Your Child Will Love These Books

Preemie Infant Eyes

The development of preemie infant eyes is very closely watched after birth and for several months after NICU discharge. There have been great advancements in the care of eye conditions in preemies in recent years. Most problems if found early enough can be corrected by surgery.

Retinopathy Of Prematurity (ROP)

Retinopathy of prematurity is the condition by which the preemies retina did not have time to finish in utero. This can cause the blood vessels to clump up instead of spidering out as should happen during normal development of preemie infant eyes in the womb.

When detected early enough this condition can be corrected with surgery. Normally the preemie will undergo an eye exam before being discharged from the NICU. It is possible for the baby to be discharged and an exam scheduled a week or two later. This is a very important appointment to keep and your attending doctors and nurses will stress this to you.

After the exam you will be shown a diagram of your babies eye detailing the progress of the blood vessel development. If the doctor is not satisfied with the results you will be scheduled to come back in two week increments until your baby meets the requirements. After the babies blood vessels are seen to be developing normally you will be told to schedule an appointment 6 months from the test date. This will be a checkup to make sure everything is still going well.

Often times these appointments are quite a distance from you if you do not live near a major medical institution. A lot of facilities do not have the technology available to them for this type of testing. The 6 month checkup can normally be scheduled closer to home. The testing at this point is more of a routine test that doesn't require the type of equipment used to check the blood vessels.

Private School Loans - Good Credit Or Bad Credit

When thinking of having a child or if you are a new parent, the best time to start thinking about their education is now. This may include planning for a private school loan. With good credit you may have less stress with going through the loan process; however, you can still find a private school loan for bad credit.

The first thing you need to do is make sure you have worked out a good budget to see where your disposabe income is going. If you start budgeting for your child's education now you may not have to take out as big of a private school loan in the future.

The more money you have saved over the course of your child's life, the better off they will be when starting school. If they are not stressed over loan payments they will be able to focus more on their studies. Also they will not have to worry about working two or three jobs to stay in school. This will give them more study time and better grades.

The money you will be saving right now is an investment in your child's future. You know that the more education that you get the higher the pay you will receive throughout your life.

Start saving money now and researching about private school loans to be a step ahead when it is time to send your child off to college.

Benefits Of Reading To Newborns

There are many benefits of reading to newborns and this is often overlooked by parents. Babies can hear while inside the womb and will learn the sound of parents voices. Parents should take this opportunity and use it to it's full benefit.

Benefits of reading to babies while in the womb

1. This is a great way for the whole family to bond with the baby. By the father and other family members reading to the baby while in the womb this can make them more of a part of the babies life, even before birth. This will also help the baby to become familiar with their voices.

2.By reading the same story over and over to the baby the baby will become familiar with it. This can be used to calm the baby after birth during times when the baby becomes cranky.

3. Reading to the baby in the womb could increase early development of intelligence.

4. Babies start to learn language while still in the womb.

Benefits to reading to babies after birth

1. A newborn baby pays attention to voice more than any other sound. Reading to them will grab their attention and get them used to learning.

2. The faster you start reading to your baby the quicker your baby will start to associate words with objects.

3. The sooner you begin reading to your baby the faster you will notice your baby uttering words.

4. You will notice your baby becomes excited when it's time to be read to and will enjoy reading thoughout his life.

5. Reading to you baby builds listening, memorization, and vocabulary skills.

As you can see their are many benefits of reading to newborns. There is no better time to start than right now. Books make a great teeny tiny preemie gift. I am adding more preemie baby and newborn tips to this site all the time. Feel free to look around.

Neurological Delays With Preemie Births

Due to preemies being born too early, this doesn't give their systems long enough to develop. There is cause for concern in neurological delays with preemie births.

Babies that have neurological delays due to early preemie birth can feel disorganized. Normally a baby will place their hands together at the midline to adjust to their situation. Preemies can have problems with this early on.

They can become upset and cry when their neurological system can't make sense of all the new sensations they are experiencing. Sounds, excessive motion, or lights can wreak havoc on their young systems. You should try to put them in a calmer environment if you suspect they are having problems with outside stimulus.

This is why swaddling can be such a comfort to preemies. Wrap them snuggly in a blanket and turn off the lights to simulate the womb. This will normally calm them down. Also pay attention to any noises in the house like dishwashers, dryers, and the like. They can be an annoyance to a preemie.

Preemies And Air Travel

Are you planning to travel with your new preemie on a plane? Have you consulted with your doctor about this? Their is quite a bit of discussion about new babies and air travel especially preemies and air travel.

During air travel your oxygen saturation could go down due to the altitude and low oxygen environment. With a preemie that may have lungs that aren't fully developed, this should be of great concern to you.

Check with your doctor before flying and if must travel by air supplemental oxygen my be prescribed to your preemie. This supplemental oxygen could keep the babies oxygen saturation at a susceptible level.

These are just a few things to look at when considering preemies and air travel. Always check with your health professional if you have concerns about anything.

Excessive Mucus In Preemies

Have you noticed excessive mucus in preemies? This caused a trip to the doctor for Samaiyah. A trip to the pharmacist with a prescription helped with this.

Excessive mucus in preemies can cause vomiting and mucus in the stool. A lot of preemies are prone to acid reflux because their body can be underdeveloped. If you move them around very much or switch them from one side to the other fast you can cause them to spit up more often. Preemies neurological system can be slow in catching up with the rest of them and quick movements can bother them early on.

If the parents have had sinus problems or allergies then you can pretty much know your preemie will as well. Discuss this with your doctor and keep an eye out for any symptoms. Sinus and allergy problems can cause excessive mucus in preemies as well.

When Preemies Can Have Flakes Of Cereal In Formula

When preemies can have flakes of cereal in formula depends upon who you talk to. You will get comments from parents of preemies, parents generally speaking, and also your doctor.

Preemie parents will almost always advise you to take the adjusted age of your preemie into account. You can usually tell by observing your baby when they are ready for flakes of cereal in formula.

Parents of full term babies who haven't had a lot of experience with preemies will tell you to start cereal after a couple of months. I would say from my own experience to watch your baby and try giving her cereal in her formula at the 6 month adjusted age.

Doctors that I have spoken to have recommended 6 months of the adusted age is when preemies can have flakes of cereal in formula.

Baby Nipples For Bottles

When you are looking for the best baby nipples for bottles, especially for a preemie, I have found that the softer the better. Samaiyah prefers the latex to silicon nipples because of how hard they are.

Their are some you may want to look into that reduce colic. They do this by not allowing the baby to suck a lot of air while drinking the bottle. Hey if it can keep a baby from fussing about a tummy ache I'm all for it.

Enfamil slow flow preemie nipples and enfamil preemie bottles nipples are very tiny preemie nipples and this is what we started Samaiyah off with. They looked almost like a doll bottle they were so small but she was only drinking 3oz a feeding when she first came home.

Whether you have a preemie baby or full term they will let you know which type of nipple they prefer. You can fight it or you can accept it kind of like thumb sucking.
Yes Samaiyah is a thumbsucker. It's cute to me, I know some people are opposed to it but we will cross the bridge of breaking her from it when we come to it.