We're very lucky.
Jack is the sort of child
we all assume we'll have
when we decide to have children,
and the sort of child
less experienced parents
congratulate themselves for.January and February 2004
March and April 2004
May and June 2004
July and August 2004
September and October 2004
November and December 2004
Blogs we read:
Thursday, Jul. 15, 2004 - (Mamma)
Meeting New Friends
| Last weekend, Jack and I met up with a family from our birthmonth list (May03).
It was fun to see Jack and Heather, who was born about 6 days after Jack, together. They were so cute! Heather is a lot more physically developed than Jack is -- perhaps because she has a big sister to keep up with -- and I was almost as fascinated as Jack was to watch her walking all over the place!
It was also a lot of fun to meet Jan -- with whom I have a lot more in common than I had realized. Not only do we work in the same industry, but her sister, who she was here visiting, is one of my favorite people from my La Leche League group and play group.
Aren't they cute? (And why am I in so many of the photos lately?)
| Jack's current favorite!Are You My Mother? by Philip D. Eastman
|
In the News
Why Toddlers Attempt the Impossible
you�ve ever caught your toddler trying to slide down a miniature toy slide or fit inside a doll house bed, you may have laughed at his attempts or wondered what was wrong with your child. But new research published in the journal Science says these types of scale errors are actually common among 18- to 30-month olds, even though most children this age know better.
Researchers from the University of Virginia, Northwestern University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign set out to find out why toddlers make these kinds of mistakes about scale. The answer seems to lie in the theory that two different brain systems control the use of visual information. One part is responsible for recognizing objects and planning what to do with them. The other controls perception of the object�s size.
The authors think that integration between the two brain systems momentarily breaks down in cases of scale-type errors, although children usually correct their behaviors shortly after attempting the impossible. The study�s findings are important for understanding behavior of normally developing children.
To see video clips of the children in the study, go to www.faculty.Virginia.edu/childstudycenter and click on "Current Projects."
What babies are fed as infants may determine their food and flavor preferences later on in life, says new research. The scientists, whose work is published in the journal Pediatrics, studied bottle-fed babies raised on two different-tasting types of formula: milk-based and protein hydrolysate, where proteins are �pre-digested� for easier absorption. The study complements the scientists� long-term research on how breastfed babies learn and accept food flavors through breast milk.
In the current study, researchers gave babies either the milk-based formula or the hydrolysate for the first seven months of life. Some babies were given one type of formula for several months, then were switched to the other. The scientists found that babies who only had milk-based formula strongly rejected the hydrolysate when offered it, while babies who were used to hydrolysate or both types seemed content to drink it.
These early taste preferences tend to last, say the study�s authors. In previous research, babies fed the hydrolysate tended to like sour tastes and smells � qualities associated with this formula � better than babies who�d never had it. And, with breastfed babies, early exposure to the mother�s diet through flavors in breast milk seems to help babies accept and prefer those types of foods when they are older, suggests the scientists� long-term research on the subject
Breastfeeding Could Reduce Cardiovascular Risk Later On
A U.K. study published in the journal The Lancet suggests that breastfeeding in infancy could lead to a reduced risk of atherosclerosis � and cardiovascular disease � in adult life. Although there have been previous studies showing breast milk�s benefits, including a reduction in cardiovascular disease, the current study determines more conclusively that for preterm infants, breast milk is better than formula for lowering future risks of cardiovascular disease.
Scientists studied teenagers who had been preterm babies participating in breast milk versus formula studies in the 1980s. Teens given breast milk as babies had significantly lower levels of bad cholesterol and other factors associated with atherosclerosis. The more breast milk they received as infants, the lower their ratios of LDL to HDL cholesterol. �Our findings suggest that breast milk feeding has a major beneficial effect on long-term cardiovascular health," says the study�s lead author.
