Click for Babies: The Period of Purple Crying

Do you know what the Period of Purple Crying is?

I will be honest and tell you that I didn't, until I received an email from a wonderful lady called Harriet, asking me if I would be interested in participating in this campaign, in crocheting or knitting something to donate to babies born in the month of November, as a way to educate parents about the period of Purple Crying.

Knowing that I love to crochet and knit, I couldn't think of a better way to spend my time than to contributing to such a wonderful cause.....but first let me tell you a little more about it.
 

a normal yet difficult developmental stage when infants between two weeks and four months can cry inconsolably for up to five hours a day.  The program helps educate parents and caregivers across North America on how to cope with crying and the dangers of reacting to crying in frustration by shaking or harming an infant.

Nicholas didn't give me any problems, he was the easiest baby to take care of.  Jasmine on the other hand definitely went through the Purple Crying stage.  I would literally walk around at night, rocking her in my arms while she screamed bloody murder.

I didn't understand it, she wasn't hurt, she wasn't needing a diaper change, she wasn't hungry, she wasn't colicky.  She just WAS crying.  It is by far one of the most distressing things to go through as a new parent, you feel so completely helpless.

Thankfully, I stuck through it and even though I didn't understand it or even knew that it was perfectly normal for an infant to do that, I never shook my child or took out my frustrations on her.

Unfortunately the same can't be said for many others out there.  It's heartbreaking to even fathom.  Something that the program wants to remind everyone of is:

If you feel on the edge, it’s okay, to put the baby in their crib, or another safe spot, and WALK AWAY.

Cry if you must.  Yell if you must.  Just do it away from the baby, count to ten, compose yourself or ask your spouse or a family member for help, just don't EVER take out your frustrations on the infant.  

So I'm joining in with the Click for Babies campaign and doing my part to bring awareness.

Click for Babies is a grassroots knitting campaign, and is currently recruiting knitters and crocheters across North America to make purple baby caps out of soft baby friendly yarn. These hand-made caps will be given to parents of babies born during the month of November, along with information on the Period of PURPLE Crying, to help raise awareness of this life-saving project.

You can find the list of participating hospitals in North America, as well as information for where to send the hats, on http://clickforbabies.org.

I know many of my readers are either pregnant right now, or know someone who is and I think this is extremely important to share, especially with a first time parent.  Just knowing that it's normal and it's NOTHING that you have done wrong or could do, will help save so many babies lives.

All you need to do is knit or crochet PURPLE colored baby caps using soft baby friendly yarn and send them to local or  National organizers.

For a list of participating Hospitals, click here.

If your State is not participating, which Arizona isn't, you can still send your caps to:

National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome

C/o Click for Babies

1433 North 1075 West, Suite 110

Farmington, UT 84025

Baby Cap Patterns

Struggling to find a baby cap pattern?

Here are a few links to baby cap patterns available online.

• Cap created by Emily Williams for Click for Babies
• Two Needle Baby Cap
• Bunny Hop Baby Cap
• Crocheted Baby Cap
• Crochet Spot Newborn Baby Cap
• Baby Flap Cap shared by Lynette Meek

Ravelry.com is also great online resource for knitters, crocheters and others to share patterns of their own, find a pattern and also get ideas for caps.

You can however use WHATEVER pattern you are most comfortable with, as long as it follows the following guidelines:

Guidelines for Caps

• Caps should be made using any shade of PURPLE yarn. Other colors of yarn may be incorporated into the cap, but a shade of PURPLE should encompass at least 50 percent of the cap.
• Yarn and thread labeled as "baby friendly" should be used for caps.
• Infant heads come in a variety of sizes. As a general rule, caps should have a circumference between 7.5-13.5in and a height of 3.5-6in
• Please refrain from including “pom poms” or any type of strap to secure caps to baby’s heads. These pose a potential choking and/or strangling hazard to babies.

I'm putting up a Mr Linky. If you want to join in, just add your name to the list. You won't be sending me anything obviously, but it would be neat to see how many of us will commit to making at least one little cap to help this amazing campaign. :)