Let’s face it, being a mom is hard. We are always trying to do everything we can whether it be cooking breakfast, thinking of activities to entertain our children, giving them a bath, putting them to sleep, or just keeping everyone safe and alive. Throughout the past year, I have found a few mom hacks and ideas that have made my life easier. Why not simplify yours so can spend a few extra minutes doing something you love?
Below are some creative mom hacks that you can start implementing right away.
Food Hacks for Toddlers and Babies
Toddlers love to eat snacks, at least mine would prefer to munch on snacks sometimes rather than eat a decent meal. The Snack catcher by munchkin has helped prevent a lot of crumbs and food from falling on the floor. It also only allows the toddler to grab a small handful instead of shoveling the food into their mouth. Genius!
Cutting toddlers food can be time consuming. Use a pizza cutter to cut finger slice pieces. I use a pizza cutter at every single meal. I use it to cut toast, pizza, chicken nuggets, french toast, vegetables, fruit, etc.
How many of you have spent a ton of money on small bags of dried yogurt bites? Instead use this mom hack to make a ton of yogurt bites in less than 2 minutes. Buy a pint of baby yogurt (we use Stonyfield organic) , place it in a piping bag and start piping out small yogurt bites on wax paper. Put them in the freezer for at least an hour. My daughter loves to eat these especially when she is teething.
Silicone teethers are great if your baby is starting to teeth and has sore gums or is starting to try new foods. We not only put fruit inside of them, but ice cubes as well!
If your toddler is anything like mine, food goes everywhere when they are eating in their highchair. The silicone placemat has suction cups on the bottom that enable the placemat to stay in place. The food is sectioned off and is so easy to clean.
Silicone bib catchers are so practical. They catch literally almost anything the baby puts into their mouth. They are so easy to clean and hold up very well. I have used the same two the past 9 months.
Do you have a picky eater? Mine likes to live off mac and cheese. I sneak her veggies into her smoothies or buy spinach/ kale and broccoli bites from Aldi’s or Target.
Safety Mom Hacks
Does your toddler or baby love to open or explore inside your cabinets? I thought about buying the magnetic or screw cabinet safety locks, but moving into a new house, I did not want to damage the wood. For this mom hack, use thick hair ties to band together the cabinets! This works on cabinets that spin as well as pull out. This simple hack has helped with not ruining our cabinets and kitchen.
Have sharp table corner edges? Use pool noodles around the corners or fold and place blankets over top of the table so the edges are not as sharp and there is a soft cushion if they hit it.
Is your toddler crawling out of the crib?
Our toddler started crawling out of her crib at 20 months. Instead of switching to a toddler bed right away because I knew she was not technically ready for one, we took out the springboard in the bottom. It lowered her mattress a couple inches, and she was no longer able to crawl out. This is still working for us!
If you have already switched to a toddler bed, safety is probably at the top of your list. Instead of buying products for the door, simply reverse the door handle so that the lock is on the outside. This allows only you to have access into the room.
Hygiene Hacks for your toddler and baby
Ever since my baby started sitting up and moving in the tub, I had a fear that she would clunk her head on the faucet. Welcome the skip hop silicone bath faucet cover. It covers the spout and is universally adjustable to fit most tubs. We have been using it for months and it makes me feel more relaxed knowing she can not slip or hit her head on the spout when we are in the bathtub.
Afraid to cut your newborn or toddlers nails? I was too and of course I read horror stories of others accidentally cutting their babies nails too short. I purchased an electric nail file that was soft enough for newborns. It made my life so much easier, and I did not have to worry about hurting or cutting her precious fingers.
I hope these ideas and mom hacks will help you in your everyday routines. If you decide to try or use any of these ideas, tag and share @livin_mybestmomlife to be featured.
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14 Comments
Love the idea of silicone bibs! Eating time with toddlers can get messy lol. Thanks for sharing!
Hair tie suggestion is genius! Trying it today!
Yay! Let me know how it goes 🙂 It works wonders for us.
These are some great hacks. I love the yogurt bites. I was thinking I might even try dehydrating some to see what happens.
Being a mom myself I find these really informative. My hardest one is food, and yes, they love snacks! Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for sharing the idea of the yogurt bites! I haven’t thought of that, but my munchkin LOVES yogurt 🙂 Also, I too use the silicone spout cover and it is a necessity for every mom… I buy one of these to go along with every baby shower gift and use it as a part of the package “bow”. So cute!
That is a cute idea! I’ll have to start including that in baby shower gifts too.
Fantastic tips! Great article (going to share it on my FB page with other mamas)! In our home, we have the silicone teethers, the silicone bibs, and the bath spout cover — I can vouch that all of these have been lifesavers! 🙂
I love the place mats I use mine with my daughter and its a easy clean up!
Yes, they are the best!! I love that they stay in place. I even take them to restaurants with us. 🙂
Love these ideas and in particular the faucet cover. My oldest is always doing this and it drives me crazy. We also did the ice cube in the teether it works great.
The faucet cover is the best. I just wish I had found it sooner!
These tips, tricks, and hacks are awesome. Our current home has lots of cabinets that need the hair ties. My daughter is constantly going for the cabinets and it can be exhausting. Thank you!!!
Yes, I feel you! It can be an endless battle. We have so many cabinets and this has worked best for us. I hope it works for you too. I may even put them on our bathroom cabinets!