I just posted a Before & After of Oliver and Leo’s bedroom over on AmiExpat.com.  We recently bought a house in Germany and I’ve been consumed with renovating and decorating over the last year.

In the room, I’m proudest of the magnetic chalkboard wall.  It was four days of work, but very worth it.  The kids love playing with it.

The editors over at Apartment Therapy ohdeedoh have selected Oliver and Leo’s room as Entry #1 in their Small Kids, Big Color Contest. Voting on our entry ends Thursday, November 17, at 11am EST (5pm CET).  If you have a few minutes and feel so inclined, please head over and vote for us to go on to the finals (you have to register to vote). Thank you!

Head over to the Before & After post on AmiExpat.com for more photos and details on how I decorated the room.

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I’ve always loved toy shopping, even before I had a child. Choosing gifts for nieces and nephews and thinking about what I would have loved (or what I DID love) at their ages gave me a thrill. And I know wasn’t the only adult wishing I could spend an afternoon playing with that Barbie Corvette (well, now it’s probably a Barbie SmartCar) before sending it on its way to the lucky recipient. I know adults who drool over huge LEGO kits. Others covet their kids’ miniature musical instruments, hoping for an excuse to play that mini ukulele. We all have our secret childish longings.

For me, it’s fake fruit.

German toys are widely recognized as some of the most beautiful in the world, and I spent three years living in the toy capital of Deutschland, host to the world’s largest toy fair and an extensive toy museum. HABA, maker of high-quality games and wooden and fabric toys, was my obsession long before I even contemplated having a child. Its beautifully designed playthings appealed to my retro tastes – no licensed characters, simple aesthetics, sturdy construction – and I found that they were some of the few products that were actually less expensive to purchase in Germany than in the USA.

I often found myself straying from my usual shampoo-shopping in Mueller (a German chain that’s about as close to Target as it gets in Deutschland) over toward the toy area. And once I learned I was pregnant, I finally felt like I could indulge my childhood yen. I’d seen the bins of brightly-painted pears and string beans before; now I had an excuse to actually put some in my shopping basket. Each lovely bunch of grapes, each shiny apple cost just a euro or two. So every time I strolled through the store on a mission to find ballpoint pens or razors or, eventually, diapers, I found a bit of delight in picking up another piece of HABA toy food. I brought it home and stashed it all away, impatiently waiting for my son to arrive and then for him to be old enough for me…erm, I mean HIM to play with it.

You can imagine my excitement, then, when my son recently reached his second birthday and I realized he could understand and safely play* with these toys I’d been buying for him since before anyone but his father and I even knew he existed. I presented them to him, knowing that chances were good that he would take one look and turn his back on my favorite morsels in favor of his beloved cars. But, thanks to his healthy appetite, he fully embraced my favorite playthings, baking me a “cake” of carrots, sausage, and a green-leafed bunch of purple grapes.

HABA makes a huge array of wonderful children’s products, but their culinary delights were the first to capture my heart. Their toys conform to high safety and environmental standards. Now that I’ve left Germany, I miss being able to just pick up a sturdy strawberry or breakable egg on my regular shopping excursions. But the good news is that HABA food is widely available individually and in sets all over the world and all over the web.

Bon Appetit!

*As with all toys, especially playthings that look like they could be tasty, pay careful attention to size and durability before judging whether they are safe to give a small child.

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I first head about the Epi-no (produced by Stardberg Medical) during one of my birthing classes.  The midwife showed it to the group, and most of the women in the class dismissed as an unnecessary expense.  I, on the other hand, was fascinated!

The ‘childbirth trainer’ is basically a vaginal dilator.  An inflatable balloon is inserted into the vagina.  For the three weeks before the birth, you can use it to gently stretch out the pelvic floor muscles.  Additionally, you hold the balloon inside for about ten minutes or so, and then you can, essentially, practice the second stage of labor by delivering the balloon.

The Epi-no was designed by a German doctor who observed women in tribal communities in Africa who used different sized gourds for the same purpose.  They have to do their best to avoid tearing as it can spell death in communities where access to medical aid is limited.  The clinical trials of the Epi-no show a marked reduction in episiotomy and tearing rates in women who used it as well as a shortened 2nd stage of labor. (the clinical trial information can be found under ‘studies’ on this Epi-no site - I have also attached a visual of some of their results at the end of the post) That data and the phrase ‘intact perineum rates’ is what really sold me.

The cost runs somewhere around $100 to $120.  There are two types of trainers, the Delphine and the Delphine Plus.  The Plus has a gauge attached, similar to a blood pressure monitor, so you use it a bit more quantitatively.  Being the science dork I am, I got the one with the gauge.  It was useful in practice because as I tried to relax the muscles with the balloon inserted, I could watch the pressure on the gauge drop.

I had a very positive experience with the Epi-no, and I recommend it to any pregnant women who can use it safely.  There are some contraindications as described in the manual — as always talk with your doctor or midwife.  I started using it three weeks before my due date, and found that I could only comfortably stand about 7 cm of opening.  By my due date, I could comfortably open to 10 cm, which was a bit smaller than the baby’s head.  During the 2nd stage of labor, I didn’t experience any noticeable discomfort from the baby’s decent aside from pressure on the colon (of course the contractions were a bit distracting).  The baby was born breech from a hands-and-knees posture, and I did not tear at all.  I don’t know if I was just lucky or if the Epi-no really helped, but I would definitely do it again.  I have learned that my body can always do things better if it has had practice, and giving birth is a pretty huge thing for the pelvic floor to do without a lot of preparation.

The Epi-no can also be used after the birth to help strengthen the pelvic floor.  You can insert the balloon, inflate it just enough to feel it, and then use your muscles to squeeze it.  If you have the ‘Delphine Plus’ you can watch the gauge to see progress in your muscle strength.  It is also used to help improve incontinence (I learned from talking with a friend who is a geriatric nurse).

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Congratulations to Mary, commenter #4 in the Mutsy Grow-Up! giveaway. She was our big winner, and the cool, modern booster seat is on its way to her and her growing daughter. Thanks to everyone who linked and commented.

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I thought I would share a few of the products that I have found very helpful in the first three months of motherhood. There are three basic categories — Hoppediz, diapers and boobs. I’m sure many more will pop up. What have been the most useful products for all you new moms and dads out there?

Hoppediz Products — I’ve already described the carrier that I love by Hoppediz. I recently came by a catalog for their products, and I found a few other great products from them.

• Wickelmax is a compact changing pad with pockets that hold everything you need to change the baby. It has Velcro straps to hold it together, and I have been just strapping it together over my purse strap. There may be more prints available than the one in the image — I chose that one because it was so much fun.
• The Fleece Cover is a nice added layer of warmth if you are carrying in the winter in Germany, for example. A friend made an insert to my jacket so now it closes over the two of us, but as the baby is growing, her feet are starting to stick out under my jacket, and this fleece cover keeps her feet warm as well. I am still getting used to using the cover, but one added bonus is that is has a little dicky to keep my neck warm in the gap between the baby and me.

Diapers, Diapers — So much time and effort goes into taking care of baby poo! I am hapy with a cloth diaper system and the disposables we use as well.

• Fuzzibunz are an American made pocket diaper. They function much like disposable diapers, which is one of the reasons I went with them. The shell has a soft microfiber outside and a kind of rubber coated inside. There is a microfleece material between the shell and the baby, which is really soft. You stuff the pocket with absorbent inserts.
  
  We couldn’t use the small size that we ordered straight at birth. She was about 6 lbs 12 ounces (3060g) and there was gaps at the legs (after having pooed all over daddy a few times, we switched to disposables). However, about a month after her birth, we could use them. Since there are snaps to hold the diaper together, they are adjustable, and we still have quite a way to go before she will need an upgrade.

  
  It took me some time to realize that they work best with an ‘add-in’ on top of the regular insert. The add-in is a smaller absorber that I put directly under her to absorb the majority of the urine. The diaper is a lot dryer as a result. With just the one insert, the entire diaper would get wet. With the add-in I make fewer diaper changes because they stay dryer longer. I noticed that once we started using the Fuzzibunz, the baby had much less redness around the anus. They claim that the diapers prevent diaper rash, and I believe it. We haven’t had an diaper rash issues in the first three months (knock on wood). We use a paper (100% biodegradable) natural fiber sheets in the diapers as well. This basically acts like a sieve for solid material, and it makes cleaning a bit easier.
  

  The draw back for international moms is that they are made in the US so shipping is a bit more expensive. There are European brand pocket diapers as well — Popolini, Bumgenius, for example.

• Moltex diapers — These are the disposables I chose to use until the cloth ones fit. We also use them at night (mostly because my husband does the night diapering, and he thinks they are easier than the cloth). They are as environmentally friendly as disposable diapers get, in my opinion, but I am no expert. The packaging is even compostable, which I thought was pretty cool. A friend had given us some pampers that had been unused by her recent addition, so that is the only comparison I have. The Moltex fit much better than the pampers did in our case, and we had less leaks as well. If we use only the disposables for a period of time, I do notice some redness around the anus, but aside from that, we didn’t have any problems.

Boobs — another very important topic of motherhood.

• Medela Freestyle Hands-free pump — A friend recommended this to me, and I am so happy I took her advice! it is a bit expensive (I paid around $350), but the price may be going down as it is rather new on the market. It has all of the strength of the regular Medela pump, but it is much more compact. I comes in a nice black bag that looks like a big purse. The pump itself fits easily in your hand, and it comes with a belt that you can latch it onto if you want to move around while pumping. The hands-free component involves some rubber straps that fit onto most breast feeding bras, so you can walk around looking very much like a caw as you pump. It was invaluable in the first few weeks after the birth as we were trying to get the breast feeding to work. it also did a great job of building up my milk supply. I can usually pump one or both sides in about 10 to 15 minutes. I don’t know how that compares with other pumps, but it is faster than I expected. I am not working at the moment, but this pump seems like it would be great for a working mother who is continuing breast feeding. The same friend who recommended it to me ended up buying it because she needed something compact and portable for a conference.
• Lansinoh Disposable Nursing pads — I planned on using cloth nursing pads, but as my milk came in, I would soak them within an hour. I ended up finding these breast pads by accident, and they are better than other brands I tried. They can handle the amount of milk that I leaked. A things start to equalize, I am beginning to use the cloth ones instead, but these are still useful at night.
• Boob Organic Maternity and Nursing clothes — this was a recent discovery on my part. It is a Swedish brand that is produced in Europe (by workers who are treated well, and using environmentally friendly practices). I have been searching for turtle neck breast feeding tops, and theirs was the only one that I found. They have nice designs, and the material is very good quality. I also like some of the clever names for products such as the ‘boob warmer” (a fleece hoody). They are pricier than some products I’ve seen, but I am willing to pay a bit more for the kind of product that they are making.

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We love handmade kids’ stuff, like one-of-a-kind clothing from Etsy and handcrafted wood toys made in small batches by artisans. But the recently-passed American Consumer Products Safety Act could put many of our favorite U.S. handcrafters out of business. We’re all about safety, but this particular piece of legislation seems to hurt the manufacturers we love while not seriously affecting those who need regulation the most.

Cool Mom Picks has put up a Save Handmade page, to spread the word about how to encourage the U.S. Congress to amend the act before it goes into effect in February, “so that we can both keep our children safe and protect the handmade toys and clothing that we love so much. ”

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I use the Baby-Tragetuecher from Hoppediz for our girl. I also have a Mai Tai, but she is still a bit small for it (or at least, I haven’t yet made it work for her). The Hoppediz carrier is something I had seen a few times on the street in our town in German, and I always thought, “I could never where that!”

Oh, how wrong I was. I was put off because it is basically 4 meters of cloth, and I thought it looked cumbersome, however, I LOVE it now. It comes with an instruction book that shows you 13 ways to tie it so you can hold the baby in a large variety of ways. I have found all of the styles I have tried so far offer fabulous support for my postpartum back. I mostly use two different styles — one that ties in the back and another that ties in the front. As the baby grows, you I can tie it differently to give her more freedom to look around. For small infants, the wrap offers a lot of support and can really serve as a little cocoon when they have had too much. My girl has a hard time sleeping in her stroller when we are out, but she can sleep through anything when she is tied onto me.

The wrap comes in multiple sizes from 2.5 to 5.4 meters. Our midwife had recommended getting one at least 4.0 meters so that both my husband and I can wear it. For some of the styles, it is a bit long, but I just get creative with tying up the ends.

One feature that I like about this particular carrier is that is also has a big pocket sewn into one end. It is large enough that I can carrier what I need for a diaper change, and I throw the rest of the baby gear in my purse. The pocket can be a bit bulky when full, so I don’t look so slick, but I really love not having to carry a bulky diaper bag.

If you live in a colder climate, it also offers a lot of warmth. I often let it double for a warm blanket in the car seat as we have heated it up together. I haven’t have the chance to use it in warm weather, so I don’t know how comfortable it is at higher temperatures. I’ve heard from one mother here that is is also comfortable in the summer.

It is not exactly a light, simple wrapper, but I love it. It takes a bit of practice to get the wrapping technique. I am reminded of my days sailing and learning to tie knots and fold sails when I am learning a new style, but it offers a lot of comfort for parent and baby. I highly recommend it!

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The Girlfriends’ Guide to Baby Gear by Vicki Iovine and Peg Rosen

I liked the common-sense approach to product reviews in this book, along with useful shopping lists and recommendations. While not purely a bargain-hunters’ bible (for that, try Baby Bargains), this book still gives good advice about what you need, what you don’t need, what’s worth spending more on, and what isn’t. And some recommendations for what’s just fun.

Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense by Ellyn Satter

This book about feeding your child addresses topics from breastfeeding through picky toddlerhood. I like Satter’s philosophy, especially her reassurances that parents can only control certain aspects of a child’s eating habits. She writes equally and non-judgmentally about nursing and formula-feeding, which was nice to read during I time when I felt pressure on both sides. Now that my son is at a stage where he sometimes flings even his favorite foods away as though I were trying to feed him dirty socks, she has great advice about getting the right food in his tummy without driving myself insane.

Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Mark Weissbluth

There are hundreds of sleep books out there and I considered buying every single one of them at some point because I thought they might contain the magic incantation that would allow me to get more than three hours of shuteye at once. Alas, I never found that particular voodoo, but I was glad I’d read at least one book about sleep before the baby came and I was unable to concentrate on anything but old episodes of Grey’s Anatomy. I liked this book because it contained a lot of information and studies about how human sleep works. It (along with almost all its brethren) does contain some scary case studies (“Bluto and Olive had to clutch their baby with their toes while doing handstands in order to get him to sleep! But the day after they came to me, he slept through the night and was speaking in full sentences by morning!”) and I can’t say we used all the techniques espoused by Dr. Weissbluth, but I do recommend it as a reference for some good ideas and background information.

Baby Play by Gymboree
Fun, simple ideas for engaging your infant when he’s tired of the bouncy chair and you’re tired of blowing raspberries on his belly but too sleep-deprived to come up with anything else.

Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son’s First Year by Anne Lamott

Anne Lamott describes the helplessness and hopefulness of the daily job of parenting a newborn like no one else I’ve ever read. She is funny and wise and will remind you that even when you’re doing it wrong, you’re still doing it right.

What are your favorite new-mom books?

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