Mama's Favorites part 2

Part one can be found here.

20. Organic Plum Tots {fruit packs}. We just discovered these the last couple of months and have instantly fallen in love. And I'm not even the one eating them. However, Elliana sucks these things like they are gold, so that to me is good enough. Add on top of that they are organic and full of all sorts of vitamins and nutrients, I am one happy happy mama. So happy that I have subscribed through amazon to have these delivered monthly. I ordered this flavor as well as peach. Yum.  

21. Baby Einstein videos. Okay let me just start out by saying that Elliana does not watch anything besides educational videos. Which include these baby einstein. We have the whole set {numbers, shapes, animals, music, etc} and we, clarification; Elliana, love them a whole lot. I think it is important that if my daughter watches any kind of television that it is educational and baby Einstein has not failed us yet.

22. Flashcards. We own every one of these "my first" flashcards and we have "school time" daily. She adores these cards and actually sits in my lap while we go through them. They are very colorful, a lot of them have "feely" type things on them, and they are large and very easy to us. On the back they also have "Questions" that you can ask your baby/toddler. I know these won't pertain to her until she is older, but still, they are awesome awesome awesome. And I believe she has learned a lot from them already.

23. Britax Andrew and I went back and forth between many car seats before we picked this one. In fact we had ordered the graco car seat first, but after figuring out that it was rear-facing only, we had to give it to my nephew instead. The britax so far has been nothing but great to us. It is rear-facing or forward-facing, and so far E has been rear. The only downfall is that there are no cup holders. But hello, that's why my child has hands. :)

24. Chicco Travel System Travel system is numero uno on my list of newborns. This is like a life saver to have a car seat that just snaps into stroller and locks into place. I can't imagine what life would have been like without one.

25. Extra Base This has been a life saver and I think that every family should own an extra base (if able). Andrew and I had to "meet" a lot of times due to me working nights and him working days so this allowed us to keep the baby in one car and not have to take her out. This also allowed us to keep the bases in each car and not have to switch them out every time we chose to take out a different car.

26. Talking/Singing Dog. Elliana got this for her birthday... it took us a month to figure out why it wasn't working {dumb on our part}, and then once we got it working... o to the m g. That girl fell in love quicker with that toy than any other toy she has. She kissed it. Hugs it. Claps with it. The toy is educational. Sings songs. Counts. Sings the ABC's. It's pretty much awesome.


27. Zulily. Mama loves to shop. Mama loves cute stuff. But on top of those two, what mama loves the most is a good good deal. And this site, as well as number 28, are my top two to-go sites that I visit on a daily basis. They have new deals every day, normally lasting 3-4 days, and they are all 50-90% off. Clothes. Shoes. Books. Toys. They even have maternity stuff, and just stuff for moms in general. The only downfall is that the things go fast fast, and shipping takes around a month.


28. Totsy. Same as number 27. Just another site, but the details are the same as zulily. Including the shipping part.

29. Fuzzy Yellow Duckling. This is Elliana's favorite book hands down. It has flaps that she opens up on each page and something that she touches {things sticky, furry, scaly, etc}. It's awesome.

30. F is for Farm. Another interactive book that she can took and things "move." She adores it

31. You are my I Love You. I actually love this book. Elliana isn't as into it yet because it isn't as interactive and fun as the others... but this book is really special, and I can't wait for her to understand it. I think every mother should own this book.

Mama's Favorites

Just some of my favorite things that have helped me survive motherhood. I swear by these products... and I would recommend them in a heartbeat. If you have any additional questions, leave a comment!

1. Waterproof bibs  {Awesome. More than awesome. You can wash these in the sink after every meal. No need to do laundry. They are large, so cover lots of surface area. And best of all? They catch the "drifters" before landing on the pants. The pockets are truly a lifesaver!  2. Munchkin shampoo rinser {Do I want to hit my daughter in the head every time I wash her head? Of course not. Therefore, this thing is key. I honestly didn't even discover it until I threw a friend of mine a baby shower and she was gifted this. Where on earth had I been? I quickly purchased it days later}  3. Straw sippy cups {Elliana loves these. But I am convinced that I love them even more, simply due to the fact that she looks like such a big girl drinking out of them. That, and the fact that they are completely spill-proof! Double bonus}

4. Avent double electric breast pump {I used this pump for a year with not a single problem. Ever. It was so easy to use. Easy to clean the parts. Easy to assemble. And came with a cute little {not so litter} tote! And? I could pump about 8 ounces in less than 10 minutes! Glorious} 5. Avent bottles {Perhaps this is due to the fact that I had an advent breast pump, but regardless, I have loved these bottles. I have never had issues, and would therefore put my name to them. I would recommend however to buy an assortment of bottles, mainly 4 ounce bottles, a couple of 6 ounce, and maybe 1 or 2 9 ounces} 6. Lansinoh milk storage bags {aside from a few bags that would leak, 99% of the time, I had no issues. And believe me, I stored a whole lot of milk. I always purchased mine through amazon, cheaper, free shipping, and no taxes!}

7. Halo Sleep sacks {No blankets in crib? No problem. These are the solution. These pictures are some velcro ones, which we had a couple of those, however, I recommend the zipper kind that let their arms free. Elliana never liked having her arms enclosed. Plus, most babies outgrow those. The zipper ones are awesome. Guaranteed my baby wouldn't freeze nor suffocate.  8. Snuza {If you are late to the Snuza party, rest assured it is the greatest product out there. Hands down. I put my name all across it. It is a device that monitors your baby's breathing/movement and alarms when either is not detected. Even though you do go through some false alarms, they are totally worth it knowing that there is something out there watching your baby as you sleep. Costs about 100 dollars, but again, worth every penny.  9. Angel Care Monitor  {Me. Being the paranoid, crazy, over-protective mama that I am.... I also purchased this as well as the Snuza. I needed double protection. This product however goes underneath the mattress and also detects movement. It also serves as a monitor and detects the temperature in the room so that your baby does not get overly heated. Again, highly recommend}.

10. Receiving Blankets {I'm pretty sure everyone has this on their list. But my thing is, invest in at least 4 packs. 16 blankets. At the beginning of motherhood? Believe me, you will use every one of those. Over and over again.} 11.  Walker {I LOVE this toy, But why do I even matter? The more important person here is Elliana who is obsessed with this toy. It lights up. It sings. It teaches her. It does all sorts of great things.} 12. Learning Toy {Again. Another toy that I think is awesome for kiddos. Elliana spends lots of time on this thing, and it teaches her colors, numbers, spanish, sings songs, etc}.

13. Moby Wrap {I would have never survived the first couple of months of motherhood without this thing. Okay, maybe a bit exaggerated, but honestly, this thing is awesome if you have a baby that is attached to you like mine was. I did dishes with her in it, I did laundry, walks, naps. You name it. We did it. I used it up until she was about 5-6 months old. And yes, husband gamed with her in it. He also would highly recommend it} 14. Swing {Our first few weeks of life revolved around this thing and our chest. Why? Because our baby never slept in her sleeper right away. She took lots of naps in this thing as well. I do have to say though, after about month 5? They are totally over it. It's been in storage since}  15.  Organic Cereal {I'm not a big organic person, but I have definitely been trying a lot with my daughter. And I have to say that this stuff is awesome. She loves it. She has had it for breakfast every day for 7 months now. It runs about 3.50 per bag at wal-mart. I usually pick up 7 bags at a time}

16. Cabinet Lock {I've always been against too much baby-proofing, for us, that is. Mainly because I didn't want my house to look like a kid-war-zone. However, after much debate, this thing was much needed when my daughter  constantly kept getting into the cabinets that had the chemicals in it. And ever since we put this bad boy on? She's totally over it. It's so easy to install, no drilling or tools involved, and easy to use. Even I, the idiot brain, totally figured it out}17. Baby Gate {this thing is life proof. Seriously. You need a gate? Get this. Why am I so confident? Because we have gone through 2 gates prior, both sucking, 50 dollars later {Each}, and we finally found on that was 1. super easy to install and 2. totally baby proof. She shakes that thing like shes in a jail cell. Love it. Can't get in, or out.} 18.Carbon Monoxide Detector {Well. Mama fail. It only took me 1 year to purchase one of these bad boys, but seriously, I totally forgot this was on the "need" list of mothers. I purchased it. Off amazon {per link}, and of course it was 50% off. The reviews were amazing, and I totally see why. It's wireless so you can put it anywhere, and it's user friendly. So far? No false alarms.}

-----------------
Any product out there that you swear by?! Please share!