Mad Props to the bottle sterilizer

So, a good friend of mine kept telling me I needed to get a bottle sterilizer. I didn't feel the need to for 2 reasons, 1. I would just sterilize them in a big pot on the stove and 2. I wasn't going to pay $50 for one, OUTRAGEOUS! Well, being the gargae sale queen that she is, she decided she was going on a hunt for a bottle sterilizer for me. She had great success and I've gotta say, I am happy she did. After washing it in the dishwasher and figuring everything out, I sterilized the bottles. It took 2 minutes in the microwave, then I let them sit for a few minutes and voila! I used to sit over the boiling pot in my kitchen for at least 20 minutes, NOT ANYMORE! If you sterilize your bottles and want more time in your day, this is the answer!

These are the 3 pieces to the simple bottle sterilizing system.

You fill this up with 7 ounces of water, add the bottles and/or bottle pieces and your ready to go!

Pop the lid on, and microwave...don't worry If you don't have advent bottles, I use Dr.Browns glass bottles, so  I lay them down and it works the same as it would if they were standing up.

It's no bath, without fun!

Fun colors and great shapes....and edible, haha, that's why the third ball is missing!

I had purchased Sassy bath toys for the babe to play with during cleaning time, and they are bpa free. Well they have little holes in each one to allow water to get in, and I had noticed on one of them that there was a black ring around that hole. I checked the rest of them, and they all had it. This was disgusting to me and didn't seem healthy...soooooo I threw them away immediately. With that said, I was on the search for new bath toys because Stella loves to play in the tub. I looked on all the organic websites and kept coming across the 'bath goods' bath toys by BOON. I was attracted to the colors and texture of the them. So then I was on the search to find the best price. I ended up finding them cheapest on Amazon.com, paying $18 with shipping. They have a soft/sturdy texture to them, as soon as I gave them to the babe she instantly put it in her mouth, like all toys, and chewed away. The great thing about them is that they are flat, so no holes to get black mildew build-up. They are fun for the littles to play with because they float and, when wet, they stick to the bath tub. The set that I bought came with 15 of the floaties, 3 balls and 2 loofahs. They have smaller sets as well. Stay AWAY from the bath toys that have holes, they collect mildew...even if you do clean your bathtub once a week! This bath set ranks very high in my books:)

TOXINS, AHHHHH!

I am really into the toxicity level of products and decided to check the wipes that I use. There is an awesome website out there, http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/, that allows you to search the level of toxins in a product...0=best and 10=health hazard. I used to use the huggies natural and unscented wipes, *wink* *wink* 'natural', and now I have been using the target brand, up and up, because they are a lot less expensive. They don't have the up and up wipes on the website but they do have the huggies and they rated a "4". So something that is supposed to be so natural, isn't. Now I am on a mission, my mission is to make homemade organic wipes. Not only will they be safer for my babes, but it will also save me money. Wish me luck! And don't worry, I will blog about my experience and take pictures along the way. Check out the website and see the toxicity level of the wipes you use!

Reviews and Recalls

I have found a couple of websites that are really good for reviews and/or recalls on products. In my search of a lightweight stroller, I found that the ones I thought would be the best, aren't. Remember, safety first!!! http://www.infantproductreviews.com/ , http://www.babycenter.com/product-recall-finder , http://www.babyzone.com/safety/recalls/photos_2010-recalls-toy-gear/ . Happy hunting for the best!

Is that table clean?

Covers large space

Lays nice and flat and the cup hanging off is just the right length and width, catches a lot.

Going to restaurants and touching the table is disgusting enough for adults, but when your little one wants to touch everything they can get their hands on, it becomes even more disgusting. We were given, as a gift, the best thing to prevent your child from touching the table. It's like a place mat, but has a rubbery material and suctions to the table. It's a nice size for small arms, it covers a big enough area that their little hands don't go beyond the mat. It has a little cup like thing at the bottom of it to catch little food particles....as you know, those things go everywhere! Not only that, if your little lady/man what something to put in there mouth, this is a lot better than the edge of the table! Once your babe is big enough to sit at the table, I suggest getting this! One of the best features...it rolls up and fits perfectly into diaper bag....or purse! http://www.justkidsstore.com/prod/kiddopotamus/tiny-diner-portable-placemat/Blue. This is the cheapest I have found it, with shipping price. Check it out!

Leg warmers....or leg crawlers, whatever you'd like to call them!

I got a pair of leg warmer looking things, for the babe, from my mom at my shower. Thought they were cute, but didn't know if they would EVER get used. Well I was wrong, now that she is crawling they have been the best thing ever. We have all hardwood floors that hurt the little knees, but carpet does as well, they both leave the knees looking red. These 'leg crawlers' keep this from happening, no red knees! If you have a crawler, get these! These are the cheapest I have found, $8/pair: http://www.etsy.com/shop/fategoddess

On her way.....

Yes, it is cute to see the little in these

And it's ok to keep them on while standing, once again, CUTE

From Baby Gap, thicker fabric around the knees for padding.

Coloring...yes you've got it, non-toxic style

I purchased these crayons from Baby Gap, but saw them on websites and wanted them. I paid $5.50 for a box of 6, but you can purchase them on amazon, a box of 9 for $5.36. Once again they are non-toxic........and have a cute little rocket shape which makes it easy for little hands to hold. Check 'em out, folks!

Looks good enough to eat!

Very easy to hold

Look at that little hand go

Finger painting, non-toxic style!

Ok, so I really wanted to do finger painting with Stella and everything that I found just seemed too toxic for her and said it was intended for 3+years. I knew from working at a daycare that children/babies younger than that LOVE finger painting. So, I did some research online and found a recipe for non-toxic, homemade finger paint, here it is:

DYE=
-Any fruit or vegetable that can be squashed up or smashed, I started with blueberries and raspberries
-Cups
-Strainer

Finger Paint Mixture=
-3/4 C Corn Starch
-3/4 C Water
-1/3 C Grated Soap (I kept it very natural and organic and used Tom's clear bar soap)

Directions:
 To make dyes, put fruit/vegetables in their own cups, smash them up and then pour boiling water on them...keep this on them for a good 20 min to get as much of the coloring out of them as possible. Covering the cups will help.
Grate your soap, this can be done with a normal kitchen grater. Combine soap and water in pan over medium/low heat. Let soap melt, then add corn starch and blend well. Will be a thick mixture, dye will add liquid to it.
 Strain your fruit/vegetables into seperate containers, I used baby food jars, but you can get something from joanns or michaels for this.
 Then add the mixture into each container and stir. More dye you add, more color you have.

NOTE: I kept confusing myself and poured the blueberries and raspberries into the same one and ended up with green both times, so her art work isn't as pretty as it could be....DON'T WORRY, we will be doing this a million times more. Keep the cups seperated so you know which one you used.

Want to play?

If you have all hardwood floors like I do, this is the best thing EVER. Enough said! Cheapest at Toys-R-Us, $30 for 36 squares that are 12x12. Cover a lot of space!!!!!!!!! BUY IT NOW!

So many toys, so little time!

Lots of fun colors! It's on the soft side so all the letters and numbers are backwards, when flipped over it is a textured material.

Melissa and Doug

Look at all those yummys!

Bright Colors

Girl loves her some tomato and bread

This is a great company to get unique toys from that are safe and lead free http://melissaanddoug.com/. We purchased the 'fill it up picnic basket' for Stella and she LOVES it. The watermelon squeaks, the ice cream cone rattles, the soda shakes and the sandwich ingredients have different textures to them. They are the perfect size for their little hands. I did ended up purchasing this off of a different website due to price http://www.outofthetoybox.com/. They have other great toys as well, check it out!

Books, Books, and More Books!

I have made it a top priority to read to Stella everday....basically starting since we left the hospital and took her home with us! I read 4 books every morning, a couple in the afternoon and 3 at bedtime. I LOVE reading bedtime books to her, she is so into it and it relaxes her, and we have 3 favorites that we read. One is a Sandra Boynton book, I enjoy her entire collection, called 'The Going To Bed Book'. I love the rhyming and cute characters she has in her books. This was given to Stella as a gift, but I have bought the rest of her collection at TJ MAXX, very inexpensive. 'I'll See You In The Morning', written by Mike Jolly and illustrated by Mique Mariuchi, is uniquely illustrated and Stella can't keep her hands off of the pages. This book is available at babies-r-us and has the best price. The one we end the night with is  'I Love You, Good Night' by Jon Buller and Susan Schade and illustrated by Bernadette Pons. The illustrations in this book don't grab Stellas attention like 'I'll See You In The Morning', but something about this book makes her smile the entire time. I also purchased this one at TJ MAXX, they are constantly getting new books in and they are very inexpensive. If you have a bedtime book that you like to read to your little, let me know. I am always looking for new ones!

It's rattling, baby

So, I have been trying really hard to stay away from toys Made in China, due to lead content. With that said, I shop on organic toys websites, there are a TON out there with alot of really cute things. Against my better judgement I decided to buy a wooden rattle for Stella. I say against my better judgement because I thought 'how fun can this be for a baby'....well let's just say it ranks pretty high to Stella. She chews on it, shakes it, throws it, beats it against her other toys (yes i know this is an issue in itself, haha), but truly LOVES this rattle. I got it from downtoearthtoys.com, http://www.downtoearthtoys.com/Baby-Toys/Abacus-Rattle-p219.html. They have quite the collection of wooden toys and now that I know SHE thinks they're fun, we will be buying more!

Touch it!

Pick it up and analyze!

And EAT!

Binks, Malinks

At least, that's what we call it in our house! Pacifier, binky, boo-boo, whatever you wanna call it, I have found the BEST one yet. A friend of mine introduced me to it and I LOVE her for that. I know not all babies take them, but if your little one does, try this one out. It's called the GumDrop pacifier. It has the same great texture to it as the soothie, but with the shape of the normal old plastic ones. Doesn't cover their noses like the soothie one does to some babies. The official website is http://www.gumdroppacifier.com/. They have value packs or CANISTERs of them. They come in the colors of orange, blue, pink and lavender and they even have some that have a vanilla taste to them (haven't tried those out yet). I have searched around and they are cheapest on this website! And yes, as you can see, Stella and the dogs have a very special bond!!

Sophie....the Giraffe

For anyone who hasn't heard of this toy....get it!! http://sophiegiraffeusa.com/ This is the website that explains it all. It is a natural teething toy that Stella has grown to love. It has a rubbery texture, which I think is soothing on the gums. Ok, I will admit it, I may have liked it more than her in the beginning, but she LOVES it now. She started playing/gumming it at about 4 months. This isn't the only toy that the company offers, they even have a home for Sophie, yes a home because all of our toys need homes. The website above shows them all. I did find Sophie to be cheapest on http://www.amazon.com/Vulli-Sophie-Giraffe-Teether-Brown/dp/B000IDSLOG. I have seen it in 2 shops in Columbus, babies-r-us on gemini and larsons toys on lane. Let me know what you think.

And the Fun Begins.....

SO, I just got started today and I am SUPER excited! Since I have spent hours getting it all put together, I will return tomorrow to update and add some USEFUL information! YAY!