As you might expect, we have had our fair share of good and bad baby product purchases. I get asked quite often, what I recommend to new moms and even some seasoned ones. I wish I was one of those lucky bloggers who gets all these free products to demo and review, but that's not my fate. Since these posts are only shared on my private Facebook page, these reviews are for all my fabulous mommy and daddy friends who are wondering, "Is that really worth the money?"
I can tell you from experience, that every child is indeed unique and what may thrill your firstborn may bore your second and vice versa! So, keep that in mind when purchasing baby items or reusing something you thought was magnificent.
1.) Zooby Car & House Baby Monitor
This product is fairly new and I didn't learn about it until my fourth baby. It is mostly meant to use in the car to have a live view of your little one. It can also be used in the house as well but I have not tried that yet. I love it! I have used plenty of baby mirrors and weird attachments with my other children, only to have them shift positions, fall or not fit at all. Most mirrors also have a very distorted reflection and don't really give you a good enough view to tell if the baby really needs intervention. This doll, easily attached to the headrest and bends to any angle you need. It has a flexible tube inside so it stays wherever you move it to. The video picture is very clear and really gives you a perfect view of your child. It can tell when he is spitting up or has pulled a blanket to close to his face. It also works AT NIGHT, you get a perfect view even in the pitch black. This is certainly not a cheap product but was worth the money for my needs.
2.) Owlet Heart Rate & Oxygen Monitor
Similar to the Zooby, this wonderful product was not available until recently (or I didn't know about it). I went back and forth for quite awhile on whether or not to purchase the Owlet, mostly due to the high price tag...$249.99. I also had all the other typical big item questions; "Do we really need it? Does it really work? Am I just being ridiculous?" I was thorough in my research of how it worked, what it would help, read all the customer reviews and researched what it was trying to prevent, SIDS.
What finally made me push the 'Confirm Purchase' button?...my baby's life! We buy car seats at $200, $300+ for the safety of our children and the CHANCE that we will be in a car accident but, car accidents are not the leading cause of death in infants under a year, SIDS is. I was sitting in the PICU with my six day old son thinking how much I would regret not spending that $249.99 if he happened to be one of those infants who suddenly stopped breathing during the night. Suddenly, $249.99 didn't matter to me, I didn't want to take the chance. Lincoln, our youngest little man, was/is notorious for taking very long pauses between breaths, especially while sleeping. He set off his monitors several times while in the PICU, the doctor said it was a normal trait of babies his age and just to keep a close eye on him. How do you keep a close eye while you are sleeping? You don't sleep!
I know the Owlet cannot guarantee my child will not be affected by SIDS, but it can help. We have been using the sock to monitor Lincoln every single night since it arrived. There are three different types of alarms: yellow, blue and red. A yellow alarm indicates the sock is not on correctly or has fallen off. A blue alarm warns that the internet has failed or the sock has been taken too far away from the base station. The red alarm alerts you when your child's oxygen and/or heart rate levels are in a dangerous range. It is pretty difficult to get a false red alarm because if it loses the connection or can't find the vitals, that is a yellow or blue alarm. A red alarm is when it can find the vitals and they are too low. The Owlet has been tested against a hospital monitor and was able to get the same readings as the medically certified equipment.
Only a week after getting the Owlet and using it every night, we got a red alert. I 100% believe it was a true alert. I jumped out of bed, grabbed him out of his crib and even in the dark, I could tell he was catching his breath. He most likely had another episode of pausing between breaths and it caused his vitals to dip too low. I am so very thankful I had an alarm to warn me, who knows if the outcome would have been different without the Owlet, I'm glad I didn't take the chance.
3.) Ergo Baby Carrier
Often times, baby carriers become personal preference of the baby wearer. I have tried my fair share of baby wearing contraptions! For older baby wearing and daddy's, the Baby Bjorn is my favorite. Jonathan prefers the Bjorn and says it fits his physique better than the other ones. Newborns up to about a year old, I love the Ergo Baby Carrier. It keeps the baby very tight and close to your chest, very secure and comfortable for both mama and baby. All of my babies have loved being in the Ergo, even for extended periods of time. I have tried several of those baby wraps and they are just too confusing for me. I don't like all that fabric wrapped around me, the Ergo has two easy straps that can be put on and taken off very quickly and easily. I have personally never used the infant insert, it just seemed like too much padding for me but some like the extra support.
4.) Rock and Play
I did not discover this little gem until Milo was born, my third child! Boy I wish I had purchased this one when Sebastian was a baby, he had a severe form of colic and I think this contraption would have made a difference! I use this sleeper more than a crib...I love it and so do my babies! It is portable, so I can move it all over the house very easily and the baby loves to nap in it. It is wonderful when you need to take a shower or cook dinner or even want to change things up at night. My children do not sleep very well on flat surfaces and must be swaddled or they wake themselves every few minutes. I usually swaddle and then lay them in the Rock and Play for some well needed peace and quiet.
These range drastically in price and I am not sure why, we have the $47 one and it is great so I'm not sure why you would need $100+ one.
5.) Medela Breast Pump
This is the most highly recommended breast pump among lactations as well, but it really is the best. I had the same pump through three and a half kids, it finally died a week after Lincoln arrived. Even though I exclusively breast feed all of my kids, I still use the pump to keep my supply up and to stock up my freezer supply.
My sister tried to save money and bought a cheaper, non Medela pump that she gave me when my pump died and it was SO CONFUSING that I could not figure it out. I eventually learned we were missing a few pieces but boy is the Medela easier! The Medela can be pretty pricey, but check with your insurance cause most are covering the cost these days.
6.) Wubbanub Pacifiers
I thought this thing was so crazy when I first saw it! It seemed so silly to need or want a doll attached to a pacifier but it definitely has it's wonderful uses, we own 4 so we are never without one! It is a lifesaver in the car seat or at bedtime. Babies tend to jerk and fidget and make random movements that pop their pacifier out of their mouth and out of reach. The Wubbanub has a slight weight behind it and keeps the pacifier from popping out when they don't really want it to. They can still spit it out if they want to but you have far fewer accidental pop outs. The only downside is that when you are carrying the baby and it pops out, you have to be quick to catch it before it hits the ground, sometimes those paci clips can be convenient.
7.) Diaper Genie Elite
I'm not sure how anyone can survive infant parenthood without a diaper pail, for all those nasty #2s! This particular pail is my favorite, we own two, one upstairs and one downstairs. The refill rings are not too expensive and you can get a bundle pack at Sam's Club for a little cheaper. They last for quite awhile and are super easy to empty. Diaper pails completely take the stink away, unless you open that lid, you can't tell its housing poo!
8.) Take and Toss Sippy Cups
This one is for those with older infants/toddlers...I have spent a small fortune ($100s of dollars) on sippy cups in attempt to find one that does not leak! I have just come to the conclusion that one does not exist, they can be close but never perfect. I bought so many $7 sippy cups only to find them two days later, under a chair, sitting in a puddle of rotten chocolate milk that has stained the carpet. As you may know or soon discover, once you have rotten milk in a sippy cup, it's near impossible to ever get the stench out...it typically ends up in the trash.
We randomly came across these disposable sippy cups, 6 pack for $3 and I fell in love! They are disposable but not really, we have used each of them a dozen times, at least. They can be washed in the dish washer, are super lightweight, minimal leakage, you can see through them and can be used with or without a lid. If you find one with rotten milk in it, it's only $0.50 instead of $7 in the trash! I got rid of all our other brands and replaced them with these inexpensive, effective thirst quenchers.
9.) Summer Infant Video Baby Monitor
When you are standing in the baby monitor aisle trying to figure out which brand looks the best...I highly recommend Summer Infant. We have purchased quite a few different brands and they are by far the best! I have the Zooby for the car but we have had our Summer Infant double camera video monitor since Paisley was born. It was our fourth baby monitor (we had one drown and two vanish into thin air!) and second Summer Infant. We tried Motorola but the quality and range was nowhere near as good as Summer Infant.
10.) Baby Binxy
This is another new product but I am a huge fan so far! It completely frees up the cart as well as your arms. If you have ever had to grocery shop with the baby carrier in the buggy, you know it becomes a game of Tetris! This hammock allows you to still use the basket for groceries while also not having to carry the baby the entire time.
11.) My Brest Friend Pillow
My lactation goddess introduced me to this gem after my first little man was born. He was an extremely difficult nurser and this pillow helped me keep him latched and took the weight and discomfort out of nursing. It is an excellent tool especially those first few weeks of bringing the baby home! It snaps around your upper waist and supports the baby while he/she eats. I have used mine with all of my babies!
I am sure there are a few more that I just can't live without, I just can't think of any more at the moment. If you have one in particular you are curious about, feel free to ask, I may have used it and not liked it (like the Mamaroo) or just didn't remember it for this list.
