1. Ergo Baby Carrier- I'm guessing this will be our favorite carrier from here on out. Because of the straps and buckles, this is by far our strongest baby carrier and allows me to bend over and move a lot. I always wear him in it while I grocery shop, and last week I cleaned the whole chicken coop with him on my back. Also, this is the only carrier I can get Nels to wear. I like that the baby always faces the adult's body with an Ergo. Yes, it's fun to be forward facing and see EVERYTHING, but then again, EVERYTHING can get really overwhelming, and there's nowhere to escape EVERYTHING if you want to sleep. When he's on my chest, he is constantly looking from side to side and up at my face, but when he's had enough, he does this little nose rub/burrowing action on my sternum, like he's digging a little face hole, and will take his entire nap there.*Update on the K'Tan: I still love it, and use it often. Definitely not as much because he gets heavy after a while, but he is so comfortable in it. And considering I wore it at least 6 hours a day for the first 5 months, I definitely got my money's worth. I could see myself eventually wearing baby #2 in the K'tan and a toddler in the Ergo on my back!
3. Sophie le Giraffe- Oh, Sophie. Sophie is dearly loved in our house, and remains the favorite chew toy. She's been made in France for over 50 years and is made from tree rubber and food paint, feels like human skin, and is just stinkin' cute. She's not the cheapest toy you'll ever buy; I got her for $17 on Amazon, and she's more than that at Babies R Us and Buy Buy Baby. Buttttt... probably the only teething toy you'll ever buy. Apparently they also have a Sophie keychain toy.. someone please get that for me if they stumble across one!!!
4. Kawaii Diapers- 3-6 month olds wiggle more.. and pee more. For this stage, our Kawaii Diapers have proven themselves. They are cute, easy to double stuff for nighttime, and the most inexpensive diapers we have. They run about $7 a piece. The snazzy minky's are my favorite. Most of ours are One Size, which is working great now, but was a little bulky in the 0-4 month stage. They will easily fit until potty training. The Pure & Naturals are made for 0-15 months; we have two which fit great for the newborn stage, but my huge child will outgrow them by 8 months. Still, they are so inexpensive that it wouldn't be bad to get the newborn package if you plan on CDing from birth!
Check them out at www.theluvyourbaby.com/
*I prefer snaps over velcro; yes, snaps are difficult on wiggle worms, but the velcro ALWAYS gets snagged on inserts in the wash, regardless of the fold-over tabs.
** The bamboo products feel nice, but for some reason, take forever to dry after washing
***Update on the other diapers.. Still like Trend Lab, FuzziBunz, and LOVE Charlie Banana but can't recommend it because they are outrageously priced. Dislike G Diapers (they are the cutest, but leak almost every time) and strongly dislike BumGenius.
5. Exersaucer/Jumper- Finn loves to jump. I have an exersaucer in my bathroom because it will occupy him long enough for me to take a thorough shower, shave both legs, and fully dry my hair. The doorway jumpers are great too... you can put one near the kitchen while you make dinner. PLEASE don't register for a $100 exersaucer. Yes, I consider it a semi-neccesity, but you'll only use it for a few months, and there is one at almost every garage sale I pass for $10 or less.
6. Bumbo- We call our Bumbo the poop machine. Finn tends to have a difficult time going, and will grunt for hours.. but 30 seconds in the Bumbo and you'll have to call a cleanup crew. I have no idea why.. maybe the angle they sit in it? But this easily cleaned laxative toy has made my kiddo a happy camper. I fully intend on cutting out the bottom and using it for potty training in the future. Ha.* NEVER put child in Bumbo on couter tops or tables. Hundreds of reports have been made of infants tipping their Bumbo's off of high surfaces.
**Once again, try garage sales. Our neighbor got one for $1. We used this for a total of 3 months.
7. Nursing-friendly outfits- "Duh", you say. Well sure, you dress nursing friendly from the get go, but then again, you could always throw a blanket over yourself. And if you had a big enough blanket, it wouldn't matter if you were wearing a turtleneck dress. But not so much with a feisty 5 month old that yanks the blanket off his head every time you expose yourself, and then leaves you hanging out in the open while he looks around to see if anyone noticed that he wants to play peek-a-boo. Then back to nursing, then SQUIRREL!!!!!, then back to nursing, then play with Mom's necklace, then nurse, then.... You get the picture. Here's my favorite nursing outfit:
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| No, this is not me. And please don't forget to add a t-shirt... |
2. Bra-less tank. LOVE these!!! Not only does the compression help hold in the leftover mommy belly flab, but when you lift your shirt up to feed, you still have a tank underneath and aren't showing the world your stomach (which, admit it, NEVER looks good when you're sitting down and hunched over). I have this one from Target, but I've seen tons of them for $7 at Burlington.
3. Throw any t-shirt on top. Now just lift shirt & sports bra together in one fell swoop, and with a little practice, you should have plenty of coverage with your child's large head and your lifted up t-shirt. And if the unthinkable happens.. and... *GASP*, some easily offended bystander gets a nipple flash, tell them to GET OVER IT. Boobs were made for feeding babies.
8. Water- Hurray! Our newest, cheapest toy. Sink, bathtub, dog bowl... huge hit. When you have a sitter, fold a towel and set in kitchen sink. fold another towel up and place against the back of the sink. Fill 3/4 with warm water, sit baby in their under-water towel chair, and let them get slap-happy. You might want another towel on the floor.. this gets messy.
*ALWAYS supervise your baby around ANY water. A baby can drown in less than 1 inch of water.
9. Books- For Finn AND for me. Three to six monthers love touch & feel board books. And they like to eat them. My favorite book to read to Finn is The Jesus Storybook Bible.. it is incredible. Also, you should be getting decent sleep & occasional down time by now, so treat yourself to some reading of your own. If you haven't yet, please get your hands on a copy of Give Them Grace; Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus.
10. Nakedness- We've started to run out of clothes that fit, but I'm resisting buying more. That little body is so squishy and pink.. I just can't bring myself to cover it up! Plus, less clothes equals less laundry. I'd say that 80% of the time, my child is naked. And by naked, I mean wearing a diaper if we're inside, and wearing absolutely nothing if we're outside. Give those buns a chance to air out.
That's all for now, folks. Look for the 6-9 month list mid-summer!!
