Category: Helpful Hints - New Beginnings - A Home for Mothers

Best Baby Monitor Features

11/8/2017

Any new parent knows that it’s important to keep a close eye on your little bundle of joy. Baby monitors are a great way to make sure all is well in the nursery. With advancements in technology, these devices have come a long way from being basic audio monitors. But which features are most important? Here are some factors Reviews.com looked at when they reviewed various popular baby monitors:

Who wouldn't want to keep an eye on these precious little ones?

We looked for monitors that had parents’ go-to features.

Nearly 100 monitors on our initial list offered infrared night vision, volume control, and support for additional cameras. To narrow our search, we earmarked particularly useful qualities we saw mentioned again and again on parenting sites. We only considered monitors that met at least two of our four criteria:

Microphone sensitivity: There’s a difference between hearing your baby cry, and hearing every little noise. All baby monitors have the option to turn down the volume, but some offer thresholds for parents who are more comfortable with only hearing the biggest upsets, and prefer not to hear the self-comforting noises their baby makes as they fall asleep.

Audio display: Even when the monitor is muted, an audio display will show you how loud your baby is with a little chart on the screen. If you want to listen to music for a while without the background white noise, an audio display will let you know if your baby is only quietly cooing in their sleep, or if they are well awake and need attention.

Two-way talk: It’s not intended to let you cry at your baby for a change, but being able to talk to your little one can help soothe them in the moment, or offer just enough reassurance that they might fall back asleep. As your child gets a little older, it’s an easy way to gently remind them to stop playing around and go to sleep.

Temperature Sensor: Babies are particularly susceptible to overheating and hypothermia because they can’t regulate their body temperature as well as adults. Monitors with these sensors display the room temperature on your screen so you don’t have to check your home system, and some will alert you when the room becomes too hot or too cold.

Here are their top choices:

You can check out Reviews.com’s full research and guide here.

Online Resources is something that we make use of here at New Beginnings. We are blessed to be sent those online resources by members of the community, staff, and volunteers to be used to help educate and learn more about things available to our residents and our readers.

Depression and New Beginnings

6/12/2017

Have you ever had one of those days where nothing seems to go right? First, you get a flat tire on the way to work. Once you are late to work, your boss starts demanding that you get that project in today even though you were suppose to have another week to work on it. You stop at the store after work because you remembered you were out of milk just to realize, after you got home, that you were out of butter too. You make dinner for the family just to have them turn their nose up at it and all you want to do is cry.

What do you do? Some will take a walk while others will sit and have a glass of wine. What about that small bit of ice cream in the freezer? No matter what your coping mechanism might be, you were given the skills to take that break and pull yourself back up. You might have family or friends who you can talk to and help you work through the pain and sadness. You pray, hope, and look for a better tomorrow.

What if you didn’t have the skills it takes to cope with your bad day? What if you didn’t have a strong enough faith to go to God for help? What if you didn’t have a fridge or freezer to keep that little bit of ice cream or you don’t have the family or friend support to help you work through your problems? What happens then? Many people fall into depression. The hurt and abuse of their past along with the struggle of their today does not bring much hope for tomorrow.

Did you know that many of the young women who apply and are accepted into New Beginnings admit to be suffering from depression? They have seen no hope for a brighter future for themselves or their babies. A kindness from some one only brings a temporary relief from the sadness and struggle. Did you notice that after a bad day, you are not as productive as you usually would be? Maybe you don’t sleep as much or you hurt a bit. For those who suffer from depression, this is an everyday bad day. Every day it is a struggle to do the simplest of tasks. When it is really bad, even getting showered and dressed is a task that proves to be too complicated so to ask them to go out and work, would be asking the impossible. The feelings of worthlessness and sadness just increase after not being productive. Its an endless cycle.

New Beginnings hopes to change that cycle for those moms and create that new beginning that those young women so desperately need. We help teach coping skills and give the resources that they need not only physically but also spiritually. With every success comes new hope and the chance of a brighter future. Of course, this is not an overnight success story. Sometimes, it can take a few months and sometimes it can take years. Just as every person is different, every background story and recovery is different.

In this blog I talk mainly about depression due to circumstance and situation. Of course, there are other reasons for depression and by no means am I trying to overlook or ignore them. Sometimes it is really a chemical imbalance and your mind is wired different and therefore experience depression. In this case, seeking out a professional who will be able to treat you effectively would be the way to go. Another form of depression that we might see a lot at New Beginnings would be postpartum depression. This is very common in new mothers as there are so many changes happening not only in a woman's environment but also in her body. For more information, resources, and tips and tricks to help combat these baby blues, check out the website below by clicking on the button called "Baby Blues". This article was written by Jackie Edwards who had gone through her own baby blues and found ways to help through research and learning. Take a peek and learn some strategies to help yourself and others you love who may be going through it.

Thank you to all who continue to support New Beginnings and give these women hope and a promising future.

Christina Pritzlaff is married with two children. She has completed Early Childhood 1 & 2 classes, Infant Toddler classes, and completed the coursework for her Associates degree in Child Development. Christina splits her time between spending time with her family and working at New Beginnings. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her children, camping, fishing, reading, and doing counted cross-stitch.

Resume Help and Interview Prep with LeKecia Lovett

5/18/2017

Last Thursday we had the chance to sit down with LeKecia Lovett of Encompass Solutions to learn about how to increase our chances of getting a job by creating resumes that will catch an employer’s eye, along with how to interview like a professional. The following tips apply to any job in any field, and cover a variety of fields, so there is something for everyone to learn.

Writing a Resume

Remember that resumes are only meant to get you an interview, not the job.
Don’t talk about your hobbies, however interesting, if they’re not relevant to the position to which you are applying.
A resume should include the following sections: Heading, Summary of Qualifications, Work Experience, Education, Skills & Abilities, and References.
Including a cover letter to explain why you are a good fit for the positon you are applying for is also a good idea.
There are three types of cover letters:

Letter of Application-Used to apply for a specific positon within the desired company
Letter of Inquiry-Used to show interest in eventual openings within a company
T-Zone Cover Letter-Used when you have met most of the requirements included in the job description.

Interviewing Like a Pro
There are seven steps to planning an interview. They are:

Researching the organization to show your interest and stand out from other candidates.
Compare your skills and qualifications to the job requirements.
Prepare responses to standard interview questions.
Wear neutrally-colored, formal, and neat clothes that are professional.
Bring your resume, a notepad, list of references, and any information needed to complete an application.
Pay attention to non-verbal communication.
Follow up with questions for the interviewer about the company, and a thank-you.

Group Night is held at New Beginnings. Every Thursday, we meet as a group to discuss important life skills and educational topics. Discussions are led by community volunteers and can cover a broad range of topics.

Helpful Reminders

4/24/2017

This month, I had the privilege of accompanying our Executive Director, Brianne Hansen, to the Heartbeat International Conference in Chicago, IL. What a fun experience! Our goal was to learn as much as we could to ultimately improve the work that we do here at New Beginnings. And boy did we soak up a ton of information! Some key points really stuck out to me during my workshops:

1. We do the work that we do because we love our God and we love the people we serve. Every decision we make in our ministry should ultimately be out of love for our residents and with their best interest in mind. We should constantly be praying for God’s wisdom as He guides us on this mission He’s called us to. “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” James 1:5. Each mother comes in with her own strengths, weaknesses, and story. They are all children of God and we should strive to learn about them and help them in any way that we can.

2. It is important for us to take care of ourselves as well. Compassion fatigue is real. Even if you are in another line of work, the stresses of life or your job can negatively impact your ability love your neighbor the way God expects you to. Satan uses those moments to creep into our lives and fight against what God is trying to work within us. So, practice self-care. When you feel yourself getting bogged down in work or in your personal life, take a deep breath (literally) and say a prayer. It works wonders! It can also be incredibly beneficial to seek the help of a professional. If these negative feelings aren’t going away, they warrant the attention of someone who’s been trained to help others work through them.

3. While the pro-life mission as a whole is far from over, our message is gaining ground and God is working in the hearts of people around the world to further His purpose. Babies are being saved! This is one of the many reasons we do what we do. At New Beginnings, we provide mothers who have chosen life for their children with resources and a stable home. By changing the life of one mother, we change and shape the lives of generations. The work we do, with your help, will extend throughout entire family trees.

It was such an encouragement to be surrounded by other Christian, pro-life minded individuals working in ministries similar to ours all across the country and even throughout the world. God’s Will for the unborn is reaching far and wide. However, the war to save lives is not over and we need everyone’s help. YOU can make a difference in the lives of moms and babies today by donating your time, talents, or treasures. Get involved!

Taleya Williamson is the Operations Manager at New Beginnings. She was born and raised in Puyallup, Washington and attended Evergreen Lutheran High School. Taleya recently graduated from Wisconsin Lutheran College with a Bachelors of Science in psychology with a minor in anthropology. In her free time, Taleya enjoys spending time with her husband, David.

Child Nutrition

4/13/2017

On April 6th, we were treated to a highly informative presentation about child nutrition by Jenny Luedke, a senior nursing major at Wisconsin Lutheran College. Jenny, who is a mother herself, walked us through the basics of child nutrition from birth to five years. Everyone learned something new, and Jenny received plenty of questions.

Infant Nutrition: Birth to Six Months

One of the most important aspects of feeding an infant is knowing when he or she is hungry; infants who are hungry will often root (move their heads back and forth as though they are looking for something) or suck before they cry. Thus, you should not wait until your infant is crying to feed him or her. If you are breastfeeding your child, you should feed him or her on demand, or every two to three hours. If the baby is formula fed, then you should feed him or her every three or four hours. Mothers who pump breastmilk for their babies can keep it in the fridge for up to forty-eight hours, while mothers who formula feed can store their formula in the fridge for up to twenty-four hours.

Infant Nutrition: Six to Eight Months

Infants are typically ready for baby foods around six to eight months of age. Signs that the child is ready for table food include sucking food off of a spoon, sitting up, and holding up his or her head for extended periods of time. Rice cereal and pureed fruits and vegetables are great foods to start with, and finger foods like puffs and yogurt bites are great for infants who are graduating to solids. Children at this stage can also be fed soft, cut-up foods like bananas, blueberries, and eggs.

Toddler Nutrition: Twelve Months to Five Years

Once a child is a year old, he or she is ready for cow’s milk. For the first two years of life, children should drink whole milk; however, low-fat milk is also acceptable once the child is past two years of age. Some foods to avoid during this stage are strawberries and honey, because children can choke on the strawberry seeds and honey has botulinum spores that make children sick.

Other Important Information
Important tip: If you are looking on the Internet for more information on what to feed your child, look for websites that end .org or .gov, as there are more accurate, and more reliable sources.
Foods that are a choking hazard: Grapes, hot dogs, popcorn, raw vegetables, hard fruit, white bread, peanuts, hard candies and gum.
Top food allergies: Milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy, gluten/wheat
Unhealthy foods to avoid: Anything with high sodium or salt content, carbohydrates, or sugar. Some good examples of such foods are corn dogs, hot dogs, pizza, mac ‘n cheese, white bread, chips, soda, and granola bars.

Group Night is held at New Beginnings. Every Thursday, we meet as a group to discuss important life skills and educational topics. Discussions are led by community volunteers and can cover a broad range of topics.

Learning How To Save Lives At New Beginnings

4/10/2017

New Beginnings – A Home for Mothers offers group classes to the mothers residing in the program every Thursday night. For one of our Thursday night group sessions, a group of three nursing students from Wisconsin Lutheran College educated staff and residents on choking prevention and infant CPR.

The nursing students are a part of the Nursing Association on the WLC campus, and one student, Lori Bowman, served as a Resident Assistant at New Beginnings in 2015. We were excited to see Lori and to learn about the importance of choking prevention and first aid.

As a part of the presentation, the students brought in a life-like doll that we used to practice CPR. One of our mothers, Jasmira, was brave and practiced on the doll in front of the group! The essentials that we gathered from the presentation can be broken into 3 main parts:

Choking Prevention
Foods that pose the greatest danger for small children as a choking hazard include hot dogs, nuts and seeds, grapes, popcorn, raw vegetables, and peanut butter. Parents should also watch out for household items that can pose a choking risk including marbles, pen caps, small batteries, coins, and balloons.

Infant Choking
If a child is choking, he or she will not be able to talk, cry, or breathe. For infants younger than 1 year, first aid for infant choking includes alternating between giving 5 back slaps and 5 chest thrusts. An important note is that 911 should be called FIRST.

Infant and Child CPR
Should the child become unconscious, begin infant CPR. The three steps for infant CPR include (1) Open Airway, (2) Give Rescue Breaths, and (3) Give Chest Compressions. Again, 911 should always be called first.

The nursing students gave staff and residents a handout that details all of the life-saving steps. Please follow the link below to view the handout:
http://www.wheatonpediatrics.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Choking-Prevention-and-First-Aid.pdf.

We would like to thank the nursing students at Wisconsin Lutheran College for giving such an informative and professional presentation. The staff and residents at New Beginnings learned vital information that could help save lives!

Group Night is held at New Beginnings. Every Thursday, we meet as a group to discuss important life skills and educational topics. Discussions are led by community volunteers and can cover a broad range of topics.

Temptation, Idols, and More

4/10/2017

On March 23rd, we were able to have a bible study with Wisconsin Lutheran College’s Pastor Wayne Shevy, who works in the campus ministry office. Together, we studied Isaiah 46:7, which reads “They lift it to their shoulders and carry it; they set it up in its place, and there it stands. From that spot it cannot move. Even though someone cries out to it, it cannot answer; it cannot save them from their troubles.” Considering the subject matter, one of our most important topics of discussion was all the things that can be idols in our life, whether clothes, food, money, fame, or earthly relationships, just to name a few.

The 6 D’s of Temptation
We also learned about the 6 D’s of temptation: ways idols can creep into our lives. Whether through disguise, doubt, disagreement, deceit, desire, or destruction. Temptation can have harmful, even devastating, effects on our lives. Worse, there are many times where sin does not even look all that bad at first. However, the worst fact about idols is that when we fall prey to them, we risk our soul for something that can’t even help us when things really go wrong.

The most important thing we learned, however, was that God is far better than any idol, and He can deliver us from temptation to worship them. God can rescue us from the slavery sin brings, which one of the most important things to remember about our relationship with Him.

Group Night is held at New Beginnings. Every Thursday, we meet as a group to discuss important life skills and educational topics. Discussions are led by community volunteers and can cover a broad range of topics.

Common Sense Self-Defense By Elizabeth Scheibl

3/31/2017

On March 9th, I was not only present at Group Night; I was blessed with the opportunity to lead Group Night! As a black belt in karate and two-year taekwondo practitioner, I have a passion for martial arts and self-defense, so I was excited to work directly with the residents. The class I conducted had three basic components: Essential Techniques, Common Holds Used by Attackers, and Key Concepts. They are broken down below.

Essential Techniques
You’ve heard of most of these before, but that’s because they’re essential and effective.

Elbows: THEY HURT. Remember the annoying boys you elbowed when they came up behind you in middle and grade school? Do the same with an attacker, but don’t be afraid to elbow him/her under the chin or across the face as well.
Kicks: I could teach a whole class on this, but for the sake of brevity, I will say that the easiest and most effective kick is knee kick. Just bring your knee up into a sensitive spot, which works very well if your attacker is holding you close to him/her.
Palm heel: The hard area at the bottom of your palm is its heel. Like the elbow, this can be used to strike a variety of soft spots. Remember to pull your fingers back!
Feral Fighting: DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO GET AWAY. Yes, you can train your body to be a weapon through martial arts or self-defense classes, but you can also use common items like clipboards, books and magazines, scissors, and pens. If your life is being threatened, DO NOT HESITATE to inflict injury on your attacker’s eyes, ears, nose, throat, and groin (the groin, however, is not always the best area to go for, as an attacker can fight through the pain if he is extremely angry, drunk, or high).

Common Techniques Used by Attackers
Another key component of self-defense is knowing how to defend against attacks that aggressors are likely to use.

Headlock: If you can, turn your head to the side while grabbing your attacker’s arm. By turning your head, you are giving yourself more room to breathe and escape. Try to step behind your attacker, and DO WHATEVER IT TAKES from this point on until you get away.
Wrist Grab: You can find several techniques to defend against on attacker grabbing one or both wrists on a variety of self-defense websites, but I will describe one simple but effective defense here. When your attacker grabs your wrist, struggle as though you are trying to get away, pulling in the opposite direction. Once you’ve pulled away as far as you possibly can, use your attacker’s momentum against him/her by lunging in the direction your attacker is pulling you. End the technique with a strike against your attacker (a palm heel to the nose would work especially well here).
Bear hug: If your attacker grabs you from the front, try striking upwards using your hands (a palm heel underneath the chin, for example). If you are unable to move your hands, use your knees or try to stomp on your attacker’s foot. If all else fails, pinch sensitive areas (you don’t need a wide range of motion to pinch someone). If someone behind you has you in a bear hug, drop your weight and swing at him/her with your elbows.

Key Concepts
Now that you know what to do in order to defend yourself against an attacker, here’s an explanation of why it works.

Momentum: If your attacker is pulling you in a certain direction, sometimes its better to use the force of your attacker pulling you to launch a counter attack, as described in a description of a wrist grab above.
Leverage: Wrist locks are complicated to discuss in writing, so I didn’t incorporate them. However, they are all based on one thing: bending your attacker’s joints in directions they aren’t meant to go. For example, if someone grabbed you, and you loosened his/her grip by grabbing his/her fingers and pulling them backwards, you would be using this concept. If you study martial arts for any length of time, you will learn about this concept very, very quickly.
Rotation: Use your range of motion to cause maximum damage to an attacker. See Elbows.
Explosiveness: Surprise and stun your attacker by an explosion of kicks and blows.

Group Night is held at New Beginnings. Every Thursday, we meet as a group to discuss important life skills and educational topics. Discussions are led by community volunteers and can cover a broad range of topics.

What is cognitive development?

1/9/2017

From birth, your baby absorbs information and starts building cognitive skills, they learn and grow through new experiences. Even when it looks like simple play, your baby is learning all the time. By the age of three, they have developed 85% of their brain. Letting a baby encounter and explore their environment, singing, listening to stories, and playing games are the first, critical steps in building academic and social skills for a lifetime. Your baby is soaking up everything as their brain grows - this is called cognitive development. Cognitive skills include your baby’s ability to learn, think, understand, reason, problem-solve, and remember.

It’s important to remember that all babies are individual and will develop at their own pace. However, if for some reason you are concerned about your child’s development, talk with your family health nurse or doctor to help you decide if there any problems you need to have checked out.

Ways to encourage cognitive growth.
Read books aloud to your baby and recite nursery rhymes, choose books that have brightly colored pictures that show common objects, point and make noises – say the animal sounds to go along with the animal pictures. Babies enjoy cloth books with different textures, and flaps.

Have meaningful conversations with your baby, react to their coos and smiles, they are expecting you to respond.

Provide lots of fun bath toys.

Give your baby toys that let him push a button to make something happen, or activities like shaking or banging objects. Your baby wants to see the results of his actions, this helps him learn the “if-then” reasoning.

As you can see, babies are not only growing physically during their first years of life, but also cognitively (mentally).

It’s never too early to help your baby become all that they can be.

Karen O'Leary is the the Program Manager at New Beginnings. She has her BA in Bible Theology and her Masters of Divinity. She has 8-years of experience as a Social Director at a non-profit organization helping those in crisis with financial assistance, brief supportive counseling, and being a spiritual presence in their time of need. In her free time Karen enjoys reading, cooking and traveling.

Trying to Juggle a New Baby and School

9/2/2016

Having a new baby is always exciting, but try throwing school that works as a full time job (without the benefits of getting paid at the end of your 2 weeks) on top of testing on what seems like every other day. Starting a school that teaches you more about your passion and career path is enough to motivate anyone. Well, try throwing a new baby in the picture. Your motivation turns into determination that never gets… sleep. You are already away for 8hrs Monday through Friday and you refuse to miss a beat because when they’re at that age, everything comes in bundles and it seems like you should record everyday in order to never miss what’s new to come. Well, that’s where I’m at in my life. I’m just trying to figure out how to make it all work with the time (the one thing that waits for no one). Having a new baby is always exciting and now you’re double excited with school that teaches you more about your passion and career path because your end goal is to provide better for her. I’m not complaining because I love the challenge.

http://www.keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk/

Strategy #1: Use school time wisely.
If you have free time during school, use that time to try and get some homework done or even study for an upcoming test.

Strategy#2: Baby is PRIORITY.
After coming home from a long day at school, school work should not be the first thing you do. Instead, spend time with baby. Spending time with baby can be used as an escape from the thoughts about school and showing him or her how much they’re missed.

Strategy #3: Never let it overwhelm you.
“Never borrow what you can’t stand to get back.” SLEEP Sleep is key. Knowing your functioning limits without sleep is a must but neglecting too much sleep will definitely overwhelm you in the long run.

www.babysleepsite.com

These things may or may not work for you but it wouldn’t hurt to try.
Good luck!

Meosha is a former resident here at New Beginnings. She joined our family in January of 2016. She has a beautiful little girl for whom she is striving to make a better life for.