Ed. Note: Adrienne from blankyclip asked GHM to review her new product, and I have to say I was a little bit sad when I realized my kids were too old to review it. How did they get so big already? So thanks to my friend Anne for reviewing it for us! Take it away, Anne.
I was given the opportunity as the mother of a fresh baby boy to review blankyclip, the “only plush toy that doubles as a loose tension clip, specifically designed to hold blankets onto strollers, bouncy seats, swings, etc.” I figured why not, as I had only recently realized that I misplaced my favorite Little Giraffe blanket and figured that it most likely fell off of my stroller or carseat. Before the clips came in the mail I checked out the website and while I thought they were cute and smart and seemed to be useful, honestly my first thought was, can I picture myself using these? Like, am I too “cool” to have a duckie or lamb or a teddy bear clip hanging off of my gear?
Because I am sooo cool.
I saw these clean/dirty bags in a store the other day. They are cute in person, too. The inner-organizer in me wanted to swoop them up. The realist in me thought that the plastic bag I have rattling around at the bottom of the diaper bag for emergency blow-out clothes was just fine.
Cute idea for a baby shower, though!
Sy had such sensitive little skin when she was a newborn, wipes frequently made her rashes worse. After the Hazard Scale of Doom reminded me that wipes are not as non-toxic as I thought, I remembered what we used instead when Sy was a newborn: plain old baby wash clothes and a Thermos Vacuum-Insulated 2-qt. Beverage Pot with Pump Dispenser (the technical name) of warm water. The Thermos keeps the water warm all day long, so all you do is pump a little water on a cloth and clean that cute little bottom. Sy’s rashes appreciated the gentle touch. Once her skin toughened up, we went to wipes, but I think we probably did the Thermos method for at least three months.
This time around, we are using super soft flannel wipes instead of wash clothes. They come in packs of 15 wipes (which you go through so fast with a newborn), so I got two sets. I do laundry about every other day right now, so it’s no big deal to throw these in with the wash. The flannel wipes are soooo soft, just like a baby’s bottom. When I run out before laundry day, I just use one of the 3000 baby wash clothes we seem to have.
This method is clearly a little more labor intensive than wipes, but I think the benefit outweighs the (ever so slight) hassle.
My friend BJ sent Baby G this totally rad skull and cross bones burp cloth from Blue Penguin. The cloths are 100% cotton terry and flannel and so very soft. Not to mention tragically hip, just like me.
Thanks, B!
Boon makes the coolest things. (Well, except for the Frog Pod which I found to be mildly irritating.)
Anyway, Sy’s pal Max has the Flo water diverter and faucet cover and I really like it. It’s so much more appealing to me than the usual hippo cover for the faucet. And it’s a multi-tasker! Not only does it keep hands safe from hot faucets, but it also dispense bubble bath for maximum bubbleage in the bath. The water comes out in a flat cascade, so you can rinse hair easily (like my kid would ever get directly under the spout) or just play in the water as you fill up the tub.
Flo is easily installed, you just clamp it over the faucet. It also has an open center so it’s still easy to pull the drain when you are done with bath.
I think this is a great baby shower gift idea. It’s not too spendy ($15.00) and it will come in handy for years to come.
Look! A new guest reviewer. Today’s review is from Natalie Zee Drieu of the fabulous Coquette Blog and the CRAFT magazine blog. Natalie is pregnant with her first bambino. Congratulations and thanks for the review, Nat!
I love to sleep. When I don’t sleep well through the night, I get groggy. This ended up happening to me more and more after my first trimester when I really began to grow. My doctor advised me not sleep on my back and recommended I get a body pillow to help me sleep better. A body pillow?! Where would I store it? It wouldn’t look so pretty on top of the bed. Ahh!
I have to say, I was a bit skeptical at the idea of this huge pillow in bed with me and my husband. I didn’t want him to think it was a big barricade between us either. But for the sake of a good night’s sleep I had to try it. After extensive research online, I ended up getting the Leachco Snoogle Deluxe Total Body Pillow.
Jenna McCarthy is one funny mother. (No, not Jenny McCarthy, although I suppose she is funny, too.) Jenna McCarthy started her writing career in New York for the glamorous Seventeen magazine. Dude. Back in the day, I soooo wanted to work at that magazine. My inner teenager was a wee bit jealous as I read McCarthy’s bio. Anyway, McCarthy’s bicoastal career eventually led her to Santa Barbara where she became a radio talent, a mother of two, and a very, very funny writer of the book The Parent Trip: From High Heels and Parties to Highchairs and Potties.
As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not a huge fan of parenting books; I have an entire bookshelf dedicated to them and they pretty much all make me feel inadequate. Not so with The Parent Trip. It’s more like reading the diary of one of your more humorous friends - a diary that spans pre-pregnancy, pregnancy and the first year of parenting. McCarthy touches on the highs and lows of pregnancy, labor, navigating the evils of a new mom’s group, breastfeeding, toys, the first vacation, you get my drift. All that crap we never thought we’d spend dozens of hours agonizing about as new mothers.
I’ve been sorting through Sy’s old stuff getting ready for the next offspring, version 2.0. Poor kid is going to be dressed in stained hand-me-downs from the get go. I do want to get a few new things, I just can’t help it.
Enter the New For Baby clothing line. How cute is that one piece outfit? It feels slightly reminiscent of Star Trek, which is probably why I am so drawn to it. New For Baby has a great line of clothing for the wee ones. You won’t find any trucks, ducks or taglines here. Just rich, vibrant colors in hip, sleek designs. Sounds good to me.
Welcome to Day 2 of the GHM Mother’s Day Giveaways featuring an Ultimate Burpie from Bawl Baby.
Congratulations to winner Katrina!
I have been thinking about Mother’s Day again. I get all excited because I love my kid so much. I look forward to celebrating the fact that I am her MOTHER every year.
I think these brag books by Maude Asbury are the most elegant I’ve seen, not to mention, sassy and sweet. I think they’d be a great gift for a new mom, just slide it into that diaper bag at the shower, or even for a new grandma.
As I was perusing their site, I noticed their super cool i-makit kits, where you can put your own cover on a photo album. Mine would be SO crooked.
I’ll keep this short and sweet because this product is a total uni-tasker, but definitely one I’m glad I have. I meant to write about this when I was reviewing potties.
The Piddle Pad, made by the geniuses at Kiddopotamus, is a waterproof seat liner that is completely worth its modest price tag. The liquid absorbing, soft pad is a unobtrusive receptacle for pee, vomit, blowouts, you name it. The backside of the product is coated with vinyl to help keep the product in place and the liquid where it should be, not on your car. You just place it on the base of your child’s car seat (or stroller) and your days of washing the car seat cover are numbered. It doesn’t snap or slide into to anything, it just sits there, ready to catch whatever rain may fall.
Here’s the most brilliant travel snack trap out there, the Snack Trap. An ingenious little snack cup with a flexible lid that junior can pick snacks out of without flinging them everywhere. It’s not perfect, the lid can be pulled off, the snacks can be shaken out, but it’s all about chaos management. It took Sy a little while to figure out how to extract the snacks, but once she got the hang of it, she was ultra-proud of herself.
Some friends of mine are pregnant with their first babies and I’ve been thinking about what I want to give them for a shower present (hope they aren’t reading this today!). I love to give the diaper bag they’ve registered for (unless of course it’s a Petunia Picklebottom, my pockets aren’t that deep) crammed full of all kinds of random things we never knew about as expectant parents.
One thing I always shove in a pocket is iLEX. We always have a tube of iLEX skin protectant paste at Sy’s changing table. It has been the best diaper rash problem solver out there. It is definitely in the Top Ten Things That Saved My Sanity as a new mom.
Our cousins just had a baby a few weeks ago. They were brave enough to haul him along to the family Christmas party. He was sleeping while we ate (brilliant child, letting his parents eat). They had the monitor with them, but they also had this totally nifty little device called Itzbeen. I can’t give this thing a proper review it since I’ve never used it, but I must say, we all thought it was one neat gadget!
The Itzbeen has four timers with little icon buttons: one for diapering, one for feeding, one for sleeping (or lack thereof) and one for miscellaneous (like administering medicine). It even has a little button on the bottom to remind you which side you fed your baby on last! My cousin set the timer for the last time she’d fed, diapered and gotten her new babe to sleep and got herself to the dinner table. The alarm went off when she needed to feed him again and off she went. It even has a soft light so you can see it in the dark. I wish I’d had one of these when Sy was wee! For $24.99, I think it’s a perfect shower gift.
Ahem. I was checking the price for this item on Amazon and looked at their “Better Together” section, you know, where they add an item that would make your purchase even MORE FABULOUS! Anyway, can you figure out what item with which they paired this? You guessed it: Breast Milk Alcohol Test 3 Pack. So, are they inferring that if you need a timer to remember when you last fed your kid, it’s because you’ve just downed an entire bottle of red wine while watching reruns of Oprah?
I mentioned TruKid, a cool momma-run company, last month but now I’ve tried the line, so as usual, I have more to say.
TruKid is a natural skin care line for children, which means no icky parabens or other harsh preservatives. The line is cheerfully packaged, easy to use and fairly priced, which is great considering TruKid tries to use as many organic ingredients as they can.
Out of the whole line, I have two favorites: the sunscreen and the lip balm. The lip balm tastes like spearmint without being overwhelming, which is nice for the younger customers involved. Of course, I never gave Sy a chance to get her gummy paws on the lip balm, because channeling my fine toddler, I decided it was MINE ALL MINE. But I think it would be a nice mild flavor for the five and up set, especially if your youngin is starting to transition from fruity flavored toothpaste to a minty one.
