After I had Baguette, several friends had babies of their own. Since then, several others have as well. I’ve sent each of them a series of e-mails with products that worked or didn’t work for me; somehow it seemed that I would have to spend $45 to discover that the Awesome! Thing! That Saves Your Sanity! was something that Baguette just couldn’t stand–and I wanted to share my learning curve, in the hope of saving them at least some of those $45 increments.
What were our standouts?
- Diapers: We used disposables, and have found that Pampers provide Baguette with the best combination of fit and absorbancy. Our plan was to use cloth diapers, but it almost immediately became clear that disposables were the only things saving our sanity in the early days. However, we did find that cloth diapers make amazing burp cloths! I really liked these pre-folds, from Cotton Babies.
- Nail care: These Summer Infant Dr. Mom clippers worked much better than whatever I bought the first time. And this glass nail file worked wonders on those clipped edges–plus it’s washable.
- Swing: Lots of people swear by the bouncy chair. Baguette never took to hers, but she loved the open top Fisher-Price swing. I liked that it had a small footprint and was portable. But I don’t think there’s a way to know which your baby will prefer, so this may not save you anything. (Sorry.)
- Treating diaper rash: Fortunately, Baguette hasn’t had this often. But she has had some really nasty bouts of it, and the absolute best thing I’ve found is Bag Balm. Even when her delicate skin has been at its most raw, this has helped her heal in a day.
- Everything: Amazon.com. This was the hands-down winner. Between their Amazon Mom program and Amazon Prime, you can get great deals (disposable diapers cheaper than at Costco!) and–most importantly–two-day shipping. I found early on that I didn’t just need things, I needed to know when they were going to arrive. You can buy nearly anything on Amazon, and an awful lot of it will show up in two days, guaranteed.
Oh, wait–that’s six things. Ooh, a bonus item! So what worked for you? And what didn’t?