Just bought a JuJuBe BeQuick on Baby Steals for $12.99. GREAT price - perfect for shoving into a diaper bag or just taking a few diapers/wipes with you so you don't have to lug the diaper bag around. Also they have a 25% off sale for ALL of their diaper bags on sale. Just use DIAPER25 for code.
DS1 - 9/21/11
DS2 - 7/4/14
DS3 - 2/21/16 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Our family of 5 is complete!! Love our boys!
I pumped into the bottles for day care Monday through Thursday and then directly into the bag on Fridays to build my stash. I didn't like pumping into the bag when I knew the milk would be used the next day.
We usually sent 3 bottles in. She rarely drank more than four ounces at a time so we never needed big bottles.
We had a ton of bottles because she rejected all of them at first but I think 10 would be an ideal number if nursing at home.
A travel cooler would be nice to have. Depending on your sink situation at work, the microwave sterilizer bags can be handy. The other things you listed aren't necessary.
Just thought I'd leave this tip here but if you're looking for a part time storage solution for milk (wouldn't work for working pumping Mom's) pumping into the storage bottles and then freezing the milk in a covered ice cube trays is a super convienent way to store milk. I would transfer them into a ziplock bag with the month pumped marked. It was really easy to pop 4/5 cubes (about .75 oz) into a bottle and let the milk cubes thaw in the fridge. It was nice not to hassle with bags (a they're expensive and can be hard to find). And it was really convienent to thaw bottles.
I stayed home for a year so I pumped for overnight trips, babysitters and unexpected circumstances (like when I had to take benedryl for an allergy attack), I don't think this would work if you EPed.
What is the best wrap to get for a newborn? Moby, K'tan, boba? We only had an ergo with DD (which I loved) but I would like to get something lighter/smaller for around the house.
What is the best wrap to get for a newborn? Moby, K'tan, boba? We only had an ergo with DD (which I loved) but I would like to get something lighter/smaller for around the house.
I like the k'tan. I also had a moby but sold it. The k'tan is similar to the moby but pre wrapped so it doesn't take as much time. I don't have experience with any of the others though, but I'd definitely recommend the k'tan over the moby.
What is the best wrap to get for a newborn? Moby, K'tan, boba? We only had an ergo with DD (which I loved) but I would like to get something lighter/smaller for around the house.
I have a Boba wrap which was comfy (albeit not easy to put on) but I have been really thinking about getting a ring sling - I saw a friend use it and it looked awesome, plus she could nurse in it without anyone knowing and baby was at a nice side angle. The k'tans are good but not adjustable, I've heard.
My DH and I registered for the Graco Modes Click and Connect travel system! We fell in love with it at babies r us! It has so many options and it was so much easier to use than the other ones we tested. Our only problem with it was the price but babies r us price matches but I haven't been able to find anywhere that sells it cheaper!! Halp! Lol
You can use a Bed, Bath, & Beyond coupon at Babies R Us.
What is the best wrap to get for a newborn? Moby, K'tan, boba? We only had an ergo with DD (which I loved) but I would like to get something lighter/smaller for around the house.
I have a Boba wrap which was comfy (albeit not easy to put on) but I have been really thinking about getting a ring sling - I saw a friend use it and it looked awesome, plus she could nurse in it without anyone knowing and baby was at a nice side angle. The k'tans are good but not adjustable, I've heard.
Aren't ring slings expensive? I haven't done any research but that's the impression I got. I belong to a baby wearing fb group and other members sell them for $200+.
What is the best wrap to get for a newborn? Moby, K'tan, boba? We only had an ergo with DD (which I loved) but I would like to get something lighter/smaller for around the house.
I have a Boba wrap which was comfy (albeit not easy to put on) but I have been really thinking about getting a ring sling - I saw a friend use it and it looked awesome, plus she could nurse in it without anyone knowing and baby was at a nice side angle. The k'tans are good but not adjustable, I've heard.
Aren't ring slings expensive? I haven't done any research but that's the impression I got. I belong to a baby wearing fb group and other members sell them for $200+.
Look on etsy. There are some women who make them at a reasonable price.
DS1 - 9/21/11
DS2 - 7/4/14
DS3 - 2/21/16 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Our family of 5 is complete!! Love our boys!
OK I'm looking for a sound machine that doesn't have an auto shut off timer at 30-60 minutes. DD has and still uses nightly the cloud B turtle but it shuts off after 60 minutes. It doesn't have to be baby related but preferred.
OK I'm looking for a sound machine that doesn't have an auto shut off timer at 30-60 minutes. DD has and still uses nightly the cloud B turtle but it shuts off after 60 minutes. It doesn't have to be baby related but preferred.
We have the mybaby sound spa lullaby and projector for both kids. I just looked and it doesn't seem to have a great star rating on Amazon, but we haven't had any problems with either of ours.
@skruhmin I don't think ring slings are expensive at all unless you go for the pricer patterns. I know a few crafty moms that have made their own. We got a hand-me-down that my friend had used for 2 kids and found at Sally Ann. I didn't enjoy the ring sling last time (back issues and c section) but my husband used to all the time. When back/abdomen got better I used an ergo.
Baby wearing/cloth diapering tends to bring out the collectors in ladies and if that's your thing then great... but I'm cheap and could never spend $80 on a used poop catcher (seriously a used diaper sold for $80 on our cloth BST). I feel like some of this stuff is like the Beenie Baby craze lol
@skruhmin most of the pricey RS are bc they are wrap conversions. When looking on etsy, you can find some well-made slings and some crappy ones. It's all about the shoulder style too; some of them are amazing and some of them are just super uncomfortable or hard to work.
March 2016 siggy: babies - expectation vs reality Brian's Whovian wife (5/'09)
AP, BF, BW, CD, CLW, CS, ERF, Catholic mama
to Evan (7/'10), Clare (8/'11), Dean (3/'14), ^F(12/'15)^, Rose (3/'16)
*no longer a Timelord ~ WibblyWobbly BabyWaby is here!*
but i still feel bigger on the inside Autism mama!
FTM Here, and the world of breast feeding accessories is a strange and foreign world to me.
For bottle warmers, do you have to get the same brand as the bottle? Under my insurance, we'll probably be getting the Medela breast pump. Does that mean we have to get Medela bottles as well? Plus, I don't see any bottle warmers in that brand, so is it okay to use another brand?
I never had a bottle warmer. If you're planning on breastfeeding, you might want to hold off on getting on until you see if you need it. When they had pumped bottles we would just heat it up in a bowl of warm water
I would, but I'm beyond broke right now since I was laid off a month ago. I'm trying to register for as many things as I may need, and if I don't use them, I can return them later.
I had the medela freestyle pump, and it comes with some medela bottles, but you'll want to get more medela bottles, I assume, to make sure the pump parts all attach. Maybe check with google too? We didn't use a bottle warmer either. Totally unnecessary. I would just heat up water in a measuring cup and put the bottle or frozen bag into it til it was warm enough. I only ever considered a bottle warmer when I discovered I had an excess lipase issue with my milk so my pumped milk at work needed to be scalded to keep it from turning. It worked out that I could just scald immediately when I returned home instead of a bottle warmer. If you haven't yet, dive into the wonderful website of kellymom.com. Such a goldmine.
I never had a bottle warmer. If you're planning on breastfeeding, you might want to hold off on getting on until you see if you need it. When they had pumped bottles we would just heat it up in a bowl of warm water
Agreed I don't think you will need a bottle warmer. Hot kitchen sink water is all you need to heat up baby's bottle, including frozen breast milk. That's what I use when baby sitting my nephew.
BFP 2/11/15 (EDD 10/13/15). MMC 3/30/15 D&C 4/3/15 "We will always love you"
DD1 - BFP 7/23/15 (EDD 3/31/16). "We believe in you rainbow" DOB 4/2/16
DD2 - BFP 2/9/18 (EDD 10/19/18). "Grow baby grow!" DOB 10/24/18
BFP 11/16/20 (EDD 7/31/21). "Round 3 FIGHT!"
Ok, well, I was also planning on using it to warm up frozen homemade babyfood like I had seen a number people recommend over putting it in the microwave because it helps keep the nutrients in.
Ok, well, I was also planning on using it to warm up frozen homemade babyfood like I had seen a number people recommend over putting it in the microwave because it helps keep the nutrients in.
Heated water in a cup works just as well for this too, unless you're just itching to spend the money
Ok, well, I was also planning on using it to warm up frozen homemade babyfood like I had seen a number people recommend over putting it in the microwave because it helps keep the nutrients in.
Okay well then back to the original question, I really don't think it matters what brand bottle warmer you get, it doesn't have to go with the bottles.
BFP 2/11/15 (EDD 10/13/15). MMC 3/30/15 D&C 4/3/15 "We will always love you"
DD1 - BFP 7/23/15 (EDD 3/31/16). "We believe in you rainbow" DOB 4/2/16
DD2 - BFP 2/9/18 (EDD 10/19/18). "Grow baby grow!" DOB 10/24/18
BFP 11/16/20 (EDD 7/31/21). "Round 3 FIGHT!"
@lexievelyn8179 if you're trying to save some cash for essentials I'd definitely leave off the bottle warmer or register for a cheaper one - they're all the same. You can use any bottles and warmers you like. I'd register for the necessities and hope for the best. It'd suck if you got a lot of the still you don't NEED (like bottle warmers) and didn't get the stuff that you do (bottles, etc)
I pumped and stored my milk in a covered ice cube tray (each cube was .75oz). I'd then convert to a ziploc bag marked with the month. Sounds like work but it was really easy and the cubes took no time to thaw out. BM is hearty so my husband would leave the cubes in a bottle on the counter and would go to bed. 4 hours later they'd be almost room temp (still a little cool) so he'd run under hot water. We did the same thing for baby food (ice cube tray), it heats up quickly, and the nutrient difference it really low between microwaves and bottle warmers. I was worried, husband looked into it (he's a scientist, not a food scientist but has a strong background in physics and chemistry) and said hag it seems more like a marketing thing for those baby food steamers with the warming tray, etc.
Ok, well, I was also planning on using it to warm up frozen homemade babyfood like I had seen a number people recommend over putting it in the microwave because it helps keep the nutrients in.
It does matter what brand of bottle warmer you have we had an Avent one but used Nuk bottles. I breastfed and formula fed my boys they ate more than I could produce but we kept the bottle warmer in our room on top of a mini fridge so we didn't have to go downstairs to the kitchen it was convienant since my husband did the middle of the night feedings. I'm horrible if I get broken sleep so it was easy for my husband to warm the bottles in our room from either breast milk or formula. I used the same one for both my kids and they are 3 1/2 years apart it still worked when I gave it to a friend thinking I wasn't having any more kids. I'll be buying another one for this little girl. I thought it was our best investment.
Call me mean, I will bf and use room temp jugs of water with formula if/when needed. Frozen bm at daycare is warmed in a bowl of hot water. Baby food will be served at room temp. Although if u make and freeze your own I see a need for thawing- water in a bowl is easy. Unless baby's tummy can't handle the room temp, warmed bottles and baby food isn't something I want to worry about while out and about, when room temp works just fine. I wouldn't want to warm part time and then switch it up when my warmer wasn't handy, and I'm not messing with getting hot water at restaurants or getting a car adapter, etc. no problems with these methods with dd1.
@alligreer88 I have a similar theory about wipe warmers. My Mom was horrified I wasn't using one (not like we had them when we were growing up). But I don't want LO used to a warm wipe at home and scream bloody murder when wiping his bum when we're out. No thanks! I had a friend who EP and her daughter at 4months would drink the milk out of the fridge happily. Her hubby discovered this one morning when baby was screaming and they were waiting for the bottle to warm. Out of desperation he gave her the bottle (friend was like "wtf are you doing") and she happily drank it. Not sure if it's not good for kids but her LO is great.
Agree! Those things gross me out anyway. I think a warm bottle may be necessary for a small % of babies with sensitive stomachs, but that's rare probably.
Do you ladies have any recommendations for nursing bras? There are so many choices I'm not sure which to get and don't want to spend a fortune trying to find the good ones.
Do you ladies have any recommendations for nursing bras? There are so many choices I'm not sure which to get and don't want to spend a fortune trying to find the good ones.
Yes! All the recommendations please! I've heard good things about Motherhood Maternity, but as a FTM I have no clue...
March 2016 Moms: January Siggy Challenge "Pregnancy Problems"
@eivaska & @JessKo08 I bought mine at Motherhood Mat last time and they suuuuuucked. I bought 3 (got one free, so 4 total) spent $150. They were comfy and nice fabric but all of the underwires fell out after a month or two. I washed in garmet bags and hung to dry so no user error on this end! I've heard their sports bra styles are good so maybe you'd have better luck with those. I just wanted ones that were cute and felt like real bras. Some docs say that underwires and nursing are a no-no but if it's properly fitting you should be fine.
I had trouble finding ones I liked so this time will suck. I wore the MM ones for the 14 months I nursed and they were in *rough* shape after so I tossed.
Motherhood maternity sucked for me too with dd1. I'm a solid D cup already and struggle to balance support without it being so tight I feel like I'm constricting my production/let down. I don't know what I'll do this time, I'm sucking it up in my pre pregnancy bras for now, hubby got me a v secret gf for Christmas to get two bras to get me to march and then when baby gets older and I slow or stop nursing. Honestly, nursing bras are such an individual preference that we will all probably have to try different options. I would advise buying 1 at a time to see if u like them, they hold up, and because your size will change fast.
I bought two at Macy's and really liked them. I think they were motherhood maternity brand though, so I don't know if it's the same you'd find on the motherhood website or not, since it seems like others weren't fans. People seem to like bravado nursing bras, but I didn't like the one I got.
I wore the bras mainly while nursing my first. For my second I usually just wore a nursing tank under my shirt without a bra. I nursed in public a lot more the second time since I was out and about with the toddler, and I like having the tank so I don't have my stomach exposed. Even with a nursing cover, I liked wearing the tank as well. Obviously just a nursing tank might not work for those of you who are well endowed in that area, but it worked well for me!
I only bought about 2-3 nursing bras with DD but I bought a ton of nursing tanks. I also fed her in public and I liked having my stomach covered. Consider investing more in the tanks vs the bras.
I really liked my Leading Lady brand nursing bras, esp. the underwire ones. I am plus size so it wasn't easy to find one that fit and wasn't too hideous. I found it on Amazon.
@PinkSunglasses16 we have the $20 homedics sound machine from Bed Bath and Beyond and are still using it consistently 3+ years later. It actually broke a couple of months ago and we replaced it. I'm 100% getting a second one for DD2. We have an old-ish house and I love not having to worry about every creak and squeak during nap time and bedtime. It travels fine but we also have white noise apps on the iPhone/iPad in case we don't want to pack it.
@PinkSunglasses16 we have the $20 homedics sound machine from Bed Bath and Beyond and are still using it consistently 3+ years later. It actually broke a couple of months ago and we replaced it. I'm 100% getting a second one for DD2. We have an old-ish house and I love not having to worry about every creak and squeak during nap time and bedtime. It travels fine but we also have white noise apps on the iPhone/iPad in case we don't want to pack it.
We have this one that we've used for both boys. The river one is my favorite setting.
DS1 - 9/21/11
DS2 - 7/4/14
DS3 - 2/21/16 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Our family of 5 is complete!! Love our boys!
We didn't buy a wipe warmer because we used a towel (or disposable dry wipe/towel) and wet it with warm water during the first couple months. After that, we switched off to regular wipes and at daycare, there is not such thing as warming up wipes.
As for bottle warmer, we just carried a thermal water bottle filled with hot water with a small tupperware in the diaper bag. If we are going a restaurant, we just pour the hot water in a bowl and heat up the bottle that way. If you do want to get a bottle warmer, I would be cautious because some bottles (like tommy tippee) are wider and may not fit in some bottle warmers.
Re: The Baby Gear Thread
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Our family of 5 is complete!! Love our boys!
We usually sent 3 bottles in. She rarely drank more than four ounces at a time so we never needed big bottles.
We had a ton of bottles because she rejected all of them at first but I think 10 would be an ideal number if nursing at home.
A travel cooler would be nice to have. Depending on your sink situation at work, the microwave sterilizer bags can be handy. The other things you listed aren't necessary.
I stayed home for a year so I pumped for overnight trips, babysitters and unexpected circumstances (like when I had to take benedryl for an allergy attack), I don't think this would work if you EPed.
Aren't ring slings expensive? I haven't done any research but that's the impression I got. I belong to a baby wearing fb group and other members sell them for $200+.
Look on etsy. There are some women who make them at a reasonable price.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Our family of 5 is complete!! Love our boys!
OK I'm looking for a sound machine that doesn't have an auto shut off timer at 30-60 minutes. DD has and still uses nightly the cloud B turtle but it shuts off after 60 minutes. It doesn't have to be baby related but preferred.
We have the mybaby sound spa lullaby and projector for both kids. I just looked and it doesn't seem to have a great star rating on Amazon, but we haven't had any problems with either of ours.
Baby wearing/cloth diapering tends to bring out the collectors in ladies and if that's your thing then great... but I'm cheap and could never spend $80 on a used poop catcher (seriously a used diaper sold for $80 on our cloth BST). I feel like some of this stuff is like the Beenie Baby craze lol
March 2016 siggy: babies - expectation vs reality
Brian's Whovian wife (5/'09)
Autism mama!
For bottle warmers, do you have to get the same brand as the bottle? Under my insurance, we'll probably be getting the Medela breast pump. Does that mean we have to get Medela bottles as well? Plus, I don't see any bottle warmers in that brand, so is it okay to use another brand?
DD1 - BFP 7/23/15 (EDD 3/31/16). "We believe in you rainbow" DOB 4/2/16
DD2 - BFP 2/9/18 (EDD 10/19/18). "Grow baby grow!" DOB 10/24/18
BFP 11/16/20 (EDD 7/31/21). "Round 3 FIGHT!"
DD1 - BFP 7/23/15 (EDD 3/31/16). "We believe in you rainbow" DOB 4/2/16
DD2 - BFP 2/9/18 (EDD 10/19/18). "Grow baby grow!" DOB 10/24/18
BFP 11/16/20 (EDD 7/31/21). "Round 3 FIGHT!"
I pumped and stored my milk in a covered ice cube tray (each cube was .75oz). I'd then convert to a ziploc bag marked with the month. Sounds like work but it was really easy and the cubes took no time to thaw out. BM is hearty so my husband would leave the cubes in a bottle on the counter and would go to bed. 4 hours later they'd be almost room temp (still a little cool) so he'd run under hot water. We did the same thing for baby food (ice cube tray), it heats up quickly, and the nutrient difference it really low between microwaves and bottle warmers. I was worried, husband looked into it (he's a scientist, not a food scientist but has a strong background in physics and chemistry) and said hag it seems more like a marketing thing for those baby food steamers with the warming tray, etc.
I had a friend who EP and her daughter at 4months would drink the milk out of the fridge happily. Her hubby discovered this one morning when baby was screaming and they were waiting for the bottle to warm. Out of desperation he gave her the bottle (friend was like "wtf are you doing") and she happily drank it. Not sure if it's not good for kids but her LO is great.
March 2016 Moms: January Siggy Challenge "Pregnancy Problems"
I had trouble finding ones I liked so this time will suck. I wore the MM ones for the 14 months I nursed and they were in *rough* shape after so I tossed.
I wore the bras mainly while nursing my first. For my second I usually just wore a nursing tank under my shirt without a bra. I nursed in public a lot more the second time since I was out and about with the toddler, and I like having the tank so I don't have my stomach exposed. Even with a nursing cover, I liked wearing the tank as well. Obviously just a nursing tank might not work for those of you who are well endowed in that area, but it worked well for me!
Married Bio * BFP Charts
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Our family of 5 is complete!! Love our boys!
As for bottle warmer, we just carried a thermal water bottle filled with hot water with a small tupperware in the diaper bag. If we are going a restaurant, we just pour the hot water in a bowl and heat up the bottle that way. If you do want to get a bottle warmer, I would be cautious because some bottles (like tommy tippee) are wider and may not fit in some bottle warmers.