Baby Monitor - Peace of Mind?

One of the modern mom’s favorite nursery items, a baby monitor, allows her to keep an eye or ear on the baby while taking care of other needs in her home. This techie baby safety device comes in a wide variety of styles, and you can get a basic monitor for as little as $30 or you can pay as much as $200 for one of the more advanced models.

A basic baby monitor allows you to hear what is going on in the nursery while you are in another room of the house. Most monitors come with a portable receiver, so you can take it with you from room to room.

Some monitors have a silent mode, with a light that comes on when the baby begins to make noise. This is handy when you are vacuuming, or doing other chores, where it might be hard to hear the monitor.

Other monitors are designed to work like walkie-talkies. This is nice if you are in with the baby and you need something from another room, and call for someone to bring it.

Another feature that is nice to have is a low battery indicator, so you aren’t caught off guard when you may need it most.

Some of the more advanced monitors include video-monitoring features as well, so you can watch the baby’s activities. Another monitor has a sensor that can be placed under the mattress to alert the parents to stopped movement, indicating that the baby may have stopped breathing. There are even monitors that have a remote button that allows you to activate a vibrating unit that helps calm a fussy baby.

When choosing a monitor, you have to consider how many units you want, or if you simply need one base and one portable receiver. It’s always best to get a monitor that has a variety of frequencies, especially if you live in a fairly busy neighborhood, so you have less chance of interference from other electronic devices around.

Some parents may want to purchase a gently used monitor in a second hand store. And while this can be a good savings, be sure to check on past recalls on monitors, to ensure that the model you are getting hasn’t had problems.

And it’s worth mentioning: while baby monitors are very useful and effective in alerting the parents about the baby and giving them peace of mind, they can also pose a problem for your family’s privacy. So, make sure that when the baby monitor is on you make sure your discussions are OK to be heard by others.

Yours in parenthood, for the sake of baby safety, Grandpa Richard.

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