Glenni Lorick, Editor-in-Chief

The weather suddenly feels like fall as I write this. I’m sipping a cup of rich hot cocoa and thinking about Christmas. This year our family, like many of yours perhaps, isn’t going to spend a lot of money on gifts. Instead, we are going to give a special gift to an organization that is helping some of the poorest of the poor. You’ll read about them in Brant Hansen’s article about his recent trip to Afghanistan where he was able to minister to mothers and babies living in horrific conditions.

In this issue you’ll also learn about a couple of amazing mothers, Saché Sams and Amber Stuart of WHNT News 19. We think you will enjoy both of their stories. We also have several very informative features in this issue. Pregnant moms will learn about a great new program created by Dr. William Sears and designed just for them to foster good nutrition , exercise and lifestyle habits in Freida Houck’s article. Erin Kerner explains the vital role toys play in your baby’s development. In a new Valley Babies feature, “The Conscious Parent,” the founders of Attachment Parenting International (API) discuss the concept of sleep training for infants.

Valley Babies is excited about the Melissa George Neonatal Memorial Fund night coming up on January 9 at the Havoc game. In her column, Amy talks about what will be happening that night. We hope all our Valley Babies readers come to the game!

We want to wish each of you a very merry Christmas. We pray your hearts and homes will be filled with joy as you remember the baby who was born over 2000 years ago in the humblest of circumstances. He has given us the greatest gift of all, forgiveness and hope. May you treasure the memories you and your family make during this season.

Amy George

If you are like me, you cherish the tiny set of footprints that were made shortly after your child was born. They symbolize the wonder of the precious life that entered the world that day.
The footprints of my oldest daughter, Ann Catherine, are probably tinier than most.
She was born 26 weeks early and weighed only one pound, 15 ounces. You can probably imagine how incredibly small her footprints are! And even though her twin sister, Melissa, died a few hours after she was born, I also have her footprints. The caring nurses in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Huntsville Hospital for Women & Children made her footprints after she died and gave them to me and my husband, Chris.

We treasure them.

That’s why I am thrilled that the jerseys the Huntsville Havoc players will wear at this year’s “Melissa George Night” will feature the footprints of NICU miracles like my daughter. Ashley Balch, Vice-President of Business Operations for the Huntsville Havoc, came up with the idea to create a jersey that features the footprints of actual babies who were in our NICU! The footprints will be in pink and blue and will dot the front of the jerseys.

The players will wear these special jerseys on Saturday, January 9th, against the Mississippi Surge and will auction them after the game with all of the proceeds benefiting the Melissa George Neonatal Memorial Fund at Huntsville Hospital Foundation. We’ll use the money to provide Giraffe Warmers, special beds for premature infants in our NICU.

Amy and Chris George with Ronda and Raychel Bellenfant at last year’s Havoc auction.

In addition to bidding on these special jerseys, fans will also have the chance to bid on the sticks the players use during warm-ups. And the first 1,000 fans who bring an item for the NICU – such as preemie clothing, hats, socks, blankets and disposable cameras – will receive a FREE Havoc “Melissa George Night” retro tin lunchbox. They are so cool and your kids will love them! To purchase tickets, call the Huntsville Havoc at 518-6160,or visit http://www.ticketmaster.com or the VBC Box Office.

The footprints on these jerseys may be tiny, but together they represent hope for hundreds of families who are hurting. We hope you’ll attend this year’s game and help us take another “step” towards making life better for the precious babies in our NICU and their families!

Amy George is a former news anchor for WHNT NewsChannel 19. She and her husband, Chris, founded the Melissa George Neonatal Memorial Fund in memory of their daughter, Melissa Suzanne. The fund raises money for the Neonatal ICU at Huntsville Hospital for Women & Children. They have two other daughters: Ann Catherine (3) and Lily Baker (2). Follow her blog.

VB: Why did you decide to specialize in pediatrics?
Dr. Shrestha: I’ve always been comfortable around kids. When I was studying medicine, my cousins would call me regarding their kids. I found out that in pediatrics you aren’t just treating the kids, but also educating the parents, as well.

VB: What kind of services can the Pediatric Center provide?
Dr. Shrestha: We provide all basic pediatric services . We will see 20 to 30 patients a day – ages birth to 21. I really focus on asthma and asthma education. Educatimg the parent is very important to me.

VB: What advice do you give parents with fussy babies?
Dr. Shrestha: Fussy babies can mean different things. I usually tell parents that babies do cry – it’s their way of telling us something is going on. It could be a wet diaper, a distended belly or pain. After the parents have checked everything out, I tell them it’s okay to let baby be by himself in the crib for 15 minutes, but go back and check frequently. If baby stays fussy, call the pediatrician. It’s always better to have baby checked out

VB: Do you have any advice for breastfeeding mothers?
Dr. Shrestha: I always tell them breast milk is the best milk you can give to babies. It has lots of immunoglobulins and lactoferrin. In the first few days mothers don’t have a lot of milk, and the baby’s stomach isn’t that big. But that milk is very important. As long as baby is peeing, they shouldn’t worry. If there’s a problem call us or talk to a lactation specialist.

VB: What is the most important advice you would give a new mother?
Dr. Shrestha: It would be about SIDS. I explain what it is and always advise the mother to make baby sleep on its back. Put baby in a crib or bassinet with a foam mattress. No fluffy blankets. No co-sleeping with baby, especially on a couch or when Mom is really tired. But baby can be in the same room. Any time baby has a temperature of 104.5, call us immediately or go to the Emergency Room.

Pregnant and nursing moms are just beginning a new stage of life, and L.E.A.N. Expectations, developed by Dr. William Sears, is here to help coach them through the questions, concerns and curiosity!  This program is designed to teach expectant and nursing moms current information. Topics covered include the following:

• how to set the stage for a healthy and happy life as their baby grows
• how what they do today effects how their labor and delivery will go
• how to shape their baby’s tastes long before they ever taste solid food.

Three distinct classes are available through L.E.A.N. Expectations. These classes are independent of each other or can be taken as a 3 session course at A Nurturing Moment in Huntsville, AL.

Being RIGHT Now offers great information for all pregnant moms.  No matter which trimester you are in, you’ll find answers to some of your most pressing questions and share ideas with other moms.  This first class provides the latest information about maintaining a healthy pregnancy lifestyle, safe and effective tips on exercising while pregnant, and how moderate exercising can make delivery easier.  During this class, moms will also learn to develop strategies to improve and maintain a positive attitude throughout pregnancy and beyond.

Eating RIGHT Now emphasizes the importance of proportions and food quality and demonstrates how what is eaten during pregnancy dramatically affects the baby’s health. This class shares tips on how to get back that girlish figure after delivery. It will help pregnant women understand their cravings as well as how much weight to gain for a positive pregnancy and delivery experience. Moms will gain an understanding of how what they eat right now affects how both mom and baby will eat after delivery and into childhood. 

Learning RIGHT Now is for moms in all stages of pregnancy through the first three months of life after delivery. Moms learn how to make the most of the initial days and weeks with their new bundle of joy. This class emphasizes that the need for Mom to take care of Mom is just as important the need for Mom to take care of baby. Moms learn important information that will help them understand what baby is trying to tell them and how to read his or her cues accurately. 

As a mom of 6 children myself, I would have loved to have had all this information when I was pregnant & nursing! I look forward to encouraging moms to be thru this program! L.E.A.N. classes are listed at http://www.MomSaidEatYourVeggies.com.

Frieda Houck is the Valley’s only certified L.E.A.N. instructor. She is a homeschooling mother of 6 who works hard to make sure her children lead a healthy, well-balanced life.

VB: How did you decide to become a reporter?
Amber: I like to talk and I’m nosy!

VB: Have you done any local theater work?
Amber: No, no time. Before I started in TV I did Unto These Hills in Cherokee, NC, for a summer.

VB: How did you and Kevin meet?
Amber: We met at WAKA, CBS 8 in Montgomery where he was my photographer/producer. Now he’s a banker with Wachovia.

VB: What was your reaction when you learned you were pregnant?
Amber: I was overjoyed. We had 2 miscarriages beforehand, and we were trying really hard. To have one stick and last was a blessing. They were trying to get us to do progesterone, but God had given me peace that this one was going to last.

VB: How long were you off when Cole was born?
Kevin: She went on bedrest a month before Cole was born, from Nov. 18 – Dec. 29.
Amber: I delivered 16 days early because of preeclamspsia. Cole was actually due January 14th. My pregnancy was crazy at the end. I had to have a C-Section because he was breech. I had lots of family around so it wasn’t too hard. I went back to work in March.
Kevin: At about 2:00 in the morning after he was born we took the baby to the nursery, and by 2:30 she told me she was ready for another one!
Amber: Having a child is the most beautiful thing in the world. Hearing him cry was the most beautiful thing ever. It still is.
Kevin: Not at 5:30 in the morning!
Amber: Yeah it is because he’s standing up in the crib saying “Momma, Momma!” (Amber waves her arms, imitating her son.)

VB: You have epilepsy, how did that affect the pregnancy and birth?
Amber: It didn’t affect it at all because I stayed on my medicine. The OB and neurologist both said that it was better for me to stay on my meds during pregnancy than to have a seizure. The only hard thing was that I couldn’t breastfeed. I was upset at first, but by the time I had him, I had moved on and was okay with it.
Kevin: And I got to give him bottles at 1 or 2 in the morning.
Amber: How many did you give???
Kevin: We alternated…once you went back to work.

VB: How has being a mother changed your life?
Amber: I‘m kinder and gentler….more patient. But at the same time I’m a little tougher. I don’t let people run over me as much.

VB: Many mothers have to balance a career and motherhood. How do you manage to find that balance in your life?
Amber: It’s tough, very tough. It’s not a breeze at all! Now we’re just trying to get up earlier in the day.
Kevin: Every day is different: you go to work, get him from daycare and come home and play with him.
Amber: We get up earlier so we can play with him a little at daycare. We LOVE our daycare workers!
Kevin: When she went back to work in March, her sister who is 10 years younger and in college at Calhoun came and lived with us until July, so we didn’t have to put him in daycare until then.

VB: Any plans for a little brother or sister for Cole?
Amber: A couple!
Kevin: next year
Amber: I’m ready now! I’ve got the baby fever!

The purpose of our column is to help parents become more aware, compassionate and connected with their children. With that in mind, we recently read a column by a psychologist who was addressing a question that a mother had written to him. She has a 13 month old toddler who had become accustomed to napping in her arms due to “a horrible bout of teething” and still will not sleep on her own. The toddler also woke up a couple of times a night at which point the mother nurses her back to sleep. The psychologist recommended that she put the baby down for a nap at the same time each day and teach her to fall asleep on her own- which basically involved allowing her to cry for long periods of time until she fell asleep, a technique we refer to as “sleep training.” Some parents and professionals fear that if we don’t teach babies to learn to self-soothe and sleep on their own that they will never learn those skills. We believe these fears to be unfounded and not based on credible child development research and only serve to weaken the parent-child connection.

So what could the conscious parent do in a similar situation? A conscious parent sees the world through the eyes of the young child and feels empathy for the child’s strong emotions. In this mother’s situation she seemed to have a great deal of empathy for her baby and seemed to be well attuned to her child’s needs. Unfortunately many parents are made to feel inadequate or incompetent when their baby doesn’t sleep through the night, that it’s something they are doing or not doing that is the cause. What we have learned from our own experience and talking with child development specialists is that every child is born with different temperaments from very calm to highly sensitive. Some infants sleep through the night early on but many, if not most, babies don’t sleep through the night for many months for precisely the reason this mother mentions in her question- teething! Even when a young child sleeps through the night, eventually, as they grow, he or she begins to wake up for a variety of reasons other than teething: hunger (due to growth spurts), sickness, food sensitivities, bad dreams (even night terrors), being too hot or too cold, over-stimulation from the day’s events, or feeling the effects of stress or chaos in the household. There are many, many reasons! Into the second year of life, toddlers begin cutting their molars, and it can be very painful. During the day, children who are teething can be very irritated, edgy, and highly sensitive. Many parents have found natural dissolvable teething tablets to work wonders. Giving the child something cold or frozen to sink their gums into is also helpful.

It’s important to know that the most fundamental of all biological drives is that of proximity. That means just as we have a drive for food, water, and shelter, infants and young children (and all mammals) have an intense drive, a biological imperative, to stay close to those they feel most attached to, their primary caregiver, for protection and security during the first three years of life. Then it gradually tapers off.

While understanding the child’s need for close proximity to her, this mother could try lying down with her daughter on a small mattress or futon mattress on the floor (this way the child will not be in danger of falling off the bed when she wakes up and mother is not there). Mother can continue to breastfeed, or gently soothe her to sleep, then quietly get up and leave the room. During the day, she can mentally prepare her child, talking to her and telling her that when it’s nap time Mommy will lay down with her until she goes to sleep. When she wakes up she can get up and call for her mother. While she may not have well developed language skills, she can understand much more than she can speak,and she can likely call out “mama.” Parents should have a monitoring device in the room so they can hear when the baby wakes up.

When children learn to trust that their needs and emotions are responded to in a respectful, caring, compassionate manner, they will in turn learn to treat others with the same compassion. The world needs more compassionate people!

Barbara Nicholson, M Ed
Barbara Nicholson is co-founder and past president of the Board of Directors of Attachment Parenting International (API). She has a Masters of Education degree specializing in learning disabilities and has been a breastfeeding and parent support group facilitator for over 27 years. She is the mother of four grown sons and lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

For more information about their book go to http://www.attachedattheheartbook.com or API go to www.attachmentparenting.org

It seems like only yesterday that our son was born, but he is quickly crawling his way towards nine months old.  It has been an incredible experience thus far. Our home has been turned into a maze of baby gates, and our cupboards have been secured, the sockets plugged, corners covered, cords detached, and everything in reach has been lifted up a couple feet or removed!  Of course, the aim of all this is to keep our little munchkin safe.  However, I can’t help but wonder if there comes a point where I am stifling his sense of adventure, hindering his desire to explore, obstructing his curiosity and impeding his learning opportunities. 

My husband and I feel it is our responsibility to create safe, positive learning opportunities for our son.  A simple stroll around the block provides the chance for his senses to be stimulated as he takes in nature’s colors, smells, and sounds.  He learns as he plays - if only I could have learned calculus this way!  I feel it is fundamental to his physical, mental, social and emotional development for him to be provided time to play, and in doing so learn about his world.  Toys are an important component of play and are invaluable in the healthy development of a child. However, it should be said that not all toys are created equal. 
So what should we look for when selecting toys for the children in our lives? Experts tell us there are four basic areas of development: physical, cognitive, language, and social.  The best types of toys for your child differ depending upon his or her age and skill set. 

For example, a six-month old learns about his or her surroundings through use of all five senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch). A rattle teaches both gross and fine motor skills as she learns to grasp it. Cognitively, when she discovers it makes a noise when shaken, she is learning problem-solving skills simultaneously. The cooing that follows this discovery is the beginning stage of language development. As this child gets older, she will learn to share this rattle with others, increasing her social skills. 

As a child grows and his or her skills become both more advanced and numerous, it is important for parents to continue to reinforce the basic skills.  Some examples include activities like the following: coloring with your one-year old to practice fine motor skills; using puppets to increase emotional development or practice manners with your three-year old; or playing coordination and memory games with your six-year old to increase cognitive development. 

Parents play a key role in the development of their children through either helping or hindering growth.  The relationship between parents and their children lays the foundation for the type of adult a child will become. Allowing our children to make decisions and learn from their successes or mistakes will allow for independent thinking and problem solving. So next time you play blocks with your child and the base is too thin, let the child continue building.  He will soon learn what happens and how to fix it.  Be supportive, follow the child’s lead, and be creative! 

Perhaps most importantly, remember that as parents we are the primary role models for our children at all times. As a famous poem says “…if a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn.  If a child lives with tolerance he learns to be patient…”. In this hectic world in which we live, we need to make time to enjoy our children and provide learning opportunities. Play with her.  Laugh with him. Teach them. Watch as they explore and learn for themselves.  They grow up far too quickly.

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