The onset of summer means grabbing new gear for your baby to enjoy while you travel out and about in the sunshine, take day trips to the local amusement park, head out on vacation, and explore new adventures.
There’s plenty of new baby gear available that’s worth adding to your shopping list, whether your baby is here already, or coming soon!
Strollers
Summertime is the perfect time to grab a lightweight stroller than can serve as an ideal travel companion. The Easylife Standard Stroller from Recaro, which develops seating for everything from vehicles to aircrafts, weighs just 13 lbs., and packs up small so it can even fit in a smaller vehicle, like a rental for your road trip. Your child will appreciate the CoolMesh sidewalls that help increase airflow, the extendable canopy for UB protection, and water-repellent coating in case you get caught in a summer shower. The large storage basket and cup holder will come in handy as you stroll around the zoo or park for a nice picnic.
If you’ve been blessed with two little ones (or will be soon!) check out the phil & teds DOT V3 Double Stroller, that comes with a double kit for adding a second seat, or using the seat in parent-facing mode. The second seat is positioned below the first, maintaining the same width, so you can still easily navigate around tight spaces. And the inline seat design makes it easy to push it over curbs during outdoor walks, and keeps weight centred. Also great for travel, it folds up with one hand. It can accommodate kids from newborn up to five years old.
Car Seats
For your littlest ones, from newborn to 22 lbs., there’s the Maxi-Cosi Micro AP 2.0 Infant Car Seat, a rear-facing seat that can also easily snap into a stroller once removed from its car base. It offers great protection for your bundle of joy through features like side impact performance with Air Protect technology, and a padded five-point safety harness. If you’ve just had a baby, you can use the Cozi-Dozi head insert for additional support.
If, like me, your child is just about ready to switch to a high-back booster, check out the Recaro High-Back Performance Booster Car Seat, which can be used for kids up to about 40 lbs. It has the same CoolMesh and temperature-balancing fabrics as the aforementioned stroller, which is easy to clean if the inevitable spill happens on the way to the cottage or campsite.
Video Monitors
What’s particularly great about the Levana Alexa 5” Video Baby Monitor is that it boasts a long 12-hour battery life, so you can bring it along with you as you move about the house, or enjoy a fresh glass of lemonade on the deck while your baby naps. And the rapid recharge battery technology allows you to do a quick charge if you’re running low. The 5” monitor communicates with the camera (with night vision) over the 2.4GHz frequency, and has a motion-activated display so you’ll see if your baby awakes, or is just stirring in his slumber. Two-way communication lets you soothe your baby back to sleep with your comforting voice. You can also set and receive audible alerts when it’s time for the next feed or nap. Connect up to four cameras for multi-angle or multi-room monitoring if you have more than one little one in the home.
To add pan, tilt, and zoom functionality, take a look at the sleek-designed VTech Safe&Sound 4.3” Digital Video Baby Monitor, which also operates over the 2.4GHz frequency. It can pan up to 270-degrees, tilt up to 125 degrees up and down, and zoom up to two times so you can really hone in on your baby. This will also come in handy if you’re using the camera to monitor a toddler playing in his room or designated play area who might be moving around a lot. View your child in full colour, plus infrared night vision, and use the Talk-Back feature for remote two-way communication.
Baby Wear
When my son was a baby, I loved using the Baby Banz sunglasses because they protected his eyes from the sun, he didn’t pull them off since they strap behind his head, and, let’s face it, who doesn’t love to snap an adorable pic of a baby in sunglasses? The Baby Banz Protective Earmuff and Sunglasses Set comes with both the Banz and matching earmuffs, which are ideal should you be taking baby to a loud event, or to watch the fireworks on Canada Day or another occasion. The earmuffs have a padded headband and wide, foam-filled cushions for a comfortable fit for even newborns. And the wraparound sunglasses block 100% of the sun’s UV rays.
My son was such an expert at crawling, that he didn’t start walking until he was 15 months. If he could get around so well on all fours, why bother getting up, right? But joking aside, for little guys and gals like mine, the Go Little One Go Anti-Slip Pants can come in handy to ensure they don’t face-plant as they scoot across the just-polished kitchen floor, or indoor play place. On each knee are anti-slip grips, similar to what you might find on the bottom of kid socks. Shaped like tiny stars, they’re cute, too. The pants themselves are made from allergen-free bamboo fabric, and the ribbed cuffs at the hem can be rolled up to fits babies of all sizes, from six to 15 months.
Other Cool Gear
Help the kids enjoy a good night’s sleep with this cute Goodnight Moon Soft Plush Bunny Night Light from Kids Preferred projects, which displays stars and constellations on the ceiling. It’s inspired by the children’s book Goodnight Moon, and can illuminate the room in one of three colours, via a light show, or steady stream of light. The best part is that it automatically shuts off after 20 minutes, once your child has likely fallen into a deep slumber. Plus, it comes with the required three AA batteries to get you going right out of the box.
Summertime means plenty of patio brunches, sight-seeing, and day trips with the kids. The convenient Mint Marshmallow Travel Seat could be a welcome alternative to the sometimes –let’s face it – dirty and germ-ridden high chairs you get at restaurants. But it’s also handy when visiting friends and family. It can attach to any standard chair, then folds back down for easy storage. And will keep your baby, aged 6 months and up, safe and secure.
Check out more great baby gear at Best Buy Online.
