WubbaNub Pacifier Review

When registering for baby stuff before my son was born, I came across a pacifier with a stuffed animal attached to it. Perhaps you've seen it? It's called a WubbaNub (though I've always thought it was called a "Wubba Nubba"), and comes in a plethora of adorable animals. I thought it was cute but kind of frivolous. Close to $15 for a pacifier?! But I bought the giraffe pacifier anyway, just to try it out (and because it was just too cute!)

Though when I bought it, I didn't think it could possibly be better than any other pacifier - plus I was planning on using pacifiers sparingly - but I quickly fell in love with it. We almost forgot about every other pacifier - I had them stuffed in diaper bags as our "backup," but we never went anywhere without what we began referring to as "THE Pacifier." (I wouldn't even leave the room without grabbing it). 

What makes this pacifier so great? 

I'm glad you asked. 

Here's my list of things I like (and don't like) about the WubbaNub. 

1). The pacifier/nipple itself is a Soothie, which is the kind our boy preferred. It's also the type that our hospital used to soothe him during his circumcision. So this was great for us - I didn't waste $15 on a pacifier we'd never used. (He only rarely took a Nuk pacifier and any others almost never. There are still some rejected pacifiers in the nursery somewhere...) If your baby prefers a flat nipple such as the one on a Nuk over the round one on a Soothie, then this may not be the pacifier for you.

2). The attached stuffed animal makes it larger - therefore easier to find when you're fumbling around in the dark looking for it. Or when fumbling around in a cavernous diaper bag. It also makes it less likely to get lost in the sheets or blankets. This may seem trivial, but trust me. When you're dealing with a crying, upset baby, you don't want to be spending precious minutes digging around for a tiny pacifier.

3). Aside from making it easier for you to grab, it's also easier for little baby hands to hold on to as well. Baby G didn't hold the giraffe right away (too young!), but he got into it eventually and now whenever he sees the giraffe he grabs it and stuffs it in his mouth. Some may say this is because he knows that it's something he likes to suck on... some may say it's because he's stuffing everything in his mouth... 

4). A potential downside of the WubbaNub is that you can't attach many paci clips to it. However, because of the plush animal, you can shove it places to get it to stay. For example, it gets wedged quite nicely between my body and any of our baby carriers (like my husband in the Ergo, below).

The WubbaNub between my husband and the Ergo shoulder strap. The nipple rests in the perfect spot for baby to suck on!

It's hard to tell, but the giraffe's body is actually in the front pocket of the Balboa Baby Ring Sling.

5). Other than the actual nipple, the WubbaNub provides many things for baby to suck (or chew) on. Though I haven't tried any of the other animals, the giraffe in particular has feet that are the perfect size and shape to fit in baby's mouth. He loves to suck on those almost as much as he likes to suck on the pacifier part. Though, now he's teething, so he's really chewing on the poor giraffe more than anything else...

Mouthing on the giraffe's foot.

6). It's slightly more difficult to clean than standard pacifiers - depending on how neurotic you are. I don't like to rinse the nipple because then the giraffe gets wet - and normally when I'm rinsing it, I need to use it right then and don't have the time to lay it out to dry. Not a big deal... but I'm a bit weird. :P You can throw it in the washing machine though. I actually don't do that too often (or put regular ones in the dishwasher) because I read that heat wears down the plastic and it can eventually break off. (Apparently you're supposed to replace pacifiers every 2 months. Not a big deal for $3 ones, but I really didn't feel like replacing a $15 pacifier when he may only use it for another month). I do stick it in the bottle warmer (which doubles as a sanitizer). The warmer isn't huge, so I just tip the pacifier piece in, letting the giraffe's body hang over the edge.


Do you have a WubbaNub for your little one? What did you think of it?

Traveling With Baby: Baby Travel Gear

We recently took our first family vacation, and because it was two weeks long, there was a lot of preparation on my part. Some things that we took were completely unnecessary and then there were others that I wish I would've thought of before hand.

The Best Baby Travel Gear

Daily Life With A 3-Month-Old

Though I promised not to write solely about my day-to-day life and turn this blog into a diary, I have posted about what daily life is like with a 2-month-old, and intend to write a similar post each month as my boy ages.

So, here's what a standard day is like (for me) with a 3-month-old. It really isn't all that different from when he was 2-months-old... he's just awake a little bit more. We were on vacation for two weeks, which sort of threw of his schedule (not that he really had one). But, this is roughly what life was like with him for that month. These are all average times... perhaps in the future I will try and document one full day, if it's an interesting one.

Binky Monster Pacifier Clip Review

Disclosure: I received a binky clip sample from Binky Monster to review.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Binky Monster is a small business (but growing!) that sells binky/pacifier clips, blankets, accessories, wash cloths, and nursing pillows. They just launched their new website too! Their tag line is: "Baby products and goods created for your little monsters!"

 I got their popular "Mike" style (as in Mike Wazowski from Monsters Inc).

It is super cute! And Mike's face is much larger than I thought! (No risk of losing your pacifier with a clip this large!)

 

The character piece is made of felt and appears to be hot glued together. 

The leash is a standard ribbon with two snaps on the end. The leash is a good length - if I have it clipped to the strap of my Ergo, even if he turns his head the pacifier will stay in his mouth.

Unfortunately, the clip doesn't attach to all types of pacifiers. I had three pacifiers on hand - a Soothie, Nuk, and Tommee Tippee and it only attached to one of them. The clip would've attached to the Tommee Tippee if the "female" snap had been the one on the end of the ribbon instead of the "male" snap. Because the protruding part of the snap wouldn't fit through the opening on the binky. (See photo above!)

Clearly this wouldn't attach to the Soothie. But I charge that as Soothie's problem - because very few types of pacifier clips will work with a Soothie. Those little holes are too small and there isn't a handle like with the Nuk.

It does attach to the Nuk because it has a nice "handle" with a large opening.

Bonus: Once your child outgrows pacifiers, you can just cut off the ribbon and reuse the character as a decorative clip! Cutting the ribbon off can also help signify to your kid that they are growing up. Some ideas for how to use it once you cut the ribbon off: clip it to your diaper bag, decorate a baby carrier with it, it could be a reusable gift tag, or use as a cute "paper clip."

All in all, it's an adorable, simple binky clip that has multiple uses and comes in lots of different styles. And at $8.50 it's a good deal! It makes a great gift and you'd be supporting a small business.

Binky Monster's links and social media information is below:
www.binkymonster.com
twitter.com/binkymonster 
Facebook.com/binkymonster
instagram: @binkymonsterinc

Daily Life With a 2-Month-Old

I promised when I began this blog, that I wouldn't solely write about "what I did all day." But, I thought one post about what a day is like for me with my now 3-month-old boy wouldn't be the worst thing. :P I wish I'd done one when he was 1-month-old so that I could compare and see what the difference is. Because it's hard to notice change when it happens gradually over the course of a month.

So, here's what a standard day is like for me. He only turned 3-months-old the other day, so I'm going to write about what life is like with a 2-month-old since that is what he was up until a couple days ago. haha.

Keep in mind, babies don't have set schedules and aren't exactly predictable. So these are just average times and estimates. Babies this age can start to develop patterns, but it's not set in stone.

Ergo Baby Carrier Review

As if I didn't already have enough baby carriers... I recently got an Ergo Baby. They retail for over $100, but I managed to find a brand new one on Ebay for $70! (With free shipping). It's in their new "Galaxy Grey" pattern, which has embroidered stars on it.

Ergo Baby Original carrier in Galaxy Grey with infant insert. $135

The Ergo is a soft-structured carrier, similar to the well-known Baby Bjorn. It does not have a sturdy frame to maintain its shape like the backpack-style baby carriers, but is more structured than a wrap or sling (hence the term, "soft-structured").

classic Baby Bjorn

Osprey frame backpack child carrier

One feature of the Ergo is that it is ergonomical - it distributes baby's weight evenly on both shoulders and your back. It is one of the most comfortable baby carriers I have. I don't end up feeling as sore and achy as I do with my slings and wraps. It's also ergonomical and comfortable for baby - they are cradled in a natural sitting position with the correct hip alignment.

My husband showing how mobile the Ergo allows you to be!