swaddle blankets

Product provided for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are my own, as always.

Our first child LOVED to be swaddled. In fact, she was still swaddled before going to sleep on the bottom half of her body until she was 18 months old. It was a very loose swaddle by that point, I promise, but that child WOULD NOT SLEEP without her swaddle. It was intense, y’all.

And that same little girl is an amazing sleeper and always has been. Our second child was not a fan of the swaddle. She also is not a fan of going to sleep at night. Coincidence? Possibly, but for what it’s worth, I’m a big advocate of swaddling and of not being quick to give up if your baby doesn’t seem to love it. You might just need the right blanket!

nested bean 1

I thought this new concept from Nested Bean was really clever. They’ve released the Zen Swaddle, and it actually has a few weighted areas on the blanket so that when the baby is all swaddled up, it will have the simulated touch of a parent. This is a MAJOR win for the parents out there with babies who will only sleep when you are holding them. Holding a baby for every nap session doesn’t sound like a horrible thing, especially if it’s been a while since you got to hold a baby, but trust me, you will more or less want to die after a while with this set up, because you, the parent, aren’t getting much sleep at all, and what little sleep you are getting is really crappy because, well, you are holding a baby.

While I don’t have a young infant to try this product out with, I can tell you that the concept is really cool, and the product itself is very soft. If you are looking for a great baby shower gift, I think this swaddling blanket from Nested Bean is worthy! Prices start at $29.99 and you can find it on Amazon (at the moment it’s just $22.50!).

Did your kids love to be swaddled or not so much? I’d love to hear!

How to Stop Swaddling Your Baby

Some of you may recall that Darah has always been a big fan of her swaddle. She simply will not sleep without being swaddled! It has such a calming effect on her that she will sometimes start to fall asleep while we are in the process of swaddling her. She’s been rolling over for a month, though, and this makes having her arms tucked in a blanket too dangerous. So we’ve been on the (bumpy) journey of figuring out how to stop swaddling (well, actually, we’ve just been getting her used to having her arms out…her legs still get swaddled!). I have to tell you, this was REALLY HARD in the very beginning. Darah’s arms would move wildly about, even though she was exhausted. She simply didn’t know what to do with them. They often made their way up to her face, and she’d pull out her pacifier again and again. This, of course, would keep her awake.

One of my amazing readers, Lisa, sent me a product from her new Etsy store, Leyton Smiles, that really helped us out. She sent Darah a CuddleBug lovey. Darah has been loving her lovey since the day it came in the mail. I often hand it over to her when it is time for bed, and it gives her something very interesting to play with. Her hands stay occupied, but away from her face. She usually falls asleep within just a few minutes after getting her lovey. In my eyes, this makes it a miracle blanket!

Lisa has really put a lot of thought into the design of her CuddleBug loveys. The square shape (12 x 12) makes it just the right size for a little one to tote around. I’ve even it been able to stick it in my coat pocket from time to time! We’ve found that in addition to it being useful at bed time, Darah also likes to have it on hand when she’s in her car seat.
Lisa points out its usefulness, stating, “This lovey is meant to not only serve as a security and comfort item for little ones, but also to stimulate their senses with numerous ways to learn and explore!” We have found that to be the case, for sure. It keeps Darah’s hands busy whether she’s drifting off to sleep or sitting in her car seat. She also likes to rub the minky side of the blanket against her face. All of the ribbons on the blanket (which are VERY securely sewn in) really delight Darah. She love to pull on them, run her fingers through them, and scratch them to hear the different noises that they make. Notice in the picture that the ribbons are different sizes, colors and materials. This makes it more interesting for the baby!

There are a few other features of this lovey that I’d like to highlight. First, I really like is the loop that is attached to the lovey. We can use this and a toy clip to connect this to her stroller, car seat or even her activity mat. Second, we have washed this lovey a few times, and I’ll admit that I was nervous that the ribbons would fray or that some of the stitching might not hold up. This has NOT been the case. Lisa does an outstanding job of preparing these blankies to be washed again and again! Finally, I just have to say that the overall look of this lovey is sooooo cute. The bright colors are so much fun, and everything coordinates together. I have had a few other parents ask me where they can find something this cute for their little ones.

Buy It!: Leyton Smiles is a shop where you can find these beautiful and unique loveys as well as burp cloths, blankets and other fun items. You can even place a custom order to match your desired color scheme! If you need something special for your little cuddlebug to hold so you can stop swaddling, I highly recommend the CuddleBug Lovey. It is a huge hit at our house. Purchase one today for $16.00.

EDIT: This giveaway is now closed.

Win It!: Lisa wants to give you the chance to win a CuddleBug Lovey right now! Awesome! This contest will run until Wednesday, February 24th at 7:59pm CST when a winner will be selected via random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to my email before a new winner will be selected. Open to residents of the United States. Make sure your email address is either in your comment or in your profile or else I can’t let you know that you won!

How to Enter:

Mandatory Entry: Head over to Leyton Smiles and tell me your favorite item in the shop OR tell me something that you’d like to see sold there!

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Disclosure: I received a complimentary product for review purposes. The opinions expressed in this post are strictly my own.

Other current giveaways: awesome children’s cds (ends 2/18) and flower arranging dvd (ends 2/19)