12 Days of a Free-Range Kid

I’ve just returned from 12 days in NH and VT visiting family.

My in-laws live at the end of a dirt road on 100 acres – the same place my husband grew up.  To say it’s a breath of fresh air is an understatement.  Peep spent her days outside – barefoot and happy.  She could come and go as she wanted and got to experience the freedom of a childhood her father and I both knew. (It was also the 70’s and all kids were a bit more “free.”)

Rides on the "tractor" with Papa. Yes, that's a giant blue toothbrush sculpture and another story for another day.

I like where I live, but I do struggle knowing that there is a different way for Peep to be in the world.  Thank goodness our family continues to live in places she can run, jump and explore.

 

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Quinny Yezz Review – City Here You Come

I will admit that I have not seen this in person…but I WANT TO!!!  The Quinny Yezz was designed for city living.  This is a lightweight, fold-able, cool looking stroller.

Some pros that I’ve come across:

  • Light – only 11lbs total
  • Folded, it is 27 x 10.6 x 9.3 inches
  • Stands alone when folded – so you can “set it and forget it” (I’m pretty sure that phrase should have a ™)
  • First stroller made entirely out of IXEF® which is a high performance plastic
  • Skating wheels allows for easy maneuverability
  • A literal rainbow of color choice – Gray, Blue, Red, Pink, Purple, Green & Yellow
  • Shoulder strap for easy carrying
  • Adjustable straps that grow with your child

Some potential cons:

  • Little to no storage – there is a pocket on the back, but no storage under the seat and with a rounded handle, hard to hang additional bags
  • The rounded, up-right handles – it looks like it could be awkward to push (caveat is that I have not seen this in person)

It looks like there are limited online stores to purchase, but the price is a consistent $282 with a rain cover available for $37.  If this is your only stroller, then it’s not a bad price.

I’d love to hear from anyone that has actually seen one in person!

 

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Peep’s Travel Tent – phil & teds traveller™

I haven’t written about some of my own choices in products in awhile, so I thought I’d share one of my favorites – the phil & teds traveller.  My mom & I saw this at our local, upscale kid’s store when I was pregnant and she insisted that she purchase it for us. (Aren’t mom’s the best! Full disclosure, I know she had an ulterior motive – we’d need something to bring to her house for visits.)  What we like about it was that it had the convenience of a pack n’ play, but was smaller, lighter and frankly, more stylish.

It weighs a total of 9lbs including the blow-up mattress.  When it’s open, the dimensions are 51″ x 24.8″ x 31″ (L x W x H).  When it’s packed it’s a tiny 24.8″ x 8.6″ x 8.6″ and looks like a small tent with a carrying strap.  This means it’s easy to store when not in use! The reason it’s so light is that the poles are aluminum, and the fabric is nylon and mesh.  We found that it even fits in a large suitcase so this has gone on every vacation we’ve gone on.  Phil & teds recommend it for newborn until age 3, but I will say that Peep still requests this as her travel bed at the age of 4.5.  She’s a bit big, but still technically fits and the familiarity of it is comforting when she’s in a new place.  It retails for around $180, and since we travel to see family and friends quite a bit,  it was well worth it.

 

Another great feature is the side zips down, and the top zips off.  This means easy access for toddlers (and moms) and it turns it into a fun place to play.  We’ve used this equally for travel sleeping and forts.  It is great as an outdoor playpen as well since the mesh keeps it well ventilated and bug-free if you keep the top on.  They now have a special UV mesh that you can purchase for summer days.  We did bring ours to the beach a few times and just threw a towel over the top.

 

And just for fun, here’s a picture of Peep sleeping (age 1.2) looking a little stiff, but cute none the less. Oh, and to make it a bit more cozy, I made a flannel sleep sack sheet (long tube) for the mattress.

 

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No space to put pictures? StickyGram to the rescue!

I don’t have a lot of spare, free space in my house.  Nor do I have a lot of free walls.  But I do have a lot of family pictures that I’d love to display – my family, my husband’s family, Peep, Peep, and oh, more pictures of Peep.

What I do have is a refrigerator.  So, why not turn some of those pictures into magnets? Enter StickyGram.  This online company will turn your photos from Instagram into magnets for $14.99 and free shipping.  You get a sheet of 9 – each are 50mm x 50mm which is approximately the size you see on your iPhone.

Source: StickyGram

These are a great alternative to framed photos and are more versitile too.  Because they’re magnets – they’ll work on anything.  You could even create an alphabet and stick them to a cookie tray – voila – a new toy. And there is Father’s Day just around the corner…and Dad doesn’t need a new tie or mug.

*This is not a paid post. 

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Life Without Closets

Many small spaces that our children live in (or us for that matter) don’t come with closets.  While they’re small, this is simply an organizational challenge to hide all the stuff you don’t want everyone to see.  Once they get bigger, you might actually want a closet to hang clothes in (novel idea!).  I’ve come across a few that are marketed as dress up hangers, but I think they’d make great free standing closets.

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Phil & Teds® Lobster Portable High Chair

Phil & Teds is a great company for City Babies.  They have great design, reasonable prices and have really been at the forefront of designing products that are small, user-friendly and useful.

I love their Lobster portable high chair.  Not only can you bring this to restaurants, but there is no reason why you couldn’t have this as your main high chair and save the room!

The greatest part feature of the lobster is the ease of which it can be attached to a table.  With a simple twist on and twist off, it’s done.  The lobster has a 5 point harness to keep even the squirmiest ones safe and sound. There is also a food tray that attaches under the grips that makes for easy clean up.

The entire unit only weighs 3.9lbs which makes it convenient to travel with, and best of all, it can be used for kids up to 37 lbs!  It can easily be found around the Internet or from Phil & Teds own site for $79.99 – a steal if you plan to use it as your main high chair.

If you don’t want to take my word for how great this is, please also consider it was a winner of a 2012 Cribsie Award for the one thing you should never travel without.

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Collapsable Bath Tub

Has your child outgrown the kitchen sink?  Many city apartments come with just a stand up shower – so where does your child take that fun, and much needed bath?  Luckily, there are options!  Like this one from Prince Lionheart - it’s called the Flexi Bath Tub.  You can fold it up and put it away when you don’t need it.

This lightweight (3.34 lbs) and small footprint (9.4″ x 24.75 W x D) comes in a range of colors – Pink, Green, Clear, White, Purple and Blue.  They say it works for kids from birth to age 4 although, my guess is it’s best for the toddler stage.  It is BPA free, has a non-skid bottom and has a drain at the bottom to easily get rid of the water.  You can find the quickly on the internet with a price range of $30 – $40.

 

Oh, and when it’s dry and empty, you can use it for stuffed animal storage, like my sister does!

 

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Unrelated…but where I’m at today.

I don’t normally post about being a parent outside of CityBaby Living things…but I was struck by this thought and decided to write about it.

I feel as if I know everything there is to know about my daughter. I know every freckle on her nose and forehead. I know what it looks like when she’s really sad and when she’s faking. I know what she likes and dislikes, how she’ll react to most things, what toys she loves and what it feels like when she climbs into my lap.  I can feel her soft cheeks in my imagination and her true gut busting laughter is my favorite sound in the world.

But yesterday when I made my nightly ritual of looking in at her sleeping sweetness before heading to bed myself I realized that I don’t really know her at all. For there in her head is a rich world I will only get to look at from the outside. She will become someone I can’t even imagine of right now. It struck me as so awesome that I can know someone so deeply in my soul and yet have no real idea of who she’ll be, what she’ll do and the choices that she’ll make.

When I was in high school, my mother gave me a poem that I think was written by an American Indian.  I have long since lost it and don’t remember the rest, but the one line I held onto was this: You’re children are not you. They come through you, but they are not you.

I am blessed beyond my wildest dreams that this funny, beautiful, strong little being came through me and I can not wait for the future (tomorrow, next year, and 20 years from now).

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Room Within a Room

If you have very little space, it is possible to create a mini room within a room just for your baby or your growing child.  These two options combine a bed, a dresser and more!

Source: modernparentsmessykids.com via Emily on Pinterest

As Peep is 4.5, this larger bed is very appealing.  At 5′ x 8′ in size, it seems like a potentially magic place.

Source: rosenberryrooms.com via Emily on Pinterest

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Creative Nightlight Option

No room for a nightlight in that small room/nook/corner your child sleeps in?  How about a glow in the dark decal?  I’m really not kidding (Peep’s favorite saying).  My Sweet Muffin carries this very creative option for keeping the monsters in the closet.  During the day, it is a very modern yellow decal, but at night it shows its phosphorescent properties.  It’s a bit on the splurge side at $48, but hey,  it is coming all the way from France.  The text in the bulbs says “bonne nuit” or “good night” in French.

 

 

I think they’re kind of genius.

 

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