Thewisebaby.com

Yay for Real Mom Wednesday!  We have another super wise mama sharing her favorites for her sweet as can be little girl, Miriam (love that name!).  Rose is most certainly a savvy mama and has ten great products to share with us today.  I am especially excited to see #6 – the Cybex Aton car seat.  It is the car seat we choose for baby #2 and I am so happy to hear that another mama loves it.  A big thanks to Rose and if you’d like to share your favorites, email me – these are one of our most popular features and we’d love to have you!

I’m a first-time mama to the sweetest little sweet pea, Miriam, who is twelve weeks old. I’m going back to work part-time when Miri is five months old, but in the meantime I’m loving spending my days with her. In the few minutes I can grab during naps, I am either knitting or blogging at rosebuttons.wordpress.com. We live in a suburban neighborhood of a large city, in a 1500-square-foot ranch style home. We don’t have much storage or extra space, so I wanted to be as minimalist as possible with baby products. I picked out ten of the most essential things to us, items that I recommend to my friends and that I know we’ll keep around for any future little ones. I love reading these Real Moms posts and every week my Amazon Wishlist grows when I hear about new things that I must have!
1. WubbaNub Lamb – Grandma popped this into Miri’s mouth when she was four days old and it was the best thing we ever did. These are WONDERFUL if your baby will take a pacifier, because when she falls asleep or spits it out it doesn’t roll off onto the floor. They’re easy to find in your diaper bag or the couch cushions, and now that Miri’s reaching and grabbing things it’s so cute to see her holding its little legs and hugging it. I had to buy two more because the fear of losing our only Wubbanub made me break into a cold sweat.

2. 4Moms MamaRoo - We don’t have a large house or lots of extra space, so a swing with a small footprint was a must. Initially I bought a portable travel swing, but it was too low to the ground and the dogs were always bumping it to make it stop, or getting right in her face. So I upgraded to the Mamaroo, and though it was more expensive, this has been the best baby investment so far. It’s cozy and high enough the dogs can’t bug her (but we have dachshunds, so obviously height is relative!) When she’s really fighting sleep and becoming General Fuss-ter, we swaddle her, turn up the white noise, and put her on “spin cycle” (the car ride setting on high) and she’s settles off to dreamland quickly.

3. Summer Infant Swaddleme - Swaddling has been a life-saver for us, both for helping to calm a fussy newborn and for helping Miri falls asleep and stay asleep. While I love the Aden + Anais muslin blankets, I could never get the swaddle wrap just snug enough to keep Miri’s wiggly arms from breaking out, especially in the middle of the night. These SwaddleMe sleepsacks are easy to use and keep her wrapped snuggly and safely.

4. Sock ONS - These are the most genius invention ever! They are like little “jackets” for baby feet, they slip on over baby socks to keep them in place, and we haven’t lost a sock yet!

5. Lamaze Freddy the Firefly Mobile – After Miri emerged from her stormy six-week growth spurt, she was suddenly looking at everything. I hung this over her crib and she is in love with it. The second the music turns on she breaks into a huge smile and she just stares and smiles and coos at it for at least twenty minutes (enough time for mama to go to the bathroom or make a cup of tea!). Even at her fussiest, laying her under Freddie will bring a few moments of calm. I’m not sure what baby-hypnotizing powers Freddie has, but I’m not going to question it, it’s pure magic. The wings are reversible, and right now she is fascinated by the side with black and white patterns. And the music isn’t even too annoying for grown-ups, either.

6. Cybex Callisto Stroller/Cybex Aton  car seat travel system – I did hours and hours of online research when I was pregnant, trying to find the perfect stroller/car seat combo. Of course there’s no “perfect” travel system but this one works really well for us. The car seat is super light-weight, very easy to install, and takes up minimal space in the back seat of our small station wagon (as a bonus, I love the sleek Euro design). It clicks right onto the stroller, which is fairly lightweight as well, plus really easy to fold up and throw in the back of the car. When she outgrows the car seat, the stroller becomes an umbrella stroller. I love that although it’s a lightweight, compact stroller it has larger wheels with comfy rear suspension, plus a super-high handle that even her 6-foot-tall dad is comfortable pushing. I admit I bought the bassinet too, although as adorable as it was, it wasn’t worth the money for the few times we used it before Miri outgrew it. If I walked more places or lived in a more urban area I think I would have used the bassinet a lot more. I think this stroller will take us through toddler-hood and travel with us for many years to come.

7. Nosefrida - It may sound and look gross, but this is the best little thing ever when baby has a stuffy nose. Miri hasn’t had a cold yet but sometimes is a little congested from the dry air in our house. Just a couple squirts of saline in her nose, then suck out the boogies, and she’s smiling again.

8. Baby K’tan - I tried the Moby wrap and just couldn’t handle the yards of fabric and attempting to wrap it while standing in a puddle in a parking lot. The Baby K’tan was so easy to put on and slip baby into it. I always throw it in the car when I’m out and about, it rolls up into it’s own little pouch, and has a neat little pocket in the front for my cell phone or grocery list! Miri loves it, she naps in it whether we’re out running errands, walking the dog, or just doing chores around the house.

9. Total Baby app – I’m obsessed with this app, I love it. I track all of Miri’s feeds and sleeps, and I love looking at the graph to see how if her schedule has any patterns to it. It also tracks diapers, pumping and breast milk storage, doctor visits, growth, shots. It was truly a lifesaver in those early sleep-deprived weeks, there was no way I could have remembered what side she last nursed on or how many wet diapers I’d changed that day…

10. HoMedics Sound Spa Relaxation Machine - I brought this white noise machine to the hospital with me thinking it would help me while I was in labor… it didn’t, but it did help us sleep well in the hospital while I waited for labor to start! We been playing white noise for Miri while she naps and sleeps since day one, and it was invaluable when she was a newborn. I think it’s still really helpful for her sleep routine as well.

Thanks again Rose – I loved sharing your wonderful list! xoxo

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