Celebrate Pregnancy Awareness Month May 1st at Bergamot Station!

My name is Sydney

My name is Sydney.

My most favorite activity is nursing, and I like to do it all day and half the night, too! When not nursing, I enjoy looking at books, kicking and splashing in the tub, and playing with my big sister Avery.

We love hearing more about our growing Pump Station family! Send us your favorite picture of your baby with a short baby bio. Does your baby have favorite snuggly toy, song, or even a favorite sports team? What does you little one like to do when no one's looking?

Send your photo to info@pumpstation.com.

Baby Bios should be under 220 characters or 60 words. Text and photos will edited to fit in the allotted space when needed.

» See More of Our Pump Station Family

Clean Bee Baby Supports March of Dimes

Dirty Car Seat or Stroller? Support March of Dimes by having your baby gear cleaned at The Pump Station!

CleanBeeBaby uses steam cleaning in conjunction with eco-friendly, non-toxic products to kill germs and mold that lingers in your baby gear. Clean & dry takes only 30  minutes and then their team of Certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians will help reinstall your car seat after its clean!

Prices start at just $19, so please book an appointment today! Available 8:30am to 3 pm on 4/12 in Westlake Village and 4/15 in Hollywood and a portion of sales from these events will be donated to the March of Dimes. Check the website for the schedule of upcoming dates when CleanBeeBaby will be back at The Pump Station.

House calls also available. For more info visit www.cleanbeebaby.com to book an appointment.


Upcoming Dates at the Pump Station & Nurtury™

Westlake Village

March of Dimes Benefit
April 12, 2011 from 8:30am-3:00pm

Hollywood

March of Dimes Benefit 

April 15, 2011 from 8:30am-3:00pm
 

Santa MonicaEarth Day from 8:30am-3:00pm
April 22, 2011

Free Stroller Strides Classes at The Pump Station & Nurtury™

 

and

is partnering in a march for babies!

In honor of this unique partnership, Stroller Strides instructors are offering free classes for their total fitness program. Babies welcome from 6 weeks to any age!  After class,  enjoy shopping discounts at The Pump Station with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the March of Dimes.

Classes will meet outside of our Pump Station Locations!

Westlake Village

Tuesday, April 12

• 8:30am LEAN Mommy: Nutrition and healthy life-style course

• 9:30am Stroller Strides: Whole body workout for moms with babies in strollers.

• 10:30am-6pm: Discount shopping and March for Babies fundraiser at The Pump Station, 10% discount + 10% of sales donated to March of Dimes

Hollywood

Friday, April 15 – Pump Station, Hollywood

• 9:30am Stroller Strides: Whole body workout for moms with babies in strollers.

• 10:30am-6pm: Discount shopping and March for Babies fundraiser at The Pump Station, 10% discount + 10% of sales donated to March of Dimes

Santa Monica

Date and time coming soon! Stay tuned...

For more information visit www.strollerstrides.net and www.pumpstation.com

Sleepy Wrap

We are happy to now offer Sleepy Wraps online!. The Sleepy Wraps are so popular we decided we needed to make them easier to get. Stay home and avoid all the traffic and take advantage of our free shipping promo. (free shipping for orders $50 and over).

Haven't heard of the Sleepy Wrap? It's made from 95% cotton, 5% spandex for breathability and strength. The Sleepy Wrap is soft and won't dig into your shoulders. This baby carrier wrap is the most comfortable wrap without those annoying buckles, metal rings and impossible to reach clips. The wrap is 5.5 yards long and 20 inches wide. It will fit you, that skinny @#$# babysitter and even too tall Dad or Uncle Dom.

» Machine washable

»Age: 0- 18 months


Sleepy Wrap - Classic Hold


Removing your baby from the Sleepy Wrap

Free Shipping! Orders $50 and up.

Enjoy free ground shipping! Offer applies to all orders totaling $50 or more for a limited time only.

» Shop Now

» Click here for more details...

Yogi Beans: Free Demo

Come stretch and bond with your child!

The Pump Station Santa Monica
 Thursday April 7, 2011
   9am - 9:45am (6wks - crawling)

The Pump Station Santa Hollywood
 Friday April 8, 2011
   10am - 10:45am (12 - 24 months)
   11am - 11:45am (6wks - crawling)

Me & My Parents for Infants (six weeks - crawling)
A combination of gentle baby asanas and mom-centered Vinyasa sequences, this post-natal yoga class helps you reclaim your pre-pregnancy physique while providing more time to build close bonds with your new child. The class focuses on the child's sensory stimulation with the use of calming baby massages and songs. 45 minutes.

Me & My Parent for Toddlers (12 - 24 months)
For parents who seek a unique and enjoyable way to bond with their child, this class incorporates games and poses that actively engage both parent and child. Animated breathing exercises, partner poses, and other interactive activities help to develop your toddler's physical coordination and verbal communication skills. No previous yoga experience for adults required. 45 minutes.

For more info:
la@yogibeans.com

www.yogibeans.com

Pump Station Store Locations

Hi My Name is Karolina

Hi Everyone,

My name is Karolina and I am 6 months old. I live in the Hollywood Hills and love going for walks with my mommy and my dog in my Baby Bjorn. I also love my swim class at the YMCA in Hollywood and had so much fun at the Li'l Hands Baby Sign Language Class at the Pump Station. I can't get that "More Milk" song out of my head! I love to dance so my mommy started a Sling and Dance class for moms and babies and she talked to Norma, the manager at the Pump Station in Hollywood, about having a class there. She was very helpful! Also, I'm excited to start eating solid food next week. My mom heard the Beaba First Stage Spoon Set is the best so I'm sure we'll be stopping by the Pump Station sometime this week to go get a set. Maybe we'll see you there!
Love,
Karolina

Ok, let's face it, we all think we have the cutest (and most precious) baby on the block - well at the Pump Station & Nurtury we believe you! You do have the Cutest and most Precious baby!

With that said, we invite you to send us your own personal Baby Bio! Send us a great picture of your baby or a friends and then include a little information about him or her. Does your baby have a nickname, favorite food, favorite vacation spot, or even a favorite sports team?

Send your photo to info@pumpstation.com.

Baby Bios should be under 220 characters or 60 words. Text and photos will edited to fit in the allotted space when needed.

Today Show Bobbie's buzz features Pedipeds

TODAY style editor Bobbie Thomas shares some great finds for the little ones:

Pediped
"If there is anything I love more than shoes, it would have to be adorable, tiny shoes in sweet little boxes. My admitted soft spot for children's footwear was taken to a new level when I heard about Pediped's washable kicks for kids. With options for newborns to 9-year-olds, the line was originally developed by a mom in search of stylish, supportive shoes for her daughter. Today, the brand promotes healthy foot development and has more than 36 different styles and colors to choose from that can go from wearing right into the washer, making kid cleanup just a little easier. "

» We Carry the Washable pedipeds shown on Bobbie's Buzz:
Adrian & Brooklyn Grip N Go's and the Amazon Flex shoes. Also the Grip N Go Conner is machine washable.

Brooklyn more colors avail.

Flex Amazon

Adrian more colors avail.

Shop for pedipeds at The Pump Station
Note: Not all styles are machine washable, but all are awesome!


© 2011 MSNBC Interactive.
from Bobbie's buzz: Cool items for kids also help out parents

Research shows child rearing practices of distant ancestors foster morality, compassion in kids

SUSAN GUIBERT • DATE: SEPTEMBER 17, 2010

ND NEWSWIRE

Ever meet a kindergartener who seemed naturally compassionate and cared about others’ feelings? Who was cooperative and didn’t demand his own way? Chances are, his parents held, carried and cuddled him a lot; he most likely was breastfed; he probably routinely slept with his parents; and he likely was encouraged to play outdoors with other children, according to new research findings from the University of Notre Dame.

Three new studies led by Notre Dame Psychology Professor Darcia Narvaez show a relationship between child rearing practices common in foraging hunter-gatherer societies (how we humans have spent about 99 percent of our history) and better mental health, greater empathy and conscience development, and higher intelligence in children.

“Our research shows that the roots of moral functioning form early in life, in infancy, and depend on the affective quality of family and community support,” says Narvaez, who specializes in the moral and character development of children.

The three studies include an observational study of the practices of parents of three-year-olds, a longitudinal study of how certain child rearing practices relate to child outcomes in a national child abuse prevention project, and a comparison study of parenting practices between mothers in the U.S. and China. The longitudinal study examined data from the research of another Notre Dame psychologist, John Borkowski, who specializes in the impact of child abuse and neglect on development.


The results of Narvaez’ three studies as well as those from researchers around the world will be presented at a conference at Notre Dame in October titled “Human Nature and Early Experience: Addressing the Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness.”

“The way we raise our children today in this country is increasingly depriving them of the practices that lead to well being and a moral sense,” she says.

Narvaez identifies six characteristics of child rearing that were common to our distant ancestors:

• Lots of positive touch – as in no spanking – but nearly constant carrying, cuddling and holding;

• Prompt response to baby’s fusses and cries. You can’t “spoil” a baby. This means meeting a child’s needs before they get upset and the brain is flooded with toxic chemicals. “Warm, responsive caregiving like this keeps the infant’s brain calm in the years it is forming its personality and response to the world,” Narvaez says.

• Breastfeeding, ideally 2 to 5 years. A child’s immune system isn’t fully formed until age 6 and breast milk provides its building blocks.

• Multiple adult caregivers – people beyond mom and dad who also love the child.

• Free play with multi-age playmates. Studies show that kids who don’t play enough are more likely to have ADHD and other mental health issues.

• Natural childbirth, which provides mothers with the hormone boosts that give the energy to care for a newborn.

The U.S. has been on a downward trajectory on all of these care characteristics, according to Narvaez. Instead of being held, infants spend much more time in carriers, car seats and strollers than they did in the past. Only about 15 percent of mothers are breastfeeding at all by 12 months, extended families are broken up, and free play allowed by parents has decreased dramatically since 1970.

“Ill advised practices and beliefs have become commonplace, such as the use of infant formula, the isolation of infants in their own rooms, or the belief that responding too quickly to a fussing baby will ‘spoil’ it,” Narvaez says.

Whether the corollary to these modern practices or the result of other forces, research shows the health and well being of American children is worse than it was 50 years ago: there’s an epidemic of anxiety and depression among the young; aggressive behavior and delinquency rates in young children are rising; and empathy, the backbone of compassionate, moral behavior, has been shown to be decreasing among college students.

“All of these issues are of concern to me as a researcher of moral development,” Narvaez says. “Kids who don’t get the emotional nurturing they need in early life tend to be more self-centered. They don’t have available the compassion-related emotions to the same degree as kids who were raised by warm, responsive families.”

Contact: Darcia Narvaez, associate professor of psychology, 574-631-7835 or dnarvaez@nd.edu