Did you just pop over from my 0-3 Month Necessities List? Welcome! Like babies do, ours is growing up. I’ve compiled for you the product list of our most efficient Baby Necessities that we actually use to be successful {zombie} parents.
So here it is, my pay it forward list to those of you who are in your final trimester, with that new unexpected and totally unnecessary wave of panic that has set in. Here is my tried and true list of top ten things I/we used when our baby grew up a bit. I have provided an Amazon Link to all products for your convenience.
1. BABY BJöRN Baby Carrier Original – Black: Our Baby- I really liked my Baby K’Tan (see 0-3 Month Baby Post) but he eventually grew out of it. When he was able to move himself around more he could wriggle too loose. This B’Jorn made a huge difference. It has very sturdy mechanisms which are ridiculously EASY to figure out. They even color coded them for you! We also have an Ergo Baby Carrier and it is hard to use. I registered for that one for my husband who uses it to go on more rugged excursions and wears him (our son) on his back. You cannot use the B’Jorn as a back pack.
2. Baby Einstein Musical Motion Activity Jumper: Our Baby- He really does like this, but didn’t really start bouncing in it until he was closer to 6 month. We got it for him for Christmas, when he was five months old and he would sit in it, play with all of the toys and spin around in circles looking at everything. He really appreciated the time to be standing up, and not laying down all the time. HE was able to sit up himself by Christmas, but hadn’t quite mastered the balance of it. This helped him get some vertical time when our backs were beat from walking him around!
Caution: They may bounce themselves to sleep! Always watch them at all times when they’re in it! And perhaps give them a workout before nap and bedtime!
3. Baby Einstein – Baby’s First Moves DVD: Our Baby- I really, truly credit this DVD program for his sooner than average (according to our pediatrician) gross motor skill set. I sincerely believe that he learned and was motivated sooner to REACH, and CLAP thanks to watching these. I also saw him roll over and attempt to sit up in the exact ways that the babies do on the program. (now he is 9 months, and crawls like the baby crawling on the DVD) We would let him watch this for the 27 minutes in the evening that we were sort of regrouping and fixing dinner. HE could then watch it again in Spanish. This DVD also loops on “repeat play” so I would just having it running while we were doing his gross motor time so that he could reference it at any point. He was NEVER just left planted in front of the screen unsupervised, EVER. A lot of these DVDs get criticized as being brain washing or just mindless TV, and they aren’t. I actually have an educated opinion on this matter and did a lot of research before diving into the children’s DVD world… My Master’s Degree is in Behavior Management and I wrote my Thesis (Capstone) on “How Multimedia influences the development and conflict resolution strategies of pre-adolescent children.” I did a lot of research on what makes child’s programming “bad” and “good” and have concluded as a parent that the Baby Einstein series is very productive, positive and educational, 100% trustworthy.
4. Charlie Banana Reusable Diaper All-In-One Set One Size: Our Baby-My husband and I have not ourselves purchased disposable diapers since our son was born (9 months ago) and it is thanks to these little gems… We did not start using them however until he was 3 months old and his digestion was a little more “scheduled” and predictable. I love these diapers because they are an “All-in-One” meaning that they are several things- most, they grow with him with the adjustable leg elastics that let me adjust how tight they seal around his legs. We’re still on Small and he is 9 months. So you can see why we didn’t use them until 3 months, where we were set on XS. They have an insert that you stuff into the pocket which you can double stuff, or place another insert on top. Overall (I’m realizing I’ll have to do a whole diaper post to tell you everything I love about these) the bottom line is that I do laundry three times a week, Mon, Wed, Fri and we aren’t tossing diapers into the landfills. The ONLY time I ever got poop on my hands was when he was less than 3 months and in disposable diapers. The ONLY time he has ever leaked through, or had a blow out was in disposable diapers. We haven’t had to buy diapers in 9 months! Did I say that already? 😉
5. Motorola Digital 3.5″ Video Baby Monitor: Our Baby- I bet you’re thinking, “Why wasn’t this on the 0-3 Month list?” Well that is because Cash slept in our room, in the bassinet until he was three months old. Granted, we did put him in the crib for naps, and used the monitor to watch him while we were out of the room. Why I love this monitor is because it has night vision, volume control and an intercom. The screen, so that you can see your baby is an obvious benefit. I don’t know how parents do it with just the audio. Every peep he made in the night I was looking at that monitor! It is plugged in by my nightstand so as soon as we transitioned him out of our room into the crib it was like the Truman Show… The Cashman Show!
I had it as loud as it could go and I could hear him breathing. Since, as you moms know, you always end up getting up in the middle of the night just because you want to make sure he is breathing… at least that was me. He has been sleeping excellent, and through the night, but I never did! I would wake up every time that monitor would time-out and cut off the sound of his breathing or the light from it… I would push the screen button and fall back asleep knowing he was breathing, and then up again 2 hours later to check… Been doing that for 9 months now… maybe it’s just me? Regardless. I love this monitor because I can have it anywhere in the house while he is napping, and even take it with me outside when I’m gardening, etc. I can talk to him through the speaker if he wakes up in the middle of the night and doesn’t need immediate attention and could probably soothe himself back down. If I went in there he would really wake up…. You must get this monitor!
6. Bright Baby Touch and Feel Board Books: Awesome, really any touch and feel books are the way to start. HE has learned how to turn pages, treat books with respect, use his index finger to point and probably a lot of other useful skills that wouldn’t have been learned solely from me reading these books to him. With these he can sit in my lap and turn the pages while we read.
7. Munchkin Fun Ice® Chewy Teether – 2pk: Our Baby- Honestly, 3 months is all about teething, and managing their pain L Cash really did well with the teething toys that go in the freezer because they soothed his gums. One of the challenging things that I found out as a parent is that there are no teething toys shaped “just right” for them. They are all rings that they can’t get their whole mouth around. With these he could stick the fingers in his mouth and get a longer contact point than just the two small contacts a ring can do at once. He is still using these over any other teething gimmicks we have tried!
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