Today we have a guest post from Misty Weaver, Chief Editor BabySignLanguage.com. I hop you enjoy this post and check out her website for more in depth information.

Baby sign language is an easy and fun way to communicate with your pre-verbal baby. A simplified version of American Sign Language (ASL), it is easy to learn and easy to teach to your baby or toddler.  To make a start, all you need to do is learn some simple signs.

How To Get Started
Okay, first let’s learn some fun and easy signs.

• MOMMY: To make the sign for Mommy, extend and spread your fingers apart on your right hand. With your little finger facing forwards, tap your thumb on your chin. Mommy.

• DADDY: To make the sign for Daddy, extend and spread out the fingers on your right hand, then tap your hand on your forehead with your thumb. This is similar to the sign for Mommy but done higher up the head. Daddy.

• MILK: The sign for Milk is a lot like the action of milking a cow without the up and down motion. Just pretend you are just squeezing the cow’s udder. Make both hands into a fist, relax and repeat. Milk.

• MORE: To make the sign for More, make an O shape with each hand by meeting your fingers and thumbs. Bring your hands together and separate them a few times. More.

How To Teach The Signs To Your Baby
You need to make the sign every time you say the relevant word to your baby. As well as signing, it’s also important to say the word that goes with the sign clearly, making good eye contact, while pointing to the object or person you are describing. Sign when your baby is alert and not too tired, using an object which is exciting to him, such as Milk or Mummy. Practice the signs beforehand so you feel confident about what you are doing.

Repetition Is The Key
Repetition is the key to Teaching Baby Sign Language to your baby. Be sure to make the sign and say the word every time you do an action or use an object. You should find ways to build Baby Signing into your day so signing becomes second-nature. Your baby will learn the signs through repetition (and so will you), and eventually it will be natural for him to sign back.

Be Patient With Your Baby And Yourself
Don’t expect too much too soon. Your baby is unlikely to be signing for more milk if he is only 4 months old and you’ve been signing to him for a week! Research by Dr. Joseph Garcia, one of the founders of Sign Language For Babies, found that a typical baby who starts learning signs at seven months old needs about two months of repetition and exposure to a sign to start using it.

The post Introducing Baby Sign Language appeared first on The Mom Maven.

In case you aren’t familiar with the Worst-Case Scenario books, they have been around for 10 years. The original book has spawned multiple sequels including: parenting, politics, life, work and more. The books are fun, fact-filled looks at how to handle the worst-case scenario of any situation.

Parenting is divided into three chapters and an appendix. Chapter One: Ages Zero to Three, includes entries such as How to Deal with a Screaming Baby on an Airplane, How to Get your Baby to Sleep and How to Survive Baby Gear Overload. My favorite in this chapter is How to Give your Baby a Bath without a Bathtub. This article lists several containers you could use as a makeshift bathtub; my favorite part is the list of what not to use.

Do Not Use:

• Drive-through car wash (with open car windows)
• Toilet bowl
• Front-loading washing machines
• Outdoor power sprayer
• Dishwasher
• Hot tub

Chapter Two:Three to Twelve includes; How to Remove Chewing Gum from Hair, How to Discipline an Imaginary Friend and How to Rid a Bedroom of Monsters. My favorite in this chapter is How to Remove a Wad of Paper from your Child’s Nose. I found this one interesting for two reasons; first when I taught pre-school I had one little girl who was always putting things up her nose, and second because recently my sister and brother-in-law needed a chapter called ‘How to Remove a Shark’s Tooth from your Son’s Ear’…long story as you can imagine.

Chapter Three: The Teenage Years covers things like: How to Survive Teenage Angst, How to Avoid a Prom Corsage Wound and How to Survive Empty-Nest Syndrome. My favorite though is How to Determine if your Child is Driving your Car-which includes placing an analog watch under the car tire! In the Appendix, they cover Essential Parenting Cliches, the “Birds and the Bees Speech”, an IM/Text lingo decoder and a teen slang glossary.

This is the parenting book for all parents in all stages of parenting. It is funny and helpful at the same time. If you would like to purchase The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook: Parenting you can do so at their website.

You can win The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook: Parenting right here from The Mom Maven!

Mandatory 1st Entry: Leave a comment telling me the worst-case parenting scenario you have survived.

Bonus entries:

• Follow both @MomMaven and @WorstCaseBooks on Twitter and leave me a comment with your Twitter name
• Tweet This “Win The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook Parenting from @MomMaven & @worstcasebooks http://bit.ly/HmXxR” and leave a comment with the tweet’s URL
• Become a fan of Worst-case scenarios on Facebook and leave me a comment letting me know you did it.

This giveaway is for US residents only. The drawing will be held August 7, 2009 at 7:00pm. Good Luck!

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