These are a few of our favorite {baby} things...

As a new(ish) mom, I'm constantly on the look out for awesome baby products.  Truth be told, I've come across more lemons than gems and sometimes cringe when I think of the money I've wasted on stuff that just didn't cut it around our house, or things that I used once or twice before they started collecting dust in the back of L's closet.  I mean, who knew that newborn L would equate a swaddle blanket to being in a straight jacket.  Or that the term "no spill sippy cup" actually means valve-so-powerful-even-an-adult-cant-drink-out-of-it. (Yes, I've tried.)

Guess our parents and grandparents were really onto something when they did the whole raising kids things sans the inventory of a Babies R Us!

While at twelve months into the game, I'm a bit late joining in, I've been seeing great posts on better blogs than thee about favorite things at each stage so thought I'd jump on the bandwagon.  Cause let's face it - sometimes, the whole star review system on all those baby sites just doesn't cut it.  Without further adieu, our current "must haves"...

1. The Lollacup
After trying out a gajillion different types of cups with L, we finally found this diamond in the rough. Our biggest "wants" in a cup were something easy for her to drink out of and something she could hold independently.  This fits the bill on both counts.  While its not the cheapest of options, it fits an ample amount of liquid, is easy to clean and assemble (comes w/a straw cleaning brush; replacement straws are available too), is valve free so she doesn't have to tip it back to drink, and features a lid that closes over the straw to keep those germs out on the go.  It's not of the "no spill" variety, so be aware if that feature is important, but you have to turn it completely upside down and give it a few good shakes for any liquid to come back through the straw.  The only other mentionable is that it doesn't seem to be made out of the sturdiest of materials, but its taken a few good tumbles at our house and held up just fine, so its probably just a me thing.

2.  FIsher Price Space Saver High Chair
Even if you're not looking to save space, you'll love this chair.  I was super against a traditional high chair - didn't want it taking up room in my kitchen, and wanted something we could use more long term.  This was the perfect solution.  Though she's been using it since she was a few months old thanks to the recline feature, its our everyday meal chair now and we'll continue to use it into the booster phase, when we can pop off the tray and scoot her right up to the table.  The cover comes out easily for washing, the tray goes right in the dishwasher, and all is well in meal land over here.  (And as we found out over the holidays, its SO easy to take along to Nana's house - lightweight and fits on any chair!)

Note/Con:  If you're ordering online, the Scatterbug print is a super weird/gross color in person. I found this out the hard way and we've been happily Mocha Butterfly-ing it up ever since.

3.  Gap Jammies
Why don't these come in my size?  We're in that weird in between size right now (12 month too short, 18 month too long), but these pajamas always work and right now, they're the only brand in our pj drawer.  In a Midwest winter, L exclusively wears footie jammies to bed and these are always perfect.  Snug fitting but warm, good quality material, they wash beautifully, and come in cute prints.  (And even more awesome when there's a coupon code available! Like now.)

4.  Pedipeds
Love, LOVE these baby shoes.  They're the perfect option for my little non-walker...flexible and comfy, good quality material, stay on super well, and come in really cute styles.  After buying so.so.many el cheapo pairs and hating them, I ordered up three pairs of these brand one day and called it a day.  Haven't needed another type since!

And of course we can't have a post like this without throwing toys in there!  Here's two favorites around our casa these days...

5.  Parum Pum Pum Drum
Santa brings the coolest stuff! This drum is from the new B Toys brand at Target, and its awesome.  It comes with several easy to hold instruments (cymbals, tamborine, etc) and a set of drum [chew] sticks.  It even has a little strap on the drum for when she's older and marching band-ing it around the house!  The top pops off so all the instruments can be stored inside (its see through too!), which is perfect, especially for L, who has discovered an alternative use - storage for every other toy in the house.  So basically, its several toys plus storage all in one :)  And P.S. - the drum top is just a thick plastic material, so not loud enough to annoy the heck out of everyone else in the house.  Bonus!

6. V-Tech Sit to Stand Learning Walker
This thing has been a favorite in our house for many months.  The front panel pops up for floor play (perfect for tummy time), is perfect for an independent sitter when its attached (has brakes too for when being used stationary!), and of course provides some lovely encouragement for the almost-walkers like L.  Three volume level options means the parentals won't go nuts hearing barnyard tunes on the regular, and its simply just one of those toys that gets used every day in our house.  Be prepared for the detachable phone to go missing several times a day, but other than that - its a winner in our book!  (And I'm big on stuff she can use for more than a few weeks before losing interest/outgrowing it.)

What are your must have baby products?  Do share!

Sitting Pretty

So it looks like the days of the Mamaroo may be numbered in this house...

 Tip the seat back all you want, Mom....I'll still sit up.

Inexpert Baby Travel Tips

Miss L recently completed her very first flight.  And Mama here was brave enough to go it alone!  We recently had the opportunity to meet up with my family down south on their return trip from vacation, and since it fell over the work week, the Mr. was unable to make the trek with us.

(*Disclaimer:  Since this trip, we've actually flown twice more with L.)

Naturally, now that I've logged approximately 15 solo flight hours with an infant, I consider myself somewhat of an expert baby traveler.

Kidding!!

But in all seriousness, I did figure out some helpful tips that allowed me to navigate the journey a bit more smoothly, so thought I'd share them here for what it's worth.

1. Backpacks rule as carry-ons!
One look at my fancy schmancy Kate Spade shoulder diaper bag and I knew I needed to choose practicality over looks during travel.  Digging through our luggage closet did nothing to satisfy me, so off to Amazon I went a huntin'.  Luckily, I found this little number that did both and worked so awesome for the plane trip!  It was the only bag I brought - doubled as a diaper bag and my purse!  I wore it on my back through the airport, it fit perfectly under the seat, and then used it as a shoulder bag for the remainder of the trip.  It housed a great deal without getting bulky (see my carry-on list below) and had some really nice accessible pouches for my phone/wallet/boarding passes that magnetized closed.  It also comes with a change pad and wipes case!  The one and only thing I'll warn about, which didn't matter to me much since I nurse, is that the bottle holders in it were practically useless.  It has four (two out, two in) but only the external ones seemed big enough to hold a bottle.

2. Use a carrier instead of the stroller!
If you have an infant and you're traveling alone, seriously consider this option.  While you can easily check a fold-up stroller right at the gate, I chose to check it with the rest of my luggage so I could get rid of it right at the beginning.  I felt much more comfortable wearing her so she was close at all times, it allowed me to be hands-free when necessary, and it made going through security a breeze!  (I slipped off my shoes and was able to walk right through while still wearing her...they just swabbed my hands afterwards.)  I'll be perfectly honest - I even was able to go to the bathroom easily while wearing her!  (Didn't really have another choice, as I was solo!)

**Note:  If you're choosing to travel with stroller, do yourself a huge favor and invest in an umbrella stroller.  While I love my big, ole travel system one at home, I'm SO happy we spent an extra $50 and got a small, lightweight one.  (What I liked about this one in specific was that it features a small basket, adjustable shade, five point harness, cup holders and tray, and also reclines!) L was just as comfortable in it and we weren't worried about our nice one getting all banged up.

3. Disposable feeding items are so convenient!
At seven months, L is pretty new to solids but still offered something 1-2 times per day.  I went ahead and spent about $10 to set myself up with disposable bibs, spoons, and take-and-toss bowls.  I usually like to be a bit more environmentally friendly, but it was SO nice to just be able to throw everything away wherever she ate (plane, restaurant, hotel room) and not worry about packing up dirty stuff/washing dishes in a hotel bathroom sink.  They packed up so well too and hardly took any space! While I make her baby food at home, I also picked up a variety of those organic pouches for the trip.  They work so well for packing flat, squeeze right onto a spoon (or into a bowl), can be placed directly into a cup of hot water if you like to warm the food before serving, and you can close them back up as well, if needed.

4. Don't over-entertain!
I had the bag packed with a few new toys, in addition to some favorites, anticipating that I'd need mucho entertainment to keep her quiet.  Not so!  I originally was planning to take a bunch of things out right away and keep her distracted, but turned out she was so engrossed in looking around and looking out the window, we only took out one single toy on a two-leg trip!  Basically, if she was sitting there and being quiet, I didn't shove something in her face.  I just let her relax.  It worked out beautifully!

5. Never underestimate the power of a pack of wipes!
I threw a fresh, large pack of wipes in our carry-on bag and used them for so many things.  If you overpack anything at all, let it be wipes, and keep them within arms reach!  In addition to diaper changes, I used them to clean our hands, her face after feedings, the tray table in front of us (which was disgusting and had spilled soda all over it), the arm rests, etc.  It was also super hot on the plane while waiting for take off and everyone was getting sweaty, so I used them to wipe off her forehead and keep her cool too!

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So maybe we've developed a false sense of security, but our flights with L have gone so smoothly, we're looking to up the ante and fly to Europe with her this fall.  Foolish or no?

Do tell...what have you found works best for you when traveling with an infant or children?  Would love to hear everyone else's tips!

Happy trails!