Reviews by mariposa767

mariposa767 says "Not worth the hype, but work okay as spoons go" about Munchkin Soft tip - Hot food indicator - Spoons/4 pack

mariposa767 — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:56:20 GMT

I had to make a choice between a few different brands of spoons and I was between a basic 6 pack of soft tip spoons, and this Munchkin 4 pack of soft tip spoons. When I saw that the Munchkin spoons had a built in heat indicator, I decided to go ahead and spend the extra money for the added quality of having a heat indicator even though there were less spoons in the pack. As advertised, the tips of the colored spoons turn white when they are touching a hot food or liquid. The problem with them though is that they seem to turn white even if the food is just warm, causing me alarm that the food is still too hot for my baby when it is not. I still have to check the temperature of all foods with my finger before feeding my baby (as I would recommend to anyone feeding a baby), so it really isn't worth the extra money to see the tip of the spoon turn white. Another problem is that the tips of the spoons tend to stain with certain foods (ie. carrots, squash), and although this staining...

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mariposa767 says "Works great for nursing" about Boppy Pillow

mariposa767 — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:39:38 GMT

I received my Boppy pillow as a gift for one of my baby showers and I can say that it has worked wonderfully for nursing my baby. The few times I have nursed without the Boppy, it took me too long to get the right adjustment and height on regular pillows for nursing. It could have been because the Boppy has spoiled me, but that is just what has happened in my case. If I wasn't using the Boppy pillow while nursing, I would end up bending over so much that my back would hurt during nursing and afterwards.

The Boppy pillow fits perfectly around my waist and helps to keep my baby in just the right position for feeding times. My only complaint so far (after having used this pillow for 8 months) is that it is difficult to fit into our washing machine (around the agitator), and even though I put a couple of tennis balls in with it in the dryer as is recommended, it still comes out of the dryer with the stuffing in clumps. Of course, I imagine I would have the same problem with any...

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mariposa767 says "Travel Bed, helped me and my baby rest peacefully" about Eddie Bauer Infant Travel Bed

mariposa767 — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 16:48:12 GMT

I bought the Eddie Bauer Infant Travel Bed before traveling with my then 4 month old daughter to a friends wedding. Knowing that I would be staying in a hotel for 2 nights, and traveling without my husband who could have helped to lug a pack and play into a hotel room, I decided that this fairly inexpensive bedding solution might do the trick. The Eddie Bauer Infant Travel Bed was around $30 and is light weight and very easy to assemble. It comes with a fitted sheet, and a removable toy bar. It folds up easily and has a built in shoulder strap for easy carrying. It can be used as a bed, entertainment location, or a changing place for a baby. The size of it when open is 19"x30" so once the baby is around 5-6 months it is about time to call it quits for this bed. Before the baby outgrows it though, it is wonderful for instant bedding.

Before going to that hotel, I put in a request for a crib. Not knowing what to expect from hotel cribs though, I took this travel bed with me. ...

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mariposa767 says "Great fun for my daughter" about Graco Bumper Jumper Twi

mariposa767 — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 16:06:42 GMT

We recently got the Graco Baby Jumper from a friend and we couldn't have received a better form of entertainment for our daughter. She loves it!!! She is 6 months old and figured out pretty quickly how to jump around in this gadget. She enjoys it so much that her little legs are making the jumping motion even before she is settled into the seat on the jumper. Sometimes she is placed in a stationary play thing and she makes the jumping motion and wonders why she isn't moving like she does in the jumper. It is definately her preferred source of entertainment. The first time we used it, it was placed on the doorjam of a narrow door. She kept putting her fingers in front of the food tray on the jumper and would have banged her fingers on the door frame if I hadn't been there to block her from the door frame. Since then, we have put the jumper on an I-beam in our living room. We placed some extra screws into the I-beam as extra security for holding the jumper up. Now she has...

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mariposa767 says "No smell, no mess with the Diaper Genie II" about Playtex Diaper Genie II

mariposa767 — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 23:44:37 GMT

The Diaper Genie II is a wonderful addition to our nursery. It is so easy to use... just pop open the lid and shove the diaper in, close the lid, and you are done! The refils are very easy to put into the contraption, and it is very easy to open it up for taking the dirty diapers out once it is full (maybe every 20-30 diapers or so). It has a cutting device inside that makes it very easy to cut the bag off and then you just tie up the bag of dirty diapers, and tie a knot on the end of the new section of bagging. Even after having diapers sit inside the Diaper Genie for several days, there is no smell. My husband doesn't even mind taking the dirty diapers out of this thing! I think that the price on it is very reasonable for something that improves the task of diaper changing. The only problem we have ever had with our Diaper Genie is that my mom has a hard time opening the lid, so she is constantly putting the diapers on top of it for me to take care of later. She must not...

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mariposa767 says "Great toy -- speaks Spanish and English!" about LeapFrog Learning Friend Lily

mariposa767 — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 23:18:03 GMT

We were given this toy because it has both Spanish and English and those who know me know that I think that learning other languages is important. Our daughter is almost 5 months old and she just lights up with delight when we turn Lily on. This particular toy will count to 10 and has 10 items that she will count -- for example, apples, hearts, birds, books, etc. Then she will go over what color the item is. Sure, we know our daughter can't count yet, but the repetition is good for her and will be helpful when it comes time for her to be learning her numbers and colors. It is very easy to turn off and on, and if it is not used for a few minutes, it will turn itself off. It is also very easy to switch between the two language settings. The toy's voice isn't too annoying (yet) and she seems to be genuinly "excited" as she says, "Hi! I'm Lily! And you can count on me!" Lily is now part of our daily routine.

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mariposa767 says "Our daughter loves this swing!" about Fisher Price Open Top Take Along Baby Swing

mariposa767 — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 22:59:22 GMT

We have the Fisher-Price Rainforest Take Along Swing that was bought for us before our daughter was born. We liked it because it wouldn't take up as much room as a full size swing would and if we wanted to, it could easily be folded up to take with us if needed. It has 5 different swing speeds and plays "tropical" soothing music. When our daughter was very little (8-12 lbs.) we made sure always to be in the room with her while she was in the swing. We were afraid that she might fall over sideways and get stuck between the bars. This never happened, but we could see that it was possible. Parents need to be aware of this danger. Now that she is 15 lbs. and can hold herself up better, we feel a little safer to be out of the room, but still for only quick moments. The rocking speeds seemed to be too fast, so we have always kept the speed on only level 1 or 2. Our daughter loves looking at the hanging Tucan and for a month or two, she would be mesmerized by the bird -- smiling...

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mariposa767 says "Durable Treadmill- Great Value!" about Gold's Gym 450

mariposa767 — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 22:37:24 GMT

We bought the Gold's Gym 450 treadmill from Walmart a little over a year ago to replace a different brand used one that had finally broken down. My husband and I use this treadmill almost daily... me for walking, and he for a combination of walking and jogging. We like that it has some pre-programmed workouts as well as different incline settings and speeds to vary the daily workout. Included with the treadmill is a heart rate checker, and a small fan on the front. We live in Indiana and this treadmill is especially great in the winter when it is just too cold to walk outside. We like that it will fold up so that we can save space and will look nicer when we have company over. We keep it in our living room so that we can enjoy watching TV while we workout. It has a magnetic key so that if we have children over, we can make sure that it is not accidentally turned on. The entire treadmill seems to be very durable and we hope that it will last us many years....

mariposa767 says "Great Spice Rack for the Cook" about Kamenstein 18-Spice Lazy Susan style Spice Rack

mariposa767 — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 22:06:03 GMT

My husband bought me this wonderful 18-spice spice rack by Kamestein Corp. after he found it on-line. I had been looking for a spice rack that would hold at least 12 spices and wouldn't take up too much room and that would be easy to access when in a hurry. After quite a bit of searching, this is the best one that we found. The spices that it comes with vary, but most of them are the normal ones that an everyday cook would use. Any of the odd spices just give me a reason to look up and try new recipies. This spice rack is very handy. It has two tiers and spins like a lazy susan. Each glass container is labeled on the lid. In my opinion, the labeling is my only complaint. When making a recipie that uses more than one spice, if the spices look similar (ie. Oragano and Basil), you have to pay close attention to which container the lid was taken from or they will easily get mixed up. It is nice having the label on top of the container as it is easy to select the spice you...

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mariposa767 says "Great diaper, no problems" about Pampers Swaddlers

mariposa767 — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 19:53:25 GMT

Our daughter is almost 5 months old, and we have alternated between Pampers and Huggies the entire time. She is on stage 2 diapers, and although we just buy whatever we have coupons for, my favorite diapers are the Pampers Swaddlers. Although I thought I would rather use cloth diapers and help the environment out a little, the thought of cleaning all of those messy diapers with our everyday clothes just wasn't appealing to me. With Pampers though, we find that our daughter can go at least a few times in each diaper before she even fusses for a changing and she has never even been close to having a diaper rash or any other problems like that. She goes to bed at 10 and gets up at 7:30 with a very heavy diaper every morning, but never once fusses through the night about a wet diaper. The Pampers Swaddlers in particular are a very soft feeling diaper. It seems to be very gentle on our baby's skin. We also participate in the points program that Pampers currently has on line.

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mariposa767 says "Great combination car seat and stroller!" about Graco Travel System

mariposa767 — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 19:36:18 GMT

The Graco Car Seat and Stroller were both given to us as separate gifts from our registry. We are so glad to have this wonderful combination and I have seen other moms being jealous of our travel system. We have a base for both of our vehicles to make snapping the car seat into either of our cars so easy. It snaps into the stroller just as easily making it handy just about anywhere. We took a trip to Cleveland a few weekends ago (5 hour road trip with a 4 month old), and instead of carrying our infant in the car seat everywhere, we just snapped her and the car seat into the stroller everywhere we went. The car seat is easily transferred from the car to the front of shopping carts as well. One mother just told me the other day that her seat doesn't fit in the front of the cart and how she has to put the entire seat into the cart basket. My mom loves the stroller/car seat combination also because it is so easy to use. I'm going to miss the ease of it all once my daughter...

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mariposa767 says "Great Bottles with Less Fuss" about Playtex Ventaire Baby Bottles

mariposa767 — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 19:21:15 GMT

I am a breastfeeding mother and currently have a 5 month old daughter. When it was about time for me to head back to work after maternity leave, I had to do something about finding a bottle that my daughter would accept. We had a different brand of bottle that we had bought because the nipple was the same as her pacifier. When it came time to bottle feed her, she hated it! She would scream no matter who was trying to feed her. When we bought our first Playtex Ventaire bottle, she had a few issues with an initial gag reflex, but no screaming. She had also had previous issues with excess gas and we were constantly giving her medicine to help ease the pain she seemed to be having from the gasiness. With the Ventaire bottle, these problems have lessened quite dramatically. The bottles seem to be very resonably priced. My one and only complaint about the bottle is that the writing on the outside of the bottles comes off after just a few washings and that is even with us just...

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mariposa767 says "Great stroller for the price/helpful to have Graco Car seat also" about Graco Stroller

mariposa767 — Sat, 16 May 2009 23:05:43 GMT

I received the Graco Safari Sun stroller as a gift to go along with the matching car seat. I love that it has a "travel system" in that the seat and stroller work together. I just take the car seat out of the base in the car, and snap it into the stroller and go! The only down side of the stroller that I have found is that it is a bit heavy for me. My daughter is 2 months old right now, so my arms haven't built up enough strength to get the stroller moved around much. I just leave it in the back of the car for my own convenience as I don't want to drag it back and forth between the house and the car. We have taken trips to a nearby park several times to walk the 1 mile paved trail there. The combination car seat/stroller has two separate canopies that can completely cover my baby to keep the sun out of her face if needed. It has a couple of convenient cup holders on top so that when my mom has been walking with us, we can both have our water bottles there. My diaper bag...

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mariposa767 says "This pump works great! I'm so glad that started with this" about Medela Pump In Style Advanced Backpack

mariposa767 — Sat, 16 May 2009 22:47:14 GMT

When I first got this breast pump, I was a little intimidated by all of the parts and wasn't sure how easy it would be to use. Let me just say that all of that fear is behind me ever since the first use. This product is very easy to put together and to understand. Most of the time, it only takes me 10-15 minutes to get enough milk out... even less time if I am using it for a skipped feeding. The backpack will be a nice feature when I do go back to work. Although my co-workers will know what it is, the customers that I serve will never suspect what is in the backpack. I am sure that the breast pump that looks like a handbag is just as good for being discreet. I haven't even tried to use a hand pump, but I know that there may be times when I am not close to a power source and will have to use the hand pump feature that comes with this pump. It is nice to know that option is available to me also.

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mariposa767 says "Love this credit card-- I use mine for everything!" about Bank of America - Choice Privileges Visa Card

mariposa767 — Tue, 05 May 2009 20:54:59 GMT

I've had the Choice Privledges Bank of America Visa card for several years now and have earned lots of free hotel stays with it. The points expire after 2 years, so you have to watch for that and use them up before then, but for the occasional weekend traveler, it has come in very handy for us. It is easy to reserve hotel stays over the phone or the internet, and we have stayed at 3 different hotels over the years using free stays. We have a favorite one in the Chicago area that we have gone to at least 5 times now and stayed for free every time. Since we use a credit card for almost everything (and pay the balance in full each month) the points add up fast for us. Paying the balance in full means that the hotel stays are truley free for us... no interest or fees from the credit card. The statements are easy to read, and the people in customer service have all been very helpful any time I have had to call about anything.

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