You never understand how truly important swaddles and sleep sacks are until you begin to realize that finding the perfect one may be the key to getting a good night's (or any) sleep for you!
One size literally does not fit all and one type of swaddle will not work forever. Babies that still have the Moro (startle) reflex sleep longer periods of time in swaddles because it keeps them from waking themselves up. Once they roll over it is no longer safe to swaddle their arms but many babies still sleep better in some sort of sleep sack. Plus, it is still a huge risk to have blankets and such in their crib with them until they are over a year old.
Some of our swaddles were given to us. Others were just trial and error of what worked. Unfortunately swaddles are not typically sold at used kids stores so I squirreled away coupons to big box baby stores to buy them.
What we have tried:
1. Swaddleme by Summer Infant
These run small but they worked well when our guy was really little as a tight swaddle. He's a tiny hulk and managed to regularly get an arm out, though. We were given a couple of these at our baby shower by someone who swore by them. Since they worked rather well when he first came home, we bought a few more because he inevitably would spit up on the one he was wearing and need an outfit change.
2. HALO SleepSack
We went in and out of using these. I initially was not a big fan of the HALO sleepsacks when we first brought our little guy home because I felt he was drowning in fabric. When we went through the 4 month sleep regression, though, I dug one of our lighter HALO sleepsacks out and they ended up working perfectly during that time. These sleep sacks also appeared to do better at keeping his arms contained.
3. Swaddle UP 50/50
I used these when our little guy needed to be swaddled but kept breaking out of the Swaddleme swaddles. It allowed him to have his arms up around his face like he liked, but muffled his Moro reflex. They do run VERY small so our son outgrew them very quickly.
4. Nested Bean Zen Sack
I happened to hear about these and was curious. They have weighted beans on the chest area of the sleep sack that make baby feel like someone is holding them. I bought one on a whim and we love them! I feel like it definitely helps our little guy sleep better at night and we have been using them for several months since he was about 2 months old.
Thursday, February 21, 2019
Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Infant Car Seats
Unfortunately car seats are not a one-and-done kind of purchase. There are specific seats based on the age and size of the child. Infant car seats offer even more padding and specialized protection for your teeny little one while toddler and booster seats give them more room. Infant car seats also have the added bonus that the car seat itself comes out of the car so, if baby is asleep, you can pick up the whole thing and take them with you whereas car seats for older kids are stationary.
Of course, there are convertible all-in-one seats that can transition from infant to toddler but, with them, you sacrifice some safety and also they are stationary just like toddler car seats within the car. On top of all these head spinning factors, car seats expire after a period of time, they may have recalls, and cannot be used if they have ever been in an accident.
Resources Used:
Amazon
The Bump
Buy Buy Baby
Consumer Reports
What I settled on:
1. Doona Infant Car Seat
I had looked at Consumer Reports and online reviews of various car seats. I had even put one on my registry but, a month or so before my baby shower, my husband and I wandered into Buy Buy Baby to look at car seats to be sure. If I was going to be lugging our infant around in a car seat regularly, we wanted to make sure that the one we had settled on would work for us. I also wanted to find a stroller that would work with the car seat.
Then, like a magical unicorn, we walked past the Doona stroller in the store. It is pure wizardry. It's a car seat, it's a stroller, it's compact, and it functions safely without a base.
I looked up the Consumer Reports and it has a pretty perfect safety rating. The only ding it had was that it was heavy...well sure it is slightly heavier than the normal infant car seat; it has wheels! BUT, who's going to be carrying it most of the time when you can put the wheels down and push your kid?!
It is definitely more expensive than your base-priced infant car seats. However, if you factor in the ease of use and the fact that you won't have to buy a stroller for the car seat on top of the car seat price, it is a pretty great deal!
Also, another safety concern that I do not have to worry about is the proper angle of the car seat when it is not locked into the base. I have heard horror stories of infants that are left sleeping in a car seat when the parents arrive home. Because they brought the baby into the house but left them in the car seat, the car seat was not at the proper angle and the child died. The Doona was designed to be both stroller and car seat so, once we put the wheels down when we take him out of the car, he is still at the proper angle.
It has also been touted by The Bump as a must-have for any parent that plans to travel. We are planning on traveling via airplane in a couple months and our baby should still be in the car seat. We'll be able to stroll through security with it, check it at the gate, and use it as a car seat when we arrive at our destination. Hands down, one of our best expensive purchases!
Side Note: Another resource for those looking at car seats is Car Seats for the Littles. I had not heard of it before buying my infant car seat but it is a great resource!
Of course, there are convertible all-in-one seats that can transition from infant to toddler but, with them, you sacrifice some safety and also they are stationary just like toddler car seats within the car. On top of all these head spinning factors, car seats expire after a period of time, they may have recalls, and cannot be used if they have ever been in an accident.
Resources Used:
Amazon
The Bump
Buy Buy Baby
Consumer Reports
What I settled on:
1. Doona Infant Car Seat
I had looked at Consumer Reports and online reviews of various car seats. I had even put one on my registry but, a month or so before my baby shower, my husband and I wandered into Buy Buy Baby to look at car seats to be sure. If I was going to be lugging our infant around in a car seat regularly, we wanted to make sure that the one we had settled on would work for us. I also wanted to find a stroller that would work with the car seat.
Then, like a magical unicorn, we walked past the Doona stroller in the store. It is pure wizardry. It's a car seat, it's a stroller, it's compact, and it functions safely without a base.
I looked up the Consumer Reports and it has a pretty perfect safety rating. The only ding it had was that it was heavy...well sure it is slightly heavier than the normal infant car seat; it has wheels! BUT, who's going to be carrying it most of the time when you can put the wheels down and push your kid?!
It is definitely more expensive than your base-priced infant car seats. However, if you factor in the ease of use and the fact that you won't have to buy a stroller for the car seat on top of the car seat price, it is a pretty great deal!
Also, another safety concern that I do not have to worry about is the proper angle of the car seat when it is not locked into the base. I have heard horror stories of infants that are left sleeping in a car seat when the parents arrive home. Because they brought the baby into the house but left them in the car seat, the car seat was not at the proper angle and the child died. The Doona was designed to be both stroller and car seat so, once we put the wheels down when we take him out of the car, he is still at the proper angle.
It has also been touted by The Bump as a must-have for any parent that plans to travel. We are planning on traveling via airplane in a couple months and our baby should still be in the car seat. We'll be able to stroll through security with it, check it at the gate, and use it as a car seat when we arrive at our destination. Hands down, one of our best expensive purchases!
Side Note: Another resource for those looking at car seats is Car Seats for the Littles. I had not heard of it before buying my infant car seat but it is a great resource!
Monday, February 4, 2019
Bottles
I have discovered that choosing bottles is very subjective. Kids are partial to specific nipple brands/shapes as well as the flow of milk. You may have one kid that likes one brand and you buy a ton of them. Then you have a second kid that refuses to eat from that brand or from bottles at all. They also may take one specific bottle initially or take all of them but be partial to one as they get older.
Another road bump is whether they are formula fed or breastfed initially. Formula fed from day one may require multiple changes to the nipple flow over time. Also, some brands specialize in catering to infant and preemie needs. With breastfed babies there is some timing involved to avoid nipple confusion. With moms, like me, that go from exclusively nursing while at home and pumping while at work, you may also have a kid that goes on nursing or bottle strikes. Being a mama is hard work!
Before you go out and buy a bunch of different bottle brands, you may find that you can get sample bottles. I received a couple sample bottles when I purchased maternity clothes while pregnant. I also received a different brand to sample at my first OB appointment. If you happen to have any mom friends or family members that recently bottle fed, you can also ask to borrow bottles to try them out before purchasing a ton.
What we tried:
1. MAM
I received a sample MAM bottle and it seemed to be a favorite initially. They were anticolic, which is one of the reasons we decided to buy more of these after using the sample one. Our son has silent reflux and seemed fussier in the evenings so I thought anticolic bottles could help. I like the nipples and the flow, but they are my husband's second favorite because there are so many parts to them. It's a plus because you can take it apart and really clean/sanitize it. However, more parts means more potential to leak if everything isn't perfectly screwed together.
2. Philips Avent
These particular bottles also say they are anticolic, so we bought several of these after using the sample as well. But, a week or two into using them, my husband was decidedly against them because they leaked from the top. We have them as back up but haven't used them since.
3. Comotomo
My husband, who was the first one to introduce the bottle to our son, initially did not like the comotomo. However, over time, this has been our preferred bottle to use. He did not like it at first because he felt that the silicone material that is on the base of the bottle made it difficult to hold while feeding the baby. He has gotten used to the feeling and our baby prefers the nipples on the bottle and the flow of milk from it. They also are very easy to wash. They only have 3 pieces in total (not including the lid) that you can take apart easily and put back together.
Another road bump is whether they are formula fed or breastfed initially. Formula fed from day one may require multiple changes to the nipple flow over time. Also, some brands specialize in catering to infant and preemie needs. With breastfed babies there is some timing involved to avoid nipple confusion. With moms, like me, that go from exclusively nursing while at home and pumping while at work, you may also have a kid that goes on nursing or bottle strikes. Being a mama is hard work!
Before you go out and buy a bunch of different bottle brands, you may find that you can get sample bottles. I received a couple sample bottles when I purchased maternity clothes while pregnant. I also received a different brand to sample at my first OB appointment. If you happen to have any mom friends or family members that recently bottle fed, you can also ask to borrow bottles to try them out before purchasing a ton.
What we tried:
1. MAM
I received a sample MAM bottle and it seemed to be a favorite initially. They were anticolic, which is one of the reasons we decided to buy more of these after using the sample one. Our son has silent reflux and seemed fussier in the evenings so I thought anticolic bottles could help. I like the nipples and the flow, but they are my husband's second favorite because there are so many parts to them. It's a plus because you can take it apart and really clean/sanitize it. However, more parts means more potential to leak if everything isn't perfectly screwed together.
2. Philips Avent
These particular bottles also say they are anticolic, so we bought several of these after using the sample as well. But, a week or two into using them, my husband was decidedly against them because they leaked from the top. We have them as back up but haven't used them since.
3. Comotomo
My husband, who was the first one to introduce the bottle to our son, initially did not like the comotomo. However, over time, this has been our preferred bottle to use. He did not like it at first because he felt that the silicone material that is on the base of the bottle made it difficult to hold while feeding the baby. He has gotten used to the feeling and our baby prefers the nipples on the bottle and the flow of milk from it. They also are very easy to wash. They only have 3 pieces in total (not including the lid) that you can take apart easily and put back together.
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