Baby Products That Changed My Life

I know, it sounds a bit dramatic to say that a baby product could change my life, but when you come across that one thing that really makes a difference in your day-to-day, it's a game changer! Here are some of my favorites that I always suggest to friends:

Alcohol-Free Foaming Hand Sanitizer
This is my #1, because switching to alcohol-free hand sanitizer was such a game changer for us and totally not something I would have ever thought of pre-baby. When our 1st son was born, we had a standard bottle of hand sanitizer next to 

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his changing table and in his diaper bag. You end up changing a LOT of diapers in baby's first year - especially so in baby's first month. After a week or so, we realized our hands were seriously suffering from all of the hand sanitizer we were going through and plus I hate the overpowering alcohol smell of it. Our hands were dry and cracked and no amount of lotion was helping. So, I did some research and landed on this alcohol-free soap and we've had it on auto-ship from Amazon since (for over 4 years!) I get the 3-pack of the fragrance-free, but they also have a Mandarin Orange scent, which smells nice too.

For travel, they have these great 6-packs of little travel sized bottles. And if you'd prefer to refill your dispensers on your own, they even sell larger refill bottles to do just that and cut back on your plastic-use.

​Wipable Keekaroo Peanut Changing Pad
​With my first son I was more obsessed with finding a changing pad cover that matched his room than even considering the actual changing pad itself or realizing just how annoying it is to change a baby's diaper on a fabric cover. Laying a baby who just had a blowout down onto a fabric changing pad just doubles the mess you'll have to clean up afterwards. With my 2nd kiddo, I sought out to find a better changing pad and the Keekaroo was a total lifesaver. It's completely wipable and doesn't absorb anything that might get on it. So, just sanitize it after you change baby and you're good to go! No additional poopy laundry or worrying about trying to remove a dirty cover without making the mess even bigger. When it first arrived, my toddler laid down in it and said he wanted to sleep in it, so I think it passes the comfort test too. :) 

Doona Infant Carseat - Stroller Combo
I know it might sound silly that one of my favorite products of all time is a stroller that I can only use for the first year (and some change) of my son's life, but this carseat/stroller has literally been life changing for me and my husband. My kids have both been really big and almost 30lbs by the time they turn 1-year-old. So, lugging them around in an infant bucket seat is not fun at all. When my 2nd son was around 5-months-old, he was already 21 lbs and we could no longer comfortably carry him around in his old bucket carseat, but we also needed to be able to take our older son in and out of preschool multiple times a day and it was getting to be exhausting hauling 30 lbs of baby+carseat and a 3-year-old and his lunchbox and backpack. That was when I decided to do some research.

I had heard of the Doona before because it came out when my 1st son was about a year old and past the age of use for it. I knew it was pricey, but didn't look into it any further because we already had a pricey infant seat from my 1st son and a very expensive stroller, and I thought it was silly to buy another one. I wish I would have just done it off the bat, but I'm so thankful that I finally decided to pull the trigger when he was 5-months-old. It took about 30 seconds of me trying it out at Buy Buy Baby for me to be sold on it (the picture is of the first time we put him in the seat at Buy Buy Baby). It's just SO easy. The wheels pop out easily, they snap back in easily, the stroller moves well, the seat is comfortable...I could go on and on.

The biggest perk, for me, has been the traveling aspect. We no longer have to deal with a carseat and stroller...we just take this with us and it makes getting an Uber a breeze. The "wow" factor is always funny too, because pretty much everywhere you go with this thing, you'll get moms and dads coming up and asking you about it. I've probably sold 5 of these strollers to moms who have just approached me at the grocery story. Speaking of grocery store, something else I love about the stroller is how easy it is to maneuver. My older son was 3 when we first got it and when I keep the handle not extended, it's incredibly easy for him to push the stroller. This is a huge help when my hands are full of luggage or groceries, etc.