Whew. Who knew having 2 kids would take up so much of my time - in the best kind of way.
Whenever we welcomed Jack into our family in April, we hit the ground running with all family of 4 activities and haven’t really looked back - and (be still my heart) I can’t believe we’ve been running at full speed for 5 months on Monday.
Abram has adjusted to life as big brother, thankfully, and has been really great in helping with Jack. At first, he wanted nothing to do with baby brother, but thankfully he got used to this new comer quickly. We started potty training him late summer and if you have any tips on how to get him to go #2 on the potty - I’d be so grateful! We’ve tried bribes and rewards, and even consequences - no luck. Hopefully we will cross that hill soon!
While coming to grips with the fact that we now have two tiny humans to keep alive…
I have been taking notes on which items I’ve used and loved now that I have two kiddos… Hopefully this helps any parents who are in, or just about to join this season of life that we are in as well. My thoughts and prayers are with you :)
THESE ALSO MAKE GREAT GIFTS!
1 - The Nanit Monitor - Nanit FINALLY offers a split screen for parents who need 2 separate feeds! Praise the Lord! We were having to switch from app to app using two different brands, but once they came out with this software update we dumped the other brand and bought another Nanit. Worth every penny!
2 - Muslin Burp Cloths - Jack has days where he will spit up (what feels like) everything he just consumed in his bottle. Some days are perfectly fine, others are a fountain of half digested formula… these are so absorbent and a great size!
3 - Plastic Step Stools - These step stools come as a 2 pack, which is perfect if you have multiple potty situations in your home like we do! They can wipe clean, or be hosed off easily. Multiple colors available, and we went with Gray.
4 - Bulb Booger Sucker - Once I used this clear bulb, I will never purchase another one again. It comes apart in 2 pieces, that’s right, friends, so you can pop it in the dishwasher to sanitize… it is GENIUS, and worth every penny.
5 - Road Map Rug - We purchased this for Abe’s 3rd birthday and I have loved it. It is 3’x5’ and Jack loves tummy time on it too! For the price, it is definitely a great quality and I love that it isn’t ugly primary colors :)
6 - Star Lamp - This has been a lifesaver for us with Abram. He loves all things space and he gets to choose what color stars get projected! We also plugged it into a smart plug (see #10), so Alex has it scheduled to turn off at 10:00pm every night. So fun!
7 - The Story of God - Abe is loving all things books and puzzles lately, so it’s really important to us that we are infusing a great message into his brain and heart from a young age (hello amazing gift idea!). These books come as a set of 5 and in a beautiful gold-foil keepsake box - which is almost as beautiful as the messages inside! They are jam-packed with gospel-centered Theology, written for kids to understand and even gives activities at the end of each book to apply the ideas to your every day life. AND - bonus, it’s on sale this week! They are even having a facebook party to celebrate the launch of being on Amazon Prime, and giving away a ton of amazing prizes… you won’t want to miss out!
8 - Fisher Price Infant Chair - Abe loved this, and Jack does too! I love to think that not only is he practicing sitting up, but also it’s like vertical tummy time - did I just create a thing? It comes in a few color ways, and would definitely be a fabulous shower gift that not everyone thinks to put on their registry.
9 - Snuggle Me Organic - I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it a million more times - we love our Snuggle Me. I bought another one for Jack when he was born, knowing that Abe wouldn’t want to share his “boat” with baby. We even fold it in half against the couch and use it as a “chair” for Abe and Jack to sit in. So fun, and lots of colors!
10 - Smart plugs! We live and die by the smart plugs in our house and use Apple Home Kit for pretty much everything. These plugs are great quality and a great price!
11 - Color Block Backpack - We have a running joke in our family, because I call it a book bag, and Alex calls it a backpack… which team are you on? Either way, this bag comes in so many fun color ways, and it a fabulous price! We switched Abe over to this bag for Church nursery and fits pretty much everything in it - could easily be used for a daycare or preschool situation!