I have two kids so I am by NO means a mommy expert, however, I have gathered together a few of my FAVORITE items.
- Aden & Anais Bamboo! Now we all know that Aden & Anais blankies are the absolute best thing- like EVER.. but it doesn't stop there.. The bamboo ones just so happen to feel like a CLOUD.. literally, like you are wrapping your new little angel exactly where they belong. They also have sheets, burp cloths, bibs and blankets made in the oh-so-wonderful bamboo fabric.. so spend just a little more- they deserve it and so do you!
- Wubbanub- I saw one of these first at Nordstrom one day, and thought it was just so cute. When I got it for my daughter when she was about 2 months old it amazed me! Not only is it so cute, but so functional too! It helps keep the paci propped in AND it's like a double soothe. Both of my babies love to hug it and hold on to it. And they have all sorts of cute animals. Also, it was great when we had Ledger, we got him a monkey one and so it was easier for Lynden not to try and take it from him. We explained to her that the monkey is his (she still uses her sheep at night).
- City Select- THE MOST AMAZING STROLLER EVER INVENTED.. LIKE EVER!! When we had Lynden I did a lot of research on car seats and decided to go with the Chicco. It had EXCELLENT safety ratings, so it just made sense to get it. Well not knowing much about anything- at all I thought we HAD to get the stroller that came with it. Now don't get me wrong the Chicco stroller is just fine and worked great for us, but if I had known about the City Select I would have just started with that one because, wait for it... it can be a single or a double!! WHAT?! I know right?! It's a little on the spendier side, but it actually would have saved me a lot of money in the long run. I ended up buying a jogger stroller because the Chicco was not good on our 3-5 mile walks we were taking everyday. Then I had to buy a new one when we found out we were having baby #2. And what's great is if we need it to be a single we just take one of the seats off. It's super versatile and you can face the seats all sorts of ways. The only down side is everything is sold separately, so you buy the stroller with the 2 seats, but then you have to buy the parent console, and trays, and car seat adapters, all separately. The other great thing about it is it's great for long walks to jogs (we recently did a 5K with both kiddos in it) and it's narrow so you can take it to the mall and actually fit through stores and doors!
- Honest Co. diapers! We started out using Pampers swaddlers, and then switched to huggies snugglers, and Lynden was sleeping through the night, from 8pm-8am by 10 weeks and would wake up soggy and with wet jammies. I finally decided to try Honest because I had heard such great things about them and now they are my ultimate favorite. Plus they don't use harsh chemicals and are eco friendly so they are better for sensitive tushies! PLUS they are so cute!!
- Angel Care monitor- Now we don't have the one with the video, which I wish we had gotten, but I LOVE this monitor. I know everyone is different and there is no "right" or "wrong" time to move a baby into their own room, I think it just depends on what the parents feel comfortable with. For us, we moved Lynden in at 3 weeks and Ledger at 2, and I have to say without this monitor there is NO WAY I could have done that. There is a little pad that you put under their mattress that detects their breathing, so if they happen to stop breathing for more than 20 seconds an alarm will go off. And yes there was a part on this that was recalled, but they gave you a new piece to fix it, but if you properly set it up the cord is NO WHERE near your baby's reach. Also, the only downside is that if you don't set the sensitivity correctly you MAY have a false alarm. We had this once and I almost had an actual heart attack. We just adjust the setting (and didn't double swaddle) and it never happened again.
- Triple Paste- this stuff is amazing. It's a little pricier but we've had a couple bad tushie rashes and if you cake this stuff on there it clears up.. FAST!! Plus the tub is pretty big and it lasted us 18 months. We don't really have rashes very often but even if it was looking a little pink, we'd use it.
- KicKee Pants footies. These really just a little splurge. They are not at all necessary but they are soooo cute and SOOO soft! They are also made with bamboo (my new favorite material!) and super duper stretchy. Great for a gift or if you just want to splurge a little on something super cute and amazing! :)
A few of my other favorite things I didn't put in this list but still LOVE are; Jellycats stuffed animals Lynden has a few and always carries one EVERYWHERE, Ledger also has a cute fox soother, Babylit Board books- they are just darling, Kushies changing pads- we have SO many of these are big and will cover almost an entire public changing table, and J&J hand and face wipes- we use these all the time to clean up when we are on the go!
I love finding new awesome things so if you'd like to share some of YOUR faves I'd love to hear about them!!
