How to use your iPhone as a Baby Monitor

Using your iPhone (or other iOS devices) as a baby monitor is a pretty cool solution to keeping an eye on your baby when you don't have another baby monitor to hand ... like when you are traveling or visiting friends and family. Here's a list of the top 7 Baby Monitor Apps (in no particular order) that allow you to do that (some of them require 2 devices):

• "iBaby" by Cyan Design ($0.99)
  
• "Baby Monitor" by CodeGoo http://www.codegoo.com/page/baby-monitor ($4.99)
  
• "BabySight" and "BabySight Lite" by Softopinion Group Corporation (free)
  
• "Baby Monitor & Alarm" by TappyTaps ($2.99)

Top ten baby sleeping songs of all time

Getting your baby to fall asleep is probably one of the most stressful jobs of parents during the first year with their baby (or perhaps during the first 5 years). What do you do when your baby just won't sleep (reading "Go the f... to sleep" probably won't help). Well - playing music (or white noise) and singing to them are good tactics. So here's the ultimate list of tried and tested songs to make your little one drift off in no time:

Cyril Morin - Pema's Theme

Eva Cassidy - Fields of Gold

James Horner - The Bioluminescence of the Night

DJ Sammy - Heaven (Slow Version)

Using Superpowers to Make Your Infant Fall Asleep

Yes, I have a superpower. I call it "The Brahms" superpower. You see, I trained (conditioned?) both my kids to calm down and fall asleep (or back asleep) by singing them a very common lullaby. My first child had colic, and the tune on her musical mobile over her crib was Brahms' Lullaby, probably the most recognizable baby sleeping song.

When you wind it, it plays for 3 minutes before slowing and eventually stopping. That wasn't enough for my infant. So, I began hovering over her crib and sang it ... for an hour at a time. Throat parched, voice crackling, it became a battle of wills. She would scream, and I would just keep with my calm “la la-la” tune and stroking her back.

Top 10 songs to make a baby go to sleep

Here's our list of top 10 songs to make a baby go to sleep. It worked for our little man and we figured out he's definitely got a preference for female voices. Try them out ... you never know ... they might just work for you as well :-)

BTW - if you haven't seen the movie Samsara (#2) check it out ... it's a must watch.


#1: Katie Melua - Closest Thing to Crazy

Dad, I can't sleep because there’s dancing in my head!

If there's one thing I know about what works with kids it's keeping a routine. I remember someone telling me a few years ago that kids really love routine. Without knowing all the ins and outs of the psychology I guess they feel safe and secure in routines because they think mum and dad have life under control.

If they only knew!

So a few months ago our son starts staying awake later and later at night. Regardless of putting him to bed every night at 7.30pm he started staying awake longer and longer till finally hes dropping off at around 11.30! Ok he's happy enough reading, and playing cars and generally turning his room upside down.

The other night when asked why he wasn't sleeping this cute four year old says “Daddy I cant sleep because there is dancing in my head”. Talk about a conversation stopper?!? "Dancing in my head!" has he all of a sudden caught ADHD. I'm told by his mum don't worry most parents at some stage think their kids have ADHD.

Tips for managing a fussy sleeper

Have you got a little champ who is really not keen on going to bed? Big dramas, tantrums and a lot of crying at bed time? Here are a few different strategies you can try out:

* Options - give your little one a range of options about what order they want to do things (before going to bed) such as reading a book, brushing teeth, putting on the jammies, etc. Also ask them to choose a book, etc. It's essentially a distraction technique and is aimed at getting you out of a deadlock situation.

* No sleep - tell your little on that she doesn't HAVE to sleep ... she just needs to have the lights off and stay in her bed. Get some "glow in the dark" stars or animals which can present the perfect reason for switching off the light. Chances are once they are lying on the bed for 15 minutes (trying to stay up) they'll be asleep anyway.

Bed Book

I just finished writing my first kids' book. I won't be looking for a literary agent, however, because I wrote this book just for Alleke. In fact, she is the main character in the story, and the book is about her new bedtime routine.

Discipline as training (not punishment)
I made a significant breakthrough in my thinking as a parent this summer while reading Ross Cambell's book How to Really Love Your Child (recommended by Lisa). Campbell suggests that discipline and punishment are not the same thing. Punishment is one form of discipline, and one he uses only as a last resort. Instead, Campbell redefines discipline as training (my words).

Food that helps your toddler sleep!

Having a snack that contains 'Tryptophan' may help your toddler to sleep. Tryptophan assists with the production of the hormones serotonin and melatonin which help us to sleep and then stay asleep. Foods containing tryptophan:

- banana
- beef
- brown rice
- chicken
- cheese
- eggs
- fish
- milk
- tuna
- turkey

Eating these foods with a high-carbohydrate food makes tryptophan even more effective. E.g. a glass of warm milk, peanut butter on wholegrain bread or a slice of cheese on wholegrain toast before bed may be the ticket! But remember not to let your toddler be too full before bed otherwise the body is busy digesting which can slow the "get to sleep" process down.

-Alissa

Sleeping like a toddler?

The last two weeks we have been woken to the sound of a little lady screaming. At first we thought it was a very isolated incident but it kept happening at 3.30am every morning and Pyper wasn't going back to sleep. So we decided to re-visit all the tricks for getting her to sleep through. We tried a few different ideas that worked previously:
* giving her milk
* using night lights
* making sure she's dead tired when going to bed
* skipping her day sleep

None of it worked except for the last one which helped her go down at night but she would still wake up.

DIYFather.com publishes first book "Call Me Dad!"

Yes, yes yes ... the rumours are true ... we wrote a book last year and it got published last week. This week it is available at most high street stores in New Zealand and it will hit the shelves in the UK next month. Major online book retailers have also started selling it ... so "the word" is out! Have a look at our dedicated page for "Call Me Dad!" to find out more and check out the official media release.

Meanwhile we had a bit of a reflection on the writing process ... like the high lights and low lights (and everything in-between) of writing a book in this podcast. Despite the struggles and difficulties of pulling it all off in time and to everyone's liking, a sense of achievement remains and everyone at DIYFather.com is really excited about getting the book out. So a big THANK YOU to all the contributors and everyone who helped with the book! A special thanks of course goes to our children, partners and families for being there for us (and sticking with us) throughout the whole process

Thanks everyone reading this for spreading "the word" ... and if you live in Wellington, come along to our LAUNCH PARTY for drinks and nibbles on February 18th, 6pm at Dymocks on Lampton Quay.

Scott, Eric and Stefan