Snug and warm in bitterly cold weather

Product name: Voksi Urban vognpose (www.voksishop.com)

What is it?A snug and cosy bag filled with a combination of down and feather, designed for keeping babies warm during the cold Nordic winters. Voksi Urban is a universal bag with a flexible design that fits the most common buggies on the Scandinavian market

Why did it catch my attention?My sons grandmother suggested to buy one of these bags to protect my little son from the Nordic winter and liked the fact that we would be able to move it between the three buggies, all of different brands and shapes, that he has up in Scandinavia (one at his parental grandparents’, one at his maternal grandparents’ and one that is mother bought on impulse a snowy Friday and left in the basement of our flat in one of the Scandinavian capitals)

How old was my baby when I bought it?He was 4 months, but weather and climate are more important drivers than age for the relevance of this product. It comes with an extension that makes it suitable from birth until approximately 3 years of age

What value does it add for us?It saves a couple of layers of clothes and/or the poor little one from freezing in very cold weather (this Christmas it was -19 where we were). Most Scandinavian buggy brands sell their own proprietary bags as add-ons, but the Voksi can be moved along when changing buggy

What does it replace?Proprietary buggy bags, several extra layers of clothing or, worst case, a baby with frost wounds on his/her skin

How did my baby respond to it?He seems to feel snug and cosy in there, but since it is made from Michelin-man material it is important to get him out of there promptly when getting inside since it otherwise gets too hot for him

How much does it cost?NOK 1899 at voksishop.com

Can I see any drawbacks?The Michelin-man overheating effect if used in less cold weather. I doubt that it would fit the trendy city buggies that are popular here in London

Pack-away waterproof trousers

Product name: Pack-away Waterproof Trousers (www.jojomamanbebe.co.uk/sp+Pack-away-Waterproof-Trousers+B2710)

What is it?Lightweight waterproof trousers cleverly designed to fold up to a carry pouch to make it handy to store them away or bring them along in a changing bag

Why did it catch my attention?During a rainy week in London I needed rain pants for my little one and loved the innovation when I found this product in our local JoJoMamanBeBe store

How old was my baby when I bought it?He was 2-3 months, but they are produced in sizes from 6 months and up. I had to fold up the legs in the beginning

What value does it add for us?They are light, keep him dry and are easy to store away + that the geek in me loves how clever the ‘pack-away’ design is

What does it replace?Other rain pants

How did my baby respond to it?No clear response, but they keep him dry

How much does it cost?£14 at JoJoMamanBeBe

Can I see any drawbacks?The material does not breathe, so keep them away from babies who can grab and pull them over their face

How to keep socks in place on slippery baby feet

Product name: Sockons (http://www.sockons.co.uk/)

What is it?Sock holders made from an elastic material that you slip on over your baby’s socks to keep them in place. It was invented by a mother of five with a degree in Art & Design

Why did it catch my attention?Like many new parents with me, I was struggling with the issue of how socks keep sliding off my son’s feet, to both his and my frustration. When I saw these on the feet of a neighbour’s daughter I felt that I had found the solution!

How old was my baby when I bought it?He was 4 months, but my friend has used them on her daughter since she was only a few weeks old

What value does it add for us?The socks stay in place – avoiding his feet to get cold and his mother having to stock up on replacements for ‘disappeared’ socks  

What does it replace?A lot of frustrations throwing away and replacing odd socks, for then suddenly to find a bunch of socks you thought were long gone in the ‘feet’ of your baby’s winter overall

How did my baby respond to it?He is pretty indifferent, but I hope he appreciates not getting his feet cold anymore

How much does it cost?I bought mine for around £5 at JoJoMamanBebe

Can I see any drawbacks?If I was a sock producer I would maybe experience a decline in turnover, but as my husband said when I showed them to him – why on earth is this not built in to baby socks already?

Fleece cover to keep baby warm in the BabyBjörn

Product name: BabyBjörn Cover for Baby Carrier (BABYBJÖRN Cover for Baby Carrier - City Black)

What is it?A hooded fleececover to attach on the front of the BabyBjörn to keep the baby warm and dry. The hood is attached with buttons, which make it easy to remove and because of the clever way the cover attaches to the carrier you can take the baby in and out without removing it

Why did it catch my attention?Like the BabyBjörn brand itself, I come from a cold country up north, where the weather is chilly during the autumn months

How old was my baby when I bought it?We bought it before he was born, but started using it when he was 3 months and (a) I started carrying him facing forward and (b) the weather got colder and more rainy here in London

What value does it add for us?It keeps my son warm and dry and compared to first dressing him up in an overall and then putting him in the BabyBjörn it is quicker to get out of the door

What does it replace?The alternative is to dress him up in an overall and then put him in the baby carrier, which I also do sometimes depending on where we are going and what we are planning to do

How did my baby respond to it?He seems to be comfortable in there

How much does it cost?Between £21-30 at Amazon UK

Can I see any drawbacks?Not for the time being

The floating bath and room thermometer that looks like a toy

Product name: Philips Avent Baby Bath and Room Thermometer (Philips Avent Baby Bath and Room Thermometer Sch550/20)

What is it?A flower-shaped digital thermometer coated with rubber that floats when you put it in water

Why did it catch my attention?This was something that my husband thought sounded like a clever idea and invested in during the days before our baby’s birth

How old was my baby when I bought it?We bought it before he was born, but this thermometer is suitable from birth

What value does it add for us?This is a non-fragile all-in-one thermometer that is easy to bring along anywhere. We use it both as a bath and room thermometer (to ensure we keep within the 18-20 degrees recommended in the room a baby is sleeping according to the SIDS guidelines) and found it very handy to bring along when we recently went to Spain with our son. While on holiday, it was useful both to check if the air condition worked properly (it did not, and by making a picture of the thermometer showing 27 degrees in our room we had evidence when complaining to the hotel) and to check the pool temperature to decide what swimming suit to use for the baby

What does it replace?There are many different bath and room thermometers on the market, but this is the only combined one I have seen

How did my baby respond to it?He thinks it is a toy and likes playing with it in the bath! J

How much does it cost?£15 on Amazon UK if bought standalone. Boots sells this product in a bundle together with a fever thermometer from Philips Avent

Can I see any drawbacks?None that we have discovered so far

Flexible outdoors outfit from Spöket Laban

Product name: Spöket Laban overall (http://www.spoketlaban.com/)

What is it? A fleece overall with double zippers on the front, a removable hood and two built-in reflectors

Why did it catch my attention? I went home to my son’s grandparents in Scandinavia and needed an outfit for him that would both be practical to take on and off and keep him warm in chilly autumn weather

How old was my baby when I bought it? 2,5 months

What value does it add for us? It saves time by being very quick to take on and off and it keeps him warm without being too thick and with the removable hood it can easily be adapted to different conditions. From a safety perspective I also love that this piece of clothes has built-in reflectors (which is of course more important for a child who can walk than for a very young baby). I find it so smooth to use that this was the piece of clothes I told the babysitter the other night to put on him in case there would be a fire alarm and they needed to get out from the appartment very quickly

What does it replace? The other overalls I have found in stores here seem more clumsy since they typically close with buttons or only one zipper

How did my baby respond to it? He seems to feel very comfortable in it, both in the baby carrier (with the hood on) and in the buggy (without the hood) and protests less than with other outdoor clothes when I take it on/off as it is a smoother experience for him

How much does it cost? SEK 400 on the Spöket Laban webstore

Can I see any drawbacks? It is not a drawback with the product itself, but in hindsight I would recommend buying one that is a few sizes too large for your baby to allow for a thick layer of clothes underneath (depends on season of course). The webstore is only available in Swedish, which must be a blocker for reaching international customers

Handy mini fan to make baby's life a little bit easier when it's hot

Product name: Halco Air Cooler Mini Fan (www.halcoproducts.co.uk/our_products.asp)

What is it?A ~10 cm high fan that is very handy to bring along in your handbag or changing bag

Why did it catch my attention?My son was born during one of the worst heatwaves in Europe during the summer of 2010 and was, in particular during the first month, very sensitive to stuffy air

How old was my baby when I bought it?My husband bought this before our son was born

What value does it add for us?When it is unavoidable to bring the baby along somewhere with very stuffy air (like our local health centre and the nearest Boots store) it is a very handy way to make life at least a little bit more comfortable for him

What does it replace?Temporary relief in lack of real air condition (which of course is preferable)

How did my baby respond to it?It seems to ease the pain of being in very hot and stuffy places

How much does it cost?£3,99 on Amazon

Can I see any drawbacks?Since it does not come with any kind of cover the soft ‘wings’ of the fan are easily damaged when stored in an average messy changing bag