Little Teether Teething Blog

Resources and ideas to help rebuild relationships with the seniors in your life.

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Tips and suggestions for overcoming difficulties of caring for special needs children.

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Fostering little ones is both challenging and rewarding. Babies and toddlers require an immense amount of your time and energy. Remote work gives you the flexibility to provide care for a child while still earning a living, but it also comes with unique challenges.

 

It may seem impossible to balance your work obligations with your foster child's needs. However, you can nurture a child while achieving your professional goals with some planning and tips.

 

Visit Little Teether for unique teething toys and accessories that are safe for your child!

 

Connect With Support

Find others who have similar situations to you. Statistics show that more than half of all child maltreatment cases involve children under six. You gain many benefits when talking with people who understand being a foster parent or juggling work and baby schedules. You feel less alone, gain access to resources and information, learn tips and tricks, make friends and build new skills.

 

Design Your Space

Carefully plan your workspace to ensure productivity. Dedicating an area of your home for work tasks helps you focus. Ensure you have the tools to accomplish your jobs and stay organized. Keep your room neat and clutter-free to eliminate distractions. Set up a safe space for your little one to play nearby.

 

Schedule Your Day

Strategize for success by sticking to a schedule as much as possible. Get up early to accomplish tasks before your little one awakes and plan meetings or phone calls during nap time. Designate time to give your child undivided attention. Toddlers and babies thrive when they have a routine, and you will get more work done, too.

 

Provide Play Opportunities

Ensure your foster child has toys, books, and other forms of entertainment while you work. Allow them time to listen to music, watch a program or play an educational game. Rotate items every few days to give them something "new" to play. Consider swapping babysitting services with another parent or arranging for childcare on certain days of the week.

 

Structure Freelance Work

If you have a freelance career, it is up to you to stay on task, gain clients and collect payments. Use software and other online tools and resources to simplify processes. For example, you can ensure you get paid on time by creating a professional invoice system.

 

Earning a Business Degree to Improve Job Prospects

Earning an online business degree can dramatically increase your job prospects and benefit your career in countless ways. Through engaging coursework in subjects such as accounting, management, economics and marketing, an online business degree adds value to your skill set that can be leveraged for promotions or higher salaries at current job positions. This is a good option to consider for busy parents who prefer to learn at their own pace.

 

Create a Self-Care Plan

Attending to your needs can quickly go by the wayside if you do not incorporate them into your agenda. Neglecting self-care can adversely affect your mental health, making your work and parenting tasks more challenging.

 

Be diligent about getting enough sleep, eating nutritious food, and taking time to destress during the day. Take breaks outside with your child, practice deep breathing techniques, or call a friend for a quick chat. Designate specific days off each week and set boundaries with coworkers and clients, so you do not fall into a habit of working around the clock.

 

Set Yourself Up for Success

Caring for your foster child while working at home requires planning. Prioritize your workload to tackle essential items with a singular focus. Schedule deep work during times when you have minimal distractions. Turn off your phone, snooze notifications, and stay away from social media while you finish job tasks.

 

With strategies in place, working from home while fostering little ones can give you the best of both worlds. If you create a schedule, design your space, earn an online degree, and remain flexible when the plan goes out the window, you and your child will benefit.

 

Author: Emily Graham

Image via Pexels

 

It’s easy to assume that launching a company while welcoming a new baby isn’t a great idea. The issue is that the timing will never feel perfect. Sometimes, you just need to take the leap to make your dreams a reality.

But you shouldn’t just throw caution to the wind. Instead, you need to plan for your success. That way, your baby and your business (and you) all get what they need to thrive. If you’re ready to get started, Little Teether shares some tips.

Slow and Steady Is Your New Mantra

One thing is true of both new babies and new businesses; they’re often unpredictable. Even the best-laid plans can get derailed by the unexpected. Whether it’s a baby fighting nap time or a client that changes course at the last minute, your day can be thrown into upheaval with zero notice.

Since that’s the case, it’s better to recognize that disruptions aren’t just likely; they’re guaranteed. That’s why you need to avoid unrealistic expectations. Instead, make “slow and steady” your mantra. Choose goals that feel doable even if your original plan doesn’t go perfectly. That way, you can make progress while giving yourself some breathing room.

Remember, you can always move on to your next goal if things go better than you’d hoped. But if they don’t, you won’t get discouraged along the way.

Routines Are Everyone’s Best Friend

Bringing a new baby into your family while launching your company is chaotic under the best of circumstances. There are big changes happening left and right, making it hard to keep everything on target.

That’s why routines are vital. Routines are soothing to babies, giving them a sense of security and normalcy. On the business side, they can reduce the odds that anything will fall through the cracks, effectively setting you up for home-based business success.

Even social routines are great for new parents. Many new parents feel isolated, but you can avoid that by scheduling time to speak with or visit family and friends. It’ll ensure you don’t overlook your needs, increasing the odds that everyone thrives.

Make Efficiency the Name of the Game

Efficiency is a magical state where everything runs seamlessly without any unnecessary effort. While it often seems mythical in nature, it really isn’t. Instead, it’s the result of smart choices and planning, ensuring you have the tools and processes you need to reduce your workload without sacrificing outcomes.

For example, let’s say you still haven’t created your business logo. While this might seem like a complicated task, it’s one you can pull of quickly with an online logo creator. When you take advantage of pre-designed templates, you can make a custom logo in a matter of minutes, all with your preferred fonts and colors. It’s a simple way to cross one more thing off your to-do list. 

Seize every opportunity to streamline your personal and professional life. Try calendaring apps that let you color-code your appointments and set customized reminders. Automate your billpaying and use a budgeting app with bank account syncing to reduce financial stress. Choose invoicing software to make invoicing clients simpler when you opt for a platform that offers automation as well as a functional payment button. The ideal choice should provide other time-saving features too like bill management, cash flow projections and tax organization. By embracing consolidation and automation, you can simplify your life dramatically while ensuring nothing falls through the cracks.

Create a “Keyword” for When You Need Help ASAP

When you’re starting a business and welcoming a new baby, there will be moments when you’re overwhelmed. In some cases, figuring out how to tell your nearest and dearest that you’re desperate for immediate support isn’t easy. Fortunately, you can make this far easier by choosing a keyword.

With a keyword, you essentially create a signal that, when your family member or friends hear it, lets them know you’re dealing with an extreme situation and need a hand quickly. Essentially, it’s an emergency alert that you can mention in a call or text as a sign that you’re struggling.

As you create your keyword with loved ones, discuss situations that qualify as emergencies. Additionally, limit the use of the keyword to times when it’s legitimately justified. That way, you can get the fast help you need without running the risk of overdoing it.

The takeaway is that if you have a dream, go for it. You can make it happen no matter what life throws your way. If you are feeling overwhelmed or like you can't do it all, ask for help when you need it (most people are more than happy to lend a hand) and take time for yourself every day to recharge. And finally, don't forget to enjoy this special time in your life; it goes by so quickly!

Emily Graham

-Mighty Moms

Teething: Whether It Hurts and How to Treat It?

Finding out what is making your baby uncomfortable is a frustrating task. Limited communication means parents have to use a lot of trial and error before getting familiar with the common issues with toddlers. 

Teething is when babies grow their dentition. The effects of this development vary among children, but there are characteristics common to most of them during this period.

This article discusses the details and shares tips on how you can provide some relief for your irritated baby at this stage.

When Does Teething Start?

Babies start growing teeth anytime between 3 and 7 months after birth. 

Central incisors are usually the first set to come through the gums. These are the two front teeth found at the bottom. 

The ones at the top also follow a couple of weeks later. Two more will then grow below to complete your baby’s set of front teeth. 

Molars are next to develop to help the child grind food, with the pointy ones in the upper jaw following almost immediately. Kids usually grow all their primary teeth before age 3.

There are situations when some babies are born with teeth or grow them very early. Although it is rare, it happens and should not be a source of worry for the parents.

Does Teething Hurt?

Teething is painful, and your child’s reaction can be frustrating.

During this time, it is common for babies to be fussy. They usually lose their appetite and have trouble sleeping. Drooling is also more than regular.

It is necessary to know what to expect at this time and how you can help make your child more comfortable.

How Do You Treat Teething Pain?

The effects of teething are manageable in many ways. Below are some hints to help you soothe your child's pain at this stage of development.

• Massaging Gums

Rub your teething baby's gums with a clean finger for pain relief. If the teeth have not emerged well enough, you can also allow the baby to chew on your finger. It also has a massaging effect on them.

Breastfeeding mothers can dip their hands in cool water to knead the gums of their kids before nursing them. This simple technique reduces the likelihood of the babies biting their nipples. 

• Chewing Object

Consider giving your baby something to gnaw on when they are irritated.

Experts recommend a clean wet cloth, pacifier, or teething toy. The trick is to refrigerate them to make them cold but not freezing. You don’t want to give your infant something very hard as it may hurt them instead of soothing their pain. Remember to clean the object after your baby has used it each time. 

• Teething Biscuit and Cold Water

Teething Biscuits are specially made for babies at this stage to chew. Cooling them provides more relief for your child. You can also give your baby cold water in a sipping cup if they are old enough.

Methods to Avoid

Seeing your child in pain might influence you to try almost anything you come across that promises to be of help. 

Regardless of the situation, the following guidelines will help you ensure that you don’t harm them unintentionally.

• The chewing object you give to your baby should not be too small for them to swallow or choke on.

•  It is also good if the item can’t break into smaller bits. 

• Avoid using teething tablets or gels. Many substances are not safe for kids at that age.

• Never rub aspirin or alcohol on your baby’s gums or growing teeth.

• Without extra care, teething necklaces and rings can strangle your child.

How to Care for Your Baby’s Teeth

Excellent dental health at a young age can have long-term benefits for your child’s teeth. In infants, this process begins even before their first set of choppers emerge.

Be careful with how you care for your baby’s teeth. They are sensitive and delicate, so certain actions might end up causing more harm than good.

• Wipe your baby's gums daily with a damp cloth or gauze even before it starts teething. Ensure that this is clean before sticking it in your child's mouth.

• Clean your baby’s first set of teeth with a small amount of fluoridated toothpaste and a soft brush.

• Use more toothpaste when your kid becomes old enough to spit it out. Remember that a fluoride overdose can be harmful to them.

• Switch to brushing twice a day after all their teeth have come out. Do this usually after meals.

Conclusion

Taking care of a baby is a struggle, especially if it is your first time. That is why people use parenting tips from websites such as Fawn and many others to help make the journey easier. 

These sites don’t only provide guidelines to parents but also sell baby products at special discounts to help them cut costs.

 

Gina Solares

-Fawn Design