6 Month Favorites

We have entered month six, and let me just say, its a whole new ballgame. Our little baby girls are busier than ever.. teething, sitting up {pretty well} on their own, sleeping well at night & learning new things every day! Their busy-ness requires the constant enterchanging of toys, teethers & all other forms of entertainment to keep a smile on their face.. but the good news is that what one baby girl loses interest in, the other finds facinating!  I can get away with the ol' switcheroo a couple times before they figure this momma out. 

1 // 2 (similar) // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6

1. Bright Stars Snuggle and Teether. Baby teeth are busting through!  We are prepared with these super precious teethers.  Jolie has got everything in her mouth, so the rubber 'feet' are good for chewing and are gentle on her gums.  Parker is a snuggler, so she loves to hold and crinkle it- yep.. the plush body is loud and crinkl-y!  Oh, how my girls love the crinkle paper toys. 
2. Animal Krackers Jumperoo.  Jolie is just a little bit too small for the jumperoo, but Parker finds it absolutely entertaining and will play for 15-20 minutes at a time- thats enough time to unload the dishwasher AND do a load of laundry.  I love the bouncy music feature that makes noises and giggles, etc. when she bounces. She hasn't really caught on yet, but it keeps her entertained.. and even better- the music is not overly annoying and when set on the low sound level, can't really even be heard but by the little bit. The toys are not overwhelming at all- I've seen jumperoos or similar that have overkill on hanging toys, lights, buttons.. this one is simplistic and not overstimulating.  This one grows with your baby by adjusting the height- right now Parker is able to touch the floor on the lowest setting.  Jolie can't reach the floor just yet- but soon!
3. Board Books.  My girls have come to love books and will actually sit still to listen to us read to them.  The board books are sturdy enough for baby hands to grasp and will stand up to a little bit of drool here and there.
4. BRU Jungle Joy Music & Motion Soother.  My girls have gotten to an age now where they will play quitely in their crib before or after nap, or early in the morning when they first wake up.  Once they can pull themselves up well enough to a sitting position, this will provide great motor stimulous and perhaps draw out that quiet play time.  Why I really love this toy?  It has made solo bedtime routines a piece of cake!  Typically our bed time routine starts with oatmeal and then on to baths and jammies before their final feeding before they are down for the night.  When I am home by myself while Jordan is at the fire station, it takes some real baby juggling to get them both bathed and dressed for bed without one of them having a meltdown (ahem.. PARKER.)  We picked a couple of these up a few weeks ago and now, after Parker is bathed and ready for bed, I plop her in her crib and she'll remain quiet long enough for me to give sister her turn in the bath.  Success!  A rather small success, but the rest of the evening goes by so much smoother when I'm not trying to soothe a minor freak-out.
5.Vtech Crawl Bawl.  Love this little thing.  It lights up and vibrates with music so it in a sense 'moves' and encourages your little bit(s) to go after it.  Plus.. it has tags.  Need I say more?  Anything that has a tag on it, Parker and Jolie are interested.  An entire room FULL of music playing, light up, vibrating entertainment and I find my baby (ies) infatuated with the tag on the Boppy pillow.  They are very much so learning the pincher grasp (hellllooo finger foods!) and the tags on this crawl ball are perfect for practicing.   
6. Vtech Sit to Stand Learning Walker.  This is a must have in my opinion.  I thrifted this toy at a consignment sale right after the girls were born with high hopes that we would get some use out of it when the time comes.  When I finally introduced it to Parker and Jolie, it was an instant hit!  While at 6 months neither of them are using the 'stand' component, they will sit and front of it and push buttons and spin knobs.  Another great feature is that the entire front snaps off and the girls can also play with it while laying on their tummy.  Makes tummy time last a lot longer. 

A few other things to make mention of:

The Vtech Spin 'n Learn Top is also a real favorite among my girls.  Another one of those music making, light up toys- P&J love those and could sit entertained for hours.  We only had one and ended up getting another so that they each could have their own.  Toy envy is happening oh-so-quickly in our house. 

Earth's Best Fragrance Free Lotion for Sensitive Skin {and Body Wash, too!}.  If I can possibly find a lotion that will not break my sweet Parker Jane's baby skin out that would be great.  Last month I favorited the Aveeno baby products. Well, just a few short days after introducing them to both the girls, Parker had a terrible reaction.  The hunt for another lotion was on and I have found success with this semi-organic lotion.  Jolie has had no problem with the Aveeno- so we've continued to use that with her. 

One thing I have learned about this life with twins is that you need A LOT of stuff.  Diapers? yep- more than 150 every week.  Food? This is more recent, but oatmeal is on my weekly grocery list these days.. and I buy in bulk. Looking forward to making my own fruits and veggies in the coming weeks-hoping to save a buck.  Toys? Holy moly, yes.  At $12-$30 per toy it gets very expensive.  While we don't have two of everything, we do have two of most things.  With that being said- I have a small token of advice: Don't buy new.  Sounds like I'm giving you advice about buying a car or something..

I have yet to buy one of these light-up singing toys (the ones closer to the $30 end of cost) at full price.  I shop consignment places like Kid to Kid and Once Upon a Child..and even seek out other mom's for their hand me downs.  The toys are like new because they are usually played with for a very short time because, lets face it, babies grow way too quickly.

The crawl ball?  $5 (retail: $15). 
The spin and learn top?  $5 (retail: $17). 
The sit to stand toy?  $10 (retail: $35). 
Jumperoo? $65 (retail: $100)

See what I mean?  I essentially saved over $80..or even almost $200 if I'm buying two of each of these things.  Thats 5 cases of diapers!  Once I counted dolla billz {ya'll} in shoes, makeup and jewelry. 

My how things have changed. 

A few pictures {and a video!} with this month's favorites in action!