Reviews

MommiesFirst Subscription Box Review #HolidayGiftGuide

2013 Holiday Gift Guide

Four Christmases ago, I was six and a half months pregnant with my first baby. I had gestational diabetes, which meant I had to watch everybody else gorge themselves on Christmas cookies, Nanaimo bars, chocolates, mashed potatoes, and stuffing, while I ate turkey and carrots and cheese without the crackers. I sure could have used a pick me up, something special just for my pregnant self. Too bad MommiesFirst wasn’t around then!

MommiesFirst is a Canadian subscription box for expectant and new moms. MommiesFirst curates personalized monthly care packages filled with hand picked and stage-appropriate products designed to help them navigate through the journey of motherhood. They offer monthly subscriptions starting at $30 as well as specialty boxes for baby showers. I got the chance to review one of their boxes, tailored for my sister-in-law and her new baby boy, Tripp.

SO STOP READING NOW, SUSIE!

MommiesFirst curates monthly care packages for expectant and new moms filled with stage-appropriate products. She deserves a little pampering! #HolidayGiftGuide

I was excited when my pretty green and brown MommiesFirst box arrived in the mail. Who doesn’t love getting a surprise package? The box included a nice note for Susanne personalized to her baby’s developmental stage. This is all the loot that I found inside my er – Susies’s box.

  • ParentsCanada magazine
  • EcoParent magazine
  • First Food Organics – Organic brown rice cereal
  • Love Child Organics – First Pears & Apples/Sweet Potatoes/Carrots/Blueberries
  • Oliver’s Labels – Voucher code for complimentary sample pack of custom labels
  • Oliver’s Labels – “Birds” wall art decals
  • Munchkin – Soft tip infant spoons
  • Munchkin – Fresh Food Feeder
  • Ahava – All-In-One Toning Cleanser
  • CleanWell – All-natural hand sanitizing wipes
  • popchips
  • Dear Kate – $10 off voucher code

That’s a great value for just $30! The box came with a pack of tidy little product cards held together with a safety pin. Each card had info about the product, directions for use, why the product was included, where to find it, the price, and a bit about the company.

One of the first things I noticed was the reading material.  My box came with copies of ParentsCanada and EcoParent magazines – great for marathon nursing sessions! (I received this box at the very beginning of November which is why there’s a Halloween magazine in there!) There was also a voucher to order a sample pack of personalized labels from Oliver’s Labels, plus a set of adorable bluebird decals just perfect for my nephew.

MommiesFirst curates monthly care packages for expectant and new moms filled with stage-appropriate products. She deserves a little pampering! #HolidayGiftGuide

Tripp will be four months old in the new year, so MommiesFirst sent an assortment of items suitable for babies just starting on solid foods. My sister-in-law and I both follow Health Canada’s recommendations that babies should not start solids until around 6 months of age, but the spoons, mesh feeder, rice cereal, and Love Child purees will keep until Tripp is ready for them. That mesh feeder is a fantastic piece of gear, especially for babies who are learning to self-feed. You put soft fruit, vegetables, or meat in it, and baby can suck and chew on it without the risk of choking.

I was really happy with the ingredient lists on the Love Child purees. I’ve always made my own baby food because I don’t want to feed my babies anything but real, whole foods, but these are purees I have no qualms about giving to my nephew.

First Pears Ingredients: Organic pears.

Apples/Sweet Potatoes/Carrots/Blueberries Ingredients: Organic apples, organic sweet potatoes, organic carrots, water, organic blueberries, organic acerola [Barbados cherry], organic quinoa, organic lemon juice concentrate.

MommiesFirst curates monthly care packages for expectant and new moms filled with stage-appropriate products. She deserves a little pampering! #HolidayGiftGuide

I like that MommiesFirst included a little something for mom too. My box came with a $10 off voucher for some pampering with new underwear from Dear Kate, plus a nice deluxe sample of Ahava All-In-One Toning Cleanser. The all-natural hand sanitizing wipes from CleanWell will fit perfectly in Susie’s purse or diaper bag. The neat thing about the wipes is that their active ingredient is thyme oil instead of alcohol. Unfortunately, the bag of popchips was expired and a bit stale. That was the only disappointment in the box for me.

MommiesFirst curates monthly care packages for expectant and new moms filled with stage-appropriate products. She deserves a little pampering! #HolidayGiftGuide

When to Start Solids and My Conversation with MommiesFirst

Because of its focus on solid foods, I think this box is more suitable for a slightly older baby. The note that accompanied the box said that most pediatricians recommend starting solids between 4 and 6 months. Health Canada, the World Health Organization, and the American Academy of Pediatrics all recommend introducing solid foods around 6 months when babies can sit up and lean forward, turn their heads away to show they are full, and pick up their food.

I reached out to Lorena, the founder, CEO, and mom behind MommiesFirst. She responded quickly and shared a bit about the process behind the boxes.

As our care packages ship to breastfeeding and formula feeding moms across Canada and the US, we consulted moms and physicians in both countries, and our hope was to create a box that was inclusive of different choices and different babies. From speaking to pediatricians, the suggested time to start babies on solids has oscillated between 4-6 [months] over the past few years… Because every baby and every mom is different, what we decided to do was create a box that would include the products that could be useful when the mom (or baby) decided the time is right AND we wanted it to be their in advance of that decision, so that she’s not scrambling for stuff… Just because we’ve been doing it this way doesn’t mean we can’t evolve. We are also hosting a focus group with moms in the new year and will revisit timing on all our boxes!

I was impressed by this demonstration of Lorena’s responsiveness and eagerness to continually evaluate and improve MommiesFirst. For me at least, knowing that there is a genuine, committed, and passionate mom behind the business makes a huge difference in deciding where to spend my dollars.

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Gift It!

Buying a gift subscription for that special new mom or mom-to-be in your life has never been easier! You can choose a 3 month ($90), 6 month ($165 ~ a savings of $15), 12 month ($330 ~ 1 month free!) subscription, or a one-time shower box ($65) and have it mailed directly to her. MommiesFirst offers FREE shipping across Canada and the U.S.

Disclosure: I received a sample item for review purposes. All opinions expressed are completely honest and my own, based on my personal experience. Your experience may differ.

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