High school Realistic Baby Project, HELP!

[Carolina Mermaid]

Hey guys, I just got a realistic baby doll from my child development class. Two hours in and I've already wanted to throw it out the window. If anyone has had one of these I would love tips!

[Mermaid Dottie]

LOL! I never had one of those, but I do have a real baby. Very very different. Real babies don't cry as much as the doll things I think. My niece had hers at my house for 45 min and it cried twice. Lochlan only cried every couple hours during the day, and slept all night.
Have you tried dressing it up for fun? Putting a little tail on it, just 'cause?
That might make you not hate it as much.

[Carolina Mermaid]

True, right now it's asleep, but I know that wont last long. I've been thinking of taking out the battery then putting it back in when I go to school

[SeaGlass Siren]

It's programmed to see how well you care for the baby. It's jut random actions u have to solve.

Ive had one before and believe it or not, it's to simulate the actions of a real baby... Therefore you cannot take out the batteries because, in reality, babies do not have batteries.

You just gotta suck it up. Sorry.

[Carolina Mermaid]

That's what my mom said, it just scares me to hear it scream like that, not to mention I'm going to Prom tomorrow.

[Felicia]

If you take out the batteries or turn it off in anyway it's usually an automatic fail. The dolls are a pain in the butt, however if you want to pass you have to care for it as if it was a real child, it's hard and terrible at times so all I can say is good luck to you oh and have fun at prom

[Carolina Mermaid]

Thanks, hopefully I'll forget all about it. Do ya'll have any tips on how to recognize their cries, I know feeding and diaper changing

[Felicia]

Honestly the way I got through it was looking up everything I could about the doll on google lol there were some good tip about it on there

[Arella]

Okay legit I did mine the right way my boyfriend "improvised" scored 100%. Scotch tape dowel rods to the head and back so you don't get a neck support problem, lay the bottle on its belly so it's resting on its lips and lay the diaper on its diaper sensor. You'll only need to switch the diaper out when it cries. :)

[Kanti]

Haha I'm so glad I didn't have to do one of those xD
But damn Freshwater your boyfriend totally cheated the system xD awesome as hell! Hahaha

[Carolina Mermaid]

Way to go for your boyfriend! I showed that to my mom, she's looking for dowel rods.

[Kanti]

Urg I just watched a video of one how annoying x__x
Good luck on your project

[Carolina Mermaid]

Thanks, it's been asleep for 3 hours now and is making some wierd ticking noise

[SeaGlass Siren]

I did mine properly and it 100. I honestly think if I had a baby (Posidon forbid) I'd be ready. I didn't want to give my baby back because it started crying when my teacher took it back ;-; it increased my maternal instincts wtf

[SeaGlass Siren]

The ticking noises is the soun babies make when they don't have a pacifier in their mouth. They think they're sucking on something when they're not. It's fine.

[Mermaid Harmony]

I had one, mine was actually great, and slept through most of the night, I just tried feeding it, or switching out the diaper and if that didn't work I just rocked her. I think I named mine Zoe. My friend on the other hand had a colicky-type baby. She was up all night watching scooby doo and crying. I felt really bad for her.

[Arella]

The scotch tape doesn't leave marks :)

[Carolina Mermaid]

Aww, my baby's name is Katharine. From The Vampire Diaries.

[Mermaid Melusinah]

please take this tiny bit of advise from one of a few REAL mothers we have here on MN... do the project the right and true way... you will benefit much better. some times its not about the grade, but the lessons learned. thats all i am going to say about it because.... well nvm....

[Carolina Mermaid]

How long does this thing drink for? I've been holding the bottle to its mouth for ten minutes

[Merman Dan]

Yeah, we never did that in my school, either. Nowadays I have seven kids, so you do learn these things one way or another. And yes, sleeping in two-hour shifts can be done. ;)

[Arella]

How long does this thing drink for? I've been holding the bottle to its mouth for ten minutes
15-20 and don't forget to burp it!

[Arella]

Just wait until tonight when it starts crying at 2 am...and 4 am.. and 6 am!

[Kanti]

Haha I actually agree with Melu.
I mean, if you're planning on getting a kid one day. I'm completely uninterested right now so honestly I'd probably cheat on it. If anything doing a project like that would discourage me further from wanting any kids.

[Carolina Mermaid]

Guys help, it keeps making these shallow cry's and no matter what I do it won't shut up!

[Mermaid Melusinah]

Guys help, it keeps making these shallow cry's and no matter what I do it won't shut up!

tired or wants attention. try swaddling. idk how advanced these things are these days. it likely just wants held.

[Arella]

Sometimes you have to rock it

[Carolina Mermaid]

Hey do ya'll have an average time on how long it takes to rock it?

[Kanti]

xD you should google it
I'm sure there's a yahoo questions someplace that has a bunch of cheat answers haha

[SeaGlass Siren]

It's all random. It'll stop cryin when you've done a good job.

[Elle]

Put it in a sling (google ring sling) honestly you just need a long piece of fabric (a sheet folded into a long narrow piece will work)
loop it over a broom and have it sitting between to chairs so that the "baby" hangs in the middle of the 2 chairs.
sit infront of the tv or computer and nudge it with you hand or foot to keep it swinging.
you can also use this method walking around the house if you wear it. the movement of your body will provide the "rocking" it requires.

If it works on a real baby it should work on a fake one right?

[Mermaid Bella]

that is quite unfair that you got the baby the night before prom. i'm sorry :(

one of my friends had one in high school, she was the first in class to use it and unfortunately the teacher left it in demo mode, so it literally cried every 5 mins, on the dot for the whole time, and none of the things she did to calm it down were registering. they had to call the teacher at home as it was just not working and the stupid woman said "it's supposed to do those things, so just stay up and deal with it" when she got to class the next day, after they phoned the manufacturer to confirm that this was not supposed to be happening, the teacher had to apologize. unfortunately the teacher didnt let her have a proper turn with the doll as they needed to hand it on to the next student as they were renting it and had a time limit.

i always wanted to try out one of those dolls.

[Carolina Mermaid]

As you can see as what time I'm up, it's not a cool thing to do. (3:50 AM!)

[Mermaid Bella]

just make coffee and be glad that you're not breastfeeding ;)

[Carolina Mermaid]

Touché, just purely curious, what is it like to breast feed a baby?

[SeaGlass Siren]

I had to wake up three times at night. You're doing marvelous so far.

I've been caring for my niece since he was a baby because her mother would always go out and club. Remember: this is nothing compared to a REAL baby.

[Carolina Mermaid]

True

[Mermaid Bella]

i've never done it myself, what with never being a mother. but my best friend has two kids.
the first was alergic to animal protein so she had to stop feeding after about 2 weeks, when they found out. for her first, all she could really say was her boobs hurt very much as she wasnt expressing, eventually she had to express in the shower to soften the skin.

with her second, she just said it was a bonding experience, you can never really picture how it can be until you do it, its not like the sort of attention they got... which led to the baby. it's just a lovely feeling that makes you feel close to your baby.

i for one get a little creeped out by the idea, but i wont always.

for another friend, she had to stop and switch to bottles because her little girl was a biter, and sliced into the skin with her gums.

[Carolina Mermaid]

Ouch. Thanks for the info, I was just curious.

[Merman Dan]

Ahh.... memories. My wife and I have three birth kids and four by adoption. When our kids were young and they woke up in the middle of the night, I would wake up when she had to feed them and stay with her while she did. It turns out that was good practice for later life, as my 19 year old son has cerebral palsy and wakes up 2-3 times during the night needing help with turning, adjusting covers, and the like. And yes, real men change diapers.

What would your teacher do if you made a mer-tail for your doll? ;)

[SeaGlass Siren]

I think it's a smart idea to make a tail. Try "bonding" with it. I made my boyfriend help me take care of mine back in highschool. It was good practice because now he doesn't want kids x)

[Mermaid Melusinah]

I think it's a smart idea to make a tail. Try "bonding" with it. I made my boyfriend help me take care of mine back in highschool. It was good practice because now he doesn't want kids x)

My fiance never wanted kids either *eyeballs her two year old with THAT look* accidents happen :p Daughter Beast is the best little accident in the world though. <3 we're at a pretty fun age. new things every day with her. she learns VERY fast.

[Kanti]

Aeolius you're probably the best dad I've ever heard of xD

[Carolina Mermaid]

She'd laugh, she knows what I do during my free time and she has even asked on how it's going with making my new tail

[Taniwha]

Lol, in some respects it probably is harder than a real baby, my 7 month old woke up three times last night. However it does help that obviously I think he is the most amazing creature in existence which you don't really get with a doll. Although also easier, as babies don't have a set amount of things that could be wrong - they could be too hot, too cold, teething, hungry, nappy change, wind, over tired, wants a cuddle, unwell, not tired and wants to play, woken by a noise, no discernible reason at all.....

Agree with Aeolius about the 2 hour shifts, my partner and I have taken turns sleeping/holding the baby!

I thought breastfeeding would be weird, but it actually seems completely natural when you're doing it :)

[Mermaid Saphira]

I hope I never have to deal with these dolls. I must admit though, I am pretty curious about having one around. Wonder what the bf would think about it? Or the dog for that matter xD

[Carolina Mermaid]

I have two dogs, my oldest will do whatever he can to stay away from it, while my youngest will lie next to it and constantly sniff it to check on her. It's priceless!

[Carolina Mermaid]

Hey everyone, just wanted to say that the project is finished and to thank everyone who posted and to those who gave me a few laughs.

[Mermaid Julianne]

Can I just say how entertaining this thread is? Its great. I'm glad your project went well!

[Mermaid Dottie]

Touché, just purely curious, what is it like to breast feed a baby?
Actually, breastfeeding your child is a wonderful bonding experience. I was sad when I got sick and my milk dried up.
I'm glad your project went well!
I'm sorry you had to have it through prom, though. Not fair.

[Carolina Mermaid]

It's cool, my mom took care of it for me during Prom

[Alveric]

When my daughter was about six months old she was sleeping on my chest while I was reading. She woke-up quietly while I wasn't paying attention. She must have looked over and thought, It's not like mommy's, but it is a nipple. Next thing I know she latched on and turned on the vacuum hose. "Owww, get er off get er off!" I have a good deal of respect now for a woman's tolerance and a baby's strength. (BTW daughter was very disappointed in daddy.)

[Usagi]

Those things areso stupid! im so glad i nver had to do that! But i mean, seriously, youre going to force teenagers to take care of a baby? How bout teching them how to not get knocked up, or convincing them to not have sex? Controlling your hormones IS possible. Im gonna sound like a feminist or something, but this is a new era! Women arent here just for popping out babies. Some dont want or cant have kids so they shouldnt be forced to learn about something theyll never have. And b graded on i too! urgh i would hve failed that thing because i would definitely take the battery out. Or if there was no way to turn it off, i would stash it somewhere that it couldnt be heard. The one time i wouldnt care about failing! lol sorry for all the typos and errors. kindle touch isnt the best for internet

[Carolina Mermaid]

BWAHAHA!!! Oh my God Alveric! That made my day!

[SeaGlass Siren]

They make you care for a baby because they want you to understand how much your parents had Gone through to care for you .

Also to convince teens who WANT to have a baby (I'm thinking of preeteens on Maury) that it clearly ain't easy.

Then there's also the fact that it IS family studies... Not sex Ed. Sex ed they try to convince you NOT to have sex but hey whatever happens outside the classroom isn't the teachers responsibility.

Fanily studies are for students who want to learn about caring for a kid and tarting a family in the future. Males attend those classes as well, not just females.

Fyi.

[SeaGlass Siren]

Of course the class is not mandatory. It's all optional. I took it because I wanted I see if I was fit enough to be a mother. They don't FORCE you to care or a plastic baby

[Usagi]

Oh, sorry, I know I sounded super cranky haha I've only seen it on TV. My school didn't have family studies or anything like that. Maybe we were too poor. They cared a lot more about football for some dumb reason. Lol so I just always though it was part of a health class

[Miyu]

Thanks, it's been asleep for 3 hours now and is making some wierd ticking noise

O.O; ...Okay, now THAT is creepy. No baby of mine ever ticked... but ooooh, now you're giving me good ideas for a Steampunk story! Hmm, a solution to writer's block - hanging out on the Mernetwork WAY too much!

[SeaGlass Siren]

O.O; ...Okay, now THAT is creepy. No baby of mine ever ticked... but ooooh, now you're giving me good ideas for a Steampunk story! Hmm, a solution to writer's block - hanging out on the Mernetwork WAY too much!
I don't think it's ticking sounds. My plastic-baby did that too. I've heard it when i put my niece to sleep too. Its that sucking sound they make but when they're not sucking on a pacifier and they do these funny mouth motions xD

[Carolina Mermaid]

I did forget to tell you guys this: when everyone had finished with the babies we laid them on the counter (where they always are) and across an old stove. I was helping my teacher pack up the baby clothes when a student says "Do you guys smell something burning?"

Next thing I know the baby I originally had was up in flames.

[SeaGlass Siren]

XD it's a sign

[deepblue]

I realize the project is finished now, but I just read through the thread... lol holy cow. We just had to use egg shells and decorate them to look like little people, and not crack them. I still have mine, she's in a keepsake box. She has blue hair. I told everyone she was the love child of Mikhail Baryshnikov. :D (It was 1985)

I will say this though, about the what it's like to nurse... not only is it amazing for the baby, it is after all, in our biology - it soothes their teething pain because it is an analgesic, it triggers oxytocin for mama and baby, provides all the nutrients, antibodies, soothes baby, etc etc- but it's the most incredible bonding you can have, and feels like life force flowing from you to your child, because it is, really.

And best of all? Feeding on demand while nursing means you don't have to depend on formula. Nursing is just SO much easier. I can't imagine bothering with formula- making it, storing it, checking temp, cleaning bottles, running out, taking all the supplies with you... or anything like that. Just put the baby on your breast and relax. And when your nipples need a little care, such as during the three week nonstop feed, a little olive oil on them fixes that right up. Nature knows what she's doing.

And it meant that I could nurse my baby under my shirt while walking through Target. lol