These are a few of my favorite things

About a month ago, the mother-in-law of my pregnant friend's asked me about my favorite baby products. I completely drew a blank and was of no help (I blame lack of sleep). Since then, however, I’ve been making mental notes of the products that I appreciate the most at this stage in our parenting adventure. Here are our current favorites:

The Arm's Reach Mini Co-Sleeper: This little thing may not look like much but I LOVE it. The side drop down and it attaches right to the side of our bed. It’s great for middle of the night feedings – Lincoln has his own sleeping space, yet is close enough that I can pick him up without getting out of bed (fabulous!). Thank you for this, Grandma – it has been wonderful.

Baby Einstein- Seek & Discover Deluxe Activity Gym: You’ve all heard me rave about this. From the time Lincoln was about 6 weeks old we could put him on this mat and he would watch intently for a long time. Now he’s to the point where he talks to the toys and grabs them – so much fun! Warning: the music will get stuck in your head – Levi and I have both caught ourselves humming the tunes around the house.

MAM pacifiers: We started off with Soothies, which Lincoln seemed to like, but he could not keep them in his mouth for more than 30 seconds. We tried NUK, but those didn’t stay put either. The MAMs stay in his mouth much, much better.

JJ Cole Diaper & Wipes Caddy: If you have stairs in your house a diaper caddy is a must-have. Our main changing station is upstairs, but this caddy downstairs gets much more use. It’s so convenient (especially the first few weeks) to be able to have all of the changing necessities where you spend the most time (for us, that was in the living room). I want one of these in every room.

Kiddopotamus SwaddleMe Wrap: We tried to use this for Lincoln when we first brought him home and didn’t have any luck. He squirmed, cried, and acted like he hated it - so we put it away. Then, a few weeks ago a couple told us how swaddling their little girl helped her sleep so much better and we decided to give it another try. The first time we revisited the subject, Lincoln didn’t seem to keen on it, squirming and fussing – but we powered through and within minutes he settled down – and proceeded to sleep a 5 hour stretch of the night (prior to that he was only sleeping 3!). Now we use it every night and Lincoln doesn’t even bat an eye when we wrap him up.

So - there you have it. If you have any shopping to do for families with little ones on the way, I highly recommend these products.

Have a great weekend! And, don't worry - I'll post pictures that you actually care about -(of Lincoln, of course) as soon as I get more downloaded :).