Move Over Mom!!! Inventive Dads Ready for the Spotlight with Parenting Solutions
Typically, mom skillfully orchestrates domestic chaos and takes the spotlight with a handy invention or cool idea. But mom isn’t the only one looking for answers to some of parenting’s biggest frustrations.
Just in time for Father’s Day: Introducing 10 dads who are proving once and for all, they don’t need to ask for directions…they have the answers in the form of some pretty ingenious inventions and ideas. And they’re sharing them with moms and dads around the world.
Their ideas are innovative. Their success is noteworthy. And best of all, their stories are intriguing, moving, inspiring and unusual. (FOR IMAGES: www.OnCueMedia.com/media)
THE AMAZING MIRACLE BLANKET ®--Medford, OR
An exhausted father’s frustration gave birth to the Amazing Miracle Blanket® - ecstatic customers named it after sleeping for the first time in weeks! Michael Gatten decided he wouldn’t settle for another fussy baby – and he didn’t listen to professionals saying there is nothing to do about it. Following exhaustive research, cutting, stitching and testing of a blanket on his then four-week-old son, Michael created a simple and incredibly effective solution that greatly enhances the age-old technique of swaddling. Before he knew it, Good Housekeeping Magazine got a hold of his creation, gave it the coveted “Thumbs Up!” and the rest is history. The Miracle Blanket®—now used around the world—calms fussy infants into a peaceful, extended slumber. Availability: Specialty retail, hospitals, pediatricians, mid-wives, doulas and on the Internet. Retail: $29.95. http://www.miracleblanket.com
BABY SAFE FEEDER™—Enterprise, FL
A near tragic event for father Donald Berry led to the invention of the Baby Safe Feeder™. Donald nearly lost his 9-month-old son when a teething biscuit completely blocked his airway. Berry was there and was able to save his son. But that near nightmare was a wake up call for Donald who then learned that far too many babies were choking to death on foods considered safe and soothing to their gums while teething. The Baby Safe Feeder™ allows babies to eat fresh foods using a simple drop-in mesh bag system and gives parents a peace-of-mind. Availability: Specialty retail and the Internet. Availability: Specialty retail and the Internet. Retail: $6.25. http://www.babysafefeeder.com
MOTHER’S MILKMATE--Chicago, IL
Fed up with the overflowing, cluttered “breast milk distribution center” that had commandeered his freezer, father Cary Weinstein set out to straighten things up. He developed Mother's Milkmate Breast Milk Storage System capitalizing on the “first-in-first-out” rack method. After showing it to the La Leche League, which now sells it, he knew he had something. Mother's Milkmate provides a safer, more convenient, less expensive, environmentally friendly alternative to using plastic bags for storing and freezing breast milk for baby. Availability: Specialty retail and the Internet. Retail: $24.00. http://www.mothersmilkmate.com/
TOILET TIME TARGETS®—Orange, MA
The creative father team happened into the baby market, well, backwards. Mark and Tom LeBoeuf weren’t really looking to solve a toilet training problem; rather it was about filling a void their die cutting business. The result, fun colored animal-shaped targets that are made of biodegradable tissue paper and septic system safe unlike other similar products on the market. Toilet Time Targets® motivate and capture the attention of a child helping him/her focus and improve their aim. And the targets have turned toilet training from a dreaded task into an important bonding opportunity for both parent and child. Availability: Specialty retail and the Internet. Retail: 100/pkg. $5.99 http://www.toilettimetargets.com
FLIP-N-FLUSH—Mt. View, CA
It was Petr Skoda’s three-year-old daughter Anette that got him thinking. She needed a potty—but his town home bathroom was quite small, and a toddler toilet would take up a lot of room. The Czech hardware engineer then got the idea to create a seat that permanently attached to the bigger seat and lifted out of the way when it wasn’t needed. With the help of his twin Pavel, the two tested materials and tweaked Macintosh-aided designs. The result, a new and revolutionary potty seat aptly named the Flip-n-Flush. Not only is it easy and conveniently out of the way for adults, it’s a comfortable seat for a child to use while potty training. And it eliminates the fear of falling in and messy clean-ups. Availability: Specialty retail and the Internet. Retail: $11.99 http://www.flipnflush.com/
WEEMOTE™—Miami, FL
At the age of four, Eli’s frustration and curiosity with the television set and the hi-tech remote got the best of him. It was that frustration, and the unintended stumbling over inappropriate programming that had his parents concerned. Father John Stephen searched hi-and-low for a kid-friendly remote control that would also allow a parent to pre-set the appropriate channels. Nothing came close to what John and his wife envisioned. With a career in the hi-tech industry, John felt the only way to get what he and his wife jokingly referred to as a “weemote” was to design it himself from scratch. Thus the long-and-involved process of “reinventing the wheel” began. Eli’s elementary school classmates were the testers and the sharpest critics lending their insight along the way to the eventual birth of the simple-to-use, brightly colored weemote™ that features fun geometric buttons. Availability: Specialty retail and the Internet. Retail: $24.95. http://www.weemote.com
BOOT CAMP FOR NEW DADS™--Irvine, CA
When it came to fatherhood, Greg Bishop was a champ having had twelve brothers and sisters. But Greg realized how little confidence other fathers had in caring for their infants. Believing a little guidance would go a long way, he launched the first Boot Camp for New Dads™ on Fathers Day in 1990 with the help of other veteran fathers and their babies. Six years later, Greg’s so-called “hobby” was so successful that he responded to many request and began offering the program in hospitals around the country. Today, Boot Camp for New Dads™—said to be the premier introduction to fatherhood—operates in over 250 locations. Availability: 250 hospitals and various locations in the U.S. Cost: Varies http://www.bcnd.org/public/
DADDY’S TOOL BAG™—Sacramento, CA
The startling reality hit Ted Hendricks when his son arrived…he didn’t have a clue about caring for an infant. There were books around the house, but they addressed things from a women’s perspective. And worse yet, Ted wasn’t about to carry around that adorable “pink and yellow” diaper bag his wife received as a shower gift. To preserve the masculine integrity of fathers to follow, Ted set out to create a practical product combining his love of video editing. The result…Daddy’s Tool Bag™, newborn care home improvement style. The stylish, manly diaper bag comes with a changing mat, information card and packing list. And best of all, an instructional video—featuring two “Do-it-yourself” dads— introduces everything from bathing and diapering to nasal aspiration and swaddling.
