For Your Child's Nursery: Adorable Smiley Face Rainbow Sound-Activated Lamp!

Where to get: AMAZON ($10.98 + free shipping with Prime)

This is a very cute sound sensor lamp for your baby's nursery. It's colorful and very happy-looking. My daughter loves it. She's 14 months now and rarely wakes up at night anymore, but when she does, she sometimes gets scared and needs to be comforted. This lamp works great in two ways - when my daughter makes a sound (doesn't have to be crying or anything loud, the lamp turns on when there's some louder shuffling), the light coming from the lamp is enough to soothe her and calm her down. If that doesn't work, because she's in pain or just woke up from a nightmare, the light helps me get to her bed to comfort her, without turning the brighter lamp on and waking her entirely.

The light isn't too bright, it's a standard nursery night-time light, so it only offers enough brightness for you to be able to see what you're doing without running into things, or waking baby up. The sensor is pretty sensitive, sometimes the lamp turns on when I turn around in bed (I sleep in the same room with my daughter), but because the light is so dimmed, it doesn't disturb my daughter's sleep.

It turns on for 30 seconds at a time. When it's in night mode, it's activated by sound. If needed, you can also tap the top and it will come on, too. Same during day time - you can activate it by tapping. I think it's super useful and I really like the design. It's multi-colored, so it captures baby's attention. My daughter often picks it up just to carry it around and play with it.

It's made out of plastic and runs on batteries. There aren't any sharp edges or pieces that could fall off and be swallowed by your child, so it's safe to place it in your baby's crib and let your child play with it.

I received a free sample of the product for evaluation purposes. All thought and opinions are my own.

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Baby Essentials That Will Make Mommy's Life Easier

I can honestly tell you, I wouldn't survive without all these baby products! They're life savers through and through. I own all of these, use them on a daily basis and they really make my life easier - and keep the baby happy!

1) Snugli Carrier - We got ours at a second-hand local sale and it was quite a good deal! I use it whenever there's something I need to do / somewhere I need to go, and the baby just won't sit in her stroller / saucer patiently. For instance, I once baked cupcakes and then loaded the dishwasher while Victoria was snuggled in her Snugli. She was so comfy in it, she eventually fell asleep. How awesome is that?

2) Evenflo Excersaucer / Jumper - We got this awesome device from our family friends. It is the single most used baby product in the household. Victoria loves spending time in it - thanks to this jumper her legs are very strong now (like seriously, this girl can kick!). I can put her in it and she is content playing with the moving parts for as long as 40 minutes at a time. And guess what? After a 40 minute jumping session is ready for a nap :) Mommy loves this thing!!!

3) Organic Swaddle - This beauty is so big (47x47 inch), not even my little kicker can get out of it! She sleeps soundly through the night. No more struggling to swaddle your baby in a too small blanket, no more getting up at night multiple times to re-do the wrap. My nights have been made! And did I mention it's ORGANIC?!

4) Chewbeads - Whether your baby is teething or not, they probably enjoy chewing on things. I know my daughter does. I also know she struggles with oddly shaped chewing toys and slippery teethers. Chewbeads makes amazing silicone teethers that are healthy for the baby, easy to grab and hold on to, and really quite fashionable! Love these!

5) Soundspa - A very helpful little lullaby system that also works as a projector! It has 3 lullabies, 3 white noise recordings and 3 discs for the projector (ocean theme, nigh sky theme and jungle theme). I don't use the projector and the lullabies all that often, but I do play the white noise for my daughter every single night. It helps her sleep for sure, especially when mommy is working on a blog post just a few feet away from her crib.

6) Large and spacious Diaper Bag (Indigo Maldives Tote)- And the LARGE and SPACIOUS is the key phrase here. I finally have a diaper bag that works as a, well, diaper bag, but can also hold my bulky wallet, my phone, a book, and possibly some groceries. Seriously, it's that awesome! And it doesn't look like a diaper bag at all - just look at it, it's gorgeous! Stylish mommy, hello!

7) Baby Swing - Great for getting baby to take a nap. I love this swing, really. When it's warm enough, I drag it outside on the porch and Victoria is either happy swinging and looking around, or - even better - sleeping. And mommy can have a cup of coffee! 

Teething in Style: Mulberry Teether

Got a teething baby? Welcome to the club! Oh the joys of sleepless nights (and just when you thought you could finally get some sleep, too, silly you!) and constant whining.. whining... whining... I won't lie, I was slowly approaching the point when I was willing to let my child chew on my phone, cause this seemed to be the only thing that a) held her attention long enough and b) was easy for her to grab and hold (my future tech whiz!). 

We tried many different chew toys - from the ones filled with liquid that you can toss into the freezer for the awesome (or awesomely short-lived?) cooling effect to the fancy shaped ones, like Sophie the Giraffe. The last one really is a nice chew toy, by the way, just not for a 5 month old baby that is still a bit uncoordinated and, therefore, fully capable of poking her eye out with it (true story). 

And then I discovered the wonderful Belly Dance Maternity and their Mulberry Teether bracelet/chewing ring. And while my life didn't get a whole lot easier - I still don't get much sleep and I'm still mostly covered in Victoria's various liquids from which her saliva is the most pleasant one - it definitely got bearable again. Hallelujah! 

We got the teether in turquoise and orange, because I know how much Victoria loves bright colors. It immediately caught her attention - shake that thing in front of her eyes and she's sure to reach out for it. The look is one thing, but the texture is just as amazing. I just love how soft the beads are. They're made from silicone and don't have any unpleasant smell. V loves chewing on them! They provide enough friction for her to be able to hold them without any problems. She seems very content just sitting there, chewing on her bracelet, for as long as 30-45 minutes at a time. Not even mommy's shiny new phone can hold her attention for THAT long. 

With all the other chew toys we've tried, Victoria would quickly get very frustrated. She's got Korean blood in her, mind you, so it doesn't really take long for her to get annoyed and throwing things around. This is by far the only teether she didn't get frustrated with. It's so easy for her to hold, put in her tiny mouth and chew, she really doesn't seem to have anything to be frustrated with at all. Moreover, looking at her sitting in her stroller or excersaucer, chewing on the Mulberry Teether, I can tell she's relieved and satisfied. She will chew on it until she gets tired enough to take a nap. Everyone is happy! 

I won't lie to you, I have my own agenda in owning this particular teether. It's stylish and makes for a fantastic accessory! I have tried wearing it a few times while carrying Victoria in the carrier, and she was happy to have something to chew on while we walked the dog together, or did grocery. It's really quite a convenient baby product. You don't have to worry about it falling to the floor and getting dirty, you don't even have to think about it, really, you just wear it, and baby will do the rest. 

Last, but not least, the Mulberry Teether doesn't contain any harmful substances, such as BPA, phthalates, cadmium, lead or metals. It's perfectly safe for your child to chew on, and that's always the first thing I check before I make any purchases. 

To sum it all up: The Mulberry Teether from Belly Dance Maternity is a product I feel 100% comfortable recommending to all moms. It's hard for me to even imagine a better teether for my baby. Give it a try and I promise you, you won't regret! 

Other colors:

Black&White | Green&Pink | Gray&Yellow

Disclaimer: I received a free sample of the product for testing. This did not influence my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Organic Baby Finds on Etsy | Clothing, Toys & More!

Husband and I are both big on organic stuff, especially when it comes to shopping for skincare and food products. What you consume and apply to your skin is important, yes, but we also want the best for our baby girl, Victoria. I love browsing Etsy for baby products, whether it's handmade clothing, nursery decor or toys. It's a treasure chest full of beautiful, personalized, unique items! 

Here are some fabulous Etsy items currently on my wishlist. They're all handmade and organic. Aren't they gorgeous?

Organic Baby Bib | Organic Bird Rattle | Dreamful Bunny | Baby Teddy Bear Hat | Under The Sea Mermaid Turban Headband | Organic Baby Blanket | Gray Corduroy Baby Shoes | Organic Baby Blanket and Teether | V for Vampire Bat Bodysuit