Parenting 101: 19 October 2012
Jenni Johnson, our resident ‘Baby Whisperer’, has been a practicing child-care practitioner for 15 years, and owns a busy ante and post natal clinic in Durban. This week she talks about growth and holidays, among other things.
* Before your child starts to crawl or pull him or herself up to a standing position - or moves from hanging onto your legs to letting go and walking that first step, you may find that he or she gets very clingy.
* Can you believe that from as young as 7-10months old a child will wait until you have finished talking before ‘speaking’.in their own babbley way. Communication and language is being passed on from the day your child is born.
* The single parent has the responsibility of raising a child alone. Good parenting has less to do with the number of parents in the home and more to do with the quality of parenting. Whether the single parent household is headed by a mother, father, or a grandparent, raising children alone is an admirable task.
* Many people think babies are born without kneecaps. The fact is at birth the kneecap is made of cartilage & by the age of 3 it turns to bone. Something else that grows later on is higher up - on your baby's face. They're born without a bridge in their nose - which is why they all have little button ones.
* It’s the school holidays. Spending as little money as possible to provide maximum entertainment is the key. The Durban Natural Science museum on the first floor of the city hall is a must. You’ll see a Tyrannosaurus Rex, the skeleton of the now extinct dodo, 1000’s of insects, and Africa’s largest mammal and… it’s free.
* Catch Jenni on-air every day just after 10am with her tip of the day.
At Jenni’s ante and post natal clinic in Durban, parents are taught a system that gives them structure and routine to the baby and childhood years. Jenni has a nursing background. She’s a registered nurse, midwife, psychiatric nurse and private nurse practitioner.
Jenni’s online clinic, can be accessed online via www.jennisays.com. For appointments, e-mail [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter via @JenniSays or on Facebook by 'liking' The Berea Baby Clinic.