I am often asked by family. friends and clients what my recommendations would be when it comes to childbirth education, prenatal exercise classes, baby products, nursing products, pregnancy books, etc. etc. etc. I used to have a giant list on my website, but then I thought, no, wait! Let's do a blog series! I imagined Julie Andrews spinning through the hills singing. I could entitle the series "A Few of my Favorite Things" naturally.
But then I found out that my husband had never even seen Sound of Music and it got me wondering who else maybe hadn't seen Sound of Music! I quit over thinking it and came up with Friday Favorites! I am SO excited to bring to you the first Friday Favorites post (hopefully, of many) surrounding pregnancy, birth, new baby and motherhood.
To kick us off this week, we have not only one of my most favorite baby products but also a GIVEAWAY!! Yes! That's right, my first ever GIVEAWAY! The wonderful people at Fridababy have teamed up with me to give one lucky winner a set of four of their incredible products.
I have to admit, I am not really a product person. I love education, I love experience gifts, I love good food, but stuff-- eh, not really. Especially for baby. Having a new baby can be a whirlwind (or a tornado) in the first few weeks and the last thing we need is CLUTTER (anyone hearing me out there??). Babies are babies; they eat, sleep, poop and cry in the beginning, right? What more could they need than their parents, a bottle or a boob and a diaper.
I believe this for the most part.
Every once and awhile, though, a product comes along that is a, really for honest and truly, MUST-HAVE. The kind of product that you won't mind picking up off the floor 10 times a day because it has saved your family's sleep night after night after night.
Introducing the NoseFrida by FridaBaby.
The best snotsucker in the world. NoseFrida by FridaBaby
If you don't understand already, you will soon, how a congested baby can wreak havoc on the entire family. And of course, how hard is it to see our baby miserable? Poor little babe, all full of boogers, wants you to have a Nose Frida.
Let me explain how it works and then we'll compare it to the standard bulb syringe.
The NoseFrida basically has three parts: a tube (for holding the massive amount of snot that you never thought could come out of your baby), a hose like attachment, with a red mouth piece, for sucking said snot, and most importantly-- the filter. I'll let you guess what that part is for :)
The various parts of FridaBaby's NoseFrida
With the filter in place... I'll say it again. WITH THE FILTER IN PLACE, the caregiver would put the end of the tube at the edge of baby's nose and the red mouth piece in their own (the caregiver's) mouth. Then suck. That's it. Once you and your baby have had enough, you can take a look at the tube in amazement of how much snot can actually fit inside your little human, rinse it out and proceed to enjoy a congested-less baby! It really is magical.
So, what's the deal with the snot sucker that you were given at the hospital? Well, let me just say a few things.
- When we had our first baby, our pediatrician handed us the blue bulb thing and said "Be careful to only suck out what you can see and not stick the end too far up your baby's nose because it can actually cause inflammation and make the discomfort worse." Hmm...what??? That is a SKINNY little tube on the end of the bulb. How far is too far? And what if I can't see the snot but I can hear the gurgling? I can't do anything to help? Too many questions for this new mom. Plus, ugh, I don't want to cause sinus inflammation! GASP! I will never forget the day a friend mentioned the NoseFrida. Our lives were changed. The NoseFrida's tube is wide, so you don't have to worry about sticking it too far into the baby's nose-- it just sits on the outside. Plus, it was effective. SOLD.
- I don't know about you, but I like proof. The bulb syringe was BLUE. I couldn't see through it! With the NoseFrida, a clear tube, I could see that what I was doing was helpful and effective by the amount of goop that the tube held. This brought me peace.
- Lastly, the thing is SO easy to clean. Try googling what the inside of those bulbs look like.... gross. The NoseFrida comes with disposable filters and the rest of the product can be washed clean with warm water. VOILA!
I'll just say it one more time, if you have a new baby or you are expecting one... the NoseFrida is awesome and your baby wants you to have one. Goodness, I should be getting paid for this plug! (I'm not by the way, I just want to share the love).
FridaBaby was kind enough to throw in THREE more products to the giveaway! What? Awesome. I wish I could say that I knew about these products when I had my babies and had some personal experience to share. Judging by the incredibleness of the NoseFrida I have to imagine that these products are just as useful and magical. Whoever wins, I want feedback!
Next up! The ButtWasher.
FridaBaby's ButtWasher, for kids who smell like poop :)
Yup. Just as it sounds-- a buttwasher for your potty-training child. I'm actually giggling right now as I am typing this because I know that as soon as my husband reads this post he is going to text me saying "Simon needs a buttwasher!!" This little bottle is, as the website states, a traveling bidet. No more itchy bums for the kids who haven't learned to wipe properly and no more bunches and bunches of wipes (ahem money) down the drain. I can't even begin to explain to you how many times a day someone in our house says that Simon smells like butt. And it's true, he usually does, poor guy. No matter how many times I wipe him, it's almost impossible to get him entirely clean because he is standing and clenching his butt cheeks.
OMG FridaBaby, you may have just sold us :) Can't wait to hear what the winner thinks!!
Onto Windi...
The ultimate Gas Passer-- The Windi!
Baby's crying, cranky, irritable and you don't know how to help. You've done everything you know how to do. The belly massages, the bicycle kicks, rocking, shhshhing, patting... baby is just SO uncomfortable. Maybe you've noticed that they haven't pooped in a bit or you think it could be gas. I remember that. I remember wondering how I could help my small baby to get the poop/gas out of her. Our pediatrician suggested that, when it got bad, to insert a rectal thermometer and sometimes that could help get things going. We would try it, and it usually did work, but not right away, it took some time.
Who has time with a screaming baby???
The Windi is designed to work alongside infant massage and bicycle kicks. Who has ever sat down to rub baby's tummy waiting and waiting for the gas to pass? Raises hand. When it passes, it seems like one should celebrate!
Sometimes it takes longer than you have time to sit for, sometimes you are left wondering if you need to keep rubbing because there might be more? Watch this video here to see how massage is used to get things moving and then the Windi (inserted like the thermometer) helps the gas release. Just like that <finger snap>. It's different than the thermometer because there is a hole at the end, allowing the gas to pass quickly and easily....only I wouldn't have my face as close as the little cartoon lady in the video!
Last but certainly not least...something for the moms!
Peri-bottle with a twist!
As a birth doula and a mom who gave birth, I can definitely say that care of the perineum after the baby is born is of utmost importance for healing purposes and for comfort reasons. Whether or not one gives birth vaginally, the perineum (area extending from the vagina to the rectum) can be quite sore and messy. Wiping after using the bathroom usually isn't recommended and it definitely doesn't feel good. But ya know what does? Ice. Ice feels nice, sitz baths can feel nice, tucks pads and of course, the peri-bottle!! The peri-bottle is a squirt bottle that is given to moms at the hospital to squirt warm water on themselves to encourage urination and to help clean up afterwards. It feels DIVINE.
The peri-bottle, is just a bottle and not necessarily designed for postpartum women. So imagine this: a bottle with a long nozzle, meant to be used upside down with amazing accuracy. Enter the MomWasher. These names, ha! Killing me :) This bottle can be used just like the peri-bottle, filled with warm water or an herbal mix-- but this one can aim! Fantastic.
So, there ya have it! Our four FridaBaby products. BIG, HUGE thanks to FridaBaby for joining in on Friday Favorites and good luck to all of you! The giveaway closes Wednesday February 17th and the winner will be announced next Friday February 19th! Here's how you can enter-- choose whichever way you want. The more ways you enter, the better your chances!
- Like PVD Doula on Facebook or follow on Instagram plus choose at least one of the following:
- Like the Instagram or Facebook post featuring the giveaway.
- Leave a comment here, Facebook or Instagram
- Follow @fridababy_HQ on Instagram
- Sharing gets you TWO entries (if you are sharing on Instagram, be sure to tag @pvddoula)!
- Last but not least, tag a friend!
Wow! This is probably the most fun I've had writing a blog post. I can't wait to share more Friday Favorites next week-- and announce the winner!