Baby Gear Top 10: Swaddlers

We have a number of friends who are joining the wonderful world of parenthood, so I'll be sharing information about our favorite gear for the newborn phase over the next couple weeks. Picks are not ranked in any particular order.

Up next on our list of baby gear favorites: swaddlers. Oh, how I love a good swaddle wrap! Until just a couple  months ago, Lana was still getting swaddled for sleep. Could she sleep without it? Yes. Was it pretty? No! (OMG, NO.) In the beginning, swaddling is KEY! (Open any baby book and it'll be topping the short-list of go-to calming tactics.)

Lana would be swaddled on and off all day long in the early months, then for naps and nighttime sleep until probably 6+ months. We finally weaned her off the swaddle because she was getting to be too big for most wraps. While I'm glad we weaned (it's one of those things a new parent neurotically (and totally stupidly) worries about), I'll be honest: I don't think she's slept through an entire night since we did. Sure, we were both sick at the time (thus much more night-waking), then she started cutting teeth, and getting mobile, and eating solid foods, etc., etc. All things that will certainly disrupt the sleep of an already imperfect sleeper. But, I'm just saying...that "snug as a bug in a rug" thing really can work wonders!

Do you need one of these fancy velcro wraps to swaddle? Definitely not. You can do it with a blanket. But the blanket must be BIG and square, and frankly--those are hard to find. The Aden + Anais ones are great, but swaddle wraps are way cheaper. Plus, learning the correct tucking technique to get a blanket tight enough once your little one builds up a bit of muscle (and personality) can be a challenge. These handy wraps make the process much easier, especially when you're fighting a screaming, thrashing little terror! (Rarely did Lana look like the peaceful little babe above when she was in need of a swaddle!)

If you end up with a little Houdini on your hands, we highly recommend the Miracle Blanket. It takes a little practice to get the hang of it, but really helps keep these little squirmers snuggled up. With as big and strong as Lana grew to be, we actually double swaddled in the later months (a velcro wrap over a Miracle Blanket) at night time. I know, it probably sounds crazy (abusive even, if you ask my in-laws!), but she would sleep like a champ when she was this snug.

Then, when you're ready to drop the swaddle, but still appreciate a little bit of mobility restriction, as well as a built in blanket, we recommend any variety of sleep sacks. (Ours are a warm fleece material with long sleeves, but the ones linked here are great for warmer weather.)

While we're on the subject of sleep attire, let's talk PJs for a minute. As far as I'm concerned, there's really no need to fill your infant's closet with hoards of clothing. I would say a good 50% of the time, Lana wears her PJs all day. Call me lazy, but they're convenient! It's a pain to dress a kid: they don't like it! It's a pain to take off shoes/pants/socks and unbutton a onesie every time you change a diaper. It's an even bigger pain to have to put it all back on 6+ times a day!

I think I prefer a zippered sleeper over snaps, but she has lots of both and it's not that big of a deal--just, as she gets more mobile, zippers are faster, which means less complaining and less wrestling (she rolls over, I roll her back, she rolls over, I roll her back; repeat 17 times per diaper change). I really like the footed sleepers for small babies (no losing socks/putting them back on 100 times a day), but now she's growing too fast for built-in feet. Plus, the ones without feet are better when they start crawling so they don't get all caught up in their clothes.

Hanna Andersson makes adorable, organic, footless sleepers. Bonus? They sell them at Costco!!

June Photography Challenge, Day 1: Self-Portrait

Well, the good news is that I figured out how to put the DSLR into a manual mode. Now to spend a lifetime learning how to get fabulous images out of it...

Anybody with me?? Anybody? Anybody...?

Challenge home.

Baby Gear Top 10: Swing

We have a number of friends who are joining the wonderful world of parenthood this year, so I thought it might be helpful to share information about our favorite baby gear for the newborn phase. I'll be sharing our picks over the next couple weeks. Keep in mind, these are not ranked in any particular order.

I don't know if we would have gotten any rest in the first couple months without the swing! Certainly, not every baby will need the kind of constant motion that Lana did (she slept in that thing all night for probably 6 weeks), but it sure wouldn't hurt. If you're familiar with The Happiest Baby on the Block, you know how soothing constant motion is to a newborn and how highly recommended swings are. Our child completely rejected her bassinet, and I couldn't get a wink of sleep if she was in our bed, so the swing was our savior in those early months. Remember, it's important that you get some of you're own recovery time, rather than constantly burning a path in the hardwood by doing circles (like I did around 5:30 every single night until Raf finally walked in the door!)

So, let's talk about swing styles. Our lovely neighbor gave us her old school style swing (like you see in the Happiest Baby DVD). I'm pretty sure it's a Graco. It sits very upright, has very little cusion, and only swings front to back. While this was nice to distract Lana for short periods of time while she watch me cook, or Grandpa fix things...she was NOT going to sleep in it! No way, no how.

The swing we used daily was an older version of the one pictured here. They're nice because they recline super far back, they're very plush, you don't have to have the toy bar installed (which is nice for creating a sleep environment, and because there's no plastic bar between their legs so you can jimmy the restraint system to work while they're swaddled!), it has a variety of white noise options, including a clicking with each swing that I grew quite attached to, and it swings both front to back AND side to side. Lana was definitely a side to side swing sleeper. Also, they get going pretty fast and swing pretty wide, which was nice for a girl who required very vigorous soothing! One extra nice thing about this newer version is that it has a plug-in option, so you don't have to constantly be burning through batteries.

I would say that this is definitely an item to consider borrowing or buying used. We borrowed ours from a friend, and were very happy to be able to give it back when it outgrew it's usefulness (around 3 months for us). It's very easy to wash the cushions, so there's no ick factor with getting one used. And EVERYONE has a swing, so they're pretty easy to find on Craigslist if you don't have an option to borrow. Just do yourself a favor and stick with this newer style, rather than kicking it super old school!

Side note: I'm really curious to hear a friend's experience with the Mamaroo? They look super cool, but from reviews I've read, I'm concerned that the motion may not have been vigorous enough for our little bean. Has anyone had any experience with one??

Baby Gear Top 10: Boppy Pillow

We have a number of friends who are joining the wonderful world of parenthood this year, so I thought it might be helpful to share information about our favorite baby gear for the newborn phase. I'll be sharing our picks over the next couple weeks. Keep in mind, these are not ranked in any particular order. Up first: the Boppy pillow. 

I've found the Boppy to be super helpful for breastfeeding. When I'm out and about without it, it's so much more uncomfortable and cumbersome to feed Lana. I know some people haven't found them to be terribly useful, but I think because I have such a long torso, it's a major pain to be without it. (It's exhausting to hold a baby up with one arm for 15 minutes!) 

Top tip: Bring your Boppy with you to the hospital!!! We didn't and learning to breastfeed was awful. Trying to pile up 6 or 7 pathetic hospital pillows to support your tiny, fragile newborn is a nightmare.

While we're talking Boppy, I haven't tried one myself, but I've heard good things about the Newborn Lounger. I could definitely see the (short term) value in this tool....it's tough to find a soft, safe place to put a brand new baby down! However, it's useful for such a short period of time, I'd definitely recommend trying to find one to borrow or buy used. 

Chasing Tail

I'll randomly hear Lana squealing and giggling out of nowhere. It's always because she's spotted the DG Dog. And it always, always, always makes my heart happy. Enjoy!

UFO Progress: Itty Bitty Blankies

I'm slowly but surely making a bit of progress on my UFOs. Today I finished a handful of Itty Bitty Blankies--a new item I'm adding to my Bumble Designs page through Facebook. These adorable little snugglers are perfect for tucking newborns into their carseat, and for using as a lovie blanket as the baby grows. I have so many cute designer cottons to pair with the snuggle fabrics. (I mean, seriously, do you see those little cassette tapes?!) Love them!

Get the details and shop here.

June Photography Challenge

Ok, you know how I keep saying that I need to learn how to use my camera? I'm serious this time. It's going to happen! Maybe. Hopefully. Definitely! 

To get me motivated, I've decided to join White Peach Photography's 30 Day Photography Challenge during the month of June (discovered via Pinterest). The unique criteria I've set for myself: I must use my DSLR in the manual setting. Eek! 

You can expect to see some rough photos here very soon. Hopefully you'll also see improvement over time (as the crap I'm posting finally motivates me to actually read my manual and turn on Photoshop!)

So, who wants to join me?? You can't expect me to maintain motivation if only playing along with strangers now, can you?!

Double Chocolate Chewies

After putting so much effort into the chicken and dumplings, the last thing we were interested in was a from-scratch dessert endeavor. While perusing Mom's pantry, I found a treasure trove of boxed cake mixes (probably from when I unloaded my dairy-filled goods the last time I visited). I asked Mom if she'd ever heard of the Cake Doctor and she responds by pulling out a cookbook the Aunties had given her 10 years ago (it's dated by them), that she's definitely never cracked open (my mother is not big on experimentation in the kitchen department). We decided it was time to break it in!

We opted for the Double Chocolate Chewies (assuming no one else would like the Mocha version) and, my goodness, they did not disappoint! They're ooey gooey chewie on the inside (like a brownie), with a nice little crisp outer cookie shell. SO YUMMY. We skipped the nuts, of course, but I think they'd be pretty amazing with some Craisins or dried cherries (like my Christmas cookies...just not a Cooking Light version!)

Next time you find yourself with a box of devil's food cake mix in the pantry and in dire need of a sugar high, give these a shot!

Slow Cooker Revolution

I've been genuinely trying to control my Costco impulse purchase issues lately (rivaled only by my Ikea impulse purchase issues). My primary tactic to achieve this goal: don't go to Costco. However, sometimes you need a passport photo, or frozen organic mixed berries for smoothies, or a $5 rotisserie chicken for curried chicken salad, or a ginormous box of beer. You know what I mean. My impulse control issues are always most challenged in the book section; I swear, I buy a book every.single.time I go to Costco...then NEVER read them! 

So, when I stumbled across America's Test Kitchen's Slow Cooker Revolution cookbook, I did my darndest to resist. However, as I flipped through, page by page, I couldn't find a single recipe that didn't sound like it was worth trying (and I'm a picky little mama!) And you can be sure that Raf wasn't going to discourage this kind of purchase. The guy knows that his best eating since I started staying home has been when I fire up the slow cooker. Plus, I'm at my happiest in the evening on slow cooker days  because I had dinner done by 10am! Needless to say, we invested the $16.50. 

Thoughts thus far? Best impulse purchase I've ever made at Costco! I've only had time to try a few of the recipes, but so far they're all winners. Here's the thing, though...they require work. Prep work, follow up work...work. And we're kind of conditioned to expect slow cooker meals to consist of not much more than digging out the can opener and rifling through the spice cabinet. I'm still getting used to the time investment required for these recipes, but I will say that it's been worth it. Because, let's be honest: you get out what you put in. Much of the time, slow cooker meals are bland and over-done because they're not much more than frozen meat and canned randomness that's spent all day simmering away the tiny amount of flavor that they started with. So, if it takes a bit of work to get quality results, so be it! At least we're quickly expanding our list of keeper recipes.

Btw, this post was prompted because Mom and I made the Old-Fashioned Chicken and Dumplings for family dinner tonight. (Sorry, way too many ingredients and instructions to post!) Next time I'll add more broth and make marble-sized dumplings, but the underlying flavor and texture was legit. Raf and I also fell in love with the Beginner's Pulled Pork...we were eating tasty leftovers out of the freezer on that one for weeks!

Love to use the slow cooker? Do yourself a favor and grab this book!

Peekaboo Giggles & Squeals

Lana and I had some fun at breakfast time. Btw, you're getting all this video goodness because it's the only way Daddy survives when we leave him for 3 weeks. :( Lucky you!