Must-Have Baby Gear, Round Two

The good thing about having Baby #2 (or #3, #4, etc. ) is the feeling of preparedness. All you really need for Baby is clothes, diapers and milk. The rest is just icing on the cake.

In the days leading up to Aden's birth and in the months after, I wasn't too worried about reusing all the pink stuff we accumulated with Tory. The little mister is using his sister's pick bathtub, sporting some of her pink and purple blankets and even wearing a few of her old PJ's sometimes. I think he's secure enough in his masculinity to take it. Ha!

But, there has been a handful of things we picked up for Baby #2 that made our lives just a little bit easier. Here's my (second time around) favorite baby things:

Tiny Love 3 in 1 Rocker Napper

When Andi purchased this bassinet for Baby Aden a few weeks before he was born, I rolled my eyes (secretly, not to his face, of course). I didn't think it was really necessary; couldn't Aden just sleep in the pack-n-play we already owned on cabin weekends? Yes, of course Aden could have ... but I have to admit, this bassinet was one of my favorite baby things. We used it mostly for naps and nighttime sleeping next to our bed, though I suppose you could use it for hanging out. The legs on the bottom of the bassinet can be flipped up or down to allow for a "steady" or "rocking" motion, so I flipped one up and one down to create a lift on one side. Since Aden spit up so much, this really gave me piece of mind having him sleep at an elevated angle.

Fisher Price Cradle N' Swing

Oh my goodness, this swing has been a lifesaver with Aden. It's very possibly he's just a good-natured baby, but Aden loving this swing has saved my sanity so much. I was a little apprehensive to invest in another piece of baby equipment with the second baby (and luckily we didn't have to since Andi's parents gifted it to us when Aden was born), but it was worth it. I love this swing because it's so cozy and lays flatter than others I've seen. The number of naps Aden clocks in this thing are numerous. Best baby gear purchase EVER.

Breathable Mesh Crib Bumper

I'm in the "play it safe / not a fan of the crib bumper" category of mothers, but I've also never had a baby who used a pacifier until Aden. One little nuisance I never saw coming is the task of searching for pacifiers lost in the crib during the night. Good lord, what a pain! The other day, I moved Aden's crib away from the wall to find four pacifiers underneath there. No wonder I can't find them in the night -- they're falling through the rails! So, I purchased a breathable crib bumper to keep those little guys safely secured within the walls of the crib.

Uniden Wireless Video Surveillance Portable Security System
aka: our baby monitor

I'm one of those parents who just can't sleep unless I've got a view of what's going on in my little kiddo's bedrooms. I'd be peaking in the door a million times throughout the night if it wasn't for this baby monitor. Actually, I don't think it really is classified as a "baby monitor," but let me tell you ... it does a great job as one. My favorite feature of this video surveillance system is that you can switch to up to four different cameras using the same picture receiver. I can even set it as split screen view if I want to see both kids' rooms at the same time. It's the best.