Set Up A Mini Site for A Niche Product

Mini-Sites work great for selling ebooks and info-products to a niche market. But for the person new to making money online, setting up any site, mini or not, can be a daunting task. 

Highly specialized websites with lots of links, scripts and graphics require talent, experience or training and a fair chunk of cash.

Thankfully, that is not the type of website you'll need for your niche market mini-site. Take the fast track by listening in to the free interview session below.

All you need is one page with an 'Order Here' link.

There are usually 2 steps involved in setting up your own niche-market site. First you register your domain, and then you set up a hosting account. 

One provider I am working with right now is offering the entire process in one step! 

Listen I'm really excited about this because I've never seen prices and service like this before. Your domain name is registered to you for free, for life - courtesy of your host. And the hosting fees are rock bottom pricing.

I don't know how long this offer will last, so don't sit on it for too long. Sign up for your hosting account, specifying the domain name* of your choosing, pay for the year (at $8/month) and you're saved the registration fee plus the setup fee! Web Hosting - if that deal is gone when you get there, don't blame me! I warned you...

You'll be amazed at the features...and, even if you don't know a thing about setting up a website, you can set up your site with their free website builder and only a small amount of hair-pulling! (Trust me, you'll be fine, this website business isn't as hard as some make it out to be!)

Note: I used to host my sites with a different hosting company, but I'd had some trouble with affiliate payments from them, so I've switched! My latest site http://www.buy-book-online.com - is hosted by a fabulous hosting company that answers emails promptly and offers the same great pricing and services.

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If, for whatever reason you can't afford the yearly fee, then you'll have to follow the more 'expensive-in-the-long-run' two-step method.

(A note about FREE: You can get free hosting online, yes, but please don't do that, if you need to know the reasons why send me an email and I'll share the horrors with you - not to mention how it cuts into your income!)

1. Register a domain - costs less than $15.  

2. Set up a hosting account.

The cheapest host I've found costs less than $8 a month and they are a trustworthy bunch. For $8 a month you'll get more service than you need, (website builder, spam removal, multiple email accounts, etc.). I have emailed them on numerous occasions myself and I always get a response within the day (during business hours I get a response within the hour). The money is charged to your credit card every month for as long as you need the service.  Web Hosting

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PS: Jim Edwards - whom I highly endorse for the new marketer - has come out with a home study course that could get you started right away with a mini site (mini-sites equal niche market money).

Here's what Jim says:

Who Should Buy The "Mini-Site Creator" Home Study Course?

Anyone who has a burning desire to finally know exactly what it takes to quickly and easily set up your own mini-sites...

Anyone who wants the personal power and ability to make simple changes to their mini-sites without having to wait for a webmaster or web designer to make the changes...

Anyone who wants to be able to put up a mini-site to promote their ebook, newsletter, free report, software, affiliate links or anything else... FAST!

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Get More Visitors to Your Site - Search Engine Listing and Ranking Help

Get More Visitors to Your Site - Search Engine Listing and Ranking Help

"All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them." -- Galileo Galilei

Having a great product, a beautiful website and a fantastic sales letter won't do you much good unless you can get visitor traffic to your website.

How to get those visitors, you ask? There are a number of methods, but my preferred method is what online marketers call 'organic' search engine ranking.

What the search engine optimizers mean by 'organic' is that your site is naturally recognized by the top search engines as being one of the best websites on the subject a potential visitor is looking for.

Getting to that stage is a process and an art form unto itself but once you learn the basics you can apply your knowledge to any site you ever build and even 'rent' your services out to other website owners for a high price. (Of course I'd never recommend using your talents working for someone else when you can apply your time to your own online venture and make even more money.)

You can take the slow and costly route to get visitors to your site by the search engines (that the search engines inform you of on their sign up pages), or you can learn from marketers who have learned to fast track the process.

If you're going to spend any 'learning dollars' this is where I suggest putting their money first - into search engine know how and current optimization techniques. Why wait for 3 months for the search engines to find you going the traditional route, when the secrets can be had for a song?

New Technique for Super Fast Search Engine Inclusion

Your Site Included in Yahoo and Google

Listen, in order to get lots of traffic you must be included in the top Search Engines - namely yahoo and google, but other smaller search engines as well. Just to get your site listed in yahoo usually costs $300, a long waiting period, and they make no promise that your site will even be included in their listings!

This new technique doesn't cost a cent and will get your site indexed by the top engines in short order. You'll have to pay to learn the technique and it's presented in easy to follow video format, but the result is worth the cost and more. Organic placement and targeted traffic to your new website, or increased traffic to an existing site - worth your time and the small investment. My clients and I have been using this technique since December 2004 and we're all shouting for joy - "It works!"

You can click over to the site and grab the case study (it takes a few minutes only to read), on how the creator got over 1,000 pages of a new site spidered by and listed in Yahoo within 2 hours (as well as Google), without paying inclusion fees or incurring pay per click charges.

Get Incoming Links and Boost Your Page Rank

Traffic from Outside Websites - Getting Off Links which Increase Page Rank

A series of fast moving videos that you can watch over and over again. The cost is $25 but the shared techniques could be worth $1,000s to your website business! All the techniques are proven and allowed - from personal experience I'll share that I haven't seen much good from using in the technique described in Video 5, but all the other tips are gold!

P.S. Once you buy this video ebook, you can sell it on your own site too!

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Building A Subscriber List

"The Money is In the List"

That's a favorite saying of many online entrepreneurs.

If you have a list of subscribers that are a match to your services and your interests and who trust you to offer valuable recommendations, you can make a lot more money than you'd originally thought when you started up your own website.

Simply keep your subscribers updated on current news and trends in your field. Now there's a way to do this with integrity and a way to do this like an ass. I won't tell you about the latter, I'll let you figure that one out for yourself, but I promise you'll lose your subscribers in short order if you don't market to your email list with integrity.

Treat your list like gold and you'll be repaid in gold.

Are you wondering just how to get an email list and what to do with them once you have them?

Craig Perrine (an email profit guru and one of my treasured mentors) has revealed three of the keys to list profits for the first time on a free webcast!

If you:

• can't seem to get anyone to opt in to your list.
• don't know how to handle the whole spam issue...and be a true 'permission email marketer' with subscribers who want to hear from you.
• are wondering (once you have subscribers), how to really pull in sales, and
• want to know how to build relationships with your subscribers...

Then, you want to listen in on this free Build A List webcast - you'll get the cheat sheet and transcripts to go with the webcast.

If you're new to internet marketing and you aren't quite sure this 'subscriber list' way of marketing is for you let me share a personal account...

When I have tested a new service or read a new product and I think it is of value to my email subscribers I'll send them out a quick review and a link. I only send these emails if I truly believe in the product and if I think it will offer a real service to my subscribers. Due to that fact, my subscribers often don't hear from me for a month or so if I'm busy with other projects. But they do know that I will only mail them with my sincere recommendations and I will not waste their time. If you follow those guidelines you should have a modicum of success. This is email marketing with integrity.

I won't tell you what I make in my email campaigns because the Federal Trade Commission has issues with those types of comments, but believe me a 2 paragraph email to a very small list can pay my bills for the month, dependant on the product I'm promoting. Imagine what you could do with Craig's information, a few months' time and a large list?

Yes, the course is expensive, but it will pay you back if you apply the information to your marketing efforts. And besides, it's a tax write off!

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PS: Here's a great way to build a list of subscribers...

Pop Up Ads - No, not the tacky horrid things, but...

Get the Pop Up Creator that doesn't get Blocked!

Pop Up Windows are a very effective way to get email subscribers. You can set them on every page, but only have them show once per day per visitor. (That way you aren't annoying the heck out of your visitor as they move around your website.)

I'm using these pop ups on a few other sites and they are pulling in subscribers like crazy. It costs me less than $10 month, the pop ups are customizable, come in a variety of styles and sizes and I can use them on many websites at a time.

Use your new pop up to offer free reports or e-courses to your website visitors.  Presto, an opt-in list to market to and profit from.
HINT: Give your visitors something of value when they first join your list and they'll be happy to see your next email arrive in their inbox.

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How to Sell Online

First off, I hope I caught you in time...read What to Sell? from the link at left or above, then come back...

There are so many things to learn when you decide to sell a product, info product or service online.

Smart marketers call it 'direct selling' - and it is a skill that you'll want to master over time to increase your income.

So much of direct selling has to do with your copy - the printed words you use to 'pitch' your product. You'll have to write to the intended reader, in a style that 'speaks' to them.

You'll have to build their confidence and trust in you. You'll have to overcome their skepticism and the market glut.

You'll have to be easy on the eyes and a pleasure to read, without being boring or flat.

You'll have to follow up with your leads (that's why you need a subscriber list). And you'll have to be prepared to change your marketing plan if what you're shooting for isn't working.

You'll have to be diligent in tracking and testing your efforts - to see what works and tweak your copy accordingly.

That's all the bad news for the new entrepreneur. The good news is that you can earn as you learn - just promise me - never stop learning! The more you learn about selling, marketing and working online, the more you will earn. Every month my income goes up - every month I read, learn, digest and test new techniques and skills.

For the first year that I worked online I invested over 20% of my earnings back into my business - yes, I bought a new laptop and some other office equipment, but mostly I bought information from other online marketers. Information that I quickly put into practice and the results were fantastic to say the least!

You can sell one product through a mini-site, or many products on a content site. You can sell products on ebay, or open your own yahoo store - but it all boils down to understanding your market, writing to them, testing and applying new knowledge. 

Have a browse around this website and see if any of the online marketers appeal to you - if any of their free courses or products interest you.

And, if you have a marketing question, be sure to hit my blog and ask away. If I can't answer your questions, I've got a few friends around to help out!

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Marketing Help

Have you just started marketing a business, product or opportunity online and find that you've absolutely overwhelmed by: the tools, the techniques, the gurus, the free reports, the webcasts, the marketing forums, and more?

		Help for Internet Marketers You aren't the first person who has ended yet another day with their head swimming in possibilities and questions. Which 'guru' to listen to? Which Search Engine Optimization program to buy? Which program or product to promote? Should you be a niche marketer? Or an affiliate marketer? Should you focus first on building a website or performing keyword research? What's most important? Getting traffic or subscribers? How important is sales copy anyway? Let me see if I can help... First step is to focus. Focus your energy, your talents, your desires. Finely hone your interests in online business down into a small target market. Next, you'll want to do some research. You'll want to find the phrases that people actually use to find information, product or services like yours. Then, you'll want to register a website (domain) name and secure a hosting contract for your website. After this you'll have to get down to some hard decisions about your marketing. If you are going to create an info-product, you'll probably just need a one page sales letter and an order link. If you're planning on blogging and linking to affiliate products you'll want to learn (or hire someone) to install a blog on your site. If you're planning on creating a huge and traditional content site you'll want to purchase some page creation software and learn how to use it. Of course this can all be as difficult or as easy as you choose for it to be. You can start really small with an info-product sales site and learn other marketing techniques as you go. Marketing Help for Existing Sites The two biggest challenges in marketing are sales copy and getting visitors to your site. If you require marketing assistance in either of these areas don't take the cheap route of trial and error. Sign up for some of the free resources on this site. See which marketer best fits your learning style during the free training, then buy their product and follow their systems to a T. It is important that you take advice from one who has gone before you that you can easily relate to/learn from. I've paid up to $1100 for some products (and believe me paying those prices hurt), BUT I've seen more than that come back as a result of applying the techniques taught in the product. Now, if I know I need something I don't question the price tag because I know it adds up to more revenue for me further down the road.

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Selling Products or Information Online

So you've decided to enter the online world of making money...

You probably assume that once you've decided what you'll sell you'll then need to know the best ways of reaching and enticing your market. 

But actually that's just a little backward and I hope I caught you in time...

Some marketers will say there's a market for every product, and they're probably right in a sense. After all, just this week I heard of the most bizarre product that was selling online - to a very tiny and unbelievable market - and their sales were...low, but at least they were making sales right?

The product was a reproduction of an ancient musical instrument. Pretty tight niche wouldn't you say?

Here's what I want you to think about before you've got 1,000s of a product all lined up or hours invested into an info-product.

The first step in the process is to actually find the market you want to sell to online. Then find or create the product.

Why?

Well if you know your market first, you'll also know how much they're willing to pay for your product. You'll know how many products you can expect to sell in a given month. You'll know, after all that, whether or not it is worth your time and effort creating, obtaining or marketing your product. (And you might just drop it and find a more profitable market as a result.)

So, how does a new online entrepreneur find a hungry market? Through research. I know, dreadfully boring task. BUT, once you've done the research a few times I promise you'll get very excited when you charge forward into profit - and not work yourself to the bone trying to sell ancient musical instruments.

Do your research, get to know your market, determine the price you can set and only then, invest your time into marketing.

Researching products online generally begins with keywords - the frequency at which particular keywords are typed into search engine search boxes. After awhile researching ideas and markets will become part of your business 'sixth' sense, but if you're brand new to online research I strongly suggest choosing a market that you have an interest in - say gardening or auto restoration - and researching keywords around that market. In short order you'll see markets that are under-served for the volume of interest and can then consider a product or service to market.

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To learn about researching the marketplace for info product sales online, you might like to check out "What's My Ebook Idea Worth?" at Idea Secrets. The report is less than $20 and will walk you through keyword research.

Before you get into all the nitty-gritty keyword research I thought you'd like to spend 5 minutes and get a quick idea of the work involved. (Free video here).

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Learn to Make Money Online - Learners are Earners!

Highly successful people know that the road to wealth is a road ripe with learning 'pit stops'.

There are, in fact, as many ways to make a living online as there are aspects to learn about it. The good news is that more you learn, the more you'll earn. You don't need much to get started. Get the basics then upgrade your skills and knowledge as you go.

On this site you'll find some marketing articles, an introductory course on niche marketing (with more courses coming), a list of free courses from trusted sources, and an interactive space to leave your questions about making money online.

A Newsletter for Your Continued Online Learning...

 

Free Course Alerts!

It is not my intention to be the next Internet Marketing Guru so you will not be receiving emails every day from me  promoting high priced internet marketing products.

However, if you'd like to receive notices of helpful tools, strategies and services discovered on my own quest and research that will help you in making money and building a business online I'd be honored to send you a brief note.

Some of these recommendations will apply to your business and marketing expertise, while others will not. I hope you'll find a gem or two that will move your online income forward. And, in case you're worried about your email address being sold or shared, all I can say is you have my word it won't be.

Take some time to look around this site and see the level of information I'm sharing - you'll quickly see that this site is not about 'pitching' you to buy a product. This website's mission is all about building relationships and collaborating with like minded others.

Finally you should know that I'm rather picky about what I promote - which is why emails to you may be sporadic. 

Grab your subscription to Free Make Money Online Course Alerts! (and get a free gift for doing so!)

Be the first to know when new, free e-courses relating to online marketing or website traffic become available.

You will receive a brief outline of each course presented plus a link with registration details.

These free online courses are generally distributed by email. By receiving a Smartzville Alert you can browse the courses that fit your needs and forego signing up for courses which don't.

Sign Up for Course Alerts...

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Pets and New Babies

So you've done everything you need in preparing to bring home your new baby.  You have the nursery decorated, the layette, have chosen a name and decided whether to breastfeed or bottle feed.  One thing you may have forgotten is Fluffy and Rover... your pets.

Up until now, your pets have probably been your "babies" and gotten most of your attention, they are used to being the king or queen of the house (my cat owns our house, she just lets us live here).  Pets are a very important part of your household, a part of your family.  How will they react to a new member of the family getting all of the attention that they once received?  Will they be jealous?  Will they become unsociable?  It is very hard to say as each animal has a different personality, much like people.  The following are a couple points that may give you some insight and tips for coping with your baby and your pet.

One of the myths I have heard from numerous sources is that cats will be very jealous and try to smother a baby when they are sleeping.  Also, that they will suck a baby's breath away.  I have heard that this is just a myth, but I wasn't taking any chances, so the following are a couple precautions to consider:

• Keeping your pet out of the nursery while your baby is sleeping or unattended,  having to close the baby's door or lock up the dog or cat is a concern for many new parents.  This could have easily been resolved by baby monitors, but I still felt like I was shutting the baby out.  Installing an inexpensive screen door to the nursery is a good way to resolve the problem.  Paint the screen door  the same color as the trim and decorate it with baby motif.  You can get very creative.  This also makes a great conversation piece to anyone visiting your home.
  
• Let your pet smell your baby and your baby's belongings.  By brushing away the dog or cat every time your pet comes near your new baby can make the pet resentful.  Your pet may resort to bad habits as a result of feeling unwanted and jealous.
  
• Some have said to get a pet while your baby is young. They have felt in doing this your child and pet can grow up together and it will help to minimize jealousy.  My opinion is that if you do not have a pet already, try to refrain from getting one until your baby is older.  Keep in mind that puppies and kittens have very sharp little claws and teeth and while they mean no harm, they want to play and accidents happen.  Also, puppies and kittens can be very active and demand a lot of attention in training.  Consider whether you want to spend the time training the puppy or kitten or spend that time with your newborn.
  
• Most important, do not leave your newborn unattended with a pet until you see how the pet reacts.  
  
  
   Our family survived the pet and baby dilemma, yours can too.

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Children and Play

I am often amazed thinking about how some children seem to “learn” to play.  Before I became a parent, my conception of children at play was simple and perhaps stereotypical.  I imagined the ideal; my child would one day sit and play with his toys, enjoying the different tasks each one presented.

Playing should be easy.  Playing would be fun.  I have since learned that, for many children, the concept of play is by far innate.  Many, including my daughter, require assistance developing the imagination and ability to explore playtime and enjoy it as it should be enjoyed.  The following article summarizes how parents can lead their children along the journey of playtime and also provides some examples of techniques I have found useful while raising and playing with my daughter, now two years old.
Imitation is crucial while developing the skills necessary for play.  This is perhaps the simplest statement that can be made concerning children and play.  Children learn language by listening to others.  Tying a shoe is learned when a youngster is shown the process.  Play is no different.  It is important for caregivers to tune into the kinds of play that their child prefers and shape it accordingly through imitation.  For example, my daughter could live without anything bought on a toy store shelf.  Give her a copper pot and a spoon and she is an instant “chef”.  A broom in hand and laundry basket nearby makes her a maid.  Calculators, writing tools and paper make her “Daddy’s little girl” (a.k.a. an Accountant).  Interestingly enough, she was not taught how to use any of these common household devices in their correct manner.  However, they soon became her preferred method of play.  Realizing this came after she watched and watched and imitated her parents – playing at the same time.  It sounds elementary.  But it took my husband and I several months to stop buying as many manufactured toys and start accepting the fact that our daughter preferred to play by watching her parents, hence imitating.

Group play can be quite challenging for some children (and parents).  I first became a member of a local “playgroup” when my daughter was 11 months old.  I was thrilled because I was able to socialize with other mothers while the children played.  This was indeed the case during the initial meetings, as the children (all without siblings) learned what it was like to be grouped with others their age.  During this phase, the children hovered close to their parent and did not perform much interaction.   As the weeks progressed and the children grew a bit older, the playgroup gatherings displayed less signs of “Mommy talk time” as more attempts at “playtime” were made.  Group play, like individual play, does not come natural for all children.  Toddlers, for example, are too young to grasp the concept of sharing.  Add a strong willed toddler (as my daughter is) to a group play setting, and what may be viewed as a disaster can arise.  Thankfully, our playgroup consisted of mothers who had a lot in common – including the compassion necessary to console a parent when a certain level of parental stress was visible.  One important tip that may aid during group play may be to become conscious and not view the gathering as only social time for the parents.  Conversation with adults is needed and rewarding, but children need to be guided through playtime and it is important that they are not left to “teach each other” in a group setting.  Suggesting that at least one parent stay directly with the children – getting involved with the activities – will allow for more that just supervision, it will direct them and provide them with a model to imitate throughout their play date.

A creative parent teaches incredible things.  When it came time to teach my daughter how to play, I found myself struggling to “make up” appropriate games and situations that kept her stimulated.  Now that she is two, I look back and realize that I put too much stress on myself during this time.  One must always remember that, in many cases, children are seeing things for the first time.  Even if this is not the case, children seem to have a magical way of transforming what may be seen to an adult as dull or tedious into something fascinating and challenging.  I remember seeing my daughter’s face when I filled our kitchen sink with bubbles one day and gave her a cup so that she could “scoop ice cream”.  She was not only in awe of the bubbles (one of her favorite things), but also amazed at the fact that this was her operation; she was in charge.  I personally encourage the use of creative dress, drawing devices and homemade ice cream (i.e. bubbles) during playtime.  Your child may amaze you with his interpretation of what you present. 

You need to go with the flow.  Children develop unique strategies for play based on many things.  The techniques they choose to imitate and adopt and their own individual personalities are two factors at play (no pun intended).  My daughter has recently entered a phase where her concept of play is based largely around clothing and her ability to master the art of dressing.  I admit, using several articles of clothing a day can cause parental frustration (not to mention a lot of laundry) and there have been many occasions where I have wanted to put a lock on my daughter’s bureau drawers.  But this is her idea of play.  And if you look at the notion closely, you can see a little girl becoming many things - independent, imaginative and thought seeking above all.

In a world where child development often seems to pass in the blink of an eye, it is important to allow children to be children and encourage them to develop their own ideas and concepts regarding play.  Through the guidance and imitation of their caregivers, children can develop approaches to playtime that will satisfy their needs and allow them to develop individuality.  Fun, exploration, education and play – it’s what childhood is all about!

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Play With Your Children Get Down (On The Floor!) And

When was the last time you and your kids rolled around on the floor together laughing yourselves silly?  If you're like me, it may have been a while. 

Sometimes I get caught up in household chores, give errands a priority or answer the phone when I know I should let it ring instead of making time for my two daughters.  It's not that I don't play with them; just the opposite is true. It simply seems as if I'm trying to fit them into my daily schedule when in fact I should be scheduling my day around them. I used to be a planner.  I would try to organize activities that I thought my girls would learn something from.  I'm now much more free and spontaneous with them and I've discovered that at their respective ages of four and 20 months that this is the type of play they prefer.
Here are some suggestions on how you can be more spontaneous with your children:

• Play "Chase Around The House" -  Kids love to be chased, especially if you're making a roaring or growling noise while you're doing it.  You'd be surprised how fast their little legs can carry them. This exercise is sure get you're heart rate up and tone your glutes as well!
    
• Have a Pillow Fight - Make sure the pillows are small and not too heavy.  Throw cushions work best for this activity.  Lay a few ground rules, such as not hitting in the face or on the head and when somebody yells: "stop", then stop.
    
• How Many Times Can Each of You Hop on One Foot - Again, a great cardiovascular activity for you and the kids.  Alternate feet and vary the directions you're hopping in. This is good for your children's coordination and learning left and right, forwards and backwards.
    
• Pretend You're Animals- Play a guessing game of what animal Sally is by the sounds she makes and the way she moves.  Children love to imitate animals and can imitate various animals from a young age.
    
• Tickle Each Other - When you've run out of ideas, then a good old-fashioned tickle fight is the answer.  Again, don't tickle too hard and when someone (possibly you!) yells stop, then the tickler must stop.  At our house, this game always ends with kisses!

These activities take little time to play and benefit you and your children greatly.  They are highly interactive, involve a lot of laughter and take no preparation.  They also let your children know that you enjoy being with them and that they make great playmates.

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Getting Your Baby To Sleep

Here are some basics steps you can try. 
("Love, Patience and Practice" are the main steps in being a parent.-- -CJ Krebs
Help your infant develop good sleep habits: 
Your baby doesn't pay attention to whether it is day and night. But, when your baby is a few weeks old, you can start teaching them the difference between morning, night, nap time and beddy-bye-time. During the day keep daytime noises at their normal level, wake your baby when it's time for her feedings, play with her and talk to her. At night turn down the lights, the noise, and your voice when talking to her during her feedings and changes.  When your baby is about 1-2 mos. old, put her to bed when she is shows signs of sleepiness but is still awake. Let her fall asleep on her own, You may rock and/or sing to her just while she is awake. Keep a semi-scheduled bedtime routine. When it's bedtime, show your baby it's time to settle down by performing the same steps every night.
Here are some simple bedtime routine steps to try: 

• Start with a bath or just washing her hands and face.
• Change diaper and put pj's.
• Singing a quiet lullaby is soothing to the baby when it is a familiar voice.
• While you prepare your baby for bed, if you prefer not to sing, put in a tape/cd of baby-friendly sounds on low volume and leave it on after you leave the room.
• Cuddle and rock your baby before you lay her down to bed. Try to make it short and put your baby in her crib while she is still awake. 

Tricks to help your baby sleep:
For the first 2-3 months your baby needs to wake up to eat, but some babies jerk themselves and wake up before they are ready to eat. Try wrapping your baby snuggly in a receiving blanket before putting her down for bed. It makes newborns feel secure and ready for bed. Try a pacifier. The sucking is soothing to some babies, but not all. If you encounter too many problems with the pacifier getting lost, or waking baby when it falls out - you should wean her from it. Leave one special toy in the crib for your baby to look at, talk to and hold onto. Too many toys can be a distraction.
Sleeping tricks to avoid:

• Putting rice cereal in her bottle at night to make her feel full, does not promote sleep.
• Rocking your baby is very soothing and can put your baby to sleep.  But if you rock to put her to sleep, she'll want you to rock her every time she wakes up - even at 4 a.m. (See above notes for tips on rocking your child)
• Letting your baby fall asleep with a bottle or nursing before bed is not a good habit to make. When your baby wakes up at night, she'll expect you to feed her.

A Little Reminder:
Encourage good sleep habits by creating a consistent sleep routine that ends before your baby falls asleep, put her to bed awake, and make sure that a favorite toy will be there for her at night when she wakes up.

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How Long Should You Breastfeed?

Unfortunately, the question "how long should a mother nurse her baby?" does not have an easy answer. Advice given by people, whether it's doctors, a breastfeeding counselor or your mother, it is confusing and contradictory. Everyone you talk to has different advice for you. Combine this with the fact that every mom & baby are different, and you have good reason to be wondering what is the best thing to do.
Breastfeeding is by far the best way to feed your baby. Even many manufacturers of baby formula are saying this! Breast milk is the perfect food for your baby's development for the first year or more. It contains antibodies which may protect your baby against some infections. Breastfeeding also helps reduce the risk of allergies in infants who have a family history of asthma, food allergy, or eczema. It is easily digested and contains just the right amount of fat, protein, carbohydrate, vitamins and minerals. It is inexpensive and require no special equipment or preparation. Breastmilk changes as your baby grows and is the only food needed for the first 4 to 6 months.
So does that mean you should only breastfeed for the first 4 to 6 months and then stop? Wean your baby at one year? Yes? No?  Maybe?
There are so many factors involved along with so many pressures from others. Some will pressure you to breastfeed into the second year and beyond. Others will argue that your baby should be weaned to a bottle after a couple of months. Some will say you have to wean before you return to work. Others will tell you that going back to work doesn't mean you have to wean. Who's right?
Most proponents of breastfeeding and many of the experts recommend breastfeeding for the first year or longer. While I totally agree with this in principle, I say you should breastfeed for as long as you feel it is the best thing for you and your baby. This is something only you can decide.
  

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How the Science of Sound Helps Your Unborn and Newborn Baby

The transition from the womb to the real world is a very challenging time period for our children.  Leaving the womb (where every need and comfort is satisfied on a round-the-clock basis) to a world where the baby must rely upon others to provide her wants and needs, is an abrupt and shocking experience.  Some babies adjust well, while others do not.

How can you give your newborn infant a head start in life, even before she's born?   All you have to do is. . . .listen.   THE "IN UTERO" EXPERIENCE In utero, beginning at about 7 months, babies have the ability to receive stimulus from the outside world.  It is known that the fetus at this stage has already formed the abilities to see, hear and feel.   This is no new age view or old wives' tale.  In 500 BCE, Confucius stated a clear belief that we can influence a child's behavior through the stimulation we give our children in utero.  Dating back to even before Confucius, people believed that children in the womb are able to receive stimulus from the world outside of the womb. Through the ages, gestation rituals were developed, including dancing and music, to stimulate the growing fetus.  In 1924, Albrecht Peiper, a Leipzig University pediatrician, confirmed prenatal response to outside stimuli by observing a baby kicking when a car horn was sounded. To this day, science continues to validate the influence of the external world upon the fetus.  Most notably, current research shows that by conditioning our babies during pregnancy to soothing sounds that can be replicated after birth, we can transfer the comfortable feelings of the womb to our newborns in the postnatal world.   SOUNDS THAT SOOTHE, BEFORE AND AFTER BIRTH  There are three distinct sounds that are known to instill a sense of calm in even the fussiest baby: music, white noise and sounds of nature.  * The Power of Music *  Thomas Verny, M.D., author of The Secret Life of the Unborn Child (Dell, 1994) said in his book, "Musicologists seem to agree that rhythms, similar to the mother's heartbeat, have the most calming effect" on babies in utero.  Others suggest the recognized power of the lullaby can be acquired by speaking softly and rhythmically to your baby. A lullaby is defined as "A soothing song with which to lull a child to sleep."  According to Giselle Whitwell in her article, The Importance of Prenatal Sound and Music : "The elements of music, namely tonal pitch, timbre, intensity and rhythm, are also elements used in speaking a language. For this reason, music prepares the ear, body and brain to listen to, integrate and produce language sounds."  In essence, playing lullabies during pregnancy can help provide your baby with her first language lessons, as well as promote a sense of calm in both mother and fetus.  * The Soothing Sh-h-h-h of White Noise * Many scientists and physicians, including Dr. Harvey Karp, an expert in treating colicky babies and author of "The Happiest Baby on the Block" , suggest that there are things that parents can do to help your baby "feel like they are back home in the comfort of the womb."  In stories appearing on ABC's Good Morning America and in Newsweek, Dr. Karp has suggested that parents can use white noise in the bedroom at the same volume as the crying baby to help quiet the unhappy baby.  As noted on Pure White Noise.com , white noise is not a noise at all; it's a sound frequency known to have a calming effect on both children and adults. Examples of white noise include the sound of ocean waves gently caressing the shore, a rain shower, a waterfall, or the wind blowing through the trees.  Why white noise for the newborn? As quoted in a June, 2002 issue of People Magazine, Karp notes that "Fetuses are barraged by sensory input, from the whoosh of blood through the mother's arteries to the rocking of her every move.  "Inside the uterus, the baby is tightly confined and hears a constant sound that's a little louder than a vacuum cleaner." Such stimuli, he theorizes, trigger a "calming reflex" that keeps fetuses from acting up.  For many babies, especially crying babies with colic, the monotony of an external noise is especially soothing. (How often have you gotten drowsy with the gentle sound of a motor running?) That's why many pediatricians like Dr. Karp recommend white noise as part of a baby's sleep regimen.  * The Comforting Rhythms of Nature *  The abrupt transition from the womb to the real world for a newborn can also be eased by familiar sounds such as a mother's heartbeat. It has been noted often that playing recordings of a heartbeat can comfort and calm a newborn baby.  Other sounds of nature, such as the gentle yet rhythmic sound of the ocean surf, or the running water sound of a babbling brook, can help calm infants or help them fall asleep safely and naturally.   A TRIAD OF SOUND TO HELP RELAX BOTH PARENT AND BABY  Between song, familiar sounds from the womb and white noise, there are many options available to comfort our babies. Soothing sounds such as these all have a calming affect over infants. The good news is that as parents, we can take advantage of the spellbinding power of sound to comfort our children.  There are many sources of nature sounds, white noise and lullabies in the marketplace. However, there's a doctor- approved resource that combines the best of all three sound elements into ear-pleasing recordings: http://SleepLullabies.com  By combining rhythmic lullaby music and traditional nursery rhymes with soothing nature sounds and the beneficial sounds of white noise, SleepLullabies.com has developed specially blended musical recordings that help comfort crying, fussy babies and infants with colic.  Available in both instrumental and vocal formats on CD and audio tape, SleepLullabies.com lullaby music is played in the neonatal and pediatric units of many major hospitals to calm and soothe newborns. Why not do the same at home?  As a reminder, The Yale-New Haven Hospital in New Haven, Connecticut recommends that "If you can't find ways to console your baby, call your doctor. There could be medical reasons for your baby's fussiness."  Even adding this music to the bedtime ritual enriches the bonding experience between parent and child, as well as creates a tranquil mood for relaxation and sleep.  Before or after birth, sound has shown itself to be a very powerful force in the lives of our young. Whether stimulating the growth of the fetus or calming and quieting our newborn, specific sounds will deliver positive results to babies and parents alike.  About the Author:

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