BABY ESSENTIALS #SLEEPING

I posted a list of BABY ESSENTIAL ITEMS, if you haven't read it, you can find it here. Our second part of this series is sleeping. I have put down just a few things, the essential I would say:

CRIB is just a place were the baby will sleep, so if you want to spend a lot of money, you surely can, but if you don't, you can find a new Ikea crib for 35 euros. I always had a thing for this Leander bed, but it was never in my price range. 

MATTRESS 

How much do you think this mattress will be used, one, two or three years? It is again up to you, what is important for you, I just both the Ikea mattress in a middle price range and it did it's job.

MATTRESS PAD was bought when my girl ended using the diapers at the age of two, but you can buy it from the start to save the mattress. When choosing think about the material and the right size, I prefer a cotton one. 

BEDDING follow your imagination and budget, now limits here.

BLANKETS one for the summer and one for the winter, depending where you live, cotton or flannel and wool are my choices. I saw the new Bugaboo wool ones, here, they are just my style ;)

I don't know way, but in Slovenia it's really hard to find nice cotton or wool blankets in any size, from small to big. 

* LEANDER CRADLE 

When I first saw that cradle, I thought this is great product, worth investing money in it. You can find more about it here.  But remember, it all depends from the child, it could be the best or the worst spend money.  My girl was using it for all her day naps from day one till the 7 month and she loved it, she could play in it ... but my boy, he couldn't stand it.

 

As Stig Leander wrote about the cradle, the link is here:

" The free way in which the cradle moves helps to stimulate the child’s sense of orientation. The sense is in the inner ear and it is not only crucial to our balance. It tells us about the body’s position in relation to the surroundings and about direction and speed so, for example, we know how we should place ourselves when we are to catch a ball. It also helps the brain to sort out the many impressions so we can concentrate better.

The sense of orientation also contributes to strengthening the body’s muscles in relation to balance. If the sense is poorly developed, the child has difficulty sitting on a chair and it can be difficult to concentrate on learning."

I think this cradle is rally something special and in my case was worth all the money, but it is not an essential item. On the other hand, I would put this cradle before any rocking chair or play-blanket, definitely.

BABY ESSENTIALS #TRANSPORTATION

Last Monday I posted a list of BABY ESSENTIAL ITEMS, if you haven't read it, you can find it here.

All the stuff that I suggested was put in different categories by color. I will write something about each categorie, from my personal point of view.

CAR SEAT +0

If you have a car, you will need one. You can find two types, one where the baby is lies down like in a basket, they are more expensive and can be used olny for a shorter period of time. The second one, that we used is the 0+ from birth to 13 kg, or till the cild doesn't grow out of it. 

There is also the Isofix, that should even give more safety, but it can be used olny in newer cars that have some anchorage points, you can check the list here. We didn't have them in our car, so Isofix didn't make it to my baby essential list.

You can find all different brands of car seats, in various price ranges, but before you buy one, go and try it out in the store, compare the models and the prices. I would buy a second-hand car seat olny from a person that I know and the older they are, the more fragile the plastic becomes, so that fact should also be considered. 

STROLLER + BUNDLE BAG or  FOOTMUFF

Whit strollers, there are some many possibilities, but remember BUY ONE THAT WILL SUIT YOUR LIVESTYLE, because you will be using it every day, for two to tree years! So if you walk a lot, like I did, or if you have a dog, like I have, it must be one that is more then just pretty.

I had 5 different strollers from Bugaboo Cameleon, Maclaren Triumpf, Maclaren XL, Maclaren Volo to a Peg Perego Si. A Lascal maxi buggy board was also used. My two children are born 18 moths apart, first in July second in January, so the weather was a factor to think about, when we were buying a stroller.

Today strollers can cost a fortune and it all started with and because of the Bugaboo Cameleon. It was the first stroller with a price tag, that was until then unthinkable high, but when the purchasing boom happened all the other company's followed the trend. And here we are today, with strollers that are costing more the 1000 euros. 

For our way of live, the Bugaboo Cameleon 2, was the best (from all the five strollers that I had and all that I have tried out from friends). I loved it from day one, my girl went home from the hospital with her Bugaboo... then we bought all the other ones, every single one of them was good, but as said the Cameleon was for us the best. Main reason, for me were: 

• basket & seat, not all in one
• easy folding and unfolding
• reclinable and reversible seat
• city and rough terrain wheel position, suitable for sand and snow, really!
• adjusting suspension
• high adjustable handlebar 
• the super big sun canopy
• the only bad thing I found was the brake. 

Today you can also accessories your buggy. I also did, but as I found out, that a product is not giving me any favors, I sold it. The olny things that were used from the start till the end were the Bugaboo footmuff and cup holder. The Bugaboo footmuff can be used from the start till the end off buggy time, they are now also selling a high performance footmuff, which has two detachable covers that can be changed depending on the weather. 

I was also searching for an organizer, something like this, but I couldn't find it, then when it come on the market it wasn't needed anymore. 

DIAPER BAG, I bought it also from Bugaboo, the isolated side pockets practical, everything else wasn't, so it had to go. After that, I just used a canvas bag to put it on or underneath the stroller. It was cheaper, lighter, had a lot of space and was more easy to wash, but if I went somewhere I put it all in my Vuitton Mezzo Piano. 

BABY CARRIER we also used. I bought the Ergo baby carrier with infant insert. A friend told me about it and when I saw it in Austria, I just went home with it. The thing was, that my daughter didn't like it, she was 5 months old to first sit in it. My son, on the other hand loved it from the start, but at the time he was 10 weeks old I saw and felt that there was something wrong. He was the diagnosed with a hypotonia of one body side, so the carier was strictly forbidden from the doctor. 

Note: If the Bugaboo Donkey would been on the market at the time I had my second child, I would definitely bought him, it would save me a lot of nerves.

Baby essentials ...

Mondays will be dedicated to motherhood, so lets start at the beginning, with baby essentials.

When I was pregnant with my first child, I was totally overwhelmed with all the baby stuff on the market. I couldn't figure it out, what will my baby and I really need from day one. So now is the time to confess, I made some very bad choices, that cost a lot of money. I should listened to my mom's advice to buy just the essentials, but how, if I didn't know what they where!

So I put together a list of most essential items, by my opinion, that you will need to buy in the first year:

• CAR SEAT +0, if you have a car
• STROLLER with a BUNDLE BAG for the winter, big enough from the first to the last day
• BABY CARRIER if you would like to carry your baby
• DIAPER BAG, to carry around when you need it, you don' have to buy a specific diaper bag, if you have a bag that is the right size and easy accessible, that just it

• CRIB
• MATTRESS
• MATTRESS PAD and 
• two sets of BEDDING
• I would add two BLANKETS, one for the summer and one for the winter, depending where you live

• CHANGING TABLE if you have a table or a dresser high enough use just them and a
• PAD with two
• PAD COVERS

• CLOTHES DIAPERS, they are good for everything, you will see

• DIAPERS, don't buy a lot of them just by one company, try different ones, to find the best for your baby
• WIPES
• RASH CREAM
• ASPIRATOR
• SALINE DROPS
• NAIL CLIPPERS or SCISSORS
• DIGITAL RECTAL THERMOMETER
• TUB if you don't have any suitable bucket
• TOWEL one is enough
• BABY SOAP
• HAIRBRUSH
• TOOTHBRUSH
• TOOTHPASTE

• NURSING PILOW 
• BREAST PUMP
• MILK STORAGE BOTTLES OR BAGS
• LANOLIN NIPPLE CREAM
• NURSING BRAS 
• NURSING SHIRT
• BREAST PADS all if you will breast feed or

• BOTTLES small and big one
• FORMULA MILK
• BRUSH for cleaning the bottles

• PACIFIER/DUMMY or something like GIRAFFE SOPHIE, not all baby's like the classical baby pacifiers

• HIGH CHAIR from 6 months on...
• TRAVEL CRIB if you travel a lot, it can be used as a 
• PLAYPEN
• SAFETY ACCESSORIES, for electrical socket, doors, stairs...

• CLOTHES & co. will get a post of its own as
• BOOKS & TOYS.

Remember, ALL BABIES ARE DIFFERENT.  What is loved by one, will not be liked by the other, so don't buy everything before you get to know your baby. My two little angels, were totally different, as you will see in the upcoming posts, where I will write about specific baby products, that were loved by one or both of them. 

What do you think, did I forget something?