Five Smart Baby Products I Wish I had With My First Baby
I appreciate things that make life easier – especially when it comes to my babies.
I’m also not a minimalist when it comes to products for baby. While I shared this no-nonsense baby essentials list awhile back, I probably have a good number of products others would deem unnecessary, especially with baby #2.
When I was pregnant and a new mom with Jack, we were quite poor. We couldn’t help but keep to the minimum. However, I still saw products that I thought would have made life a little bit easier.
Even since Jack was born, I have seen a lot of awesome baby products developed that I feel would have made being a new mom a little bit easier. I know some people will gripe and groan and say, “Well I didn’t have that when I was a young mom, and I was just fine!”
But you know what – it’s a different time in history. Why not take advantage of the incredible technology we have?! It’s important to always have balance – I’m very much into the attachment parenting movement, and I don’t think any product will ever replace the loving care of a parent. However, I’m also realistic and realize I can’t do everything on my own!
So here are five smart baby products that I think are brilliant. Of course, everything comes with a price, and I don’t recommend going into debt to buy any of these. But I sure wish I could have had access to some of things when Jack was a baby…and some of them truly made the biggest difference with Oliver!
Thank you to MamaRoo for making this post possible!
These have been around for several years, and when we were in the middle of Jack having horrible infant reflux, I was really wishing we could afford one. In all the mom groups I’m in, this is the product that is more frequently mentioned and recommended.
We finally got our hands on the MamaRoo Infant Seat recently, and I’m kicking myself for not buying it when Oliver was a newborn. It is seriously the best infant swing that I’ve ever used. He is getting a bit too big to be in it without me next to him (he was obsessed with grabbing the mobile).
I now understand why other parents rave about it.
It has five different swing settings and four different white noise options (as well as the option to connect it to an MP3 device). I think one of the major downfalls of most infant swings is that they only move one or maybe two ways, and if your baby doesn’t like it, you’re out of luck. With the MamaRoo Infant Seat, it has five awesome settings, and I think your baby will at least like one.
The entire swing is controlled by the app on your smartphone. It’s very easy to use, and really, if you are having one of those days where you just have to lay on the couch and put the baby down for a few minutes, I think it would be very helpful to be able to control it from the couch!
I also really love the colorful mobile! You can change the direction of it, and you can also change which side of the balls are showing. There is a black and white side, which is AWESOME for newborns.
I wish I had this with Jack. We would spend hours and hours rocking and bouncing him to try and calm him done. While this definitely would not have replaced us, it would be have been nice for a few minutes when we needed a break. That is why it tops my list of smart baby products worth buying, especially if your baby is colicky or has reflux. When they have reflux, you are supposed to get them upright for about 30 minutes after every feed, so this can help with that!
It certainly gets Oliver’s mark of approval!
Buy it on their website or on Amazon(and sign up for on Amazon). It is around $259. Here is a video of it in action!
It’s no secret that I’m borderline obsessed with my Owlet Baby Care Monitor. Any list of mine that has to do with baby products is going to feature this monitor. Not only did it help me possibly save his life when he was just a few months old, but it also notified us to him having central sleep apnea.
I already wrote a full Owlet review, so be sure to check that out for more details. But basically, it’s a “smart sock” that uses the same technology they use in the hospitals to constantly track your baby’s heart rate and oxygen while they sleep.
For most parents, this will just bring you peace of mind, as it’s basically a second set of eyes while they sleep. For us, it’s priceless. I definitely think this is one of the best infant products out there, and if you can afford it, definitely purchase it!
Hatch Baby Changing Mat Scale
Oliver was born small for gestational age. A few weeks after he was born, he was given the dreaded diagnosis of “failure to thrive.” To say that we’ve had to vigilantly monitor his weight and height growth is an understatement.
We’ve had to weigh diapers, do before and after feeding weighs, and go in for regular weight checks at his pediatrician office. To be honest – it’s been kind of exhausting. Between those weight checks at the doctor, I get a lot of anxiety – is he gaining? Is he eating enough?
We bought a baby scale at Babies R Us when he first got the FTT diagnosis, and it was helpful– but it definitely has its limitations.
I saw Hatch Baby on Facebook, and it was something I really wanted – simply for the before and after feeding feature. While I could try and calculate this myself, it was very helpful to have it calculated and sent to my phone. Being able to keep track of this all at home was signed off by his doctor, so we didn’t have to go do weight checks every couple of days.
You can read my Hatch Baby review here.
It can also be purchased on Amazon.
When Oliver got really sick a few months ago with a very high fever, I pulled out a wearable thermometer that I was sent before he was born. It was SO helpful to be able to have his fever constantly monitored and recorded throughout the night. I was so alarmed when I realized his fever had gotten so high in the night, but I was glad that it was tracking him all night long.
Unfortunately, this was a one-time use monitor, and at $20 per thermometer, I’m not about to recommend people stocking up on them. However, I loved it, so I searched around for a different one that was more reusable.
I was absolutely THRILLED to find the smarttemp thermometer. It’s a Bluetooth enabled wearable thermometer that you can use over and over again! You just have to use a different adhesive strip each time, but you can buy replacements for very cheap at the store. It is one of my favorite things we own. It continually monitors their temperature as long as they are wearing it, and it alerts your phone whenever it reaches a level that it shouldn’t. It’s really great for nighttime! It’s FDA approved and award-winning.
You can purchase it on Amazon. It is around $69, which may seem like a lot, but since you can use it indefinitely – and for all your family members – I’d say it’s worth it!
Evenflo Advanced SensorSafe Embrace
Okay, this is the one product on my list that I actually don’t currently own, but I sure wish I did. While I never anticipate leaving my child in the car on accident, it can happen to anyone.
It has a sensor in the seatbelt that will alert you two times – when you stop your car, as well as if your child unbuckles it while you are driving. Some people will say that if you need a car seat to remind you to get your kid, you shouldn’t have kids. However, I think even the best of parents can make a mistake, and if there’s something there to help you in your most vulnerable of moments…well, then I’m all for it!
BONUS:
This isn’t a product that is used for babies, but I figured that if we’re talking about smart baby products, you’ll want to know about smart toddler/preschooler products. I recently was introduced to My KidPod, and I LOVE it. I only wish we had it when Jack got lost at Disneyland.
Basically, it’s a simple watch that your child wears that is connected to your phone via Bluetooth. If they ever wander out of your sight, an alarm will sound on your phone AND on their watch so you can easily find them. If we’d had this when Jack got lost, we would have found him so much faster. I’m super excited about it. It’s perfect for children ages about 3-8, and it costs $39.95 (with free shipping!)
Katie is a Colorado-native, BYU graduated, and most importantly, wife to one and mother to three beautiful boys. She is passionate about sharing her experiences with others – especially about pregnancy, breastfeeding, cooking, and crafts. She is currently training to be a Certified Lactation Educator. She loves spending time with her family and helping others find joy in family life.
Chelsea @ Life With My Littles says
These all sound awesome! Like seriously, all of them! And Oliver looks like he LOVES the MamaRoo!!
Katie says
He sure does!
DeAndra Dyson says
Hi There,
Loved this article! After ready thought you may be interested in a very unique and innovative learning tool for babies 0-4 years…From “U” University makes customized learning video in which your personal photos and voice are incorporated into the video content. It really keeps babies’ attention because they are listening and learning from mommy and/or daddy’s voice and seeing familiar faces and places as well! http://www.fromubaby.com
Katie says
How interesting! Thanks for sharing!