Things that make your life easier

[simpsongal]

From my whopping 3.5 weeks of motherhood, the following has made my life easier.

1) Peapod pickup - for those in the DC area or other areas that offer this service, you probably already know about grocery delivery (which is great).  But sometimes I hate paying the delivery fee, tip, waiting 2-3 days for groceries, or getting $100 minimum.  Peapod just added a new service in our area - peapod pickup.  You can order your groceries online and pick them up the next day curbside at the store.  No fee, no tip (specified), no hassle.  I did it yesterday with J sitting in his car seat and it was awesome! 

2) Tri-vi-sol drops.  I think I'm in the minority here, but J really likes these drops.  I save them for the end of the day and administer them in partial doses if he gets fussy.  I guess he as a sweet tooth like his mama

3) Target nursing tanks:  They're on sale this week - buy one get one 50% off, plus an extra 20% off your order if you spend $75.  These probably don't work for those with large chests but they're fine for my B/C cups and much cheaper than the Bravado tanks and other brands.  Super convenient, I just ordered 4 more.  Tank + cardigan = mom uniform.

4) Snug-a-bunny swing.  It's become our morning routine.  J is awake but not enough for tummy time and I want to make breakfast and have some mommy time.  Enter the snug-a-bunny swing - he loves it!

Shout out to Amazon mom too.  Honestly, I feel so fortunate to be raising a baby at this time.  These grocery and delivery options make life so much easier!

Please add your own

ETA: Disposable changing pads.  (This is quickly becoming the anti-green post).  I have like 4-5 changing pad covers but you can't beat the convenience of these liners, particularly if you have a messy diaper or fire hose situation.

[bearbaby]

FORMULA PITCHER FTW!!! I waited WAY too long to get one of these...

Monthly house-cleaning service

[simpsongal]

Feb 26, 2014 9:57:20 GMT -5 bearbaby said:

FORMULA PITCHER FTW!!! I waited WAY too long to get one of these...

Please explain - what is this?  In that theme, my friend swore by the convenience of pre-mixed formula and Platex bottles with drop in liners too.

Also, I haven't had to heat a ton of bottles yet, but I sprang for the Kiinde Kozii bottle warmer and it rocks!  It's just like the one from the NICU, so easy to use.

[Brie]

Cleaning service. Worth every penny.

Amazon Prime.

I have high hopes for StitchFix too. I need to be de-frumped and don't have time to shop. stitchfix.com/referral/3493072

[Deleted]

Contigo coffee mugs - keep coffee hot for a few hours, plus are unspillable around kids. The water bottle is also great.

[brooklyn]

Amazon mom and Seamless for ordering takeout.

[karinothing]

Goldfish crackers

[magpie]

I recently got the Precious Planet mobile at the consignment shop. I adore that thing! When DD wakes up at 5:45am, I can often stumble into her room and turn it on and get 20 minutes more of sleep until my alarm goes off

[magpie]

Feb 26, 2014 10:10:45 GMT -5 @tokenhoser said:

Contigo coffee mugs - keep coffee hot for a few hours, plus are unspillable around kids. The water bottle is also great.

I agree, I love my Contigo!  I love that I can fill it with coffee, toss it in my purse and enjoy the hell out of it when I get to work, which is what I'm doing RIGHT NOW.

[Mrs.Syntax]

Pouch food. My younger daughter learned very early on how to feed herself by sucking out the food - I can just throw her in the high chair, hand her a pouch of food and load the dishwasher or something. I try not to do this often because it's so much more expensive per oz than other baby food. I know there are reusable ones you can fill yourself, but that defeats the purpose of convenience

[zeewifeandmama]

TV in my car

Cleaning service

Foscam on my phone

[countthestars]

Puffs.
Boppy for curling around DD so she won't fall when sitting alone for longer periods of time.
Jumperoo.
Crock pot.
People who brought dinner and freezer meals.
iPhone camera so I don't have to lug around my real camera.

[urbancowgirl]

This week I'm loving those mesh self-feeders. I can throw a chunk of frozen puree in there and it will keep DS busy and quiet for 20 minutes.

[bearbaby]

Feb 26, 2014 10:02:19 GMT -5 simpsongal said:

Feb 26, 2014 9:57:20 GMT -5 bearbaby said:

FORMULA PITCHER FTW!!! I waited WAY too long to get one of these...

Please explain - what is this?  In that theme, my friend swore by the convenience of pre-mixed formula and Platex bottles with drop in liners too.

Also, I haven't had to heat a ton of bottles yet, but I sprang for the Kiinde Kozii bottle warmer and it rocks!  It's just like the one from the NICU, so easy to use.

We bottle fed (feed) and were on formula full time by about I think 6 weeks...I used to mix every bottle individually - which was always a pain in the a%% but especially when DS started daycare and I had to mix 3-4 bottles all at once...but individually.

Enter: pitcher.  I could mix a full batch at ONCE and pour it into bottles, let it settle overnight, and through growth spurts it was so easy to "top DS off" if he was still hungry for another ounce or something...best $12 I spent on baby gear. 

[simpsongal]

I'm totally bookmarking this thread and adding some of these items to my amazon wishlist.

I think a cleaning service is in our future once J is crawling. For now, dust bunnies and muddy paw prints can accumulate on my floor, it adds character.

[mswax]

Feb 26, 2014 10:24:31 GMT -5 urbancowgirl said:

This week I'm loving those mesh self-feeders. I can throw a chunk of frozen puree in there and it will keep DS busy and quiet for 20 minutes.

DS3 likes this too, but how do you clean it?  I can't seem to get all the mashed food bits out and it's gross!

[Velar Fricative]

Cleaning lady - DH and I have been looking at ways to make cuts to our budget each month but we absolutely will not cut this. A clean apartment makes me happy and neither of us have time to do what she does, so she's a keeper.

Fresh Direct grocery delivery - Yes, it's more expensive than the local supermarket but worth the extra money for convenience. No need to lug DD around while grocery shopping, and other grocery shoppers drive me nuts anyway.

Ditto the Kiinde Kozii bottle/food warmer and my Contigo coffee mug.

Two sets of pump parts - one to keep at work and one to keep at home. No more forgetting something at home!

Keurig Vue

Crockpot

This granny cart for laundry (and groceries when I can't wait for Fresh Direct): www.versacart.us/

[toesie]

Feb 26, 2014 10:34:51 GMT -5 swizz said:

Feb 26, 2014 10:02:19 GMT -5 simpsongal said:

Please explain - what is this?  In that theme, my friend swore by the convenience of pre-mixed formula and Platex bottles with drop in liners too.

Also, I haven't had to heat a ton of bottles yet, but I sprang for the Kiinde Kozii bottle warmer and it rocks!  It's just like the one from the NICU, so easy to use.

If I could go back again, I'd SOOOOOO get these bottles. If you're doing formula or just mostly bottle feeding, cleaning a thousand nipples, threads, and bottles a day is soooo annoying. I feel like bottles are taking over my small kitchen. It'd be so much easier to just wash nipples.

We still washed the bottles and the caps besides the nipples. So, it's all the same. We used them because DD only took them with the rubber nipples.

[Deleted]

Feb 26, 2014 10:10:45 GMT -5 @tokenhoser said:

Contigo coffee mugs - keep coffee hot for a few hours, plus are unspillable around kids. The water bottle is also great.

H bought me two for Christmas and is convinced they are like super glued to my hand or something these days..ha.

Awesome.

The kid version is pretty great too although it takes a bit of figuring out.

[redheadk]

Shut up all of you with grocery delivery or even pick up service. I AM SO JEALOUS.

[sporklemotion]

Slow cooker. I can load it up in short spurts and if I'm occupied when it's done cooking, it's NBD and the food won't burn. I'm vegetarian so I'm not concerned about bacteria growing if it sits for a while before turning it on. If not for this, we would have had takeout and cereal for the first 10 or so weeks.

Changing pad to fit in bassinet-- we keep this downstairs and have her real changing table upstairs. This makes it easier during the day.

Pre-mixed formula samples from the hospital-- we are almost EBF, but she is a slow nurser, so I rarely nurse in public. These are good to keep in the diaper bag when I'm not sure if I'll need to feed her when I'm out for an hour or so. I don't have to worry about pumped bottles getting messed up from repeated temperature changes, or about wasting powdered formula because of it's shelf life, because I'm not sure if I'll need them. These are $$$, but we use maybe one or two a month, so it'll be worth it to buy more once they're gone.

[Jalapeñomel]

Beco Gemini and/or the ring sling

[Deleted]

Sending my older kid to daycare 2 days a week. She loves it there, is well occupied, she feels loved and she's not too upset by baby brother because her schedule is basically the same. It also gives me 2 days a week to catch up on sleep, do housework, or at least not be "on." We're all better off. Well worth the money.

I really like the Evenflo glass bottles. They go in and out of the dishwasher great and no ridiculously complicated parts. I have covers for them and broke one in a year with DD1, we'll see with DS.

The hour wash cycle on my dishwasher. Great for getting all those kid dishes, bottles etc. out of the way as they accumulate in the morning. Keeps my kitchen much much cleaner.

Moses basket. My kid has his days and nights confused yet so he's only in his crib part-time at night. Not too big of a space suck, seems comfy.

Me and Amazon? BFFs. Shipping issues and price increases aside, I willingly pay for sanity.

Elmo and the Ipad. Ha. With a newborn our 4534643643 below zero day and about to blizzard AGAIN I just don't GAF about screen time right now. It'll be spring in a month hopefully. I'll make up for it then. I'm out of arts and crafts and creativity and being energetic at the moment.

[redheadk]

Netflix.

[urbancowgirl]

Feb 26, 2014 10:32:50 GMT -5 mswax said:

Feb 26, 2014 10:24:31 GMT -5 urbancowgirl said:

This week I'm loving those mesh self-feeders. I can throw a chunk of frozen puree in there and it will keep DS busy and quiet for 20 minutes.

DS3 likes this too, but how do you clean it?  I can't seem to get all the mashed food bits out and it's gross!

I've found that giving it a good rinse as soon as DS is done with it helps a lot. Then I scrub it with soap and a sponge while I hold my finger in the mesh part. Kind of a PITA, but worth it to keep DS happy.

[redheadk]

Also, the playroom. We rarely used our dining room for actual dining but use it as our playroom at least an hour everyday plus it keeps the kid crap in one part of the house. Perfect for play dates, too! I was hesitant bc it's right inside the front door but it works best for us.

[geek96]

Changing pad liners. I was changing the cover twice a week between spit up and pee accidents. This is so much easier.

Cleaning lady who started this week. Yay!

[Deleted]

Feb 26, 2014 10:49:21 GMT -5 redheadk said:

Also, the playroom. We rarely used our dining room for actual dining but use it as our playroom at least an hour everyday plus it keeps the kid crap in one part of the house. Perfect for play dates, too! I was hesitant bc it's right inside the front door but it works best for us.

This too! I love ours. I still have kid crap in a lot of places around the house, but at least I know I can hide it all in one spot when I feel the urge to pick up.

I also set ours up like centers at school (Ha...don't laugh..it's the teacher in me and wasn't so much intentional). Kid will wander for a good hour from space to space doing whatever.

[Deleted]

Feb 26, 2014 10:18:01 GMT -5 magpie said:

I recently got the Precious Planet mobile at the consignment shop. I adore that thing! When DD wakes up at 5:45am, I can often stumble into her room and turn it on and get 20 minutes more of sleep until my alarm goes off

We have that too and j loved it. When we.took it down DH took all the animals off and dropped them in j's toy box. Well now the polar bear has turned into one.of DS's lovies.lol. I don't want to take it away from him but the new babies will have a.lopsided mobile without it.

[CloudBee]

- iPhone (I still use it when I give him his bedtime bottle)
- 2 electric breast pumps
- formula pitcher
- JJ Cole picnic blanket. We put it on the hotel floor when we travel so DS has a clean place to sit and play, we use it at the park, and it's also on our hardwood living room floors half the time for general play. www.amazon.com/JJ-Cole-Collections-All-Purpose-Blanket/dp/B0033OG86K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1393430136&sr=8-1&keywords=cole+picnic+blanket