Many of you know I am a product junkie. I love trying new stuff. & I especially love new stuff that makes my life easier. Well…baby #2 has come with a lot of new challenges, but also some really great new stuff. Baby things just keep getting better & better! I am using a few different things this time around & thought I’d share what those favorite things are! Here’s what I am lovin’ right now!
SheaMoisture’s Organic Olive & Marula Baby Head to Toe Lotion
This stuff smells like heaven in a bottle, minus all the junk that is in most of the baby soaps & lotions found at the store. The soap is nice & sudsy & the lotion is thick but not greasy, and keeps my kiddies skin soft as can be. I adore this stuff. I can’t currently find it online; I purchase locally at my Target for $10 each.
NUK Soft OrthoStar Pacifier & the Bella Tunno Loop Binker
When I left the hospital with a soothie/wubbanub I vowed NEVER to use those stupid pacifiers again! They wouldn’t stay in Caroline’s mouth & drove me absolutely nuts. This time, I brought these to the hospital with me (both a girl and boy set, of course) and he is so good at keeping them in! I love NUKs (just a personal preference) and LOVED the NUK Genius for Caroline. These appear to be a re-branding of the NUK Genius, as the shape is the same. I love the silicone version for 0-6 months because it is really easy to sterilize. I keep one attached to both Everett & the car seat at all times with the cute Bella Tunno Binkers (I got mine at Nordstrom). I like the loop style because they easily loop around the small openings on silicone pacifiers. These are definitely an upgrade from the slippery soothies!
Lil Joey Newborn Cloth Diapers
These will get a full write up on their own, but to tide you over, these were my favorite Newborn Diapers. I rented them from Liz of Go Baby Go and especially loved the trim fit & the button down front that made room for his little umbilical cord until it fell off. They are AIOs, or all-in-ones, meaning there is no stuffing. We began to leak through them at about four weeks, which is when we switched over to our FuzziBunz & returned these to Liz. They are quite possibly the cutest, tiny little things on the planet!
The week before I delivered Everett I received the loveliest package from Juli of ZoLi, which is one of my favorite baby companies. She sent me a bunch of goodies to try and I have become so fond of this that I consider it a MUST HAVE item for new mommies. I keep mine on my hard counter top and use it all day long. I love it because a) it’s sticky, so both the mat and the baby don’t slide around, b) it’s got a surface that is super easy to clean & sanitize and c) its spongy & soft for the baby to lay on, even when placed directly on a hard surface. We use this for diaper changes and for bath time. It’s by far the best changing pad I’ve ever used. I need another for my car! ;)
I liked it last time. But I rarely used it. This go-around I LOVE it. I can’t wrap my head around what I would do without it. Logistically. How do you shop with two kids? How do you take the older one to gymnastics & run around with her? Especially when it’s over #2’s naptime?! Well. Moby solves that problem. It’s like a drug for my little man. He lives [sleeps] in it from 10am-2pm every day. It is the only way I can efficiently live this crazy life. It’s getting a bit hot with the Texas summer now in full force but we’re still in that strange in-between stage where the ergo is too big for him to sit the right way & all he does is kick to stand if I put him in the fetal position. So Moby wins. I don’t know how I’d live without it. & by request I will be doing a You Tube video to help you see how I get Everett in it. We’ve got it down. ;)
I’ve now been able to do these for both of my babies. P&P is a home party business that does hand/foot print art. I’ve had friends who hosted parties where I could get them done when my babies were little & they are such treasures! This is Everett’s 2wk old handprint. <3 :)
The very first thing the police officer did at our car seat safety class was rip the head support out of our brand new car seat. He told us it was much safer to roll up two blankets on either side of the baby’s head than to use the U shaped head support, as it could slide down behind the baby’s head and cause the head to fall & get stuck forward, blocking the airway. So then what?? Well. This answers that. My BFF introduced me to this product–and I am so grateful. It’s the perfect head support in the car seat and would be great in the stroller too. Little dude is nice & snug. I highly recommend!
Four returned monitors later…we finally have a winner. This is a great multi-camera video monitor, accommodating up to four cameras at a time. It can scan from camera to camera (visual and audio) every seven seconds, or give you the quad camera view, you get to pick the camera the constant sound comes from. I usually have it set on the quad cam view, and have the sound set to Everett’s camera, because Caroline can be heard from anywhere in the house. Ha! It’s color during the day, b&w at night. Battery life is poor, so I bought a second charger at Radio Shack which gives me a charging station both up and down stairs. Overall, I’m very happy!
These soft, cute little hearts kept me from ever using a disposable nursing pad. They are super soft on one side, waterproof on the other and worked like a charm. I used them for 7 weeks (I tend to leak!) and had 8 pair. They are AWESOME.
Petunia Pickle Bottom Haven Nursing Cover
Last pregnancy I wanted to be all chic and discreet & I bought the black eyelet Bebe Au Lait nursing cover. Well. Black = dark & I never used it because I couldn’t SEE! This time around I seem to be nursing all over town (what can you do with a toddler on the go!?) and I use this every single day. Perfect shape. Beautiful print. Can’t go wrong with the always gorgeous Petunia. :)
mmmm. LOVE. So love. I love the smoooooth ride. I love the little window so I can see my babies while I push it. I love the extra big canopy. I love the added cup holder attachment. I bought and NEVER used the car seat adapter. My little guy hates the car seat. So…if anyone is in the market…haha. ;) He’ll even stay asleep in it so I can crossfit when I get back from a walk. Rad. Until she wakes him up, of course. Today I ran with it for the first time and it was great! No kicking. Not too terribly heavy. Just smooth. This is the only stroller I have used with #2. But only on walks/runs. Everywhere else we go I wear E & C walks or gets pushed in a cart. It is an excellent stroller for getting movin’ again! :)
& I can’t leave out big sister. She is very particular about her stuff. Her #1 faves are her cry baby (her beloved baby doll) and these:
My SIL sent us the first set of Prereaders and they have been a hit ever since. I recently found them at Costco (eek! big! & CHEAP!) and bought them all. They are very simple stories but Caroline loves them. They are short and packed with things to talk about. There are even parent teaching guides in the back. They are our favorite books to read!
& she loves them so much she can often be found like this after bedtime:
I am proud to have a little bookworm!
This little post took me five days and a dozen broken snippets of time to complete. Argh! What a difference a second baby makes…!!! Someday I will return here full swing…but until then…I think I’ll be lucky to get one article up each week!! ;) How do you WAHMommies-of-two+ do it?!
& don’t forget, I have a FULL detailed list of every single product I recommend for new mommies in my treasury. For more fun (and essential) products, be sure to check out: