Silent Communication and Early Learning

More and more parents are now discovering the world of Sign Language and using it to communicate with their babies at a very early age. Sign language gives the child a means of communication before they are able to use verbal language. It is amazing to see how much they understand!

Sign Language is a language, just as English, French or Spanish are languages. There are different sign languages as well. One of the most commonly used in North America is ASL, or American Sign Language. However, when it comes to baby sign language, parents can also use their own signs to communicate a word or phrase. Whatever you feel most comfortable with, as long as your signs are consistent and you and your child both understand the meaning!

We use sign language with Emma and all of my dayhome children use baby sign language. It is a fantastic way to communicate! Only one of my dayhome children is using verbal words and very minimal at the moment. They are able to tell me when they are “all done” a meal or activity, and when they want “more” of something. One child is also able to say “please”. I know if I had worked a bit harder with Emma there would be even more signing but we focused on mealtime as the main point of interest in having her communicate. We are now using more signs when we speak with her. I now use “help”, “stop”, "please", "thank you" and “sleep”. I have sign language cue cards and a g

reat book but I find DVDs are a wonderful way to learn with your baby as you can see the lesson!

The Baby Einstein series of DVD’s has a Baby Sign Language version which is a great way to learn basic words such as ‘Mommy’, ‘Daddy’, ‘cookie’, ‘baby’ etc. The children also enjoy watching this movie as it is created to suit their attention-span.

One of my most FAVORITE resources are the Signing Time DVD’s. These are so much fun and very educational. They sign to very fun songs and teach many, many different signs. I

was first introduced to these DVD’s when I worked at a playschool and I fell in love with them. The children thought they were fun and they were learning so much at the same time. Visit their website to learn more!

I would encourage any parent to use baby sign language, even if it is only a couple of words. It is a lot of fun for your child to learn and gives you such an amazing feeling to know you have given your child a means of communication well before they are able to speak verbally! What a gift.

Eco Bebe Giveaway

Eco Bebe is a online children's and maternity boutique based out of Ottawa Canada. Eco Bebe's website is filled with the latest and greatest baby gift ideas and must have items. Some items they carry are cloth diapers, pregnancy products and labor aids, breastfeeding supplies, gift baskets, strollers, natural laundry soaps, bath and body care, feeding supplies and so much more. They even offer a cloth diaper loaner program for moms who would like to give cloth diapers a try with out the financial commitment. I guarantee you will LOVE this site. All orders over $150.00 ship FREE in Canada. Check it out at http://www.ecobebeboutique.com/***CLOSED***

Winner is

Random Number GeneratorMin: Max: Result:12

Cool and Chill Mom- Congrats

Giveaway:

We are giving away a $50.00 Shopping Spree with Eco Bebe Boutique

Contest Rules:

Open To Canada and USA Residents
All entries must follow the following rules to count toward the contest:

How to Enter:

Head over to Eco Bebe Boutique, pick your favorite product and come back and tell us which item you pick

9 Ways To Earn Extra Entries:

( must have told us your favourite Eco Bebe item prior to entering any of the following)

1. Link to Moms On The Go's Blog with our button, Earns you 1 Extra Entry

2. Blog about this contest with a link back to this contest, Earns you 1 Extra Entry

3. Become a follower on Mom On The Go's Blog, Earns you 1 Extra Entry

4. Follow Us on Twitter @momsonthegoca and Tweeting about this giveaway, Earns you 1 Extra Entry (make sure to leave your Twitter user name in comment section)

5.Follow Eco Bebe's Facebook Page Earns you 1 Extra Entry

6. Follow Eco Bebe on Twitter @ecomomwannabe Earns 1 Extra Entry

7. Join Eco Bebe's newsletter for 1 Extra Entry

8. If you purchase something from Eco Bebe during this contest, You earn 5 Extra Entries ( must email proof of purchase)

9. Canadians Only- For each vote you make for Moms On The Go to be The Savvy Mom, Mom Entrepreneur of the Year http://momentrepreneuraward.ca/MomBio.aspx?momID=111, You earn 2 Extra Entries, you can vote once per email address, Make sure to leave a comment on the voting page so I know you were there:)

This contest will end on September 16TH, 2009 at 11:59 pm Mountain Time

The winner will be randomly chosen, using the random number widget on my site

The winner will be contacted within 3 days

Along Came Baby

I love when I find new Canadian websites to check out! Tonight I found one I would like to share,it is called "Along Came Baby." and is based out of Toronto. They have some really cute, maternity, baby and children's clothing, toys and supplies. One of the things that I really liked was the Snugfit Preemie Onesies. They are designed for babies under 7 lbs and 17" and they come with some really cute sayings. Here are a few that caught my eye:)

Mama Goddess Birth Shop

Mama Goddess Birth Shop™

Today, I came across the best site for home births I have ever seen. It is called Mama Goddess Birth Shop and has everything from home birthing, hospital birthing and even water birthing. Supplies for parents, midwives and doulas. Gifts for mom, baby and siblings and even some great things for after birth, breast feeding, loss of a child or trying to conceive.

Here are a couple of my faves from the site:

Sibling Prep-Nature Bag

Inside these organic cotton, fairtrade naturebag, you will find…...

1-all season activity booklet

2-leaf viewers
8-colour cards1-recycled notepad
1-recycled pencil

1-package of soy based crayons
1-small roll of hemp twine

1-organic cotton blindfold
1-rubberwood magnifying glass

They suggest using this great educational outdoor activity as a way for parents, grandparents or friends to bond with the older child, after the baby is born to prevent a child from feeling left out.

La Bassine Water Birth Pool, I really like this birthing pool because it comes with built in handles to help with position changes and to help with pushing.It is designed to be deep enough to cover your belly but not deep enough to be uncomfortable.

If you are pregnant or trying to conceive make sure to check this site out.

Mommy Hook

The other week I met with a mom from our Central Alberta Mommy Forum and noticed she had this really cool thing. A Mommy Hook, it is such a simple invention, but let me tell you it caught my interest. This mom was using hers to carry her Walmart Shopping bags, it was so simple but freed her hands for other things. So, me being the crazy online shopper, looked it up online and low and behold one of my fave stores carry it. You can get your Mommy Hook from Cater Tots for $8.99 CDN. They suggest using it for carrying diaper bags, shopping bags, camera bags, purses etc. It is made of heavy- duty aluminum so it won't break and has a unique rubber grip to keep it from sliding:)

Trade Show Vender #1

For the next couple weeks I will be featuring products from businesses that will be taking part in the up coming MOTG trade show on Sunday, June 14th at the Sylvan Lake Community Centre.

BATH HOODZ

http://www.bathhoodz.com/

Today I choose a really cool company called Bath Hoodz. Bath Hoodz is exactly like it sounds, it is a company that makes children's bath towels out of full size adult towels, with a built in hood. They come in a large selection of colors and designs and can even be monogrammed for your special little one. I really like Bath Hoodz for a couple reasons #1 the business in mom owned # 2 the products are home made # 3 Bath Hoodz website is easy to use, bright, attractive and has really cute graphics. Bath Hoodz is based out of Red Deer, Alberta, but ships any where in Canada.