Sleek, Durable, and Portable Baby Gear

We recently went on vacation with one of those moms that I know other people are, but I am not - a cool mom. This post is a shout out to this mom, LSS, her her little red head cutie of a son. Not too long ago we were “holidaying” with them and they introduced us to the wonderful world of Phil & Teds. When my “cool mom” friend asked me if I knew of their products I sheepishly said no. As I watched her easily put up the Phil & Teds Pack and Play or simply attach the Phil & Teds highchair to the counter, I realized I just might be missing something here. She had with her these two portable, sleek, and durable items which seemed to just “appear” from nowhere. After struggling with the bulky items we had brought with us, I knew that my little green eyed monster was spouting out as I longingly coveted each and every Phil & Teds item she had. So although we don’t own any yet, I know these might just have to make it onto Mom’s Favorite Wish-list!

The Only Item Needed When Traveling with a Toddler

Our family recently returned from a trip overseas. We have traveled on a plane before this and yes, we made it. This time our toddler is more active so prior to the trip I researched tips and items that would be helpful in entertaining him during the flight. I packed some of his favorite toys a week before we left so that they would seem like “new ones.” I purchased a few activity books for him, and we brought some of his favorite small cuddly toys as well. When we boarded our plane we even discovered that the airplane had a small screen in front of him where he could watch his favorite character - Pooh.  Regardless of arming ourselves with this arsenal of “entertaining weapons” our son found it far more interesting to look at the people behind us and to greet them every five minutes with a chorus of “hellos.”

On the way back from our trip he decided not to sleep for one minute on a nine hour flight and quickly disregarded every single toy we had brought. And then I realized the most obvious oversight I had made before leaving for our trip - mom needed to arm herself with a few things as well - patience, mellowness, and a whole lot of love.  I had just assumed that these toys would do the job and that our son would eventually fall asleep as well. Well they didn’t and he didn’t. So be it.  He was fine - but his parent’s probably weren’t. We were too concerned that he wasn’t sleeping or that he was disturbing others. I finally told myself to “take a chill pill” and just be happy he wasn’t screaming his head off.  I overlooked the only item really needed when traveling with a toddler - less structure and a more carefree spirit which decides its okay to “go with the flow.”

A Wagon Full of Blocks and a Day Full of Fun

I recently wrote about three great companies that are producing quality American made toys, and lucky for us we have very generous grandparents who went ahead and sent us one of these toys. It is the Mega Bloks Fill & Dump Wagon and honestly has to be one of biggest hits in our household. This mom is all about “multli-functional” toys - and this one truly is - it is a wagon, dump truck, platform for building blocks, and a bin for any toy needing a place to be stored. I am not too proud to say even I have found myself enjoying it…