Baby Gear

Do you travel often with your small child? We did, and where is the baby going to sleep is the first question that comes to mind. Renting a crib from a hotel or service didn’t really appeal to me, lugging a pack n play was even less desirable.
I would have loved this foldable moses bed by lalapanzi beds. They come in two sizes, large for children up to 22 lbs and small for children up to 17lbs. They look so soft and comfortable, I wouldn’t mind sleeping in one.

This bed would be great for baby but only if you travel often, I cannot find the price on their web site now, but I know it was not an inexpensive purchase.

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As a person who has traveled with twins often, including 4 trips to Florida and a roundtrip 6 hour drive to New Hampshire before my kids even turned 3, I am always looking for tips to travel with kids. They last couple of times we traveled I saw parents using the Gogo Kidz Travelmate and I loved it.

The travelmate is and attachment for the car seat letting you easily wheel your baby in the car seat rather then carry the baby and the seat. It easily mounts onto the seat, it is only 5lbs and attaches to many of the popular car seats on the market.

I don’t think the travelmate is perfect for the occasional flyer, because it is not cheap at $89.99, but would be perfect for someone who has to fly often with a young child. This is much easier then wheeling a stroller down to the gate, taking your child(ren) out and folding it up handing it to the flight attendant and hope you will see it again in good shape. Believe me, I know!

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I love Etsy. Creative people selling their creative, homemade things is heaven to me and I love to support them.

What I love more then Etsy though, is my kids being preoccupied when we are out, especially out for dinner. We have taken our twins out to eat with us since they were 6 months old. We bring toys, and snacks and even books, and we never stay and linger, kids get bored I understand that.

These beautiful Placemates are perfect for that! They are called Dine N Doodle and they are place mats on one side and a chalk mat on the other. Kids can doodle, you can play tick tac toe, you can make masterpieces all before your entree arrives!
They are durable, stain-resistant and waterproof, perfect for kids and their moms.
They come in many adorable colors and styles, my favorite is the sock monkey pattern!

They also have a crayon keeper. Place your crayons or chalk in the little pockets and fold up. No more crayons stains on the bottom of your purse. This comes is many colors/styles as well.

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I am always scared I am going to burn my children’s legs with the hot metal buckle on the car seats. Now that kids have to be in seats or boosters until they are 8 years old, the fear continues. Not only the buckle which I tried to tuck into the seat when we are going someplace so they will not be in the sun’s rays (mom tip!) but also the seats themselves because they are mostly leather. Easily to clean but hot in the summer!

Then I found the seat chiller car seat cooler.
It cools the car seats with ice packs that you freeze. It is made of vinyl, flexible non-toxic ice packs and flannel. You place it on the seat and buckles and it cools down the seat, then you can safely place your child into his car seat.
I do not have this product, but I think I will be ordering one. I don’t see how this would work if you were out of the car for a long period of time, but for errands or going to friend’s homes where you can refreeze the ice packs, it would be perfect. I am sure people who have hot weather year round would make use of this product also.

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Now that it is summer, I thought I would share some road trip secrets I have. Many people take vacations during the summer months, but even if it is a day trip to visit family, I think these ideas could help you with baby.

Make a trip box. Fill a empty shoe box with some things to keep baby entertained in the car. A small container of cereal, a book or two and a few small toys like finger puppets or rattles. Even if one falls on the floor you have others to go to for back up.

If you are at someone’s house that doesn’t have kids or babies, you can make some toys that entertain baby. Fill a container 3/4 the way up with cereal and tape close, to make a rattle. A plastic lid from tupperware is something fun or use a scarf or bandana to play peek a boo or to wave around. Never be fooled by how much fun a wooden spoon is either!

Also if you are looking for some tips on going on a plane with your children, I have some tips and tricks on my other blog.

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I am a HUGE fan of bibs, I mean what parent isn’t? I had so many bibs, girl bibs, boy bibs, fancy bibs, plastic bibs etc. I was a huge fan of disposable bibs and used them all the time. That way I didn’t have to cart a gross dirty bib home in the diaper bag and worry I will get other things in there dirty or forget about it for a week until the smell knocks me over.

Kipiis are a great idea also. Keep these in your diaper bag and make any napkin or paper towel an instant bib! They come in cool colors and are $14.00 each which is a little steep but think of the money you will save on bibsters!
Come to think of it, I bet you can make your own kipiis, if you do email me to let me know what you used and how it turned out!

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We live quite a distance from our family and friends so we traveled with our children all the time from the time the babies were a week old. We wanted something to bring with us to put the kids in or help when it was just me and the two babies at a friend or family members home who maybe didn’t have baby “equipment”.
Luckily for us, the Fisher Price Take Along Swing just came onto the market a month after our kids were born.

This was one of my favorite baby products. It was light, easy to fold up and carry and fit great in the back of my small SUV.
It has two toys that when you pull activate songs and lights. The music wasn’t too annoying as with some baby items. It takes 4 C batteries which need to be changed often as is the case with swings. Get rechargable batteries!

It is designed for up to 25lbs which I loved. My kids grew too long for the swing before they even hit the weight limit. The swing was terrific help getting them to sleep in strange places, like on vacation.

My one con with this swing was it was a little hard getting the babies in and out of it. You kind of have to swing them in and under the top bar and I have bumped their heads on occasion on it. (Sorry kids!) As they got heavier this process got harder!

I love this product, I thought it was worth its weight in gold.
Make that platinum!

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There are so many products on the market for babies and kids that you do not need, or can live without. This next product is not a necessity but along with being pretty neat, it would be terrific for parents that travel often with their baby or do a lot of day trips to see family and friends.

The Korbi is a all in one travel bassinet, diaper bag and changing table. It is perfect for visiting homes without children. It comes in three pretty colors and folds up so easily. It also looks really easy to clean up spills or accidents.

I could have used one of these (or two!) for all of my trips with our twins after they were born.

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You know you have been there, a crying baby when you still have half the grocery store to get to, a kid who wants to be carried to the car but you are already carrying all of the beach stuff or even a wardrobe malfunction when there is no way you can go home and change.

I know I have been there, many times. Along comes the momergency kit. It is chock full of useful things to help you fix something or distract your child with in a waiting room. It all comes in a cute little bag so you have it all in one place not strewn all over your car or purse.

Plus? Free shipping! What could be better.

Now, I want to know what would you carry in your momergency kit?
I would carry crayons and a pad of paper, 3 sizes of band aids, nail clippers and a small flashlight for emergencies and also to play with while waiting for the doctor to come in.

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At first glance you might think this is a typical messenger bag, but it has a double duty, it is a diaper bag for dudes.

This bag has lots of compartments for diapers, wipes, cell phones and keys. It is cool looking for that dad who is just not comfortable with carrying a pooh diaper bag. It can hang over his shoulder, or on the stroller.
It comes in four colors, camo, black, gray and navy.

I don’t think it is just for dads either, I would carry this bag.
When the baby gets older, it can go to being just a plain old messenger bag.

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When you have a toddler and you are on the go, moms know that things get lost easily. Toddler throw their pacifiers, toys, socks, anything and everything that you give them.

I lost many a sippy cup this way especially because with my twins when one through something so did the other. Sippy cups are expensive, so I was thrilled when they started making take & toss sippy cups.

They are sturdy enough not to squish in toddler’s hands and come in different characters, but you are not worried when does not make it home with you. They have some with straws for bigger kids and sippy lids for the younger set.
I used these when when went to Disney World and it was perfect for the beach, my in-laws house or at the playground.
Now more trying to angle something into the sippy lid to clean it all out, now if it gets gross just toss it!

I highly recommend these cups.

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Did you know that plastic sippy cups can leach harmful chemicals into your baby’s drink? It is true. Plastic has harmful chemicals in it and when you give a child a plastic sippy cup those chemicals can be ingested. But I recently came across a good alternative and it is very attractive to boot! These stainless steel sippy cups are called Foogo from Thermos. The inner liners and the outer container is stainless steel and the lid is polypropylene and is BPA free…so no toxins to leach into your baby’s drink. This would be a great cup to put breastmilk in and keep it fresh with this cup’s vaccum insulation. They are safe to put in the dishwasher and they have a sleek and cool ergonomic design. These look they are made to last.

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The Snugli Comfort Vent is a soft carrier for babies ranging in weight from 7-26 lbs. It’s khaki in color lined with some black giving it a very casual, sporty look. It has padded shoulder straps that criss-cross on your back. It has a versatile flap-down front that can be adjusted for newborn facing Mom, or folded down to carry older baby facing away from Mom. It has a convenient front pocket for keys or pacifiers and has two snap air vents for those warmer days. All the straps buckle very easily for maximum comfort and safety. At $16.99 this is a great buy!

I’ve owned other Snugli-like carriers before because I have six children. However, the other two I owned were not as comfortable and not as easy to put on. This Snugli by Evenflo is very comfortable and is very easy to slide baby into and out of! I love the adjustable front flap and the front pocket. When I first bought it, I wore it for three hours at a picnic. I put my keys in the front pocket, along with a pacifier and I was ready to go. My baby was very comfortable facing forward and didn’t get over-heated on that warm day because of the mesh air vents. I feel like I got an excellent product for the price.

As a mother of six, I’m always looking for top products that are the most reasonably priced! This is one of them!

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Babies love going for rides in the great outdors. This adorable toy makes it easier! Cozy Push and Ride Car by Little Tikes: This little car has lots of big fun features including cute ‘bug’ styling, a cozy roof, and a removable push handle. It easily adapts to a child’s growing skills, with a working drivers side door that locks with the turn of screw, and unlocks when the child is old enough to scoot around on their own. Theres also a working gas cap and horn, built-in cup holders, ‘ignition switch’, and key. Ages 1 - 5 years.

Car features cute styling, a cozy roof, and converts from a push-and-ride to a ride-in. When used as a push-and-ride car, the working door is locked. As the child grows, it converts to a ride-on by unlocking the door and removing the floorboard and push handle. Includes a working gas cap and horn, build in cup holder, clicking key and caster front wheels.

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If you have more than one small child and you ever plan on leaving the house….a good stroller will come in handy. I myself have two little ones so I opted for a good double stroller that I could use on walks, jaunts to the mall, jogging, etc. This is the one I got.

The InStep Safari swivel double stroller. This luxurious swivel-wheeled stroller for two is the industry benchmark. For both parents and children the safety and maneuverability of this item in stroller OR jogger mode is unmatched. This go-anywhere, do-anything stroller has loads of storage. Includes removable padded seat, under the seat storage basket, quick release wheels, padded push bar, canopy viewing window, and fabric in rear for sun protection.

It was actually very easy to put together and it rides like a dream. The only complaint I have is that is a bit hard to squeexe through some doorways with this stroller and if you have a small car forget it. But if you have a big vehicle like and SUV then this woul dbe a nice stroller for you.

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