Nathan & Fiona, Kaisa & Everett – Family Blog

I debated weather to add this to bath time but swimming is so much different. Swimming can be a fun and natural way for baby to play. They have been “swimming” around in you for a long time before they came out.

Swim Diapers-Kaisa and I are loving the swimming pool this summer at Garden Park! Here’s what I recommend for swim diapers: They don’t make Little Swimmers in a smaller size than 3. In addition, the Little Swimmers are not safe for poo-only pee, and with a 3-month-old, you are pretty much guaranteed they are going to poo. So…I found these really neat swim diapers at Target. They are non-disposable but they are guaranteed to keep out both pee and poo and you don’t need to put a regular diaper on baby. They even have matching tops so you can just use that as a bathing suit (I put my bottoms under a one piece). They really aren’t too bad to clean, just rinse them out and spray n’ wash them first. I think my little diaper was about $6, and they have sizes starting at 13 lbs on up.

Swim Toys-I bought an Aqua School Baby Boat at K-mart. I don’t recommend it for babies who can’t sit up on their own. I have to sit by her and hold her up the whole time she is in it or she will fall over. I think this will be really fun for her in a few months…or next summer. For younger babies, look for something with more support.

Bath, Grooming, Diapering

Bath Tub-I absolutely love this tub! This has been so great as Kaisa has gone from newborn to infant and I know I will continue to use it as she becomes a toddler. The tub itself has special hooks that let it rest over the sink divider. It comes with a mesh cradle insert for when they are first born and can’t be submerged in the water. It was so nice to lay her in that and just sprinkle the water over her! Now that she is able to be submerged, I lay her in it and it supports her quite nicely. There is also a toddler side for babies who can sit up on their own which has back support. There is also a little cubby to hold bath essentials while you bathe them! And all this for only $15! A great buy and a great product!

Wash & Lotion-I recommend Johnson & Johnson’s All-over Baby Wash. You can use it on their bodies and on their head, and it is very gentle. You don’t even have to rinse it off of them when you are done and it doesn’t leave a sticky residue! (I do NOT recommend the Huggies prepackaged baby washcloths that come with baby wash in them. I tried it and it left soapy residue all over Kaisa…you have to rinse baby off after you use them, and if you aren’t by a sink or tub, that is just not possible!) I really like Baby Magic lotion. The original scent with the pink lid is that wonderful baby smell that everyone loves! And it is also very gentle and has never caused problems for Kaisa’s skin.

Diapers-I highly recommend Pamper’s Swaddlers for breastfed babies. Their poo is more watery than formula-fed babies, and it leaks out of every other diaper I have tried! Even the Pampers have leaked on me a couple times, but usually they do the job just great! They have a netting in them that pulls wetness away from baby and sucks it into the absorbent part of the diaper quickly, preventing diaper rash and leaks. I really rely on these and they have almost never disappointed me! The downside-they are probably the most expensive diapers on the market. We bought an 80-pack at Walmart and figured they are 22 cents a diaper. Sign up for coupons at www.pampers.com.

Diaper Disposal-Do NOT spend big bucks on a diaper disposal system like Diaper Champ or Diaper Genie! They are inconvenient, costly, and really don’t do anything more for keeping smell out that a regular old trash can with a lid! I bought a tall plastic trash can with a flip-up lid at Target for $6, and it is so easy to use and keeps the smell out just fine!

Feeding is one of the more important aspects of a young mother’s and baby’s experience. Of course, breastfeeding is best, but it’s nice to let Dad have a turn sometimes. Since he lacks the “equipment” there are some alternatives.

Feeding

Bottles-Since I’m breastfeeding, I don’t really have reviews for bottles or formula. I use the Avent bottles to feed Kaisa my pumped milk when I can’t nurse her, and they seem to work really great at reducing the gas.

Breast Pumps-I have both a hand pump and a double-electric pump. Let my just say that I love Medela pumps! The Medela Harmony is probably the best hand pump on the market. It has excellent suction (as long as there are no water droplets underneath the rubber part of the handle) and is very portable. It doesn’t tire my hands out to use it, and I am usually able to pump 4 to 5 oz in about 15 minutes. Great for those quickie-pumps in the car or in the morning to relieve engorgement!

I bought the older Medela Pump-in-Style off of eBay and I love it!. When you buy a used pump, make sure you purchase all new tubing, shields, valves, membranes, etc. for sanitary purposes. My used pump was $60 on eBay and my kit was $10. $70 for a pump that originally cost over $250 is not bad!! And this pump still works great! I like this for when I need to pump at work or build up my milk supply a bit. It thoroughly empties each breast and does it quickly. I am usually able to pump 6 oz in about 10 or 15 minutes. It requires more work to put together and take apart than the Harmony, but in the end it’s well worth it. It also comes in a nice black leather case with a compartment and ice packs to store pumped milk. It’s not super quiet, but the noise isn’t overbearing either. A working mom’s must-have!

I would recommend buying some sanitizing wipes to keep with your pump if you will be using it away from home more than once. This helps clean up the milk droplets after each use and keep bacteria out. However, the Medela brand wipes are quite pricey…just go with any generic brand sanitizing wipes at the grocery store, or even baby wipes!

Podee Bottle-I bought this bottle to try out on our trip to Canada. I thought it would be convenient to be able to set the bottle next to her in her car seat and just let her go at it so I didn’t have to sit back there with her. It’s a really neat idea, and I think it will be great when she gets a bit older. It’s a bit tricky to get the milk up all that tubing–she had to work really hard and it took her over an hour to finish four ounces. She seemed to get really frustrated with it after a while. I only used it once and then decided just to sit back there with her and feed her with a regular bottle. I think it will be nice to have when she is old enough to hold her own bottle–then she won’t have to tip her head back to get all the milk out. A bit expensive, and not really great for young babies.

Boppy-I bought a boppy nursing pillow with a soft fleece cover. I haven’t really used it while nursing as much as I thought I would. The reason for that, I think, is that I like to nurse in chairs with arm rests and that is all I need for support. The boppy is nice when you are sitting on a couch or something like that, but I don’t often nurse on the couch, or if I do I just put a regular pillow under my supporting arm. What I LOVE the boppy for is play time for Kaisa. I can lay her on a blanket on the floor and prop her up on either her tummy or back so she can look around a bit better. She seems to really like it and has even fallen asleep on it a bunch of times. I may need to buy one of those boppy covers with the toys attached!

Bottle Warmer-I bought a Circo brand bottle warmer from Target…only $10! This has been a must-have for giving Kaisa breast milk in a bottle. You are not supposed to put breast milk in the microwave as it can kill the antibodies and other “good stuff,” but it takes forever to hold that bottle under hot water long enough to warm it up! This is nice to have for travel and for sitters so they have an easy way to warm her bottles. It takes about 10 minutes, so be prepared to have a fussy baby while you wait…or just time it so they are not to that fussy point yet when you feed them. No need to spend big bucks on a warmer…Circo bottle warmer does the job great!

Ok…here it is! Fiona’s long-awaited baby product review! Now that I’ve been using most of my baby stuff for a few months, I’d like to give my opinion on some things so those who are out there looking, or who are just curious, will have some idea of what to buy and what they can probably do without.

This will be the first in a multi-part series about some of the baby stuff that we’ve been using during the first few months of our daughter’s birth. This first one has, what I feel, are the essentials, “the baby gear”, and the things that you think about buying when you think about buying baby stuff.

Gear

Carrier-I received the Infantino carrier as a shower gift and I just love it! I have never tried the more expensive brands, like Baby Bjorn, so this may not have all the bells and whistles, but it works for me! I use it a lot, especially when Kaisa is in those “just hold me” moods, and I have things to do around the house. I would recommend getting a carrier like this one, and don’t spend a lot of money, because they outgrow them quickly and you will need a larger backpack-type carrier.

Car Seat-Ok, we made this decision relatively early on and I kinda wish now that we had put some more thought into it. We have the Graco Safeseat which we decided on because it holds a child up to 30 lbs (rather than the traditional 22 lbs) rear-facing and we figured we would have a big baby and need the extra weight limit. However, the truth is that the carrier is MUCH heavier than the smaller ones, and quite frankly, I hate lugging it around! And Kaisa is only 12 or 13 pounds…what will it be like when she is 20?? So…kinda wish I had gone with the SnugRide. They have the same great features (head support, front-adjust straps–a must) with less weight to carry around.

Stroller-I really love the Graco Mosaic Stroller. We looked at some of the larger “luxury” strollers that Graco makes (Quattro Tour, Alano) and almost went with one because of all the cool features like parent organizer trays and fold-down baskets. However, we decided to go with the Mosaic to save money. I’m so glad we did, because this stroller folds up easily and compactly, and fits in our trunk quite nicely. I don’t think the larger ones would fit in our compact car! It is also very easy to steer and maneuver in small areas when you are shopping. I can even steer it one-handed! It can hold the SafeSeat and SnugRide carriers as a travel system, and when baby has outgrown the carrier (or you just don’t want to lug it along) it can hold just baby like a regular umbrella stroller. It was very easy to assemble (I did it myself when I was 8 months pregnant) and very affordable! Highly recommend it!

Playard-We researched playards and couldn’t really decide on one, so we let Grandma Judd decide when she bought it as a group gift for my baby shower. She bought the Graco Pack n’ Play in Family Tree. We were really glad to have this! It came with a vibrating bassinet and music box that played music and nature sounds, a mobile, and a changing table attachment. It was really nice to sleep Kaisa in our bedroom the first few weeks so that I didn’t have to go far for those late night feedings. The vibration soothed Kaisa and helped her go to sleep. I really liked having a place to change her right there as well, complete with diaper and wipe storage and extra pockets for other stuff. We have really liked having this to take on trips where we won’t have a crib. Kaisa sleeps well in it, and it is easy to fold down and carry. I would recommend buying a waterproof pad and playard sheet to cover the mattress with, as it is not washable. We did that, and I have had no messes to worry about. I also like that waterproof changing table pads to put under her while I change her…they keep messes under control and keep her bum warm since the changing part is plastic. When I moved Kaisa to her own room, I was even able to attach the mobile that came with this onto her crib! Perfect! Thanks for getting this mom!

Monitor-Another big thanks to Grandma Judd for buying us the Sony Baby Call Monitor. I just love this! The sound is so clear that I can hear Kaisa breathing, which is a great relief during those first few months when SIDS is a risk. It has lots of channels in case of feedback, and it comes with a built-in rechargeable battery so you can carry it around with you or go outside. It even has a belt hook! This is a high-quality monitor, and this price on Amazon is about $10 cheaper than I have seen it anywhere else.