Items tagged “Newborns (0-6 months)”

Making wise use of our resources is a necessity, and necessity is the mother of invention. The green trend seems to be reviving grass roots entrepreneurship and small, local businesses because handmade, unique products are gaining ground over mass-produced items. You no longer need a big factory to produce a best-selling children’s toy or clothing item; all you need are starting resources, natural materials, and a great idea. The following companies have all the right components: Miracle Mittens, Skylar Luna, Zodiac Baby and Squooshi.

What does a new mother need most? A third set of hands? A night of uninterrupted sleep? Enough time for a quick shower? “Yes” is the answer to all these questions, but here’s an item that will also win an approval shout-out. Poncho Baby is the answer to how to modestly nurse a baby in public any time anywhere, even when Mom and tot are out and about. The innovative design that covers both a woman’s front and her back allows Mom to keep an eye on her baby while she’s feeding. It is also a very useful garment for nursing women to use when pumping breast milk at work.

“I was truly at my wit’s end,” shares Erin Kelly, founder of Hulabye. Like many other enthusiastic parents, Kelly was enthralled with every stage of her daughter’s growth… until baby decided that life was too short to stay still for a diaper change. The squirmy tot made diaper changes a challenge, but Kelly, who is also a physician, put her creativity to work. Her diligence to create a superior product has paid off: the Happy Changer, a vest design which secures baby safely to a changing pad, is a hands-down customer favorite.

Attending a panel discussion presented about how retailers can better work with bloggers and social media outlets, I remembered Marshall McLuhan’s famous quote from my college days: “The medium is the message.” He meant something about the medium influencing, and thus becoming part of, how the message is perceived. It kinda confused me then, just as I realized after the Q&A session that there is a lot of confusion about the ever-changing online media called “social.” Some retailers remained puzzled as to why anyone would be interested in what moms say about their families. One reason they should care is because many of these messages are influencing buying decisions and helping to build brands.

Since every baby is unique with his or her own special shape, look and needs, it makes sense to select just the right pacifier rather than a one-for-all type. Show shoppers the clever designs from Difrax, a three-stage pacifier system that caters to the needs a child’s developmental stages. Difrax pacifiers have an underlying concept: a butterfly shape proven to prevent baby’s nose from being obstructed. A trusted European brand, Difrax has won numerous awards for superior baby products, designed to make the first few years of a child’s life as comfortable as possible while offering superior parental convenience.