Category: Wouldn’t Do Without Wednesday

The only item received in exchange for this review was the HDYDI16 discount code for all InchBug products.

Parents have to label everything. Jackets, shoes, bottles, sippy cups. Every item that could come unattached from a child must be labelled. For those of us with identical twins, even the children need to be labelled for the first few days of daycare or school.

It only took a couple of washes for me to realize just how impermanent permanent marker really is on plastic and glass.

In addition to packing a diaper bag or backpack every day for daycare, I needed to relabel everything for my twin daughters. On the rare occasion that the permanent marker persisted, I was annoyed that the item couldn’t be switched between my children. I’m cantankerous like that.

Enter my friend Sara. A great friend listens to you complain while you bounce three babies on your combined hips. The best of friends goes home, does some research, and gives you an actual solution to your quandary as first birthday gifts for your daughters.

Sara gave me packages of personalized InchBug orbit labels. You just put them on cups or bottles like a snug bracelet. They go on and off easily and can stay on in the dishwasher.

 

I now had 4 labels each with my daughters’ first names on them on high quality plastic that could stretch and contract to fit around any bottle, snack cup, or sippy cup I dared throw at it.

How do I know it’s high quality? Until we finally lost the last one with its water bottle a few weeks ago at Girl Scout camp, these babies gave us a full 10 years of faithful service, running through the dishwasher surely hundreds of times. A decade, people. Name two other things that your kid can use for 10 years. (Classic books are the first exception. That’s why I asked for two.)

A massive plus for us is the fact that every label comes with embossed print on the front and Braille on the back. We have a friend two doors down who happens to be blind. We’re very aware of how a seemingly small gesture like Brailling labels can open the world up to her.

Imagine my delight when Kayla at InchBug asked if I’d like to offer you all a 15% coupon of everything in the InchBug store. The coupon code is HDYDI16.

Personally, I can only speak to the exceptional quality and usefulness of the Orbit labels. However, InchBug offers other products, including adhesive labels for clothes, books, backpacks, and the like. They also sell the snazzy looking and practical MyDrinky.

MyDrinky is a solution to squeezed juice boxes. You know when you’re taking a long car ride, and you stick a straw in a juice box and hand it back to your kid, and you hear “Uh oh” and know that it’s going to be a really long day? Just me? MyDrinky lets your kid drink his drink without risky an inadverent squeeze that doubles your laundry load.

InchBug also sells sippy cups, water bottles, and other stuff, but their real strength, in my opinion, lies in these one-of-a-kind products that have stood the test of time. Again, our InchBug coupon code is HDYDI16, good through November 10. You won’t regret trying them out.

I originally wrote this post singing the praises of our Crane humidifier in 2009. Almost exactly six years later, it’s still serving us well. Now, it helps keep J’s nosebleeds at bay, since we seem to be past our lung issues.

We run a cool-mist humidifier in the girls’ room every night. Our pediatrician recommended getting one during J and M’s first bout of bronchiolitis, at age 4 months. (Bronchiolitis is an infection of the bronchioles of the lungs. Preemies are particularly susceptible because their lungs are put to work before they are fully developed.)

We noticed an immediate improvement in both M and J’s breathing during that first attack of bronchiolitis when we increased the humidity of their room. The first couple of years, I ran the humidifier every time either of them started coughing. [In the winter of 2008], I realized that the humidifier seemed to prevent coughing in the first place. It ran every night, and walking into the nursery relieved the pressure in my head caused by lovely Austin allergies.

During the first horrible round of bronchiolitis in our tiny infants, my ex ran out to the grocery store and bought the first humidifier in sight, a Vicks Cool Mist one. It did the job, and we dealt with the annoyance of cleaning it. When I noticed mold (eeeeeeew) on the wire, I chucked it in the trash and decided to upgrade. After reading a number of reviews, I got a Crane humidifer.

I’m in love.

Okay, so the thing is cute. In addition to the penguin I selected, Crane makes frogs, bears, pigs, elephants, and other animals. They have an elegant modernist line too.

What I’m really in love with, though, is how well it functions. The humidity output is adjustable, unlike my old humidifier. Also, and this should be standard on any electronics, but wasn’t present on my Cool Mist, the penguin has an on-off switch. Imagine, not having to unplug the darn thing every morning! I can see the mist being produced, and my sinuses are a testament to its effectiveness.

Cleaning couldn’t be easier; I actually look forward to cleaning the water tank on Saturdays, because I feel like I’ve accomplished something and it’s so easy. Changing the filter is foolproof. The Crane humidifier takes up less room than our old one, but be aware that the instructions recommend not setting it on the floor.

Plus, did I mention that it’s cute?

If you’re in the market for a humidifier, I can attest to the durability of these Crane ones.

I am no way affiliated with Crane USA and received no compensation for this review. This product has served us very well for many years.