03. 1.2010
Baby Bunk Sleeper
As first time parents, we were most surprised when our newborn baby objected to the nice cosy moses basket we'd envisaged she'd sleep in: before long, we were co-sleeping, without ever having really planned to.
Next time around, I'd look at a sidecar sleeper like the Baby Bunk: baby feels like he's still in with you, but the set-up leaves the whole bed for the adults, and there's no need to worry about rolling over or smothering. Well, that'd be the idea, anyway.
I like the fact that this product was borne of one family's nifty woodworking, which friends and neighbours coveted when they saw it. The best products are always that way.
Via Swiss Miss.
Posted by Myf
Category:
gear
Tags: co-sleepers cots cribs
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02.27.2010
Wallaboo Baby Wrap Leaf
Wrapping your baby up in a flower-shape wrap might seem like a rather achingly fey thing to do, but Wallaboo allow you to both revel in the sweetness and enjoy a practical product too. The 'petals' of the cut out shape go to provide an optional hood for your swaddled babe; there's also a pocket in there to prevent slipping out. Then, when baby's unwrapped, there's a playmat with interesting edging to explore.
Soft and warm, the Baby Wrap Leaf is made from a combination of suede, velcro and cotton - and lets you indulge your fairy side while still behaving like a responsible parent.
Posted by Myf
Category:
gear
Tags: blankets swaddling wraps
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02.25.2010
The Clek Oobr Booster Seat
Our little ones manage to outgrow everything at warp speed, it seems. Car seats are no exception. It seems like just yesterday we were researching and shopping for an infant car seat, and here we are in booster seat mode! If you're not keen to purchase the standard black, brown or blue models out there and want to add a side of spice to your safety, check out the Clek Oobr Booster Seat. This full back booster car seat is for kids 38 - 57 inches tall and 33 - 100 lbs and converts to a backless booster seat as well (for kids 40 - 57 inches tall and 40 - 100 lbs).
It's got all of the bells and whistles that most other seats offer, including the rigid LATCH system, a magnesium back frame, a head restraint boasting deep side wings and belt guides to improve belt positioning on your child's hips and shoulders. Nevermind all of that, the colors are pretty cool. And the seat's "Crypton" "superfabric is virtually impervious to stains and environmentally friendly." Available here for under $300.
*Full disclosure: We wound up going with the Britax Frontier for the 5-point harness.
Available at Amazon.
Posted by Katie
Category:
gear
Tags: booster seat car seat
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02.19.2010
Baby Seal blanket
We've featured Birkiland before for their unique, Icelandic take on interiors and games. Now here's an equally quirky-but-useful product. Make your baby look like a seal! But keep him toasty too!
The Babyseal does seem eminently practical: easy to slip baby into and out of, and offering full coverage.
It looks as if it was inspired by an actual sealskin: personally, not having grown up in arctic climes, and being less hardy Icelander, more middle-class vegetarian, I'd rather it were this way.
And then it has the comic effect of making your child actually look like a seal. So, wins all round, really.
Posted by Myf
Category:
gear
Tags: blankets Scandinavian design wool
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02. 1.2010
The sleeping bag your kid can walk in
Why isn't every sleeping bag like the Musuc bag? This innovative quilted sleeping sack comes with individual legs so you can walk around. Every parent who's ever had a kid complaining that it's too cold to go to the loo, or whose kid likes to bedhop in the night, or whose kid likes to play at astronauts for that matter, is going to want one of these - and I guess that's why the site it's for sale on is called iwantoneofthose.com.
Fancy one for yourself, too? You're in luck: they also come in adult sizes.
Posted by Myf
Category:
gear
Tags: sleepingbag
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01.26.2010
Getting Clean: Shark Steam Mop
With my first baby, we had a small junior-four in NYC. Maintaining a tidy floor was much less daunting of a task when we had a mere 100-300 square feet to keep clean. I didn't even feel so bad about using chemicals because we needed to use only a minute amount! Living in a house, however, has changed the game. Now that I've got another full-on crawler who will eat and (yes) lick anything off of the floor, its cleanliness has climbed slightly higher to the top of the priority list. And with much more surface area to cover, I'm not so thrilled about using a ton of Clorox (many a grandmother's best friend!).
But fear not! The Shark Steam Mop is here (and being promoted left, right and center) to close that generational gap simply using reusable micro-fiber cloth, tap water and "super-heated" steam to annihilate dirt, spills and even e.coli. Weighing a mere 5 pounds with a nifty swivel head and ergonomic handle, this child and environment friendly product will run you about $100. Two top models are not cordless and carry only a one-year warranty, which might turn you off to this product.
Reviews for the product seem mixed. I, for one, would love to test drive it. Anything that could turn my grey-ish kitchen floor back to its original white without completely destroying my ability to smell anything would be worth its weight in gold.
Check it and its handheld version out here.
Posted by Katie
Category:
bath/health
| gear
Tags: cleaning eco-friendly green safety
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01.19.2010
DadGear Cargo Diaper Jacket - yes, really
In picking the tags for this post, I thought to myself, "Should I file this under decor as well, since I'm sure it would hang on a hook in our house collecting dust?" But alas, I'm sure that somewhere someone needed a coat like this one by DadGear and that's when two dads put their heads together and came up with the "wearable diaper bag." Considering how much thought most moms put into this item, it's not surprising that some enterprising guys would design something like this.
Check out the nine (yes, nine!) pockets, all big enough to carry diapers, wipes, and two bottles. And what's that I see in there? A changing pad, hidden in a back panel! This jacket could possibly give your guy his gizmo fix (minus the electronics, but you never know) and, practically speaking, would be pretty great at the airport or on a plane.
If necessity is the mother of all invention, then perhaps jealousy is the daddy who wants some baby gear too.
Posted by Katie
Category:
fashion
| gear
Tags: dad diaper bag jackets travel
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01.15.2010
No Allergies to Cafe Press Here
I love Cafe Press. I think that I ordered about a third of our Christmas gifts from there this year. As usual, I made sure to browse the baby section just in case we didn't have enough gear on this end (we do) and came across these clever bibs (all of which can be made into t-shirts or onesies).
At around $10 for bibs and $12-$20 for onesies and tees, these items are great options for parents tired of explaining everytime they ask, "is/are there milk/wheat/nuts in this?" (and getting the eye-roll from waiters, etc.). Now, simply point to the bib.
Posted by Katie
Category:
fashion
| gear
| mealtime
Tags: allergies bibs onsies tees
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01. 4.2010
Samsonite baby travel design competition
A tweet alerted me to one of the more futuristic designs contending for the Samsonite Baby Travel Design competition: prior to that, I'd never heard of it. Which is peculiar, because what could be more up Babygadget's street than a contest for designs that make a parent's life easier?
A quick Google led me to a disappointingly sparse website, with biographical details of the winners from the 2008 contest, but no descriptions of their designs - weird!
However, some further poking about brought to light the two designs you see illustrated here. Above and directly below, 2008's winner, the Strolley. It's a suitcase with a portion that folds up into a fabric pushchair-style seat: excellent.
Below is the Transtroller, a simpler idea obviously born of frustration with existing double buggy designs - it allows for independent folding of each unit, so you needn't take up too much room when only a single child needs to ride.
Clearly there are some excellent innovations coming out of this contest, so let's hope that this year's winners and runners up are given a little more prominence!
Posted by Myf
Category:
gear
Tags: design prototypes travel
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12. 9.2009
The Noonie wrap
Soft and snuggly, that's the way we like it for the youngest of the young. The Noonie, easy to fasten and with a fake-fur soft interior, makes swaddling baby up during those winter months a very easy task - and looks just adorable, too.
Posted by Myf
Category:
gear
Tags: blankets wraps
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