August 2015 – Graceful Mommy

REVIEW: mamaRoo

Posted on August 17, 2015November 22, 2015 by Graceful Mommy

17
Aug

What is a mamaRoo?

The mamaRoo is a bouncer by 4 moms that has tons of settings that mimics the way a parent holds her baby.

What is different?

There are many bouncer seats out there, but this one really is different. It has 5 different motion settings- car ride, kangaroo, tree swing, rock-a-bye, and wave. Each setting moves the mamaRoo in a different way. You can control the settings from an app on your phone. The seat reclines in different ways so you can have the seat more straight up or more laid back, depending on what your baby prefers.

The Good?

The movement. Gracie loves the different settings, and they really do help to soothe her. Her favorite one? Rock-a-bye! For each motion, you can also change the speed. This was extremely helpful in the first couple of weeks because the motion helped Gracie to sleep. I also love how it attaches to the wall. You don’t have to worry about batteries! You can buy the newborn insert for it and it makes it way more comfy for a teeny new baby. The mamaRoo also has sound options too! It’s also just plain cute looking!

The mamaRoo was actually the first place we put Gracie when we brought her home from the hospital. We wanted to make sure that our dog could greet her in a safe spot. Gracie loved it!

The Bad?

The mamaRoo is kind of expensive compared to other bouncers. It is $269 and the newborn insert is $29. WORTH IT though! It’s also a little bulky to try to move around the house. When Gracie was a newborn, we would move it from our room to the living room. It’s not that heavy, but it is hard to move around because of it’s size. Oh and we never use the app… it seemed cool at first, but not really practical.

Best for?

The mamaRoo is great for newborns and babies up to 25 pounds. It is also best for babies that can’t sit up yet on their own. We used it most when Gracie was first born and needed a calm place to nap.

Where?

We got ours from Buy Buy Baby. They are also at Babies R Us or sold directly from 4 moms .

Overall?

I love the mamaRoo and so does Gracie! It has always been a great place to set Gracie down when I need to cook or clean or just relax for a minute. She loves looking at the black and white mobile while sitting in it.

My vote?

Must have!

Home, My Reviews

6 baby apps you need

Posted on August 10, 2015November 22, 2015 by Graceful Mommy

10
Aug

I use my iPhone for everything! So it’s no surprise that when I had Gracie I went right to the app store to get apps to help me stay organized. I downloaded a lot, but only loved 6 of them. These apps honestly kept me sane during the first few weeks. I know I will be using most of them for the first year of Gracie’s life!

I will explain each app in detail going from left to right, top to bottom.

Baby Tracker

I used this app mainly in the hospital and the first week at home. Basically it allows you to keep track of feedings, diaper changes, sleeping, and more. I love it because it helps me remember the last time I fed Gracie and on what side. Another cool feature is you can add your baby’s weight and height and it tell you their percentiles. Kinda cool!

What to Expect

This one is the classic baby app! It provides tons of articles and tips on babies. I loved reading through the different articles while I was feeding Gracie. My favorite feature is the “This Month” tab. It explains what your baby should be doing each month. I always read ahead to see what I should expect for next month.

Sound Sleeper

This is the best white noise app! I always heard there were different types of white noise, but I didn’t realize how many until I got this app. There are ones that are best for newborns, infants, toddlers, and even parents! Gracie loves the Shhhh sound and the ocean one, too. Only downside is that the sound only stays on for 30 minutes unless you upgrade.

Baby Sparks

This app is $4.99 but is SO worth it! If you ever are wondering what activities to do with your baby, you NEED this app! It gives you 11 activities to do each day that are age appropriate. It includes activities for different categories like gross motor, fine motor, speech, social, etc. I love it! I found myself doing the same few games with Gracie… until I got this app. It’s a lot of fun, and you know your helping your baby learn and grow.

The Bump

Another classic app! I love to read the weekly updates to see if Gracie is staying on track. This app also has a lot of articles that are way more fun to read than a whole book. I’ve learned a lot just browsing through the app.

Wonder Weeks

This app is based on the book, but is only $1.99. The idea is that all babies go through developmental leaps. After a leap, they learn new skills. However, leaps also make babies sorta fussy and irritable. This app lets you know when your baby is going to be in a “sunny” time or a “stormy” time. It has been extremely helpful. When Gracie is acting a little extra fussy- I look on the app and sure enough it is a stormy week. It makes me feel better that she is just going through a lot of changes and it is not something that I am doing.

I hope you find these apps as helpful as I do! What baby apps do you use?

Home, Monthly Updates

UPDATE: month 1

Posted on August 1, 2015November 22, 2015 by Graceful Mommy

01
Aug

Height/Weight

22 inches / 9 lbs 6 oz.

Routine

We still haven’t managed to get into a steady routine yet. For the most part, Gracie sleeps, eats, plays, then sleeps again. I love wearing Gracie in the solly wrap or the ergo carrier. She loves both!

Sleeping

Gracie is now mostly sleeping in her crib. For the first few weeks, she slept in her Mamaroo at night and for naps. She seemed to like this better than her crib. She wakes up a lot to eat- but I find myself waking up to check on her anyways! She takes a lot of naps during the day. Sometimes she will sleep for an hour-2 straight, but sometimes it is only a 30 minute nap. Kinda depends!

Gracie likes sleeping on her back and swaddled in an Aden and Anais swaddle or Halo sleepsack!

We have been using the Sleep Sounder app on my phone for white noise. Gracie likes the SHHH sound or the ocean sound. It really does seem to calm her down though.

Eating/Feeding

The first two weeks of breastfeeding did not go the best. One night, I started getting horrible flu like symptoms and actually felt horrible. It was honestly worst than labor!! It ended up being mastitis- an infection caused by clogged ducts. After being put on antibiotics.. things have started getting better. Now, breastfeeding is going great. It definitely took a while for us to get used to everything. But now we seem to be getting the hang of it. Gracie eats at least every 2 hours. Sometimes I feed her sooner if she seems hungry.

Sizes

Gracie grew out of a few of her newborn onesies! But, they may have shrunk in the wash. She is still wearing newborn clothes and newborn diapers. She does not like getting her outfits changed!

Milestones

Gracie smiled! Daddy blew a raspberry on her cheek and she smiled! We both looked at each other in shock, and then she did it again! Watching her smile is so cute and melts our hearts!

How I feel

Overall, I feel good! It took about a week or two to feel sort of normal. Then, mastitis hit! I felt horrible for a few days. After that, I started feeling better :D. I am still in shock that I am a mommy! I keep looking at Gracie and I can’t believe she is really here!

Happy one month Gracie!