April Mommy and Baby Favorites

Could it already be time for Mommy and Baby Favorites again? Wow! Another month has flown by and this month we have been liking A LOT of stuff! Both Kingston and I have a ton of favorites to share this month. I will start with the little guy.

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Kingston has been all about the toys this month. He is more interested then ever in exploring everything. He stills loves playing with objects that are not supposed to be toys best, but here are his favorites from this month:

Fisher Price Peek-A-Blocks: Shape Sorter - We registered for and received this shape sorter at our baby shower. I just brought it out for the first time this month and K loves it! It comes with four different shapes: star, circle, square, and triangle, with fun little moving items inside. It makes noise when a shape is dropped in. Kingston loves to pick the entire thing up and manhandle it. I like it because I can shove all of his toys in it to carry from room to room. It's a great first shape sorter because baby can put the shapes in the open top as well and still get the gratification of it making noise.

B. One Two Squeeze Blocks - We gave K these blocks for Christmas. He loves them! They have different animals and numbers on them which seem to feel really good on his gums when he chomps on them. Also, they have little holes in the bottom to enable them to be a bath toy as well. Kingston likes when I squeeze the blocks in his face and make his hair fly around! These are a great first block for baby because they are soft and pretty indestructible, yet stackable.

Hello Baby Phone - This phone by Chicco is a definite favorite. It doubles as both a teether and an object for pretend play. Kingston and I like to pretend that he is calling all of his relatives. This little phone has so many features. It has a clicking circle at the top that allows you to choose an animal friend to call, squeaky buttons, a chewable flip cover and antennae, and a mirror on the back! We love to turn the clicking circle to the giraffe and call K's best friend Sophie. He is learning to hold the phone up to his ear which I find adorable. It is also a great, compact toy to throw in the diaper bag when we are on the go.

Football Oball - This was the first ball that Kingston showed any interest in. Oballs are awesome because they are easy for baby to grasp and fun to gnaw on. K likes to hold the ball in one hand and wave it up and down like he is going to throw it. Also, he likes to put it up to his mouth and push his little tongue through the holes. It looks so funny and adorable! This is a toy that will definitely grow with Kingston. I'm sure he will be throwing it in no time!

Melissa & Doug Dinosaur Grasping Toy - This was one of the toys we put in K's Easter basket. He loves this dinosaur. He loves gnawing on the head and the tail. I stick the entire dinosaur in my bag and drag it from place to place because he loves to play with it when we are at restaurants. It is such a fun, durable toy. It is almost like a dinosaur rubix cube. You can bend and move all of the joints in the toy making it a sort of fun puzzle to arrange and rearrange!

Classic Rubber Ducky Bath Toy - Kingston loves rubber ducks! This toy was such an after thought for me because I thought that it wouldn't serve much purpose for him yet. I was definitely wrong. The bill of the duck and the other body parts make great teethers. K's favorite thing for me to do is to hide the duck and then whip it out and yell "QUACK!" .. yes I really do this. It makes him giggle and giggle. I will do anything for a Kingston giggle! We also bring his ducks in the bath tub. He has been all over his ducks this month, especially his Easter bunny eared duck.

B. Zany Zoo - This was Kingston's big Christmas gift from us. It is a gorgeous wooden cube with four activity sides and an activity top. It is so much fun, and beautiful enough for me to leave out in the living room like another piece of furniture! The four sides have: a spinning alphabet with corresponding pictures, doors that open and close revealing an animal with its matching name, a side with circles that roll down mazes, and a mix and match top and bottom animal side. I'm not sure if those descriptions made sense, but it is really fun. The top has a bead maze and little animals to move. K's favorite side is the spinning alphabet. He also like to slam the little doors closed. This toy is great to learn to pull up on also. It is the perfect height! Just make sure that an adult is holding the other end of the toy while your little one pulls up!

Little Tikes Tap-a-Tune Piano - Kingston loves his piano. I can't even stand how cute he is tapping away at the keys. He even gets creative and uses multiple different toys to tap out a melody. We sit and play for a long time together. I love making up songs to sing for him while we play wildly together.

Little Learners Finger Puppet Books - This month, Kingston's favorite books have been these finger puppet books by Little Learners. We have all of the ones pictured above. His favorite is by far The Itsy Bitsy Spider. I love This Little Piggy the best myself. I love that this series combines cartoon pictures with real life objects. It is such a fun concept. Of course, K's favorite part is the puppet. He loves grabbing the puppet while my finger makes it wiggle. This is such a cute series!!

Mini Bananas - Kingston loved these mini Chiquita bananas this month! I picked them up at Hannaford because I couldn't resist how adorable they were. They are so perfect too because usually I have to split a banana with him. He can eat an entire mini banana on his own. It is so much easier for him to hold and is just plain cute!

So, these products have pretty much been staples in our house since K was born (minus the Zarbees). We use them every month always, so I knew I needed to pick a month to put them in! Mine as well choose the month with the very most favorites right?

Nosefrida The Snotsucker Nasal Aspirator - This is the best invention in the world. When K was really little, I used a regular nasal aspirator. It never got ANYTHING out, plus I stressed about using it too much and damaging his sensitive nasal passages. With the Nosefrida, I have never had any problems. Don't get me wrong, he hates it and fights me to no avail, BUT it gets the job done quickly and successfully. I usually sit with cross-legged with Kingston in my lap facing out. Then I hold his arms and quickly try to get everything out. It seems like a gross concept to a lot of people, but doesn't bother me in the least. I would do anything to help ease my baby's congestion. When I first bought this, I purchased a bunch of Nosefrida Hygiene Filters, and haven't had to buy anymore since!

Grandma El's Diaper Rash Remedy and Prevention Jar, 3.75-Ounce - Can you say obsessed? This is THE best diaper cream out there. I know this for a fact because I used to diaper a ton of babies each day when I worked in daycare. I have used every brand under the sun. This one is by far the best. Plus, it is cloth diaper safe which is necessary for us. I love everything about it. A little bit goes a very long way. As soon as I see any redness, I put this on Kingston. He has never had a rash. LOVE IT! This is a must have product for us.

Zarbee's Baby Cough Syrup, Natural Grape Flavor, 2 Ounce - Zarbee's is AMAZING. I love it! I have used it on both myself and Kingston with perfect results. I don't want to go into too much detail because I hope to do a full review (and possibly a giveaway!) soon, but rest assure this stuff does what it says! If your baby has a cough, get this pronto. Medicine-free and all natural!

I have a handful of favorites this month too! I actually consciously wrote down the things that I was really enjoying this month, which is completely abnormal. I'm excited to try to compile a list of things that I like every month too.

Bear River Valley All Natural Cereals - I found these cereals at Ocean State Job Lot this month. They are completely all natural versions of high sugar cereals. These cereals are made with whole complex grains and natural sweeteners. They are delicious! My favorite by far are the Marshmallow Avalanche, which is a natural version of Lucky Charms. I can't even describe how great these cereals are! Even the packaging is cool.

90210 - We got Netflix last month. Do you know what that means? I now have the opportunity to catch up on/fall in love with shows that I never got to really watch. I am obsessed with the new 90210, and I am NOT ashamed to admit it. I loved the old 90210, but for a remake, this one is pretty great too. I get so emotionally invested when I watch this. I laugh. I gasp. I am on the edge of my seat. Thankfully I only have to wait until I click the next episode to see what happens! The new 90210 gets major kudos from me for bringing Tori Spelling into a couple episodes. She's my favorite!

Trader Joe's English Toffee - Okay, so anyone who knows me knows that my all time favorite candy is English Toffee. I love it. I have tried it from all kinds of places, but my absolute favorite is from Trader Joes! It is perfectly sized and super delicious. I couldn't resist picking up a box this month. Yum!

Touchscreen CrockPot slow cooker - This has been the month of the slow cooker! I got my butt into gear this month and finally started regularly preparing meals that were ready when Todd walked in the door. It only took me 7 months right? The crockpot is definitely my new best friend. I throw everything into it in the morning when K is happy and playing. Then, I can keep it warm even if Todd is late. I love it! I have been making all kinds of made up concoctions in there. I will definitely be using this a lot more from now on. The slow cooker I have is this touch screen model. It couldn't be more user friendly!

Dorot Crushed Garlic - This is by far my ultimate favorite for myself this month. My mom turned me on to these when we were shopping at Trader Joes. They are little frozen cubes of crushed garlic that you pop out whenever you need garlic for a recipe. Each cube = one clove. I am a huge garlic fan, but prior to finding these it was the bane of my existence! I hated peeling, mincing, chopping, etc. These are so super convenient that I can't help getting giddy every time I pop one into a recipe. These also come in different crushed herbs! I want to try them all! This is a new House of Burke staple.

The Host - Todd and I got to go on a date night this month! We went to dinner and to see The Host. I had read the book years ago and was really excited to see the movie. It was great!! Even Todd enjoyed it. I really like how the setting was depicted. It was very similar to what I imagined in my head which is always pretty cool. Great movie!

Other favorite things that Kingston has been enjoying: trying to crawl, jumping in his jumper, playing outside, playing with balls, swings, yogurt

Stay tuned for next months favorites!