Most Helpful Baby Products, 9 months in

Warning: mommy blog post to follow.  :)  Feel free to disengage now if that's not your thing.  But in the spirit of new found freedom, here ya go; this is one of the more lighthearted things I've been thinking about this week, among other things.  And this is totally more fun than vocabulary words or math problems, or studying for my first standardized test in over a decade, or all the hard things that I'm exhausted from thinking about, or figuring out our lives, or you know, all those other grown-up things which seem to take so much energy and time.

Most Helpful Baby Products that we used Way More than I Ever Thought we would:

this baby bib: it's made of silicone, it has a spill catcher, it's super easy to wash/clean, and it keeps food from going all over my son.  It was a gift from friends Lynn and Jeremy, and we use it literally every meal that we eat at home.  for S, not for Jon and me, although if they made grown-up ones, I'd think about it.  seriously is going to become my go-to baby-shower gift.

Itzbeen Baby Timer: a friend recommended this, and especially for those first few months of sleep-deprivation/exhaustion, where you can't really remember where your face is, let alone how long ago you fed the baby, this was great.  simple push of a button, bam - extra brain RAM.

the baby wipe warmer: no specific brand, and I honestly thought this was kind of dumb, excessive, unnecessary, etc.  But in the middle of the night when our son would scream because of cold bottom meets colder wipes, and this made this difference between happy 3am changes and scream-y ones, it was totally worth it.

a solid baby carrier - used almost daily.  We started out with a Bjorn when he was little, and then graduated to an Ergo a few weeks ago.  I think if I were to do it again, I'd just do the Ergo, but both served their purposes well - the Ergo is just more versatile, a bit more comfortable, and better for older, e.g. heavier, babies.  And makes a huge difference when you walk a ton, or live in a city that isn't entirely stroller accessible.

Baby spoons which turn white if the food is too hot.  Totally unnecessary, and not something I would pay more to have, but definitely saves a step if it's been a long day and you have a screamy hungry baby.

Pack n Play - S's bed of choice for 3 months, and then our travel bed, guest baby bed, etc.

Baby Trend Jogging Stroller-  much cheaper than its contemporaries, but we've found it to be great, even after heavy usage for 9 months.

Medela Double Electric Breast Pump: if you're planning on going back to work, or leaving baby at all, ever, and are planning to breast-feed, make sure you get a comfortable, good quality pump.  While I loath all things pumping, having a good one as made a huge difference, when you have to hang out with it fairly often.  The Lansinoh hand-pump is also not terrible, for less frequent needs.  I thought about naming mine, I hung out with it so much, but that was just too weird (eww), so we passed.  Also, insurance covers it in most states.  Ask your health care provider.

A paci clip.  Doesn't matter who makes it - crafty friends can make this easily and super cheaply.  But when your kid loves his paci, and loves throwing his paci, or talking, or opening his mouth, or losing his paci regularly, this is an absolute necessity.  Unless you like searching everywhere for the paci.  Or constantly doing the bend and grab.  In which case, enjoy, and disregard.

And for us, with lots of travel, a small sound machine has been a life-saver for helping baby sleep in new places, as well as blocking out noise from small apartment living and noisy neighbors, and sharing rooms, and all those other lovely things.

So there ya go.  Feel free to use any/all/none of it.  :)