Recently my family and I have fallen in love with the
fruit/veg purees in a disposable squeeze packet available in most grocery
stores. However, at $1-$2 a pop they're a bit of a money eater. Solution? Find
a reusable container that I can add my own purees to. A quick search online
brought me to Silisqueeze:
At $11 each they're a bit pricey but I did the math and
realized that in less than 4 weeks we'll be saving quite a bit of money, not to
mention sparing the landfill of more waste. I decided to give them a shot.
I purchased a pretty soft orange 4 oz and a cheery apple
red 6 oz container. I also purchased a faster flow nipple that the makers state
is intended for older children. I wanted a faster flow one just in case my 11
month old got frustrated with the trainer nipple (like most non-spill nipples
it requires the child to bite down on the nipple AND suck).
After a few days my products arrived. I got everything as
stated but was a little annoyed to see that they individually plastic bagged
EVERYTHING. Which meant that each bottle and nipple was in its own plastic bag
with its own set of instructions. The extra nipples were also in their own bag
with instructions. Three sets of instructions saying the same thing. It was a
lot of redundancy and a lot of paper waste. I could excuse the extra nipples
but if they sell the 4 and 6 oz as a set why don't they package them as a set?
But nevermind that, businesses do a lot of things I don't
understand. The bottles -or “squeeze” if you prefer- were very pretty to look
at and very soft to handle. They're very easy to take apart and to reassemble.
Cleaning them is a breeze (note: because the nipples are clear silicone they
WILL stain over time but their softness does not change). I decided to try the
bottles out with my 11 month old using the fast flow nipples so that he would
get an immediate reward for sucking on the bottle. I happily filled it up with
Greek yogurt and fruit puree and sat back and watched as my little guy CHUGGED
it. So far so good.
Putting purees into the bottle is simple because the neck
is nice and wide and can accommodate a whole tablespoon, which makes it easy to
stir and mix inside the container. I particularly liked that there are ounce
markings on the side which makes it easy to portion. When using the lid you will
have to push extra hard with your thumbs the first few times because it is
stuck on there HARD. The caregivers at my son's daycare were terrified that
they would break it.
After having used this for a few weeks I am happy to say
that I love this product. It is perfect for what I need. It makes feeding my
Bug fruit and yogurt while on the go a snap. I do have a few issues with it,
though:
1) The lid does not stop puree from coming out of the
nipple. With milk bottles the cap is designed to cover the holes snuggly so
that if you flip the bottle upside down no milk comes out. The cap on the
Silisqueeze does not. So, if you have the fast flow nipple and you accidentally
press on the container, puree will fill the cap making quite a mess.
2) One of the things that made the disposable containers
nice is that as your baby sucked on it the container would collapse bringing
more of the puree to the nipple. When using the slow flow non-spill nipple you
get this to a certain degree, but it doesn't collapse all the way. When using
the fast flow nipple your baby will suck in air each time as they try to get
the last spoonfuls. We countered this by putting one finger over the hole and
shaking down a couple times and then handing it back. Do keep in mind that the fast
flow IS intended for older children who will know how to push the puree up and
expel the air that way.
3) There is no place to clip the cap when in use so when
your child is tipping it back they will inevitably get smacked in the face. I
like that the cap is tethered to the nipple but it frustrates my Bug when he
gets hit. I may decide to untether it.
Nonetheless, despite these issues, I love this product and
would recommend it to anyone.
About Bonnie: Bonnie lives in Cincinnati, OH with her husband, 11
month old son, and 3 hyper-active cats. She is an avid advocate of
breastfeeding, baby-wearing, and cupcake eating.
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