True or false?
Nursing moms need to avoid “gassy” foods.
Nursing moms must never drink alcohol, caffeinated or carbonated beverages.
Nursing moms have to stay away from spicy foods.
Nursing moms should cut out dairy products and peanuts to avoid allergies.

Would you be surprised to learn that all the above statements are false? Let’s take down these common myths about breastfeeding women and diet, one by one.

For years, breastfeeding women have been warned that so called “gassy” foods like beans, cabbage, onions, broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables would cause their babies to have painful gas. Not only does this statement needlessly restrict a new mom’s diet, it also decries a lack of understanding about the simple mechanics of lactation.

While some of these foods may cause gas in the mother, it is because of undigested carbohydrates (otherwise known as fiber!) in her digestive tract. These carbohydrates cannot pass through the mother’s milk ducts and get into her milk, so it’s actually impossible for these foods to cause gas in a baby, unless he is allergic to that food, which is extremely rare for these types of foods (the common allergens are by far eggs, dairy, soy and wheat). Gassiness and fussiness may be related to strong milk ejection reflex (also called the “letdown”) in the mother. Baby struggles to handle the flow of milk and so swallows a lot of air. Thorough burping may help, as well as wearing a baby upright in a sling during and after feedings.

Obviously it wouldn’t be appropriate for breastfeeding moms to drink large amounts of alcohol, primarily because it would impair her ability to care for her child properly. However, a glass of wine with dinner is not going to harm the breastfed infant. In the same vein, most babies are not bothered when mom drinks a cup or two of a caffeinated drink. Watch the baby for signs of irritability, and cut back if you think baby is sensitive to the caffeine in your milk. Since the bubbles that make carbonated drinks fizzy also cannot pass through to her milk, carbonated drinks (while not particularly healthful) won’t harm the breastfed infant. Mothers can’t make fizzy milk!

The third piece of advice, to avoid spicy foods, seems patently ridiculous when given some thought. How many millions of women the world over, eat many spicy foods as the bulk of their diet? Do they have fussy babies who suffer from painful gas? The evidence doesn’t support that. In fact the truth may actually be the opposite! More than one study has shown that babies actually preferred the taste of garlic in their mother’s milk and suckled longer, taking in more milk. There is simply no evidence that a nursing mom must eat a bland diet.

What about dairy products, peanuts and other common allergens? Many breastfeeding experts believe that nursing moms should not needlessly restrict their diets. Life with a new infant is challenging enough. Learning to breastfeed and recuperating from birth can be stressful. Why add to that by telling mothers to make radical changes? The one scenario that may support mom adopting a strict allergy free diet would be if she has a strong family history of food allergy and if her baby is showing signs of allergy, including excema, extreme fussiness, vomiting, slimy (mucusy), bloody or foamy stools, and other symptoms. Keeping a detailed food diary may be the best course of action to help her decipher what foods may be causing her infant trouble.

One final note: Although postpartum mothers are often told to keep taking prenatal vitamins after their babies are born, these can and do sometimes cause uncomfortable symptoms in nursing babies. This is often due to the iron content in the supplement, which causes pain in the infant. If your baby seems to be in pain, try dropping the vitamins for a week and see if that makes a difference.

The bottom line is, breastfeeding mothers should continue eating the same healthy diet focusing on a wide variety of whole foods that they enjoy, just as they did while they were pregnant. Listening to your body and eating and drinking to hunger and thirst will ensure new moms get the nutrition they need in order to care for themselves and their infants.

If you want to have a more enjoyable homeschooling experience, good planning and organization is essential. Even if you adopt a more eclectic style of homeschooling, being organized in your routine and materials will prevent stress and aggravation in your day.

First of all, an important part of getting organized is making sure you are in compliance with your state’s homeschooling laws. Whether the state you live in is more restrictive or flexible will have a bearing on what kinds of records you keep.

If you live in a state with more stringent requirements, a homeschool planner may be essential so you can easily create monthly or yearly progress reports. These are also helpful if you’re keeping transcripts. Of course, if you enroll your child in a virtual school or certain “in a box” curriculums, you can opt to have records kept for you. If you have a hard time with paperwork that may be a good option for your family.

Homeschool planners help you keep track of textbook and workbook pages covered, projects completed, unit studies you went over, field trips attended, books read, and daily attendance. You can purchase these in stores or online, or create your own. It can be simple or elaborate – a 3 ring binder can suffice if you’re so inclined, or you can search online for free homschool planning worksheets. If your state requires more documentation, it might be best to go with a more elaborate system for your peace of mind.

Reducing clutter is important when you’re homeschooling. Books, workbooks, art materials, DVDs, computer software, etc can quickly get out of hand and spread all over the house. In order to minimize this, assess your situation and figure out what system makes the most sense for your family. If your kids are older you may want to keep their homeschooling supplies centrally located in the kitchen, study or living room, wherever you spend the most time doing school. If your kids are younger (or if you have toddlers who may get into things and damage them!), you may want to keep your supplies high up in the kitchen or on bookshelves, out of reach but easily accessible for you to get at them quickly.

A cabinet in the kitchen, a filing cabinet, a shelf, a large plastic container, etc – most of us already have these in our homes. You can organize art materials, paints, paper, pencils and erasers in smaller plastic tubs or containers with lids so everything stays together. If you have multiple kids homeschooling, you may want to have a color coded system so everyone knows where their stuff is. It might help to think like a preschool teacher – each kid has a cubby to store their gear.

As a homeschooling parent, you might find that a Sunday night review/planning session before you start your week means everything goes more smoothly. It’s good also to reassess every once in awhile so homeschooling stays enjoyable and rewarding. What’s working well? What’s not working? Simple adjustments can be very helpful in getting back on track.

Remember that learning can get messy! Relax your standards a bit and be ok with messies. Don’t hamper your kid’s excitement for learning by expecting perfection when it comes to cleanliness. One way to minimize the mess is to take learning outside or to the library. If everyone’s getting stir crazy and you need a burst of energy, head out for the day.

A plugged duct is literally that – a milk duct in the breast that becomes “stuck” with milk. It is not being drained properly due to: an ill fitting (too tight or underwire) bra; not nursing often enough; a baby who is not sucking well at the breast; not varying the position of the baby while feeding; baby carriers that put pressure on the breasts; even the mother’s sleeping position.

It may present as a hard, red sore spot on the breast, or mom may not have any external symptoms. She may just have discomfort in an area of her breast. She may also notice a white dot on the end of her nipple with what looks like thickened or hardened milk or a small pimple.

To prevent plugged ducts, it’s important to make sure baby is latching on to the breast well and mom is not uncomfortable during feedings. There shouldn’t be anything pinching or pressuring her breast. Nursing frequently to “empty” the breast well (since the nursing breast is never truly empty) is important to avoid mom getting overly full. Nursing moms should avoid sleeping on their stomachs or in another position that squeezes the breast for a long period of time if they have frequent plugged ducts. The same would be true of underwire bras. Some moms just can’t use them.

If you notice symptoms of a plugged duct, take action immediately. This condition can frequently lead to mastitis, which can make a mom feel as if she’s been hit by a truck! Some steps to take to treat a plugged duct:

* Nurse frequently.
* Before nursing, use warm compresses to soften the breast. During the feeding, try gentle massage (starting at the top of the chest above the sore area and moving down towards the nipple).
* Change the position of the baby so that his/her chin is pointing towards the sore spot. This might take some flexibility! The reason for this is because the baby’s suck is strongest at that point and can drain the plugged duct more effectively.
* Get in the shower and let the hot water run down the chest. Repeat the massage. This one step has been a lifesaver for moms who are in pain with a plugged duct. Often it will open up and mom will notice thickened milk or even “crystals” coming from her nipple. This is a good thing. This thickened milk will not harm the baby either.
* Tylenol and Motrin are safe for nursing moms to use if the pain is bad.
* Get lots of rest. The best course of action is to take baby to bed immediately and encourage him/her to nurse frequently. Take naps and spend the majority of the day in bed if at all possible.

These tips will usually mean the problem will resolve in a day or two, maybe sooner. If you develop fever and chills and the plugged duct doesn’t resolve, it may have turned into mastitis. Mastitis feels like the flu, but it’s not life threatening, neither is weaning necessary or even recommended since it would only make the problem worse.

The same tips listed above will help mastitis. In addition, you can call your Doctor and ask for antibiotics, which may be helpful if you have been exposed to some other illness. For some reason, if other family members are ill with a cold or flu or other infection, the nursing mom will sometimes come down with mastitis. This is especially true if she has been doing too much and denying herself proper rest.

Plugged ducts and mastitis don’t need to be the end of the nursing experience. With the right information and support, it’s just a stepping stone.

The best thing to do is to let go of your anger. It does not mean that you should ignore your hurt feelings, it means having to acknowledge your angry emotions. You should feel angry, deal with your emotions but do not let it control you.

Simmering in anger would only make you stay angry for a long period of time. For some, it could make the person angry for years. It would only lead to physical deterioration. Angry emotions do take its toll on the person. It would lead to depression, high blood pressure, stroke and heart ailments.

Allow yourself to feel angry. Give yourself time to acknowledge your anger. Provide a proper venue for your anger, stay in an isolated space or room by yourself and pour all your angry emotions out by hitting a pillow or writing all your aggression on a piece of paper and ceremoniously burn the paper along with all your feelings of anger along with it. Put on some heavy metal music and dance your angriness away until you are exhausted. Do everything you can to get it out of your system, but never take it out on any one. This would only lead to more conflict and create more tension than was to begin with.

Let all your angry energy out, do not hold anything in. Strive to be a better person by forgiving yourself for being angry in the first place. Allow yourself to be just human. Make a conscious effort to be calm and stay calm when dealing with other people. This may take time and lots of practice. If you do try to be conscious with your efforts, this could lead to less spontaneous outbursts from you and other inappropriate comments that may only hurt others around you.

Even when you feel you have calmed down sufficiently enough to be able to face the world again, always try to stay positive about the situation. Do not dwell on the negative aspects of the argument or conflict. Try to resolve the conflict and work through your aggression. Stay focused, remember you are working to solve the issues at hand, not retaliate or get personal with the offending party.

Whatever problem you two may be having, remember that you are trying to be a better person and building a better life for yourself. Rise above petty and hurtful remarks, and do your best to forgive even if you do not think the other person deserves it. It will be easier for the person to let go of anger once he has expressed himself and made himself and his frustrations understood.

Fieldtrips are great way for homeschooling families to add some excitement and some real life learning experiences to the day. It can get tedious to stay at home most of the day and work out of textbooks and workbooks. Even computer work and games can become monotonous. Fieldtrips provide an opportunity to get out of the house, get some fresh air, learn some new things, and interact with new people. Here are some ideas for fieldtrips that are educational and fun!

Zoos, Wildlife Preserves, and State Parks – Most cities and towns have zoos and wildlife preserves and many people live within driving distance of a great State Park. All of these venues give children the opportunity to actually experience natural science first hand. They interact with animals and learn about the ones that live in their area of the world…what they eat, when they sleep, their social habits, and more. These places are also wonderful for learning about different plant species that our local animal life depend on for survival and how human actions may be impacting them. It might be helpful to look online to see what these places offer and then write up a list of questions your kids have. Help them find the answers while they visit.

Art Galleries – Even if your kids aren’t particularly interested in art, most find galleries to be fun and interesting. Many even have exhibits that feature the work of child artists. Take a look around and have your children write down the names of their favorite artists. Afterwards you can research each artist and learn more about their life and their work.

History and Science Museums – Children of all ages usually love history and science museums. History museums give them a look into mysterious times long ago. What child can resist a dinosaur, caveman, or ancient Egyptian exhibit? Not only can they see how people lived in times past they can see first hand what prehistoric creatures like the Wooly Mammoth or the Saber Tooth Tiger looked like. Science museums usually give children an opportunity to learn about science by seeing different scientific principles in practice. They may be able to about pressure and the effects of gas by launching a bottle rocket or learn about lasers by using mirrors on a grid. These museums also have seasonal exhibits that are sure to delight children of all ages so check with yours often to see what they offer.

Farms – Homeschoolers can learn about farming and agriculture first hand by visiting local farms. Many even provide an opportunity for tours or for you to pick your own produce. This allows them to connect with their own food chain and perhaps trace their food from farm to plate. The economics of food distribution is another area they can learn about that is practical and valuable to know. Some farms have special days were younger children can get involved in farm chores as well.

Local fieldtrip spots are not hard to find and your children will greatly appreciate the opportunities.

There are several anger management activities which you can implement in order to overcome your anger but at the same time, you must also know that anger management activities differs from one another, so you has to be aware of the specific activity which you need to follow in a specific situation. Anger management activities are considered to be very effective when it comes to managing anger because with the help of these activities you can divert your mind from the situation or incident that is making you angry towards other things. So, just for your concern, following are some simple yet effective anger management activities which you can follow in specific situations in order to cope up with your anger.

If you are recalling something within your mind and that recall is making you angry then in order to divert your mind from the recall, you must start doing something else immediately. For instance, you can start eating or you can also starting watching TV for the purpose as well.

Another effective anger management activity which is considered to be the most appropriate one to implement when you are in a state of anger is singing a song. It might sound a bit confusing to you that how singing can help you manage your anger? Singing is something that can help you overcome your stress. It has been scientifically proven that when an individual is in the state of anger, he/she is also in the state of stress as well and singing is something that can reduce the level of stress in a quick period of time. The more the level of your stress will reduce, the more the level of your anger will reduce as well.

Relaxation techniques can also be applied as anger management activities as well. Whenever you are in a state of anger, you can start practicing some yoga or meditation techniques in order to provide relaxation to both you mind and your body as well.

Above mentioned are some effective anger management activities which you can implement whenever you feel that you are in a state of anger.

Do you know about these wonderful books? They are all fantastic resources for homeschooling parents. There are many wonderful books written by and for homeschooling parents. These are some of the bestselling favorites that homeschooling parents recommend over and over.

100 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum by Cathy Duffy –
The key to a happy homeschooling experience is to marry the curriculum you choose (or create) with your overall educational philosophy. This book helps you do just that. It’s a must read for parents at the beginning of their homeschool journey or anyone who wants to breathe fresh life into their child’s home education.

The Core Knowledge Series – If you’re concerned about your child keeping up with their non homeschooled peers, the Core Knowledge series is for you. The books are titled “What your first grader should know”, “What your second grader should know”, etc. You could in fact use these volumes as a guideline to create your own curriculum.

The Kingfisher Books – The Kingfisher First Animal Book and The Kingfisher First Human Body Book are wonderful for preschoolers and young children and could form the basis of early science curriculum. The other titles in the Kingfisher lineup are also excellent resource materials for homeschooling families.

Susan Wise Bauer’s Story of The World – Susan Wise Bauer is a homeschooling advocate and author of several books on classical homeschooling. Her Story of the World history books are favorites among home educators. They create a real, living history experience for children and are enjoyable for parents too. The series have companion workbooks for those who want to use them alongside the volumes.

John Holt’s Teach Your Own and How Children Learn – John Holt, a public school teacher turned unschooling advocate, has written many groundbreaking books on the topic of how children learn. Even if you don’t adopt an unschooling style, reading these books will give you confidence that as a homeschooling parent you’re capable of educating your child well.

The Ultimate Book of Homeschooling Ideas by Linda Dobson – This one is another favorite of homeschoolers everywhere. One of the challenges we face is coming up with ways to teach our kids (and ourselves!) the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic from day to day. This book offers hundreds of ideas you can try to keep things fresh and interesting.

The Unschooling Handbook by Mary Griffiths – Unschooling, or child directed learning, is practiced by an estimated 10 – 15% of American parents. This book teaches you how to use the “whole world as your child’s curriculum” and is a breath of fresh air to parents who trust their children to learn naturally with minimal outside interference.

If you are not particularly artistic or crafty yourself it may be difficult to make sure your homeschooled child is getting enough opportunities for artistic expression. Artistic expression though can be a foundation for writing and for self expression so it is important that art and crafts be an important part of any homeschool curriculum. It is fairly easy to incorporate art into the school routine though. Here are few tips:

Make it From Scratch – Instead of buying new play dough or finger paints make your own with your children as helpers. Recipes can be found online and children will get to practice their measuring (math) and cooking skills too. Homemade art supplies are also healthier and less toxic than what you can buy at stores. Not only will your kids have a blast playing with these items they will have just as much fun making them.

Make Art Fun – Instead of sitting your child down with a paintbrush and a small canvas why not set them up with a big canvas in an outdoor area, some quality tempera paints, some water balloons, and some darts. Inflate the balloons just a bit, add some paint, close them, and attach them too the canvas with tacks. Then your kids can throw darts at the balloons and create art with the paint splatter. No child can resist this incredibly fun project. Later they can sign it and hang it in their bedroom or playroom.

Other fun projects include painting rocks, using body paints to mimic the body painting found in many tribal cultures, and using sidewalk chalks and paint.

Use the library – Your local library will no doubt have many books on various arts and crafts projects for kids. Look for books with unplugged projects, seasonal crafts ideas, and paper crafting like origami. Read the books together and decided which projects you will work on.

Go Digital – Art doesn’t have to be all about paper, paints, and getting and your hands dirty anymore. Digital arts and paint programs are gaining in popularity. Kid Pix and Disney Magic Artist Deluxe are two popular programs. They allow children to use digital paper and many different artistic techniques to create beautiful works of art that can be saved and even printed for framing. This method saves you a bundle on supplies.

Make it Educational – Art can also be educational. Have your children roll play dough into small marble shaped balls of different colors and use them as counting and math manipulatives. The same pieces can be used to learn colors and to practice sorting.

Allow free Expression – Don’t get in the habit of correcting your child’s technique or telling them which colors to use. Let them create their own art. Author Susan Striker of Young at Art discourages using coloring books because most of the artwork has already been done. She has a wonderful line of anti-coloring books available for purchase that give kids an opportunity to create on their own terms without outside interference or guidance.

So now that you have some fresh ideas…get busy!

One of the best ways of keeping your anger under control is through keeping tabs of what triggers the angry response from you. Not knowing what makes you react angrily would not help you control your emotions. Keep track of the daily things that gnaw away at your patience or might otherwise solicit an unprecedented reaction from you.

Pay attention to situations that may trigger negative feelings. Keep a daily memo of everyday scenario as soon as the feelings of emotional anger surface. Make sure you carry a notepad for taking down notes throughout the day. Make special notice of the time of day you are prone to be shorter tempered than usual.

Triggers may come in the form of persons. Try to notice if it is just one particular person or if it is a group of people that make you angry. If it is just the same person, be aware of the situation in general. Does the person make you angry because they are purposely making you angry or if it is just the annoyance of having the person around.

This should at least give you awareness to avoid the person in the future, or if avoidance is not possible, awareness will at least keep you on guard for any emotional response from you and perhaps you would be better equipped in handle matters of conflict.

Sometimes anger may be a response to situations. Traffic jams, for example or long lines at the DMV are usual unavoidable circumstances. Venting your anger on some one will not solve your problem as the problem does not lay on any single person, but on the whole situation.

Make special note if it is one particular situation or a variety of situations altogether that make you lose control. Perhaps the trigger may be in the common events that arise in different situations, like long lines in particular whether in the grocery, the bank or at the movie theatre. If you can not avoid the same situation that could trigger an angry response from you, at least you should be aware that you could potentially have an emotional outburst during this time.

Some triggers may not be in the form of people or situations. Sometimes the culprit may lie in things, like machines that do not work when you need it the most, or computer glitches. We have all lost our temper one time or another when dealing with machines that just refuse to work with us. Perhaps it is high time to get your computer upgraded, or junk that paper copier and get a new one. If not, then you could perhaps ask someone to assist you and you could avoid the situation altogether.

Make special note of the time of day when the outburst occurred. Some people are just hot tempered during particular times and being aware of the time when you could be more vulnerable to angry attacks could help you avoid the situation in the future. If you notice that you are especially hot tempered after lunch, for example, then you could perhaps take this cue and take a short nap after lunch hours, just to skip the angriest part of your day. Or make this time an alone time, giving you time to relax and take a break from people, things or situations.Grinder

Although it is an emotion that can pop out from anywhere in any situation still, you have your options available for controlling or reducing it severity. Majority of the people assume that medication is the solution of every concern related with human health or behavior but in the case of managing anger, going for medication is not the wisest of choices to make. The best available option in front of you for managing anger is some anger management approaches with the help of which you can cope up with your anger.

In this piece of writing, I have decided to discuss some simple approaches which you can consider for managing your anger.

The first available approach for managing anger is that you should start maintaining a note book in which you can write about the time you became angry and the situation which made you angry and for the time period your anger lasted and etc. At first it would seem to be very annoying but later you will realize that it is very important to know about situations where you become angry.

This way, you would be aware of the situations where your mind enters in the state of anger, so you can take immediate actions in order to avoid getting into such situations.

Another simple approach to consider is to learn the very basic exercises and techniques of anger management. Learning anger management techniques and exercises is important because only knowing the reason behind anger is not enough, for managing anger; you have to take certain actions. In the beginning, you can learn the very basic exercises and techniques of anger management such as yoga, meditation, breathing techniques, singing a song and etc.

Another approach for managing your anger is to keep yourself busy all the time. As you might be aware that empty mind is considered as devil’s playground and empty mind triggers anger within no time. So, try to keep yourself indulged in some work all the time, in spare time, you can involve yourself in some sporting activities to keep yourself fit and to avoid getting in to the situations where you get angry as well.

So, I assume that by now you are aware of some approaches which you can consider for managing anger.