Onslow Theckla | Cuddlebugs

Cassy Fiano

Hi everyone! My name is Cassy Fiano. I was born in Jacksonville, Florida. My husband and I met when we were twelve, at a birthday party where he fell on the pool deck and broke one of his front teeth. I worked in several different fields until I got married. My husband and I knew that we wanted to have a family and that when we did, I would be a stay-at-home mommy. Last July, we found out I was pregnant, and on the day of my first doctor’s appointment, he deployed to Afghanistan. Unfortunately, during my pregnancy, I ended up with preeclampsia. Luckily, my husband returned the morning of my scheduled induction, so the day he came home from Afghanistan was the day we went to the hospital. 16 hours and a c-section later, we had our beautiful little boy, Benjamin. Being a parent has changed my life. I’ve learned to be more patient; that it’s possible to operate on two hours of sleep, and I’ve also learned that I never really knew what stress was until I experienced a baby crying inconsolably for four hours straight. I’ve learned that looking at my son sleeping in my arms can move me to tears, that I never really loved anyone the way I love my him, and that all of the hard times can be completely wiped away with one little smile. The last four months have been an incredible journey, and I can’t wait to share the rest of it with you!

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As the community manager for the Onslow Memorial Hospital's blogs -- TummyTime, Cuddlebugs, JustKiddin', Middleville and RealiTeen, as well as MomTalk, I'm committed to sharing relevant and timely information that matters to moms. Background: I'm a graduate of the University of Virginia and a native of Charlotte, NC. I've been involved with MomTalk since the very beginning and have enjoyed watching this online community grow. It has been great fun to share our bloggers' stories and see how they touch readers; all of the blogs have inspired some great conversations about parenting! I hope that these sites are a place that you enjoy visiting and you find them valuable, interesting, and most of all, fun. Please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns!

Introducing Monthly Themes

March 7th, 2011 Onslow Theckla

As I mentioned in my last post, big changes are coming to the entire MomTalk program.

One new feature you’ll see across all blogs is the introduction of monthly themes. Each month, I will introduce two new themes on each blog. Our bloggers will address the themes in their …
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Big Changes Coming to MomTalk!

March 5th, 2011 Onslow Theckla

Dear Readers,

I wanted to take a moment and let you know about some big changes we will be making to MomTalk to improve the overall experience for you.

This Tuesday, March 8, we will unveil a new look for all of our blogs. The new design has several exciting features, including:…
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Crib Injuries Land Thousands of Toddlers in ER Each Year

February 20th, 2011 Onslow Theckla

Each year in the United States, nearly 10,000 children under the age of 2 arrive in emergency rooms with injuries suffered while in cribs, playpens and bassinets, a new report shows.

Most of these injuries involve cribs and are …
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Fear of Scary Things May Be Learned

January 27th, 2011 Onslow Theckla

Is your child afraid of snake, spiders or other “icky” things? It could be that your reaction to these things might have played a role in the development of this fear. Children are not born with a dread of snakes or spiders but learn these fears very quickly, a new study suggests.

In one experiment from the study, the researchers showed two videos side by side to children as young as 7 months. One video showed a snake and the other showed something non-threatening, such as an elephant. At the same time, the infants heard a recording of either a happy or fearful voice.

The infants spent more time looking at the snake video when they heard a fearful voice, the researchers reported, but the children showed no sign of fear themselves.

In another experiment, 3-year-olds were shown a screen of nine photographs and asked to select a target item. The children identified snakes more quickly than flowers and more quickly than other animals that look similar to snakes, such as frogs and caterpillars.

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Toys May Shape Language Development

January 23rd, 2011 Onslow Theckla

A toddler that is exposed to many different types of cups will have a better sense of what a cup is. Via APS

Toddlers who play with different-shaped objects learn new words twice as fast as those …
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Tips for Safer Sledding

December 31st, 2010 Onslow Theckla

The recent North Carolina snow storm was probably a lot of fun for you and your family! I bet many of you were inspired to teach your children the joys of winter activities, including snowball fights, making snow angles and sledding.

Flying down a snowy hillside may give kids a thrill, but the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that 74,000 injuries from sledding and related snow activities required medical treatment by U.S. health providers in 2004.

Here are some suggestions to keep in mind for the next big snow (fingers crossed we get another bit of snow this winter!). These will help keep your family safe and help you avoid injury:
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