My favorite baby items

I did a "best buys" post after Stasa was born with things we loved then. Here's what I'm still loving and some new things I've discovered along the way.

Swing: We have two Graco swings, like this one, and keep one in our living room and one in the nursery. I try to have a safe place to put the baby on each level and the swing has always been a God-send for us. Each of our babies have loved the swing and have napped well in it.

Babyhawk Mei Tei carrier: I have three carriers, the ultimate baby wrap, which is similar to the Moby, a Baby Bjorn, and the Babyhawk. The Babyhawk is hands down my favorite carrier. It's super comfortable and distributes the baby's weight evenly on my shoulders and hips. I can wear the baby in this carrier for hours without feeling exhausted or in pain. The wrap is good for infants or lighter babies and I usually use that around the house. I use the Bjorn for quick trips in and out of a store. I prefer not to carry the baby in the Bjorn for long periods of time because my back will start to kill since all of the weight is put on my shoulders and upper back.

Bebe Au Lait hooter hider: I have two nursing covers, one I keep in the diaper bag and one I keep around the house when I'm on maternity leave and then move to my pump bag when I return to work. I like the Bebe Au Lait covers because the material is a thicker cotton yet light enough to use in the summer. And I really like the pattern choices.

Boppy nursing pillow: I know some people prefer the Breast Friend nursing pillow, but I've always loved the Boppy. I have two and like the swing I keep one downstairs and one upstairs. I use the Boppy primarily for nursing, but have also used it to prop the baby up after a feeding (while I'm sitting next to her/him), and to assist with sitting up when baby is first learning.

Muslin swaddle blankets: We have a plethora of baby blankets, but the Aden and Anais blankets are by far a favorite. They're HUGE and lightweight muslin so they're perfect for swaddling, especially in the warmer months. They're great to use as a clean place for baby to lay when we're out and about and as a stroller or car seat cover. I've also bought undyed natural muslin from the fabric store and use that as a swaddle blanket. That muslin is less stretchy than the a + a blankets so it's harder for baby to kick its way out of the swaddle.

Cloth diapers: These suckers have so many uses. I have a stack of Gerber brand cloth diapers and use them as burp cloths. They're so absorbent (as they should be - after all they're diapers!) and really help me protect my own clothes when I'm burping the baby. Stasa and Tommy have been the queen and king of spit up in our house, so we go through bibs like crazy. These diapers have helped catch a lot of the spit up. I bought our batch of diapers back when I had Stasa and they've gone through the wash multiple times over several years and have help up well.

Coconut oil: Thank God Anne told me about this stuff. I've replaced my beloved lanolin with it and have used it to heal cracked nipples, as a lube on my pump flanges, as a hand lotion, to help rid Tommy of cradle cap, as a hair mask for Lexi to help her dry scalp, and as a replacement for butter when cooking and baking. LOOOOOOVE this stuff.

Ultimate crib sheet: I still love this sheet more than any other crib sheet. It's a waterproof pad, mattress pad and sheet all in one. We have two of these and don't have a need for more. We keep a cute regular crib sheet on the mattress and then put the ultimate crib sheet over that. The snaps make it really easy to change, especially in the middle of the night and when the mattress is lowered.

Baby Connect app: I got this app before I had Lexi and love it. I use it for all three kids and track their stats and vaccinations and allergies. When Lexi was a baby and now with Tommy I've been using it to track diapers and feedings. Sooooooo much easier to be able to tell the doctor how often the baby's eating and how many diapers he's gone through in a day. I've also used it to track fevers and illnesses with the girls, which has been handy because I can accurately share that information with the nurse or doctor when they ask. I have it downloaded to both my phone and iPad and wish Tom and I were on the same iTunes account so he could have it on his phone and iPad, too.

Strollers: We've gone through six different strollers since Stasa was born. Go ahead, give me the side-eye. I know it sounds crazy and if I knew then what I know now we would have only ever bought two maybe three strollers. We started out with the Graco travel system stroller which was bulky and heavy and not great for outdoors. I traded that in and got a single Baby Trend jogger and loved it. We put many many miles on that sucker, but then realized we'd need a double stroller once Lexi was born. So I went out and tried multiple doubles and really really wanted the Phil and Teds double stroller, but Tom didn't want to pay the price for it so we ended up with a Baby Trend double jogger. It was HUGE and HEAVY and awkward and barely fit through our front door. Forget fitting it in the trunk of the car. Before Lexi was born we bought two other strollers: a Chicco umbrella stroller and a Snap n Go. When she was born we had four strollers. I listed both joggers on Craigslist in the hopes of selling those and using that money towards a new double. I was so happy to see both of those strollers go and even happier that I found a used Phil and Teds double stroller on Craigslist for only a couple of hundred dollars (much much less than what it costs new). Once I was pregnant with Tommy I bought the car seat adapter for the P&T so we could use it for him, too. We primarily use the P&T stroller when we go out, but kept the Snap n Go and Chicco umbrella stroller for when we take a singleton out with us.

Diaper Dude diaper bag: I registered for this diaper bag back when I was pregnant with Stasa and am so glad I did. It's not huge which means it's also never too heavy. I've never had a problem with being able to fit everything we need for a day out for all three kids (and that's with two in diapers). It's also something that Tom doesn't mind carrying and doesn't look girly at all. I usually fit about 10 diapers (5 for each kid), a change of clothes for Tommy and Lexi, a sippy cup for Lexi, container of wipes, diaper cream, pacifiers, changing pad, tylenol and allergy meds, breast pads, nursing cover, burp cloths, a light blanket, and bottles (when needed).

Milkies: I am so glad I discovered this product this time around. I've always had a strong letdown when nursing and would soak my breast pad on the non-nursing side at each feeding. It was such a waste of milk. With the Milkies I've been able to catch anywhere from an ounce or two of milk just from letdown at each feeding. I end up with about a bottle or a bottle and a half each day from letdown milk. It's so easy to use and was definitely worth the $20+.

Just a whole lot of randoms

We have friends coming to stay with us starting tomorrow night and we've been running around getting the house ready and still have a few more things to do, so this post will just be a bunch of random thoughts.

• Whenever Stasa watches any Disney princess movies she has to dress up as that princess. It gets really entertaining when we're watching the Disney princess sing-a-long DVD because she goes through so many costume changes at warp speed. A friend on Facebook made a comment that she doesn't just let life go by, that she participates. That statement is so spot on. Stasa wants to be a part of everything and I think that's part of why she's a bedtime rebel. She doesn't want to miss out on the fun.

• Stasa and I both got stung by a hornet this past weekend. We were packing up our stuff to leave the pool and Stasa shrieked and grabbed her hand. Now, she's a pretty good fake crier, but this was a real cry. Initially I had no idea what hurt her, although she said a bee bit her. As we were comforting her, the little hornet flew up and stung my ankle and OH MY GOD it hurt. Poor Stasa. And she got stung twice - once on the top of her hand and once on her finger tip. It's been years since I've been stung and I kind of forgot how much it stings. Stas was lecturing the "bee" during the ride home and kept saying "That's not nice! I'm not the bee's friend!" Tom looked at me and said "Well, I guess we know she's not allergic now." We were both afraid of that because you never know. Thank god it was at the pool where they have emergency kits. And this is exactly why I hate things with stingers. Stupid bugs.
• I am still amazed at how much Stasa resembles me. Is that conceited? Maybe and I don't even care. She is my mini-me and it makes me so happy. The other day I went in to rouse her from her long afternoon nap and stopped short when I saw her. The way her face was resting she looked just like my mom. Every now and then I see it and I think it's the placement of her eyes and the way her mouth settles when she's thinking. And that's the biggest reason I'm so happy she resembles me because I really look like my mom and it's my mom's memory living through us. I love it. When I was about 12 or 13 years old I was visiting Garu, my mom's mom, and was surprised to see a new black and white photo of me in her room. I didn't remember taking that picture, but was pretty sure it was me. Garu laughed at me and told me it was my mom at my age. We looked nearly identical. Who knows. Maybe one day Stasa will make the same mistake I did when she sees pictures of me. 

• We're trying to sell a couple of our strollers. Right now we have five different strollers, which seems insane. Before you judge me, let me explain. We initially had the Graco travel system, but got rid of that stroller as fast as humanly possible. I hated that thing - it was bulky, heavy, and inconvenient. I traded it in for 20% off at Babies R Us and replaced it with the snap-n-go. Before that we also purchased a lightweight umbrella stroller since Stasa had outgrown the infant seat. We loooooooooove our umbrella stroller. It takes up almost no space, is light, and perfect for going just about anywhere except walks through the neighborhood. Since we enjoy taking long walks, we bought a single jogger. We both love it and have put many miles on that sucker. And then along came Lexi. I had visions of long neighborhood walks with both girls so I started the hunt for the perfect double stroller. Unfortunately I had champagne taste and a beer budget. I ended up getting a double version of our single jogger. It's heavy. And large. And heavy. And Lexi haaaaaaaaaaaaated it. She hated all strollers. So we used it only a handful of times and I ended up using baby carriers whenever we went out somewhere. Once Lexi started getting too heavy for the carriers, I started the hunt again. This time I hit the jackpot on Craigslist and found my dream stroller for nearly half the original cost. DONE. Both girls love it and we love it. It's lightweight, compact, and still has plenty of room for both girls and a diaper bag. And now we have five strollers. LOL Excessive, right? Agreed. We're selling the single and double joggers for about half the cost we paid for them. 
• I love having the kids so close in age. I love watching them play together and hope that they're always close. I hate that daycare costs so much. I hate that because of those costs we have to carefully plan when we will have our next baby. For now I'll just keep soaking in all of the fun we have with these two. They have the best giggles and are both so loving. If Lexi's upset Stasa will give her one of her own toys to cheer her up. And while little Lexi is in a hitting phase - hitting us and Stasa - she also feels bad after hitting Stasa and will give her a hug and kiss. And when Stasa's in timeout, we have to do everything we can to keep Lexi from sitting with her. She has to be wherever her big sister is, including timeout. 

A New Ride

Check out Stasa's new ride. It's a Hedstrom pram from 1979 or 1980 that we got from Antigone (a friend of the family). It has another piece that attaches to it and it converts into a bed. We're going to attach a lap belt and then take her out on the town. She loves it, as you can tell.








"Daddy! I am NOT your food!"