When my little guy was born, I had the lovely adventure of working with low breast milk supply. Thanks to the help of my lactation consultant, I was able to increase my milk supply but we had to supplement his feeding the whole time he breastfed. She suggested that we use a specialized bottle that would be allow his latch to be similar to actual breastfeeding. It worked like a charm for us. We never had issues going back and forth, and he breastfed for a little under a year. The only problem was that bottle was not commercially available in many places, and many moms that I’ve talked to had never heard of it.

Medela has introduced a new bottle called Calma which is specifically designed for breastfeeding babies. According to Medela, “Calma is a research-based nipple used with a BPA-free breastmilk bottle designed to help babies to maintain their natural feeding behavior and transition from bottle back to breast with ease — a revolution for breastfeeding mothers.”

Here’s how it works –

With Calma, breastmilk flows when babies create a vacuum so they can feed, pause and breathe — which mimics their feeding behavior at the breast. As a result, Calma’s unique vacuum technology allows mothers to provide pumped breastmilk to their babies, and easily transition babies back to feeding at the breast.

The vacuum technology in the Calma nipple is vastly different from a conventional bottle nipple, which may disrupt normal feeding behavior and contribute to a difficult transition from bottle to breast. Milk flows freely from a standard bottle nipple even if the baby is not actively sucking — a feature unlike that of the breast. Calma’s technology allows babies to continue their natural feeding behavior as if they were at the breast, making it easier for babies to transition back to breastfeeding.

With the support of Medela, Calma was developed through research by Dr. Donna Geddes, assistant professor, School of Biomedical, Biomolecular and Chemical Sciences at the University of Western Australia. “Our research on how babies breastfeed showed that tongue movement is different than previously described and that vacuum is important for milk removal,” said Dr. Geddes. “These new research findings led Medela to incorporate unique features into a teat so that infants use vacuum and tongue action similar to breastfeeding to remove the expressed milk from a bottle.”

The bottle has been available in Canada and Europe since 2010, but has just hit the market in the United States this year. It’s awesome news for moms who might be having breastfeeding issues that require bottle feeding early on but also for moms who will be feeding baby pumped milk for a whole host of other reasons.

While breastfeeding should be well established before Calma is introduced. Although, I think this is an awesome option for moms who might be needing to feed a baby while dealing with issues *while* establishing their supply when working with a licensed lactation consultant.

You can buy the Calma Breastfeeding Set online at these sites. It’s also for sale at specialty baby stores across the US like Isis Parenting locations in the Greater Boston area.

There were lots of new products (and some old ones we still love) for babies and toddlers at this year’s Toy Fair in New York City. We’ll be bringing you more information about the products as the year progresses, but here’s the sneak peak of the first group of our picks.

1. 3-In-1 Rocker Napper by Tiny Love – This awesome piece of gear is great for napping, rocking, and feeding and can be adjusted between functions with one hand. It should be in stores by May.

2. There’s not much we don’t love from 3 sprouts. There’s lot of new goodies coming from this stylish Canadian company including this Warthog Hooded Towel.

3. These Jungle Pocket Pouch from Tegu are the perfect little block set for the Diaper Bag. Although these are meant for kids a little older, this is a great little set for older babies to explore under direct parental supervision.

4. The edushape Mommy and Baby Elephant is a great little toy for sensory play. The elephant shakes, squeaks, rattles, and includes a mirror all of which address specific developmental skills including fine & gross motor skills, sensory tactile feedback, hand-eye coordination, and auditory sensory development.

5. Sleepy mommies rejoice! Blue Box Toys is launching a nifty baby sleep product this Fall called Watch Over Me. It has a 5 phase sleeping stage and uses motion, body heat and voice to recognize when the baby stirs overnight so that it can adjust to the appropriate sleep phase. Watch Over Me is scheduled to be in stores this Fall.

6. Janod is a French company that has been specializing in making wooden toys for 40 years. We love this Crazy Rocky Pullalong Dog.

7. eebbee toys has introduced this awesome eebee Adventure Play Mat & Activity Play House that will literally grow with your baby. At just a few months, baby enjoys the sensory stimulation of tummy time and as they turn into toddlers the mat can literally be turned into a little playhouse. Awesome!

8. We love Green Toys for their line of awesome cars, trucks, and even tea sets made of child friendly material. Their new line of Green Toys™ Mini Vehicles are going to make a lot of little ones happy.

9. Janod brings us this adorable ABC Walker that has an abacas in front and 36 alphabet and number blocks that fit inside the walker. Great first birthday gift!

10. We love the eebbee character, and this “if the SHAPE FITS eebee” plush is an adorable learning toy that comes with the 12″ plus and 4 wearable soft shapes.

Stay tuned for more of our picks for baby from Toy Fair 2012!

When it comes to diapers, every mom has to sort of find her own way. There are lots of different reasons to consider when you bring a brand of diapers into your house and put them on your baby. Cost, leakage (or lack thereof hopefully), your baby’s skin tolerance (rashes), and what material makes up the diaper are all things that moms can consider.

As of this week, there’s a new line of natural and non-toxic diapers in town from The Honest Company. The company was founded by Hollywood mom Jessica Alba and Christopher Gavigan, former CEO of Healthy Child Healthy World. “I created The Honest Company to help moms and to give all children a better, safer start,” said Alba.

Here are some of the highlights of the Honest diapers:

• Natural & non-toxic – chlorine-free, bio-based absorbent, and plant-based materials
  
• Ultra absorbent – superior performance & moisture retention
  
• Premium fit – cloth-like feel, contour elastics, and stretchy re-fastenable grip tabs
  
• Fashionable designs – choose from a growing selection of stylized patterns for your girl or boy

The Honest Company is going to be offering up more than just diapers. In addition, there will be all natural and non-toxic wipes that the company claims will be the only wipe you ever need to clean “from cheek to cheek!” There is also a line of non-toxic bath & skin and household cleaning products.

All in all, there are over 15 new products for moms who are trying to keep their household as chemical free as possible.

Another unique part of The Honest Company is how the products are sold. Moms can sign up for monthly bundles as a subscription service. In fact, they are offering free discovery kit trials right now to sample the new line of products. After the trial, moms can alter their bundle or even postpone a shipment all via an online ordering process.

Have you tried The Honest Company’s new diaper and/or baby product service yet? What do you think?