photo by AdrinaBabyMama

I registered for a baby monitor and got one at my shower, but I've never really used it. I always hear my baby no matter where I am—home, my mom's house, my in-laws. As soon as she peeps, I'm at her side. But some moms don't use baby monitors because they don't want to hear every breath the baby takes (or static from the monitor). They want to be able to relax a little—sleep, eat, or shower and not be interrupted by every little sound.

photo by

Manda5463

The debate about the safety of co-sleeping goes on. According to Fit Pregnancy, two new reports were recently issued, which just add to the confusion. Researchers in Britain found that sharing a bed with a baby 6 months or younger does not increase the risk of SIDS. However, it is dangerous if other factors are involved, such as drugs, alcohol, and extreme tiredness.

take this survey

I'm really tired. All the time. So I just took part in an online survey of mother's sleep and fatigue being done by some professors at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. The study is open to all mothers with babies 0-12 months old, breastfeeders and non-breastfeeders.

photo by carrie0310

I haven't had a good night's sleep for about a year now so I was really looking forward to tonight. We're setting the clocks back an hour to mark the end of Daylight Savings Time, which means I'll get an extra hour of sleep. It might not seem like a lot for some people, but you Baby Mamas know exactly what I'm talking about. I had it all planned out. I wasn't going to set the clock back right away, so I could wake up tomorrow morning at 7, look at the clock and realize I had another whole glorious hour to sleep.

Grobag Egg, $24.99, amazon.com

Meet the Grobag Egg. It can keep your baby safe while he sleeps, according to its Australian designers. Here's how: Research shows that crib death can result when your infant gets overheated, so this nifty little egg alerts you to temperatures in your baby's room.

Basically it's a digital thermometer that changes color based on the room's temperature. If the room is within recommended temperatures, the egg glows yellow; if the room drops below them, the egg turns blue; if the room gets too warm, the egg turns orange; and if it gets dangerously warm, the egg turns red. What a good egg!

Does anyone have a Grogbag Egg? Do you like it? If you don't have one, would you buy it?

Muu "Sam" crib with Spring Panels

My baby grew out of her cradle so fast, I didn't even have a crib ready for her. Fortunately, my friend's two-year-old son was trading in his for a big boy racecar bed and so I got one for free. But now that I've seen this brand-new line of baby furniture from Muu, I'm tempted to send that crib to Grammy's house for sleepovers and start my nursery all over.

photo by beemermom

After I bathe my baby, I usually give her a little rubdown with Burt's Bees Baby Bee Apricot Baby Oil to keep her skin soft and smooth and smelling nice. I've been doing it ever since she was born and she really seems to like it. I wasn't aware of the real benefits of massaging her until I came across an interesting article about Irma Sanic, a woman who teaches parents how to massage their babies.

There's been a lot of talk on CafeMom about pacifiers lately. Angelizedsinz never used one, but was curious about why some moms do, and her question led to an intense discussion in the CafeMom Newcomers Club. And mamiyounqin posted a question about pacifiers that elicited a lot of responses in the Pregnancy group. I read through and discovered that everyone who gave their baby a pacifier used it for one or both of these reasons:

1. Sucking soothes babies

2. Pacifiers may help reduce the risk of SIDS

Does your baby use a pacifier?

Tigetlillyt7 started an important discussion at the CafeMom Newcomers Club about the safest way for babies to sleep—on their backs or on their bellies.