Best Baby Must Have’s for 6-9 Month Olds

Tina Muir
Beyond Running

Here is what I believed to be the best products for a 6-9 month old gift guide. Maybe you have friends and family with babies this age, or maybe it is you planning ahead. If you missed my recommendations for gift ideas for newborns, best baby products for 2-3 month old and 3-6 month old babies, you can read them first.

Now, to start, as before, I am sharing the items from the previous posts that we are still using on a daily basis. These are still Baby essentials for 6-9 months, but I already talked about them in detail in the previous posts, so you can read more there.

Now for the things for babies that we are loving in the last few months:

Halo Sleep Sack

We have transitioned out of the swaddle version, and into the more general sleep sack. Although it is still warm out, we have the air conditioning on, which can blow cold air right onto their little bodies if you are not careful. I like knowing that she is warm and covered with the sleep sack, when it is still recommended you do not use a blanket in the bed with them. This one goes all the way to a year, which is good, and it is very easy to do up…and undo in the night if you need to check something 😉

Find the Halo Sleep sack here.

Chicco FastAsleep Playard ($180)

I mentioned this in the previous guide, but for a different reason. Bailey is now too big for the changer on top, but that is fine, we just change her on the floor now, and trying to do so before she wiggles away.

However, this playard has really shown its magic in the last month. I often take Bailey with me to the gym to do my strength training workout while she watches, and this playard folds down VERY small into a nice little bag to carry, and then popping it back up, literally takes 1/2 a second. Bringing it down again is also simple. It is absolutely perfect for trips where you need a safe place to put your baby down (especially if they are rolling) which doesn’t take much to put it together.

One thing I will note though, this is pretty deep, and I am not sure I would want to be lifting the baby in and out too much for naps as it is quite difficult to lift them up out of it from a lying position. I would not suggest this for the travel crib to use next to your bed when they are a newborn.

Find the Chicco FastAsleep Playard here.

Jellycat Bunny and Monkey

A good friend of mine gave me the Jellycat bunny, explaining how her daughter had LOVED IT. I had also heard other people talking about jellycat toys and how amazing they were. I didn’t get it though, surely a cuddly toy is a cuddly toy, what could be so special?

We were given two jellycat toys (plus the soother we have is also jellycat) as gifts from two good friends, and both have long dangly arms and legs. Bailey LOVES them, giggles and rubs them into her face. I keep the monkey upstairs in the bathroom, and it keeps her entertained while I shower and get ready, and the other we keep downstairs. It makes her kick her arms and legs like crazy while she giggles. These really are worth it and wash up well. I will definitely be getting these for friends in the future too.

Find Jellycat Bunny here. (ours is orange, but I do not see that one available)

Fisher Price Bath

I am surprised I haven’t mentioned this ip to this point, but really, up to this point, I had been wondering if we really needed a baby bath. You hear of people using the sink…although I wasn’t sold on that. I know you can clean the area well and wash it out, but I just didnt like the idea of missing a little bit of something and Bailey putting her fingers in it…and then into her mouth.

I have also heard of people going straight for the regular bath with their babies, and I get that too, we have done that a few times. But Bailey LOVES this bath. It has been great as it converts from newborn to 3 month, 3 month to 6 month, and then to 9 month. You basically start with all the pieces, and just keep removing parts as they get older. She kicks, splashes, and loves to play in it…for up to 30 mins for bath time. One of her favorite parts of the day.

On that note, she also loves this Rainbow Fish book for the bath and these Skip Hop cups for us to wash off the soak and her to play with and kick.

Would I recommend purchasing an infant bath? Yes, I would. We took ours with us on our trip to Michigan as we felt it was that important.

Find the fisher price bath here.

Infantino Blocks and Animals

At this age, babies LOVE textures, love chewing on different things, and love colors.

This pack of blocks, balls, and buddies is absolutely perfect for babies this age. She loves to knock down our towers of blocks. She loves to roll the balls away with her hands and feet. The animals are her favorite things to play with right now. And of course, she chews on them all.

I much prefer products like this, where you have lots of little pieces that they can indivually or collectively play with, compared to a big all in one toy with lots of “things”. I like that Bailey is exploring things on her own. I have a feeling these have a lot more play in the future, especially once she can learn to build towers herself.

Find the Infantino set here.

Fisher Price Alligator Teether

Okay, so teething is going on a lot at this age, and teething toys become their most important toys to keep them happy. Bailey chews on anything and everything at this age, but this alligator teether is something she can chew on for a long time, and it is nice and small to take it anywhere.

Find the Fisher Price Alligator teether here.

Teething Necklace

Along with the teether, this is something I highly recommend. Bailey spent a full 45 mins just gnawing on this the other day as her teeth are breaking through. There are lots of sizes and shapes for her to chew on, and of course you can wear it around your neck and they can chew while you are out doing things.

A friend who is a lactation consultant gave me this, saying it was one of the best things she had come across, and now I am recommending it to you.

Find the Itzy Ritzy teething necklace here.

Chicco TRE Running Stroller

I don’t need to go into too much detail with this one, as I gave a full review on my postpartum return to running guide, BUT I love my running stroller, and this is the one I chose.

Find the Chicco TRE Running Stroller here.

JoJo

Babies need to be kept out of the sun as much as possible, we all know that, but it can be tough to put that into practice 24 hours a day. They are also not realistically going to wear sunglasses to keep the sun out of their eyes, which is where a good sunhat comes in very handy.

We love this JoJo one, although you cannot get the pattern we have anymore.

You can find JoJo sunhats here.

Infantino Musical Toucan

Full disclosure: Steve HATES this….not because it is a bad toy, but the songs drive him crazy. Not as much as this pink cat thing we have does though!

As much as he gets annoyed, he knows it really is a fantastic toy, and often when Bailey is surrounded by toys, this is the one she will go for. It has a lot of different….shall we say, levels for different developmental ages, and it seems every time she picks it up, she learns something new from it.

We are very happy with this toucan, I love that it is a toucan, not something you see every day, a little unique and I think the price is reasonable too.

Find the Infantino Musical Toucan here.

Chicco Hook on High Chair

In case it wasn’t obvious, we are huge Chicco fans, and we do actually have the Chicco 5-in-1 Highchair, which progresses from newborn all the way up to youth, but as Bailey was so short, we actually have to use teatowels to prop her up to make her at the right height for her table, so I will most likely give more feedback on the next post. Once we have propped her up, she loves sitting at her table with us.

However, she loves this Chicco hook on high chair more, and it puts her right at the level of us. Yes, that may mean we have to wipe down the table where she sits, but it is so worth it. She LOVES it.

Find the Chicco Caddy Hook on Chair here.

Just like the animals soft book

My aunts purchased this for Bailey, and oh my god did she love it! It was literally her favorite thing in the world. She would squeal with delight every time she saw it. It has lost a little of its power now, but it is still definitely one of her favorites. It has a lot of sounds and textures, and of course it is chewable…which is always good.

Find the ToBeReadyForLife cloth book here.

Sunglasses (especially Goodr!)

These are our emergency entertainer. If she is in the back of the car, and starting to get really irritated, I can just pass her my Goodr sunglasses, and she is entertained forquite a while. Thankfully, Goodr are really durable and can handle treatment from babies, but Steve’s Oakleys are in a bit of a risky situation.

I know sunglasses are not the best thing to give a baby, and I know it is a matter of time until she pinches herself with the hinge, but for now, she seems to be happy chewing on the ends, and if it keeps her happy while I drive, that is safest for me.

Peekaboo! Books

My niece, Charlotte loved these books when we were visiting England over the summer, she would want it read to her over and over again. We just got one for Bailey, and she seems to already love to watch it pop out at her, and I have a feeling her joy forit is going to continue to grow.

We have the Colors Pop Up Peakaboo here

Pearhead Milestone Chalkboard

I have had a lot of people asking about this board we use to display her monthly progress. I love this chalkboard, and it is fun each month thinking of what to fill it in with. The only suggestion I have is that you wipe it off right after doing it, as I did read some reviews that the chalk can permanently damage the board. I have avoided that by writing it, taking the photo, and then wiping away…may sound easy, but as you probably know, it is not always easy to write up something while your baby is happy, and time it right so they are also happy while you take the photo!

Good luck!

Find the Pearhead Baby’s Monthly Chalkboard

Nuby Silicon Mat

Bailey is well into her solids now, and as we are doing baby led weaning (baby led feeding), she eats almost exclusively finger foods. Little baby fingers are not so good at holding onto slippery things, so I love this mat as it stays still, but keeps her food in a little bowl, so she can pick it up easier. It is also really easy to wash up and clean.

I love the koala version which my mum found for me in Aldi I believe(!), but they have plenty of other animals to choose from.

We have the Nuby Blue Koala Placemat

Carters Bibs

Bibs at this age are pretty much a given, and although there are plenty of options, some more technical than these, we like these as Bailey is so small, they seem to fit her better, whereas other ones we have drown her. They collect the food in the bottom, and wash up nicely either as regular washing up or in the machine.

We have the Carter’s Dinosaur Bibs here

Nail Clippers

One of the scariest parts of being a parent to a baby is clipping their fingernails and toenails, and you have to do it often, they grow SO fast.

We really like these nail clippers, and although we do not use the magifiying glass, I can see how it would be helpful.

Our little secret to clipping her fingernails as they squirm away or bury their hands while sleeping, is to cut them while feeding. I rest her head on a pillow, and cut them while I am breastfeeding her. I know it doesn’t numb them from pain or discomfort, but sometimes I swear it does, as she just doesn’t seem to care at all while I do that. Other times she squirms away.

We have the American Red Cross Baby Nail Clippers

Infantino Entertainer

I wasn’t sure about getting an entertainer or jumper. I was paranoid about it doing damage to her growing body, but we have found a sweet spot of giving her 10 mins in the morning and 10 mins sometime later in the day. Now she is too big for the bouncer, she will be happily entertained on this while I am doing something where I need both my hands. It might seem excessive to have this for such a short amount of time each day, and I wondered the same thing, but that time is valuable to know they are safe and happy.

We love this infantino one, and she loooovess the music it plays, especially when I clap and dance to it. It also turns into a table for toddlers, and you can remove the pieces to place on it, and it folds up REALLY nicely for transportation.

Find the Infantino Sit, Stand, and Spin Entertainer here

Oh, and just one more thing. I have put amazon links to most of these products, but if you go in stores, they will often do a price match. I personally like purchasing things in store, as I hate the idea of stores disappearing forever, but Amazon gives me a TINY (but every little helps support me and my business) amount of money if you use my links to purchase your products. I would rather you keep the stores in business too, so buy these in person if you can, but can I ask that if you do decide to use amazon, could you please use the links above.

Thanks so much in advance 🙂

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