“A happy baby is a healthy baby.” That’s what the lady at Homegrown Bagels, in Sonoma told me as she handed me a bag of bagels specifically designed for teething babies. As I took the bag, I wondered whether the little bagels would help make my CJ happy again.

They say that three months is the perfect age. For awhile I wondered about the source of such comments, then it hit me – three months is when babies start to become more aware. They start to notice and interact with the world around them. They smile, coo and giggle. Who doesn’t like a three month old baby?

Then four months hits and the same once smiling, cooing and giggling baby, has bouts of crying and screaming. In addition, they start drooling enough to make some dogs jealous. The cause? Teeth. Those pesky teeth cause a ton of pain as they work their way into the scene. And, in the process, they turn the sweet baby into a fussy one.

It’s happened to my own little CJ recently. With moments when he’s totally inconsolable, waking up from a dead sleep with a screech unlike any other cry, CJ has been in major pain. I even trekked him to the big city (Petaluma) for his doctor to take a peek, and well, the route of his pain – teething.

Desperate for something to help ease his pain, I sought tips from fellow moms. Here’s the list of what folks have recommended:

• Teething bagels – If you’re lucky enough to live near Sonoma, then these lifesaving bagels are free at Homegrown Bagels
• Cold foods or ice in mesh feeders
• Frozen washcloths
• Cold plastic teethers
• Amber teething necklace
• Hylands teething tablets
• Advil
• Tylenol
• Cherry brandy

Having tried nearly all of these recommendations, it goes without saying that CJ is one of two things. He is either much more comfortable or more entertained by the various things I am offering him. He loves chewing on frozen bananas in mesh feeders, gnawing on bagels and sucking on washcloths. Sometimes though I do think that he has more fun playing the “mommy pick it up” game. The game goes like this – I give him the bagel, he drops it on the floor, I pick it up and so on and so forth.

Even if the happiness is caused by the game CJ and I play with teething tools, it is happiness just the same. It rings true that a happy baby is a healthy baby. Thank you to the moms and dads out there who gave me new ideas (and Homegrown Bagels for the teething bagels).

also published at http://www.sonomanews.com/News-2012/Teething-bagels/