This is not your typical crib bumper. Wonder Bumpers are individual, padded pieces of material that attach to each rung of the crib. They can be purchased in sets of 24 or 38 (MSRP $99-$159) or a 2 pack for around $10.
Seems like a safe option (as opposed to a traditional bumper pad) and there are many designs to choose from.
I was able to take a first-hand look and feel of the Wonder Bumpers and was pretty impressed with the quality.
I haven’t used them on our crib, as I don’t have a full set but if you have used them, I would love to hear your thoughts!
When the press release for Spa Baby came through in my email, I was instantly curious about this new way (new to me, anyway) of bathing a baby. I giggled at first and the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to experience it for myself. The timing was perfect, as baby Teagan had just made her arrival and I received the Spa Baby tub to try out.
The above photo is Teagan between 5 and 6 months old. I’m posting snapshots of her bath in our Spa Baby from a video that I had taken. I ultimately decided that I didn’t want to post the video of me bathing her. You can see a baby being bathed in a Spa Baby Tub on the Spa Baby website here if you would like.
I had mixed feelings about the tub, at first. I had trouble getting Teagan to settle into the tub. She was kicking her legs a lot and I had to wait for her to calm down a bit before washing her. When she finally did calm down, things went much more smoothly. I don’t believe that it’s because she didn’t “like” the tub, it’s that she’s not used to taking baths. It’s freezing here in the Midwest and I tend to do a lot more sponge bathing until the weather warms up.
The Spa Baby website has great tips that I highly recommend following if you have purchased or are planning on purchasing one of these European-style baby bath tubs.
My own tips would be to use a shampoo, conditioner and/or body wash from a pump. It’s much easier for you to hold on to the baby (if the baby is smaller and can slip around easier) and pump the wash into your hand. What I did was use body wash and squeeze a bit into the water before I put the baby in and I just used that to wash her up. As you can see, she doesn’t have much hair, so no need to go crazy with shampoo at this point.
Roll your sleeves up ahead of time or wear a short-sleeved shirt! As you can see from my photo, I had a long sleeve shirt on and mid-bath, tried to roll it up. It wasn’t all that easy because I was trying to hold on to the baby from slipping everywhere. You really have to get a good grip on the baby because they do slip around.
Wear a terry-cloth bathrobe or drape a towel over the front of you for when you’re ready to take the baby out of the tub (so you don’t get soaked and so you can quickly warm the baby). Have another towel ready to throw over the baby.
The tub is like a bucket, the sides are higher around the baby and so is the water, so you do need to be more hands-on with a tub like this than with your basic baby tub. Preparation is key.
Again, the Spa Baby website has excellent tips that you should read before bathing your baby in the tub.
Overall, I do like the Spa Baby tub. I like that it keeps her warmer than sitting up in standard baby bathtub. I think if you use it often enough, the baby really enjoys the bath and you become much more comfortable and in control. I do think this would make a really fun, unique shower gift for someone.
A great thing about this tub is that it’s made from a safe and non-toxic plastic (polypropylene). No polycarbonate, no bisphenol-A, and has no paint (per the Spa Baby website).
I have had the opportunity to try out a new product from The Natural Baby Company; GroBaby All Natural Baby Wipes and I happen to really like them.
I have used a handful of different brands of baby wipes over the past four years, so this comparison is quite easy. These wipes are very soft, with almost a satin-like feel to them. In my opinion, they have the perfect amount of moisture to clean baby’s bottom. I really feel like I’m “cleaning” her bottom. I guess that’s hard to describe but I just feel like she’s truly clean after I wipe her. Because of the softness and the solution on the wipes, I don’t feel like these wipes are irritating her skin. I suppose you’ll just have to use them yourself to see what I mean.
According to the description on The Natural Baby Company website, these wipes are made from Ingeo™ Fibers (a man-made fiber derived from 100% natural renewable resources). The reason these wipes are appealing to me is because I used all of the popular brand baby products with my first child and I promised myself that this time around, I would try to do better for the baby and for the environment. This is a step in the right direction.
GroBaby wipes are available online ($5.99 for a pack of 80 wipes) and at select retailers (hopefully there is a Whole Foods near you).
For more information on GroBaby products, check them out on Facebook and Twitter.
Graco sent us the imonitor Vibe to try out with our new family member (who was born on 7/8/09). I’ve been pretty busy with said family member, hence the lack of updates lately.
So far, we’ve been really pleased with the sound quality of this monitor. I can’t believe that for three and a half years, we dealt with annoying static and occasionally picking up the cry of someone else’s child nearby. If that doesn’t freak you out, I don’t know what would.
Unless we have the washer or dryer running or someone is upstairs, we can’t even tell the monitor is on. Before Teagan arrived last month, we were using the imonitor vibe with our 3-1/2 year old. We could finally hear her sweet little voice with complete clarity. The monitor vibrates if you want it to and you can turn the volume completely down and still see if your baby or child is making noise by looking at the sound lights on the parent units.
We definitely recommend this monitor. We’re also fans of other Graco products, such as their playards and booster seats. In our opinion, you can’t go wrong with Graco products.
We received the Mutsygrowup! seat for review and we like it. It’s “cushy” for lack of a better descriptive word. So, it’s softer and seems more comfortable than some of the other plastic booster seats on the market.
Hailey is modeling the growup! below. She’s 3 1/2, so she’s really just about too big for the seat but kids up to age 4 can use it.
Luckily, we will still get a lot of use out of this seat with our next baby. We were always big fans of using a booster right at the table with Hailey instead of a highchair. It saved us a lot of space in our small dining area. We’re an on-the-go family, so the growup! will travel with us when baby is ready to sit up in a chair to eat.
Mutsy has been in business since 1937. The company started under the name of “Mutsaerts”. They have always manufactured pushchairs (buggies and strollers). I have been watching the timeline slideshow of the company’s history and it’s pretty cool to see those old fashioned buggies from then and now.
I was sent a pack of Huggies’ new line of diapers called “pure & natural” to try out on the new sprout. Well, I couldn’t just let the pack sit there without taking one of these newborn-size diapers out to get a first-hand look and feel of it. The hubs and I have been tossing back and forth this itty bitty diaper for a couple of weeks now. We’re still sort of in disbelief that we’re going to have another baby small enough to actually use it.
It’s. So. Tiny.
Not only is it super small (because it’s the newborn size), it’s very, very soft. One of the softest disposable diapers I have ever felt. I can’t imagine it will be anything other than comfy on our new baby girl.
Now, I have to admit, we are leaning the cloth diapering way this time around for many reasons but I will say, I was interested enough in this new line by Huggies that I have no problem at all giving them a try.
If you still have little ones in diapers, up to a size 5, here are some official stats about Huggies pure & natural for you to consider. These diapers:
are hypoallergenic
are fragrance free
have organic cotton included in their breathable outer cover
have a liner that includes natural Aloe & Vitamin E and materials from renewable sources
outer packaging is sourced from 20 percent post-consumer recycled materials
It’s safe to say that Huggies is thinking about the environment with this new line. They have to. That’s the way the world is going. It only makes sense.
Huggies pure & natural diapers are available at major retailers now. They are brand new on the market as of this past April, 2009. I imagine I will pick up a few more packs of these diapers along the way because I’m sure it never hurts to have some disposables around even if we end up exclusively cloth diapering.
If you’re interested in trying them out yourself, you can go to www.HuggiesPureandNatural.com and request free samples.
One more thing to make you aware of, Huggies has a new “rewards” program in place. It’s called “Enjoy the Ride Rewards. You can get points numerous different ways. Just stop by the website and check out the details.
As we make the final preparations to bring our new baby into the world and into our home, we are making our list of must-haves. Where is the baby going to sleep? That is one of the top questions on our list. Maybe the more important question is, what is the baby going to sleep on?
Now, since this is our second child in four years, we have *most* of our list checked off. This includes a crib mattress. However, if this baby was our first child and knowing what we know now about the benefits of organic materials, we would highly consider purchasing an organic mattress and bedding. In fact, we just purchased our own organic bed and it’s been quite lovely so far.
London-based company, The Natural Mat Company is one that you can feel confident turning to when making the decision on a mattress and bedding to purchase for your new little sprout (or even the older sprout). Pictured above is the Coco Mat (filling), which we received a sample of. We are able to look at and feel the Organic Coir center of the mattress and the Lambswool, which is wrapped around the coir (anti-dust mite). Then, there is the pure cotton mattress cover. The cover has a naturally soft feel and I imagine if I were laying on this mattress, I would be in heaven.
This particular crib mattress runs in the mid $300’s, depending on where you choose to purchase it. It, along with many of the other Natural Mat mattresses can be found at select retail locations around the US and at online retailers.
You can also shop at Goore’s online store and enter code psnm to receive a 10% discount on any Natural Mat order.
If you’re not in the market for a new crib mattress, like us, at least be sure to check out Natural Mat’s bedding. I will most likely purchase their mattress protector and sheet set for our current mattress. Do yourself a favor and if you live near one of the retail locations, stop by and feel the mattresses for yourself. There is an obvious difference.
An exceptional publisher of entertaining and educational books for kids through young adults and beyond is Silver Dolphin Books.
Their list of titles, including the above: Safari Animals, Five Little Ducks! and Model Masters: Dragons, have something to offer many age ranges. My 3 year old loves the safari animals and scenery that we assembled from the Safari Animals book. As she grows, she’ll enjoy learning interesting facts about the animals.
Older kids who are fascinated with science would probably be thrilled with something from the Uncover It Series, like the above: Uncover a Dolphin. The Uncover It books are full of facts and 3-D layers of the book’s subject matter. Another set of great interactive books are the Explore Within Series. We have the Explore Within a Medieval Castle book pictured above and it’s really cool to open each page only to discover the interesting layers of a castle…in 3-D. Another book that my 3 year old loves to flip through is the Kaleidopops Oceans book. The images are beautiful and she gets a glimpse of some colorful ocean life.
These are just a select few of the many titles you can find from Silver Dolphin Books. These books are available for purchase online at the Silver Dolphin Book site or select book stores online and in the store.
We highly recommend checking out their vast array of titles the next time you want to purchase a unique gift for someone.
*Update: Congratulations to our Itzy Ritzy eco-friendly blanket winner, Denise!
One great thing about becoming involved with baby shows around the country is that you stumble across companies that are literally in your backyard.
Because of the ABC Kids Show, I found out about a fabulous baby company called Itzy Ritzy. Seriously, I could bike or walk to their office and be there in 45 minutes or less. What does this mean to me? Easy. It means I will have the chance to see their products in person, even though I missed them at the show. Snap.
Since we’re neighbors and all, Itzy Ritzy is offering up a giveaway to our ParentSphere readers. Enter for your chance to win this gorgeous eco-friendly blanket in Island Hopping and Baby Bamboo. The blanket is 27″ x 29″ in size – perfect for baby or toddler.
About the Baby Bamboo fabric: Baby bamboo is an eco-friendly fabric, as bamboo is sustainable and grown without pesticides and fungicides. The soft, smooth texture is exceptional for babies’ tender skin. Naturally anti-bacterial, anti-microbial, and deodorizing. Looks and feels like Silk, but it is much more practical as it is machine washable! See the Island Hopping print HERE.
Enter by filling out the form below. Hit the Itzy Ritzy site HERE and in the comment/answer section of the entry form, name one of the celebrities who love Itzy Ritzy!
This giveaway ends Friday, September 26th. The winner will be notified via email the morning of the 27th (check your spam folder!) and we will update this post after the winner has been chosen.
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