February 24, 2016 Dana

VIDEO: The best baby & toddler feeding products of 2016 at Magic Beans

Just when you’re getting used to the routine of breastfeeding or bottle feeding, all of a sudden it’s time to introduce your hungry tot to solid food. D’oh! Luckily, not only do we have a panoply of great feeding products for you to choose from, but they’ve all been vetted and tested by folks who know all about how real kids and real parents will be using them. So you can be sure that everything that you find in our stores and on our site is the best of its kind.

With that said: video demonstrations of products can tell you so much more than a simple description, so we’ve created roundups of this year’s baby feeding essentials. In this blog I’ll share two of them: one dedicated to feeding products that help kids learn how to eat and how to drink, and keep the mess under control, and one featuring some really terrific high chairs. Ready?

THE BEST FEEDING PRODUCTS OF 2016:

Boon Serve Spoons, $11.99: Soft, shallow silicone spoons that are gentle on baby’s gums and contain no BPA, PVC, or phthalates.
OXO Tot On-the-Go Spoon Set, $5.99: A soft, shallow silicone-tipped spoon that’s perfect for baby’s first meals and made to travel, with its own carry case.
NumNum Baby Food Dips Utensils, $12.99: These unique spoon-ish utensils help kids learn self-feeding since they’ll pick up gooey foods when dipped in at any angle.
Boon Pulp Silicone Feeder, $7.99: Combine teething and early self-feeding – stick a piece of fruit in this chewable silicone feeder so your baby can explore new tastes safely!
EZPZ Happy Mat, $24.99: The happiest of placemats! This silicone mat comes complete with a sectioned plate, so your toddler can enjoy his meal but can’t fling his plate, while the mat also protects the table. When the meal is over, the whole thing can go right into the dishwasher. And we’re ALL happy.
Boon Snug Spout Silicone Sippy Lids 3-Pack, $9.99: Turn any cup into an insta-sippy! Oh, the glorious convenience!
Lollacup Straw Cup, $17.99: This adorable little bird-headed cup isn’t just cute: it’s also super practical, since the weighted straw ensures that kids can get at every drop of their drink.
Evenflo Tilty Cup, $4.99: This sippy prevents spills by adjusting to help kids get at their drink without tilting the cup too far and getting a face full of water or milk (oh no!).
WOW Cup, $9.99: This cup is basically a magic trick: you can sip around the edges of the lid, but if you turn it upside-down, not a drop comes out. This makes it ideal for teaching kids how to drink from a real cup, without the need for a whole roll of paper towels and a clean shirt.

THE BEST HIGH CHAIRS OF 2016:

The OXO Tot Sprout High Chair, $249.99: This comfortable and stylish extended-use chair boasts the efficient, user-friendly design you expect from OXO, and can be used from 6 months to 5 years.
The 4Moms High Chair, $299.99: Keep your kitchen cleaner with the magic of magnets! This sleek chair features a magnetized tray, and comes with a bowl that sticks right to it, making it tougher for mercurial little diners to fling. The tray also utilizes magnets to guide the tray onto the rails, so there’s zero fiddling when you slide the tray on – it just zaps itself neatly into place. Not only is it practical, but it’s really pretty fun to play with.
The Stokke Tripp Trapp High Chair, $249.99: We’ve been fans of this guy from day one, for quite a few reasons. Just to list a few: 1) it’s designed to encourage family bonding, 2) ergonomic design (and the footrest in particular) keep kids comfortable at the table for longer, and 3) it has such a clean, simple, classic look. AND: it adjusts for a perfect fit as your child grows, right up to adulthood. We have a few that we sit on in the office.

Of course, the rave reviews for all of these products don’t guarantee that any of them is going to be precisely the right fit for your family. There are plenty of other products to try, and best of all, our very enthusiastic Gear Gurus are here to give you expert advice on matching the right products to your personal needs.

So if you’re undecided, drop into one of our stores, or email us at questions@mbeans.com and we’ll give you a hand. Or, for an in-depth one-on-one advice session, book a FREE consultation! You’ll get our undivided attention, and we’ll make sure you find what you need to take the stress out of your child’s earliest meals.