Stuff Parents Need

Easing the chaos in the nest, one find at a time.

Do We Like Pacifiers? Yes MAM! (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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EDIT: Giveaway CLOSED!

Before Darah was born I didn’t think we would use a pacifier very much. I didn’t want to risk nipple confusion when she was a newborn, and I also didn’t want to have to deal with taking it away from her later.

BUT…..
My little one had a strong need to suck on something from the onset. Here you will see our solution for the first two weeks of her life…our fingers! That was cute for a minute, but then got old. After her 2 week checkup, we were given the green light for pacifiers. We had a couple of different brands for her to try out, but there was one very clear winner: MAM.

Darah has been loyal to MAM pacifiers since the first day she tried one. She spits out every other binky out there, even the one that I thought might have almost identical shapes. They must not, because Darah can clearly tell the difference. Can I tell you how awesome it is that the MAM website has a store locator on its site? We’ve used that during an emergency missing pacifier crisis!

So what makes MAM pacifiers so great? From their literature, “MAM pacifiers have been developed in partnership with internationally known pediatricians, orthodontists and pediatric dentists. The exclusive MAM shield has a unique system of large ventilation holes and a patented raised pattern of dimples that reduce skin irritation by not allowing saliva to be trapped against the skin. MAM nipples are extra soft and ventilated to adapt naturally to your baby’s sucking action. MAM nipples are symmetrical so there’s no danger of them being used upside down. The concave shield is contoured to conform to your baby’s face. It pulls gently inwards as your baby sucks to encourage the healthy development of teeth and jaw.”

In short, there are many different things that make MAM pacifiers a great choice, not the least of which, for me, is that my child absolutely adores them and can spot an imposter a mile away!

MAM has an amazing selection of pacifiers for different ages, stages/fashion needs! Darah likes their 2+ month pacifiers, and even as an 8 month old, she prefers them to the 6+ month models, although she’s slowly warming up to the larger ones now. She has every MAM Pearl that we have been able to find in the stores. MAM Pearls are a great option because they have really pretty colors and designs on them, so it is easy to make sure the pacifier coordinates with the outfit, if that is something that matters to you (check her out, here, at 3 months old rockin’ the head-to-toe pink and white look!).
After contacting MAM to tell them that we had their biggest fan living at our house, I learned that they had some options that we had never even seen. I’m a little bit embarrassed to admit how thrilled I was to learn about this. What can I say, pacifiers have become really important in my house, and to learn that the only brand my daughter will accept has some models that we don’t have was awesome news, and I wanted to get my hands on them ASAP! MAM sent me those models, and no surprise, they are much loved.
First, let me tell you about the MAM Night. It glows in the dark! I cannot tell you in strong enough terms how much we love this pacifier. The glow holds for several hours, so that when she wakes up in the middle of the night and can’t find her binky, we can easily locate it for her! I was worried, at first, that it would be so bright that it would keep her awake. But that has not been the case. At this point, she doesn’t seem very curious about the fact that it glows, and goes right to sleep with it just as she does with her other pacifiers. This is a huge hit at our house, and I have no idea why our local stores aren’t carrying it!
The second model we got was the MAM Soft. The outside edges of the pacifier are made of silicone, which makes it good for the skin. More importantly, however, it makes for a terrific chew toy for teething babies! Darah absolutely loves to take her MAM Soft out of her mouth, chew on the edges, and then go back to sucking on the binky. We don’t give her this one at night time because she plays with it so much, but it gets used frequently during the day.

Buy It!: MAM products are available nationwide at places like Target and Rite Aid, just to name a few. Give MAM a try…the odds are good that what they offer will be a huge hit with both you and your baby!

Win It!: MAM would like to offer one lucky Stuff Parents Need reader 3 sets of pacifiers in your choice of size and style! Awesome! The contest will run until Friday, May 7th at 7:59pm CST. A winner will be randomly selected and emailed, and will have 48 hours to claim their prize. Open to residents of the United States. Be sure to leave your email address in your comments or have it in your profile or else I can’t contact you to tell you that you won!

How to Enter:

Mandatory entry: Tell me one thing you learned about MAM when checking out their website!

Additional entries:

1. Subscribe to my blog via RSS or email (one extra entry total, even if you subscribe both ways)
2. Follow me through Google Friend Connect
3. Put my button on your blog (leave blog url)
4. Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter (leave your Twitter ID)
5. Follow MAM on Twitter (leave your Twitter ID)
6. Become a fan of MAM on Facebook
7. Enter any other currently open giveaway on my site (one extra entry per giveaway that you enter) and even

Current giveaways: Ranky Tanky children’s cd (ends 4/27), Hen and Chicks cloth diaper (ends 4/30), Sugar Free Allstars children’s cd (ends 5/4)

disclosure: MAM sent me a few sets of pacifiers for review purposes. The opinions expressed above are strictly my own (and my daughter’s!)

Pacifier Clips: No More Destroying My House!

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My baby is really serious about her pacifier. She has always been a baby who has needed to suck in order to comfort herself, and I quickly lost interest in serving as her personal pacifier. As soon as we got the green light from our pediatrician to give her a binky (at 2 weeks) we did!

Darah is now 4 months old. She is learning how to grab things, which is absolutely precious. She seems to be especially fond of grabbing her pacifier, taking it out of her mouth, and dropping it somewhere. Usually, within minutes she is crying for it, but she doesn’t yet know how to locate it and pop it back in her mouth. Tim and I are CONSTANTLY roaming around the house looking for lost binkies. We decided that we either needed to purchase 10 pacifiers and place them all over the house, or we needed to get something that could help hold her pacifier in place (a cheaper and more logical choice, obviously).

I found some ridiculously cute pacifier clips at the Etsy store Freakie Toes (don’t you love that name?!). Varinia, the shop owner, kindly sent me a clip to try out on Darah and review for you. I received the clip pictured on the right (cute packaging, right?). There are many pacifier clips on the market, but here’s what I particularly love about the clips from Freakie Toes. First, the snap on attachment works with both popular styles of binkies. You can snap it around a pacifier that has a hook on it, or you can snap it around the base of a pacifier that doesn’t. Darah has rejected every pacifier out there except for MAM, and they don’t have the hooks on them. This made finding a pacifier clip very difficult. But the clips from Freakie Toes totally work!

The second thing I really like about these clips is that they are downright lovely. I’ve seen many pacifier clips that can get the job done, but they are so unfortunate looking that they can make the cutest outfit look a bit sad. This just won’t do for my little doll. The flower that serves as the attachment piece is absolutely precious! Notice that is has a little rhinestone in the middle, too! Darah’s pacifier clip is basically a little brooch, and it adds to the cuteness factor of whatever she wears.

Freakie Toes has several clips to choose from on their site, and if you want to customize the color of the ribbon, that can be done. This especially great for anyone who dresses their little ones in colors beyond the traditional pinks and whites. Varinia also has some really cute beaded clips for sale if you aren’t interested in having the flower on the clip, or if you just want something different and fun! Either clip sells for $9.00. Trust me when I say that if you don’t have a pacifier clip, you’ll spend way more than $9.00 replacing pacifiers as they get lost!

Buy It!
Freakie Toes has precious and practical gifts for any little one who loves a binky (and the parents will enjoy it, too!). These clips would be perfect stocking stuffers or would be appreciated at your next baby shower. For the week of the contest, Freakie Toes is offering a 10% discount (less shipping) to all of my readers. Simply convo Varinia with what you want to purchase and she can make a custom listing for you with the adjusted price (don’t forget to tell her that you are a Stuff Parents Need reader).

Win It!
One very lucky parent is going to snag a pacifier clip for his/her little one! This contest will run until December 21st at 7:59pm CST. Be sure to leave your email address in the comments or have it listed in your profile. The winner will be selected via random.org and will have 48 hours to respond to the winning notification. Open to residents of the U.S.

How to Enter:
Mandatory entry: Head over to Freakie Toes and tell me if you would prefer a beaded pacifier clip or a flower rhinestone pacifer clip, and what colors you like best.

Additional entries:
1. Subscribe to my blog via email or RSS. Leave a comment with your email address for the subscription (2 entries, so leave 2 comments)
2. Make a purchase at Freakie Toes (5 entries, so leave 5 comments). Be sure to leave the email address you used when making your purchase.
3. Grab my button and add it to your blog roll (leave a url so I can find it!)
4. Follow me on Google friend connect
5. Enter my mineral makeup giveaway (listed Monday, December 14th)

Disclosure: I was sent a pacifier clip for review purposes only. No other form of compensation was received for this review, and the opinions expressed are my own.