When my first newborn had gas, the only thing that stopped her desperate wailing was the sound of a hair-dryer on full blast. How exactly we figured that out, I can’t remember. I do recall standing helplessly by her crib, tethered to the outlet and sweating from the heat of my blow-dryer, afraid to move for even a minute. If only I’d had access to today’s baby apps for new moms, like white noise available at the touch of a button. I could have let my iPad do all the work while I, I don’t know, gave myself an actual blow-out? Or maybe just took a nap.
Of course, back then, I still had a flip phone and apps were something I ordered before entrees. But over the past few years, app developers have found myriad ways to make new moms’ exhausting first weeks and months just a little bit easier. And I’m totally jelly! Instead of waking my husband with bright lights and rustling papers every time I logged our baby’s overnight poops, I could have been tracking them on any number of baby apps on my phone. It’s truly amazing what you can accomplish on a mobile device these days.
So here are 12 baby apps to save your sanity, new moms. Or download them in your third trimester, before all hell breaks loose!
The Best Baby Apps for New Moms
Baby Tracker Super practical and easy to use, Baby Tracker lets you (and all your caregivers) log diaper changes, feeds, sleep patterns, growth history, medical records and more. Just think, you’ll never be stumped when the pediatrician asks you how many wet diapers your baby has been making per day because it’s all right there on your phone. And breastfeeding moms will appreciate the one-tap nursing timer with space for notes, such as “baby seems fussy,” or “my boobs feel like rocks.”
Glow Baby Newborn Tracker Glow is a combination baby tracker and baby book, prompting you to log not only feeds and diapers but also milestones like “first smile”–one of 101 anticipated first-year developmental milestones, which makes all that tracking a little bit more fun. There’s also a built-in community for comparing notes with other parents of newborns, a nice feature when you’re up all night.
Wonder Weeks Wondering why your mellow baby is suddenly unwilling to nap? She might be going through a major developmental change, one of ten “mental leaps” tracked by the Wonder Weeks baby app. The information provided is both fascinating and reassuring, especially when it helps you reframe your baby’s aggravating fussiness as an exciting bit of brain growth.
Milk Maid Designed specifically for pumping moms, Milk Maid keeps an inventory of your fresh and frozen milk and organizes it by date, so you’ll never waste a bottle of that precious liquid gold. Milk Maid gets to know your patterns so well, it can even predict how much milk you’ll need to cover an upcoming business trip, letting you plan accordingly.
White Noise Baby Whether baby needs a vacuum cleaner sound to fall asleep or a jiggling rattle sound to stay calm, White Noise Baby has you covered. The interface is designed for one-handed operation since your other hand is probably vigorously rocking a bassinet. You can even set White Noise Baby to automatically turn on when it detects crying, which means it’s an app that can actually put your baby back to bed.
Baby Monitor 3G Turn an old smartphone into a portable baby monitor using the Baby Monitor 3G app. Not only does it save you money on a pricey video monitor system, but it’s also portable, so you can take it on vacation or to your in-laws. With up to six people allowed to share the app, it’s easy to let Daddy or Grandma peek in your little darling remotely. And it’s two-way, which means you can use your voice to soothe baby without entering the nursery—a great way of saying “I’m here, but your nap is NOT over.”
Tinybeans A digital baby album and journal for the modern mom, this wildly popular baby app is the perfect place to record baby milestones, photos, videos and updates, such as height and weight information from your latest pediatrician visit. Photos can be adorably customized with stickers and text, so you’ll never forget exactly what eight weeks old looked and felt like.
PackPoint One of the most daunting things to do with a newborn is travel because OMG the gear! What if you forget the bottles or the car seat or Heaven forbid, the diapers? For your first holiday with baby, check out the virtual packing checklist on the PackPoint app. Though not specifically developed for families, once you choose “Baby,” you’ll get a comprehensive packing template that includes everything from slings to sun hats.
MomieGo No offense to our precious babes, but sometimes moms crave adult conversation. The trick is finding a friend who’s available to meet you at the park at 9:00 am and doesn’t mind the occasional “what the heck is this rash” text at 3:00 am. Enter MomieGo, a Tinder-style app for connecting with other moms and hooking up play dates. Swipe right for mom friends!
Oh Baby! Mom and Baby Exercise Nobody’s saying you need to fit back into your skinny jeans any time soon, but if you’re looking for some safe postnatal exercises you can do on the floor with your baby, check out Oh Baby! The weekly workouts in this baby app are timed to your first six months postpartum, so they start out slowly and get stronger as you do. (It’s a good idea to check with your doctor before beginning any postpartum exercise program.)
Grubhub Taking care of a newborn is a full-time job, and unfortunately, dinner’s not going to make itself.That’s where the Grubhub restaurant delivery app comes into play. Available in 900 cites, it lets you search by cuisine (I was happy to see that “Bakery” qualifies as a food group) and order dinner from local restaurants and food shops to be delivered immediately or at the time of your choosing. Ding dong, it’s dinner!
Amazon Pity our mothers, who had to leave the house with kids in tow each time they ran out of diapers. Not only can we get our diapers delivered fast, but using Amazon’s Subscribe & Save option also makes them pretty cheap. The discounts increase when you add more of your go-to items like wipes, baby shampoo, detergent and, oh, I don’t know, coffee.
Photo: Getty
Like what you see? Don’t forget to Pin it!
