Quick Favs - Baby Bjorn Light Travel Crib

In a world where the typical pack 'n play weighs 30+ lbs (which is about as much as a full bag of golf clubs), the Baby Bjorn Travel Crib Light at 11.5 lbs is a dream!  As if the featherweight wasn't enough - it easily folds fits in a suitcase-size handled travel bag that's sturdy enough to check on an airplane.  And better yet - it actually has a soft 1" foam mattress.  And even better - the sides are angled inward from bottom to top so its very, very difficult for a toddler to climb out of.  Wait it gets better - it unfolds itself!   It's expensive, but its so comfortable you'll never leave home without it (and you might just leave it set up in the spare room for the tot to nap in!).

Don't forget to order the organic fitted sheet too!

My Favorite Books - For Babies Who Drool

Tot #2 has many wonderful, charming, down right adorable qualities, but his ability to drool is not one of them.  From the first few months we knew he was a drooler.  The pediatrician warned us that it might not let up until he is close to two.  Drool.  Yuck.

Not only is drool messy and gross, it can really take a toll on your board book collection.  The finish on board book pages seems to come in three varieties: matte (not shiny at all), semi-glossy, and glossy.  If you have a child who drools go for the glossy ones.

The good news is that there are some great board books for the 0-2yr set that have glossy pages.  Here are my favorites:

My First Farm: Let's Get Working! (My First Board Books) a great slightly over-sized tab board book.  This series also includes My First Words, My First Numbers: Let's Get Counting, and Let's Get Moving (machines, etc.).









My First Learning Library (My 1st Board Books) is a set of three mini board books (ABC, Numbers, First Words) from the DK My First Board Book series. this whole series is quite good and completely drool proof.







 
My Little Animal Book and My Little Word Book are both great medium-large board books with lots of pages.  These two have been hours of fun at our house for both kids.







The My Big Book series are also drool proof and feature glossy oversized board book pages. There are lots of titles to choose from: 3 in 1: My Big Animal,World,Dinosaur, My Big Dinosaur Book, My Big Rescue Book, My Big Truck Book, My Big Train Book, etc.






All of Sandra Boynton's books feature high-gloss drool-proof pages.  our favorites are: Boynton's Greatest Hits: Volume 1 (red hat blue hat, A to Z, Doggies, Moo Baa La La La), Boynton's Greatest Hits: Volume II (The Going to Bed Book, Horns to Toes, Opposites, But Not the Hippopotamus), Pajama Time!, Barnyard Dance!, Your Personal Penguin, and Hippos Go Berserk!. There is also a great vinyl "bath book" called Barnyard Bath which is short and different enough from Barnyard Dance to be worth having as well.







The Dr. Seuss board book series also feature drool resistant versions of some of your favorite Seuss, including: There's a Wocket in My Pocket!, Oh, the Thinks You Can Think!, Dr. Seuss's ABC, The Foot Book, Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You, Hop on Pop,  Fox in Socks, Ten Apples Up on Top! and others.  Its worth noting that these are not identical to the classics.  They are adapted to fit a smaller, shorter format.  Not better or worse, just different.








The "That's Not My ___" series by Usborne are also generally drool resistant.   There is just about every "That's not my___" that you can imagine: Penguin,  Dinosaur, Monkey, Monster, Dragon, Train, Bunny, Car, Puppy and everything in between.













Owl Babies is one of my favorite older toddler books.  It is a very sweet story about three little owlets who are waiting for their mother to come (of course she does!).  Very sweet, but lots of words so better for an older tot.












The 9 mini board books in Roger Priddy's Chunky Book Tray are perfect sized and priced for the stroller, airplane, etc.  The are each about 3" square with 6 extra-thick board book pages each.