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Most everyone that I know enjoys spending time at one of the numerous parks that the St. Louis area has to offer. These places take on an entirely new relevance to parents, especially new ones like me. Parks become an oasis that allow parents and children to get out of the house, enjoy some exercise and lets the little ones to burn off that excess energy.

Expectant parents have two new options for delivery this year: The Fetal Care Center specializes in high-risk pregnancy, birth and neonatal intensive care, while the Birth and Wellness Center of Missouri has certified nurse midwives on staff to assist with labor and delivery.

The Fetal Care Center launched last month through the cooperation of Barnes-Jewish Hospital, Children’s Hospital and the Washington University School of Medicine. It offers fetal diagnosis, fetal surgical interventions, and specialized care for newborns with serious medical conditions. It’s the only such center in the Midwest, according to a press release from Barnes-Jewish, and it expects to draw patients from Missouri and the eight surrounding states.

The Birth and Wellness Center of Missouri will be up and running in St. Charles this summer. For women who expect to experience a normal birth, such centers offer minimal intervention but plenty of hands-on care and education, starting at 32 weeks prior to birth and extending to newborn exams, breastfeeding support and postpartum visits. The center also sees women throughout their pregnancies and offers a full line women's health services throughout their lifespan.

For the past two weeks, players taking the field for Challenger Baseball games Saturday mornings at Tilles Park have been just like those in every other league around town – watching the sky for rain, adjusting their caps and uniforms, taking practice swings with their bats.

These game-time rituals have added poignancy, however, because the players in this league all have developmental disabilities. The unique program pairs the players with volunteer “buddies” ages 10 to 20 whose role is to help the players hit or field the ball when needed, and to encourage them continually.

A few months ago on my personal blog, I wondered who this Justin Bieber kid was I kept seeing on the cover of the teen magazines.

Now I know.

Oh boy, do I know.

This Mother’s Day weekend, four tiny babies are going to take on Continue reading »