Wednesday, October 5, 2016

Top Five on Five: October 2016


This is the first of my Top Five on Five series that I want to begin. It'll be a list of whatever Top Five things I'm digging shared on the fifth of every month. I'm going to start with my favorite baby products that help me when I'm mommin' out.  

I would first like to begin by saying that I don't recommend products unless I am 100% in love with them for a lengthy period of time. I'm a firm believer in doing research and I'm a textbook over-thinker. It usually takes me weeks and months to decide on buying anything, which often means that I miss out on a lot of seasonal trends. So just know that I'm a fairly trustworthy and extremely well intentioned source. This is a list of products that I use daily with my twins that often save my sanity. They're also products that I've noticed aren't really mainstream (except #2), but that I think should be more widely used! 

Let me know in the comments what you think! 

Now without further ado....my list (with Amazon affiliate links): 

1. The Shnuggle Bath


Affiliate Link to shop: SHNUGGLE Bath, White with Grey Backrest

This product is at the top of my list because it is literally the single most amazing product that I bought for my babies. If you've registered for another bathtub somewhere else, ditch it now and spring for this one. For only 35 bucks, this tub can't be beat on any level.

I spent a lot of time looking for the perfect baby tub; I didn't want anything too bulky (because hello, you have to store this stuff), I didn't want anything is any crazy bright colors (bath time should be soothing!), and I didn't want anything that would make bathing more difficult than it already is (we only have two hands, mamas).

Aren't they cute?
The Shnuggle tub met all of my needs: It fits in the kitchen sink or on the bathroom counter. It has this handy "bum bump" inside that keeps even the tiniest of newborns from slipping down, and the fact that it is an upright tub is great for babies who are dealing with reflux. With the upright backrest and the bum bump, I have two free hands to focus on getting my little guys cleaned up. I felt totally confident giving them baths without any help even when they were teeny tiny little preemies home fresh from the NICU. I've even used this tub dry to keep one twin sitting up when I've been busy feeding the other; It's perfect for when your kiddo can't sit up on his own.

2. The Rock 'n Play Sleeper




I have no doubt that everyone expecting has heard of this one, but I had to include it anyways because I use it every day...and it saves my life.

We use ours as our primary sleeper and we have since day one home from the NICU. I love it because it's inclined (again, so good for those reflux babies!) and because baby can't roll over. It's also really compact and we can easily fit two in our bedroom at the bedside. They fold up really easily and make for a really simple travel system.  My boys love the rocking feature and it really makes nap time a lot easier for me. We're still in ours at 16 and 17 pounds at six months. I'm not sure how I'll make the transition out of these!

Now, for full disclosure, there are some conflicting opinions out there about these, and they might not be totally unfounded. One of my twins had started to really favor one side of his head and was getting a bit of a flat spot and a stiff neck, and both boys like to slouch all the way down to sleep in a cozy little U-shape if we don't buckle them in. We've been able to avoid (and fix) any damage with plenty of tummy time and always buckling them in.

3. Triple Paste Medicated Ointment




My aunt gifted me two big jars of this stuff at my baby shower, and she made it sound like liquid gold. And you know what? IT STINKING IS. It goes on creamy and absorbs right into the skin instead of leaving a chalky residue. Don't even bother messing around with Desitin or Dr. Smiths or any of those other jokers.

I've included a link to the big 16 oz jar: Go ahead and get it, because it will probably get you all the way to your diapering finish line. A little bit goes a long way. We had a terrible nasty rash on one of the twins in the NICU. I'm talking a cracked, bleeding little butt that brought me to tears just looking at it kind of rash. We had to air out for a few days and had prescription rash cream before it finally started to heal. I wish that I had brought this holy grail diaper cream into the NICU and maybe he wouldn't have gotten the rash to begin with. This stuff even got us through THREE weeks of raging diarrhea without any rash.

We use it nightly after bath time right before bed to butter up the boys' biscuits as a preventative measure. We've been using our jar for four months on both boys and we still haven't even used half of it.

4. Badger Sleep Balm 





My mom gifted me her tin of Badger Sleep Balm when I was pregnant and having trouble falling asleep. It wasn't long before my husband and I were both slathering our noses, chests, and temples with this stuff before bed. The smell of lavender and bergamot is sooooo relaxing. 

We're a Badger Balm family now. We used it on the boys when we were establishing a sleep schedule, and I still use it most nights and on days when they're fighting off a nap. It's the perfect product for those of us who want to be all about essential oils, but just don't know where to start, and it's a lot easier to tote around and use than a diffuser. I rub a little bit on the boys' chests because the warmth helps get the aroma up to them, and I put the tiniest little dab on the very tip of their noses. 

It helped us get the boys to sleep through the night really early on.  I don't guarantee that this will work on every baby, because some of y'all just make some sleepless babies! 

This is from a really awesome and ethical company, I recommend starting with this product and then trying out everything else that they have. It's all great stuff, especially for those of us who desperately want to be crunchy, but just don't know where to start.

5. Bug Netting For your Stroller




I live in East Texas and my babies were born in the spring, so bugs were a Texas-sized concern. I didn't want to slather my boys down in insect repellant, but taking walks was important to me, and this netting has been the most amazing thing and I'm just shocked that I don't see more people with it!

Obviously it keeps out the bugs, and that's great. But it had an unintended additional benefit:It also keeps out the PEOPLE.

I have a couple of germ covers for our carseats. They're the kind that you just toss over, which is great, but people have the tendency to just help themselves and lift them up to peek at the babies inside. I don't blame them. One baby is hard to resist, the idea of identical twins is just too much for most people, and mine are extra cute (she said with no bias).

The bug netting won't keep out airborne germs, but during the summer thats not as big of an issue. The boys get to look out at the world, they get to catch some fresh air, and the netting lets people see the babies, but creates an convenient barrier so they can't TOUCH the babies. I love it, the boys love it, and the fans love it....the bugs, however, hate it. It's also nice to throw over the playpen for hanging out outside as a family.

Honorable Mention: Bose Soundlink Color Bluetooth Speaker




Since this is a list of products that I use every single day, I couldn't leave this one off. I know that it's not just for baby, which is also what makes it so great! Don't bother wasting  your money on white noise machines. Buy this little guy and download a few free white noise apps onto your phone. My boys are big fans of "Crackling Fire" and "Oregon Coastal Showers," but not so much fans of "Rain on a Japanese Temple," but whatever.

I put it on every single day for nap time. It helps to drown out whatever noise I might be making elsewhere and they know that when that sound comes on, it's sleep time. They can't fight it! The power of routine is too strong!

It's also great for playtime because I use it to blast my Brooklyn Duo station for the boys. The classical sound is good for them, and the current hits are good for me. Everyone wins. This is a great speaker for the whole family.

HEADS UP: Make sure that your speaker is charged up because it has an annoying habit of announcing "Battery Low Please Charge Now" which totally wakes up the kids. Serious eye roll, but still a good little speaker to have.




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