Recent Posts
How to Calm Pets from Loud Fireworks
Some pets, especially older dogs and cats, are especially sensitive to loud noises. Loud fireworks during an Independence Day (informally “The Fourth of July” in the Unites States), New Years Day, Guy Fawkes Day, Christmas Day, Victoria Day, Canada Day, Halloween, St. Patrick’s Day or other holiday celebration can terrorize your pets to no end. These holidays are a nightmare of loud explosions to your pets with their sensitive hearing.
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How to Drown Out Snoring so you can Fall Asleep.
Falling asleep while someone else in the room (or even down the hall from you) is snoring can be difficult. Wheather it is your partner, spouse, roommate, brother, sister, or even your old dog, there is a way to help drown out the sounds of their snoring so that you can fall asleep peacefully.
Almost everyone snores at some point or another. An obstruction of the nasal passages often causes snoring.
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Who is the toenail ninja?
While some families might carry on the tradition of Santa Clause, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy, we have the Toenail Ninja.
Who is the Toenail Ninja?
Well, about every two weeks or so, when little babies and big toddlers are sleeping soundly in their beds, the Toenail Ninja, dressed all in black, tiptoes into their bedroom. The Toenail Ninja (gender unknown), aided by a toenail ninja apprentice (holder of the flashlight), gently clips their toenails and sometimes even their fingernails.
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Best Apps for International Travel
We go on vacation to relax and relieve stress. However, often times, the very act of traveling to your vacation destination turns out to be more stressful than anticipated. This is even more so when traveling overseas or abroad.
In the past, a successful international trip required extensive planning, assistance and experience. Today, with the advent of smartphones and the internet one can skip most of the pre planning and quickly start a trip.
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Alternatives to Falling Asleep to TV
In today’s modern world, sleep is a luxury. Our always online society and the proliferation of smartphones contribute to a blurring of lines between home and work. As a result it becomes harder to leave the stresses of the office at work and easier to work from home late into the night. Even our social lives have invaded our bedroom. We stay up late at night with smartphone in hand as we scroll through the latest news feed updates on social networks such as Facebook, Instagram, or Snapchat.
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Tip: Put Toddlers Shoes on while Eating Breakfast
Usually I help my toddler put his shoes on while he sits on his little bench. However, putting on his socks and shoes in the morning usually takes awhile as he likes to delay this step before we leave the house for daycare. This morning we were rushed for time since he slept in (still adjusting to daylight savings time).
So I gave him a small bowl of Cheerios and milk for breakfast and put his socks and shoes on while he was eating in his high chair.
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Best White Noise Apps for Sleeping
These three apps are the best free White Noise apps for achieving better sleep. Whether you’re at home or in a hotel, they work on babies and adults alike. White noise apps are cheaper than a sound machine, have a greater variety of sounds, and can be used on you phone, tablet, or with an external speaker over Bluetooth, Airplay, Google Chromecast, or via an audio jack.
Today’s fast paced and technologically driven world has made sleep a luxury.
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How to repair “No power to Rh wire detected.” error due to a condensate drain line clog
The Problem My Nest thermostat was displaying the following error message when my Air Conditioner stopped working. The odd thing was that the breaker wasn’t tripped and if I reset it the AC would run again for a short time.
E24
WIRING REPORT
No power to Rh wire detected. Learn more at nest.com/e24.
The Symptoms of a Clogged Condensate Drain Line No power to the Rh wire.
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How to Baby Proof Electrical Outlets
If your house or apartment was built prior to 2014, odds are that it doesn’t have the new “Tamper-resistant” electrical outlets and will need to be baby proofed. Tamper-resistant receptacles have spring-loaded shutters that automatically close when not in use. Force must be applied to both openings at the same time to open the shutters. You can tell if you already have “Tamper-resistant” outlets by either the internal plastic shutters or the letters TR stamped on the outside.
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Dear Zoo
Dear Zoo: A Lift-the-Flap Book by Rod Campbell
This book is one of my baby’s favorite books. He loves to turn the pages and lift the flaps. He also says “ssssss” when we get to the page with the snake. After almost a year of use, the flaps still work with only a few wrinkles in them.
Animals in this book include the following. Follow the link to learn the corresponding ASL sign.
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phil&teds Traveller Portacot
phil&teds traveller portacot is one of the lightest and most compact portable cribs you can get. Once you’ve gotten used to how to assemble it once or twice, it is really easy to put togeather. Your toddler can “help” with assembly by holding and playing with the support pieces.
I really liked that you could zip down one of the flaps and leave it open. We used this mode during nap time and closed it at night.
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Fisher-Price Rattle and Rock Maracas Musical Toy
The Fisher-Price Rattle and Rock Maracas Musical Toy is a great little baby rattle. It helps strengthen baby’s sensory skills & gross motor skills.
PROS
Small enough for baby to grab Soft pom pom one one end Soft rattle sound won’t annoy parents
CONS
May need to hand to younger babies soft end first to prevent them from banging their heads Soft rattle sound may not be loud enough to entertain some babies
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Onya Baby Carrier – Outback
The Onya Baby Carrier is the top choice of baby carriers from BabyGearLab. The infant insert is sold separately. My baby was relatively light so I ended up just carrying him most of the time without a carrier.
I felt confident in this purchase as it is the top rated rear facing baby carrier. I found it to be highly breathable, comfortable, and stylish for both mom and dad.
PROS
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Boppy Nursing Pillow and Positioner
The Boppy pillow and slipcover can be purchased as a bundle or choose from a large variety of slipcovers to match your decor.
This pillow is a must have for breast-feeding your baby. Works well for bottle feeding and as a prop for the baby to practice sitting.
PROS
Helps supports babies weight during long feeding sessions.
CONS
May still need additional pillows to use as supplemental support.
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Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, 4th Edition: A Step-by-Step Program for a Good Night’s Sleep
The jamesocollins blog provides a really good summary of the 0 to 12 month section of the book.
Amazon
Apple iBooks: Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, 4th Edition – Marc Weissbluth, M.D.
Apple iTunes: Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child (Unabridged) – Marc Weissbluth, M.D.
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The Happiest Baby on the Block
The Happiest Baby on the Block – The New Way to Calm Crying and Help Your Newborn Baby Sleep Longer
Every new parent should learn the concepts taught in this book to quickly and effectively calm your baby. For those that don’t like reading or would learn better through visual demonstration I highly recommend the DVD. The video version is also available for streaming online. It does a great job of highlighting all of the important concepts.
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