Mom and baby product reviews on The Mommy Insider

First Years Kickin’ Coaster + win one!

When Sebastian was an infant 9 years ago, I bought a kicking toy, back play mat thingy for him.  He laid on the floor and if he was lucky his feet would hit the little things that dangled down and activated some obnoxious noises.  I was so excited about it.  Sebastian however screamed when his kicks activated it.  It went back to the store the same day.  Tim laughed and laughed at me. 

The Kickin' Coaster from First Years is along the same concept but on a much more soothing, less obnoxious level.  The Kickin' Coaster is a baby seat and activity seat in one and is great for newborns and infants.  New babies kick a lot.  Sometimes on purpose and sometimes not.  The Kickin' Coaster gives your baby something in return for those active kicks, a fun smooth gliding movement, that is sure to delight them!

The seat also includes a stationary setting, perfect for soothing a baby to sleep with vibrations and twinkling lights.  With its soothing vibrations, playful songs and lights, the Kickin Coaster provides fun, strengthening, educational playtime for baby!

A few key features and benefits:

• two seats in one: a soothing infant seat, and an active play seat
• soothing vibrations
• twinkle lights for visual tracking
• removable teether rattle for infant play
• teaches cause and effect
• strengthens leg muscles

GIVEAWAY!  Hold on to your knickers.. we have 3 Kickin' Coasters to give to lucky The Mommy Insider subscribers! 
The Mommy Insider subscribers (subscribe here (opens a new window)) can enter to win a Kickin' Coaster!  Just leave a comment below telling me why you want to win a Kickin' Coaster and for two entries tell me in your comment what size batteries the Kickin' Coaster takes!

Learn more about and buy the Kickin' Coaster at the Learning Curve website.

Antimicrobial Protected baby clothes, baby sheets, bibs, and more from Bonn Bonn Baby

Oh, how I wish I had BonnBonn Baby onesies and bibs a couple of years ago.  My poor daughter had drool on the neck of her shirt or bib all of the time and really.. what baby doesn't?  You can't change their clothes every hour.  

BonnBonn Baby introduced a moisture control wicking fabric that pulls moisture away from baby's delicate skin where it quickly dries. The lightweight antimicrobial material kills mold, mildew, and more.

BonnBonn Baby onsies, bibs, changing pads, and sheets are great for keeping your child dry and happy.

BonnBonn Baby products are great gifts for expecting and new moms and even those with toddlers. 

• The bibs are great for teething babies
  
• The sheets are perfect for messy potty training nights so your toddler isn't sleeping on yucky wet sheets
  
• The changing pad's antimicrobial fabric inhibits the growth of odor causing bacteria and fungus on the changing pad.
  
• All products are machine washable and get softer with each wash.  I've washed Madelyn's BonnBonn Baby tee and sure enough, it's super soft!

GIVEAWAY ALERT!  Keep an eye out for our BonnBonn Baby giveaway coming soon.  Join our newsletter using the Subscribe box to the right to know when the giveaway contest starts!

The Shoulder Stroller: the stroller in a purse

A stroller that fits in your purse.  It's true. This little mommy gadget is a back saver to say the least.  The Shoulder Strollers attaches to your baby's infant seat and then you place the perfect sized shoulder pad on the opposite shoulder which counterbalances the weight freeing you from back, neck and shoulder pain.  They key is that the shoulder strap redistributes the weight of the infant seat to use your larger muscles rather than just your arm muscles.  Using all of the muscles in just one arm and shoulder causes your entire back to be unbalanced which speaking from experience can case back pain and cramping.

Three easy steps and you're ready to go!

Three reasons you should use The Shoulder Stroller:

1. It fits in your diaper bag or purse
2. There's no reason to get the stroller out when running short errands.
3. Saves you from back pain

The patent pending twin-lock safety system makes The Shoulder Stroller the safest hands-free carrier available. 

You can buy or learn moare about The Shoulder Stroller here.

CozyMe Nursing, Tummy Time, and Sitting Pillow

The award winning CozyMe Pillow stands out from others because of the many ways it can be configured.  It's an all-in-one nursing pillow, a tummy time pillow, and a baby sitting pillow.  The CozyMe pillow has a wedge that can be placed on the inner part of the pillow allowing your baby to sit up and drink her bottle instead of having to lay down completely.

The different configurations and accessories (a wedge and a propup) allow nursing mothers to be comfortable, and helping babies develop their arms, stomach, upper and lower back muscles.

CozyMe Pillow is great for:

• nursing
• babies with reflux (wedge allows baby to be propped high)
• babies learning to sit 
• moms larger than size 6 (CozyMe doesn't have to wrap around you while nursing)
• tummy time
•   

CozyMe is available in several colors and patterns and you can even buy an extra cover, which is a must have! 

Price: $37.95 | Learn more

Product review: Thudguard infant protective safety hat

 Here is something you don't see or hear about everyday but can save you a lot of heartache.
Thudguard is a light foam crash helmet for toddlers designed to help absorb and reduce the impact of head injuries due to a fall or collision. It is suitable for babies and toddlers aged 7 months to 2+ years.

I can't tell you how many times Madelyn fell when learning to walk at 10 months.  We spend most of our time in our kitchen which has hardwood floors and unfortunately, that is where she fell most.  Madelyn walked right into cabinets, chairs, and the refrigerator because she wasn't looking where she was going. To this day she still walks into things but because she has a big head and is over 2 she can't wear the safety helmet.  Madelyn just doesn't look where she's going!

Read some expert opinions about Thudguard and head injuries here on the Thudguard website.

Kelly Forsyth-Gibson, a mom of 3 lives in the Scottish city of Aberdeen and invented Thudguard after her 1 year old who was learning to walk fell and bumped her head.

Thudguard is available in lilac or baby blue and can be purchased for about $38.  Think about it, isn't $40 a great price to pay rather than having to take your toddler to the emergancy room after a fall?

Fisher Price Zen Collection Swing

Fisher Price's Zen Collection combines style and function with beautiful wood accents and a plush reclining seat that swings back and forth and side to side.  Younger babies prefer to rock side to side but I imagine that older babies might bet a little 'sea-sick' swinging side to side so bath and forth seems more comfortable for them.

The Zen Collection swing is sturdy and has exceptional features.  Most of our rooms are full or dark wood furniture so I would have loved to have the Zen swing instead of the bright colored swing with a metal base, that we had for Madelyn two years ago.  She loved sitting in her swing.   The Zen swing has a variety of gentle songs and musical styles that will stimulate baby’s auditory sense or instantly calm her down. 
The entire seat is removable so you can carry it from room to room and the fabric is machine washable.  The Zen swing is the first (that I know of) to have a plug-in option which is a huge money saver!

The maximum weight is 25lbs which equates to an average of two years old.  I doubt a two year old will sit in a swing very long, or at all, but the possibility is there.  

Price: around $200

You can buy the Fisher-Price Zen Collection Cradle Swing at Amazon.com .

See other products from the Fisher Price Zen Collection, here.

Personalized painted baby onesie's and tee's - Hip Kids Shop

If you are a regular reader, you know that I love personalized clothes and gifts. 
Madelyn has personalized pacifier clips, clothes, and piggy banks. 

A great online store for personalized kids clothes, is Hip Kids Shop.  Celena Apple, the artist behind the clothes, creates one-of-a-kind hand painted clothes for infants, toddlers and older kids all the way up to size 12.  The clothes are American made and are 100% cotton.

You will also find personalized gifts including toy caddy's in several different styles, personalized growth charts and piggy banks at Hip Kids Shop.  Your toddler will be the cutest on the playground when she's wearing a tee with her name and cute little butterfly painted on it.  Each shirt is made to order and no two are exactly alike.

Price: $29.95

Coupon code: Use code 'insider' to get 15% off of your purchase.

Available at: Hip Kids Shop

Designer baby & kids clothes: buttery soft dresses, and whimsical fairy tanks

When you shop Baby Eggi, you not only get amazing designer clothing for your little 'chick' or 'dude', but you also get incredible quality and best of all it's affordable.    Founders, and parents themselves, Jennifer and Julie are well aware of the need as parents to dress our children in fashionable, high quality clothing that is affordable priced.  Who would have thought?  They accomplished both with their line of baby and children's clothing.   Several of the tees and tanks feature the artwork of famed LA based tattoo artist and father of two, Mark Mahoney, making them truly unique.

The ribbed tank for 'chicks' has a whimsical fairy on it while the 'dudes' tee's have designs including dragons, tigers, and tattoo style lettering saying "Forgive Me".  How funny is that?

Madelyn is wearing the fairy ribbed tank and the hooded dress below.

Baby Eggi's hooded dress is buttery soft.  The first time Madelyn wore the hooded dress, she twirled around and rubbed the dress against her tummy with a huge smile.  It was adorable! 

The hooded dress is $20 and the ribbed fairy tank is $10!! You've got to stock up on these.  You can get a pack of seven 'Days of the week' onesie's for $28.  I just can't get over the price for such cute and quality clothes.  Most of the shirts, dresses, and tanks are available in two or more colors and sizes up to 4T.

Giveaway Alert!!
Guess what!  We have Baby Eggi hooded dresses and ribbed tanks to give away!  Check back to see when the giveaway contest starts and join our newsletter to be the first to know when and how you can enter the giveaway contest.

Website: Baby Eggi

Diaper Milkshakes from Sassy Pink Boutique

I wish I had a baby shower to go to just so I can give the expecting mom Diaper Milkshakes.  Wrapped in cellophane, tied with ribbon, served in milkshake containers and placed in a beverage carrier, Diaper Milkshakes are truly a one of a kind gift.  A set of Diaper Milkshakes is a gift that the recipient is sure to remember and parents can actually use what's inside the milkshakes. Novel idea, huh?

Four Diaper Milkshakes are included in a set and the ingredients include four full sized washcloths, four (size 1) Pampers Swaddlers, four (0-3 m) Gerber onsies, and two pair (0-6m) red socks.  The red socks are the cherries on top of the milkshakes!  How cute is that?  Available flavors are strawberry, lemon, and blueberry.  Oh, and because the 'ingredients' are name brand, you know they are great quality and worth every penny.  What new mom can't use every single thing in these delicious looking milkshakes?

Sassy Pink Boutique offers a other sassy gifts such as their washcloth lollipops which are super cute and their Tiny Tot Torte full of newborn essentials

Celebrity moms including Halle Berry and Jennifer Garner have Sassy Pink Boutique products!  Click on over to browse their collection of baby gifts and pick up a few fun sassy things today!

I have one set of Strawberry Diaper Milkshakes to give away to a lucky reader! Simply leave a (relevant) comment below and you will be entered to win our random drawing August 10th.  You have to enter your email address when leaving a comment but no one will see it but me.  One comment per email address. Winner will be contacted at the email address provided.  Good luck!

Website: Sassy Pink Boutique

biome5: organic clothes for kids

I dont' know how many times I have refered to Madelyn as a little monkey.   We had to get her out of her crib before she turned one because she tried to climb out of it.  She climbs as high as she possibly can in any given situation.

I was excited when I received a cute biome5 Monkey tee for Madelyn because it describes her perfectly.   And as if cute isn't enough, biome5 tee's are educational.  Shh, don't tell your toddler.  How can a tee be educational you ask?  On each shirt, a huge letter is printed with an animal whose name starts with the letter.   The M tee has a cute monkey on it while the Z tee has .. I bet you can guess.. a zebra.  The colors are vibrant and on most designs, the animal printed on the tee looks like a photographed image making the animal easy to recognize.  You child has probably seen most of the animals at the zoo, aquarium, or in your own backyard.

Tee's are available in 2T, 4T, and 6T short sleeve and long sleeve and the onesie is available in 3-6 months and 6-12 months sizes.  All of the designs are gender neutral so you are not limited to the number of tee's or onesies you buy for your child.

Oh, and what's really neat is that the name of the animal on the shirt is printed upside down so your child can read it while wearing the tee.  That is such a cool idea!  biome5 tee's give toddlers the opportunity to work on learning the alphabet and phonetics while wearing an awesome tee.

Click on over to biome5 to see all of the designs and check out their current sale prices.