Blog Posts by TheBump.com

Find out which purees and snacks out littlest critics loved -- and which ones landed on the floor. By Sarah Yang for TheBump.com

Gerber Graduates Fruit & Veggie Melts
What it is: Melt-in-your-mouth fruit-flavored snacks for older babies and toddlers, which come in new fruit-and-veggie combo flavors.
The pros: Again, they've sneaked veggies in there! They're easy for babies to gum and have a great sweet flavor. We had our testers try the very berry blend flavor, and while some of the moms said they'd rather give their babies actual berries, they liked that the first ingredient listed on the package was actually squash. Everyone liked the flavor -- even the moms!
The cons: Some moms thought they were a little too sweet and that the texture was kind of strange (it felt a little gritty on their teeth!), but the babies didn't complain. The package says there's four grams of sugar per serving, which isn't too much.
One critic's reaction: "It was a huge hit. He kept going 'mo'

Read More »from Baby Food Taste Test

Turns out, feeling like a "married single mom" is more common than we thought.

By Caitlin Brody for TheBump.com

Being a mommy is a full-time job, but when you pair that with your own career and your relationship, not to mention running a household, you're bound to feel like you do it all. So ForbesWoman and The Bump surveyed over 1,200 mamas to get the dirt on how stay-at-home and working moms are dealing with balancing, well, everything, and we were pretty surprised to hear that 39% of both groups of mamas sometimes feel like a "married single mom," even though they're raising baby with a partner.

Back-to-work guide for new moms

So what does that mean exactly? Well, 91% of stay-at-home moms say they contribute more than half of the household work, and 98% do more than half of the parenting work. And while working moms seem to have it a little more balanced (hey, they are out of the house for most of the day), 77% say they still contribute more than half of the housework, and 85%

Read More »from Moms Say They’re Not Getting Much Help From Dad

Will doing it hurt the baby? Or induce labor? Here, we take on the common misconceptions of having sex while you're expecting.

By Joanne Van Zuidam for TheBump.com



Sure, there are some good excuses not to have sex: You've got a headache, tonight is supposed to be laundry night, Glee is on... But being pregnant shouldn't be one of them (after all, you've got nine whole months of this). That's because sex is totally fine in a normal pregnancy without complications, assures Jacques Moritz, MD, director of the Endoscopy Section and Division of Gynecology at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York City.

So you got the green light from your OB, but you're still putting on the brakes because you're afraid you'll hurt the baby? Relax, and read on.

Pregnant sex -- the good, the bad, and the weird!

The Myth:
"Deep penetration can harm the fetus"
The Lowdown:
This is one b-i-g myth. Did you know your (amazing) vagina stretches during sex? It naturally creates a gap of several

Read More »from 5 Pregnancy Sex Myths -- Busted

From nursing pillows to car seats, lots of products contain potentially harmful substances. Learn more now.

By Elena Donovan Mauer for TheBump.com




Sorry, moms. You can add this to the list of things to worry about: toxic flame retardants in baby products such as car seats, changing table pads, portable mattresses and even nursing pillows. In a new study published in Environmental Science & Technology, researchers collected 101 polyurethane foam samples from baby products (some old and some purchased as recently as 2010) and tested them for flame retardants such as tris phosphate, finding the chemicals in about 80 percent of them.

Get the scoop on the 5 coolest new baby gadgets here!

According to the study's authors, these chemicals may pose health risks to babies and kids, and could be linked to tumors and thyroid and hormonal issues (yeah, scary!). They note that the Consumer Product Safety Commission has banned at least one of the chemicals in upholstered furniture, and some

Read More »from How Much Baby Gear Has Toxic Chemicals? More Than You’d Expect

Munch on these pre-natal powerfoods to keep both you and baby healthy.

By Kristin Koch for TheBump.com

Lean Meat
What it's got: Sure, you know it's a great source of protein, but lean beef and pork are also packed with iron and B vitamins.
Why it's good for both of you: Your body needs a lot more protein now (about 25 extra grams a day) to help the fetus grow and to ensure her muscles develop properly. Same goes for iron: Not getting enough of this mineral can impair your baby's growth and increase the risk for preterm delivery and low birth weight. Iron is important for mom, too -- it's necessary for red blood cell formation (to prevent anemia). During pregnancy, your blood volume increases, so you'll need to up your iron intake (to around 27 milligrams a day). Bonus: Meat supplies a hefty dose of vitamins B6 (helps baby's tissue and brain growth, while easing mom's morning sickness) and B12 (helps to maintain healthy nerves and red blood cells).

Are you and baby getting

Read More »from 10 Foods Moms-to-Be Should Eat for Baby

By Caitlin Brody for TheBump.com

More from TheBump.com:

Worst parenting advice ever heard

Weirdest pregnancy cravings

Baby registry items you should skip

Travel tips for moms-to-be

Tips for small nurseries

Read More »from Sneaky (and Cheap!) Ways to Stretch Your Wardrobe Through Pregnancy

More than half of parents say their kids (as young as 12 months) undid their straps -- some while the car was moving.

By Elena Donovan Mauer for TheBump.com

You know that car seat that came with a 50-page manual and took you an hour to install? Well, your kid might be able to get himself out of it at an earlier age than you thought. Yup, car seats are a total pain for us, but a cinch for some toddlers to unlatch, according to a new study from Yale School of Medicine.

Top 20 baby safety questions--answered!

In the study, researchers surveyed 378 parents and found 51 percent of them reported that at least one of their children had unbuckled their car seat themselves. What's even scarier is that 75 percent unbuckled themselves for the first time at age three or younger -- some did it as young as 12 months old. And a shocking 43 percent did it while the car was moving!

The 5 coolest new baby gadgets to know about

Researchers suggest that buckling mechanisms need to be

Read More »from Watch Out! Toddlers Can Unbuckle Car Seats

It's National Infertility Awareness Week, and TheBump.com surveyed more than 1,000 women who are having trouble trying to conceive. Read on for the surprising results.

By Caitlin Brody for TheBump.com

When you're ready to have a baby, you probably think that it's going to be easy to conceive. But it often isn't. In fact, infertility affects more than 7.3 million people (yep, both men and women) nationwide, according to RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association. To help raise infertility awareness, TheBump.com surveyed more than 1,000 women and asked them to share their experiences with infertility.

Are you ready for a baby? Find out here

Surprisingly, 50 percent of the women surveyed said they never thought they'd ever have trouble trying to conceive. And while 47 percent of the women surveyed experienced female infertility (this typically refers to women who have been trying to conceive for at least 12 months and are under 35, or who are over 35 and have been trying

Read More »from How Infertility Affects Women