Stuff we found useful.....

I thought that today's post could be about some things we have found really useful over the last 7 months and I don't mean paracetamol and ear plugs...baby stuff. Perhaps it will help some of you who are looking for more stuff to buy! If you are anything like me then any excuse works.....

• James' mum bought us the most brilliant swaddling blanket for Ted when he was only a week or so old. It is available on Amazon and the company is called swaddleme. It is a simple design where you just lie baby in the middle and simply secure the Velcro straps around him. The legs are left to kick free in a sort of grobag style. It sounds like a straight jacket and it does look a bit like one but it really soothed Ted. When we got him ready for bed we would put him in this before the breastfeed and it stopped him getting worked up by playing with his hands. As soon as we got it on him it soothed him, literally, as we lay him in it he would calm down. Definitely a brilliant buy. He had this until he moved into his own room (8 weeks) then we moved onto a grobag. What was particularly good was that it is nice and thin so the baby is not bundled in to may layers (this always worried me about swaddling as by the time you have folded a blanket and if the baby is in a baby grow it can be up to 5 layers!). Because Ted was born in the winter when we had very heavy snow he had this as well as a vest and baby grow. Sometimes we would add 1 layer of blanket when it was very cold. As his arms were secure there is no need to worry about him getting tangled in covers (this worry literally kept us up at night)
• Which brings me on to another great product. I'm sure you are all familiar with grobags so I'm hardly original here. But these were truly a godsend. Ted is in a lightweight one in his cot as I write this. He had a thick one for winter with vest and baby grow. Sometimes when its hot he only had the grobag and a sleeveless vest. No worries at all about 'feet to foot' position in the cot he can wiggle into a comfy position and still be cosy with no loose covers  at all. I think everyone should give this a go.
• From the same company comes the groegg. A friend got me this before Ted was born and I have had it plugged in from that day to this. It is an egg shaped device which plugs in and tells the temperature in the room. When its too cold 16 degrees for example it glows blue, perfect temp around 18 degrees it glows amber, it changes to a deeper amber then red when its too hot, over 20 degrees. It was so reassuring to glance over and see if the room was a good temp rather than working out if a certain temperature is OK or not. Enclosed in the box it tells you how many layers your baby should have on in certain temperatures,this was another useful thing to have. We became obsessed with the temperature in our bedroom and still are. So funny that we still comment on it "um its 21 in Teds room you know!" We are the most boring people I know!
• We have the angelcare movement and sound monitor. What we love about this is that is has a sensor mat which detects heartbeat. If heartbeat stops (say if you leave the monitor on and remove the baby) an alarm goes off. This was so reassuring to us as Ted went in to his own room l=not long after he had croup (which blocked his airways) so we could just look over at the monitor and see if he was breathing without disturbing him (this was literally every 5 minutes when he went in his own room). The  pendulum ticking over is a lovely sight indeed.
• I couldn't forget the most brilliant product we ever bought for Ted. They are onelife washable nappies. I know these are such a commitment and the initial expense can seem a lot (it was knocking on the door of £300 for 26 cotton nappies ,boosters, liners,outer covers, nappy bucket, laundry bags). That said I have only ever bought 2 small packs of disposables to have in emergencies and to keep at James mums house (this was done when ted was very new..... in case I died and James couldn't face washing the nappies. I don't know why but i used to worry about dying a lot). They have been so great. S soft and comfy (They look soft and comfy, I cant say for certain) and Ted has NEVER had a nappy rash. Ever. There was no complicated folding, which put me off all the other brands. They just have poppers on either side which are adjusted as the baby grows and a flap at the top which folds down when the baby is tiny. On top of the nappy is a waterproof cover which comes in sizes xs for mew born, the 1 thought o 3. Boosters are available which add an extra absorbent layer (we started off just using these at night and now I use them with every change as Ted has got bigger) I know this is not for everyone and it can be grim taking out the liner with the 'deposit' on it and flushing it, but in my opinion well worth it. They have saved us so much money (this was not the initial motivation but it really does hit home when I see the cost of nappies and how much my friends spend on them. I see it as, we have only spent £300 on nappies and we will only ever have spent that much. I just love the idea that they are cotton, and natural. On the rare occasion that Ted is in a disposable he seems so smelly and seems to need to be changed more regularly. I find that when it comes to number 2s disposables leak so much more than the washables (I suppose this is because the washables are larger and go further up his back). In the early days when friends were changing pooey baby grows a few times daily I literally wouldn't have had to change Teds clothes for 2 days (I did, obviously...put down the phone, no need for social services here). All in all the best thing ever. Even James, who was hugely skeptical at first, loves them. he makes a face when Ted is in a disposable and calls our nappies "proper nappies", like a grandma.
• We use Weleda baby care nappy cream as Ted didn't get on with sudo creme as he was very sensitive. They have a lovely range for bath and body too. Lovely smells. Which makes a change for the little bottom, I think.

So that's all I can think of for now. If I think of anything life changing I will, of course, let you know.