Monday, September 28, 2009

A Few More of My Favorite Things

It's been awhile since I did one of these posts. I always love seeing these on other blogs, so here goes.

1) Barilla whole wheat pastas.

Will loves pasta. This is a good way to serve him pasta without feeling guilty about it. You can find these at pretty much any mainstream grocery store.

2) Deceptively Delicious cookbook.

I think I have posted on this before, but now that Will is eating more "Big Kid" food, I am really enjoying a lot of the recipes in this book. A nice side bonus is that my husband (a notorious veggie-hater) is even eating more vegetables. . . and he doesn't even know it! Some of my favorites (and Will's, of course) are the applesauce muffins, chicken nuggets, green eggs, and the meatball soup. Even if you don't follow the recipes exactly, there are good ideas that you can use in other recipes (I now stir purees into almost anything, from boxed mac & cheese to spaghetti sauces to pancakes).

3) Disposable stick on place mats.

This is something that I probably would have made fun of someone for having pre-baby. But now that Will is sitting and eating at restaurants, I have to say that I really love my adhesive place mats. I actually found mine at Tar.get for a lot less than listed here, but couldn't find the link. You can actually get these for free at certain restaurants, but you can never count on it, and if you really look at the tables at restaurants. especially on the side and underneath, where they tend to chew and grab. . . ew.

4) The BEST diaper ointment ever.

I really seriously cannot believe that I haven't posted about this before. It is not the least expensive option, but it WORKS. It leaves a great scent and it stays on the skin for a long time. I love it. It is so worth it. Diaper rash has not been a problem for us since I started using it.

5) Extended-wear/overnight diapers.

These aren't perfect, we have still had some leaks, but not nearly as many as when he was wearing his normal diapers. They are more expensive, but using only one per night, saving on laundry, and not having a soaked-through Little Man at 3 AM. . . priceless!

6) Take n' Toss stuff.

First off, it's clearly a price advantage to purchase these take and toss spoons, forks, cups, etc. You can get a twelve pack of spoons for $2.97. It would cost three or four times that to get those little Ger.ber ones. And if you lose these or don't want to take a dirty one home, well, don't worry about it.

7) Suction, divided, covered plates/dishes.

I could not find a link to the exact ones that I have. I got mine at Tar.get for $4 for a three-pack. These are close, but more expensive. I use these ALL of the time, not just for travel (though that's why the cover is genius), but at home, too.

8) Miracle cream.

You know how the dad in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" thought Wind.ex could cure anything? Well, I am like that with this stuff. Will has a pimple? Aqua.phor. Will gets a scratch? Aqua.phor. I have chapped lips? Aqua.phor. The moon reverses the tides and he is fussy? Aqua.phor. Okay, maybe not that last one, but for reals, this stuff is freakin' amazing. We buy the BIG tub at Tar.get.

So. . . what are your favorite things? Either comment here or put a post of your own up and let me know so I can check it out. I will add a link to this post so that we can all find out each others' favorite stuff.

9 comments:

Tracy said...

1. I concur.
2. HAVE to get this one...we just put Evan on vitamins because he WILL NOT eat veggies. Little bugger.
3. I have used these in the past, and like them, but I'm lazy. Now I just use my wipes and a travel can of Lysol. LOL
4. LOVE Burt's Bees, but I swear by original A&D ointment. I don't even use the zync added stuff...the smell isn't great, but there's a reason that stuff has been around for ages. It works. The other thing that works is letting E&R (especially E) run around without a diaper occasionally. Sometimes messy, but the air does his bum a world of good.
5. AGREED. Big time.
6. Me too.
7. I must get some of these. Thanks for sharing.
8. Another agreed. That stuff is expensive, but one tub will last FOREVER. We're still on our first tub after a year!

My must haves?
1. My crock pot
2. Bumkin Junior Bibs - cannot say enough good things about these!!! LOVE 'EM! If your kid won't wear a big, try them. They are virtually escape proof and like a big giant smock. They even kept birthday cake of my twosome, and they got that stuff EVERYWHERE!
3. Baby Gap socks. (Or Old Navy.)
4. Robeez shoes, though mine are starting to outgrow them. They stay on well, and are easy for them to walk in.
5. My BOB Revolution (Duallie.) Oh.My.God. If you check this out and think "What the...? I'm not spending that for a stroller!" Do it anyway. You will never regret it. I love my BOB BIGTIME.
6. That music table. You know the one. Everybody has it who has babies and toddlers. I think it's made by Leapfrog? Anyway, I don't think we'll EVERY find another toy that we get so much mileage from. Crazy fun for the kids. And now they are using it as a push toy. Will the uses ever end?

I'm sure there are more. But this comment is long enough as it is.

Thanks, Katie! xo

Tracy said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Tracy said...

Under my #2 I meant "bib" not "big." :)

Katie said...

Oh, yes, my crockpot. I haven't been using it as much over the summer, but I have already fired it up twice this week. . . and it's only Tuesday!

And I most definitely have stroller envy. . . I would love a Bob, though I confess that a Phil & Teds is calling to me lately as I start thinking of #2. I like the stadium seating vs. the side-by-side of the Bob. Do you have any friends with the P&T? How would you say they compare?

I am with you on the Leap Frog music table. I also will say that it seems to be the one certain version (with the slide trombone) that entertains kiddos the best.

HereWeGoAJen said...

We have a push truck that Elizabeth thinks is the greatest thing ever. I also adore Baby Legs, they are the greatest invention ever.

Mazzy said...

I love Barilla whole wheat pasta, too! It tastes wonderful! And Aquaphor is the best invention ever. :) Right there with you.

We cannot live without the NUBY sippy cup at the moment. That thing is pure genious and so easy for L to use. I also love the "Top 100 baby purees" recipe book and my Cuisinart miniprep food processor. Those are the things I currently couldn't live without. :)

(PS-I love you. Just wanted to say that. We def need to chat on the phone, I am going to email you my phone number)

Anna said...

I lurk a lot. But had to chime in. As far as diaper rash goes - the serious, nothing makes this better, don't know what else to do kind of diaper rash... you have to buy Sensi-Care Protective Barrier. I think it is the one with a 3 on the tube. Not cheap and we have to buy it at the hospital pharmacy (over the counter)... but there is nothing better. My little girl has the most sensitive skin - even at 17 months we still use a blow dryer to dry her off after every diaper change! Anyway, we really love Sensi-care. Hence the overly long rant about how great it is. No scent, sticks great to the spots that are raw, and WORKS!

Katie said...

Thanks for delurking. We rarely have bad diaper rash with Will, but when it does happen, it's nice to have something in the arsenal.

K @ ourboxofrain said...

Oddly, we don't use a lot of these things! Crazy. 1. We do a lot of Smart Taste pasta -- Harry seems to like it and I have a similar no guilt feeling about it. 2. We should probably look into Deceptively Delicious, given Harry's recent pickiness when it comes to foods. 3. For restaurant dining, we tend to either use his booster seat with its own tray or just hope for the best. 4 and 5 aren't really needed with cloth, we've found. Harry hasn't had diaper rash ever, really. And we just add a stuffer to his pockets for overnight. 6 and 7. As for take n toss and suction plates, we bought some of each but haven't used them yet but definitely will. 8. And we may need to investigate some of your uses of Aqua.phor -- we mainly used it for windburn protection for his cheeks.

Some of our favorite things: that music table that's been mentioned before; our crockpot; our many Nuby sippy cups; Harry's lion blankie (of which he has four -- daycare, car, crib, and spare); YoBaby yogurt; terry wipes, which we do use for wipes, but we also have a second set we use for meal clean up, etc.; and, finally, Edy's loaded chocolate peanut butter cup ice cream, just because it's awesome.