Please go to our Facebook page to vote or comment below regarding which (as many as you would want) of the following prizes would motivate you to take the time and post your favorite healthy, quick and easy recipe. The possible prizes are: 1) A gift certificate for “WE time” daily retreat offering practice in nurturing your relationship during your transition to family, birth “comfort measures”  to use in labor, and a photography session for belly or newborn photos. 2) A gift certificate for  “From We to Three”  workshop for expectant/new parents  offering practice in nurturing your relationship while you transform into family. 3) A gift certificate for a MomSource consultation in your home  to determine your needs for support after baby and develop a plan.  4) a gift certificate for a food processor/soup maker to use after baby arrives.  5) a gift certificate for 10 free yoga classes in a West Hartford studio. If you choose more than one motivator, please  let me know which is “the best” by listing it first!  Thanks for your time!

Much attention is currently being focused upon the importance of carrying babies the full 40 weeks.  Both the March of Dimes and The Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) have launched campaigns designed to increase awareness of the benefits of full term infants in contrast to the costs of prematurity.

The March of Dimes has great information on its website (http://marchofdimes.com/mission/prematurity_wpd.html) and the AWHONN’s campaign has 40  fun and serious reasons to give a baby 40 weeks to mature. “Go the Full 40” (http://www.health4mom.org/a/40_reasons_121611) has a downloadable PDF file and points out the increased risks of caesarean surgeries, prematurity, infections and hemorrhage associated with inducing labor.

When babies are born full term, they are healthier and therefore everyone thrives-Baby, Mom, Dad, and siblings! Please help spread the word about how we can do what we can to prevent preterm deliveries.

In addition to these overarching external challenges, frequently  there are internal blockades as well: shyness keeps some isolated from others, independence prevents some from accepting help, and insecurity paralyzes many from moving into the larger world from the “baby bubble”.  Yet, in order to cope with the physical and emotional challenges of moving from a couple to a family; nurturing support from others can be critical!

How can I and others who care for these developing families help?  The first step, I believe, is by learning about the support already available in the community and then, directly referring to it.  Support like the moms social group offered by Nurturing Connections coordinator Jen Vendetti, MSW, and the wonderful baby and toddler parent groups taught by Pat McClarney through Hartford Hospital, and support for the birth process offered by so many childbirth educators and doulas (see archived blogs and Resources for more information about these services).

Through networking and self-education, I have been working on developing a larger “web of support” to catch and hold new families-link by link.  Please let me know what YOU think: what are the challenges new families face in developing a support network? As always, I’m really interested in learning about the resources available to families! Please comment here and let others know what is here right now in our community!

It was both easier and more difficult being interviewed for almost 5 minutes than I imagined! It was easier because I was more relaxed than I thought I would be in that setting.  It was difficult in that, of course, a five minute conversation can’t begin to address the many dimensions of the issues being discussed.  I really learned first hand that you must be able to state in bullet points the most important things to communicate!  Check out the video:  Interview on CTnow  and let us know how you made it easier to transition to work after your baby was born!

The MomSource’s mission is to help parents connect with sources of support and groups like this one are so important to provide one more “circle” in the links of a support network.  Can you help in this mission by posting here any local groups which support parents? Any class, group, or circle can be a good fit for someone, if they know about it.  Please help spread the word of what is locally available.

Every first time parent, except those who deliver their babies on weekends, gets a visit in the hospital and invited to use the phone support service.  In this service, trained volunteers call periodically to offer support to new parents. Those who qualify for home visits are usually referred prenatally, and receive periodic home visits to help with the adjustment to parenthood.  This service is especially helpful to teenage Moms and Dads.  In addition, Jen offers a social group open to Moms and Dads and babies less than a year old, called “Moms Morning Out” the first Thursday of each month from 10:00am to 12:00pm at the first floor conference room, 65 Kane Street, in West Hartford.

For more information about this valuable source of support and parents, check out the web page at: http://nurturingfamilies.uchc.edu, or call Jen Vendetti, MSW, at (860) 679-4114

Since my husband Andy and I have weathered the storms of early parenthood (and are facing the squalls of adolescence) we are looking forward to sharing our thoughts about nourishing your relationship as you grow your family.

Our dream for this workshop is to discuss the joys and challenges of  transforming from a couple to a family and to help you use proven communication skills to begin a dialogue about what kind of family life you want for their future.

We would love to hear more about what you would like to discuss and see addressed. Please take a moment to share what specific concerns you have as you anticipate this transition and/or the supports you wish were in place in the community.

We want this workshop to be really useful to you . . . let us know what you need by commenting on this page.  After you send your comment,  register online for the class at www.harthosp.org/NewsEventsClasses and click on “From We to Three” or call 860.545.1888.  Register soon, because this class is limited to the first 12 couples who register.

Photograh by Christina Houser

Karin LeFranc led the kids in a yoga class, there were art projects, free photographs of children, delicious snacks and more. I introduced the MomSource’s new service “From We to Three (& more!)” workshop, which will help expectant parents transition from a couple to a family. Debby Johnson, who will be teaching Love and Logic classes in the fall for parents of teenagers, read a story to the little ones while their art projects dried. Massage therapist and birth doula Sarah Thayer was there providing free chair massages, (she is great!).

Aimee Chandler from WeBeFit, Carolyn from Kindermusic, Kathy Knapp from Music Together and many other resources from the parenting community were there to congratulate Karin and Jane on their new venture. Congratulations on a great launch to a much-needed resource!

Wow, I had no idea how extensive this journey could be! There are hundreds of apps that could be useful to parents; how to narrow it down? I decided to simply focus on the apps I found and believe would be useful to expecting and new parents, and invite you to share your discoveries here as well.  Please share your experiences-those “in the trenches” are the best critics!

Expecting parents can count kicks with the “Pregnancy Kick Counter” by Ethan Productions within the app “What to Expect When You are Expecting”.  The  free Labor and Contraction Timer” by Michael Kale uses  one button to time the duration and spacing of the last contraction, and will average the contractions so that you can determine if they are increasing or decreasing (and therefore help you decide when to go to the birthing center or hospital).   “Stage 1″ by Arboretum Software  provides the timing features, in addition to a focal point, a timing ring, and a background photo of your choice.  For less than a dollar you can purchase the “Contraction Master” which will tell you the duration and frequency of contractions in a format that can be emailed from your phone.

“Babybump PregnancyFree” and it’s upgrade, “Babybump Prenancy Pro and Baby Namer” is available for the Android, Apple and Palm Pilot.  Both are really awesome in providing expecting parents information and schematics about the baby’s development, pregnancy countdown, in addition to the ability to journal,  photo journal and share  on Facebook and Twitter.

After the baby (or babies) are born, there is a free application called “Breastfeed” which provides all kinds of information about breastfeeding,  from birth to 48 hours, and from 48 hours until 2 weeks.  There is a menu of FAQs which covers issues regarding pumping, latch difficulties, and weight loss.  Finally, the app “Baby Connect”, which currently costs $4.99,  enables parents to track all kinds of information about baby: not only nursing details but bottles, solids, pumping, but how many diapers, sleep, milestones, medicine schedules, photos, and even more. They state that” it is the only application that allows one to exchange information in real time with your spouse, babysitter, nanny, or daycare”.

Again, there are so many applications, I couldn’t begin to cover them all . . . please let us know what you have found helpful in your journey into parenthood.