Now that Claire's almost a year old {ahh!} I thought I'd share some baby gear we've acquired in the last six months.
Major Purchases:
Since her birth, we've used a Graco infant car seat and the coordinating stroller. I don't have any big complaints about the stroller, but I don't have anything really great to say about either. It's just okay. When I saw the Baby Jogger City Micro on clearance for $99 at Target, I couldn't resist and after checking with Adam, into the cart it went. The City Micro was discontinued in 2010 and is basically a slightly more pared-down version of the City Mini, which is usually priced at over $200. We are loving it so far! It takes curbs so much easier with the three wheel set-up, it has a huge canopy, and the "quick fold technology" is awesome. It collapses so much smaller than the Graco stroller, which is perfect for small apartment/small car living!
We were really happy with the Baby Bjorn for a long time. It's literally half the price, Claire loved being able to face forward, and it's really easy to put on by yourself. Since we didn't know exactly how baby-wearing would fit into our day-to-day life, I'm glad we went with that option first. But as Claire got closer to the twenty-pound mark, it started hurting my back more and more. We still use the carrier several times a week and I definitely see us continuing that for the next few months, so we decided it was worth to upgrade to the Ergo. It is so, so, so much more comfortable! My only complaint is that it's a little harder to put on by myself. I'm almost always wearing a raincoat with it and the hood gets in the way, I think? Maybe I'm just not used to it yet?
We decided it was finally time to switch Claire to a convertible car seat, so we just ordered the Diono Radian R120. We chose that one because it's the narrowest car seat around {you can actually fit three in the back seat of a sedan!} and while we certainly hope to have a bigger car before we have three kids, it's always nice to have extra room, right?
Other Stuff We Like:
- Rocking Green Detergent. Seattle has really soft water, which led to the cloth diapers eventually getting detergent build-up and giving Claire a rash. Based on a friend's recommendation, I used Funk Rock to strip them and now I use Soft Rock to wash the diapers.
- Playtex Lil' Gripper Straw Trainer Cup. Claire just didn't understand what sippy cups were for until we switched to one with a straw. This one is pretty neat because you can squeeze the middle of the cup and water will come out of the straw, so it teaches them how it's supposed to work.
- Crane Cool Mist Humidifier. The nursery gets really dry in the winter and a humidifier seems to really help. And it doesn't hurt that they're all so cute!
Major Purchases:
Since her birth, we've used a Graco infant car seat and the coordinating stroller. I don't have any big complaints about the stroller, but I don't have anything really great to say about either. It's just okay. When I saw the Baby Jogger City Micro on clearance for $99 at Target, I couldn't resist and after checking with Adam, into the cart it went. The City Micro was discontinued in 2010 and is basically a slightly more pared-down version of the City Mini, which is usually priced at over $200. We are loving it so far! It takes curbs so much easier with the three wheel set-up, it has a huge canopy, and the "quick fold technology" is awesome. It collapses so much smaller than the Graco stroller, which is perfect for small apartment/small car living!
We were really happy with the Baby Bjorn for a long time. It's literally half the price, Claire loved being able to face forward, and it's really easy to put on by yourself. Since we didn't know exactly how baby-wearing would fit into our day-to-day life, I'm glad we went with that option first. But as Claire got closer to the twenty-pound mark, it started hurting my back more and more. We still use the carrier several times a week and I definitely see us continuing that for the next few months, so we decided it was worth to upgrade to the Ergo. It is so, so, so much more comfortable! My only complaint is that it's a little harder to put on by myself. I'm almost always wearing a raincoat with it and the hood gets in the way, I think? Maybe I'm just not used to it yet?
We decided it was finally time to switch Claire to a convertible car seat, so we just ordered the Diono Radian R120. We chose that one because it's the narrowest car seat around {you can actually fit three in the back seat of a sedan!} and while we certainly hope to have a bigger car before we have three kids, it's always nice to have extra room, right?
Other Stuff We Like:
- Rocking Green Detergent. Seattle has really soft water, which led to the cloth diapers eventually getting detergent build-up and giving Claire a rash. Based on a friend's recommendation, I used Funk Rock to strip them and now I use Soft Rock to wash the diapers.
- Playtex Lil' Gripper Straw Trainer Cup. Claire just didn't understand what sippy cups were for until we switched to one with a straw. This one is pretty neat because you can squeeze the middle of the cup and water will come out of the straw, so it teaches them how it's supposed to work.
- Crane Cool Mist Humidifier. The nursery gets really dry in the winter and a humidifier seems to really help. And it doesn't hurt that they're all so cute!
- Nosefrida Nasal Aspirator. This thing works so much better than the bulbs they give you at the hospital. There's a charcoal filter to keep everything hygienic, don't worry. Claire really hated it at first, but now she really doesn't mind. I think she understands that it makes her feel better?
- JJ Cole Bundleme. It's a blanket that attaches to your stroller or car seat, so you don't have to put them in a snow suit or bundle them up in a blanket that keeps coming unwrapped. Claire loves, loves, loves it. As soon as she gets in the stroller, she grabs a fistful of the blanket and starts sucking her thumb. She's almost outgrown the infant size, but it won't warm up here for quite a while, so I think we'll upgrade to the toddler one.
Toys and Books:
- We're big Sandra Boynton fans, but Claire also really loves "Where's Spot?" and "Brown Bear, Brown Bear."
- Rosy Cheeks Baby Doll and Fisher-Price Walk Along Stroller. These are hands-down Claire's favorite toys. She just started taking a few steps while pushing the stroller!
- Baby Einstein Ocean Orchestra. Claire just gets a huge kick of this musical turtle. She likes to turn the music on over and over while emptying every board book out of their box or something similarly messy.
- Playskool Poppin' Pals. I found this while browsing at Goodwill one day {they had at least three of the exact same toy}, cleaned it up, and let Claire go to town. She hasn't figured out how to open them all yet, but loves closing them as I open them.
- She also really enjoys her Kid O Go Car {perfect for little hands!} and these Edushape Sensory Balls, which are a lot like some we play with at music class.
P.S. These aren't affiliate links or anything, just sharing the wealth!
I really want a nicer stroller than the one we have. It's not a bad stroller, just so huge and heavy. :( And I can't WAIT to get a convertible carseat for the same reason ... I am so DONE carrying the infant seat around, heh! I was just researching them two days ago and realizing we could probably switch now if we wanted to, which was pretty exciting.
ReplyDeleteAnd I definitely want to get an Ergo for our next baby ... I don't feel like I can justify buying one now when I probably won't use it all that much anymore. We'll see!