Because architects have babies too!
Why is baby-related gear designed (or rather over-designed) to offend creative parents, and appeal to people who think 'more is more'? It's a chore to find things that are safe, and practical, and affordable and NOT UGLY. The aim of this site is to share with people some of the things I've found that fit those criteria. You don’t have to be an architect, of course. You might be a graphic designer, or an artist, or anyone whose house is not furnished from Oak Express.
September 25th, 2006
Once upon a time (an embarassingly short time ago), I had to nurse Finn to sleep, and then she’d wake up three or four times during the night wanting to be nursed again. She wouldn’t nap unless we wheeled her around the house in her stroller. I slept minimally, and David might have gotten a little bit more sleep if the cat wasn’t also waking in the night demanding to be fed.
The other sleep methods
We tried the No-Cry-But-Doesn’t-Work sleep method with the expected doesn’t-work results. I was almost ready to try the Ferber method, which is basically “let your child cry hysterically if you can tolerate it.” I started to look up “ferberize” on the internet, mostly so that parents who I didn’t know, in far away places like New York and California, would tell me that the Ferber method was ok, and that even good parents let their children cry hysterically sometimes.
The Sleep Lady
On a whim, I typed in some random keywords into Google. Things like “not Ferber” and “sleep without hysterical crying” and “sleep method for babies that actually works.” Which is how I found Kim West, the Sleep Lady, a woman who I’ve never met, but who has changed my life (and Finn’s) drastically. Look at her picture on her website… doesn’t she look nice, like someone you could meet for coffee? This smiling woman is not only nice… she’s a saint!! Her website says she was on Dr. Phil; HOW DID I MISS THAT EPISODE?!!!
Anyway, before I discovered that the Sleep Lady is a miracle worker, I bought her book, Good Night Sleep Tight; I paid full price, something I never do with books, even though my husband is an author, and the author makes so much more money when people don’t buy dogeared copies for 6 cents plus $5.95 shipping.
The shuffle
We did the Sleep Lady “shuffle” (I might have called it the “scoot” but shuffle implies a sort of fun dance) exactly as proscribed, and now Finn can get herself to sleep at night and for naps. We just plunk her in her crib, surrounded by ducks, and she sucks her thumb, and falls asleep. And then we go downstairs, and do the dishes, and go back up and check on Finn, and watch tv. Then several hours later we fall asleep too, until the cat wakes us up to be fed.
So… go out and buy the Sleep Lady book, and pay the full cover price because this woman deserves to be a millionaire. And then pray for a book called “Good Night, Sleep Kitty.”
Posted in general, sleeping | 1 Comment »
September 14th, 2006
Life in Adobe Disneyland
There’s a book called The Myth of Santa Fe that is about the faux adobe style buildings in our town; I’m not talking about the real adobe buildings like Taos Pueblo, but the brand new ones that are made out of “sticks and stucco,” simulating the lumpiness and falling-apartness that people usually avoid when constructing something new (except in Santa Fe).
The real “myth of Santa Fe” is that if you live here, you don’t need air conditioning. It’s a dry heat. And it’s only really, really hot for about two weeks a year. But during those two weeks, and the month or so on either side of those two weeks, air conditioning (or at least a swamp cooler) would be really nice. Which doesn’t matter, because I’d say about 80% of the homes in Santa Fe don’t have air conditioning, or even a swamp cooler. But there’s a solution: ceiling fans!
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Posted in decorating, general | No Comments »
September 12th, 2006
If I was a superhero, I would be called “The Nose.” Being able to smell EVERYTHING isn’t the coolest superhero power, and it’s even worse if you aren’t a superhero. I dread shaking people’s hands because I’ll be smelling their perfume/cologne/hand lotion all day long. I smell gas leaks everywhere. My sense of smell is so finely tuned, I could have been a perfume tester, except that the smell of perfume makes me gag.
I once asked a doctor how I could dampen my excellent (and annoying) sense of smell; he suggested I take up smoking. So instead I have a scentless subscription to InStyle Magazine, and I’ve banned scent from our house.
If your sense of smell approaches mine, this is your guide to scent-free baby products. (And please feel free to add more in the comments section!).
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Posted in decorating, general, pooping | No Comments »
August 27th, 2006
Don’t try this at home
The first time I had to change the sheets in Finn’s regular size crib, I let down the side (2 seconds), removed the bumper (30 seconds) and then spent half an hour trying to remove the stupid mattress. It’s a good mattress, nice and thick, supportive, fits tightly to the sides of the crib because you don’t want any part of your child getting wedged into any potential cracks. It’s almost as long as I am, twice as heavy. I wrestled with it, freeing one end (hooray!), watched the dust ruffle bunch up, then lost my grip and watched it drop back into the crib. Meanwhile, Finn lay on her purple shag rug staring up at me with wonder (if I tried that now, she’d be laughing hysterically, like she does when I swat at flies).
I’m sure there are smarter, stronger, taller mothers who can get the mattress out to change the sheets, or may even have figured out how to change the sheets without removing the mattress. But I’m not patient enough to figure it out. I got online and ordered the Quick Zip crib sheet set, and let Finn sleep on dirty sheets until it arrived.
Try this instead
It’s a brilliant system. For about $33, you get one base (you do have to get that mattress out once to get the base on – David and I wrestled it together) and one top sheet (just zips right on to the base – you don’t have to remove the mattress, the bumper or anything!) More top sheets for about $17. And they even come in flannel! (We don’t have a flannel one yet – maybe this winter). And sage green! (We have white – I’m too practical).
It takes about 20 seconds to change the sheet - I wash Finn’s sheets a lot (if my mother is reading this, she’s really happy).
Note to Michelle, who is pregnant right now, and who is the reason I’m blogging on this particular subject rather than sunscreen or childproofing (less imminent for her): don’t even try the regular sheets! Put these on your register list now!
Posted in sleeping | No Comments »
June 25th, 2006
 David and I both read somewhere that the best toy to get a child is a ball. Neither of us can remember where we read this (Dr. Sears? The New Father book?) so I can’t provide a link to a pile of research, but it’s certainly true.
Besides finding out that Finn has a great left-hand pitching arm (which impresses us even more than her ability to say “gorilla”), there are probably a lot of developmental reasons why balls are good for babies. It helps develop eye-hand coordination, and learning the word “ball” is even more useful than being able to say “gorilla.”
Our favorite ball (and Finn has lots) is the O-Ball Jellies. It’s easy to pick up and catch, and looks super cool. It’s not too big, and comes in cool colors.
Posted in playing | 1 Comment »
May 7th, 2006
We’re not big spenders (at least we weren’t until we had Finn, who is very small, but needs a lot of gear). The one thing we do spend money on is eating out. We always ate out, we still eat out, and now Finn eats out, too. We don’t take her to expensive restaurants, but we don’t go to McDonalds either.
Our first dining experience with Finn was a casual place with an outdoor patio; we had pre-approval from the pediatrician. On one of the first doctor visits, we asked if we could take our tiny preemie to the Cowgirl. “Just don’t let her have a margarita,” was the answer. We went on a beautiful June afternoon; Finn was only a few weeks old, and spent half the time asleep in her carseat and half the time nursing.
It’s a little more difficult bringing an older baby out to eat; they’re a little bit messier, a little bit louder, and they require a little bit more attention. Luckily Santa Fe is kid-friendly, and Finn has charmed waiters and restaurant-goers all over town. And we have the Tiny Diner portable placemat.
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Posted in feeding, going out | 1 Comment »
May 7th, 2006
Rocking is not only for antique collectors
My mother insisted that a rocking chair was a crucial item of baby equipment, but all I could imagine was the rocking chair she had when I was little, with turned spindles and a quilted seatpad, that looked like something you’d find in the Walton’s farmhouse.
So I didn’t buy a rocking chair. Then, when Finn was 7 months old, I was over at a Janie’s house for a neighborhood meeting. Finn became tired and fussy; there were 60 people all talking about how we need a trail along the river and she’s naturally curious, and social, and she couldn’t fall asleep. So I went into Janie’s daughter’s room, sat in her rocker, and in about ten seconds, Finn was asleep.
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Posted in decorating, general, sleeping | 2 Comments »
March 22nd, 2006
These are my criteria for a perfect baby book:
- it should be non-denominational
- it shouldn’t be too cute
- no proprietary cartoon characters
- it should leave enough room to be able write something meaningful
- it should trigger you to record milestones, events and thoughts that you wouldn’t normally have thought of
- places for Dads to write things, too
- open enough to allow you to free think
- doesn’t play into gender stereotypes
- logically organized (unlike this list!)
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Posted in general | 2 Comments »
March 13th, 2006
It looks ok, like a basic messenger bag, all black; it’s something both David and I are willing to carry around. But it sucks in ways that didn’t become apparent until Finn was several months old.
For one thing, it’s way too small; it used to seem pretty big, but Finn’s toys and gear (we now tote bowls, cups, food and a restaurant high chair cover) have expanded along with her. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in going out, pooping | 3 Comments »
March 9th, 2006
What to do on date night
Once a week, David and I have date night. It’s nice to go out for dinner, but dinner takes about an hour and a half and our babysitter’s minimum is three hours. The enforced exile from our own home was disconcerting, but we quickly realized that if we come home we have at least an hour to do anything we want while the babysitter is still looking after Finn. This can be: taking a bath, writing entries for this website or napping.
Last week we painted Finn’s wall, something we intended to do before she was born. Alas, she came early and the paint came late.
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Posted in decorating | No Comments »
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