Favorite Baby Items

Now that Nora has been here 6 weeks (!), I thought I would write a post about my favorite baby items so far, in case any of my readers are having a baby or have a baby and might be interested! Of course, it seems like any baby item is a little subjective to the baby herself. For example, other babies might like swings but Nora- not a fan, at least not so far. She doesn't even like the vibrating bouncer seat.

In no particular order:

1) The Fisher Price Rock n'Play. Really, the reviews on Amazon say it all, but I really love this thing. Nora has slept here since the beginning, and especially because she ended up having reflux and the Rock n'Play has an incline, it's really helped her sleep. I credit it for our pretty long sleeping hours (she just hit the six hours in a row mark, followed by another 2!). Plus it's got sides, so she can't just flail around like in her crib (not sure when we're going to make the transition- the fact that she's eventually going to outgrow the RnP is a major downside- and I should note that she's swaddled, but she's a wiggle worm and rolls around even swaddled in her crib). Here she is in her bed:

Awww:

The one negative: it claims it's an "easy fold" system, so you can fold it up and move it easily- this is a joke! Kevin had me laughing hard one night when he tried to demonstrate how to do it while holding a baby. It requires at least 3 hands in my opinion, because you have to push two buttons on either end and then push the sides together at the same time. But, we don't move it all that often, so it's not a huge problem.

2) The BOB revolution stroller and the Chicco Keyfit 30 infant carseat. Both of these things are awesome, and can be used together with the BOB infant carseat adaptor and a simple tweak that I found in the first amazon.com review of the adaptor. The stroller is made so well and is really built to last. Nora should be able to ride in it for quite awhile! It does great over all the cracks and bumps in the Baltimore sidewalks, and has great shocks. Nora loves walks!! The carseat and base are so easy to use and get in and out of the car. When we went to get it installed the carseat lady was like, okay good, you have my favorite carseat! And I figure she would know. So far, I have to agree with her.

3) A video monitor. I wasn't sure I needed the video component in our tiny house, but I'm so glad we got one. It's been invaluable to be able to see her after I put her in the Rock n'Play and leave her for her nap/bedtime. We have the Levana video monitor- I'm not necessarily attached to this particular brand but it's worked great so far, and can be used like an intercom system. It also plays music but we haven't used that feature too much. The video quality is quite good and I haven't had any problems with interference from other wireless devices.

4) My brest friend pillow. Okay, I know the name is silly. But this pillow is great, and has been a huge help with breastfeeding. I still get kind of a sore back so I wish the pillow was a little thicker so the baby was raised higher- I stick another pillow underneath to raise her head up, but I still have to lean over a little. Still, I use it like, a dozen times a day. It definitely beats regular pillows, which I've also tried.

5) Happiest Baby on the Block book. We've used these techniques countless times already. Kevin's the real master, but I try hard. Nora is pretty fussy in the afternoons/evenings and it's nice to have ways to soothe her. I'm not sure the book is necessary- I hear the DVD is better.

6) A variety of swaddles. I've tried several and all have different uses. Nora is swaddled in the Miracle blanket in the picture above. This is pretty lightweight and I like to use it during the daytime because it's easy to use. The only negative is that she can get her legs out pretty easily. At night I do the "escape proof swaddle" from YouTube, which rocks!! I do it using a receiving blanket and our nice Aden + Anais muslin blankets (which also have a number of other uses, such as creating a sun shade over the stroller while still allowing airflow underneath). I've also tried the Halo sleepsack swaddle, but only with limited success- she can get out of the velcro pretty easily.

7) A wubbanub. What is a wubbanub, you ask? It's basically a stuffed toy attached to a Soothie pacifier. We of course have the monkey. Kevin calls it "suck monkey" which is a little disturbing but somehow we are all now calling it suck monkey. "Where is suck monkey??? I need suck monkey!" is commonly heard around the house nowadays. It's great because it gives the baby something to hold onto. Plus, it's cute. It does make it a little harder to clean though.

Other nice things to have: Soft waterproof changing cloths- I put these on the changing pad and cover to have an extra layer of protection (even with it on there, I have to change the changing pad cover a few times a week, but at least it offers one more layer!). Burp cloths aka Gerber cloth diapers (I'm not sure how anyone would actually use these as diapers, but they are large and absorbent and work awesome as burp cloths). The Ergo- I think this will become more and more useful as Nora gets a little older- right now we use it with the Infant Insert and if she's in the right mood, it puts her right to sleep. Some kind of white noise machine, like the Sleep Giraffe that we have (although I wish this giraffe played longer than 45 minutes). A playmat, like this Tiny Love one that my sister got us, where Nora does tummy time:

So there you have it! All my current favorite baby items, though I'm sure the list will change as she gets older!

**I'm not in any way paid or reimbursed to advertise these items, they are all just products I love!**