Because I work with children & babies everyday, I always thought: “This will be a cinch – I’m practically an expert at child rearing…”
Nope, not the case at all.
I realized sometime after little Lyon came home and before my first scheduled shoot that babies require a lot of work. But lucky for me, I’m not alone in this and the market has created really some smart solutions to the things moms experience every day.
Here are some of my favorite products to date:
1. Moms on Call’s Guide to Basic Baby Care – There are hundreds of books on infant care and just as many classes and online courses available. We’ve read and taken them all, but none of them quite compared to Laura & Jennifer’s SIMPLE and thorough guide to everything in Baby’s first six months. Great recommendation from my friend, Chaffee. For an extra fee, Laura can come out & provide you with a personal consultation. I credit Lyon sleeping so soundly through the night early on to this book & Laura’s help.
2. Pacifiers – I never thought I’d be one to endorse pacifiers, but it’s amazing how quickly this product soothes my baby. We didn’t start using a pacifier with Lyon until he was about a month old. I hope one day I’ll be able to wean him off… I’ll worry about that later!
3. Baby Bjorn – For the very busy mom who just do not have enough hands, this is a life savor. Lyon is able to nap in his bjorn too. Amazing!
4. Conair Sound Therapy Machine – Moms on Call recommended this product to us when Lyon was about a week old. White noise is supposed to stimulate the human brain to reach that deep sleep stage faster. Apparently, sleeping with white noise for 4 hours is equivalent to getting 6 hours of great sleep. Imagine what it’s doing for Lyon’s 18 hours/day sleep!
5. Medela Breast Pump – Assuming everyone reading this post is a mom, I’ll go ahead and list this as an essential must-have. Lyon’s first couple of months were trying ones for me. I had a difficult time establishing my milk supply, and emotionally – well, I won’t go into how inadequate I felt not being able to feed my son. Anyways! My pump saved the day…and me. I now exclusively pump and although it’s really very difficult (imagine trying to coordinate your pumping schedule, and your little one’s feeding schedule and your client’s shooting schedule), it’s absolutely worth it knowing he’s getting the very best.
6. Amazon mom – This is genius for every mom who does not have time to run to Babies R Us every week. Not only does Amazon carry almost every essential baby item, but with this program, you save money while having everything delivered to your door for free!
7. Fischer Price Open-top Cradle Swing – Quite possibly one of the best baby inventions. Lyon can sit and stare at the above mobile until he nods into Neverland, dreaming of bright red frogs, blue flamingos, and yellow salamanders. What’s best is I work beside him guilt-free knowing he’s fostering his visual tracking skills! 🙂
8. DreamBaby Stroller Fan – We’re very fortunate to live in a extremely walkable neighborhood. Strollers, runners, and dogs are on every square sidewalk. Sadly, the summers in Atlanta make it so unbearable to take a stroll with baby outdoors, even in the early mornings. Luckily for Lyon, I found this awesome device that clips onto the handlebars of the stroller to provide a comfy, constant breeze for him. I need to mass produce these and sell them at Disneyland. So smart.
9. Books – It’s amazing (and probably quite comical) to watch me and dad role play for Lyon when reading books together. I figure the parties responsible for naming their kid Lyon should Roar when the book tells them to.
If you’re a new mom and would like more resources, check out B Braithwaite’s Expert Resources section. I think I clicked onto their site every other day when planning Lyon’s arrival.
