Well, I survived a whole six months of fatherhood. Time flies by when you are changing diapers, replacing pacifiers two or seven times per night, researching various infant health concerns on parenting message boards, researching various adult mental health concerns on parenting message boards, and putting all five pieces to a baby bottle together so your child can eat -- to name a few things.
My wife posted a six month update on her blog last week (you can check it out here). To celebrate the six month mark I wanted to do something different. As I described in my initial Dad Things post I am fascinated by the gadgets and gizmos that are available for babies -- and as I mentioned before, you will do (sing songs, read books about animal tails, shush until your lips fall off) and buy anything to survive. For this post I am sharing six things (one for each month) that I found essential to surviving the first six months of fatherhood.
1. One Month. Fisher-Price, Newborn Auto Rock-N-Play Sleeper
Like most expecting parents, before the baby was born we went furniture shopping. Crib, dresser, nightstand, glider -- the works. We had to have a theme because apparently mommies on Pinterest said so (Dylan's room is a book theme). The baby is born and a remarkable thing occurs -- the baby doesn't sleep in her room (or sleep at all). Enter the Rock-N-Play. Yes, this life saving rocking machine that plays white noise lulls most babies to sleep in the early weeks of their existence on planet Earth. In addition to white noise, the rocker plays other musical lullabies as well as automatically "rocks" back and forth. You can set the Rock-N-Play for a specific time (30 minute intervals) to shut off. It's a lovely item. Thank you to Mr. Fisher and Mr. Price. You are kind.
2. Two Months. Dr. Brown's Formula Mixing Pitcher
Baby formula comes in a variety of brands, stomach intensity levels, GMO, Non-GMO, etc. You can buy premixed formula, powders, to-go bottles, jugs, etc. If you are like us, and buy the powder, you understand that trying to make each individual bottle is quite tedious. Trying to calculate the amount of scoops for a 3.75 oz bottle (which requires putting together five different parts per bottle) is not easy when you are running on fumes. Enter Dr. Brown's Formula Mixing Pitcher. Here, Dr. Brown realized that by producing a pitcher that parents can fill with a days worth of formula which mixes the formula with a unique blade system that ensures no clumps in the bottles, he will have saved the world. Yes, yes, he did. If you are on the formula plan with your child, check this pitcher out.
3. Three Months. BABYBJORN Bouncer Balance Soft
There comes a time as a new parent where you are faced with a dilemma: You need to go to the bathroom, take a shower, get dressed (you get the point) but you have a baby -- that can not be left alone. Rather than put the baby on the floor alone and dash off quickly to handle your business convincing yourself that it will only take a minute, you can place your child safely in the comfortable BABYBJORN Bouncer Balance Soft Chair. The chair is lightweight and extremely portable -- which makes it great for carrying it around your house or on-the-go. The chair bounces with the baby's movement -- which sometimes can lull the little one to sleep (a bonus feature).
4. Four Months. Jellycat Softbooks, Jungly Tails
I previously wrote about this "novel" on the blog, however, it has been such an essential item, I felt the need to share it again. This book has it all:
- It's a book about animals' tails.
- It's soft so when your child starts chewing on it or slamming it up and down it has a lower likelihood of causing injury
- It makes a crinkly noise
- It's colorful
Jellycat makes a variety of other books in this series including Pony Tails, Puppy Tails, and Dino Tails.
5. Five Months. MAM Orthodontic Glow in the Dark Pacifiers
Babies suck. And when they do they need a pacifier. The problem with the dozen pacifiers you grabbed from the hospital before getting discharged is that they are difficult for your child to find (and grab) in the crib after falling out of their mouth seven or eight times a night. Around the five month mark is when Dylan started being able to put the pacifier into her own mouth. It makes it even easier for her (and us) when the pacifier glows in her crib so she can easily locate it to return it to her mouth. This is where the nifty MAM pacifier comes in. Sure they have other benefits but most importantly -- they glow-in-the-dark -- so if I have to enter the dark abyss (the nursery) to locate the pacifier to soothe the baby -- I can easily find it. Thank you, MAM.
6. Six Months. Baby Brezza Glass Food Maker
After months of eating the same thing every day, Dylan graduated to "solid" foods. I assumed that when Dylan was ready for solid food, we would go to the grocery store and purchase some of jarred baby food. Well, now parents around the world are doing the unthinkable -- making food for their babies. Finding the time to make food for yourself can often be a challenge. Add the chopping, dicing, peeling, steaming, blending, cleaning to make some baby food to your schedule and you start having a nervous breakdown. We recently purchased the Baby Brezza Glass Food Maker. Many reviewers will tell you that this contraption is a glorified food processor with the word "baby" on it. While those reviewers are technically right, however, this processor also steams the food in the blender. After you have prepped the fruits or vegetables all that is left to do is drop it in the glass bowl to steam and blend. The key is ONE BOWL. This makes cleaning up less of a chore.
Of course there are other gadgets. gizmos, and products that have been essential to my six month journey, but I created a gimmick -- 6 things for 6 months -- and I had to stick to it.
On to the next six months.
