Last year was the year I became a mum again for the second time, to my darling little Leo who is now a whopping 11 months old! (It’s true what everyone says, second time around and the baby days go quicker than the speed of light!)

One of the great things about being a parenting and lifestyle blogger is that some very lovely brands send me some very lovely products to test out and so I thought I’d start this year’s blogging efforts with a quick round up of some of my favourite baby items from 2017. Hopefully it will come in handy if you’re expecting a baby this year (congratulations if you are!) or have a delicious little bundle of joy in your arms already.

Slumber Buddies Eddie The Elephant

Little Leo loves music, particularly when it’s bedtime and let’s face it, there’s only so many times I can sing ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’ when it gets dark before I start to lose the will to live! Which is why, this wonderful bedtime companion has become a big favourite in our house this year.

Soft enough to cuddle, the Slumber Buddie Eddie The Elephant projects a calming star display onto the ceiling (in three different colours, blue is our particular favourite) and comes complete with lullabies and nature sounds.

It’s a wonderful edition to Leo’s nursery and has even been known to make a journey into big sister’s room on occasion too! If you’re looking for a soothing musical companion for your little one, you won’t go far wrong with this. Plus clever little thing that it is, it comes with three auto shut off times too. Brilliant. (And I hear he’s currently on sale too. *winks knowingly*)

Bibetta Star Changing Mat

As portable changing mats go, this one is a little cracker and was thoroughly tested out by us when we holidayed in Majorca over the summer.

Light, waterproof (which let’s face it is essential!) and machine washable (yes!) the Bibetta Star Changing Mat folds out into a star shape to accommodate your baby’s arms and legs and then back into a handy and easy to carry clutch. It even comes with a little wallet attached to allow you to stash a nappy and / or wipes in there too, so you’re already and prepared for when a nappy change is needed. A really clever product.

Babaease baby food pouches

Leo prefers baby led weaning so mostly he happily feeds himself with a wide variety of food goodies, however for those times when a pouch is easier (like when we’re out and about) I found this brand of baby food to be really good.

Lots of people are against baby pouches but personally I think they do an excellent job at making our lives much easier when us mums are up against it! And if you’ve ever thought that baby food isn’t nutritious, well then this is the range which should definitely change your mind!

Babaease pouches are a vegetable-led range of special baby recipes that are packed full of goodness and which are particularly useful when you’re trying to get your baby used to different flavours and textures at the beginning of their weaning journey. Featuring rather adventurous ingredients like quinoa, fennel and lentils, Leo thoroughly loved them.

Summer Infant Deluxe Baby Bather

It’s quite astonishing how quickly babies grow so before you know it, you’re moving on from using their little baby bath and popping them in your own bath which just looks gigantic and makes them look tiny! So a seat like this comes in really handy. (Particularly if you’re like me and suffer from a bad back.)

The Deluxe Baby Bather cradles your baby which helps to make bath time much easier and safer. With three different positions, head support and solid base, the removable fabric seat is machine washable and mildew resistant. It’s a fantastic little seat which does a great job but it would be absolutely perfect if the brand could somehow add some suckers to the bottom to stop the seat from moving around. That’s my only little gripe.

Beaba Babycook Plus

If it was life and death and someone forced me to pick a favourite out of this amazing bunch, well now then this is the product that would win.

This amazing and oh so stylish 4-in-1 food processor has been a life saver in our house, particularly when I first started weaning Leo and was always chopping and blending some kind of vegetable or fruit concoction! It steam cooks, blends, defrosts and even reheats and honestly, I think I’d have been pretty lost without it.

When Elsie was a baby over five years ago (*weeps*) I used to spend hours chopping veg, steaming it all in a giant stacked steamer and then blending everything with a blender. I’m not kidding when I say it would take me a whole Sunday afternoon to prepare her teeny tiny meals. But this blooming brilliant product does it all in a jiffy, plus it takes up hardly any counter space (which is very handy when you’ve got the smallest of kitchens like mine) looks incredible and is ridiculously easy to clean!

The only downside is that as it’s around the £160 mark it’s sadly not cheap, but if you can afford it or you have super generous parents who may want to help out and buy you something, then it’s definitely worth considering this smashing little machine.