1. Aveeno Baby Eczema Therapy Moisturizing Cream - Colorado is notoriously dry especially during the winter, and Sydney's sweet little skin kept drying out even though we rarely bathed her (like mother, like daugher). I tried several different moisturizing creams before I found Aveeno, and I immediately fell in love -- her dry patches of skin immediately went away, and her skin became soft again. The lotion is affordable (especially compared to some of the other options out there), works quickly, and the best part is a little goes a long way. Because I was testing so many different brands, I bought the smallest tube of lotion available (5 oz, I believe) and I am still not even halfway through. Great, right? Note: the lotion is slightly 'stickier' than regular lotions and takes a while to get used to. I didn't like the way my hands felt after lotioning her up the first few times, but it's a small price to pay for smooth, soft baby skin. :-)
2. Gerber Unisex Onesies - I bought these onesies kind of by accident; Syd was already two weeks old and I realized I hadn't taken any of her monthly sticker pictures (I actually didn't even have the stickers to begin with---total mom fail), so once I ordered the stickers, I rushed to Target in search of plain white onesies. I went with Gerber because they were the least expensive (duly noting I'd find 'better' ones for the future monthly pictures), but I fell in love with them and they've become a staple in Sydney's wardrobe with every new size she grows into. They're much thinner material than any other onesies I've found, and they're slim-fitted, which make for the perfect undershirt for pajamas, hoodies, sweaters, etc.
3. Fisher Price Deluxe Bouncer - We have the Fisher Price My Little Snugabunny, but really any bouncer chair will be helpful. I like the one we have because it has a vibrating option and also plays music (both extras we regularly take full advantage of---still), and it's really nice the chair is lightweight enough to haul around wherever you may need it. We usually keep ours in our master bathroom so we have someplace safe to keep her while we're getting ready or showering. (Our bathroom is pretty big with a closed off room for the toilet, so it's not cramped [or unsanitary].) But Syd loves bouncy chairs; she loves to sit in them at daycare and at home, and if I could do it all over again, I definitely would have registered for two.
See? No where near the toilet. ;-)
Note: Please disregard the ugly tiling and the awful 'curtains.' Our bathroom needs to be updated, but unfortunately it's one of the last projects on our list.
4. Wine - Need I say more? Before I had a baby, I will fully admit I never understood why new moms didn't wanted to go out and drink. I wouldn't classify myself as a huge drinker or anything, but I mean, they gave up alcohol for 10 months -- didn't they want to let loose?? Then I had Sydney, and immediately I understood: breast milk is liquid gold. LEGIT. 'Pumping and dumping' is like going to your favorite expensive restaurant, buying your most favorite expensive meal and not eating a bite and throwing it all in the garbage. It's almost physically painful to see your hard-earned milk go to waste. Furthermore, who wants to take care of a tiny baby when hungover? So, it took me until Sydney was about 2-3 months old when I was finally producing enough breast milk that I felt confident I could pump and dump, or--at the very least--have a glass or two of wine. And it was glorious. (Except dumping 13 ounces of wasted breastmilk down the drain may quite possibly go down as the saddest day ever.)
5. Cloud B Sleep Sheep Sound Machine - Fortunately for us, Sydney didn't need a vacuum cleaner, dishwasher, running water, etc. in order to calm down or fall asleep (my tummy must have been fairly silent!), so the sound machine is used more to drown out any noise from downstairs after she's gone to bed than anything else. I looked at various sound machines and ultimately decided to give the Sleep Sheep a try because it's adorable and small (we have the travel on-the-go sheep) and had great reviews. I'm so pleased with our decision because it eliminates another baby contraption in her room/our house and easily carries with you when you travel. Plus, the sheep automatically turns off after a certain amount of time, which is a nice feature.
6. Motorola Remote Wireless Video Baby Monitor - We moved Sydney into her nursery much sooner than we planned because I came down with a bad case of the flu around Sydney's second month. I was initially a bit skeptical, but she ended up loving her crib and slept so much better in her own room. I, however, did not. I still remember the first night in her crib; I stared at the video monitor and couldn't believe how tiny she looked and worried if the monitor would pick up her tiny, soft sounds. "She's so quiet -- what if the monitor doesn't wake me?" HA! I worried for maybe a half-hour before realizing the monitor picks up every single sound.
Although I think the video monitors you can see on your smartphone is a cool feature, stories like this and this absolutely FREAK. ME. OUT. I can't even think about those stories without shuddering in fear because it's so creepy -- especially the second story where the camera slowly turned to the dad. I would die if that happened to me! That story somehow reminds me of the weird doll from the Saw movies. AHH. Anyway, once I heard those stories I refused to get a Wi-Fi video monitor, so the Motorola monitor was a no-brainer. I have several girlfriends who have the exact same model and highly recommended I register for it, and I'm 110% completely satisfied with it. The picture is so clear (much more clear than any of the other monitors I tested out), the sound is great, and we've never run into any issues with the signal. I love it!
7. Baby Gap Sherpa Booties - These boots are the cutest! We had an unusually long and cold winter, so these little booties came in handy on way more than one occasion. [Side note: these boots still fit her currently, haha.] The boots are well made and very warm, but the best parts are they're easy to put on and take off and they stay put and don't fall off easily. I didn't realize how important those aspects are until recently when I discovered Sydney could shuffle her shoes off if she wants to.
8. Sassy Ring O'Links Rattle - These rings are great. Actually, ALL rings are great. We also have these, and I've found a mama can never have too many links lying around! Developmentally, rings are good for babies to hone their ability to grab, and the textured rings are also great for their sense of touch. Sydney loves playing with these rings, and they're everywhere -- in her car seat, in my diaper bag, in her bouncer, on her changing table, etc. etc.
9. Ikea Wire Basket - Prior to giving birth, I didn't have great feelings towards breastfeeding Sydney. I always knew I was going to try, but I didn't have high expectations for myself and definitely didn't feel pressured. To be completely honest, I didn't really want to; the thought of breastfeeding kind of made me uncomfortable. However, I knew it was best for the baby, so regardless of my thoughts, I knew I was going to at least try. In a very surprising and ironic twist, I actually very much loved breastfeeding and was determined to nurse Sydney and feed her breast milk as long as possible. I luckily was able to produce milk fairly easily, and before I knew it, I had built up quite a bit of stock and had to find a way to store the milk in our stand-up deep freezer. Ikea for the win! These wire baskets are actually not the baskets I used (they actually look way better than mine, ha), but I used something similar from Ikea that did the trick. They're super cheap (you don't need anything fancy), and they worked really well.
10. Skip Hop Treetop Friends Activity Gym - I suppose I could have started using this sooner than Sydney's second month, but I think I was too busy snuggling her in month one. ;-) Activity gyms are really great, and we used ours much more than I anticipated. The Skip Hop Treetop had really great reviews, so we chose that one -- but honestly, like bouncy chairs, any activity gym will do. The amount of hours Sydney has spent on that mat are immeasurable, and it was really fun to see her develop and learn how to play with the hanging toys. I liked this gym in particular because the all the toys had different functions that would keep Sydney busy and interacting.
Hope you enjoyed! Good luck with month two...the fun is just beginning! :-)
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