My Best Baby Buys

So I have been wanting to share with you all, the best baby purchases I have made for Jaxon so far, and there are quite a few!

As I said in my previous blog, entitled My Worst Baby Buys, it can be a complete minefield when it comes to choosing the right things for your baby, especially if the child is your first!

I actually made the mistake of buying anything and everything, as I didn’t have a clue, but the one positive that came out of that is that I ended up with some absolutely amazing purchases, some in which I wonder if we would have been able to cope without!

So here they are, my best baby buys!

1. Sleepy Head Deluxe (Purchased at The Baby & Toddler Show, Manchester – £90)

Jaxon was in this from the day we brought him home, right up until he was around six months old. I originally purchased this after reading a lot of reviews, mainly for the reason that they are portable and they allow your baby to sleep comfortably, anywhere. Jaxon was always very snug and secure in there, and the pod shape seemed to resemble the feel of a cuddle, one reason why I think he was always a brilliant sleeper.  It also stopped him from rolling in his sleep which was something I would have worried about, had we not had the Sleepy Head. The pod could be used anywhere, so I could use it in different rooms of the house, or take it with us when we travelled. It was really easy to clean and fit into his crib perfectly, even when it got to the point where we needed to extend the bottom of the pod open for extra leg space.

2. Ewan The Dream Sheep (Purchased at The Baby & Toddler Show, Manchester – £25)

We still use this now and not only does it help Jaxon to drift off, but it also helps me too! I have gotten so used to the white noise option, we both find it very relaxing!

There are four settings to choose from. White noise, heartbeat, lullaby, hoover. We have always gone for the white noise option, apart from in those very early days we used to use the lullaby. I remember in the first week, Jaxon had just drifted off after a night feed and Ewan was playing the lullaby. I was going through the Baby Blues stage and the combination of staring at how perfect my baby boy was and hearing the song just made me burst into tears! I had to leave the room as to not wake him up!

It also has a red glowing light option which is meant to resemble the womb and different duration and volume settings which I have found helpful.

When Jaxon wakes now in the night, being nine months old, most of the time all it take is a click of Ewan The Dream Sheep to settle him again. 3. Chicco Next 2 Me Crib (Purchased from Mothercare – £179)

This was used from day one, all the way up until he was seven months old. This was the crib I had always planned on having, given it offers the safe co sleeping option. So we always used this crib attached to our bed with the side down, so Jaxon was always close to me, but we weren’t running the risk of rolling on him or him being covered with our duvet. It was a god send for breast feeding during the night too, especially after having an emergency C section. I was able to just turn on the lamp, sit up in bed, lean to Jaxon and lift him up on to me.

When transferring little one from the crib to the big cot, the Chicco Next 2 Me crib has a mesh side which came in handy. So when it was time to de attach the crib from our bed, we could put the side of his crib back up, but with it being mesh he could still see me and still feel secure.

I have sold a lot of baby equipment and will continue to in the future, however I think this is I something I will keep in the loft, just in case I have more children in the future as it was such a brilliant buy.

4.  Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep Machine (Purchased from TESCO – £59.99)

Oh this machine is just MAGIC! I have always combi fed, and after those first few weeks of exclusively breast feeding and making that decision to introduce formula, I am so glad that Jaxons dad ran out and picked up one of these! The world of formula scared me anyway when I had, had other plans, so this machine eased me in, stress free!

The Perfect Prep makes your bottles quick time and you don’t need to worry about having a crying, hungry baby on your arm at the same time as boiling the kettle, using the right amount of boiling water to the right amount of fresh, cool, boiled water. To me, all of that is such a faff!

At the moment, I still breast feed Jaxon in the early hours of the morning, and when the time comes that this ends, I will be even more thankful for the Perfect Prep so I can make his bottle quickly in the dark!

5. Baby Einstein Activity Jumper (Purchased from SMYTHS – £89.99)

Such a great piece of equipment to keep your little one occupied and having fun whilst you get some bits done around the house! I started Jaxon in this when he was five months old. He loved it for a good three months, jumping around and screaming with delight!

The chair spins around and there are four different stations for him to play at, one including a little light show that plays music, Jaxons favourite!

Jaxon still enjoys this now, but not as much now he can crawl around. He would much prefer to be up to mischief, crawling around the house and pulling himself up on the furniture!

At the moment I can get away with popping him in it for five minutes at a time whilst I rush around cleaning like a mad woman!

6. Mamas and Papas Starlite Swing (Purchased at The Baby & Toddler Show, Manchester – £90)

This was used from birth up until Jaxon was around five months old. The swing plays lullaby’s, nursery rhymes and has a canopy with a star light show. It has different speed settings for the swing also, and was a great way to lull Jaxon to sleep for his naps. This is what I used when I had a bath or a shower in the day time. I simply transported it to the bathroom and let Jaxon be mesmerised by the lights or nap away.

7. Tommee Tippee Closer To Nature Electric Breast Pump – Purchased from Amazon – £45)

Now, as much as I hated pumping for hours on end every single day, so much so that I hated even seeing this pump in the same room, this has to be one of my best buys.

Once we made the decision to combi feed, I had to pump a hell of a lot in order to keep up my supply as well as wanting to stock up on breast milk for the freezer.

I spent about three to four hours a day pumping and I used to pump around 4-6oz of milk at a time. This was great as I was able to freeze a lot of milk and stock up. When I was happy with how much I had frozen, I started to pump a bit less and eventually my breasts adjusted to the combi feeding routine. It was also a god send when my boobs felt quite full as I could just pump some off for a few seconds if I every felt pain or full when Jaxon was asleep.

Breast pumps are AMAZING, however, as I say, I HATED pumping at the time. I felt very moody when the pump came out for the day, and I also felt like an actual cow. I used to be amazed at how far my nipple would draw out into the pump. So yeah… breast pumping turned me into a moody cow!

So there you have it! My top baby buys!

I hope you found this helpful, and please feel free to leave me any of your best baby buys in the comments!

xoxo