No TV for model Mom

Model mom Amber Valletta tossed the TV to save her son:

Model mama Amber Valletta chucked the family's boob tube hoping to inspire creativity in her seven-year-old son, Auden. And, it seems to be working considering the imaginative lil guy has turned the couch into a doghouse, alien spaceship and the Yellow Submarine.

:reports Lilsugar.

[Image from Cookie magazine's article]

Yes, this Daddy does know best

And this is the original article which led to the whole pro and against Gina Ford method debate incited by Clegg (see previous post):
 Daddy Knows Best
I felt physically sick reading some of the advice in Gina Ford's book. Controlled crying? Controlled? To me, hearing my baby crying at night, nothing felt better than to holding my little one clasped to my chest, rocking or singing or feeding her until we were both calm again. It wasn't always feeding she needed, sometimes she just wanted to know Mummy was there. It had nothing to do with schedules or hunger. No one had failed. Least of all my precious little darling. She wanted Mummy, and here Mummy was. In our case, it was always Mummy (Daddy had to get up early to go to work, was stressed out by new startup, whatever). So, Clegg's sons are very lucky, as is their Mom, to have such a committed father.

Long-haul flights with Baby

OPTION 1: TAKING BUGGIES ONBOARD

Call/email your airline weeks ahead to find out their policies regarding buggies onboard.

Tell them at check-in that you want to hand the buggy in at the gate. 

At security they will definitely want to dismantle and scan the buggy so you'll have to take your baby out and carry him/her through the metal detector. 

Then strap baby in again for the long trek to the boarding gate. 

At the boarding gate try to find a helpful steward and ask him to put the buggy somewhere where they can retrieve it easily when you land so you get it at the gate. This, I believe, is only a problem on Qantas where the large number of Buggies onboard have recently meant a lot of Moms having to stow theirs with the luggage. Which means, not only will you walk miles to baggage reclaim but risk the buggy getting battered (hence no longer as safe as the manufacturer guaranteed)

OPTION 2: BABY CARRIER
Take bushbaby sling to carry baby in. 

This is a good idea if your baby is younger than 4 months and the added warmth and closeness might help him/her sleep calmly through.

Otherwise, remember this will limit how much cabin baggage etc you'll be able to carry.

In my experience, you won't need a baby carrier, if you manage to take your buggy onboard.

TRAVELING ALONE WITH A BABY
Generally most airlines are helpful. Tell them you are travelling on your own with a young baby and they will arrange assistance both ends. According to Mumsnet.com's forum users, the Best airline for travelling alone with Babies is Singapore Airlines and the Worst is Qantas (not my opinion, folks).

TAKE-OFF and LANDING
Make sure to feed baby during these to prevent inner ear pressure change pain. For babies older than 4 months, or when they're able to sit up on your lap and hold their head up, you could use the seatbelt extension. With baby lying sideways (facing you) on your lap you could feed her (under cover of a shawl or scarf) through the take-off and landing bits. Or you could bottle feed. A dummy/soother/pacifier doesn't have the same effect.

How to make a smaller changing bag

By now, you'd have lugged that massive changing bag around till you're sick of it. Stuffed full of more things than you'd need (c'mon isn't that true, though?). When sometimes all you need is 1 or 2 nappies, nappy sacks, wipes, soothers and nappy rash cream. Most department stores have changing mats in their baby changing rooms, or if you're the paranoid type of Mom like me, you take a changing bag that folds into a changing mat. Like the Skip-Hop. OR better still you do some inspired bit of Ikea Hacking. Far cheaper and small enough to, maybe, fit in your handbag. Click through to see how a lycklig CD Case from Ikea was turned into a Diaper wallet.

Almost a year...

Wow! Almost a year later and DD has changed so much. Still a lil miss paleface just like her Daddy, dark blond hair like her Daddy but gorgeous lovely big smile and glowing skin like her Mommy (thank God for that!). And boyoboy have we learnt a lot - all of us little one included.

She's been on four long distance car journeys before she was 9 months. She's been on two longhaul flights! She's been toted around madmad Central London and the madmadmad Underground on weekends in a Baby Bjorn! And she's been an adorable sweetie about it all. Well, apart from the occasional screaming-blue-murder-tantrum where she thrashes about on the floor her pretty face squeezed into a howl...

Anyway, thousands of nappies later (gosh! was it just the other day I swore I'd never be able to change one), successfully breastfeeding, ongoing weaning and innumerable multi-handed ambidextrous multi-tasking days later, I am ready to share with you all that I've learnt (which you're welcome to correct, contradict and chastise me for).