Bath Time with Nuby

We've hit the point around here where Max and Ella take their baths together about 99% of the time. For one, I really just don't have the energy to give 2 separate baths lately, and secondly, they have so much fun in there together, it just seems silly to me to not do it that way.

The majority of the time, they share their toys, and there's lots of laughter and fun while getting clean... but occasionally there's some yelling and tears, so naturally, I was thrilled when Nuby offered to send us some fun new bath time toys to test out.

I knew M&E would be thrilled to have something new to play with, and I was elated because I was fully aware that new toys would likely result in a nice, peaceful, bath time experience for me.

First up, the Nuby Hippo Spout Guard... Max is obsessed with starting the bath water all by himself. Full blown fits are thrown if I even think about touching the faucet, so I generally indulge him, let him feel like he is in control, and then adjust the water temperature as soon as he isn't looking.

He squealed when he saw the new hippo spout cover, which then led to happy giggles from Ella as well.  A spout cover is a must for us, because these 2 can be wild in the tub, and I'm always concerned about one of them bumping their heads, or worse their faces off of the hard metal spout. This one is really cute, and my kids loved watching the water pour out of the hippo's mouth.  Bonus points for the fact that it comes equipped with a hatch, that when closed, causes the water to squirt out of the hippo's nose.  Max and Ella thought this was just hilarious.

Next up for testing was a set of Nuby's Tub Tugs.  These are super cute and come in a set of 2... which was great for us, one for each, to keep the peace.  Ella and Max seemed to be interested in these, as is, but as soon as I showed them how to use them, the real fun began.  If you submerge the boats, and allow them to fill with water, they become super fun squirt toys.  I swear, my kids would have stayed in the water until their lips were blue playing with these.  They took turns squirting each other back and forth, and even used them to rinse the soap from each other's hair.  Another win for sure.

Lastly, we broke out Nuby's Fun Bath Links.  These are a set of 15 BPA-free shapes and sea creatures that you can link together to create chains.  They also come with 2 suction cups that can be stuck to the bath walls and then the links can be attached to them.  In addition to traditional bath-time play, these are made to promote hand eye coordination.

Though Max was interested in these, and certainly played with them, I'd have to say these were more suited for a babe around Ella's age (19 months), or younger.  Max definitely enjoyed playing with them for sure, but Ella seemed to really take to linking the pieces together and taking them apart the most.

At this point, we own a pretty good size collection of Nuby bath toys, and they have definitely become a household favorite.  They are durable, and fun, and they keep my kids entertained long after the newness wears off.  I don't doubt that this new range of toys will keep us busy for a long time, along with some of our old favorites.

You can check out Nuby's entire line on their website, or follow them on any of the following social media platforms:

https://www.facebook.com/nubyusa

https://twitter.com/NubyUSA

https://www.instagram.com/nubyusa/

You can also purchase many of their products online at amazon.com or find them in retail stores, such as Toys R Us and Walmart.

***Disclaimer:  These products were provided to us exclusively by Nuby for review purposes.  All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.

Don't Forget to Brush Your Chiclets

Our sweet little Ella has been "teething" for approximately 5,327 days now it seems.  Exaggeration, yes, but that's how long it feels like it's been around here.

Those adorable bottom two middle teeth popped through before her first birthday, and thankfully didn't cause much of a fuss.  Surely (we thought), the other teeth would follow suit, and be making their way into the world in the near future.  Max had most of his teeth shortly after he turned one, and we all know, that babies are all alike (sarcasm at its finest)... Not so much.

Months seemed to pass without so much as a glimpse of anything white poking through Ella's gums.  Then low and behold, those lateral incisors arrived... before her top middle two teeth... and so we had a baby vampire on our hands.

Despite Ella's laughable (mostly) toothless grin, I was well aware of the importance of instilling a good sense of dental hygiene in her from early on.  Enter Nuby's 4 Stage Oral Care System...

My friends, this product is genius.  I'm a sucker for convenience, so a set that has us covered from that gummy baby grin all the way through to a toothy toddler smile is right up my ally (plus it's BPA free #winning).

Since Ella was mostly toothless during the first year of her life, we stuck with the first stage; a super soft silicone massager that fit on the tip of my finger.  This stage totally helped get her used to the idea of the feeling of brushing while still being gentle on her sensitive gums.

We have since moved on to a combination of stage 2 and 3.  Stage 2 is a soft massager that is perfect for older gums and new teeth while stage 3 is for cleaning the gums and teeth during the teething process.  We generally stick with the stage 3 brush, but on days that I can tell a tooth might be on its way and her gums seem extra sensitive, we'll take a step back to stage 2. 

Seeing as Ella is only 16 months old, I still have to help her a bit with the brushing process, but she totally enjoys holding the brushes herself and gnawing on them to help soothe her sore gums, annnnnd, since it's never too early to get started with good oral hygiene care, I like to let her think she's doing all of the work!

The Nuby Oral Care Set can be purchased at Babies R Us and on Amazon.com, and if you're interested in more information on this and other Nuby products, follow along with their social media sites:

• www.facebook.com/nubyusa
• www.twitter.com/nubyusa
• www.instagram.com/nubyusa
• www.pinterest.com/nubyusa 

As for us, Ella's top middle teeth have finally just popped though, so I'm hoping that there is some light at the end of this teething tunnel, and that we will finally be moving on to stage 4 (soft nylon bristles for brushing new teeth)!

***Disclaimer:  Contemporary Domestics is a part of the Nuby Parent Blogger Program.  We were sent these products to test out and review, however all thoughts and opinions are (as always) entirely my own.

                                                

Bath Time Rituals

Bath time around here has been anything but routine lately. 

As soon as Ella was capable of sitting up on her own, I nixed the separate tub times and opted for an everyone-in-the-pool at once approach.

{Nuby foam letters}

It seemed like a brilliant idea, and all was fine and good until M&E started to really interact with each other and play together during bath time.

Now, not only do I have one little splash machine, but two, and more often than not, it looks like I've walked through a monsoon by the time everyone is clean and ready for their pajamas.

So... If you were hoping for a post about how to efficiently bathe both a one year old and a 2.5 year old simultaneously, this is probably not where you will find it.

I'm not bold enough to call our routine efficient, but it is fun and when it's all said and done, I do have 2 clean babes.

I have however, been meaning to write a post and share some of our bath time essentials... The toys these guys love, and the products that have won me over.

When your kids have hair like mine do (thick and long), getting all of the suds rinsed out can be a big challenge. Max loves having water poured over his head, but Ella, not so much. Enter the Nuby Tear-free Rinse Pail... You guys, I love this thing.  It features a soft comfort edge, that when pressed against your child's forehead, creates a seal and allows you to rinse the shampoo out of their hair without pouring water all over their face. Also worth noting, it's BPA free, a feature we prefer when it comes to choosing products for M&E.  This thing has been a total game changer for us.  Ella no longer cries while I attempt to get every last bit of soap out of her Rapunzel-like locks, and as an added bonus, Max has acquired a new toy, as he loves to repeatedly pour water over himself while in the bath.  This product can be purchased at the following retailers:

amazon.com

babiesrus.com

buybabydirect.com

As far as toiletries go, we are huge fans of both The Honest Co and Babyganics.  I love the way The Honest Co shampoo and body wash smells, and their organic healing balm is so amazing that I use it myself.  In the summer months, we like to use their organic body oil after baths... it's a great light-weight moisturizer.

The Babyganics bubble bath is a fave of ours too.  I love the subtle chamomile verbena scent, and that it is super gentle and paraben free.  I'm not making any promises, but it may just calm and soothe those babes of yours right to sleep after their bath... giving you some much-needed down time.

What are some of your favorite go-to bath time products?  I love to hear what other parents are using and really love.

-J

*** Some of the projects featured in this post were provided to our family courtesy of Nuby for review purposes. The opinions stated here, however, are entirely my own.

You can follow along with Nuby via the following social media accounts:

www.facebook.com/nubyusa | www.twitter.com/nubyusa

www.instagram.com/nubyusa | www.pinterest.com/nubyusa