Daddy Magic: The Pacifier Clip

The pacifier clip is something that attaches to your pacifier. The other end clips to your baby's clothing. You can find these at any baby store.

Some babies don't really need this. However, some babies spit out their pacifiers.

If you find yourself picking up a pacifier off the floor a few times each day, then it's time to go get a pacifier clip.

Save yourself the trouble of picking up that pacifier all day.

This is especially good for sleeping. When you go in at 2 in the morning to put the pacifier back in your baby's mouth and get her to fall asleep again, you want to find the pacifier. You'll always find it when you have it clipped to your baby. Otherwise, it may be under the crib, in a blanket, or anywhere in the room. You don't want to loose pacifiers, and you don't want your baby screaming while you search for it.

That's Daddy Magic!

Note: When your baby is a toddler, she will pull off the clip and fling it even further. That's when you know it's time to stop using the clip.






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Daddy Magic: Wrap a blanket over your baby's hand

There is a difficult stage in teaching your baby to sleep. That's when he is getting too strong for the swaddle.

He breaks out of the swaddle.

Unfortunately, he's also too young to have developed hand coordination. As a result, he pulls his pacifier out of his own mouth. So he's screaming at 5 in the morning, because he broke out of his swaddle and pulled his pacifier out of his mouth.

What do you do?

Wrap a blanket over his hand that is pulling out his pacifier. For our daughter, it has been her left hand. He won't be able to pull out his pacifier. You can also accomplish this by putting a blanket barrier on his neck so that he can't get his hand up to his mouth. Another method is to use the pacifiers without the handle at the end (one brand is hollow so you can stick your finger in them and pump the pacifier in his mouth; another brand has a knob at the end). Another method is using mittens or those baby shirts where the sleeves have built-in mittens to cover your baby's hands.

Use any one of these methods to survive this transition and get some sleep! You and your baby need your sleep!

Get sleep? That's Daddy Magic!!!







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Daddy Magic: Pray with your child

It's important to pray with your child every day! When your child is a baby, you will be praying over your child.

I recommend doing this every night when you put your child to bed.

By doing this when your child is an infant, you will build a habit for the rest of your life.


Now, this only makes sense to pray to our Lord, Jesus Christ. He is the only one who can truly answer our prayers.


What to pray for:

(1) For God to put events in your child's life that will draw her to Him

(2) For God to put people in your child's life that will draw her to Him

(3) For the salvation of your child and her friends

(4) That your child will have mentors who will draw her to God

(5) That your child will have friends who will draw her to God

(6) That your child will have friends and mentees who she will draw to God

(7) That your child will server God with her life

(8) That your child will give financially to God

(9) That your child will love others

(10) That your child will share with others

(11) That your child will have God's peace and patience

(12) That your child will endure and persevere for God's glory

(13) That your child will obey you, according to the Will of God

(14) That your child will obey God

(15) That your child will repent from her sins

(16) That your child will lead Bible studies

(17) That your child will passionately love God

(18) That God will provide for your child's needs so that she can serve Him fully

(19) Health of your child - so that she can honor God with her life

(20) Countenance and mood of your child - that she will reflect Christ's attitude

(21) That she will get a lot of rest in her naps and in her sleep - so that she can honor God with a loving countenance



Why you should pray:

(1) It is God's Will for you to pray corporately

(2) You are putting God before yourself and your child

(3) She will learn the importance of prayer

(4) She will see how high you value the things you pray for

(5) She will pursue the things you pray for

(6) You will renew your focus on the things you are praying for

(7) Because you love your child




Give it a try! If you are not a Christian, learn about the God who created us! Google Jesus Christ! This is the best thing for your child's life... forever.


Is this Daddy Magic? No, it's more like a practice that God has required of us since the first creature walked on Earth.







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Daddy Magic: There are a lot of techniques in parenting

There are a lot of techniques in parenting.

If you're a parent, you're already figuring this out. You could get lost in our site, reading about all the different techniques. However, many parents don't know that there are a lot of techniques and most people who hear me talk about the latest techniques are surprised about how much thought I (and others) put into parenting.

It usually starts with me talking about a new technique I developed like patting your baby to sleep (http://daddymagic.blogspot.com/2007/03/daddy-magic-pat-your-baby-to-sleep.html), running with your baby (http://daddymagic.blogspot.com/2007/02/daddy-magic-run-with-your-baby.html), using "Don't Touch" (http://daddymagic.blogspot.com/2007/02/daddy-magic-instead-of-stop-use-dont.html) or teaching your baby how to smile (http://daddymagic.blogspot.com/2007/02/daddy-magic-smile-for-your-baby.html).

Then the person is suprised about how much thought we put into the techniques.

My typical response is, "Not every parent does put this much thought into parenting. That explains all the undisciplined kids that are running around."

This past week I was telling someone that you have to teach a child everything: how to sleep, how to burp, how to suck on a pacifier... everything! Then he suggested that you don't have to teach a baby how to smile. Well, I told him that's not the case. Sure, a baby's first smile comes from farting (a welcome release), but for a baby to be smiling often requires training.

Our babies smile a lot because we trained them to:
http://daddymagic.blogspot.com/2007/02/daddy-magic-smile-for-your-baby.html

So, yes, there are a lot of parenting techniques, and you can find them here at Daddy Magic.




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Daddy Magic: Mix cereal with formula

This is a classic tip. When your baby is eating more, mix some of the baby cereal with your formula.

This way your baby continues to eat more and be healthy, but you aren't buying more formula or having to pump more.

This is also a good way to get your baby used to solids sooner.

Now that's Daddy Magic.





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Daddy Magic: How to get your baby used to the Swaddle

How do you get your baby used to the swaddle?

This is my third post that is ONLY on the swaddle!!!

Why three? I'll tell you why! I keep coming across people who throw their hands up in the air and say, "Our baby doesn't like the swaddle!"

Of course not! Teach him to like it!

Click here to learn why you should do it:

http://daddymagic.blogspot.com/2007/01/daddy-magic-get-your-baby-used-to.html



Here's how to get her used to the swaddle:

(1) Hold your baby tight to you.

(2) Make sure the swaddle is tight!

(3) Use two blankets if you need to.

(4) Use larger blankets if you need to.

(5) Pump the pacifier in her mouth.

(6) Hold her sideways.

(7) Bounce her. Use your full body motion from your toes to your ankles to your knees to your hips to your spine to your elbows to your wrists.

(8) Run with her if you have to.


Bottom line: Get her used to the swaddle! Read the link above to learn why you should do this. Embrace the Daddy Magic.





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Baby Magic: Get Your Baby to Eat

Get your baby to eat!!!

Your baby will probably be drinking from a bottle, but he may be nursing.

I realized that I need to write this one when I saw someone throw their hands up in frustration. The baby was having a fit. She was so upset, that she wouldn't eat, even though she was upset because she was hungry!

Think about it! She was so hungry, that she was too upset to eat! Imagine that!

Well, that is pretty common.


Here's what to do:

(1) Hold him tight. Give him that important stability. It will help calm him down.

(2) Bounce with him. Walk him around. Make him feel like he's on a bungy cord, but he's still tight in your arms. Run with him if you have to.

(3) Put the bottle in his mouth. Hold it there until he recognizes that he has access to his food.

(4) Pump the bottle in his mouth: in and out until he grabs on and starts sucking.


Using this method, I got the baby to start eating in less than 20 seconds, when her mother had just spent several minutes.

This works. This is Daddy Magic!





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Daddy Magic: Touch Your Baby!!!

Touch your baby! Start from day one. Touch your infant. Touch his hands, his feet, his legs, his arms, his neck, his chest, his stomach, his face, and his head. Touch him gently and playfully.

Touch your infant!

Touch your baby!

Touch your toddler! When you get more toward the toddler age, your touches should be more like tickles on the sides, neck, and feet/toes. Also touch his hands, his arms, his neck, his face, and his head. Give him hugs! Teach him how to hug.

Tickle your toddler! Tickles count.

Why? Why touch your child?


Do it for these reasons:

(1) Teach him how to hug. By getting him comfortable with affection, he will learn how to show affection to others. It starts with physical touch, but it will extend to compassionate acts as he grows.

(2) He will learn that his parents love him. He will learn this much more affectively and quickly than any other method. Do you love him? Tell him.

(3) He will be healthy. That's right. Touching your child stimulates the blood cells so that he is able to fight off sickness and viruses. This is especially vital in the younger stages.


Love your child! Touch your child! That's Daddy Magic.





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Baby Magic: Gently Rub your Toddler's Temple

Gently rub your toddler's temple to get him to fall asleep.

You can also do this with your baby, but it will be magic with your toddler. Instead concentrate on patting your baby and pumping his pacifier. Use this with your baby as something else to try.

But definitely do this with your toddler! Why a toddler? I think it works best with your toddler because he is used to you touching him, especially in this fashion. He knows you. He understand the gentle touch. It sooths him.

Gently rub his temple and "Shh" him so that he calms down. Again, you don't need to wait for him to fall asleep. Just get him to calm down. He will learn to fall asleep. As a toddler, you should have already taught him this. But if you haven't, then you should begin teaching him how to get himself to fall asleep once he is calm.

That's Daddy Magic.





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Daddy Magic: Turn on your Fan

Turn on your fan to lull your baby to sleep! This is also great for your toddler and infant.

Some babies sleep better than others. We have one baby who slept better as an infant and a baby. Our toddler had more trouble at every stage. Babies are different. That's life.

However, we've learned to turn on the fan. Make sure your fan makes noise, because that is about 80% of the point. The hushing sound is magical! Turn it on the lowest mode, as long as it is loud enough. It's as if you were nearby your baby, hushing him. "Shhh!" Constantly. All night long.

That's great! Why? Because you don't need to do it! Go to sleep instead. =^)

This is a great technique to be used with patting your baby, the pacifier, and the swaddle (see other posts).

The fan will be your biggest fan. That's Daddy Magic!




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Daddy Magic: Pat Your Baby to Sleep

I've mentioned this before, but I use this almost exclusively in the current stage of my baby's growth. So I want to go in depth on this topic:

Pat your baby to sleep!

This is an excellent alternative to swaying and tightly holding your baby.

With one hand, hold your baby's pacifier and pump it gently. Get him to suck on it. I would also use a "Shh" sound or run a noisy fan. This also works much better if your child is in a tight swaddle (see other posts on swaddling your baby).

With one hand you are stabilizing and pumping the pacifier (you can stop pumping as your baby takes over and sucks on it).

With your other hand pat your baby on his stomach/chest. It is best in the middle of his stomach/chest (about the rib cage) but this depends on the size of your hand and baby.

Pat the baby sternly. Don't pat him gently, but if he's making noise or your pat is making noise, then you're probably doing it too hard. =^)

Pat the baby very quickly, depending on how quickly your baby is breathing. At least match the speed of your baby's breath, but you should probably pat faster than that.

Do this for 30 seconds. Count them in your head. Then slow down your pace a little. Your baby's breathing should slow down and match your pace. If his breath doesn't slow down to match it. Go back to the original speed and try again. Honestly, you should persevere through this and keep trying until it works. The reason is because you're training your baby to respond to this type of soothing. He will learn, and it will get easier. Persevere!

So, you slowed down your pace. He will slow down his breathing to match it. Count another 30 seconds. Then slow down your pace again. Count another 30 seconds. Your pace should be much slower. He must match this pace. If he doesn't go back to your second pace. Try again until he slows down with you.

After he successfully slows down to the third pace, stop. You may want to have a fourth pace, but I only use three (if you use too many stages this will take too long, which is against the point of this technique). If he is still breathing quickly and heavily, continue patting him, find his pace, and start there. Try again until he is breathing calmly.

Once he is breathing calmly and sucking on the pacifier, leave. He'll fall asleep. You are only calming him down so that he can put himself to sleep. You are not putting him to sleep. You are teaching him how to do that himself.

Here's why you should do this technique:

(1) It's faster. Like 5 times faster than rocking or bouncing him to sleep.

(2) It's quieter. If you begin pumping his pacifier and patting him speedily, he will be quiet as you vigorously pat him and pump his pacifier. You are in control.

(3) You are teaching him to put himself to sleep. You are teaching him to let you sleep through the night. You are enabling him to do the work for you! He will learn to fall asleep without you, as long as he is calm. If you rock him to sleep, you are teaching him to cry until you come rock him to sleep.

This also works with toddlers, but if you teach your baby this discipline, you won't need to teach him when he is a toddler.

The point is to gradually ween your baby off of the patting and thus, stop (do it less and less). You teach your baby how to sleep through... Baby Steps!!!

This method needs to be used sparingly and in conjunction with the "tough love" method of letting your child cry through the night (see specifics on that in another article).


Pure Daddy Magic!




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