1. General Naturals Tummy Soother
Last night (and the two nights before that) Avery and I have been up, frustrated, a couple times in the middle of the night. She, because something was hurting her, and myself because I was exhausted and nothing I tried would do much to help her. Avery is terrible at burping. And the fact that most of the time I don't want to pat her back for 30 minutes after each feeding is the main reason those air bubbles give her grief at 3:00 in the morning. I know that without those bubbles she can sleep at least 6 hours at night, and if I just feed her to "shut her up" we'll both be up again about an hour later.
Last night I almost started crying. I said a prayer that I would be able to do something, anything to help her (and I) be able to go back to sleep. I looked over and saw the computer, so I Googled it. And my solution came up... and I even had the unopened product in my house. So I gave her some of this miracle potion and seriously within ONE minute she stopped screaming and cooed at me. We sat for a minute, I heard bubbles rumbling around, and she burped with no back patting. We both went back to sleep and she slept until ten. Ten. (And she overflowed her diaper this morning... so I'm sure the lower bubbles made their way out as well).
2. The Amazing Miracle Blanket:
There are several swaddling blankets on the market. I have some SwaddleMe's, which velcro shut, and they are fabulous. But there came a time when both of my babies have been strong enough to get out of them. Harvey used to get his hands up by his face, but Avery can even make the velcro come undone. The Miracle Blanket has two extra flaps that make this impossible. Those flaps go around their arms and under the back, and then the whole blanket wraps around their body a couple of times. I love it. Learn more here.
(By the way... upon searching for a photo, I came upon this link about ribbon swaddling. Anyone tried this? Thoughts?)
3. Broadway Mary Janes by MeInMind:
I totally didn't pay full price for these.. they were a "steal" on BabySteals.com one day in December, so I snagged them for a Christmas gift. But they are adorable. I get compliments on them all the time. And the best part? MeInMind has a free sock replacement program if you lose one. Learn more here.
4. Baby 411 by Denise Fields and Ari Brown, M. D.:
I've mentioned this book on my blog before, but I thought I'd add it here. Everything is easily organized, accessible, and often humorous. I have found an answer for 99% of my baby/kid questions during the last 3 years. I loved it so much, I bought the following book: Toddler 411. More info here.
5. Flannel Lap Pads:
I lay one of these under Avery's head in her bassinet when she goes to sleep. If she spits up, I don't have to wash all the bedding, I just replace it with a clean one. Gotta love less laundry.
6. My Brest Friend:
I know. The name is terrible. I don't say it much. But I love this pillow. I tried the Boppy and it slipped a lot. This pillow isn't going anywhere. And if you lean back in a recliner, the pillow leans as well because it's strapped around your back. That means a little more sleep for me. Oh and I love the little pocket for cream, mylicon, or pads.
How about you seasoned mothers? What are your all-time favorite baby products? Am I missing out on anything?
Last night (and the two nights before that) Avery and I have been up, frustrated, a couple times in the middle of the night. She, because something was hurting her, and myself because I was exhausted and nothing I tried would do much to help her. Avery is terrible at burping. And the fact that most of the time I don't want to pat her back for 30 minutes after each feeding is the main reason those air bubbles give her grief at 3:00 in the morning. I know that without those bubbles she can sleep at least 6 hours at night, and if I just feed her to "shut her up" we'll both be up again about an hour later.
Last night I almost started crying. I said a prayer that I would be able to do something, anything to help her (and I) be able to go back to sleep. I looked over and saw the computer, so I Googled it. And my solution came up... and I even had the unopened product in my house. So I gave her some of this miracle potion and seriously within ONE minute she stopped screaming and cooed at me. We sat for a minute, I heard bubbles rumbling around, and she burped with no back patting. We both went back to sleep and she slept until ten. Ten. (And she overflowed her diaper this morning... so I'm sure the lower bubbles made their way out as well).
2. The Amazing Miracle Blanket:
There are several swaddling blankets on the market. I have some SwaddleMe's, which velcro shut, and they are fabulous. But there came a time when both of my babies have been strong enough to get out of them. Harvey used to get his hands up by his face, but Avery can even make the velcro come undone. The Miracle Blanket has two extra flaps that make this impossible. Those flaps go around their arms and under the back, and then the whole blanket wraps around their body a couple of times. I love it. Learn more here.
(By the way... upon searching for a photo, I came upon this link about ribbon swaddling. Anyone tried this? Thoughts?)
3. Broadway Mary Janes by MeInMind:
I totally didn't pay full price for these.. they were a "steal" on BabySteals.com one day in December, so I snagged them for a Christmas gift. But they are adorable. I get compliments on them all the time. And the best part? MeInMind has a free sock replacement program if you lose one. Learn more here.
4. Baby 411 by Denise Fields and Ari Brown, M. D.:
5. Flannel Lap Pads:
I lay one of these under Avery's head in her bassinet when she goes to sleep. If she spits up, I don't have to wash all the bedding, I just replace it with a clean one. Gotta love less laundry.
6. My Brest Friend:
I know. The name is terrible. I don't say it much. But I love this pillow. I tried the Boppy and it slipped a lot. This pillow isn't going anywhere. And if you lean back in a recliner, the pillow leans as well because it's strapped around your back. That means a little more sleep for me. Oh and I love the little pocket for cream, mylicon, or pads.
How about you seasoned mothers? What are your all-time favorite baby products? Am I missing out on anything?
I got some of those Mary Jane socks as a present when Malia was born. Get stopped by complete strangers who then tell me how cute they are. Have found more from other companies that are cheaper and just as cute. Love them!! And I do the pad beneath the head in the bed bit to. Daniel was a really spitty baby and I got tired of having to wash his hair in the middle of the night when he spit up...again. It is a wonderful thing! I think my newest favorite thing is a diaper caddy by trend lab that I purchased from Kohl's (if you go to kohls.com and do a search for "diaper caddy" it will come right up). It holds a full tub of wipes, diapers, a change of clothes, a changing pad, whatever small stuff you want and comes in a variety of patterns to meet your aesthetic needs. I just carry it around the house so that I can do diaper changes wherever they need to be rather than having to dash upstairs to get everything. Worth every single penny I spent. Wish I had one when I was diapering the other three. I'm a big fan of the udder cover as well, although it is getting less effective because Malia doesn't want her head covered because then she can't see out. But it's still better than just blatantly flashing everyone when feeding in public places.
ReplyDeleteSo I just remembered one more recently discovered love (not that this one will help you, but things may change as Avery gets older). For those babies who hate being swaddled (Malia just raised her hand), the Sleep Sack is a wonderful thing! Malia is much happier in hers than she is when I try to wrap her up.
ReplyDeleteI used the woombie to swaddle, check it out. they are wonderful.
ReplyDeleteHahaha I have TOTALLY been writing a post in my head the past few days that is pretty much this exact same thing. We are twins!!
ReplyDeleteWow! Really liked this post...so helpful! I know exactly what you meant about the 'you crying' bit!! Makes you wonder, doesn't it? when they just cry 'n' cry like that!
ReplyDelete