Kiddopotamus SwaddleMe blankets save us so much time during diaper changes through the night. When we first came home from the hospital, we were still using stolen hospital receiving blankets to swaddle him each night. Because it was still cool during the night, we would hilariously swaddle him with 2-3 blankets at one time (and yes diaper changes took FOREVER.) Finally, it dawned on me that I had registered for swaddle blankets that make the swaddling so much easier with Velcro tabs. The blankets come in fleece and cotton knit to accommodate the varying seasons as well. I have heard great reviews on the Miracle Blanket as well and should North continue to allow us to swaddle him, I may look into getting 1 for him.
Gripe Water is a gift sent down by the Lord. Seriously, thank you God for providing us with sodium bicarbonate, ginger extract & fennel extract that, when combined, make the miracle known as gripe water. Hallelujah and stuff!
Homedics Soundspa Lullaby Sound Machine or the baby crack machine as we've come to call it, is an absolute lifesaver in our household. North is currently sleeping in our room and when we put him down, we start up the ocean waves white noise matched with the fish projection on the ceiling. It is magical. Even mommy and daddy enjoy it and like to pretend they are sleeping ocean side. The device has a handy sleep timer and you can set it anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour. During night feedings, I turn the projection back on like a nightlight so Dave can hopefully still get some sleep. For $15-$20 this is a steal!
Snap-N-Go Stroller is a wise alternative to a bulky and expensive travel system. I've taken North out countless times on my own and our car seat coupled with the Snap-N-Go Stroller makes the outing so easy. They're cheap, practical, manageable, lightweight and compact. If you do go this route, just make sure your car seat and stroller are compatible.
Baby Angelcare Monitor is the greatest invention of the century. The monitor comes with a sensor pad that is placed under the mattress which detects the baby's movement and heartbeat. If 20 seconds go by and no movement is detected, an alarm will sound. During the daytime, I put North down for naps in his crib and turn his Angelcare monitor on. I loop a carabiner through the sound monitor and then attach it to the belt loop on my pants and take it with me through the house and outside. I can hear any noises he makes and feel comfortable that the alarm will sound if there is a serious problem. Talk about peace of mind! The sound monitor is both battery operated and AC adaptable. Just be sure to turn off the nursery monitor when you remove the baby from the crib (unless you enjoy self-inflicted heart attacks).
Prefold Cloth Diapers are cheap, multipurpose and environmentally friendly. Even if you don't plan on using cloth diapers for your baby's bum, use them for burp cloths. You can buy a 12 pack of cloth diapers for the same price that you can buy a 4 pack of burp cloths. The cloth diapers are larger and more absorbent too. (If you plan on actually cloth diapering your baby using prefolds, upgrade them to a diaper service quality Chinese or Indian prefolds with 4x8x4 layering of the fabric.)
An inflatable exercise ball is a great baby soothing device with the dual purpose of being an helpful tool to get the new mother back in shape. These are often available for cheap at TJ Maxx, Ross and the like. Constantly walking around bouncing a fussy baby in your arms can be exhausting. Whereas bouncing the baby on the exercise ball is comfortable, works mom's quads and is kind of fun.
Do you have any highly recommended products that have made life with new baby that much easier? Please let me know in the comments so we can get this information out to other mothers!
1 comment:
totally agree on the anglecare. SIDs totally freaked me out as a first time mommy, so I actually slept peacefully knowing that his movements were being monitored. word of advice- you will have some false alarms as he gets older and starts rolling to the sides of the crib. you can change the sensitivity level at that point to pick up the slightest of movements (we kept it around medium before that), or once he can flip over and back just turn off the motion sensor altogether. I used to think of it as a baby snatcher alarm too, so I hated turning off the sensor, but got over it after a few nights ;-) One other must have: a large tub of Aquaphor (by Eucerin), especially if baby has dry skin. Noah had very sensitive fair skin and would get scaly red patches- we'd apply the aquaphor after baths and his skin would clear up after a couple days. Also- this is great stuff for diaper rashes too. You can use it alone or in conjunction with other diaper creams (for more severe rashes). We still use if for Noah's occasional diaper rash (and he's 2)- its the only thing that doesn't make him scream. Get a large tub for $14.99 and it'll last a year...also great for adult dry skin issues too!
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