Babble Soft™ has partnered with Midwest Nannies agency to give parents a FREE one-month subscription to the Baby Insights Day Tracker™ when they sign on for childcare at Midwest Nannies.

We are excited about partnering with Midwest Nannies to offer their customers an easy way to try our Baby Insights application. Our goal is to make the transition into parenthood easier by taking away some of the worry about whether baby is getting what he or she needs. We know Midwest Nannies offers quality care, which makes our partnership such a good fit. The partnership with Midwest Nannies and using the Baby Insights Day Tracker can be a critical component to any family-friendly back-to-work arrangement.

After returning to work, new moms and dads will want to know how much baby ate or slept, how many wet diapers they had, or what their mood was throughout the day. If their baby is on medication, then it’s also important to know when dosages where given. The Baby Insights Day Tracker makes it easy for parents and caregivers to track and share this information. Not only can working parents easily access and track how their baby is doing on a daily basis, but it also helps the caregiver to track and see patterns over time or to provide parents with the ability to see weekly reports. Tracking data and information in Baby Insights also helps parents to feel bonded with baby and to lessen feelings of missing out on baby’s daily activities and developmental milestones.

Parents and caregivers both have the same goal…to make sure baby is receiving the best care possible. Using the Baby Insights Day Tracker can help bridge the information gap between parents and caregivers. For instance, if baby is not sleeping well at night, parents can easily go in see their napping pattern for the past two weeks along with their nighttime sleep and identify patterns or areas to work on to help improve baby’s sleep. It also helps to be able to combine the sleeping patterns with baby’s eating habits as another way to gauge why baby may not be sleeping well. These data can also be used when parents meet with baby’s pediatrician for well baby check-ups.

For mom who is still breastfeeding and pumping while at work, using Baby Insights Day Tracker can help mom adjust her pumping schedule to make sure baby has enough milk during the day and caregivers can use it to help support mom with her breastfeeding efforts by planning or scheduling baby’s feedings to coincide with mom’s breastfeeding schedule.

Keeping a daily record of baby’s eating and sleeping habits not only helps to ensure good quality care for baby but it supports good communication between parents and caregivers which leads to the best possible care for baby.

If you have a nanny agency, contact us for your free subscriptions today. If you are a parent working with a nanny agency talk to your nanny agency about partnering with Babble Soft.

Contact Babble Soft Here

About Midwest Nannies, Ltd.

Midwest Nannies, Ltd. is a private employment agency specializing in childcare needs. Midwest Nannies, Ltd. recognizes the importance of having quality childcare. We believe your childcare provider has the most important job there is; caring for your children! Midwest Nannies, Ltd. knows the worry and frustration parents go through while searching for childcare. Midwest Nannies, Ltd. is committed to serve our clients on an individual basis to meet their special needs and/or requirements. Midwest Nannies, Ltd. is “Committed to Personal and Quality Service.” We stress service, honesty and a caring attitude!

Being a new mom is full of choices.  If you’ve made the choice to breastfeed your new baby rest assured that that is one of the most important decisions you will make as a new mother.  It’s hard to refute the benefits of breastfeeding and nowadays there are a lot of resources out there to help you along on this new journey such as how to find a certified lactation consultants, workplace accommodations for breastfeeding moms in the new health care law and health insurance plans that may cover breastfeeding related expenses.

The past few years has seen resurgence in the popularity of breastfeeding.  The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that mothers feed their babies only breast milk for the first six months. Breastfeeding is associated with a lower risk of many issues including ear and respiratory infections, diabetes and sudden infant death syndrome for babies and a lower risk of breast cancer and ovarian cancer for mothers.  More recent is the study published in the journal Pediatrics, which states that if most new moms would breastfeed their babies for the first six months of life, it would save nearly 1,000 lives and billions of dollars each year.

If you are a new mom returning to work who does breastfeed then you probably are already thinking about what to do.  The need for a reliable, efficient and easy to use breast pump is almost essential to keep up with breastfeeding at work.  A good breast pump is also a necessity for moms of premature infants who may initially be unable to breastfeed and need to express their milk.  A high quality breast pump can be an additional expense for families that they might not have counted on. At this point you may want to contact your health insurance company to find out if they offer any assistance/programs for new moms; surprisingly many of them do.  And be sure to look into using your health-care flexible spending account (FSA) for breastfeeding related expenses too – many will cover breast pumps with a doctor’s note.

You may also want to consider having a visit from a certified lactation consultant either prior to returning to work for tips on pumping or at any point after baby has come home.  A lactation consultant is a health care professional who is knowledgeable, skilled, and experienced in lactation (breastfeeding). The lactation consultant’s primary focus is to provide education, assistance and support to breastfeeding women, including how to help and support those new moms returning to work. Services and visits from a lactation consultant may also be covered by your insurance.

One really good source of breastfeeding information on whether or not health insurance will cover a breast pump or a visit from a certified lactation consultant recently became available on Medela’s website. While Medela is best known for its breast pumps and accessories, they are also very invested in helping moms succeed in breastfeeding.  This online resource will help new moms with their questions about whether or not their health insurance will cover certain breastfeeding-related expenses, including for example, lactation consultant services, breast pump rental/purchase and other costs.

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The time has come for you to join the ranks of moms returning to work after the birth of their baby.  There are no initiation rites to worry about or membership dues, but come Monday morning you’re back.  You might be feeling excited, anxious, apprehensive or sad, all of which is perfectly normal.  A few weeks before you start picking out what outfit you’re going to wear it is a good idea sit down and think about creating a family-friendly back-to-work arrangement with your employer.  Family friendly work arrangements help employees better balance their work and family obligations when they have some flexibility in the workplace.

Your Current Schedule

One of the first steps in balancing your work and family life is to do a little legwork before making your request and take a close look at a work schedule that you would prefer.  Make sure to ask yourself the right questions; determine what tasks you can do alone, which ones are collaborative, and how accessible you need to be to clients. Look at the following arrangements and decide which one might be best suited for your employer and you.

• Working from home/remote access
• Flextime.  What this means is that instead of starting at 8 am, you might come in at 7 am and leave at 4 or come in at 9 and leave at 6.  There are many choices with this.
• Establishing quality part-time work or job-sharing opportunities
• Exploring the option of a four day work week.  Say you used to work M-F 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., maybe you could try working 4 days a week, 10 hours a day and then you would always have an extra day off in the week, it doesn’t even have to be a Friday, it could be Wednesday and then you would never have to work more than 2 days in a row.

Communicating with your Employer

Once you have decided on some possible schedule options, the next step is to communicate this to your employer on what flexible work arrangement you would prefer, secure their support and explain why the family-friendly work arrangement you’re proposing is in your employer’s best interests. Make sure to write your proposal in a way that puts your company’s interest up front and shows your commitment.  It is best to set up a time to talk with them, come prepared and be ready to compromise, if necessary.  Show up with Plan A but also realize that Plan B may work just as well.  Here are some tips to follow.

• Review what the current policies are for family friendly work arrangements.  Talk to colleagues, HR or dust off the HR manual that’s on your shelf.
• The next step is to see what flexible work arrangement you would prefer.  Be persuasive, positive and open to suggestions.  In addition, don’t hesitate to “wow” them with statistics, such as 77% of employers allow parents to gradually return to work after childbirth or adoption as part of their efforts to hire and retain valuable employees. Recent studies show that employers are providing more flexible work options now than they were 10 years ago.
• Put together a business like, detailed proposal that focuses on your employers needs not yours.   Include the following: hours/days, job responsibilities you’ll be able to handle, if job sharing, a detailed list of how you’ll break up your job responsibilities and if telecommuting be sure to review the childcare and work arrangements ahead of time.  Some employers do require that if you do telecommute you have a childcare plan in place.

More Resources for Creating a Family Friendly Work Arrangement

Take a deep breath.  As a mom returning to work, you are not alone.  Many moms return to work and are able to achieve a good balance between work and family.  You are now one of them.  As you begin this new journey new issues may arise such as pumping/storing breast milk while at work, as well as the creating a system for keeping in contact with your child’s providers.   There is support and resources available to you to help.  Listed below are some resources that may also help with your transition back to work.  Consider staying on track with Baby Insights Day Tracker™ when you return to work.

• If you’re a breastfeeding mother returning to work, here is more information on how to get insurance reimbursement for a breast pump or lactation services: Breastfeeding Insurance Reimbursement
• This book offers practical tips and advice for working moms: Moms on the Job: 7 Secrets for Success at Home and Work

What will your family friendly work arrangement look like?