Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Bottle and Chewthers Review and Giveaway

Introducing the bottle to a breastfed baby can be a stressful time for parents and little one alike.  As a mother, all sorts of questions run through your mind.  How will my baby react?  What if she doesn't like the bottle?  Will she like the bottle too much and reject the breast?  Will she take in air and get a belly ache?  These are all common concerns.  Tommee Tippee's newest line, Closer to Nature, has answers.  Scientifically designed to be the closest thing to breastfeeding, the Closer to Nature bottles provide a comfortable, stress-free experience for mom and baby.

I received a Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature 3 pack of 9 oz. bottles with slow flow nipples, in an exclusive Babies R Us Collection print to try with Olivia. This set retails at Babies R Us for $22.99.  

The Closer to Nature bottle has indentations to make it easy for the baby's hands to grip the bottle.  It is BPA and Phthalate free, so it's safe for your little one.

The wide nipple mimics the natural feel, flex and stretch movement of breastfeeding and makes it easier to latch thereby enabling you to successfully and simultaneously breastfeed and bottle feed.  You can change out the nipple as your baby grows and requires a faster flow.  Nipples are available in slow, medium, fast and variable flow designs.  

The anti-colic, anti-gas Advanced Easi-vent lets baby drink without a vacuum effect & prevents nipple collapse and leaking.

This unique, ultra-sensitive valve helps prevents the baby from swallowing air by allowing the air trapped in the bottle to pass through the lid and thus preventing gas, colic and fussiness. 

I am still breastfeeding Olivia, but we would like to give her a bottle of pumped milk every now and then so she won't reject the bottle when we decide to wean.  

She latched on to this bottle much quicker than the first bottle we ever gave her, so I considered that a good sign.  However the nipple kept collapsing on it and I'd have to pull it out of her mouth to let the air out.  I finally decided to take the lid off to check out the valve for the air vent and found it was stuck shut.  The instructions for the bottle say to make sure the valve is able to open and close properly, so I squeezed it and it still wouldn't open.  I then decided to blow air into it from the outside.  After that, it functioned properly.  I think it must have just dried shut when I washed it.  We had no problems with nipple collapse after I fixed the valve and Livvy fell asleep when her bottle was empty!

I am glad we were given the opportunity to try out the Closer to Nature Bottles.  They work really well, and as far as I can tell, perform in every aspect that the manufacturer says they will.  We will definitely continue to use them!

Tommee Tippee's website provides breastfeeding support and advice on topics such as going back to work, and what Dad can do to help. It also offers The Day Baby Was Born, a free service that gathers information and compiles it into a digital storybook about the day your child was born.

Tommee Tippee's Closer to Nature line has 4 stages of Chewthers, teething toys designed by a pediatric dentist to help support muscle coordination, lip seal and jaw development.  They also help alleviate the pain of teething and the textured surfaces help care for fragile new teeth.  I was given a Stage 2 and Stage 3 Chewther for review.  

The Stage 2 Chewther is for ages 4 months + and helps prepare your baby to chew pureed foods.  Just what she needs to get ready for her first feeding!  It is very oddly shaped, and I worried about it gagging my baby, but when I put it in Livvy's mouth, she started biting on it and smiling all the while.  She is just a bit too young to get this Chewther to her mouth by herself, but she holds it in her hand when I put it there, and I am sure that as her coordination gets better, she will be able to do it on her own.  

The Stage 3 Chewther is for ages 6 months + and helps prepare your baby to chew mushy foods.  It looks just like a set of brightly-colored keys, and we all know how much babies love chewing on keys!  I have no doubt that the Stage 3 Chewther will be a good replacement for our dirty, germy car keys when Olivia gets to that age.  The keys look like they might be hard, but after touching them, they have a nice, rubbery texture to them that feels soft enough for baby's mouth.  Tommee Tippee's Chewthers are BPA-free and come in bright colors that are appealing to baby.  Pink and Purple for girls and Blue and Green for boys or gender neutral.  They retail for $6.99 at Babies R Us.  

Tommee Tippee also offers a full line of breastfeeding and bottle feeding supplies, pacifiers and toddler feeding products.

Tommee Tippee has graciously offered Baby Mama Loves' readers a chance to win a set of two Chewthers of the winner's choice.  

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The product for this review was provided to me by the company. I do not accept monetary compensation for reviewing products.  All opinions expressed are my own. Others who may use the product may have different opinions.

Lansinoh® mOmma® Bottle with NaturalWave™ Peristaltic Nipple Review and Giveaway

Going back and forth from bottle to breast can be a real challenge for nursing mothers. Many struggle with getting baby to return to the breast once they've had a bottle.  After 50 years of research, Lansinoh has developed the new Lansinoh® mOmma® Bottle with NaturalWave™ Peristaltic Nipple, which helps facilitate extended breastfeeding.  So what is peristaltic?  Peristaltic is the wave-like motion that baby's tongue makes when drawing milk from the mother's breast.  Research shows that when baby uses this nipple, they are using the same actions as when they are nursing naturally, making it the ideal bottle to use when you have to be away from your little one.

The mOmma is BPA free and dishwasher-safe (Yay!) with a unique, round shape that is designed for baby’s hands to grip with a rocking motion that encourages free play and stimulates development.  It has a leak-proof design with a travel cap for maximum safety and hygiene.  It's wide mouth makes filling and cleaning it a breeze!

The mOmma has a wide, round nipple base which encourages a wider latch-on, similar to how babies latch naturally, which promotes oral, facial and jaw development.  The nipple is super-soft and flexible and made from 100% silicone that is lined internally with specially designed grooves that are made to optimally compress and control milk flow.

It features the new AVS™ Air Ventilation System that reduces the intake of gas, a potential cause of colic or spit up.  It is available in slow, medium and fast flow to meet baby’s changing needs.

We aren't transitioning Olivia off of the breast, but we wanted to give her an occasional bottle of pumped milk so we can go out on a much-needed date night once and a while!  Biggest brother, Jake, got to give Livvy her first bottle.  She was screaming like mad (because when this girl decides she is hungry, you better give her what she wants right away!) Livvy didn't really know what to do and continued crying until I squeezed a few drops of milk into her mouth.  After that, she latched right on and didn't break away until she drank all 4 ounces of breast milk!

She held tight to her bottle just like she does to my breast when she nurses.  I could hear her gulping but it didn't sound like she was taking in air.

Her mouth formed around the bottle nipple just like around the breast. 

Big brother, Jesse, wanted to help, too!  This was a great bonding experience for my boys with their sister, and I will continue to use this bottle when I can't be available to nurse her.

The bottle we received is part of the Lansinoh ® mOmma ® system that grows with your baby and is interchangeable with the mOmma non-spill and straw cup tops so when baby transitions away from the bottle and nipple, mama can put the non-spill or straw top onto the existing bottle, providing extended use and saving her money!  

The mOmma bottle is available in 5oz. or 8.4oz and can be purchased in a single or twin pack.  It is also available in a starter kit that contains a bottle brush. The mOmma system is available at Walmart, Target, Amazon.com, drugstore.com, and diapers.com, however I found it cheapest at Walmart for $8.77.   The line also includes toddler feeding items and teethers.  

Lansinoh was generous enough to give me this awesome coupon to share for $5 off one bottle, making it $3.77 for your first bottle if you get it at Walmart!  Be sure to check out Lansinoh on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest information they have to share.  Enter the giveaway below to win your own mOmma bottle from Lansinoh!

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The product for this review was provided to me by the company. I do not accept monetary compensation for reviewing products.  All opinions expressed are my own. Others who may use the product may have different opinions.

Hot Milk Nursing Bras

Pregnancy can be a beautiful time for women, but let's face it, after the baby comes, most of us feel like we don't look our best!  I knew when I was pregnant with Livvy that I would need a pick-me-up after she was born.   What I wanted was a little post-baby sexiness, and what could be better than a lacy, shimmering nursing bra!  My chest was about the only thing I felt looked good about me after the birth of my daughter.  I had a squishy, floppy, empty tummy and the most gigantic boobs I had ever had in my life!  I wanted them to look good.   Enter Hot Milk Nursing Lingerie, invented by two mamas, five years ago.  You can visit their facebook page HERE.

The first bra I bought was She Was Seemingly Unaware.  Retail price $58.80.  I bought mine for $24 on Zulily.  A definite steal!

Hot Milk says:

 An exquisitely styled, supportive and practical full cup bra in a rich lilac juxtaposed with jet black lace – a must for every womans under cover wardrobe of intrigue.

PRODUCT FEATURES:

Feminine ruched shoulder straps allow for extra comfort

Power mesh wings at the back of this A-frame bra offer further support

Satin ribbons bring the elegance of this style to life

I say:  

This bra makes me feel pretty!  It's very comfortable.  The straps don't dig into my shoulders and it has six adjustable hooks in the back for when you start to lose weight and need to tighten it up.   It has full cups, which means when you open the cup, there is a kind of "sling" around your whole breast.  It doesn't have under wire, but that doesn't compromise the support at all.  It has black lace cups and black mesh sides with lavender straps and accents.  

I absolutely love this bra, so much in fact, I bought another.

Picture Perfect in Champagne and Midnight.  Retails for $58.  I bought mine on Keekoo for $35.99.  

Hot Milk says:

This fabulous contour cup gives you shape and lift, alongside all the functionality of a nursing bra. The elaborate European styled embroidery is offset by the delicate stitching detail on the cup.

I say:

This bra has wider, slightly padded satiny straps and six rows of hooks in the back for adjustment.  It has cream colored mesh sides and formed satin and lace cups as well as a flexible under wire.  

This is not a push up bra, but man, does it get those girls up there!  Talk about support!  It has half cups, which means that when you open the cup it folds down and there is no "sling" around the breast.  This brings me to my next point.  Due to the contoured nature of the cup, it is hard to fold down the cup and get it out of baby's way when she nurses.  Not a deal breaker for me, but I think that a side-opening cup would have been a better choice for this bra.  

That being said, I really do adore my Hot Milk nursing bras and would recommend them to all you pregnant and nursing mamas.  Hot Milk has lots of other bras, as well as a full line of maternity panties to match and beautiful lingerie, as well.  Check out their site today, you won't be disappointed!

These bras were bought by me and no compensation was provided to me by the company.  All ideas are my own.  My experience may differ from yours.