My Breast Friend nursing pillow.

Ok, I'm slightly embarrassed to admit that we have this one as well. Oh yes, and in full disclosure, we even have the inflatable version of it... (Remember there was that logic about air travel?)

So when my short-lived friendship with the Boppy came to a screeching halt and my shoulder ache was at its worst, we came across My Breast Friend at a reputable baby & kid's store. They only carried this nursing pillow and since they only sell the best of the best, I thought this pillow would solve my shoulder problems and do what it claimed to do. And it actually did a pretty good job in the nursing department. It worked much better for me than the Boppy, partly because it is height adjustable with a belt and I didn't have to slump over to position our ferociously hungry baby - or use my legs in all sorts of configurations to have him high and close enough. The fact that the pillow has a flat surface may also have contributed to its success with me, because it made our baby stay in position better and not roll into me (or away from me), as opposed to the sloping inside of the Boppy. My Breast Friend just felt less wobbly, like there was much less room for error. Makes nursing sound a bit technical, doesn't it?

This nursing pillow is the #1 choice of Lactation Consultants so if you need a nursing pillow, this is probably the way to go. Of course, you can't use it for much else, like baby's play/lounging and tummy time etc. But I don't think this is a big deal as most people have little bouncy chairs for babies to sit and lounge in, and at least for us a blanket on the floor worked fine for tummy time. 

I would only get the inflatable My Breast Friend pillow if there is frequent travel involved when the baby is little. We never used ours. I think we brought it with us when we flew overseas with our son when he was 2 months old, but I don't recall ever using it. 

When baby #2 arrived I didn't use the Boppy, nor My Breast Friend. All she got was a good old pillow and her mommy's arms, and it worked very well for both of us.


So, in my humble opinion...


Pros:

- In the world of nursing pillows, this is the more "serious" one out there.
- Height adjustable belt feature helps position the baby and keep baby in place.
- Back rest helps mom maintain a good posture.
- The even surface makes it structurally more stable (there are no gaps between baby and mom for baby to roll into).
- It's practical and well thought through (it's meant for nursing and nursing only).

Cons:

- It's not as "cute and comfy" as the Boppy.
- Is meant for nursing and nursing only so if baby is bottle-fed you do not need this pillow (if you still want a pillow, the Boppy is probably a better match).
- When you are done nursing, you are done with this nursing pillow too, and the $50 you spent on it. (It's probably worth it though, especially if you are a first-time mother trying to master the fine art of nursing). 


www.mybreastfriend.com

Boppy, nursing pillow.

When our son was born, a veteran nurse at the hospital told me jokingly about all the unnecessary things new parents bring to the hospital with them. One of the items she was gasping over was of course, The Boppy. "What is wrong with a regular pillow?" she was wondering out loud. "All the countless things that new parents get tricked into buying!" she exclaimed. Uhm, at that moment I was glad we hadn't brought our Boppy to the hospital with us, nor did I tell her that we actually had two of them waiting for us at our house. I could see her shaking her head in disbelief. We had two of them! Okay, they were gifts but somehow we thought this item was so essential to successful nursing that we needed to keep both, one for upstairs and one for downstairs. And of course, there was the brilliant idea I had read about, that you could bring a Boppy on the airplane when you travel and don't have a seat for your infant! You already need an extra arm and leg to carry all the baby stuff on board... So unless the Boppy has feet and walks on its own I don't see how it gets on an airplane.

Well, my relationship with the Boppy ended when our son was about 1 month old. I got the worst sciatic pain in my shoulder from using it. At first I didn't even realize that the Boppy made me slump forward while I was feeding our son. It wasn't until I was so desperate that I decided to try different things while feeding him, including not using anything at all, that I noticed the difference... Not using the Boppy made me sit up more straight and little by little the shoulder pain went away. 


The Boppy did come in handy for a while after this, particularly when I wanted to have my hands somewhat free while my son was snoozing in my lap.

I never used the Boppy with our second child. In fact, with the arrival of our second child I realized that the nurse at the hospital two years earlier had been 100% correct in her statement. I used a pillow, or just held her. It worked perfectly. Our daughter also couldn't snooze in the Boppy because she was small and somehow slumped into it and couldn't sleep. And believe me, sleep is all she did and wanted to do for the first 3.5 months! Just not in a Boppy.

We still have one Boppy laying around on our day bed because our kids like to play with it sometimes (they are 3.5 and 1.5 years old now). The other one is gathering dust in our garage.

I know many moms swear by this nursing pillow and it's supposedly America's favorite baby product, but I wouldn't buy it again. And I would recommend it with great hesitation. I think the success rate of it depends a little bit on how the mother is "built". I'm guessing (from my own experience) that it may not work very well for small/petite moms.


Or maybe I should have put the two Boppys on top of each other? Hm. I may be onto something here.

So, in my humble opinion...

Pros:

- Good for having babies sleep in your lap to give you free hands (while they are small and don't move much)
- Can be used to support babies as they grow (it's a good little spot for lounging, playing, sitting and tummy time). 
- Probably helps some moms with nursing.
- Can be used for bottle feeding baby.
- Washable cover.
- Cute cover themes.
- Boppy has done a great job branding a half-moon shaped pillow. I think every expecting parent on this continent knows what it is. Kudos to them for doing that.

Cons:

- It doesn't work for everyone. (Get a used one or borrow one from your friends and test it for a minimum of 2 weeks).
- Can give you bad posture and achy shoulder/neck muscles if you do not pay attention to how you sit.
- Pricey. If you want to save an extra $40-$50, use a regular pillow instead.
- You really don't need it to survive motherhood, no matter what people say. 

www.boppy.com

BOB Revolution SE

The BOB. The ultimate jogging buddy. The SUV, 4 wheel-drive of all strollers. You see this stroller and instantly feel more fit than you did before you saw it. Or you feel bad, because you aren't fit (yet) and can't fathom buying yet another stroller.

Or you do like we did and bought it, thinking that we'd be fit and trim just because we own it. 

Jokes aside, the BOB is an amazing stroller. It's incredibly light-weight and it runs smoothly, on almost any kind of terrain (except on a wet beach, which we were lucky enough to test last January). It has all the sporty features that one would expect from a well-made jogging stroller: big tires, swiveling or fixed front wheel, suspension system, parking break, etc. It also has your typical stroller features such as: reclining seat, harness, multi-position canopy and storage features. The recline is nothing much to write home about, as there is just a strap behind the seat that you can tighten or loosen to adjust the recline, but all in all it's a great stroller for an active family.

I'm a bit sad to admit that I don't use our BOB. But that may have more to do with the fact that I'm so content with our UPPAbaby Vista, than with anything else. In fact, I'm pretty sure this would be my favorite stroller if I didn't own the UPPAbaby, because there is truly almost no comparison out there to the smooth, light-weight ride that baby gets in the BOB.

Luckily our BOB has not been a complete waste of money and space in our household, even though I don't use it. My husband has used it for the occasional run, and he loves it. It's masculine enough, even with a bald baby and a pink blanket in it, and he particularly likes the tracking adjustment that it comes with. And I'm pretty sure he will use it again one day. When there is more time...

So, in my humble opinion...

Pros:

- Durable.

- Relatively good shock absorption.

- Good sunshade.

- It's basically made for what you want to use it for (street, jogging, heavy transport of kids, light off-road jogging, etc).

- Comes as a double stroller as well.

Cons:

- Handlebar is not height adjustable (unless they changed this recently).

- There is nothing small about this stroller.

- It's like buying a Jeep Wrangler - you need to be able to live up to the image of owning it (but that could just be me).

UPPAbaby Vista Stroller

This post is very long but it's because I love this stroller and have many things to say about it. In fact, I would put it on the top of my list of things I could not have lived without. I say this even though our UPPAbaby Vista is already “ancient” compared to the newer Vista models that are out there. I've recommended it to everyone I know, and my friends who have bought it have been equally happy. In fact, I don't know anyone who has had any complaints about it.

Our "love affair" with this stroller began in 2007 when we were expecting baby #1 and went to a Baby & Kids store to check out the fancy pants Bugaboo. Being from Europe where everyone walks around with proper prams, I really wanted a stroller that came with a bassinet so we were quite set on buying the Bugaboo. Well, that was until I saw a couple strolling around the store with what must have been the first generation UPPAbaby Vista. The stroller had a great design already back then (although one could argue it was a bit wide at the time) and it looked so comfortable for both parents and baby. And best of all, it had a giant basket underneath that I just couldn't take my eyes off.

Stroller highlights:

We quickly learned that the stroller actually came with a nice, sturdy bassinet and a seat (which could be forward or backward facing), and as a bonus for us - new colors and narrower tires. Folding this stroller was a breeze, as opposed to the Bugaboo that you somehow needed to flip with your foot while using both hands to hold it upright. You could even fold the stroller without removing the seat if you wanted to (forward facing) and it wasn't very heavy as far as strollers go. The seat was also higher off the ground than on most other strollers, keeping our dog’s nose - or any other dog’s nose - out of our precious baby’s face. Oh, and let me just emphasize that basket size does matter. Even my at the time incredulous husband now sincerely agrees.

The handle bar could also easily be elevated or lowered, which was perfect for us since there is a bit of a height difference between me and my husband.

Accessories/additions: 

Car seat adapter(s): UPPAbaby makes car seat adapters for the Maxi-Cosi, Peg Perego and Graco infant car seats. I can't speak for the other brands, but our Graco car seat adapter was very easy to install and use, and the stroller would even fold with the adapter in place. These adapters technically eliminate the need for a "snap & go" type of stroller base. (Of course, I wouldn't be writing this blog if this was the case with us...)

When we were expecting baby #2 in 2009, we learned that UPPA had come out with new goodies that a parent of course cannot live without. Especially if you think you'll have more children one day.

Rumble Seat: Genius. This answered all our double stroller questions before we even got there. The Rumble seat attaches to the stroller base with one small “click” and removes just as easily.

PiggyBack board: Another lifesaver. This board attaches to the back of the stroller and is meant for the older child to stand on.

We actually haven't used our rumble seat very much because the stroller got quite heavy when our older child sat in it (the baby always sits in the "primary" seat). The seat attaches to the front base bars which makes it front-loaded and heavier to push, especially going uphill.

However, we love, love, love the PiggyBack board. It's attached above the back wheels of the stroller so I really don't even feel like I'm pushing two kids at the same time. The board rides smoothly, also over bumps. The only thing to keep in mind with the board is that the handle bar needs to be “elevated” or your kid will have to lean forward or bump his head on the handle bar. Not a big deal for us, even though I prefer the handle bar on the lower setting. We get a lot of great comments when we’re out an about with my younger child in the seat and the older standing on the board.

Sunshade/canopy: When we bought our stroller in 2008 it had a normal size canopy, which didn’t give any sunshade on baby’s face when the seat was in a reclined position. UPPAbaby later replaced it with a much longer canopy for proper sun cover, in any seat position. Of course all the new strollers automatically have this feature, but there is also a retro-fit canopy for the 2008 stroller that you can order.

UPPAbaby has tons of other cool accessories for the stroller and bassinet that we actually didn't buy or try out (check these out on the company website www.uppababy.com), as unbelievable as it may seem.

Stroller recline:

Our stroller, being ancient as far as strollers go, has three settings. 1) Almost upright. 2) Slightly reclined. 3) Reclined.

The fact that it doesn’t have an “upright” setting never bothered me with baby #1 but has bothered me with baby #2. She still seems to slump into the seat, even though she is technically a toddler now. UPPA has of course since fixed this, so the 2010 Vista strollers have an “upright” position as well. We can’t get this feature without buying a new stroller, so we just live with this and try not to get too much stroller envy.

UPPABaby customer service:

I know I probably sound like an ad for UPPAbaby Vista at this point, but in addition to all the things I love about our stroller, the customer service has been fantastic. The few times that we have needed customer service it has been friendly, prompt and personable. I mean, who gets that anymore? You actually get to talk to a real person! And they answer emails right away.

Our first baby dug his teeth into the foam material on the “guard rail” and UPPAbaby replaced it for free and added a replaceable biting guard to it. The other time I needed customer service was when the carry bag had broken in airline transit and it was replaced with a brand new one for free. Lastly, we also wanted to update the upholstery on the stroller and get the retro-fit canopy for our second child, which proved to be a very smart and simple process to do.

So, in my humble opinion…

Pros:

- The UPPAbaby Vista stroller comes with both bassinet and seat for under $1000.
- It’s easy to fold.
- It folds with or without seat.
- You don’t break your back trying to lift it in your car.
- The seat is higher off the ground than it is on most other strollers so you can be extra close to your baby’s beautiful face.
- There is a giant basket underneath to put all your shopping bags into! Or groceries, if that’s what you decide to do.
- Handle bar that can easily be adjusted.
- Easy to use car seat adapters to fit the Graco, Peg Perego and Maxi Cosi infant car seats (check which models on the company website).
- PiggyBack board for your toddler to stand on. Lifesaver.
- You can re-upholster the stroller if you get tired of the colors or if your precious one makes an unsalvageable mess.
- Excellent customer service!

Cons (it’s hard to come up with any, but here goes):

- The Rumble Seat is a great idea in theory but didn’t work well for us because it makes the stroller front loaded and heavy to push. (It is also possible that I’m very weak...)
- While this stroller runs smoothly on a lot of different terrain, it is not a jogging stroller. So if you are looking for a stroller to jog with, the BOB or Phil & Ted etc, are probably better options.

http://uppababy.com/products/