Ingenious? or Useless? Help us FTMs out!

[Deleted]

Just stumbled across this article on Pinterest... Btdt Mommas, how much of these really pass the test? Discuss!


www.buzzfeed.com/peggy/ingenious-things-youll-want-as-a-new-parent

[calgal]

The only thing I have from that is the padded bath mat. It's definitely awesome. The car seat cover seems pretty cool if it really works.

[Deleted]

Water bottle adaptor is the only thing I would get.
I did do my own version of the bra clip. I just used a tiny binder clip

[almachs0786]

I'll review what I have, but I don't have a ton that's on that list.
10. Molar muncher - DD hated all of her teething toys, including this. We survived on hylands teething tablets.

12. Pacifier thermometer was a gift. It was terrible. Reading was usually not accurate. It may have been because it was a cheap brand though.

13. Sippy cup leash - awesome! Especially in the car (they make other ones that strap around the car seat straps)

15. Bottle sling - don't own but I would be afraid of it being a choking hazard.

16. Shower head - DD LOVES this thing!! We got it around when she turned 2, I don't think it would have been used much before then.

[jess9802]

The car seat blanket is a no-no: you don't want to route the straps through anything as it could affect performance in a crash. The airplane sling is also not FAA approved. If you follow best practice, baby will have his own seat on an airplane and ride in his carseat (lap babies flying for free be damned).

I had a stroller organizer - the Diono Buggy Buddy which was really nice since our stroller (the City Mini) didn't have parent cupholders or a place to put keys, etc.

The rest of the stuff on that list seems pretty silly and unnecessary.

[carissa325]

The fabric high chair strap thing is amazing! My mil made us one and we LOVE it. It's great when we go to someone's house who doesn't have a high chair.

Onesie extenders are great for babies like mine who are all torso.

[rlpointer86]

We have a couple straps which are basically just heavy duty ribbon with buttons that are great for keeping track of her favorite stuff animal or drink in her stroller. I personally love that. Other than that I would love to have a way to sneak my kid medicine because she HATES taking medicine but I wouldn't spend much money on something like that. And I wouldn't spend money on any of the rest of it personally.

[tacocatmom]

I hated the blooming bath flower thing. It didn't fit in any of our sinks.

Formula maker - got it as a gift and love it.

I actually like the mailbox idea

[sunshineshades]

Some of those are cool, but I didn't use any with my dd and likely wouldn't buy any of them for #2. Some I agree with pps I would worry would be dangerous (bottle sling, car seat blanket).
I do hear the wombie is great though, we used halo sleep sacks.

[paloslee]

I don't think any of these items were around when I had my son, mind you 16+ yrs ago.


21. Is kinda cool. I have a bike so I'd dig that.

26. Looks helpful to carry items

27. I'd use too. I nursed my son for over a yr and I plan to nurse again.

[azurestar]

The sippy cup leash is a cool idea. I also think the pacifier that closes itself when it falls is a good idea if that actually works.

[calgal]

I'll also add that you end up with so much crap that I would forget about items that had such a unique single purpose. Start with less and if you realize you really need something you can get it later.

[cinnamonsmiles]

Onesie extenders are fantastic if you use cloth diapers (fluff butt!) and the fabric high chair is fairly easy to make.
We have the sunshade and barely use it. If it's boiling hot in the car, baby will be hot whether the seat is covered or not until they get air flow. Just turn on the car 5min before getting everyone in and save the money.

[miggg]

Some of these look interesting but I've never used any of them before so I have no idea how functional they'd be in actuality.

[KK_8721]

You can pass on all that stuff. Like calgirl said, you'll get so much crap! You want things that can serve multiple purposes and things that will last for a long time.

[SheilaTheTank]

Can someone explain #27 to me? Do you really forget what boob your baby was just sucking on or is it for a different purpose?

[KK_8721]

Aug 3, 2015 9:40:28 GMT -5 SheilaTheTank said:

Can someone explain #27 to me? Do you really forget what boob your baby was just sucking on or is it for a different purpose?

You got it lol. I didn't forget what side I was on, but I was tandem nursing so both boobs were used all the time. Even if one was used more than the other I could figure it out with a quick squeeze test to see which one was fuller.

[zombiesquad]

Aug 3, 2015 9:40:28 GMT -5 SheilaTheTank said:

Can someone explain #27 to me? Do you really forget what boob your baby was just sucking on or is it for a different purpose?

Sometimes I would have a hard time remembering which boob I finished with from a previous session, especially when I was deliriously tired in the middle of the night. But I just used a free breastfeeding app to track my feedings.

[jewel441]

Aug 3, 2015 10:25:13 GMT -5 zombiesquad said:

Aug 3, 2015 9:40:28 GMT -5 SheilaTheTank said:

Can someone explain #27 to me? Do you really forget what boob your baby was just sucking on or is it for a different purpose?

Sometimes I would have a hard time remembering which boob I finished with from a previous session, especially when I was deliriously tired in the middle of the night. But I just used a free breastfeeding app to track my feedings.

My best friend had a cool app that synced across devices where you could track all kinds of stuff like feedings, sleep and diapers, etc. After I tell her I'm expecting next week, I plan on getting a bunch of info on different stuff from her since we are similar and I trust her research, etc.

[OrganicRosemary]

We have a padded bath tub kneeler and it's really nice to have.

Also, that car seat blanket is a biiiig no no. No bulky coats or blankets between baby and car seat straps. The straps should be snug against baby.

The bra clip-meh, I just do the squish test...

Nothing else really stuck out as useful/something we've used.

[zombiesquad]

Aug 3, 2015 10:48:05 GMT -5 jewel441 said:

Aug 3, 2015 10:25:13 GMT -5 zombiesquad said:

Sometimes I would have a hard time remembering which boob I finished with from a previous session, especially when I was deliriously tired in the middle of the night. But I just used a free breastfeeding app to track my feedings.

My best friend had a cool app that synced across devices where you could track all kinds of stuff like feedings, sleep and diapers, etc. After I tell her I'm expecting next week, I plan on getting a bunch of info on different stuff from her since we are similar and I trust her research, etc.

Yes, an app that tracks all of that is good because the pediatrician will ask how much they are sleeping, how many dirty and a wet diapers they have a day and a whole bunch of other stuff a tired mom can't keep in her head.

[peachesncream]

Aug 3, 2015 11:13:41 GMT -5 zombiesquad said:

Aug 3, 2015 10:48:05 GMT -5 jewel441 said:

My best friend had a cool app that synced across devices where you could track all kinds of stuff like feedings, sleep and diapers, etc. After I tell her I'm expecting next week, I plan on getting a bunch of info on different stuff from her since we are similar and I trust her research, etc.

Yes, an app that tracks all of that is good because the pediatrician will ask how much they are sleeping, how many dirty and a wet diapers they have a day and a whole bunch of other stuff a tired mom can't keep in her head.

I would recommend not touching the app with a 10 foot pole.  It turned me into a crazy lady and stressed me out a ton.  I also think it interfered with me establishing my milk supply as I would utter the words "She just ate, she's not hungry" a lot (LIE.  Babies are always hungry).

If you track anything just track the diapers.

[peachesncream]

We have #13 (sippy cup leash) and reusable pouches that are sort of like #22. Some friends had success with the Woombie (#4). The rest of these made me eye roll a bit and pretty much every carseat thing they showed was incredibly unsafe.

[jtizzay]

Our app is total baby. I've used it since day one and love it. But I had a bad memory. Squish test didn't always work for me

Honestly things I needed in the beginning were friends who came over to hold baby while I rested. Food because I was starving and time just flew. Once B was more than a month I loved the blankets that were arm less (post swaddlers) but I don't have a ton of "hacks"

I have a padded bath tub kneeler but we used the sink through month6

That car seat thing is pretty ridiculous. It's basic knowledge once you learn re car seats that nothing should be between baby and seat. Ie even bulky clothes should be removed.

[cinnamonsmiles]

Aug 3, 2015 11:53:59 GMT -5 peachesncream said:

Aug 3, 2015 11:13:41 GMT -5 zombiesquad said:

Yes, an app that tracks all of that is good because the pediatrician will ask how much they are sleeping, how many dirty and a wet diapers they have a day and a whole bunch of other stuff a tired mom can't keep in her head.

I would recommend not touching the app with a 10 foot pole.  It turned me into a crazy lady and stressed me out a ton.  I also think it interfered with me establishing my milk supply as I would utter the words "She just ate, she's not hungry" a lot (LIE.  Babies are always hungry).

If you track anything just track the diapers.

So much this. In the hospital I was required to fill out a sheet with what time baby ate/how long + diaper changes. Me being super organized decided to keep it up at home and I did it for 2 months before I realized it was making me crazy.

Cloth diapers make it really easy to track dipe changes, just saying

[calgal]

I loved my app babyconnect. It was especially helpful when I was pumping to track my amounts. It was a lifesaver.

[chatterbox]

Aug 3, 2015 9:40:28 GMT -5 SheilaTheTank said:

Can someone explain #27 to me? Do you really forget what boob your baby was just sucking on or is it for a different purpose?

I would lose track sometimes. I just put a hair tie on the wrist if the side she most recently nursed from to help me remember.

[chatterbox]

The only thing off that list that I wish I had is a video monitor that works with my phone. We don't go out much, but it would be nice to be able to see that she's sleeping soundly when we do go out to dinner and leave her with a sitter.

We do have a padded bath caddy, which I really like. Also, I've found our stroller caddy to be a must.

The only other thing I found helpful is the swaddle, but there are a lot of options and it doesn't have to be the one from the article. We started with a summer infant swaddle and then eventually switched to the arms up swaddle.

[FunniBunni]

I have a sippy cup leash. I put it around the neck of her stuffed kitty, worked great! Everything else, just seems like extra extraneous crap. Well- the stroller caddy MIGHT be nice, but my stroller has a cup holder and a little tray already. Maybe if I only used the umbrella stroller, it's be nice. But I have everything in the diaper bag, so... Ya. Pass. (Sorry, that was rambly!)

Baby apps. I have "Baby Nursing". Stupid name. Good app. I used it in the beginning because we had jaundice, which caused feeding issues. It helped me track how much BM I gave her, how much formula, how long I nursed, and how much I pumped. Wet/Dirty diapers, and how much she slept, measurements from the doc, etc. I was really, really grateful for it! It also had a timer to remind me to pump. (She wasn't feeding, so she wouldn't wake up and eat, tanking my supply.) Once she was okay, and feeding well, (about a monthish?) I just stopped using it for everything but recording her height/weight at her well baby visits. Highly recommend it!

[fignewt]

The Blooming Baby Bather looks cool to me, i always struggle in those first weeks bathing baby in the sink.
I had the pacifier that closes when dropped. It worked! It wasnt one of DS's favorite pacis but when he was in his dropping phase, it was the only one i would offer him when we were out.
The urinal is pretty silly. I taught both of my boys how to per standing up, and they just peed into the little potty (btw - ikea has the cheapest potties around, and theyre great!)
I did have that spoon where you fill it up with baby food and then just squeeze it out, but truth is, i never used it. I did use these spoons you screw directly onto the baby food pouch, you can get at BRU or Target. These were great for feeding on the go:
m.toysrus.com/skava/static/product.html?type=TRU_product_us&url=%2Fproduct%2Findex.jsp%3FproductId%3D4102580&domain=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.toysrus.com&productId=4102580