Must Haves for the past 4 months.

Tula ergonomic baby carrier// My friend (Marine wife & mommy of 2) suggested I buy a Tula. I knew she loved hers, however I had purchased the Moby & K'tan wraps so I figured I was set. The wraps were great while around the house when Layla was itty bitty, however I quickly realized they weren't all that practical for getting out and about with her. Layla was reaching the point of no longer sleeping in her carseat during errands so we decided to invest in a Tula. Flash forward to today, and we don't leave home without it! Putting Layla in the Tula is the only way we can get through grocery trips as she almost always falls asleep for what we call a "Tula nap". Whenever Layla fights going to sleep in her crib or it's later in the day and she's just crabby, we usually can put her in the Tula and she either calms down or dozes off for a quick catnap (& sometimes naps longer than she would in her crib).


Once I entered the "Tula love" world, I realized how obsessed other Tula owners are & now so am I!



You can also use a Tula from newborn till toddler+ so they are well worth the investment. Plus, they are SUPER cute & makes nursing in public easy! I never knew how into baby wearing I would be until now! I love it!






California Baby Natural & Organic Skincare // We love the diaper rash cream (luckily we've only had one diaper rash in the past 4 months!) plus it's cloth diaper safe. For baths we love the calming wash & we follow with either the Calming lotion or the Calendula Everyday lotion! I love these products because they are natural, vegan, and great for sensitive skin. They are a little more costly (I tried to register for as much as I could!) and so far we have lasted on what we received as gifts, woo hoo!


Dr Browns Microwave Sterilizer// This is so easy and quick to use! Wash all bottles/pump parts & microwave for 5 minutes. Done and Done.


Babyganics Dish & Bottle Soap// We love this soap! Plant based cleaning agents that make me feel comfortable and confident washing all of her bottles & pump parts with it. I typically grab a big glass bowl, pump a few pumps of the soap, throw in all the bottle/pump parts and fill with hot water. Let all soak for a while + rinse + pop in the Dr. Browns sterilizer.

Boon Lawn Drying Rack// Boon makes the Grass & Lawn drying racks. My vote is for the lawn. I pump 1x/day and only use 1 bottle/day typically and the lawn still gets filled quickly.

Mommys Bliss Gripe Water// Miracle in a bottle, y'all. Layla is a super gassy baby & this stuff works wonders. I like it as a natural alternative to gas drops & it offers fast relief! We've always given half of the recommended dose to start with and typically that's all it takes. We will give for hiccups too and they stop almost immediately after just a few drops. Layla seems to love the taste, she basically sucks it straight out of the dropper.

The Honest Co. Diapers// Ever since Layla hit 4 months we've gone to cloth diapers during the day but we still put her in a disposable for overnight & in her diaper bag for while we are out. They are really, really absorbent and never have that weird diaper smell to them once they are wet. Plus, they are cute! (Even though no one really sees them, ha!)

Lamaze Buggy Foot Finders// Layla is obsessed with her feet right now. These buggy feet finders keep her occupied for a good 10-15 minutes, usually long enough for me to hop in the shower! I keep her swing right outside of the bathroom door, pop her in & put these feet finders on & I don't hear a peep from her. Love them!

Sassy Bounce Around// Layla has to be busy ALL. THE.TIME. It wears me out! She has started to get bored in her Mamaroo or having blanket time for too long. I need some hands free time so I figured she would love a bouncer/exersaucer. It keeps her upright & she is surrounded by toys which keeps her occupied long enough for me to make lunch/empty the dishwasher/clean pump parts, etc. I shopped around online for different bouncers & decided on the Sassy ' Inspire the Senses' Bounce Around because I really wanted something she could grow with & I loved that it was pretty gender neutral. We've only had it for 2 days but she seems to love it so far!

Zipadeezip// Once Layla hit 3.5/4 months we kind of knew it was time to transition from the Swaddlepods. She was becoming a master at getting her arm out at the bottom & I was frustrated. We also knew sleep training was in our near future & I wanted her to have access to her hands so that she could attempt to self-soothe before we started. The birth club on Babycenter had a ton of moms dealing with the same issue & so many moms were raving about the Zipadeezip! I was terrified of trying to put her to sleep without a swaddle so I decided to give the Zippy a try. She loves it! The website describes how/why the Zippy works for transitioning from swaddling. Layla was in the midst of the '4 month sleep regression' so she wasn't sleeping great in the swaddle & wasn't sleeping any worse in the Zippy so, at the time I considered that a success. Flash forward to now, we are still loving it! In the swaddlepods, she would scream the second that she woke from naps & in the morning. Now I will watch her on the monitor rolling around & sucking her hands, sometimes for a good 10 minutes before I hear her fuss. I feel like the zippy helped her to adjust to her crib even more than before. Now that we are sleep training, we zip her up in the Zippy, turn on white noise, pat her butt for a minute or 2 & (if we timed it right) she's out like a light. Sometimes she will fuss a few minutes but then she will roll around until she's asleep.  If you're looking for an option to ditch the swaddle without going cold turkey, I would recommend this for sure! Plus, shipping was super fast!

Side note: The Zippy must be really popular right now & the prints available are limited. I settled for 'yeehaw cowgirl' (ha!) but if you're patient they have some really cute prints!