Masochistic Mommy

Around the world, some parents are high-fiving baby sleep 'trainers' for giving them some much-needed shut-eye. Typical newspaper headlines include: ‘ Sleep trainer cured my baby's insomnia - and saved my sanity ’ - The Telegraph. ‘ When Lullabies Aren't Enough ’ - The New York Times. ‘ Letting babies cry rather than rushing to comfort them is secret to longer sleep (for infants AND parents) ’ - The Daily Fail. ‘ Study highlights controlled crying benefits ’ - ABC News. Yes, without a doubt, controlled crying has benefits – for parents. Yes, controlled crying ‘works’. The baby does indeed shut his ass up and communicates less at night. However - and it's a big HOW-EVER - at best, this is because he has been trained not to do so, rather than understanding that it is night-time and therefore he must be tired and should sleep. Physician and legend  Dr Sears coined the phrase ‘shutdown syndrome’ to describe what may potentially be happening in this scenario. Shall I ex...

This is the fifth (fifth!) post in my quest to expose as many anti-breastfeeding books as my cornea can withstand. To resist sounding like broken vinyl, I’ll refrain from a lengthy intro, you should know the gist by now. Suffice to say, in this series we look at some potentially-upsetting, probably-litigious and unapologetically harsh treatments of breastfeeding found in mainstream parenting books. This fifth-installment is dedicated entirely to a book written by celebrity nanny, Jo Frost. I’ve got my lawyer-retardant panties on, so let’s begin. Jo Frost’s Confident Baby Care Jo Frost When a ‘TV nanny’ writes a parenting book, those with common sense shudder. They are fully aware that the lower bulk of the population (I’m not saying they’re ‘chavs’, well okay I am) that worship at the altar of celebrity will view its pages as gospel. In this book, Jo Frost is able to capitalise on her ‘celebrity’ status (yes I use the label loosely, but still...) to write any flavour of balls imaginabl...

Did you know that if you follow the standard, “What I need for my baby” list for the next 21 years, then your child could cost you over $200,000 (that’s $9,500 per year, or $800 per month), even without being privately educated. The marketing clout of the baby industry has got a lot to answer for. The reality is that most of the items we are told we should buy for our babies are unnecessary . This timeline will expose the common (and not-so-common) culprits. If you’re new to starting a family, it will hopefully give you the advantage that many second-time parents enjoy. Jump to... Pregnancy 1 Week Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 Month 6 Month 8 Month 11 12 Months 18 Months 2 Years 3 Years Pregnancy: Maternity clothes: There’s no reason why you cannot wear your normal clothes instead of purchasing ‘maternity wear’ often at inflated prices. Items such as wrap-around dresses, smock tops, tunic tops, dresses ...