Busy Kid
BusyKid, the brainchild of a father of six, is the world’s first online platform that allows kids to earn, spend, invest, and save their allowance. It’s a virtual chore chart, really. Parents upload chores (based on age) to the app and to each kid’s profile, the kids check off the ones they’ve completed, and then they’re paid via the app. It’s possible for kids to make charitable donations, invest in stock and stash away for big purchases.
Available for download at iTunes or Google Play, $14.95 (after the free trial) for a year for the whole family.
Figure 8
When it comes to carpooling, the struggle is real. Figure 8 aims to take the stress out of getting your kids from Point A to Point B. This free, community-based app allows you to coordinate with other parents and teachers you trust, in order to get everyone where they need to be on any given day. With a few clicks, users can create an activity, select a driver, and coordinate pick up/drop off locations. Parents get a notification at every step of the process, which eliminates the need for extra phone calls and texts.
Available at iTunes and Google Play, free.
Wolf + Friends
Becoming a new parent isn’t easy and combined with special needs, it’s a whole new ballgame. That’s why we love Wolf + Friends, a brand-new app that’s creating a community for parents of kids with special needs. The app focuses on the life-long journey parents will have, and offers everything from relevant news, stylish and shoppable products and best of all, advice from child development specialists to help children with anxiety, ADHD, sensory processing issues, developmental delays, mental health issues, giftedness, autism, and other learning differences, thrive at home, at school—and in the world.
Available at iTunes, free.
Moshi Twilight
With calming audio stories and guided relaxations, Moshi Twilight helps kids find a healthy nighttime routine. The stories are set in a dreamy world, and the lulling voices help little dreamers nod off. Perfect for kids learning to sleep through the night, or how to sleep alone, this award-winning app is worth downloading.
Available at iTunes, GooglePlay and Amazon App Store.
Find out more: makebedtimeadream.com
Basket
Now that your sweet bundle has arrived, you’ll want to know where the best bargain on diapers and food can be found. That’s where Basket comes in handy. This crowdsourcing app searches nearby stores to see which one carries your total cheapest list. By allowing you to compare online and in-store prices (which vary from 30 to 40% each week), you’ll be able to decide where to spend your hard-earned cash.
Available on iTunes and Google Play, Free.
Baby and Child First Aid
When it comes to tackling family health and wellness, proper preparation and education are often more than half the battle. The British Red Cross has developed a clever app, Baby and Child First Aid, that’s chockfull of useful video tutorials and easy-to-follow advice that cover what to do when various ailments or medical crises arise. The app also lets parents record their child’s medication needs, and includes a list of tips and a handy checklist. While the emergency numbers in the app are for UK users, the information and advice are useful to anyone, anywhere in the world. Available for iOS and Android, Free.
Mark All Those Moments with Babypics
If you haven’t yet, you are going to be taking hundreds of pictures. In a week. Here’s how you’re going to manage it: Babypics. Capture all the precious moments, mark them with beautifully crafted artwork and words. With an array of custom features, including filters and milestone markers, you can create, save, share and order prints with just a tap. On iOS and Google Play. $2.99
HD Baby Watching: Baby Monitor 3G
This HD- quality video and baby monitor for your phone, tablet or computer allows you to hear every noise, stream live video and even comfort your baby remotely. Currently available for iOS users here and Android users on Google play here. $3.99Learn more at babymonitor3g.com
Play It Safe: MommyMeds
Not sure what medication is okay to take when you are pregnant or nursing, or how much? This app from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center will help you figure it out. Just search or scan the barcodes of thousands of medications, both prescription and over-the-counter and find clear, drug and safety recommendations and ingredients. Available for iOS and Google Play. $3.99
Nestnotes: The Private Network for Families
Created by a parent who knows about multi-tasking (the struggle is real), this brand-new digital platform is a photo library, a journal for recording milestones and memories, and a private social network with an interactive sharing service (family members can submit photos and comments). The app is easy to use—you can even send stuff via text—the graphics are beautifully designed and there’s plenty of privacy when it comes to sharing online, which makes it easy for new parents organize all the stuff that comes with a new arrival: first steps, birthdays, words and more!
Available at iTunes, Free ($5 a month for plus service, $15 a month for premium)
Create a DIY Baby Monitor: Cloud Baby Monitor
Visiting grandma but forgot the baby monitor? No problem. Download the Cloud Baby Monitor app and put your iPad, laptop or iPhone next to your little love. Then use your partners iPhone or another device as the parent unit for secure streaming of your hopefully sleeping baby. It will also send you notifications of motion or sound changes. Want to attempt to soothe Baby from afar? Use the app to play lullabies, white noise or talk to Baby. This app is also a great sub for those times when your regular monitor is out of range (we mean working in the garden people, not running out to the grocery store).
Available on iTunes.com, $3.99.
Help Baby Sleep with White Noise Baby
With more sounds than the average white noise machine and go-anywhere ease, the White Noise Baby app wins our vote for drowning out outside sounds when Baby is trying to snooze. It includes 20 soothing ambient sounds to help you—uh, we mean your baby—snooze. Choose from options like traditional white noise to “truck ride” or “vacuum cleaner,” there is something to soothe all sleepers. There is even a timer system that slowly fades audio in and out so you can sneak your phone back once baby drifts off and if you leave your device in the nursery, you can set it up to come back on when crying is detected.
Available on iTunes.com, $0.99; and play.google.com, free.
Help the Sitter Track with Babysitting Pro Activity Log
If you are headed back to work full time and leaving your newborn with a nanny, this app can give you peace of mind. The sitter can log in everything from dirty diapers to story times attended as well as hours worked. You can check the info at the end of the day or get notification throughout.
Available on iTunes.com, $1.99; and play.google.com, $0.99
Track Baby’s Every Move with Sprout Baby
Sprout Baby is a do everything baby app. Not only will it keep you posted on the latest developmental feats your baby should be going through at every stage, but also it lets you track your baby’s specific milestones with photos and journal entries and track everything from feedings to growth. You can also track health records and generate a report to share with your doctor during visits.
Available on iTunes.com, free.
Find Trusted Baby Advice at Your Fingertips with BabyCenter
When you have a baby, suddenly everyone from your mom to the lady at the grocery store is an expert. BabyCenter’s Your Baby Today app puts their (less annoying) expert advice in the palm of your hand. No need to thumb through heavy books, this app keeps you on top of important developmental milestones, health and safety advice and even suggests age-appropriate activities for each week. Now who’s the expert, huh?
Available on iTunes.com, free; and play.google.com, free.
Quick Sleep Tips from Baby Sleep Site
In the thick of new parenthood, we could all use more Z’s. And we are always searching for advice to get our baby to sleep longer, right? This app is a great quick reference with tips sorted by both age and type of sleep (naps, night, etc.), plus you can create a customized sleep schedule to help you organize your day.
Available on iTunes.com, free; and play.google.com, free.
Nursing Help in Seconds: Baby Nursing App
Breastfeeding can be complicated enough at the start. Did they latch? Football or cradle hold? Which side did they eat last? When did you eat last? Nipple confusion? How about mom confusion. Don’t stress. The Baby Nursing app tracks their latest feeding time, which side and for how long they ate, bottle feeding records, sleep and more. It logs all the information in handy dandy nursing history logs, which you can share with your doc (or whomever else cares to ask) and look like a total pro.
Available on iTunes.com, free.
WebMD: Your Source for Solid Health Info
The WebMD app includes a lot of the same features other baby apps do: sleep tracker, diaper tracker and a feeding/nursing tracker. But the big difference here is the content. The app is a fantastic resource for new parents featuring a wealth of medically-approved content on week-by-week development, milestones, doctor visits, emergencies, baby care and more.
Available on iTunes.com, free; and play.google.com, free.
Eat Sleep: Simple Baby Tracking
The newborn stage is all about eating and sleeping (and pooping). So the Eat Sleep app tracks all of that for you in detail. Log bottles and breastfeedings. Clock in times that baby sleeps and wakes (you may even start to see a pattern one day!). And watch those dirty diapers to ensure your little is eating enough.
Available on iTunes.com, free.
A Must for Pumping Moms: Milk Maid
If you’ll be pumping a lot, whether back at work or at home, Milk Maid will help you stay organized. Not only does it track when, how much and how long you’re pumping, but it also can calculate whether or not your current stash will cover your next business trip.
Available on iTunes.com, $2.99.
Up Your Photo Game with Snapseed
You take dozens of photos daily, or maybe even hourly, and for those priceless keepers, giving them a quick edit will make them even better. Snapseed is an easy-to-use photo editor even for not so savvy users. Quick swipes can adjust brightness, contrast, color and more. This app can also rescue any money shots that just happened to be taken in bad lighting.
Available on iTunes.com, free; and play.google.com, free.
–Julie Seguss & Phebe Wahl
Feature photo: kaboompics via Pixaby
