RECENT AMAZON ORDERS
Sharing some of my recent Amazon orders... I feel like a new Amazon package arrives everyday...oops. Sometimes I can't resist the Prime shipping.
TOP BABY ESSENTIALS WE USED DURING MONTHS 1-3
Tanner is 5 months now and getting more fun everyday but also growing so fast & getting so interested in the world around him; I can hardly believe it! I thought I would share some of our most used items from his first 3 months of life.
1. Doona Car Seat/Stroller - This car seat/stroller is an all-in-one game changer. It was one of the more expensive items that we registered for but it is SO worth it. PROs: The Doona is super safe infant car seat that has wheels and pops up into a stroller. It leaves our trunk free as well as our arms. Super easy to transform from car seat mode to stroller mode and compact enough to fit down the aisle of an airplane! CONs: No storage so this stroller doesn't really work as your only stroller. Also it's much heavier than your typical car seat because of the wheels. But remember, you don't have to lug it for long - just in and out of the car!
2. Nanit Monitor & Owlet Sock - We have used both of these from the day Tanner came home. I read some mixed reviews on the Owlet but it has worked so well for us and we love the peace of mind that we get when we see Tanner's oxygen and heart rates while he is sleeping. The Nanit has been great as well. It connects via Wifi and can be watched via an app so even when I'm not home, I can peek on Tanner while he is napping. The Nanit also comes with insights that track Tanner's sleep habits for the first year.
3. Boppy Pillow - We loved this pillow in the early baby days. It provided extra cushion for us and family members while holding our newborn baby. It also raised Tanner up a bit from your lap so he was closer for cuddles.
4. Burt's Bees Burp Cloths & Touched by Nature Bibs - Babies spit up a lot so bibs & burp cloths are a must have for the first few months. I learned this quickly and stocked up on Burt's Bees burp cloths & Touched by Nature bibs. Both are organic and the bibs have the cutest puns on them. We have almost all of the collections now!
5. Boppy Lounger - This was the perfect docking station for Tanner when we needed to give our arms a break. Tanner seemed to prefer this lounger over the Snuggle Me since the Boppy props his head up a bit higher so he could look around.
6. Lou Lou & Company Gowns & Target 'Cloud Island' Footies - I had heard a ton about zipper footies when babies are little but gowns are so underrated and so awesome. We ordered a handful of Lou Lou & Company newborn gowns for Tanner. They were SO soft and so easy to change him in. We also love zipper footies, especially Cloud Island which unzip from the foot, also for super easy diaper changes.
7. Lovevery Play Mat - From day 1, we've been big on floor time. It's the best way for baby to explore, get strong and prepare for crawling & sitting. The Lovevery Play Mat comes with a mat & play gym that's easy on the eyes and a booklet that gives you tons of ideas for how to use it to play with your baby depending on their age.
8. Nail Filer - Tanner's nails were so sharp when he was first born. This nail filer took the anxiety out of clipping his tiny fingers while cutting his nails. Instead we just file them shorter & smooth.
9. Halo Bassinet w/ Newborn Insert - After a few sleepless weeks, we borrowed a halo bassinet from friends. I purchased the newborn insert that went with it and almost immediately Tanner started sleeping better. I think he enjoyed being up against the mesh from the insert and found it to be comforting. Definitely purchasing a Halo bassinet for our next child!
10. TwelveLittle Diaper Bag - I chose to get a backpack to be hands free & then chose the leopard print bc how could I resist? I love how lightweight this bag is. The straps are also padded so they are super comfortable and there are tons of pockets on the inside & outside of the bag. I carry diapers, wipes, toys, extra outfits, a blanket, bottles, formula + all my own personal items when we go out.
11. Baby K'Tan Wrap - Baby wearing is the sweetest way to keep baby close and allow yourself to be hands free in the early days. When Tanner was fussy or wouldn't nap, put him in the wrap and he was comforted instantly. As he got heavier, this wrap got more difficult to wear but I love how easy it was so use as a new & tired mom.
12. Baby Brezza Bottle Warmer - Tanner is formula fed and took a liking to the ready-to-feed formula. While a bottle warmer was not on my registry, as we made more bottles and stood in the kitchen at 1am, 4am, and 7am and so on waiting 6 minutes for the bottle to heat in a cup of hot water, it became evident that it was going to be worth it to us to splurge on a bottle warmer. This warmer heats bottles in half the time using steam heat. It is so easy to use and those 3 minutes saved are so worth it.
13. Soothie Pacifier - These are the only pacifiers Tanner will take. Simple as that.
14. Dr. Brown's Bottles - Similar to the pacifier, these are the only bottles that Tanner likes. We like them too since the vent inside it supposed to help with air bubbles/spit up. More parts to clean but hopefully less outfits to wash...
BABY REGISTRY ITEMS I WOULD CHANGE/SKIP/ADD
Planning to share the top baby items that we've used in Tanner's first 3 months of life but also wanted to share the products on my registry that I would have skipped, swapped for something else, waited on or added. Hopefully all you mamas to be find this post helpful!
3 Items I Would Have Skipped:
Baby Brezza Formula Pro - Tanner ended up being strictly formula fed after he was born so I thought the Brezza Formula Pro was going to be amazing until I realized the kid had a picky palate. He loves & chugs the ready to feed formula, but would not drink the powder version so the Formula Pro ended up not being used by us. Instead, we ended up purchasing a bottle warmer to prepare the RTF formula in record timing (more on that below)
American Red Cross Healthcare Kit - I also registered for a bunch of Frida Baby items and have used those so much more than I use the regular healthcare kit items. I would recommend the Frida Baby items, as I think they are a little more advanced than the ARC kit.
Baby Shoes - Babies do not need real shoes until they are able to walk, so those cute little sneakers & moccasins that I registered for are currently sitting in his closet waiting for the day when he needs them. Also, most of the time early on, we have just put footies on Tanner so there isn't even a need for socks or shoes.
2 Items I Would Swap for Others:
Motorola Baby Monitor - I originally loved this monitor (& still do in theory) because it came with a video monitor but also allowed you to watch baby via an app on your phone. I was thrilled with the idea that I would have options to watch baby however when we tried to set up the monitor over the crib, we were unable to find a placement for it that allowed us to see the entire crib. We ended up getting the Nanit Pro monitor which is designed to mount over the crib and has a wide angle lens
Hatch Sound Machine - This product is great in theory but it doesn't have an actual white noise sound!! It has everything else you can imagine but no standard white noise. Right now we use it as a nightlight during night feedings. To help Tanner sleep, we've been using the Hushh portable sound machine. It works great to lull him to sleep & it's helpful that we will be able to travel anywhere with it.
4 Items I Would Wait On:
Bottles/Pacifiers - Bottles & pacifiers come down to baby's personal preference so while you definitely want to have a few on hand when your kid is born, I wish I didn't register for full sets from brands. He has taken to liking the Soothie Pacifiers and Dr. Brown's Bottles. Once we figured that out, we stocked up on those brands and ended up putting the other brands away.
Swaddles - Another item that's all about baby's preference. We started out using Halo Swaddles but once Tanner discovered his hands, he has liked sucking on them to soothe himself. Because of that, we recently switched over to Love to Dream swaddles. Both have worked great for us, but similar to the bottles, I would have waited to register for multiples of any type of swaddles until we saw what baby preferred.
Blankets - Once baby boy was born we received sooo many blankets. They are so sweet too - personalized or hand made and much cuter than anything I registered for. This was definitely not an item that I should have put on my registry. We are drowning in blankets! LOL
Outfits - Clothing is a silly thing to register for because similar to blankets, once your baby arrives, you will get so many cute outfits!! Looking back, I would have either skipped clothing or registered for some outfits in larger sizes. We received a lot of newborn & 0-3 month clothes but now that Tanner is growing, we notice his closet has thinned out! We need to stock up on 3-6 month outfits & beyond for him!
3 Items I Would Have Added:
Halo Bassinet - I thought a bassinet was a silly product to add to my registry since I figured baby wouldn't be sleeping in it for too long and while he was, he could just sleep in the bassinet portion of the pack n play in our room. Well, he didn't end up liking the pack n play during the early days. We ended up borrowing the Halo bassinet from friends and buying the newborn insert for it. Tanner immediately started sleeping a bit better thanks to the comfort of the insert that he could nuzzle up against. I also liked that the Halo bassinet's height could be adjusted.
Baby Brezza Bottle Warmer - A bottle warmer was never on my list because I thought, we can just heat the bottles in a cup of water but once we were feeding Tanner a bottle every 3 hours, and feeding him in the middle of the night we quickly learned that time is precious. Heating a bottle in a cup of water was taking us 6-7 minutes each time. I purchased this bottle warmer in the middle of the night and we have used it for every single bottle since then & it only takes about 3 minutes.
Owlet Sleep Sock - I had this sock on my registry, then I removed, then I added it again, then I removed it. I couldn't decide if I wanted to use it or if it would end up creating more anxiety for us as new parents. My mom ended up gifting it to us and we have used it and loved it every night since Tanner came home. Jody loves to ask me 'how's his heart rate?' while we watch him sleep at night. I definitely see where this product could create additional anxiety, but for us, it's given us a lot of peace of mind.
5 WAYS TO STYLE A BLAZER
Today I'm sharing 5 ways to style a blazer. I love throwing a blazer over a casual outfit to dress it up a bit. They always give my outfits more structure than a cardigan or light weight jacket. How do you style your blazers?
XO
Michelle Paige
Neutral Outfit with fun accessories
3 HAIR TOOLS I LOVE
I have 3 ways that I style my hair on my own: beach waves, pin straight, blown out. With each of these styles comes it's own tool to perfect the look: Hot Tools Wand, GHD Straightener, Revlon One Step Hair Dryer. Below I'm sharing a quick review on each of the 3 tools and how I achieve my looks:
Hot Tools Wand: Curled, beachy waves was my go-to hair style for years before the pandemic hit and we started staying home. I loved the staying power of the curls that this wand gave me and that it added volume to my fine hair, also you can't beat the price! This curling wand is under $50. When my hair was shorter, I used a tapered wand but as it grew out, I used a regular 1" curling wand. For this technique, I would blow dry my hair first with a regular blow dryer, then section off pieces of my hair and wrap them around the wand, leaving about 1/2 inch out at the end.
GHD Straightener: For a sleek, pin straight look, I grab my GHD straightener. Similar to the curled look, I blow dry first and then flatten and smooth using this straightener. It heats up quickly and gets the job done in a matter of minutes.
Revlon One Step Hair Dryer: This is the most recent of the 3 tools that I have purchased and has become my favorite for styling my hair. After my shower, I towel dry my hair and don't even need to brush it through or use the regular blow dryer. I brush through my hair, drying & styling as I go (in one step, hence the name). This hair dryer leaves me with a bouncier but still very smooth blowout and only takes me about 10 minutes from start to finish!
Have you tried any of these hair tools?
XO
Michelle Paige