It's Easy as ABC!

It’s that exciting time of year again. No not the holiday season… the ABC Kids Expo! Like the holidays, the Expo is a much-anticipated event that involves toys, games, decorations, and mingling, but instead of a family gathering, it’s a gathering of the unique and varied companies that offer products for babies and children. This year, the Expo is being held at the Las Vegas Convention Center from October 18th-21st, and the lineup of presenters looks impressive.

This year, there’s a plethora of companies, many launched fairly recently, that offer innovative products for babies. Munch Mitt, The Navigate, Ace Baby Furniture, and DockATot are just a few of the notable presenters expected to be in attendance at this popular industry event. Each one of these products has its own story, and each one is designed to make everyday tasks safer, more convenient and/or more fun for parents of very young children. So let the celebration begin!

Munch Mitt: The Handy Teething Solution

Any parent will tell you that teething can turn even the most chilled out baby into a cranky, whiny wreck. Many babies who slept like angels before will suddenly have mom and dad pacing the floor all night long, and days are filled with non-stop drooling and chewing. This is the age where babies begin to put everything they find into their mouths, forcing parents to be on constant safety alert.

This is also the age where teething toys — from colorful plastic key-rings to little cloth monkeys — become a baby’s favorite thing; but those toys aren’t always easy to hold onto. Dropped teething toys are not only frustrating for babies, but also for parents who end up having to sanitize the toys over and over again throughout the day.

Munch Mitt ends all those inconveniences. These unique food grade silicone toys fit right on baby’s hand like a mitten, providing easy access to relief of teething discomfort while encouraging development of a healthy grip. BPA and phthalate-free, Munch Mitt has been tested and meets or exceeds CPSC, ATSM and CPSIA standards.  It’s available in yellow, green or purple, with a black and white polka dot base and features a fun crinkling sound that most babies love.

Check out the innovative new chew at www.munchmitt.com

The Navigate: Steer Baby Clear from Harm

When a baby first starts to crawl, scoot, or walk, mom and dad are overjoyed. The cameras come out to capture and share the joy of these wonderful first moments of independent mobility. Eventually though, the proud smiles are often replaced with expressions of concern and anxiety as parents are faced with protecting their tiny explorer from the potential dangers that exist in the world. Safety gates are a must at this stage, but most are not very portable.

The Navigate is a revolutionary new portable baby gate system. Designed for its versatility, it’s  a simple way to provide peace of mind at home or on the go. Founder Greg Pilgrim came up with his design for the Navigate when his daughter was 15 months old. Visiting friend’s non-babyproofed homes felt perilous, and safety gates were a pain to install and take down over and over. His vision was for a gate that combined the highest safety standards with unbeatable convenience.

The Navigate’s compression design doesn’t require hardware to set up. It can conform to a wide variety of opening sizes, and features angled-side extensions that enable it to fit non-conforming walls. At less than 5 libs, the Navigate is travel-ready and comes with its own carry case.

For peace of mind at home or on the go: www.thenavi.com or www.facebook.com/thenavigate

Ace Baby Furniture: Made in the USA with Quality, Craftsmanship, and Style

It’s never too early to start organizing a child’s room. From the time they’re born, children are surrounded by a flurry of stuff from clothing to toys to books, and the collection grows and changes vastly over the years. Having attractive and convenient ways to arrange and display a child’s possessions helps give them a sense of order and security, and teaches them treasure and care for the things they have. Ace Baby Furniture helps parents create beautiful, organized spaces for their children, right from day one.

Their newest product, the Mobile Closet, is sure to be a hit. It allows a parent to organize the child’s clothes quickly and efficiently, and it can be moved easily from room to room. It comes in white, natural maple, black, espresso, and cherry wood colors, and features bear, rabbit, or lion cutouts.

The company’s height-adjustable Mobile Workstation offers a child a neat place to do their homework, with everything they need perfectly within their reach, while the Mobile Bookcase provides a chic way to display all the child’s reading material. Both pieces are available in the same color and style options as the Mobile Closet. All Ace Baby Furniture’s offerings are modern classics that will look great in just about any home.

An ace in the hole: www.acebabyfurniture.com

DockATot: Because Babies Love to Lounge Around

Sleep is at the top of many parents’ list of concerns. When a child sleeps well, the whole family can be better rested, healthier, and ready to take on every new day. That’s why finding the best sleeping arrangements for a baby is so important. Some parents may find that the crib they purchased when they designed the nursery isn’t right for all of their baby’s sleep needs. Enter the DockATot, the ingenious baby lounger that offers a safe, comfortable, portable environment for a little one to enjoy.

The DockATot was created by Swedish mom and entrepreneur Lisa Furuland. Lisa utilized her background in art to invent this functional and stylish product. 
DockATot is an oval-shaped creation made from soft, breathable, hypoallergenic material.

For newborns, DockATot provides a cozy, womb-like resting spot that helps reduce the startle reflex and encourages healthy head and neck development. It allows parents easy access for bonding, cuddling, and playing with their baby, and helps facilitate tummy time.

When the baby grows into a young child, the DockATot Grand (a larger version of the Original DockATot) is a great way to ease the transfer to a “big kid bed”.

To see DockATot in action, visit www.dockatot.com