Triplet tested; Triplet Dad approved!
Online groceries
If you are anything like us, and if you are reading this, lets face it, you probably are, then your grocery bill ranges from pretty damn high, to pretty damn astronomical.
This tip can't really help you out too much with the cost, unfortunately.
But I'm here to tell you I highly recommend at-home grocery delivery. Its a thing of wonder. You order online, adding and subtracting things - lets face it, its almost all adds - to your list during the week. You can complete an order on Tuesday, set up Saturday delivery, and then add something when you realize you need it on Wednesday, or Friday.
Its great because you can sorta price shop as you go. My wife and I compare the prices to Amazon subscribe and save prices all the time. Plus, when you see that sale at Target, you can hop online and see if ordering it from the grocery store makes more sense.
And you don't have to leave the house. This can't be underestimated. Getting your kids into the car, out of the car, wrangling over who gets to ride in the pretend "car" on the cart first... its all a hassle that adds at least an hour to your shopping trip. With online, at-home delivery, you have to worry about none of it.
What might you worry about: produce. We certainly were. But we have found that not being able to pick your produce sucks, the results are mostly the same as if we did. Sure, now and again you get a watermelon that sucks, but that can happen if you go to the store itself. I will concede that I ordered bananas two weeks ago and they still aren't yellow enough to eat. Otherwise, we have been all in on the online, at-home delivery services.
We personally use Peapod, but there are plenty of services out there.
*as usual, we were not compensated for trying or using any of the services named above.
Little Tykes Bounce House
This is, of all the Tuesday Trip Tips I've posted, probably my favorite so far. It's the Little Tykes Jump 'N Slide Dry Slide. We just call it the Bounce House.
And the kids love it.
While its recommended for ages 3+, as you can see here our 2+ year old triplets love it. It isn't the type to toy they spend hours with, but what toy is at 2-years old? And the time they do spend on it is frantic, frenetic, toddler tiring explosion of exertion. Want 15 minutes of "alone" time? Blow this up and let the kids go wild. You can literally sit in a chair nearby and relax.
The instructions claim the "heavy duty blower" inflates this thing in a minute, and to both my wife and I's amazement, it really does. The blower also comes with a long enough cord to allow you to place the bounce house what I would imagine are most locations without having to rewire electricity to your entire yard.
The lone draw back: Unless you are buying for triplets or really like to spoil your relatives its alittle pricey at $250, but its totally worth it.
***
Ikea Antilop
There is an antiloper in our kitchen. Three of them, actually.
And that is why I'm so glad for the Ikea Antilop!
Because when you have triplets who have started eating in high chairs you have three things: Expenses and messes. The Antilop knocks out both. At $25 its affordable, even when buying 3. Made of simple plastic its easy to put together, easy to take apart, and super easy to clean. Did I mention that feeding triplets is messy?
***
Step 2 Choo Choo Kids Wagon
We absolute love this one. It is great for hauling our three around just about any space: malls, Target, flea market, farmer's markets. You name it, this thing will go there.
Unlike many strollers, and our triplet stroller in particular, the open air nature of this train gives riders nearly 360 degrees of viewability, allowing them to look around. Our three prefer the less restrictive nature of the seat belt compared to the harnesses in strollers and the ability to look around.
An unexpected and immensly useful aspect: It has cup holders. This is an awesome feature for those warm days or for snack holders. And considering its length, its amazingly mobile. You'll certainly get noticed.
Pictured below is a three-unit Choo Choo, but you actually have to purchase an extension seat to get to three. You can easily find two-unit Choo Choos available. Price: $130 with free shipping.
***
Little Tykes Rocking Puppy
As toys go, this one isn't educational, its all fun. Having said that, it is all fun and an absolute winner. In fact, our three little ones like it so much we offered it in response to a friend's inquiry about what gifts to give a young child.
There isn't much else to say. Our kids love this it. I do worry that they may one day flip it over backwards. Despite my worries and with one possible exception that I was able to prevent it hasn't happened.
It retails on Amazon for $35, but my wife was able to find one at a consignment sale for $6. Some of the best $6 we ever spent.
Age: Up to 3
Weight: Up to 50 pounds
***
Tommie Tippie Bottles
I doubt I'm uncovering any type of secret product with one, since it proclaims itself the #1 bottle choice of the UK, but this Tuesday Trip Tip is the Tommie Tippee line of products.
My recommendation is limited to the bottles - the only line of the products that we actually used. We tried out two or so different bottles with our triplets before settling on this brand. While each had their interesting and unique aspects, these were by far the best. They are easy to hold onto (when the kids get to that age) and the nipple is soft and realistic. And unlike some bottles, putting it together doesn't involve seperate gaskets and complicated procedures - a boon to sleeplessly weary parents.Fisher Price Rock and Play Sleeper. Its a great product. You can keep your child safe, close to you, and if he/she wakes, you can quickly rock them back to sleep. It is like sleeping with your child in your bed, with none of the downsides. You can quickly transition them to their nursery. Just be warned... our 8 month old loves his so much we can't get him in his crib.
***
Fisher Price Aquarium Swing
When we first brought our three little ones home getting them to sleep was key. Not only for our sanity, but to prevent them from waking each other. If you are reading this then you probably have or had young kids, and if you have, you know the the term "sleep like a baby" refers to some mythical time that may or may not exist. It certainly does not apply to 3 month olds, unless by "sleep like a baby" the speaker is referring to sleeping somewhat fitfully for 3 hour chunks.
We were determined to only feed our babies on our schedule. Not anything harsh or mean, mind you, but when you have three some sacrifices have to be made. We couldn't feed one at 2 hours, another at 3 hours and yet another at 3.5 hours.
So came to rely heavily on this Fisher Price Aquarium Swing. When one of the babies woke early or was grumpy, a quick trip into this swing was usually enough to get them right back to sleep. Failing that, the alternating lights and moving sea creatures usually entertained them until they were sleepy enough to dose back off.
On the bright side, the lights/mobile has an auto shutoff, so it will conserve energy; on the downside, the lights/mobile has an auto shutoff so you'll have to get out of bed every 8 minutes to restart it. Someone at Fisher Price should really design the button so that multiple pushes gets you multiple rounds of lights and sounds, but otherwise its a great product and comes highly recommended from your truly.
Price: About $100 retail, but you can easily find them for $50-$75 at consignment sales or online ***
***
Munchkin Food Nets
These food nets from Munchkin are just all-around awesome. Perfect for intoducing solid foods when your little one is first big enough for such things but still too little to pick up small bits of food. Ours could pick up handfuls of food, but not successfully negotiate that food into their mouts and these solved the problem. They rae also great for teething. Putting a couple pieces of ice into one of these nets transformed our angry little teething Liam into a much more happy baby. And unlike the teething rings you put in the fridge, these don't warm after 30 seconds.
I haven't noticed it, but I've heard complaints that the nets can get "gross," which I guess is possible. I recommend a good washing. Also, we were told that finger feeding is a lost art in teh U.S. and that more babies needed to be working ot use their fingers, so this might not be a longt-term tool you want to use. In addition, I will add that while we got a good solid month or so of use out of them, our kids are big enough now that they can pretty much eat mushed solids without the nets.
We received no compensation for this post. Just a triplet Dad passing on his knowledge.
***
Triple Paste
I'm usually an off-brand kind of dad. We use Target-brand for most things, such as formula and diapers. Its rare that I don't find the off-brand product to be the of the same quality as the more pricey, and sometimes much more pricey, name-brand product. Honestly, how many facilities do you think manufacturer formula and diapers, and do you really think Target has its own? Or is it more likely that Huggies rents out the downtime on its production line to Target?
That is what makes this post so spectacular. I'm going to recommend you use Triple Paste for your baby's diaper rash and other skin-related conditions over anything else. We've tried the imitators, and none have come close. Target's paste was too solid and hard to remove from the tube. Triple Paste's tub, on the other hand, is easy to open and the product spreads like a dream. All without the mess you might imagine.
(Ed note: We recieved this product gratis as part of Triple Paste's Triple Paste for Triplets program. We also recieved three branded T-Shirts and three Comfort Bears. Triple Paste did not ask for, encourage or know that I was going to review their product. How could they, since we recieved the product months in advance of the creation of Triple The Dad?
***
Fisher Price Rock and Play Sleeper
Fisher Price Rock and Play Sleeper. Its a great product. You can keep your child safe, close to you, and if he/she wakes, you can quickly rock them back to sleep. It is like sleeping with your child in your bed, with none of the downsides. You can quickly transition them to their nursery. Just be warned... our 8 month old loves his so much we can't get him in his crib.
Online groceries
If you are anything like us, and if you are reading this, lets face it, you probably are, then your grocery bill ranges from pretty damn high, to pretty damn astronomical.
This tip can't really help you out too much with the cost, unfortunately.
But I'm here to tell you I highly recommend at-home grocery delivery. Its a thing of wonder. You order online, adding and subtracting things - lets face it, its almost all adds - to your list during the week. You can complete an order on Tuesday, set up Saturday delivery, and then add something when you realize you need it on Wednesday, or Friday.
Its great because you can sorta price shop as you go. My wife and I compare the prices to Amazon subscribe and save prices all the time. Plus, when you see that sale at Target, you can hop online and see if ordering it from the grocery store makes more sense.
And you don't have to leave the house. This can't be underestimated. Getting your kids into the car, out of the car, wrangling over who gets to ride in the pretend "car" on the cart first... its all a hassle that adds at least an hour to your shopping trip. With online, at-home delivery, you have to worry about none of it.
What might you worry about: produce. We certainly were. But we have found that not being able to pick your produce sucks, the results are mostly the same as if we did. Sure, now and again you get a watermelon that sucks, but that can happen if you go to the store itself. I will concede that I ordered bananas two weeks ago and they still aren't yellow enough to eat. Otherwise, we have been all in on the online, at-home delivery services.
We personally use Peapod, but there are plenty of services out there.
*as usual, we were not compensated for trying or using any of the services named above.
Little Tykes Bounce House
 |
| Bounce childhood obesity from your child's life. |
This is, of all the Tuesday Trip Tips I've posted, probably my favorite so far. It's the Little Tykes Jump 'N Slide Dry Slide. We just call it the Bounce House.
And the kids love it.
While its recommended for ages 3+, as you can see here our 2+ year old triplets love it. It isn't the type to toy they spend hours with, but what toy is at 2-years old? And the time they do spend on it is frantic, frenetic, toddler tiring explosion of exertion. Want 15 minutes of "alone" time? Blow this up and let the kids go wild. You can literally sit in a chair nearby and relax.
The instructions claim the "heavy duty blower" inflates this thing in a minute, and to both my wife and I's amazement, it really does. The blower also comes with a long enough cord to allow you to place the bounce house what I would imagine are most locations without having to rewire electricity to your entire yard.
The lone draw back: Unless you are buying for triplets or really like to spoil your relatives its alittle pricey at $250, but its totally worth it.
***
Ikea Antilop
There is an antiloper in our kitchen. Three of them, actually.
And that is why I'm so glad for the Ikea Antilop!
Because when you have triplets who have started eating in high chairs you have three things: Expenses and messes. The Antilop knocks out both. At $25 its affordable, even when buying 3. Made of simple plastic its easy to put together, easy to take apart, and super easy to clean. Did I mention that feeding triplets is messy?
***
Step 2 Choo Choo Kids Wagon
We absolute love this one. It is great for hauling our three around just about any space: malls, Target, flea market, farmer's markets. You name it, this thing will go there.
Unlike many strollers, and our triplet stroller in particular, the open air nature of this train gives riders nearly 360 degrees of viewability, allowing them to look around. Our three prefer the less restrictive nature of the seat belt compared to the harnesses in strollers and the ability to look around.
An unexpected and immensly useful aspect: It has cup holders. This is an awesome feature for those warm days or for snack holders. And considering its length, its amazingly mobile. You'll certainly get noticed.
Pictured below is a three-unit Choo Choo, but you actually have to purchase an extension seat to get to three. You can easily find two-unit Choo Choos available. Price: $130 with free shipping.
***
Little Tykes Rocking Puppy
As toys go, this one isn't educational, its all fun. Having said that, it is all fun and an absolute winner. In fact, our three little ones like it so much we offered it in response to a friend's inquiry about what gifts to give a young child. There isn't much else to say. Our kids love this it. I do worry that they may one day flip it over backwards. Despite my worries and with one possible exception that I was able to prevent it hasn't happened.
It retails on Amazon for $35, but my wife was able to find one at a consignment sale for $6. Some of the best $6 we ever spent.
Age: Up to 3
Weight: Up to 50 pounds
***
Tommie Tippie Bottles
I doubt I'm uncovering any type of secret product with one, since it proclaims itself the #1 bottle choice of the UK, but this Tuesday Trip Tip is the Tommie Tippee line of products.
My recommendation is limited to the bottles - the only line of the products that we actually used. We tried out two or so different bottles with our triplets before settling on this brand. While each had their interesting and unique aspects, these were by far the best. They are easy to hold onto (when the kids get to that age) and the nipple is soft and realistic. And unlike some bottles, putting it together doesn't involve seperate gaskets and complicated procedures - a boon to sleeplessly weary parents.Fisher Price Rock and Play Sleeper. Its a great product. You can keep your child safe, close to you, and if he/she wakes, you can quickly rock them back to sleep. It is like sleeping with your child in your bed, with none of the downsides. You can quickly transition them to their nursery. Just be warned... our 8 month old loves his so much we can't get him in his crib.
***
Fisher Price Aquarium Swing
When we first brought our three little ones home getting them to sleep was key. Not only for our sanity, but to prevent them from waking each other. If you are reading this then you probably have or had young kids, and if you have, you know the the term "sleep like a baby" refers to some mythical time that may or may not exist. It certainly does not apply to 3 month olds, unless by "sleep like a baby" the speaker is referring to sleeping somewhat fitfully for 3 hour chunks.
We were determined to only feed our babies on our schedule. Not anything harsh or mean, mind you, but when you have three some sacrifices have to be made. We couldn't feed one at 2 hours, another at 3 hours and yet another at 3.5 hours.
So came to rely heavily on this Fisher Price Aquarium Swing. When one of the babies woke early or was grumpy, a quick trip into this swing was usually enough to get them right back to sleep. Failing that, the alternating lights and moving sea creatures usually entertained them until they were sleepy enough to dose back off.
On the bright side, the lights/mobile has an auto shutoff, so it will conserve energy; on the downside, the lights/mobile has an auto shutoff so you'll have to get out of bed every 8 minutes to restart it. Someone at Fisher Price should really design the button so that multiple pushes gets you multiple rounds of lights and sounds, but otherwise its a great product and comes highly recommended from your truly.
Price: About $100 retail, but you can easily find them for $50-$75 at consignment sales or online ***
***
Munchkin Food Nets
These food nets from Munchkin are just all-around awesome. Perfect for intoducing solid foods when your little one is first big enough for such things but still too little to pick up small bits of food. Ours could pick up handfuls of food, but not successfully negotiate that food into their mouts and these solved the problem. They rae also great for teething. Putting a couple pieces of ice into one of these nets transformed our angry little teething Liam into a much more happy baby. And unlike the teething rings you put in the fridge, these don't warm after 30 seconds.
I haven't noticed it, but I've heard complaints that the nets can get "gross," which I guess is possible. I recommend a good washing. Also, we were told that finger feeding is a lost art in teh U.S. and that more babies needed to be working ot use their fingers, so this might not be a longt-term tool you want to use. In addition, I will add that while we got a good solid month or so of use out of them, our kids are big enough now that they can pretty much eat mushed solids without the nets.
We received no compensation for this post. Just a triplet Dad passing on his knowledge.
***
Triple Paste
I'm usually an off-brand kind of dad. We use Target-brand for most things, such as formula and diapers. Its rare that I don't find the off-brand product to be the of the same quality as the more pricey, and sometimes much more pricey, name-brand product. Honestly, how many facilities do you think manufacturer formula and diapers, and do you really think Target has its own? Or is it more likely that Huggies rents out the downtime on its production line to Target?
That is what makes this post so spectacular. I'm going to recommend you use Triple Paste for your baby's diaper rash and other skin-related conditions over anything else. We've tried the imitators, and none have come close. Target's paste was too solid and hard to remove from the tube. Triple Paste's tub, on the other hand, is easy to open and the product spreads like a dream. All without the mess you might imagine.
(Ed note: We recieved this product gratis as part of Triple Paste's Triple Paste for Triplets program. We also recieved three branded T-Shirts and three Comfort Bears. Triple Paste did not ask for, encourage or know that I was going to review their product. How could they, since we recieved the product months in advance of the creation of Triple The Dad?
***
Fisher Price Rock and Play Sleeper
Fisher Price Rock and Play Sleeper. Its a great product. You can keep your child safe, close to you, and if he/she wakes, you can quickly rock them back to sleep. It is like sleeping with your child in your bed, with none of the downsides. You can quickly transition them to their nursery. Just be warned... our 8 month old loves his so much we can't get him in his crib.
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