Once Charlie's Kids was formed, its first goal was to reach new parents and caregivers and teach them about safe sleep. Charlie’s Kids focused their outreach on education of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) 2011 Safe Sleep Recommendations,* creating the Do’s and Don’ts of safe sleep in an easy-to-read bulleted format. Armed with this list and our experiences as new parents and educators in early literacy and advocacy, the idea for a children’s book was born.
Charlie's Kids commissioned pediatrician and author Dr. John Hutton and illustrator Leah Busch to create Sleep Baby Safe and Snug exclusively for Charlie's Kids Foundation.
Sleep Baby, Safe and Snug Board Book provides the safe sleep message in the context of a beautifully written and illustrated children’s story. Because books are often part of the traditional bedtime routine, this board book provides safe sleep instructions and reminders right before the child is placed in their sleeping environment.
Perhaps most important, unlike the traditional brochures on safe sleep new parents receive at the hospital, people will cherish this book and read it to their child numerous times - promoting early literacy and reinforcing the safe sleep message.
In one of Charlie’s Kids most exciting advocacy efforts, Sleep Baby Safe and Snug is now being included in every safe sleep survival kit distributed by the national organization Cribs for Kids. The National Cribs for Kids® Infant Safe Sleep Initiative provides safe-sleep cribs and other safe-sleep products to at-risk families around the country .
Sleep Baby Safe and Snug makes a fantastic gift for any new parents and grandparents. The simple rhymes and beautiful pictures make it the perfect bedtime read. Like, Goodnight Moon, you’ll read it over and over before you kiss your little ones goodnight. But, unlike other tales, you’ll sleep soundly, too, knowing your baby is SAFE and snug.
Proceeds from the book go toward fulfilling the Charlie's Kids mission of educating families about safe sleep and SIDS.
Charlie’s Kids Book Objectives:
-
To provide safe sleep education through an easy-to-read narrative
-
To demonstrate a safe-sleep environment through vivid illustrations
-
To portray different races, ethnicities and family structures participating in safe sleep
-
To promote early literacy
Dr. John Hutton is a pediatrician, author, and owner of the award-winning blue manatee children s bookstore and decafé in Cincinnati, Ohio, and affiliate site blue manatee boxes. He is the founder of the blog Baby Unplugged, whose mission is to help keep children screen-free until age three and promote healthy, developmentally stimulating alternatives.
Leah Busch is an artist and cocreator of the award-winning Toast to Baby series. She is the creative director, instructor, gallery director at Brazee Street Studios. They both live in Cincinnati, Ohio.
*The Sleep Baby Safe and Snug Dos and Don'ts were updated in 2016 following the latest recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Sleep Baby Safe and Snug
“What a wonderful book! Sleep Baby, Safe and Snug by pediatrician Dr. John Hutton and Leah Busch, in collaboration with Charlie s Kids Foundation, works on so many levels: perfect for sharing while conveying safe sleep practices in a creative way. An inspired new advocacy tool for SIDS prevention, and ideal gift for parents. I strongly recommend it!”
Dr. Rachel Y. Moon, MD, FAAP; Chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics SIDS Task Force
Division Head of General Pediatrics & Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Virginia School of Medicine
“A powerful teaching tool, this amazing little book makes SIDS prevention education at once fun to read and visually entertaining. A terrific medium for modernizing and popularizing the ‘Back to Sleep’ concept, it should be read by all prospective and new parents, grandparents, older siblings and hired caretakers.”
Dr. Jeanne Ballard, MD; Author, New Ballard Score
Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Obstetrics & Gynecology at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine
