Hi,
I am travelling to Atlanta from India on the 30th Sept. with my son Rishi. He will be 4 months old by then. Please let me know what to expect on my arrival. do i need to take him to a doc based on my insurance...or wait till the need arrises.

how do you give head bath alone?
is buying a crib essential?
how to dress the baby during the cold season?
please advice if i need to know any other important information.

bye,
hamsa

kiran replied. Hi hamsa
I came to US first time with 2 months baby last year and she is 15 months old now.her name is Rishitha and we call her Rishi.
As Shital said practise makes you perfect.i know we will be worrying more for babies.Give vaccinations to ur baby when ever it is neccesseray.Even it is little late then also no problem.Just note what all the Vaccines given in India and tell the pediatrain here.
so dont worry.Everything will be fine here.

bye
kiran Shital replied. Hamsa,
I guess practice makes you perfect. I understand your worries. Even I was worried but I didn't have much help with my baby so I learned it by my self. My son is now 18 month old. :)

generally in India, they give solids at 4 months but pediatrician over here recommends solids at 6 months. You can start with rice cereal, gerber food stange 1 or your home cook meal etc..

Don't worry too much about taking care of the baby in USA. You are mom so can't go wrong. I understand your worries with your babies.

One thing is that when you are ready to fly (I mean when they announce for flight attendent to get ready to take off) you may want to breastfeed your baby. It will help him with air pressure. Also do the same thing for the landing. Kids get cracky with ear pressure so just make sure you are feeding him during that time.

Let me know if you still have any other questions or concerns.

Happy flying... :)
-Shital hamsa replied. my son is only 3.5 months old. so its tough to make him sit and hold my hand against his face and the pour water on him all by myself. what if they drink water?

also he is completely breastfed. what solids can i give him and when?

any othre general guideline to take care of a baby IN USA??

hamsa Shital replied. Dear Hamsa,
Are you just visiting US or are you going to be here for a while? If you are going to be here for a while, it's always a good idea to have good pediatrician selected for your child.

To answer your questions:
1)Giving head bath for first child is always difficult but not really hard. You can buy Euro bath tub. It's the kind of bath tub that is design for younger and older babies. First You can lay your child in that tub. Take a baby shampoo in your hand or wash cloth. hold his head with one hand and rub his hair with other. after that thoroughly rinse it with water. You can cover your hands in front of your babies eyes. Shampoo doesn't give eye burn but babies don't like anything going in their face.

2) No buying crib is not essential. You can have your child sleep with you if you are cofortable. You can buy play pan/sleeper combo and you can put your child in that as well.

3)For dressing babies during cold season: One rule of thumb - Always dress your baby in one layer more than you do.

If you have any other questions, just post your message here again. I check it everyday.

Good Luck! Enjoy your stay in US. Love to your little one.

-Shital