Hassle-Free Products

I don’t know a single mom (or dad) who when asked would say, “My life is super easy, I have lots of time and never feel stressed.” So I’m always happy to review and recommend products that save a little hassle when I find them. Below are five such products all of which I will be talking about tomorrow on WAAY at 4 p.m. If you see something you like, leave a comment stating which item you want and why you want it. The winners will be drawn randomly next Friday (2/18/11) and notified by email of their win.

Baby Dipper Bowl – a local mom of not one but two sets of twins invented this and I feel like that alone qualifies her as an expert on all things baby. The bowl was invented to allow mothers to feed out of a bowl with one hand and it does that beautifully. It also works right through to the toddler stage (see video review where my 2.5 year old uses it). The bowl is a triangle shape and more substantial than most I’ve used for this purpose. A couple of handy features are the see-thru design, so the child can see what they are aiming at, and the slanted bottom so the food naturally gathers at the bottom of one of the points of the triangle. My only request for a change is that I hope she is planning to make a larger version for toddlers since I filled it up with yogurt twice before my daughter was satisfied (or maybe she just really liked using it!). Since I know you are going to really want one and are just wondering how to get your hands on it, I’ve included a link to the list of local retailers.

Snack-Trap – a friend of mine whose own daughter is about a year older than mine told me about this wonderful invention and as soon as I heard about it I thought to myself, “of course, that makes perfect sense” and then I thought, “I have to get one.” These snack holders are great for when you are in the car and you want your little one to have a snack but you don’t want that snack all over the floor (Cheerios, puffed cereal, anything small that has a lot of pieces). The version that has a suction cup on it is even more genius because when your little one is in a high chair, you can walk away without coming back to everything dumped on the floor. I should warn you that this only lasts for a certain period of time. My daughter is now almost three and she can take the lid off and dump the contents on the floor if she wants to. That being said, I still use it in the car so she doesn’t spill accidentally. On purpose – that’s a whole other story. These can be found at most baby-retail stores and cost around $5.00.

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Peekaru – I was a baby-wearing mama and most of my friends were as well. I couldn’t wait to get my little one in her Baby Bjorn and start walking all over the neighborhood, the store, the parks, you name it. The only problem was that the weather had to be just right. If there was a nip in the air, I worried that she would get cold so I’d wrap her up in layers of clothes and then put a jacket on myself. Not a good look and so bulky it was hard to get the carrier on her and then on me. Most of the time, I just gave up. The Peekaru solves those problems. A fleece-vest that fits comfortably and snugly over mom and baby carrier with a cute little cut-out for baby’s head. I asked a friend of mine to use it with her little one (I tried it with a doll but it wasn’t the same) and she didn’t want to give it back. Perfect for those cool mornings or early evenings here in North Alabama, it should allow you to get out of the house more often than I did and that’s always a good thing. Retail price is around $80.00.

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Silly Bibs – These bibs are hassle-saving at meal time  and made of non-toxic 100% silicone. They are also really cute baby and definitely make meal times a breeze. They are easy to clean and reuse and nothing is going to soak thru. My daughter loved the designs and kept asking for the ones I’m giving away! The neck latch has three sizes and is relatively easy to get on and off. I will warn you, if your baby is blessed with a ton of hair it will get caught up in the latch unless you are extremely careful. That said, it’s not a problem most babies have and it doesn’t override my absolute favorite thing about these bibs – you can roll them up! I’ve used “soft” bibs before that were actually really solid and not something I could easily stash in my bag. These are super flexible and easy to carry with you, but work the same as those harder bibs by catching all the crumbs. At half the cost ($10) you can double up and have one at home and one in your bag.

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