As a sleep deprived new mom, I remember trying so many different things to get my boys to sleep better and longer. Some things worked fantastically – like swaddling! – but others, not so much – like sleep training. I 100% failed at that! While learning through trial and error is a huge part of parenting, it no longer has to be for getting your baby to sleep. 

We are thrilled to introduce Nicole Johnson, the lead Sleep Consultant and owner of The Baby Sleep Site ® who shares her expertise with our Cocommunity. Today’s blog is a gift to all new parents who are looking for some practical advice around helping their baby sleep soundly. 

Introducing Nicole Johnson -
Lead Sleep Consultant & Owner of The Baby Sleep SiteⓇ

 Hi Nicole! I’m so excited to be featuring someone with your experience on the subject of baby sleeping in our blog. I know our readers will soak in every bit of advice you have to offer!

Question: Could you tell us a little about The Baby Sleep SiteⓇ? 

Answer: The Baby Sleep Site® was founded in 2008 as a website to learn more about your baby’s sleep, toddler sleep, feeding and sleep schedules, sleep coaching, baby temperament, and more. There is no...

The holiday countdown is officially underway, along with the stress of Christmas shopping to hurriedly cross names off our list. But—fear not, busy mamas! We’ve rounded up some of our favorite ideas for all your gifting needs. Unwrap our best ideas for all the lovely ladies and babies in your life this holiday season!

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Oh the hospital bag. What to pack? What not to pack? How soon to pack? No matter what side of the spectrum you’re on, we’ve got you covered thanks to our wonderful community of Coco Moon mamas. We gathered their insights and put together a list of essentials and bonus items that you can refer to as you pack that handy dandy hospital bag. 

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After multiple web searches, we couldn’t find much information on Hawaii’s hospitals and the experiences of giving birth in our local facilities. So we set out to create the first comprehensive guide to giving birth in Hawaii’s hospitals.

We spoke with 11 hospitals across the state and about 20 mamas to get information on policy and procedure as well as tips shared by mamas who have recently given birth in those hospitals. Whether you are located on Oahu or a neighbor island, we hope that this guide is useful to you and helps to ease some of the anxiety associated with the "unknown" of what it will be like at your local hospital. 

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In part 2 of our home birth series, we dig in to the details of what to do to really get ready to have your baby at home. 

Read on as, Le'a Minton, Board President of Midwives Alliance of Hawaii, walks us through how to prepare for your home birth. 

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The first step in planning for a home birth is often to choose a midwife. But knowing how to choose the right midwife for you may seem a bit daunting. So to help, we put together this guide along with our friends at Breastfeeding Hawaii.  

Below, we'll walk you through what to know, questions to ask, and things to be aware of as you prepare to welcome your little in to the world. 

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Congratulations on making it through the first month with your new baby! As you move into months 1 - 3 of your breastfeeding journey, you may find renewed concerns or questions about milk supply, feeding with a bottle, or returning to work or school.

This post is the second in our breastfeeding series and in it, we address common questions the consultants at Breastfeeding Hawaii are asked about what to expect during months 1 - 3.

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Kapi'olani has been changing the lives of Hawaii families for more than a hundred years. That’s why I’m excited to announce that in celebration of our 5-year anniversary, we will donate our 1% for Hawaii proceeds to the Kapi'olani Medical Center’s NICU all year long. With your support, a portion of every Coco Moon Hawaii sale will go to toward life-saving care for Hawaii’s next generation and their families.

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Reflecting back to those early days as a new mom, I remember a lot of happiness, but also a lot of tears. If I could go back and give my new mom self some advice, here is what I would say...

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Both of my boys loved getting to eat solids when they were babies, but I definitely felt a little unsure about how to continue breastfeeding while introducing something new to the kids...especially when it seemed they loved eating solids way more than breastfeeding! 

In this post, Breastfeeding Hawaii helps to walk us through some of the common questions and concerns that a lot of moms face as they enter this new phase. 

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Jana Lam was the first artist that we collaborated with almost four years ago! The Golden Hibiscus collection is our 5th collaboration print with Jana Lam and this one just might be my favorite. Coincidentally, yellow is both my and Jana's favorite color. 

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When Coco Moon mom Sheryl gave birth to her son, Boogie, she found that some of her friends and family weren’t sure what to say. Boogie is one of 6,000 babies in the US born every year with Down Syndrome, and rather than hearing “Congratulations! and “Welcome to the world!”, Sheryl heard messages of sympathy and regret.  

Today on World Down Syndrome Day, we want to celebrate families who have children with Down Syndrome by sharing Sheryl’s experience and tips for making new parents feel welcomed and supported. 

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How many clothes do I need for my baby? What are the different varieties and sizes of baby clothes that I should keep on hand? Which sizes of baby clothing do I need for my newborn?
I have been asked these questions many times from parent’s in our  Coco Moon Hawaii community so I just knew it was time to write an article about it to share my knowledge with you. 

It’s so common for first-time parents to have these questions, especially as the due date for your new baby gets closer.

To all of our readers and soon-to-be mommies and daddies, I would like to say that you’re in great company; we all have the same questions! This article is going to give you the answers you’re looking for. I’ll highlight a few basic tips that will remove the guesswork on sizes and quantity. So sit back, grab your Kona-coffee and keep reading!

Baby clothes - what to keep in mind

Let’s begin with some helpful tips. 

When buying clothes for newborn there are a few things that you should keep in mind:

1. The fabric should be soft, comfortable, and breathable. Baby skin is highly sensitive, and cheap, harsh fabric can be too rough on babies skin.
2. Babies can easily overheat, so dress them for the...

Remember the first time you watched as the nurses in the hospital wrapped your newborn baby? I do! My son was wrapped so neatly in a blanket like a bundle (I wonder if that’s how the term ‘bundle of joy’ came about!).

Back from the hospital, I had such a hard time getting my son to sleep, and no matter how much I persisted, I could not wrap him up in the same way that the hospital had, all snug and warm.

For our frequent readers, you will know it was my sister in law that came to my rescue showing me how to swaddle (or wrap) my baby. I call her the swaddle ninja and teaching me how to swaddle was the best gift she could have given me. 

In my journey as founder of  Coco Moon Hawaii, and as a mother, I have dedicated many hours of research on baby wraps and learned that wrapping a baby has numerous benefits, and that experts recommend it to parents at least until your baby is two to three months old. 

To wrap a newborn requires the right knowledge of the techniques, which I’m going to share in this blog. But first, I’ll help you understand the benefits of wrapping your baby well. 

What are the benefits of wrapping a newborn?

Wrapping a newborn baby in a wrap, or swaddle, helps...

Can swaddling my baby help them sleep? We get this question from our Coco Moon Hawaii  community all the time and the answer is a resounding, yes! 

I actually had no idea what swaddling was until my sister-in-law gave me the best gift ever when she taught me how to swaddle shortly after my son was born. At the time, I had no idea why or how it worked, but I was just relieved that my son finally stopped fussing! 

But now that we do know why swaddling is so awesome, we wanted to share some of that info with you. 

As new parents begin to experience sleep disturbance, and sleeping advice from your Auntie’s, cousins, and friends hasn’t worked (very common), parents take to Google searching for the perfect remedy to help their bundle of joy sleep soundly (I know I did!). They soon come across information about swaddling.

We know there are different opinions about swaddling, so in this article I’m going to provide lots of information about swaddling from a health perspective, to give you some useful facts around why swaddling your baby can be so helpful (for your baby, and you!)

What is Swaddling?

By definition, swaddling means wrapping the baby in a soft blanket or cloth, with only...

Can I surf while pregnant? 

It’s strange how something so second-nature to us can pose so many questions during our pregnancy. I grew up surfing, but once I found out I was pregnant, I wasn’t sure if I could, or even should, keep surfing. And if I could, how long could I keep surfing? Luckily, seeing expectant mamas ripping far into their pregnancies wasn’t so rare a sight in Hawaii, so I knew that there were many women before me proving that it’s totally possible to keep surfing with baby on the way.

Since we have so many water women in our Cocommmunity, we decided to ask them for their tips and tricks for how they kept surfing safely with baby on board. I wish I had these pointers when I was first experimenting with surfing with a baby bump! So if you're in that phase now, I hope you find this blog helpful and remember, trust your instincts, your body and be safe!

Adjust your position

Obviously, once the bump starts to kick in that’s where the logistics seem to get a little fuzzy. We looked to other mamas out there to let us know what worked for them. Paddling on your knees will take that pressure off your precious belly, but oh man your knees! Another suggestion was putting...

When I was little, I carried an old blanket with me everywhere. I wouldn’t let anyone touch it or wash it (much to my mother’s disgust!). The blanket was my safety net. I still remember the sense of warmth and security it gave me.

Many of you will have your own security blanket stories, or your parent’s will if you don’t remember.

However, now after becoming a mother yourself, are you conflicted about your own child having a security blanket? Maybe you’ve read all the pro’s and con’s, wondering if you should be encouraging or discouraging the use of a security blanket?

Over the years I’ve come across many parents who share their concerns with me about introducing a baby security blanket to their little one. They fear that their child will become too attached to it. Will a security blanket instill a false sense of security and hamper their child’s natural mental and behavioral development?

While there are differing opinions within the Coco Moon Hawaii parenting community, I am here to assure you that a security blanket is good for your baby. It’s not just my own personal opinion, I’m here to share some facts with you. So, without further delay, let’s take a peek at some facts...

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