KidsHaus

Rinki - Highchair

I'm amazed at the progression of children's furniture these days. Just when you think it's been done, along comes an innovative design that makes you stop and stare. The Rinki Highchair by Seimi is one such design that converts from a stool to highchair -- growing with the child! As a consumer and parent, you've got to love stretching the lifespan of something that you've spent good money on.

Traveling Triumphs

We just got back from a fantastic holiday in Kauai, Hawaii and were fortunate enough to experience stellar  weather and catch up on lost sleep. Now I've got the energy I need to survive the winter. Speaking of survival and especially since we're entering a major travel season, I thought I would share a few key items that we brought along with us that made traveling with the Mini so much easier...

1. I've got to rave about the Phil & Ted's Me Too chair for a second. Every time I take this chair to a public place, someone will inevitably ask me what it's called. The Me Too folds flat, attaches easily to all of the tables that we've come across so far and it just looks impressive. It makes a great gift too. Love it!
2. The Kiddopotamus TinyDiner is an essential addition with the Me Too chair. It's a rubber mat that suctions to most surfaces and has a gutter to catch dropped food. It came in handy a couple of times in Kauai when we dined at some rather "rustic" tables. It's convenient to have when you're at a restaurant so you don't have to scatter nibbles directly on the table and leave a huge mess. I just throw ours in the dishwasher to give it a good cleaning.
3. While on the subject of the brilliant Phil & Ted company, we bought the t2 Travel Cot before our trip as our "crib" for the Mini. Obviously, it was a gamble since she had never tried anything like it before. The first night I popped her in it for bed time, she mustered up a little fight until I (get this) managed to squeeze myself inside for a few minutes to make her feel like it wasn't a scary place. In retrospect, I should have employed Ms. Bean for this job. Anyhow, after that night, the t2 was our savior! The Mini managed to love her evenings in the t2 and literally had 3 nights where she slept through the night. I'm not sure if that was due to a full day at the beach or the comfy cot but, all I have to say is that I'm thrilled to own it and highly recommend it for travel.
4. Finally, this one goes for Ms. Bean (who is 5) but I consider it highly essential: our DVD player or iPod for the airplane ride. We alternated between a compact DVD player and our iPod to keep Ms. Bean occupied while she was forced to sit still for 5+ hours. The iPod is great to listen to audiobooks downloaded from iTunes. Her current fave is the series of Dr. Seuss narrated stories.
   

If you've got any great travel ideas, please share...

The best seat in the house

I love our Svan chairs! Plain and simple. After the Bean outgrew her high chair, we needed to find a seat that she could comfortably sit in at our dinner table. I wasn't happy with the plastic booster seats -- they would topple and were ultimately uncomfortable. The Bean would have been happier eating off the floor. Thankfully, after some research, I found the Svan chair and the rest is history. The Bean has had her Svan for the last 3 years and continues to grow with it. The story doesn't end here because we bought a second one for our infant, whom I'll nickname the Mini for now. The minute Mini was tall enough to peek over the tray, we popped her in.

The fantastic thing about the Svan is it's compact size. We've got a narrow kitchen and I can tuck the Svan in a corner without the fridge door bumping into it. I only mention this because our big Graco high chair was like an elephant in the corner. It was a daily battle between the fridge and the high chair.

Let me make this easy and list out the Svan's pros and cons:

Pros:
- The seat and footrest are easily adjustable using the supplied Allen key
- Very space conscious design
- The design blends well with modern or traditional decor
- Several different wood stains to choose from
- Several different colored seat cushions to choose from
- The seat cushions are machine washable!
- The baby tray can be purchased as an extra option
- Plastic tray cover that easily snaps on and off for washing
- Lightweight and easy to drag around

Cons:
- No wheels, so dragging could scratch floor (I added felt pads to mine)
- A little pricier than most high chairs but, think about it, you will use it for years. My 5.5 year old is still using hers
- I'm out of cons. It's a great chair!