New parents of today are often looking for furniture that they won't have to store or dispose of when their child gets just a little bit older. However with thousands of convertible and "grow with your baby" cribs available, it can be even harder to find the right one. To help, we've created a breakdown of our favorites - the most beautiful and best loved convertible cribs currently on the market...click here to see the cribs we found!

New parents of today are often looking for furniture that they won't have to store or dispose of when their child gets just a little bit older. However with thousands of convertible and "grow with your baby" cribs available, it can be even harder to find the right one. To help, we've created a breakdown of our favorites - the most beautiful and best loved convertible cribs currently on the market. Most of the cribs come complete with mattress, but the included mattress is usually not the softest so you may want to purchase another, more comfortable mattress in the appropriate size. If you're interested in a particular crib, clicking on the image will take you shopping (the really good news is that Amazon ships these cribs for free)! 

Summertime means days on the beach, afternoons picnicking by the lake, and memory making in the local swimming pool. Summertime also means lifeguards, potential drowning, and increased dangers. 

We all think we know what a drowning looks like: said victim will flail arms, call out for help, and create quite an overall ruckus, right? Nope. That is called Aquatic Distress. When you see this, you are seeing a person who indeed needs some saving but is not yet drowning.  A person experiencing Aquatic Distress can call for help, grab onto lifesaving gear, and thrash around. Distress is a noisy process that sometime precedes a drowning – and sometimes does not.

You see, drowning is a silent process. When you are drowning, your body moves automatically into drowning mode and usually only a trained lifeguard is going to actually notice the signs of your distress. This is why so many children (nearly 10%) drown each year – right in front of their parents.  As a parent, always remember that noisy children are not drowning.  A quiet child is the true red flag for a drowning and, in all honesty, even turning your back for one minute (which we all seem to do) is too little vigilance because the Drowning Response only lasts from 20 to 60 seconds before submersion occurs. Dr. Francesco A. Pia has thoughtfully set out a description of the Instinctive Drowning Response or what a person looks like when drowning:

• The Person Does Not Call Out for Help. As a rule, a drowning person’s respiratory system is busy struggling to breathe. Speech is curtailed when a person is in any kind of respiratory distress. 

• The Person’s Mouth Will Sink, Momentarily Reappear and Then Sink Again.  When a drowning person’s mouth is momentarily above water, s/he will quickly exhale and then inhale as the mouth starts to sink below the water once again. It looks as if the person is bobbing up and down in the water – but will look low in the water. 

• The Person Does Not Splash Around, Reach Out, or Wave For Help. Drowning people cannot wave for help. A drowning person will instinctively extend the arms laterally and press down on the water’s surface; as though trying to lift oneself up out of the water. This instinctive move aids the drowning person in bringing the mouth above the water in order to try to breathe.

• The Person Does Not Aid In the Rescue.  A drowning person has lost the ability to control arm movements. The drowning person cannot wave for help, move toward a potential rescuer, or reach out to grab and hold onto rescue equipment. 

• The Person Remains Upright In the Water.  You will not see any leg movement from a drowning person. Only the arms are moving as the head bobs low; mouth submerged in the water. 
  

This is why parents are told to never turn their backs on a child in the water – even for a minute. One minute is too long and drowning is not always preceded by the thrashing and calls for help seen in Aquatic Distress. One parent noted that a drowning child looks like he is kind of doing a doggie paddle. Mario Vittone, an expert in water safety, provides a video of a person who is literally drowning so you can see what it actually looks like. (Spoiler: the person is saved by a lifeguard.) To provide even better safety, consider taking a Red Cross Swimmer Safety Course and remain ever vigilant of your children when they are in or near water. This way, all of your summer activities can remain safe and memorable. Mario Vittone also has a fabulous Facebook Page that is rich in information on water safety. Check it out.

Maybe you don’t care about my opinion. That’s fine. But hear me out on a few of these books, then tell me what you think. I’d love to hear your opinion, too.  You see, I love reading and books and people who read books so talking about what is loved and hated about each book just lends us all new perspectives. Picture books are special books that remind me of the magic and mayhem of childhood. I'm not really into those new reality books that try to help children align their political ideologies to whatever is a current issue.  Let them enjoy childhood a little bit, there's plenty of time for the other stuff when they get there. And they will get there.

The Official Top Ten Books

1. Where the Wild Things Are; Maurice Sendak  - I do, indeed love this book. It’s fun and filled with imagination and scary/friendly monsters. What could be better?
2. The Giving Tree; Shel Silverstein – I usually enjoy Silverstein but I hated this book. At first, I got all caught up in the love and generosity of the tree. In the end I am always depressed at the selfishness of a boy who grows into a selfish man and continues to take his entire life. Horrid little man.  And that tree is quite the enabler! 
3. Good Night Moon; Margaret Wise Brown – This book will always be engrained in my heart as the favorite of my daughters. Happy memories of snuggly reading abound. Be sure you look for the little mouse on each of the pages in this delightfully illustrated book.
4. Green Eggs and Ham; Dr. Seuss – I love this book! I remember getting to pick out a favorite book to represent when I was in elementary school. My mom and I carefully blew out some raw eggs (no small task) and painted them green. I’m not even sure what we used for ham, but the entire vignette was adroitly glued onto a paper plate and adorned with two ribbons that rendered it into a hat. I was so proud of that hat!!! And I still love this book!
5. Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs; Judi and Ron Barrett – Judi wrote it and Ron illustrated it. A perfect combination of teamwork, creativity, and a love of food. Best served with a tasty dinner for a delightfully happy meal. 
6. The Very Hungry Caterpillar; Eric Carle – This is one of those books that we read and didn’t care for one way or another. I know lots of people really like it (and I did try reading it a couple of extra times to see if I could figure out what I was missing).  I wouldn’t say don’t read it; I’d just say don’t go out of your way to do so.
7. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, Very Bad Day; Judith Viorst and Ray Cruz – A great book to read to a disgruntled child if you want to make things feel better.  I always thought it went better when I read it as Mommy and the Terrible, Horrible, Very Bad Day. Either way works. 
8. Guess How Much I Love You; Sam McBratney – “I love you up to the moon – and back.”   Does it ever get any sweeter than this sweet little love story? 
   
9. Pat the Bunny; Dorothy Kunhardt – This is a fun book to explore with your child and one of my favorites. But I never could understand – why did they name the bunny Pat? 
10. Love You Forever; Robert Munsch – This book is very tender and illustrates the cyclical nature of parent – child love. It gets a little stalkish in places but repeats the unforgettable message, “I’ll love you forever. I’ll like you for always.”  Young children love the way this books wraps them up in a message of love and caring.
    

That’s it for the top ten. But I thought I’d share a few more of my personal favorites with you. I’m sold on the tender, old fashioned stories in many of the older books but a lot of the new books are pretty fabulous, too.

My Personal Favorites

1. Blueberries for Sal; Robert McCloskey – Okay. Let’s be honest here. Any picture book written by Robert McCloskey is a must-have book. This story is about Sal’s adventure picking blueberries with her mother in Maine. What makes it special is a baby bear is out picking blueberries with his mother on the same mountain! Your kids (and you) will adore
2. Harold and the Purple Crayon; Crockett Johnson – Let Harold and his purple crayon draw you into an imaginary world of delight and fun.  
   
3. Click Clack Moo: Cows That Type; Doreen Cronin – teach your child about the power of collective bargaining with this adorable book. 
4. The Runaway Bunny; Margaret Wise Brown – The baby bunny comes up with a multitude of ways to run away. The mommy bunny lets him know his efforts will be futile as she will always come get him. This fabulously illustrated book is always a favorite with the kids.
5. The Little House; Virginia Lee Burton – I first found this book at my pediatrician’s office.  I had to work really hard not to steal it. I love this book that much! The little house is happily living in the country when urban sprawl takes over her space until she finds herself living a broken life in the city. She is saved (my stomach kept turning as I turned each page; afraid there was not going to be a happy ending). That is the magic of children’s books. And that is the way it should be. 
6. Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch; Eileen Spinelli – An accidental Valentine delivered by the postman transforms the life of a lonely old man. This book illustrates the power of love and kindness.
7. Lizzie, the Lost Toys Witch; Mabel Harmer – You will have to work to share the delights of this out-of-print book with your children. Why? Because it’s out of print of course! It is one of our most favorite books about a witch who gathers up children’s lost toys and her adventures which are complicated by a sign stealing kangaroo. 
8. Me First; Helen Lester – Pinkerton the pig was a pushy little pig who always had to be first. Until one day when he met the sand witch. This book is a family favorite that we read over and over. The kids liked to pair it with The Little Red Caboose; Marian Potter (a Golden Book). (See how I cheated and snuck in an extra book?)
9. The Pokey Little Puppy; Janette Seabring Lowery (a Golden Book) – The puppies are always escaping the yard and going on adventures. But the pokey little puppy misses everything because he’s sooo pokey! Kids adore this book.
10. The Lively Little Rabbit; Ariane (a Golden Book) – I had my mother’s copy of this book from when she was a little girl and I adored it. When my kids came along, they loved the book and wanted to read it again and again. But my mother’s copy was missing the first page! So I hunted down another copy and we kept both.  It’s a story about a little rabbit who outsmarts a mean old weasel. You’ll have to look in out of print books for this little gem.
11. Little Black Sambo; Helen Bannerman – Little black Sambo’s mama has made him a fine new suit of clothes and the mean tigers approach him one at a time to steal them from him. This book illustrates how this clever little boy not only gets back his clothes but gets a delicious meal of pancakes!  It was once on the banned books list which I could never figure out since Little Black Sambo is the smartest and bravest little boy I know. 
    

I’m out of control when it comes to books. These are my favorites (well, a few of them).  Read a book to your child every night. You’ll never regret it. Which are you favorite picture books?

Being a parent is hard. Everyone wants to tell you what’s best for your baby. Your doctor will tell you to keep that kid out of your bed. Your mother will tell you not to spoil the baby. Your best friend will scold you for not keeping your baby safe from all of the terrors of the world. Your head is spinning from all of the advice and the worst part is a lot of the advice you receive from your beloved and trusted sources conflict. All you want to do is that which is best for your little one for both the short and the long run. But how do you figure out what that might be?  Some of the advice you hear will be solid; some of it may actually hurt your child. As the parent, it's up to you to decide what kind of child you hope to rear and then act accordingly. 

The following three pieces of common parenting advice are ones you definitely want to carefully consider as you plan how to care for your child.

1. Never Let Your Baby’s Head Touch the Pillows On Your Bed.  Myth?  Fact?  Well, it really depends on what you truly want.  Some families swear by the Family Bed and research has shown that children who do not sleep alone are more self-assured and independent as they grow older. This is because your child’s needs are better met when he is right there next to you. If he wakes up in the middle of the night, he has the immediate comfort of a parent available. He learns the world is safe and that his needs will be met. Research even shows that babies are less likely to die of SIDS when they sleep with their parents because the baby’s breathing and heartbeat regulates itself to his mother’s heart. BUT.  A baby in your bed every night can really put a damper on your sex life. Your baby may grow up to be well adjusted, but what about you? Parents who have lost touch with each other because of the heavy demands of caring for their darling children often grow apart and without an occasional nighttime cuddle will feel the rift grow even larger. Children whose parents are no longer together are not going to be the independent, self-assured school children for which you were aiming.  If you are going to be committed to sharing a family bed (sometimes call sleep-sharing), you also need some easy access alternatives for, umm, private time.  Recommendation: Maintaining a family bed is very much a personal choice. If you decide to use it for your family, have another bed for two somewhere in the house.  Once your kids are older they can sleep with each other in the second bed – leaving you to private time your own room.
2. Ferberize your baby and it will be a better child.  Only if you think a better child is one who has learned she cannot trust you to help when she cries for help, feels isolated, and has learned to never ask for help because it isn’t coming.  You see, Dr. Ferber was a medical doctor but knew nothing about pediatrics or child psychology. He was teaching parents to go against their natural instincts when caring for their child. This is why parents say the Ferber method is so hard for them. It is actually breaking a connection that was meant to be in place. Well documented studies have shown that Ferber babies continue to experience vastly increased levels of cortisol, adrenalin, and other distress hormones weeks after they have stopped crying when put down and left. The crying has stopped because the child has learned she can’t trust her caregivers to be responsive; even though she is still experiencing increased heart rate and blood pressure, elevated cerebral blood pressure, cardiac stress, immune system problems and anxiety issues.  So if your goal is to have a child who will shut up even when she has valid needs, who stays quiet because she has learned she can’t trust you, and has a slightly different brain function due to ill-advised Ferber methods you imposed on her, Ferber is the way to go. Don’t do it. 
3. Never let you child experience frustration.  A child who doesn’t experience frustration doesn’t get the opportunity to learn to patiently stretch to meet a difficult goal or to delay gratification as a young adult. A study, often called the marshmallow test, was conducted 40 years ago on delaying gratification. A child was left in a room with a small treat (i.e., an M&M or a marshmallow). Each child was told he could eat the treat now – but that if he waited 15 minutes he could have 2 treats.  Most children stated the goal of waiting – but many could not wait and ate the treat before the researcher returned.  The researchers followed these children over several years and found that children who failed to delay gratification during the experiment were significantly more likely to experience drug addiction, obesity, and high school behavior problems than those who had mastered the art of delayed gratification. Some of your child’s ability to delay gratification is inborn, however, children with a naturally low gratification delay temperament can betaught to learn to delay gratification to obtain better rewards if faced with situations which forced them to develop delaying tactics (e.g., some kids would physically turn away from the treat and distract themselves, other children stated they imagined the treat was an inedible object until the researcher returned).  This world needs people with both low and high gratification abilities – the lucky child is the one who was born with low delay ability who had parents who are willing to teach him how to face temptation and frustration to develop a high delay ability. That child will grow into an adult who is flexible enough to act immediately when necessary as well as to wait when necessary.