A Mother's Haven

The Allure Underwire Nursing Bra by Bravado is both pretty and highly functional!  It includes the proprietary Supple-Fit Design to blend style with breast health.  This bra has smooth cups made of molded spacer fabric, which is breathable and stretchy, and will expand and contract with your changing shape and size.  The underwire is inside a unique channel that supports your breasts while maintaining optimal breast health (specifically made not to constrict or pinch breast tissue). This bra is one of our most 'normal-looking' nursing bras.  The cups are fairly low-cut with a plunge so it's great for wearing with v-neck tops or dresses, but it's also comfortable enough to wear all the time.  As long as the bra is fitted properly, underwire nursing bras are safe for most new moms to wear during the day.  Although some moms love wearing Allure while pregnant and during the early stages of nursing, Bravado recommends this bra for 6-8 weeks after givin...

Many new moms who are planning on breastfeeding will also be pumping milk at least occasionally, whether they are going back to work soon or just want to let Dad or someone else do some of the feeding. So the question comes up. Is it better to buy a breastpump or to rent a hospital-grade pump? The answer depends on your personal situation. There are some cases, such as having a premature baby, where you would definitely want the stronger, more efficient hospital-grade rental pump . Rental pumps are also nice if you want to spread the cost out as opposed to paying a lot up front. If you're not sure how long you'll be pumping or you know that you'll only be pumping for a month or two, rental pumps can be less expensive in the short-term. However, if you're going back to work and you're planning on transporting your pump back & forth, the personal-grade pumps are a lot smaller and easier to carry around than the hospital-grade rental pumps. Also if yo...

If you don't have several Aden + Anais swaddling blankets , you're missing out! Even if your baby doesn't like to be swaddled, these blankets are so great for so many different occasions! Check out this video by Aden+Anais, which demonstrates how to swaddle your baby - in both the basic swaddle and the aussie swaddle. Besides swaddling, we see so many moms using these blankets as covers over their car seats to protect baby from the sun (or prying eyes), as ground blankets for their baby to lie on in our classrooms, as nursing covers to hide baby & boobs, as a lovie for their baby to snuggle with, and so many more ways! How have you used your Aden+Anais blanket ? Visit us at: 16101 Ventura Blvd. Suite 230 Encino, CA. 91436 p. (818) 380-3111 w.  shopthehaven.com

Different babies are ready at different ages. It's more about your baby's developmental stage then a particular age. Your baby's digestive system as well as his tongue & mouth have to be developed enough to handle solid foods. Also your baby needs to be able to tell you when he's done or doesn't like a particular food. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of your baby's life, but some doctors advise to start a little bit sooner. Of course, talk with your pediatrician, but when your baby is between 4-8 months old, you can start to watch for these solid food readiness signs: - Sitting up without much support and fully developed head & neck control so your baby can turn his head or body if he doesn't want anymore - Loss of tongue extrusion and gag reflex so that he can get the food in his mouth and swallow - Interest in the food that adults are eating (aka watching intensely or grabbin...

So you've pumped some milk and you're not going to immediately feed it to your baby. How long can you keep the breastmilk before you shouldn't use it anymore? - If you're keeping it at room temperature, the milk should be good for about 4 hours. The warmer the room is, the shorter you can keep your milk out. - If you keep it in a cooler with ice packs, the milk is good for up to 24 hours, depending on if it stays cold the whole time. - In the refrigerator, just-pumped breastmilk is good for 5-7 days. - In your fridge's freezer, the milk is good for 3-4 months. And in a deep freezer, your breastmilk can be good for 6-12 months! If you don't plan to use your breastmilk soon, freeze it ASAP! When storing breastmilk in the fridge or freezer, keep it near the back where the temperature doesn't change as much when you open and close the fridge door. You want your milk to stay as cold as possible to prevent & slow any bacteria growth. You can ...

We have a lot of nursing moms who call or come in wanting to know what they can do to increase their breastmilk supply for their baby.  Here are some quick general tips! (If you want to get more personalized advice, stop by for our Breastfeeding Support Group on Tuesday mornings at 10am.  Or call us at (818) 380 - 3111 to schedule a one-on-one lactation consult for full evaluation and assistance.) Ways to help increase your milk supply and help your baby get more milk out: - Make sure you are bringing your baby to breast often!  The leading cause of low milk production is not breastfeeding often enough.  In the first month or so, your baby will probably feed every 2-3 hours during the day and every 3-5 hours at night (at least eight times in every 24 hour period).  Nursing your baby skin-to-skin more often will tell your body that it needs to produce more milk.  Remember that the short, frequent feedings are more effective for increasing supply than l...

At A Mother's Haven, we have a wide selection of nursing bras and tanks ranging in size from 32B to 44H. We carry Bravado , Medela , Glamour Mom , Milkalicious , and Bella Materna . I'm not sure what size or style to get. No worries - our certified bra fitters are available every day to help you figure out the best bra for you! No appointment necessary - although it's a good idea to come when you have 15-30 minutes free in order to try on several different styles & sizes. How exactly is a nursing bra different from a regular bra? Nursing bras either have a clasp at the top of each side that you can undo to lower the cup or else the cup is designed to be able to slide to the side to allow your baby to feed. Basically, it's 'easy access' for the baby! Most nursing tanks are also made so that you can unclasp each side and lower it down, or else some tanks are made to be lifted up for the baby to feed. How many nursing bras should I buy? When pre...

As you may know, the Medela breastpumps come standard with the Medium-24mm Personal Fit Breastshields . But Medela also makes other sizes of breastshields (aka the funnels): Small-21mm , Large-27mm , Extra Large-30mm , and XXL-36mm . But how do you know which size you should be using? Contrary to what you might think, it doesn't matter how big your breasts are or how big your areolas are. What matters is how big your actual nipple is (the part that sticks out). Your nipple should be able to glide in and out of the tunnel (without touching the tunnel sides) when the pump is running - it should not fill up the whole breastshield tunnel. "To determine whether you think you might need a Large or Extra Large breastshield, look at your nipple as it is drawn into the tunnel of the shield during pumping. It should move freely and easily, and should not rub against the sides of the tunnel. If the breastshield fits tightly, your nipple will rub against the sides of the tunnel...

We have a lot of moms who are interested in helping their babies to communicate more and maybe taking the Sign Language for Babies class , but might not be familiar with Baby Sign Language or might have heard different things about signing with babies. So we wanted to write up some answers to the questions that many moms have. Feel free to email us at info@shopthehaven.com with other questions that you think we should add to this list or just something that you want to know personally. Why should I sign with my baby? Isn't sign language only used with deaf or hard-of-hearing kids? My baby's ears are just fine. Babies and toddlers have a lot to say before they can actually say it! By using signs with your baby, you can help them to communicate their wants, needs, and interests before they can speak. The tiny muscles in the tongue & mouth are very hard for little ones to control, but the larger muscles of the arms and hands are easier to use, so most babies are able to st...