I think all of the non-flat or plush things are not great sleep surfaces. We used a RNP last time, but there's so much more information out there about it not being safe to sleep and it was a nightmare to transition out of. I think all those things are fine for places to set your kid with supervision. This kid will start off sleeping on a flat surface immediately.
While this is so true, its unsafe to sleep in unsupervised. I have to agree with this. I wouldn't let my child sleep in it in their room with the door closed. We used it right next to the bed and only for the first 2-3 months when they only sleep for like 3-4 hours anyway. I spoke with my ped about this because he hated to be swaddled and had bad reflux and she said next to the bed was perfectly safe if he wasn't sleeping through the night yet. She let us know as soon as he started to try and sit forward or roll over to stop using immediately. I plan on using it again with this baby too. We actually didn't have a hard time transitioning to the bassinet since he was then able to touch the sides when he flinched.
I'm sorry but anyone who uses some of the baby products unsupervised is an idiot in my mind. I mean come on all those people who put there kid on the table or counter in the bumbo seat and them walked away. Who thinks that's OK. I would plot him in the bumbo on the counter facing me when I cooked no prob. But I was right there with him watching him the entire time. To me its all about common sense....
I've been very intrigued by the Dock a tot. I thought it would be great to use while I shower (I could place baby in it, in the garden tub) or...I guess really that's all I've got, haha.
On the subject of diaper bags...I used a traditional diaper bag with my son, but found all of the compartments really annoying once he was a little older (like past 6 months). I think it varies from person to person, though. My plan with this little one is a convertible shoulder bag/backpack and this little insert, which I will likely use for the first few months and then remove and use a combination of smaller bags inside to organize the stuff for both kiddos: https://www.lifeinplaycompany.com/
I'm too frugal to spend a lot on a diaper backpack since I didn't use my diaper bag that much with DD and feel like it will be the same this go around. Who knows. But either way, I'm looking into this one, which is #1 on amazon with great reviews, the Graco Gotham backpack. It's very basic looking, but I'm pretty basic to begin with, and it's nice to have something that even DH will use, for a whopping $30
Diapers.com has several cheap Jujube bags - patterns are pretty limited but I'm willing to overlook that to save money. I just ordered the BRB and the Be Set with a coupon code for less than $140! (On the Jujube site, it would have been over $200.)
@WombThereItIs we were gifted a leachco podster for DD (Jan15). I don't know that I would buy it for myself, but it was convenient to prop her in while folding laundry or making dinner or take to grandmas as a place for her to relax.
I like the Boon system, DH hates it. We're first timers so haven't actually tried any of them out. What's your favorite, why, and any to avoid? Thanks!
@jayandaplus I'll link the one we have. I can't rave about it, because it doesn't blow my mind or anything - but it works well. I have no complaints. Mostly... think that you're going to be staring at this on your counter for YEARS (potentially) - we've started to use it for sippy cup parts now so that will extend its stay in our lives.
I like the Boon system, DH hates it. We're first timers so haven't actually tried any of them out. What's your favorite, why, and any to avoid? Thanks!
The Boon grass looking one? I love that damn thing. Having daily bottles and pump parts to wash when I went back to work was a pain but once I found the right accessories for what I was washing it made things so much easier.
Those medela pump membranes are kind of a bitch because they're little and delicate and I found the flower shape held them and the yellow part they attach to better than anything else and the trees are great for bottle nipples.
My my son is 2 and I haven't used a bottle in about 14 months and it still gets regular use on our counter.
I love my boon grass with the flowers. I still use it and my DS is 1.5. It holds so much stuff! I had so many bottles/pump parts and its so easy to clean. I was a little OCD about organizing all of my stuff on it lol.
@wombthereitis I have no idea what the rage is about the doc a tot. I don't sew but I bet I could have someone's grandma make one for $10 as opposed to $180!! I was gifted a boppy lounger and my son would lay in it as a newborn but it wasn't some miracle invention that I couldn't live without.
I was gifted a boppy lounger (July 2015) and looooooooooved it. I ended up exclusively pumping and would lay my son in it next to me and it was perfect. So many times we just needed a place to put him down safely and propped up to get other things done and it was great. For every baby shower I go to now, I gift the mom one (and attach the gift receipt) and the feedback is it's always one of the best and most useful gifts.
Agreed with @mrsrep123 , the Boppy is awesome! It's marketed as a BF pillow, but we used it for so much more. A great spot to prop baby while pumping, sitting on the couch, etc. Sometimes he would fall asleep BF and it was nice to have him in a spot that didn't require my arms holding him. Which reminds me, I should probably find a new cover for this little girl because our last one is trashed from so much use.
Another great thing about the boppy: if you happen to get two, it works well to stack them and put the kid inside of them when they are learning to sit up. Our daycare did that w/ DD and she'd spend quite a bit of time playing with toys while propped up on boppys on the floor.
I just found a lady selling a City Select Double w/ a glide board for $300. That's a good deal, right? I only ever find the used City Selects priced at $400-500.
@notaplaya-justcrushalot find out the mfq year first. If its older may not be that great of a deal. If its like 2013 and newer good deal. They are doing a deal on albee.com with the code price is $419.99 for brand new 2015 models with 2nd seat included. I'm linking below for you. I would spend the extra $120 if you can because you will get the lifetime warranty on the frame thru baby jogger. There warranties don't transfer and they don't allow you to register re-sale strollers.
@jayandaplus I'll link the one we have. I can't rave about it, because it doesn't blow my mind or anything - but it works well. I have no complaints. Mostly... think that you're going to be staring at this on your counter for YEARS (potentially) - we've started to use it for sippy cup parts now so that will extend its stay in our lives.
@schnitz9 Good point. Do you know if the car seat adapters change by year? She doesn't have the adapter I'll need for our infant seat. Aside from that, provided it's in good working order, I might be ok saving the $120. I'm not trying to go cheap on this second kid, but I'm not sure how long DD (3 yo) will use a stroller. We already have a bigger Graco single stroller that I actually really like and a Summer Infant umbrella that we primarily use now. So if DD stops using a stroller, we could go back to one of those.
I'm so ambivalent about what equipment I need this time around. I feel like this kid is going to get the "second kid" treatment his whole life.
Suggestions of where I could look for a nice glider? I have a PB rocker on my list, but I think I want to glide and their gliders are $$$$. Something that looks like:
@notaplay-justcrushalot 2 things. Yes depending on the year the adaptors did change and you may have a hard time finding older ones. The way baby jogger works is kinda like cars. The Mfq date should be on the frame somewhere. If the mfq date is in the fall most like it is the next years model. Also if your DD is alreay 3 you may want to look into a side by side like the city mini GT can get that used for the same price. Older children tend to do better in a Side by side than the tandem ones. But def get the model year first....
@notaplaya-justcrushalot have you tested the city select out in the store? I found that the seat was not going to be large enough for my son who will be about 2 when this baby is born. My SIL has this stroller and has a very petite 2 year old and she has to have her knees bent.
@NotAPlaya-JustCrushAlot that is good deal, but like a pp said, make sure you find out year and do you research on finding the right pieces. I bought a used Uppababy Vista (2014) only to find out I couldn't find any pieces because they changed the model in 2015. I returned it and bought a new City Select double for $610.38 with tax.
@nda_roxybabe we bought a very nice glider from BRU for less than $500. It is a nice cream color and is actually in our living room now and doesn't look out of place. It also reclines which is nice. I think it is the one in the link below but in stone.
@nda_roxybabe we have a glider from Best chairs storytime series and it's less than the PBK ones and way more comfortable. You have to find a store that carries them (their website has a search for store tool) and the store can order for you but I love ours. They have a pretty big library of styles and fabric options. Love love love. I will be buying a second one for 2.0
Maybe hit up a brick and mortar store and look at them in person. We ended up going with the one above because I loved the idea of a recliner (even though I don't love the visible recliner pull). The one we bought for my son's room came from Buy Buy Baby and was a floor model that we got on deep discount. It has kind of a skirted bottom, so the ring isn't visible.
@nda_roxybabe , should have added that IMO the rocker/glider is one of the most important pieces of furniture (behind the crib) because you will spend SO much time in it. Even now at 2.5 years old, we read to my son every night and sit with him in it every morning. So make sure you love the look, but even more importantly, that you find it to be a comfortable spot!
While were on the topic of gliders, is anybody familiar with the dutailer gliders? I had gotten a recliner with DD but will probably have it in the living room since we will have a much bigger living room and its chocolate brown like our couch. Anyways, I had tried a dutailer glider at the hospital and it was sooo comfortable but I only used it a couple times.
We fell in love with a chair and a half glider/rocker at BRU, but it was way more than what we wanted to spend! So, we found the one below on wayfair and it is still sitting in the box because we don't want to open it until we move haha but they had some others that were really nice too and similar to what you were looking for, @nda_roxybabe ...we looked on overstock too.
"A day without laughter is a day wasted." ~Charlie Chaplin
@nda_roxybabe We got our at Target, and it looks pretty similar to the picture you posted. Here's a link. Oops, forgot to include a link yesterday, @nda_roxybabe. In the picture it looks like you can see the ring, but honestly you can't unless you're looking for it. @pshaortao I haven't owned one, but I've babysat plenty of babies whose parents have them. In my opinion, they are convenient (love the side pocket!) but the cushioning goes flat fast and overall I prefer gliders to what above have mentioned for nda_roxybabe.
@chickyclg Personally, I'm not on the owlet/snuza monitor bandwagon. As a FTM, I looked into it heavily because I thought I'd want one (or all of them). But, as a nurse n the ED, I began to question the reliability. We use pulse oximetry and heart monitors to (among other things) look at oxygenation, respiratory rate, and heart rate. I cannot begin to discuss how often they alarm unnecessarily (thought correct quickly when applicable). I read so many reviews of the owlet, that I decided aganst it. I believe if you read heavily the owlet reviews, you'll see many people had issues with the device itself and it mis-alarming. I think anxiety is part of having a newborn, I don't believe the owlet/snuza relieves that in the long run. For me personally, I wouldn't trust it any more than a regular monitor, and I believe it'd worry me more times than a monitor. Just my thoughts.
@nda_roxybabe agreed on hating the ring. I did realized that in online photos I could see it but in person I rarely could. I just saw an ad for the Kiwi glider recliner by babyletto that will be coming out soon and I am wishing I had that. It looks very, very similar to the chair you posted, but has electronic recline and a USB port. I love our glider, but do not like the matching gliding ottoman we got. Should have went with something stationary. It's like an ab exercise to try and rock both the chair and ottoman.
I think I'm going with this Babyletto Madison glider. I like that it doesn't come with a matching ottoman, so I can go for a more mixed eclectic look. We do have a pouf sitting downstairs right now that we only ever use if we have a lot of company over, so I'll probably just move that upstairs for the time being.
Since the Boppy was brought up again, any opinions on Boppy vs Brest Friend? Only things I've heard so far is that the Brest Friend may be more supportive, but Boppy more versatile. Anyone tried both?
@starphish18 I had both and honestly like having them both, for different things. I loved that MBF clipped on and was definitely more of a "shelf" for nursing. But I loved the boppy to prop baby up on and use with assisted sitting. I'm not sure I could choose!
I love our glider, but do not like the matching gliding ottoman we got. Should have went with something stationary. It's like an ab exercise to try and rock both the chair and ottoman.
@Louise_Belcher: Great point. I used a little footstool with my glider and it's nice to have something to push off of. I'm short in height, too, and foot placement is an important consideration for comfort.
Since the Boppy was brought up again, any opinions on Boppy vs Brest Friend? Only things I've heard so far is that the Brest Friend may be more supportive, but Boppy more versatile. Anyone tried both?
I have the boppy, twin breastfriend, and just bought a regular breastfriend. For nursing I preferred the breastfriend, all the lactation specialists I saw had them to use also. The boppy however was amazing for everything else from helping support your arms when you hold them a lot in the newborn stage, to propping them, and tummy time.
The breastfriend is more of a firm foam and keeps its shape, where the boppy is like a pillow (and can get more flat).
Personally I would say get/register for both. If I were to choose between them, I'd say go with the Boppy because it is so versatile.
Re: Baby Gear and Baby Item Recomendations - attempt #2
While this is so true, its unsafe to sleep in unsupervised. I have to agree with this. I wouldn't let my child sleep in it in their room with the door closed. We used it right next to the bed and only for the first 2-3 months when they only sleep for like 3-4 hours anyway. I spoke with my ped about this because he hated to be swaddled and had bad reflux and she said next to the bed was perfectly safe if he wasn't sleeping through the night yet. She let us know as soon as he started to try and sit forward or roll over to stop using immediately. I plan on using it again with this baby too. We actually didn't have a hard time transitioning to the bassinet since he was then able to touch the sides when he flinched.
I'm sorry but anyone who uses some of the baby products unsupervised is an idiot in my mind. I mean come on all those people who put there kid on the table or counter in the bumbo seat and them walked away. Who thinks that's OK. I would plot him in the bumbo on the counter facing me when I cooked no prob. But I was right there with him watching him the entire time. To me its all about common sense....
1st Baby 5/12/17, Henry
What's everyone's thoughts on the Snuza Hero? Anyone used it before?
We bought them them for the twins but returned them since they came home on monitors.
1/7/2015 Twins born @ 34 weeks
I like the Boon system, DH hates it. We're first timers so haven't actually tried any of them out. What's your favorite, why, and any to avoid? Thanks!
https://www.amazon.com/Munchkin-High-Capacity-Drying-White/dp/B006SFUCV8
Those medela pump membranes are kind of a bitch because they're little and delicate and I found the flower shape held them and the yellow part they attach to better than anything else and the trees are great for bottle nipples.
My my son is 2 and I haven't used a bottle in about 14 months and it still gets regular use on our counter.
May '17 labor memes
"A day without laughter is a day wasted." ~Charlie Chaplin
I love my boon grass with the flowers. I still use it and my DS is 1.5. It holds so much stuff! I had so many bottles/pump parts and its so easy to clean. I was a little OCD about organizing all of my stuff on it lol.
May17 Siggy Challenge
Labor
DS1 7/24/15
DS2 5/7/17
I just found a lady selling a City Select Double w/ a glide board for $300. That's a good deal, right? I only ever find the used City Selects priced at $400-500.
May17 Siggy Challenge
Labor
@notaplaya-justcrushalot find out the mfq year first. If its older may not be that great of a deal. If its like 2013 and newer good deal. They are doing a deal on albee.com with the code price is $419.99 for brand new 2015 models with 2nd seat included. I'm linking below for you. I would spend the extra $120 if you can because you will get the lifetime warranty on the frame thru baby jogger. There warranties don't transfer and they don't allow you to register re-sale strollers.
https://www.albeebaby.com/baby-jogger-city-select-double-stroller-silver.html
1/7/2015 Twins born @ 34 weeks
Good point. Do you know if the car seat adapters change by year? She doesn't have the adapter I'll need for our infant seat. Aside from that, provided it's in good working order, I might be ok saving the $120. I'm not trying to go cheap on this second kid, but I'm not sure how long DD (3 yo) will use a stroller. We already have a bigger Graco single stroller that I actually really like and a Summer Infant umbrella that we primarily use now. So if DD stops using a stroller, we could go back to one of those.
I'm so ambivalent about what equipment I need this time around. I feel like this kid is going to get the "second kid" treatment his whole life.
May17 Siggy Challenge
Labor
1st Baby 5/12/17, Henry
@nda_roxybabe we bought a very nice glider from BRU for less than $500. It is a nice cream color and is actually in our living room now and doesn't look out of place. It also reclines which is nice. I think it is the one in the link below but in stone.
https://m.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=87737776&cp=2255957.2273443.2256245.50629046.50628876&parentPage=family
https://www.besthf.com/besthf/Storytime/Home
May '17 labor memes
DS1 7/24/15
DS2 5/7/17
1st Baby 5/12/17, Henry
Maybe hit up a brick and mortar store and look at them in person. We ended up going with the one above because I loved the idea of a recliner (even though I don't love the visible recliner pull). The one we bought for my son's room came from Buy Buy Baby and was a floor model that we got on deep discount. It has kind of a skirted bottom, so the ring isn't visible.
May '17 labor memes
"A day without laughter is a day wasted." ~Charlie Chaplin
@pshaortao I haven't owned one, but I've babysat plenty of babies whose parents have them. In my opinion, they are convenient (love the side pocket!) but the cushioning goes flat fast and overall I prefer gliders to what above have mentioned for nda_roxybabe.
@chickyclg Personally, I'm not on the owlet/snuza monitor bandwagon. As a FTM, I looked into it heavily because I thought I'd want one (or all of them). But, as a nurse n the ED, I began to question the reliability. We use pulse oximetry and heart monitors to (among other things) look at oxygenation, respiratory rate, and heart rate. I cannot begin to discuss how often they alarm unnecessarily (thought correct quickly when applicable). I read so many reviews of the owlet, that I decided aganst it. I believe if you read heavily the owlet reviews, you'll see many people had issues with the device itself and it mis-alarming. I think anxiety is part of having a newborn, I don't believe the owlet/snuza relieves that in the long run. For me personally, I wouldn't trust it any more than a regular monitor, and I believe it'd worry me more times than a monitor. Just my thoughts.
DS2 5/17
#3 Due 9/20
The breastfriend is more of a firm foam and keeps its shape, where the boppy is like a pillow (and can get more flat).
Personally I would say get/register for both. If I were to choose between them, I'd say go with the Boppy because it is so versatile.
1/7/2015 Twins born @ 34 weeks