Time was that if a newborn baby was hiccuping incessantly in the middle of the night, you had the option to turn to your trusty Dr Spock baby book or to worry in silence until you could phone up a pediatrician at a decent time in the morning.
Now however with us being connected to the internet practically 24×7, myriad opportunities for obtaining information and allaying fears are available.
Blogs
Blogs offer valuable advice about child caring, tips for breast feeding, information about baby products, news and views about latest in child care, practical suggestions about baby sleep and support for parents who have children with developmental problems and so on.
While some baby care blogs offer valuable scientific information, other blogs share personal experiences and problems which the blog writer may have undergone himself.
This can give a lot of reassurance to a new and anxious parent, to know that others have undergone what they are undergoing, and that there is no reason to panic.
Blogs can offer important information about safety of medications for babies and also fun tips for baby dressing and baby play and the comments sections let you contribute to the conversation.
Forums
There are online forums where you can actually ask a question that is bothering you and reliably expect a reasoned and sensible reply practically within minutes. For instance you find that your baby is no longer getting to sleep as easily at night as he or she used to.
Sharing this problem with an online community will help one get instant responses from other parents, who are perhaps a tad more experienced – it is possible to get the benefit of their insight, that baby may now need fewer day time naps or that there may be a requirement to push back bed time by half an hour or so. Parenting Forums can be a great support for parents who are still learning the ropes.
Social networking sites
Social networking sites such as Facebook, Myspace and others have not only altered the way that we interact with friends and family, it has made it possible for us to enjoy our baby in different ways. These sites are a convenient and easy way to let everyone know that you are expecting.
Once baby arrives, you can proudly display new born baby pictures so that even your cousin who lives in a country right around the globe can gush over your baby having your eyes or smile and so on. Your pleasure in your baby achieving his or her milestones can increase when you share it with those who are important to you.
You can also pick up tips about things such as new born baby photography from various social networking groups and pages. In recent times it seems that there is a group for near about everything and if you love the way your little baby smells, you are not the only one – there are about 750 people on Facebook who like the page ‘the smell of a new born baby’!
