Red Stick Mom

Disclaimer: This is a guest post from Dr. Leanne Redman, associate professor of women’s health studies at Pennington Biomedical Research Center. You can get to know her more here and read her first post here. Her facts and opinions are based on her personal research. Red Stick Moms Blog was not paid to promote any specific medical viewpoints or studies. Always consult your physician with any medical questions. With technology at our fingertips, 21st century moms have evolved to be savvy readers on health and wellness topics important to their own health and the health of their family. Lucky for us that with the development of the internet, many important health and medical organizations developed educational and research materials that are...

Let me first start by saying, my husband is one of those amazing spouses. He will help out anywhere that is needed (even diaper duty!) without much of a grumble. And he (usually!) never points a finger if the house is getting messy. That being said, he is only there so much. I am a single mom a great portion of the time...due to the crazy life of having a shift-working spouse. This is in no way to bash him or make me seem like superwoman. Believe me, I will be the first to admit I am NOT superwoman! In my marriage, our situation is a little different because he is a firefighter that works 24-hour shifts at the station...

My two boys love few things more than swimming in their grandparents' pool.  Neither of my boys have ever been afraid of the water, which might seem like a good thing.  But for this momma, it is TERRIFYING.  I knew very early on that in order for us to be able to enjoy the pool, my boys would need to start learning safety rules as soon as possible.  After all, drowning is the number two cause of accidental death among children, and more than 1,500 children are killed in water-related accidents each year.  Thankfully, my mother-in-law is a well-respected and amazing swim instructor, so she has (for years) been teaching me proper techniques and tips for keeping children safe...

As a Speech and Language Pathologist, I am writing this series in hopes to address concerns when it comes to your child’s speech and what to expect if you feel like your child might not be reaching their milestones. If you are just joining us, be sure to start with Part 1 right here. This series on Speech and Language Development has finally come to an end.  We've journeyed through the developmental stages of infants to four-year-olds.  I've highlighted ways you as a parent can be working with your children to encourage and improve their speech along the way.  And, as I've mentioned before, it is so important to remember that all kids develop at different speeds. That being said,...

As much as I'm still holding onto the highchair, Judah is slowly wanting to eat at the table with us more and more.  I know I should be excited about the fact that he's getting bigger and can handle sitting at the table, but the lazy, clean freak inside of me doesn't want to have to clean and wipe down the table every night.  I much prefer rinsing off the highchair tray and calling it a day! No judgement zone, right?? However, I know our highchair days are coming to an end, and in an effort not to ruin my normal placemats, I decided to make him his own.  As you already know, I am no seamstress.  But give me...