References for Calming Your BabyAugust 5
Since we’ve been so focused on learning more about the pregnancy, labor, and delivery, it’s time to move on with books and resources for after the baby arrives. From communication and baby care, here are the resources we have or will check out.
The Happiest Baby on the Block (DVD & booklet): a very brief, to-the-point DVD demonstrating how a combination of “the 5 S’s” will help calm your baby and help it sleep longer.
Swaddling
Side or Stomach position
Shushing
Swinging
Sucking
The 5 S’s seem simple enough, but the ground breaking aspect of it is seeing it work on crying babies. The reflex that the 5 S’s induces on the baby is almost instantaneous. I’d be very cautious when trying to do the swinging, since the amount of mild jiggling of the baby will be hard to figure out.
Dunstan Baby Language (DVD)
Priscilla Dunstan was interviewed on the Oprah Winfrey Show, demonstrating what her unique hearing gift and role as mother have led her to discover. The DVD teaches parents how to detect the 5 distinct cries of a baby, which communicates when the baby is hungry, tired, needs burping, has gas, or is simply uncomfortable. I imagine Jim and I will have to be very attentive to be able to distinguish the 5 cries, but we’re willing to give it a try.
SIGN with your BABY - Baby Sign Language (ASL) Kit (Book & DVD)
Sign language can be applied to babies as well, not to only the hearing impaired. We’re excited to try America Sign Language (ASL) with our baby. This will help our baby communicate with us before he/she can speak. From “I’m hungry” to “I want my choochoo train”, we believe that the use of hand gestures will alleviate the frustrations infants and toddlers have when they are not understood by their parents. Language development in a variety of forms will no doubt help our baby grow and communicate. My goal is to use ASL in the most basic form, building to more complex associations as our baby responds to it.
More books and references to come, as they arrive from Amazon! 
