babies Archives - 3 Kids and Us

Your Guide to How Surrogacy Works

May 1, 2018 by admin

Are you struggling to get pregnant? You probably know you can hire a surrogate mother to carry your baby. Click here and know how surrogacy works.

Got baby on the brain? Having a child can be a beautiful journey but that doesn’t mean it has to be done in a conventional way. If you want a surrogate mother to carry your child, you should understand the ins and outs of the process.

Whatever your reason is, surrogacy can be a great option for you. Find out how surrogacy works and see if it’s right for you.

Types of Surrogate Mothers

Generally, there are two types of surrogate mothers.

One is a traditional surrogate. This process is when a woman gets artificially inseminated with the father’s or donor’s sperm. The surrogate mother carries the baby for full-term and delivers the baby for the parents.

The other type is a gestational surrogate. This process uses a technique called “in vitro fertilization” (IVF). This involves gathering eggs from the mother and fertilizing them with desired sperm.

The embryo is then placed into the surrogate mother.The surrogate still carries the baby until birth.

Legally speaking, the gestational surrogacy method is less complex. This is because both parents have genetic ties to the baby.

Gestational surrogacy has become popular over time. Roughly 750 babies are born each year using gestational surrogacy.

Why Consider Surrogacy

Some of the reasons why surrogacy may be an option are:

You or your partner had medical issues that make fertility difficult
You or your partner had a medical procedure that prohibits fertility
You or your partner have conditions that make pregnancy impossible or risky for you
You simply prefer surrogacy pregnancies

Surrogacy may be an option for same-sex couples. In these cases, only one of the parent’s sperm or egg can be used in the process.

Finding a Surrogate

Once you decide on surrogacy, one of the next decisions you will have to make is who your surrogate mother will be.

Sometimes you know best who will be a good surrogate option for your child. If you know a friend or relative who you can trust with carrying your child, it may be best to ask them.

If you decide to have a family member as a surrogate, be mindful of how it may affect the relationship. You may need to have important discussions upfront to avoid legal issues later.

When selecting a surrogate, try to choose someone who:

Has experience giving birth to at least one healthy baby
Understands the medical risks of pregnancy and childbirth
Understands the emotional bond with a newborn
Has passed a psychological screening by a mental health professional
Is willing to sign a contract about her role and responsibilities in the pregnancy

If you don’t have someone in mind, consider hiring an agency. There are hundreds of global agencies that help parents find surrogate mothers.

An agency will help you find the right surrogate and help you manage the process. They will also help you understand how surrogate mothers are paid.

Understanding How Surrogacy Works

The surrogacy process can be for parents who either cannot or wish not to carry a child themselves.

Regardless of your reasons, surrogacy always starts with an understanding of the process. Be sure that you understand how surrogacy works before you make this decision.

The process can seem daunting at first, but there are resources that can ease the process. The ultimate goal is to create a lifelong bond between parent and child.

Top Reasons Baby May Not Be Sleeping Through the Night

August 10, 2017 by admin

Has getting your baby to sleep or having your baby sleep through the night become an issue? Though it can take a while for an infant to sleep a full 6-8 hours at night, there are other underlying factors that could be contributing to their inability to fall asleep or stay asleep very long. The truth is, your baby’s issues with sleep may have a lot of similarities to your own. Poor sleeping conditions can impede on someone’s ability to get good rest, no matter what age they are.

Too Much Light

Have you ever tried to take a nap during the day? While you may have been able to fall asleep at some point, getting there was likely a lot more challenging than it would be if it were nighttime, or you were in a dark room. When putting your baby to sleep, check to see how many lights are on at the time. Too many lights can keep the baby up longer than you’d like. If you want the baby to take a nap or get a good night’s rest, turn off all the lights and even consider solutions like darkening curtains to block natural light from getting in the room.

A Bad Mattress

When your mattress is in bad shape, your body feels the impact shortly thereafter. Tossing and turning, back aches, neck pains, and more can result from the wrong type of mattress or an old one. The same can be said for your baby’s crib mattress. If you have a used mattress or one that is cheap or poor quality, you may need to invest in a new baby mattress. As you shop, look for quality materials, good support, and great reviews.

Room Temperature

When you’re too hot or too cold, getting to sleep is a struggle. You toss and turn half the night trying to get to a comfortable temperature. If your baby’s room temperature is cold or really hot you will need to make some adjustments so they can get to sleep at night. You can try things like moving the baby crib from the window, installing a ceiling fan to keep it cool, or investing in a heater to increase the temperature in the baby’s room.

Noise

As you get older, you kind of learn how to fall asleep in any environment. It’s a lot easier to go to sleep in a quiet space than it is one that’s noisy. When it’s time for baby to go to sleep, try taking them into their room and ensuring that their surroundings are quiet. If you have younger children, try to get them to wind down when you’re putting the baby to sleep so that they’re not disturbed. When you put the baby in the crib, turn off the television and even close the door so that they are not awakened by sounds from the house.

Sleepwear

When dressing your infant for bedtime, often, less is more. Just as you would probably have a hard time going to sleep in something with a lot of lace, snaps, or buttons, the same is true for your baby. You also don’t want to overdress them because this can increase their body temperature, making it difficult for them to get to sleep. Dress your baby in light, minimal clothing to get a good night’s rest.

Routine

Your infant needs a sleep routine to get to sleep each night. There needs to be a clear indication of when you’re winding down, when their last feeding is, and when it’s time to go to sleep. Poor routines that might include playing with the baby, making lots of noise, or being out and about can confuse the baby and throw off their sleep pattern. Try to get some consistency by feeding, bathing, and winding down at the same time each day.

Clearly, the same things that keep you from getting the sleep you deserve also keep your baby from getting a good night’s rest. Unfortunately, since your baby can’t voice these things for you, it will be up to you to figure out which of these factors is playing a role in your baby’s inability to get to sleep and stay asleep each night. With time and a few changes, your baby should eventually give you a good window of opportunity to get some much needed rest yourself.

Ingredients & Baby Skin Care Products: How Important Are They?

March 16, 2017 by admin

Many baby product ingredients on the market have no place on an adult’s skin, let alone on a baby’s delicate skin. Human skin in general is porous, like a sponge, and anything we put onto it soaks right in – sometimes causing quite a bit of damage to the system.

So why do companies use ingredients that seem like they belong more in a science lab than in a personal hygiene product? We can’t be sure of other baby skin care companies’ motivation, but we fear it often comes down to cost, convenience, and pure marketing hype.

Fewer Ingredients is More

Even though we sell baby skin care products, we’ll be the first to tell you that your baby doesn’t need loads of ingredients and tons of products to stay clean and soft. A simple cleanser, lotion, and perhaps a baby diaper rash ointment or a few other gentle products are all an infant requires when it comes to personal care.

Further, a healthy baby certainly doesn’t need ingredients with hard-to-pronounce names that have been synthesized. Plant-based ingredients that are naturally cleansing, hydrating, and healing are good for promoting and maintaining healthy baby skin.

The EWG Says to Avoid These Toxic Ingredients

The ingredients that we and many experts (including the EWG) don’t believe should be in your baby’s creams, soaps, and other personal care products include: talc (known to be a drying agent, a lung irritant, and a possible carcinogen), synthetic fragrance (may cause skin, eye, respiratory, and neurological damage), propylene glycol (a penetration enhancer that easily absorbs into the skin and might be carcinogenic), and 1,4-dioxane and ethylated surfactants (the EWG reports that 57% of baby soap is contaminated with this known breast cancer inducing agent), among others.

Baby Mantra thinks that baby skin care should be made with simple ingredients from nature. Many are known to clean, moisturize, and heal gently, such as nut and vegetable oils, flower essences, and herbs. We want to keep babies protected and feeling good, so we make sure that all of our products – including our popular organic baby lotion – are clean, non-toxic, and naturally safe.