August, 2009 Archives
Posted by: shannon, August 20, 2009 in 7:15 pm
I have several imperfect parenting moments. The one that really sticks with me is when my oldest was a small baby we went to visit my in-laws (his grandparents) out of town. When we got there everyone was hungry and in a hurry so I quickly changed him and packed a bag and we headed to the restaurant. It was time for him to eat so I went into his diaper bag to get his already prepared bottle and it wasn’t there! I had left it on the counter at home. I was sooo embarrassed. My in-laws kept saying, “Poor baby, he’s so hungry” and trying to feed him real food (which I put my foot down on since he was a newborn!). I felt like a horrible horrible mother! To top it off, the next time I saw them I had packed like 12 diapers for a day trip and my MIL changed his diapers so many times that we ran out. A family member went and begged some off a neighbor and said I forgot diapers. I had packed 12. Now I pack enough formula and diapers for a year for my kids even if I go to the store. 
Posted by: Michael Sajkowicz, August 20, 2009 in 3:30 pm
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 20, 2009
Release #09-319
Two Additional Infant Deaths Prompt Re-announcement of Simplicity “Close-Sleeper/Bedside Sleeper” Bassinets
Consumers urged to immediately stop using the 3-in-1 and 4-in-1 bassinets, including those with Graco logo and “Winnie the Pooh” motifs
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is once again urging all parents and caregivers to immediately stop using convertible “close-sleeper/bedside sleeper” bassinets manufactured by Simplicity Inc., of Reading, Pa. CPSC has learned of two additional infant deaths since the August 2008 safety alert and recall announcements that notified consumers of two infants who had strangled in their Simplicity bassinets. To date, CPSC is aware of four infants who have died in the close-sleeper bassinets.
CPSC learned that in September 2008, a two-month old female in Demorest, Georgia suffocated when she rolled into the adjustable fabric siding of the bassinet, pressing her face into a “pocket” which formed near the Velcro© fasteners. In another incident in January 2009, a six-month old female in Fort Worth, Texas appears to have been fatally entrapped in the bassinet’s bar opening created when the Velcro© fasteners were not secured. An investigation into this infant’s death is ongoing.
In addition, CPSC has received two separate reports involving a 10-week old and a 3-month old whose heads became entrapped between the lower bassinet bar and the mattress support. The infants were freed by their caregivers without injury.
The Simplicity 3-in-1 and 4-in-1 convertible bassinets, including bassinets with the Graco logo and “Winnie the Pooh” motif licensed by Disney Consumer Products, contain metal bars that are covered by an adjustable fabric flap. This fabric flap is secured by Velcro© fasteners, which are intended to be partially removed when the bassinet is converted into the bedside/close-sleeper mode. If the Velcro© fasteners are not properly re-secured when the fabric flap is adjusted, or if the consumer entirely removes the fabric flap exposing the metal bars, an infant can slip through the opening between the lower metal bar and the mattress support and become entrapped and suffocate or strangle. Consumers are urged to check their bassinets to ensure they are not using one of the recalled Simplicity bassinets.
Parents and caregivers are advised to return these bassinets to the retail store where they were purchased. All of the recalled bassinets can pose a danger to infants.
To determine whether your bassinet has been recalled, please check for the model number and the manufacture date code pictured below. Bassinets manufactured prior to 21st week of 2008, “2108” (before May 18) are recalled. The model numbers for recalled bassinets manufactured prior to “2108” are:
3000 3010 3011 3012 3013 3014
3015 3016 3017 3020 3025 3026
3027 3030 3040 3045 3046 3047
3050 3060 3070 3111 3112
343-8363 343-8399
5730 5750
8383
9250
TD2500
A list retailers that have voluntarily agreed to recall the product and provide a refund or store credit to consumers who return the product to the store where purchased is included on the original press release.
Due to the life-threatening hazard these bassinets pose to infants, CPSC urges all consumers to share this safety warning with friends, family, day care centers, and consignment stores to ensure that no child is placed to sleep in a Simplicity convertible bassinet covered by this warning.
SFCA Inc., the Reading, Pa.-based company that purchased the assets of juvenile product manufacturer Simplicity Inc. after foreclosure, no longer appears to be conducting day to day operations. SFCA Inc. is no longer answering phone calls or responding to e-mails from consumers.
CPSC Recall Hotline: (800) 638-2772
CPSC Media Contact: (301) 504-7908
Posted by: BadMommy, August 20, 2009 in 11:32 am
This week, Showtime’s new series Nurse Jackie stepped out of the confines of episodic make believe and gave us a look at reality on the mean streets of mommyhood.
Faced with the prospect of watching her own daughter edged out of her dance class space by a pushy friend as the adoring but oblivious mother watched on without a word, Nurse Jackie let her emotions get the best of her and tried to correct the child directly.
…read more
Posted by: Michael Sajkowicz, August 20, 2009 in 9:56 am
Today’s top headlines for parents
Although the U.S. comes 1st place in healthcare spending, it is only 37th when it comes to actual healthcare performance according to the World Health Organization.
Breastfeeding doesn’t stand a chance against the aggressive and illegal marketing of baby formula in Vietnam that has dropped all natural nursing down to just 17 percent.
…read more
Posted by: Michael Sajkowicz, August 19, 2009 in 9:36 am
Today’s top headlines for parents
A 4-year old child swallowed cocaine after another boy passed out packets in daycare, thinking it was candy – thanks to good old dad who told him so while hiding it in his jacket during an encounter with police.
A breastfeeding mom who lost her job (and lost again in Ohio’s Supreme Court) prompts a call for better protection for nursing mothers.
…read more
Posted by: Andrew McCarthy, August 18, 2009 in 10:39 am
My partner loves her Bugaboo. I’ve hated it since the day we got it. It’s easy to hate. After you buy the rain cover and the car seat attachment and the mosquito net and the Breezy Sun Canopy and the parasol and the Snuggly Foot Muff and the latte cup holder and the grocery bag hook and the custom diaper bag and the Transport Bag, it tops out at well over a thousand dollars. A thousand dollars for a stroller. My first car cost me less than that. And try to get the thing into the trunk of a taxi while cars pile up behind you on a busy street.
…read more
Posted by: Michael Sajkowicz, August 18, 2009 in 9:26 am
Today’s top headlines for parents
The wake-up call of the day: If you don’t have health insurance, you’re 40% more likely to die.
Sex, drugs and booze! That’s what half of the commercials are about during pro football and baseball games and parents don’t like it one bit.
OB/GYN malpractice insurance is out of control:
…read more
Posted by: Michael Sajkowicz, August 17, 2009 in 9:23 am
Today’s top headlines for parents
And now we learn of another case of a father raping his daughter over the last 30 years, starting when she was 11-years old and fathering 4 children with her, this time down under in Australian.
First-time homebuyers are rushing to make their offers in the next three weeks in order to take advantage of the $8,000 federal tax credit that is set to expire.
…read more
Posted by: Ilona Siller, August 16, 2009 in 12:47 pm
1. Her not walking yet. I am yet to find a resume that states “Walked before 10 months old”.
2. Not finishing every last bite on her plate. If I lived by kid’s rule “Finished when full”, that bikini might still fit.
3. Not sending her to fancy shmansy $20.000 a year kindergarden. How do you say “I pooped” in Latin? Who cares.
…read more
Posted by: Shelley Gershoni Cekirge, August 16, 2009 in 10:06 am
I used to love to travel. Going to the airport, boarding the plane, being whisked off to some exotic vacation spot and leaving the every-day behind. What an adventure! I am sorry to say that I no longer feel this way. The thought of airports now fill me with dread. Endless lines, missed connections, infinite security checks, and ALL that baby paraphernalia!
I vowed to pack light on my latest excursion, but don’t we always do that. The one thing I was able to do to lighten my load was leave my daughter’s heavy, clumsy, inconvenient stroller behind. I was on the look out for the lightest, easiest, simplest-to-fold-up stroller I could find. I stopped into a mom and pop stroller shop in the middle of LA to ask their opinion. The Chicco Liteway. No doubt. Would your mother lie to you? I was not disappointed.
…read more
