Toddlers, of course, want to do everything themselves. Parents would love for them to! But often, the path to independently performing day-to-day tasks is bumpy. Wherever we can create opportunities for our little ones to feel successful throughout the day, we should. It boosts their confidence and self-esteem, and reduces frustration- for everyone! Here are the products (below the video!) I brought to “The 10! Show” that help do just that!

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• Kid’Sleep clocks $30-$50 – www.livelovedream.com.  Have a little one who wakes you up too early or climbs in your bed? Help them understand when it’s wake up time with the Kid’Sleep Classic clock. It functions as a night light and an alarm clock, but best of all has a wake up indicator. Toddlers can’t tell time, but the can look to the Kid’Sleep to see if it’s “wake up” time; if the character on clock is sleeping or awake. Parents can set the time they’d like for the playing image to illuminate. The Kid’Sleep line also includes the Globetrotter battery-operated, travel version of the Classic, and the My First Alarm Clock which has both a digital and analog clock as the main focus, but still has a mini wake up indicator as well.

• Aqueduck Faucet Extender $12.99 www.peachyco.com.  Kids need to wash their hands so many times a day, the easier you can make it for them, the less likely they’ll fight it! The Aqueduck helps kids reach faucets. It’s super-easy to use, portable, BPA/PVC/Phthalate-free, and fits most faucets.

• Skip Hop Soapster Foaming Soap Dispenser $24 www.skiphop.com. Kid will love getting their own soap for handwashing or tubby-time! Fill the Soapster will any baby wash and water and it will create foamy soap. Kids just press on the penguin’s belly to lather up! Installs with suction cups to tile or mirrors or with screws for permanent wall-mounting.

• Myself Belts $9.99 and up- www.myselfbelts.com . Lots of kids fit pants length-wise but are skinny minis and need a belt. Traditional belts with buckles require two hands and a fair amount of dexterity to manage. Myself Belts are are Velcro belts that use a patented design that allows wearers to fasten their one hand belt using a simple three-step SNAP, SLIDE and SECURE process. Myself Belts are great, and especially useful for potty trainers who are often in a big hurry to get undressed! Available for kids in sizes 2 to 12 and there is an adult line as well. They come in a variety of designs and materials and can be personalized as well.

• Original Ba $14.99 www.newinnovashun.com.   When little ones are ready to self-feed, bottles can be awkward to grasp. The Original Ba bottle holder is designed for small hands to hold their bottle securely and easily. A frame made of FDA approved food grade approved silicone, the Original Ba is BPA-, Pthalate-, Lead-, & PVC-Free.

• My Plate-Mate $7.50 www.myplate-mate.com.   My Plate-Mate is a spill guard for toddlers (ages 2) through age 6 who are getting the handle of scooping food onto utensils. It’s a great learning tool that prevents spills and increases the child’s confidence & independence at meals. It easily slips on a child’s 8-9 ½” plate and is dishwasher safe. The My Plate-Mate is made of FDA approved plastics and is lead-, BPA- and Phthalates-free. Great for at restaurants, too!

The Please Touch Museum’s “Expectant Parents Bootcamp” was previewed by Donna Ellenbogen, MSW, of Family Wellness Solutions in NYC, who will be one of the expert speakers. Many of the awesome brands that will be there with tables or who contributed to our swag bag and raffle giveaways are featured.  Check it out! – click HERE!

I was on “The 10! Show” this month featuring some great baby gear and gift items from some of the brands that will be with us at the Expectant Parent Bootcamp on Jan. 21^st, 2012 at the Please Touch Museum. Here’s the video and below, more info and links to the products!:

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Smart Mom Jewelry Teething Bling  $19.99

This is a fun new mommy gift!  Babies love to grab and chew everything in sight, so many moms take a hiatus from wearing jewelry while they have a baby.  Teething Bling^® from Smart Mom Jewelry is the original teething jewelry with pendants and bangles that look great and safe for curious babies to handle and chew.  They’re made of FDA approved materials that teethers are made of, all non-toxic, phthalate, BPA, PVC, latex and lead free.  All pendants come with a breakaway clasp as an added safety measure.

pediped® Originals® $32 and up

Pedipeds are a great first shoe for infants and they remain the best choice as children begin walking on their own.  The soles were specially designed to closely mimic barefoot walking; They are soft and flexible and allow children to grip the floor when taking those early steps and developing their stride.  Unlike those crazy chunky heavy flat soles that cause babies to walk like Frankenstein J  The pediped® Originals® collection is available in sizes 0-24 months and you can find their super cute designs in tons of stores or online.

Aden & Anais Swaddle 4-pack   $49.99

Mothers have swaddled babies forever.  It’s a gentle and effective way to soothe and calm baby.  Studies have shown that swaddled babies sleep more peacefully by preventing spontaneous movements (called reflex motion) which continually wake them through the night; swaddled infants stay in REM sleep.  Which means Mom and Dad get more sleep, too!  The muslin material lets air circulate, so overheating isn’t as much of a concern.  Aden & Anais have great prints and organic options as well.  Love!

Joovy Room Play Yard   $269.99

The Joovy Play Yard is designed to be a full-featured nursery center- it’s a bassinet, changing station and playard all in one.  It’s super convenient and multi-purpose to have at Grandma’s, on a trip or in a room in your home.  The nylon fabric is super strong, durable and stain resistant.  It’s got a full-size bassinet that holds an infant up to 15 pounds and the removable changing table supports a baby up to 25 pounds.  The parent organizer is the biggest available on a playard with nine compartments that hold up to 9 lbs. of nursery items (again, perfect on at a vacation home where you’ll have all your diapering items, maybe toys and clothing.)  Room also has some bells and whistles:  a built-in MP3 (iPod) jack for you to play a personal playlist or the integrated music with sleep mode as well as a built-in nightlight positioned to work inside the bassinet!

Baby Cargo Ultra lightweight Stroller 300 Series $179

Unfortunately we ran out of time before I could feature the brand new Baby Cargo stroller line! Baby Cargo is made for parents on the go- it’s made for travel around neighborhood or hoping on a plane or train and heading out of town!  It weighs under 16 pounds and has a great shoulder strap for carrying it.  Baby Cargo strollers’ design was inspired by fashion and interior design.  Someone said the colors and mod design makes them think of West Elm.  It’s super easy to fold and has great storage pockets.  You can come kick the tires at Please Touch on 1/21- they’ll be there showcasing their line to Philly parents!

Today we featured some of our fave finds for unique gifts for all of the people on your list this holiday season!  Details of the items featured today follow the video with links to the sites.  Be sure to allow enough time for holiday delivery!!  Also, read below about how to win the Ltd. edition Sugarjack diaper bag!

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SugarJack Gabi Ltd. Edition Bag $729

Sugarjack is a new, luxury line of diaper bags from the U.K., just now available in the U.S.  Created by stylish parents who weren’t willing to compromise on style, quality and function while they carried a diaper bag, Sugarjack bags are made of the finest leather and boast of their signature removable baby organizer.  These bags are genius and gorgeous!!  The organizer has room for all of the baby items you could possibly need while on-the-go with baby, and then snaps out easily for mom to have a stunning handbag when she is out child-free or is ready to shed the baby bag altogether!

All Sugarjack bags come in a keepsake box that can be used to save baby’s special items.   A bamboo bag contains the accessory pack which includes a thermal bottle holder, a pvc pouch for wet items and a pvc wipe clean travel changing pad.  The bamboo bag is anti-bacterial so is ideal to use in the nursery as a laundry bag.  Every item is designed with the long term in mind, so that you can keep using every part of the package.  Each diaper bag has internal hooks so that the bags can be attached to any stroller using Buggy Clips, which may be purchased for $30.

The whole collection is available on the Sugarjack site ($385 and up), including the ‘oliver’ which is a satchel bag designed specifically for the style conscious daddy.  Sugarjack bags must be ordered by December 10^th for guaranteed holiday delivery.

Today on “The 10! Show” I featured the Gabi, a Ltd. Edition bag; only one hundred of this style will ever be made and each one has it’s own unique number on a silver plated disc just inside the organizer.   This bag will be raffled to a lucky mom-to-be at the Expectant Parent Bootcamp which we are pleased to be partnering with the Please Touch Museum to present on January 21, 2012!

Indigo Night personalized night sky poster $49 to $109

Personalized Night Sky posters are a totally unique, very thoughtful and meaningful gift.  I love the idea of giving this as a new baby gift to proud parents who probably have all of the gear, clothing and toys they could possibly need!  A small group of illustrators, artists, writers, and astronomers work together to create a rendering of a local view of the true night sky for the latitude and longitude of your location, on the date you specify.  The print includes a description of that night’s Night Sky; you select an illustration to go with sky and add personalization – a headline and message (There are a ton of samples on their website).  A basic 14×18” print is just $49 and a framed one is $109.  A separate, detailed starmap is included with each print, naming the constellations, planets and stars shown in the print.  Turn around time is pretty quick- they can be shipped out about three days from order date.

Em Tanner Designs personalized gifts $12 to $65

Em Tanner Designs is my go-to for birthday shirts, big brother/little sister shirts and holiday gifts for teachers, caregivers, and bus drivers!  They have everything you can think of and more that can be personalized in a variety of ways, but our favorites for gifting are the “Me 2 a Tee” items!  Each year my kids create a character that looks like their teachers and we order them water bottles or if they are known coffee drinkers, a closed-top tumbler.  Useful and created by their student, these are a huge hit every year!  Order now to allow for holiday delivery!!

Creative Baby iMat $69.99

The Creative Baby iMat is an brand new toy perfect for the older toddler or preschooler in your life.  These won’t be available to order until next week.  The iMat is an interactive, soft play mat and magic pen that is great fun to play with.  The magic pen can be used in Language Mode to name objects it touches on the pad in English, Spanish and Chinese, and can also be used in Game Mode to play interactive games.  The “My Animal World” iMat is the first in a series.  So fun!

Isotoner SmarTouch gloves

Isotoner SmarTouch gloves are a great gift for anyone on your list! These gloves that have conductive thread that conveys an electrical impulse to touchscreens, allowing the wearer to operate their smartphone, MP3, GPS, etc., all while keeping their fingers cozy!  Isotoner SmarTouch gloves are super comfortable and offer more flexibility than other touch gloves on the market.  Available in leather, knit, fleece-lined and a variety of colors, and for $12 – $38, these are great for teachers, sitters, and stocking stuffers for parents on-the-go!

I recently returned from my annual trek to the ABC Kids Expo, the largest juvenile product tradeshow in the U.S. This industry-only tradeshow is where tens of thousands of products, from large manufacturers and “mom and pops”, alike can be seen under one roof, and new products are unveiled.  Today I brought a round-up of some of my favorite finds and the coming trends spotted at the ABC Expo.

• Skip Hop Complete Sheet $24.  Crib bumpers and bedding have historically been the focal point of nursery décor and the inspiration for many parents’ nursery themes.  However, in light of safety concerns and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations to avoid use of soft, pillowy crib bumpers, and to remove all bumpers once baby starts to pull up, many parents are opting against their use.  Skip Hop has a creative solution that offers a stylish, functional alternative- the Complete Sheet. It’s a fitted sheet designed to essentially create the illusion of a crib bumper, by having a different design on the side of the crib mattress. So simple and also genius!  At only $24 for the sheet alone, or $120 for the coordinated set which includes a sleep sack, blanket and crib skirt, it may also appeal to more budget-conscious parents.  Other benefits are that traditional bumpers don’t fit in some of today’s cribs and that not using a bumper that ties in multiple places, makes sheet changes that much easier.   Available in December 2011, Skip Hop Complete Sheet comes in 7 designs.  www.skiphop.com
• A special thank you to Buy Buy Baby in Cherry Hill, NJ for providing a crib to “model” the Complete Sheet in the segment!
• Baby Glow $19.99 short sleeve; $29.99 long sleeve.  These sleep and body suits alert parents of a rise in baby’s temperature by a change in clothing color.  The fabric technology changes the 100% cotton onesie to white when baby’s temperature rises above 98.6 degrees.  A visual cue is great not only for parents concerned about overheating or fever.  Available in sizes newborn through 18 months, and in 3 solid colors and 1 print.  www.babyglowusa.com.
• Guardian Angel Safety Outlet $20.  A revolutionary new approach to protecting little ones from possible shock via electrical outlets, these easy to install plates have no small pieces to lose or choke on and offer continuous access to power.  They use sensor technology (like smartphones) to turn the power off before an accident can happen and ensure 100% shockproof protection.  Available Jan 2012. www.guardianangelsafety.com
• Dapple products are already a green family staple because they have “0% toxins and 100% cleaning power!”  Two additions to their line:  Dapple Pacifier Wipes $2.99/ box of 10.  These are the only preservative-free all-natural pacifier wipe on the market and are individually wrapped for easy cleaning on-the-go.  Dapple dishwashing detergent, Autogel $5.99, removes milk film and eliminates odors from bottle parts and sippy cups and is more than capable of cleaning all household dishes as well!  www.dapplebaby.com
• Britax Travel Cart. $74.99.  The Travel Cart is a convenient way to transport a child’s car seat during travel.  It fits all Britax convertible car seats and harnessed booster seats and most other brands.  The seat secures quickly and easily to the cart using the seat’s LATCH connectors.  The steel frame is strong enough to carry the child as well, and the Cart folds compactly to stow in most airplane overhead compartments.  www.britaxusa.com

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