WebMD Baby: physician-approved baby health
The free Baby app from WebMD offers lots of free information and the ability to track your baby’s key milestones. With over 400 articles, 70 videos, and 600 physician-approved tips, this is the must-have app for any new parent. Content includes up-to-date information across various categories, including Baby & Toddler Care, Illness & Emergencies, Just for Moms, Just for Dads, Parenting Tips, Baby Week by Week, Ask the Pediatrician, Milestones, Vaccines, and Baby Doctor Visits. The WebMD app is available for iPhone and Android-based devices.
Luna: makeshift baby monitor using a pair of phones
New parents probably think they need to run out and get a costly baby monitor to protect their new bundle of joy. Think again. With Luna, your phone becomes the baby monitor. Available for Apple devices only, the freemium app features audio and video streaming and works with two iPhones or iPads. In doing so, you can instantly create a secure baby monitor with unlimited range. Compatible with Wi-Fi or cellular, Luna alerts you whenever your child wakes up, or you can do a check-up at any time just by opening the app. For added security, features:
Adjustable sensitivity: Change the audio level that’s required to activate an alarm. An adjustment might be recommended depending on background noises.Activity log: You’ll see a record of how long your child has been sleeping.Encrypted data transfer: Luna uses SSL, so you don’t have to worry about strangers checking out the connection between your devices.
Luna is free to try with Luna Premium at $6.99 through an in-app purchase.
Glow Baby: tracking feeds, diapers, and sleep
The first year of a baby’s existence is full of milestones. To keep track of all of these events, consider Glow Baby. An “App for Baby’s First Year,” Glow Baby is an all-in-one journalling solution for everything associated with your newborn, from development milestones to sleep and food tracking. There’s also a capture-the-moment feature that lets you take notes and document those precious moments. You can also share and upload photos with your family and friends. Looking for more? Glow Baby also includes a parental portal so you can discuss everyday challenges with other newbies. You can find Glow Baby on the App Store and Google Play. It’s free for seven days. A regular subscription is $48 per year or $3.99 per month.
webPOISONCONTROL Poison App: immediate questions and answers
It happens. You leave your child alone for mere seconds, and they put it into their mouth. Was the red berry okay to eat? How about that flower? The free webPOISONCONTROL app helps guide you in the right direction when something goes wrong. Just enter your child’s age and weight, the substance ingested and the amount taken, and the time since the exposure. Because seconds matter, the app also includes a barcode reader so you can scan the product instead of typing it into the search box. From there, the app will give you an immediate recommendation on what to do next. The latest version of webPOISONCONTROL expands the scope beyond swallowed poisons to eye, skin, inhalation, and injection exposures. There’s also a new section on bites and stings. Developed by poison control centers, the app is available on the App Store and through Google Play.
Mommy Saver: High Contrast Baby Visual Stimulation
For something different, try Mommy Save, which is a free app that’s available for iOS and Android. The app calms and delights your newborn instantly using high-contrast animations. According to experts, black and white images are more comfortable for infants to process. Featuring eight games and one song, Mommy Saver provides various movements and shapes and classical music. With a premium upgrade of $0.99, you get more games and songs. Regardless, neither version includes ads.
Moshi Twilight: sleep time made less stressful
For newborns and toddlers, the freemium Moshi Twilight app offers various features to make bedtime easier for children and parents. Offering sleep stories to allow your youngsters to drift off, the app includes lullabies, relaxing music, and meditation tools. Each feature has been designed with patience, reflection, and the power of imagination in mind. The former component was created with the team beyond Calm, a popular meditation app for adults. To date, Moshi Twilight includes 40 hours of original sleepy content with new items added each week. Although Moshi does require a subscription to access its entire library, there’s enough free content available to get an idea of what to expect. Better still, membership is free to try for seven days. Moshi Twilight is available for iOS and Android. You can subscribe for $4 per month or $40 per year.
Milk Stash: for new mothers to keep track
The Milk Stash app lets pumping mothers manage their sessions and keep track of fresh and frozen milk inventory in multiple locations. By keeping track of the pumping date, you can use the oldest milk first for added flexibility. Along the way, you can see a history of how much milk gets consumed and compare it to previous days and weeks. Free Milk Stash is available in the App Store.
Nod: the digital sleep coach
Offering real-time daily recommendations, Nod is the app to consider when your baby has problems falling and staying asleep. Recommendations are based on your baby’s age, development, and preferences as the parent. With Nod, key sleeping patterns and changes in a routine are taken into account, as is your baby’s feeding activity. With this information, the app makes recommendations on improving your child’s nap times or nightly sleep. For $4.99 per month, there’s Nod Premium, which adds advanced insights and graphs, personalized sleep coaching, and step-by-step guidance. You can download Nod on your Apple or Android-based device.
Lots of Apps
There are a lot of different apps for parents of newborns and toddlers too. Many of these are free, while others are free to try. Find the ones that match your needs and give them a test drive. The ones recommended here cover various bases and should get the jobs at hand done. Happy parenting!
