Category: Newborns

If the mustache trend makes you giggle, the Mustacifier might be just what you need to put on a smile on your face during parenting’s rougher moments. This pacifier gives your baby one of three different mustache styles: the cowboy, the ladies man, or the gentleman.

The Mustachifier is different from other mustache themed pacifiers on the market because it’s intended to be fully functional and not just a cheap novelty item or one-time photo prop. It has been rigorously tested at an accredited US laboratory to meet or exceed all of the United States safety standards for pacifiers.

The Mustachifier is 100% BPA free and made of soft, flexible teether material. The silicone nipple has an orthodontic design to prevent damage to baby’s teeth. The dual-injected mustache cannot be detached from the pacifier and the pacifier shield is made of firm plastic with ventilation holes. It can be cleaned in the dishwasher or washed with hot water and mild detergent.

The Mustachifier pacifiers are made by FCTRY, a small family-owned product design company in Brooklyn. The company was created by artist Jason Feinberg, who was soon joined by wife Alyssa and cousin Quincy. Jason and Alyssa are proud to use the Mustachifier on their own son, who was born shortly after the official product launch.

Visit the Mustachifier website to purchase pacifiers for your baby. Each style is $9.99. If you purchase all three mustache options, shipping is free.

You can also buy Mustachifier pacifiers at Buy Buy Baby and select specialty retailers nationwide.

What do you think of this idea? Would you like a mustache pacifier for your baby?

Photo credit: Mustachifier

Unless you live in a super tiny apartment or plan to keep your baby next to you at all times, a great baby monitor is a must-have for a new parent. Motorola recently released several new models that are designed to meet the needs of busy parents.

• The MBP18 is a great choice for a first-time video monitor and comes equipped with infrared night vision and a 1.8” digital screen. This monitor offers all the perks of a video monitor without the high price tag, making it the perfect option for the budget-conscious new mom.
• The MBP26 has the same features as the MBP18 with a few added bonuses. This digital wireless baby monitor has additional sound activated lights and two-way communication so you can see, hear, and talk with your baby when you are not able to be by his or her side. Perfect for moms juggling the needs of a newborn and an older child!
• The MBP33 is a wireless video baby monitor that comes with a 2.8-inch color LCD screen. This monitor comes complete with remote zoom feature, infrared night vision and high sensitivity microphone. The MBP33 also includes a support stand and rechargeable parent unit.
• If you really want to go all out, the MBP36 comes with a 3.6 inch color LCD screen and features a remote tilt, pan, and zoom camera. With the camera, you can investigate and look around without having to physically be in the room with your baby. The MBP36 also comes with infrared night vision, pre-recorded lullabies, sound activated lights, and a host of other features at your fingertips.

What type of baby monitor are you using? What features do you think are the most important when shopping for a new baby monitor.

Photo credit: Motorola

Mothers of newborns know that babies tend to need a diaper change at the most inconvenient times! When you’re out and about, the b.box essential diaper wallet makes sure that you always have the supplies needed to make sure your baby’s bottom stays clean and dry.

The diaper wallet holds two diapers, 20 wipes, and an easy clean change mat. The wallet itself is made of polypropylene. The changing mat is made of coated polyester with a polyester backing and trim. The wallet measures 10 x 6 x 2 inches when closed. The changing mat measures 19 x 17 inches. Both items are BPA, Phthalate, and PVC free.

The b.box essential diaper wallet comes in colorful modern designs suitable for both boys and girls. Available patterns include:

• Beep Beep
• Shining Star
• Falling Leaves
• Flower Power
• Retro Circles
• Splish Splash
• Cherry Delight

I’m way past the stage of needing to carry around a diaper bag, but I think this product would have been very helpful when my son was little. It would have been nice to have something to drop into my regular purse for short trips to the store that didn’t require a full diaper bag.

I think my husband would have also liked this product, because he hated having to drag a big diaper bag of baby gear with him whenever he took our son out on his own.

The essential diaper wallet sells for $25. Visit the Svan website to purchase the product or to view other baby care essentials in the b.box collection.

Photo credit: Svan

If you love unique handcrafted children’s toys, the MiaBooo Etsy shop is worth a look. MiaBooo specializes in handcrafted baby blocks. There are lots of patterns to choose from, including designs for both boys and girls as well as several seasonal themed block sets that you could easily use for your holiday decor once your child has outgrown playing with them.

I’m personally partial to the superhero block set featured in this post. My son has loved superheros since he was a toddler, but it can be hard to find age appropriate superhero toys for young children. The images on these blocks are perfect for emphasizing the brave qualities of your little boy’s favorite superhero without promoting violent or aggressive behavior.

All of the blocks in the MiaBooo Etsy shop are hand cut and measure approximately 1.5″ square. The edges of the wooden blocks are sanded for safety and the images are coated with a non-toxic clear sealer. However, all children should be properly supervised when playing with the blocks.

MiaBooo is owned by Jen Beier from Louisville, Kentucky. She has been selling on Etsy since 2011 and has had over 1,800 sales. If you’re looking for a specific pattern for your child’s nursery or want a set of blocks that spell out your child’s name, Jen takes custom requests for unique block sets.

MiaBooo blocks come packaged in an organza bag for easy gift giving, if desired.

What do you think of this Etsy shop? Do you have a favorite block set design?

Photo credit: MiaBooo

If you’re looking for unique gifts for the special people in your life, check out the Egg-A-Go-Go Etsy shop.

This Etsy shop sells hand screen printed shirts and onesies, paintings, illustrations, prints, stationery, and postcard sets. The shop is owned by Sarah Coyne. She makes all of her items in Boston and has been selling on Etsy since 2006.

You can follow her on Tumblr to see her creative process in action and get a sneak peek of new items before they’re available for sale.

Ms. Coyne has a degree in illustration and is available for custom design work, if you have something in mind that you don’t see available in her shop. Hiring Etsy sellers for custom projects is a great way to get a really unique gift for a special occasion.

My personal favorite item in the Egg-A-Go-Go Etsy shop is the cute “I’m new here” baby onesie featured in this post. Priced at just $18, this would be an adorable baby shower gift! The onesie is sold in mint, lime, lilac, and coral. It is made from 100% organic cotton from India following all current organic and fair labor standards.

If you’re looking for something for an adult, I think this cotton tote bag with a check mark pin is really cute. It sells for $22.

Photo credit: Egg-A-Go-Go

Car seats are a necessity for any parent, but they are unbelievably hard to keep clean. Diaper blowouts, formula spills, and cracker crumbs seem to stick to car seats like a magnet. To help keep your car seat clean and stylish, check out the Baby Bella Maya car seat covers for infants and toddlers.

The Baby Bella Maya car seat cover comes in lots of different designs, but the caramel apple swirl pattern featured in this post is my personal favorite. I like it because it seems the most gender neutral and best suited to be able to hand down to any subsequent children you might have.

If you want something unabashedly girly, however, there are lots of cute frilly pink ruffle designs to choose from.

The infant car seat cover is designed to fit the Graco Snugride, Peg Prego, and other similar car seats. Toddler car seat covers are designed to fit the Britax Marathon toddler car seat or any similar car seat. Both covers sell for $74.95.

The covers themselves are machine washable on the gentle cycle, but the canopy on the infant car seats must be washed by hand.

Baby Bella Maya company was started by Marta Sala-Rothwell based on her experiences as a mother of four. After noticing the wear on her Baby Bjorn infant carrier, she created a fashionable slip cover to prolong its life. When strangers started asking where to buy a similar product, she knew she had a winning idea.

From there, her Baby Bella Maya created an entire line of cutting edge stylish gear and accessories for babies and toddlers.

Photo credit: Baby Bella Maya

Play gyms are a great way to keep your baby entertained, but many gyms are not very appealing to have left in your living room all day long. Finn + Emma, a retailer specializing in 100% organically grown baby products, has a play gym that is stylish, eco-friendly, and fun for your baby.

The gym is made from 100% birch wood that has been finished with a dark non-toxic stain. The stain, lacquer, and glue are guaranteed to be free of lead, nickel, phthalate, mercury, and formaldehyde. The stand is fully adjustable.

The cat and mouse toys have phthalate-free rattles inside and are hand knit from organic cotton with 100% sheep’s wool stuffing. The flower toys are made from all natural untreated Indian hardwood. All of the dolls are interchangeable and can be removed from the play gym to attach to the bumper of your stroller, baby’s high chair, or car seat.

The play gym in the photo accompanying this post is the girl’s play gym. The boy’s play gym has orange and teal stuffed dog and bear toys with wooden scooters.

The play gyms sell for $135 and can be purchased from the Finn + Emma website. If you’re expected, consider starting an online baby gift registry. When you create a registry, you’ll receive a coupon good for $50 off a purchase of $250 or more.

Although the Finn + Emma play gym is quite a bit more money than the one I had for my son, I think it’s a beautifully designed product that looks like it would hold up well enough to be used by several children in a family. I also like the idea that the toys can be removed for on-the-go play.

What do you think?

Photo credit: Finn + Emma

Whether you’re trying to find room for all the gear your baby needs in a tiny apartment or just someone who likes to keep clutter to a minimum, the Windel from Upscale Mom looks like a must-have product.

This unique storage cabinet provides a slim solution for stashing diapers, wipes, diaper rash cream, and other baby essentials. The diapers come out of the side of the cabinet and the wipes come out of the bottom, so you can easily grab what you need without taking your eyes off your baby.

When closed, the cabinet simply looks like a beautiful picture frame - perfect for showing off all those adorable first year baby photos!

Once your baby is potty trained, you can convert the Windel into a regular storage unit by removing the sloping diaper shelf and using it to cover the hole for baby wipe dispensing at the bottom of the cabinet.

Sarah (Chandrasekar) Tamilarasan of Katy, Texas invented the Windel in 2012 when she was searching for a stylish way to organize diapering supplies for her newborn son. Windel is a German word for “diaper.”

The Windel is available in either white or espresso finishes. It sells for $199.99. Visit the Upscale Mom website for purchasing information.

Photo credit: Upscale Mom

Out of Print creates clothing and accessories featuring art from well known book covers. They’ve recently introduced an adorable line of baby onesies that are perfect for any little bookworm.

Available designs include:

• Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems
• Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown
• The Day the Cow Sneezed by James Flora
• The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
• The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

The bodysuits come in 5, 12, 18, and 24 month sizes. They sell for $22 each on the Out of Print website. You can also add a copy of the book itself to your order, if you’re buying a baby shower gift or just trying to build your child’s library.

What’s wonderful about the Out of Print onesies, in addition to the pure cuteness factor, is that each purchase donates a book to a child in a needy community. Having access to age appropriate reading materials is one of the best ways to promote literacy among young children, but many kids in low income families have few or no books at their disposal.

By picking up a cute new outfit for your son or daughter, you can help ensure that all children have a chance to learn about the magic of a good book. To date, Out of Print has helped donate 600,000 books to communities in need through their partnership with Books For Africa.

What do you think about the Out of Print onesies? Is there a special book you’d like to see added to this collection?

Photo credit: Out of Print