A few of our clients have faced this dilemma, here’s what we suggest:

We’re pregnant and decided not to find out the gender in advance – any tips for creating a gender neutral nursery that’s still fun and interesting?

Gender neutral nurseries have come a long way from yellow, yellow and yes, more yellow. There are a variety of no and low VOC (volatile organic chemicals) paints that come in a variety of fun colors that are great for the nursery – everything from soft orange palates to rich greens. Or pick from a slew of classic gender neutral themes such as Winnie The Pooh and Jungle Animals. You can even get busy with stencils or peel and stick wall decorations. If budget permits, murals can do wonders, too. We say, get a little creative, have fun, and you’ll find that the possibilities are endless!

If you have a baby-related product or etiquette question that you’d like to send us for possible inclusion in our Ask The Baby Planners column, please contact us and mention Q&A in the subject box.

Here at The Baby Planners HQ, we rely on many people to help us run our business. One such person and go-to sources is none other than Kimberley Blaine, The Go-To Mom. Kimberly is a national child development expert and a licensed Family and Child Therapist and her site is chock full of helpful content and video for parents.

At Kimberley’s request, we were happy to join her last week to shoot a few segments on our favorite topic, shopping for baby. You can check out some of our “Must Haves” and fun “Gift Ideas” under the WATCH SHOW heading, here.

We recently spent the day with some Japanese journalists from Nikkei Trendy Magazine. They couldn’t have been lovelier and we were thrilled to receive this issue with a profile of our company. We’re getting an amazing response – arigato!

Child abuse is a tough topic to bring up, let alone write about. But Jill Starishevsky, an Assistant D.A. in the New York child abuse and sex crimes bureau, has written an incredible book, My Body Belongs To Me, that tackles this sensitive issue.

The book, told in rhyming text with bright illustrations, helps make children aware that when it comes to their bodies, there are boundaries. It is geared towards opening a dialogue between parents and children and the hope is that this book is used as a tool to facilitate this difficult discussion. A portion of the proceeds of the sale of this book will be donated to organizations dedicated to the prevention of child sexual abuse.

We thank Jill for making this taboo subject a little easier to approach.

We love shopping and are lucky to have the opportunity to visit many retailers across the country, checking them out with and for our clients.

Since our launch in 2006, one of our favorite stores to send our Northern California clients to is Lullaby Lane. The store has been in business since 1947 and its owner, Barry Gevertz, has a wealth of knowledge on all things baby.

A new boutique on our radar happens to be just around the corner from our New York City offices – lucky us! MoonSoup is “an early childhood development studio” and gift store. Their unique space and overall holistic, eco-vibe is the perfect place for classes, parties, and more!

Our friends at The Cradle and Pregnancy Magazine just named Sugarplum Dreams (see above photo) as a finalist as their Best Baby Boutique contest – we can see why. Their adorable owner Ellen Cotton wanted to create a one stop shop that reflected the needs of moms. We took one look at her website – and her amazing selection of products in her Texas store – and we think you’ll agree: mission accomplished!

We love talking with Tracey Serebin on her web talk radio show, Family Matters. As featured experts on this fabulous monthly podcast, we tackle a variety of what else? Baby related topics. This month we discuss the challenges of winter… you can listen to it here.