glisten while she unwraps it. The best part of all this is satisfaction knowing that your gift is unique, original, and will be of great use to the mommy-to-be and her precious baby. This article will offer some great gift-giving ideas that are distinct, extremely useful, and will make the expectant mother smile from ear to ear.
One heartwarming idea that is adorable and shows thoughtfulness and care is a personalized piggy bank. These days, parents are placing an emphasis on saving for their babys future and career. A customized piggy bank with a financial seed towards the babys savings fund makes a great gift from a family member. This is not only a cute gift, but also a smart one; it is crucial that parents begin thinking of their childs future from the day they are born. Some people prefer giving a piggy bank with a gift card from a baby department store or childrens clothing store.
Baby gift baskets are also very original, and each basket is going to be a one-of-a-kind gift. Buy a decent sized pretty basket (the material, shape, and color of the basket are up to you), fill it up with items that you think will be the most beneficial to the expectant mother, and decorate it. Popular items to fill your baby gift basket with are baby bottles, bibs, pacifiers, infant toys, baby clothing, and gift cards. Some people throw in a little something extra for the mommy, such as a spa massage gift card or a book. Candy and chocolates can also make your basket sweeter, and will satisfy some of mommys cravings. Whatever you decide to put in your basket, make sure to make it is personalized, and consider items that you know the expectant mother will need or want.
Personalized baby jewelry is a popular gift in Latin America, but not so common in the United States. A tiny golden bracelet with the babys name is endearing and beautiful, and it will make a great keepsake as your baby grows older. Any kind of baby jewelry, whether it be personalized or not, makes a wonderful gift which everyone will think is absolutely adorable.
Today, a new trend for mothers in the United States is to sport a cute, stylish baby diaper bag, which they can easily turn into tote bags or even laptop cases once the baby grows older. From designer baby bags to non-label, trendy baby bags, there are numerous different types of diaper bags that will look great and fit budgets of all sizes. Some popular designer baby bags, or multi-function totes, as they call them, are made by COACH, Kate Spade, and Louis Vuitton. However, today, there are many non-label, cool baby bags that are equally as trendy and a fraction of the cost.
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Unique Baby Shower Crafts Activities – A Sure Way To Add Fun And Creativity For Baby Showers!
June 4, 2010 by Edie Mindell
Filed under Pregnancy
A common new tradition that began a few years ago is to include an arts and crafts segment as part of your baby showers itinerary. Arts and crafts are a great way to create fun and excitement, and to strengthen bonds between friends and family. Many women, and even men, enjoy spending time together while practicing fun activities like arts and crafts. Today, there are several baby-related crafts that are a blast and will create a great time for your guests at your celebration.
The most common craft for baby showers is probably the diaper cake. This is a group activity that all your guests can do together. This is a great way to start the party, as it creates a mood of togetherness and establishes unity among all your friends and family. For this activity, you will need around fifty diapers, fifty feet of a smaller, narrow ribbon, and eight feet of a thicker, wide ribbon. Cut the fifty feet of thin ribbon into one-foot segments.
Have your guests roll up each diaper and tie in place with a thin piece of ribbon. Ribbon can be baby blue for a boy, and pink for a girl. For a more neutral color, soft green or light yellow work fabulously. Start the base of your diaper cake with twenty-five diapers; stand them together in a circle. Use fifteen diapers for the next level of the “cake,” and then eight diapers for the top level of your cake. Make each level separately and tie each group of diapers, or each level of the cake, with a strand of wide ribbon. Now, stack the levels of the diaper cake in order from largest to smallest, and you should have a wonderful baby diaper cake!
Baby bottle sand art is a fun craft that render fabulous souvenirs that your guests can take home. All you need for this activity is at least the same amount of baby bottles as your number of guests, different colors of sand, and funnels. Baby bottles can be the simple, inexpensive ones, and the sand should match your color palette for the baby shower. Distribute the baby bottles among all your guests. Have them fill the baby bottles up with several layers of different color sand using the funnels, and then close the baby bottles with their tops.
These turn out beautiful, and they are easy to make; they also make great party favors from which your guests can always remember your baby shower. For a special touch, you can have ribbon that has been personalized with your name and the date of the shower. You can also have stickers made with the title of the event and the date, and stick them on the baby bottles.
Scrapbooking is an art that so many people have come to love nowadays, and also makes a great craft at baby showers. You can give each guest a layout page and supplies, and have them decorate a background page. These can be put together to form an album for the baby shower.
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Wondering What Gift To Give For A Baby Boy?
May 26, 2010 by Edie Mindell
Filed under Pregnancy
So, you’re scouting for a suitable gift for a cuddly baby boy and you don’t know where or how to start especially if you can just spare a limited time of your busy world. There’s no need to panic because shopping for a baby boy gift is easy as long as you know what to look for. Below are a few gift ideas to make your shopping a trouble-free one:
1.Educational Baby Toys: If your objective is to keep the baby entertained while he learns; then, these toys are a great option. There’s a wide variety of educational toys available. There are learning activity and puzzle toys available for you to choose from that helps stimulate the child’s mental ability and growth development. Surely, the parents and the child will have a wonderful time bonding with each other through these toys.
2.Baby Booties: With the emerging fashion trend in shoes today, baby booties are of no exception. Baby booties are designed to keep the baby toes warm no matter what the temperature is. Look for designs that match with the personality of the baby or his aura.
3.Baby Hats: Baby hats that have attractive designs are hard to resist especially those that resemble like that of a baby animal. With ear flaps, eyes, and nose attached on the hat, it sure is very appealing to the child’s tastes.
4.Baby Hooded Towels: Cute hooded towels are fitting for an after bath or dip in the pool time. Made with quick-drying fabrics, these towels are safe for the baby’s sensitive skin and are very cuddly to use. The baby will surely enjoy these.
5.Baby Animal Slippers: These funky animal slippers are must-haves for cute baby boys. They are perfect in keeping the baby’s feet warm inside the house. Youll be sure the baby will have fun wearing these adorable slippers.
6. Bodysuit: A baby bodysuit is the basis for nearly every baby outfit. It offers an easy way to give your baby an extra layer of warmth during cold weathers. There are wide selections of bodysuits available in the market today. Basic, solid colors are perfect for the baby boy.
7.Mini-Playground: If you’re that extravagant, you can purchase a mini-playground or a mini-gym. Although they can be pricey, baby boys will surely love this one. As we all know, boys are very active and they love to run and play around. Mini-playgrounds and mini-gyms provide a lot of activities for small boys. These minis are complete with stairs, slide and sometimes, a steering wheel. They also have small doors that the baby could open and close as frequent as he wants for his enjoyment.
8.Ride-on Toys: Ride-on toys are very popular for baby boys even at a very young age. Baby boys love being behind the wheel while parents love the durability. Riding toys include wagons, rocking toys, pedal toys and a lot more variety. Baby boys and their parents will certainly enjoy playing with these wonderful toys.
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Share The Fun With New And Exciting Baby Shower Games
May 25, 2010 by Edie Mindell
Filed under Pregnancy
Although traditional baby shower games never fail and are always a success, new baby shower games are emerging and spreading across the United States. These cool, unconventional activities are different than the classics but with all the fun and more. If you are aiming for a hip, edgier baby shower with a twist from the classic, all-American baby shower, include a few of these new, trendy games that are sure to be a hit at your shower.
The “Dirty Diaper” game is one of the most clever and unusual, yet surprisingly sweet games out there. For this game, fold white cloth napkins or square pieces of white fabric into small diapers. Inside one of these mini diapers, place an unwrapped Hersheys kiss or any other chocolate bonbon. Fasten all the diapers with a baby diaper safety pin.
When guests arrive to the baby shower, hand one mini baby diaper to each person. Tell the guests to keep them closed and to not open them until instructed to do so. Then, when the time comes for all your games and activities, tell your guests that one of them has a dirty diaper. Tell them to open the diapers all at once, and whoever has the “dirty diaper,” or the chocolate bonbon inside of their diaper, wins a prize.
Another game with a meaning is the “umbilical cord.” For this game, you will need two spools of string or yarn, and two spoons. Choose volunteers and set up two or more teams of about eight to ten people. Attach each spoon to the tip of each string or yarn. The point of the game is to pass the “umbilical cord” through all the members of each team, by passing the string in through the neck seam and out through the opening of the skirt of each team player. This is very humorous, as you can imagine. The first team that passes the cord through all of the members wins.
A game that is becoming increasingly popular among baby showers is “Guess Whose Baby Picture?” For this game, make sure to tell guests on the invitations, and remind them before the shower, to bring in a baby picture of themselves when they were infants. Number each picture and put them up on a big bulletin board. During the games and activities session of your baby shower, give each guest a paper and pens or pencils. Have each paper numbered with the amount of pictures posted on the bulletin board.
When the game begins, tell the guests to fill in the numbers on the paper with the names of the people who they believe correspond to the baby picture. For example, if I think that baby picture #1 corresponds to Katie, I would write “Katie” after the number one on my paper. The guest that has highest number of right answers wins the challenge. If there is more than one guest with the same highest number of right answers, issue a tiebreaker.
Remember, all of these new games started as an idea. Try to come up with a few clever, never before used games. Who knows, they could potentially become a hit by the end of the year!
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A Mother’s First Gift To Her Baby That Strengthens The Bond Between Them
May 21, 2010 by Edie Mindell
Filed under Pregnancy
I have no idea with other countries, perhaps I should research on this later, but in my country, the Philippines, since 1995, the last week of September each year is dedicated to the family, the Filipino family, for clarity. Although specifically, the celebration is a FAMILY WEEK, activities are spread over the entire month thus, sometimes the event is referred to as the Family Month. Organizers highlight the event with activities consistent with the main objective of strengthening the Filipino unity, solidarity and stability, in view of its socio-economic contribution to national development.
Among the many activities conducted for this event, the one that strikes me most is the premium placed on wellness of children particularly in the babyhood age. Perhaps, these could be measures undertaken to reverse the malnutrition situation in the country. One of the effective though simple measures is breastfeeding. In 2006, the Philippines, as reported by UNICEF, landed in the Guinness Book of World Records, when almost 4,000 mothers ” along with their babies ” have helped to set a world record for simultaneous breastfeeding beating the previous Guinness world record set by 1,135 women in Berkeley, California.
Why do I discuss about breastfeeding when I am supposed to tackle gifts for babies? Simple ” I find breastfeeding the best first gift that a mother must and need to give her baby. I dont need to narrate the importance and the benefits of feeding the little angel from the breast of her own mother ” there are millions of references on this readily available on the websites of medical and nutrition experts.
Besides, I am not an expert who can explain the specific vitamins, minerals, etc . that the breast milk offers ” I will leave that to you childs pediatrician. What I know and greatly appreciate is that the act of breastfeeding promotes physical and emotional bond between a mother and a child. A special bond which grows beyond boundaries of time and age. Picture out a baby clothed in a mothers embrace while getting her sustenance from the mothers breast. Is it not awesome? Will you yourself not revel in the experience of caring for a baby in similar manner?
While we are on the subject of physical and emotional bond between a mother and her baby through breastfeeding, I am inspired to share with you a poem which although does not literally speak about breastfeeding, it universally captures the reasons why we must care for children. This is written by Mary Botham Howitt, and it goes:
God sent children for another purpose than merely to keep up the pace ” to enlarge our hearts; and to make us unselfish and full of kindly sympathies and affections; to give our souls higher aims; to call out all our faculties to extended enterprise and exertion; and to sing round our firesides bright faces, happy smiles and loving, tender hearts.
To mothers I say, whatever your circumstances, whether or not caring for a child led you to metamorphose into a woman with ill-fitting shirt and jeans – thanks to extra pounds gained or lost – remind yourself that these are just fleeting trappings of slipping into motherhood.
Just keep on holding your baby with her soft head a perfect fit under your chin, her tiny hands splayed out like small pink starfish against your arms, her wispy curls lifts with the breeze, and her face creased and rosy in the morning. Laugh at how the sunshine makes your baby sniff and squint ” LAUGH OUT LOUD!
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Keep Your Babies Safe With These Educational Baby Gifts
May 21, 2010 by Edie Mindell
Filed under Pregnancy
Nowadays, mothers not just fathers have to go out from their nest to find food for the family. Gone are those days where only the father will work while the mother will stay home and take care of the husband’s and children’s needs. Prices of goods, not to mention the basic needs of a person demands mother’s not just father’s to leave their babies behind and look for job to make a living. This situation means, babies are to be left only with the electronic baby-sitter or television and the nanny.
Note that babyhood is a critical period. It is a period when physical, intellectual, and emotional components are basic in this developmental stage. You will observe a totally dependent baby learning to roll over, to sit up, to stand tall and then to take the first step that presages the power of mobility.
Nannies then are supposed to respond to little being who at first was completely at the mercy of other people’s interpretation of his wants as he learns to communicate with tears, with smiles and eventually with miracle of words. Rapid emotional, social development is prevalent and so with the attitudes and behaviors of the growing baby. So again, the question is, what would be the best gift to buy for this helpless-growing infant, left in the mercy of the baby-sitters?
Psychologists had specifically warned on giving toys which are violent in nature such as guns and other objects or toys used for fighting and killing. One must take caution also in the kind of shows that the baby is watching since parental guidance is not possible for they are out for work.
You can observe especially in the rural-urban areas, where babies are placed in their crib in front of a television set. Thus, cribs then when you plan of buying one should be movable and adjustable at the same time, in accord with the motor and physical development of the baby. You have to consider adjusting it when he starts to crawl and slowly began to stand on his feet. Choose to buy pillows that have a fine fabric that will not cause skin irritation and suffocation. Buy also some crib decorations with black, red and white accents to aid the development of visual senses of the baby.
As to the kind of shows that they are watching, well, everything in the tube is moving…their eyes are set on it while the nannies are satisfied for they can attend to other household chores. But have you even considered the possible effects that it has on the baby? Or is it helpful on the developing baby? Gift-giver should think from this perspective. Consider highly educational CDs or interactive CDs. Violent films or aggressive films are discouraged. Films that will reinforce positive behaviors and attitudes are to be chosen. Buy Walt Disney film movies, magic english or Barney. These are some of the few which are available in the market. You just have to look for what is appropriate.
This is not to say that the presence of parents can be replaced with electronic devices or toys but rather, this will aid the parents in making their babies grow in the right directions… and for you dear parents… quality time is the best gift you can give to your children!
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